A Very Merry Christmas Card From Granny McNutty

The above e-card showed up in my email this morning after I returned from a brisk walk in Lucy Park.

I do not recollect getting a Christmas card previously in e-card mode.

I have not seen Granny McNutty in person in decades.

If this Christmas photo is a recently taken one, I must say Granny McNutty has barely aged a day since I last saw her.

I am currently scheduled to see the current version of Granny McNutty in person next summer...

Back To Lucy Park With Fallen Trees

On this second Saturday of the 2021 version of December it was back to Lucy Park for a chilly commune with nature.

A cold front blew in yesterday, extremely hard, blowing leaves like projectiles, creating a dust storm, along with sparking wildfires, one of which caused the evacuation of part of the town of Electra, a few miles west of Wichita Falls.

By this morning almost dead calm prevailed, with a temperature a few degrees above freezing.

Soon upon arrival at Lucy Park wind damage was obvious, as witnessed by the above photo documentation of a blown over tree.

The trees look so odd without their leaves, like that fellow you see above, basically all trunk with maybe two limbs.

Lucy Park has such a large variety of trees. Only a few of which I know their brand. For instance, I can tell a pecan tree is such, due to the nuts on the ground and all the nuts harvesting the nuts. I can tell an oak tree via both the acorn nuts and the shape of the leaves. 

Methinks it would be a mighty fine addition to Lucy Park to put identifying signage by the various trees. This would be quite educational.

I do not know if there will by any nature communing tomorrow. If past history is any indicator, there likely will be some nature communing...

Wichita Falls Riverside Cemetery Walk After COVID Booster

Around 11 this fine Friday's morning I had successfully been injected with a COVID booster shot. Even though I was dressed for a doctor's visit, not in my regular outdoor exercise garb, I decided, since I was in the neighborhood I would head toward Lucy Park for some nature communing in long pants.

But, before one gets to Lucy Park one comes to Riverside Cemetery. The biggest graveyard in Wichita Falls. Riverside Cemetery is on a bluff above the Wichita River and adjacent to Lucy Park. It is from Riverside Cemetery that the manmade Wichita Falls flows. We will get to that further along.

But, first let's take a walk around this huge cemetery. There are multiple historical markers in this cemetery, the first being that which you see above, near the Riverside Cemetery entry. This historical marker explains the historical nature of this cemetery and the many local notables buried here.

As you can see there is a wide variety of final resting places, including many of the above ground crypt sort.

The above historical marker for Felix L. Lindsey is an interesting one. Born in Kentucky to a mulatto mother and full blooded Creek father, Felix was sent to live with a white family named Meeks when he was seven. In 1882 Felix joined the army and became a Buffalo Soldier. His unit was involved in the pursuit and capture of Geronimo. In those Apache battles Felix suffered several wounds, which eventually ended his army career at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, a few miles north of Wichita Falls. So, Felix moved to Wichita Falls, got married, had nine children. Felix began a couple business, earning the respect of his customers. 

This historical marker ends poignantly with "Felix Lindsey is a testament fo the passion and perseverance of African Americans after the Civil War to prosper and earn respect during a turbulent time in Texas and our nation."

No details, other than the photograph, were seen in the above what must be a recent burial.

A historical marker about Joseph Kemp. One of Wichita Falls' founding fathers. You see the Kemp name all over town.

A couple of the above ground crypts, above and below.

Do people have a key to the door in these crypts and come and visit?

 I tried to get a photo showing how large Riverside Cemetery is. The above is the best I came up with.

And here I am looking through the chain link fence which separates Riverside Cemetery from Wichita Falls. If you look close you can see the top of the falls at the center left of the photo.

It was rather an enjoyable walk today meandering around Riverside Cemetery. I only walked a few of the roads. I suspect the grand total is many miles of road to walk in this cemetery.

Warm Endorphin Collecting In Lucy Park With Suspension Exposure

With the outer world back being at a shorts and t-shirt temperature level, as in the 80s, it was back to my current go to place for endorphins gained via aerobic stimulation.

Going to my current go to place for endorphins would indicate that the above photo was taken in Lucy Park.

With the leaves mostly gone from bushes and trees, as one walks the Circle Trail you get views of the Lucy Park Suspension Bridge over the Wichita River that one does not see when the foliage is in full cover up mode.

Which is what you are looking at in the above photo.

Tomorrow is scheduled to be another warm day, but I don't know if I will see Lucy Park. Tomorrow I am scheduled to get a COVID booster shot.

Jason & Spencer Jack's Snowy Visit To Our Only Lynden Aunt

Yesterday, that being the day known as Wednesday, my Favorite Nephew Jason, also known as FNJ, sent my phone two photos. The first, that being the one above, is a classic look at Washington's one and only town which is Dutch themed, namely Lynden. 

The majority of my relatives used to live in Lynden and the area surrounding Lynden. A short distance east of town one comes to Slotemaker Road and the Slotemaker Farm. The Dutch name Slotemaker translates into English as Jones.

When I saw the above photo I could not quite make out who it was looking at the camera. So, I zoomed in and cropped out the camera looker.

As you can see, it was Spencer Jack standing in front of Lynden's most famous windmill. It has been quite a few years since I roamed the main street of Lynden. If I remember right the windmill is one of the access points to a sort of underground mall type thing in Lynden's downtown. I think I remember playing miniature golf in that underground mall. And roller skating and maybe bowling. The memory is hazy.

In the text that came in with the photos Jason did not mention that he and Spencer made a visit to Spencer Jack's great grandpa and gteat grandma. If you look closely you can see where Spencer got his middle name.

Jason did mention that being up in Whatcom County, and Lynden, they were experiencing the first lowland snow of the year.

That and they paid a visit to one of our few relatives still living in Lynden. That being my favorite 79 year old aunt. Jason said they had a nice visit. I have always had fun teasing that particular aunt. She usually took the teasing good naturedly. 

Jason said during the visit they discussed various relative's medical diagnoses. Along with discussing one of the relatives in relative need of a psychiatric exam. And possible behavior modifying medication such as Prozac or Zoloft or maybe Wellbutrin...

Fiery Tuesday Sunset Before Wednesday Morning Lucy Park Nature Commune

What you see above is what the sunset sky looked like last night, looking west, when I was getting in my vehicle in the Walmart parking lot.

The temperature yesterday started off below freezing. By the time I walked around Sikes Lake I had too many layers of outerwear on, necessitating removal as I began to heat up. The outer world was warmed to somewhere in the 40s by that point in time.

It froze again last night. But I did not make the same outerwear mistake for this morning's Lucy Park nature communing. I left the insulating long underwear at home. The temperature was a bit warmer than it was for yesterday's walk, heated into the semi-balmy 50s.

In the above Lucy Park view we are standing on the Circle Trail, looking north at the Lucy Park undeveloped zone, currently leaf-free. In a few months, well, about four months, the scene here will return to being jungle-like with green the predominant color.

But, before green returns we have a long, hard, cold winter to make it through. Hopefully without a state-wide blackout with the temperature below zero...

Snowy Merry Christmas From Joey, Henry & Monique

 

The above arrived in my mailbox yesterday. The first Christmas card to arrive during this getting Christmas cards in the mail time of year.

The card says "Merry Christmas Love, Joey, Henry and Monique."

Which would make that Hank "Henry" Frank holding a snowball.

Joey, Henry and Monique's abode is in the Skagit Flats, near Roozengarde. I don't think snow has hit the ground on the Skagit Flats yet during this snow is possible time of the year.

That looks like a big snowman standing behind Hank Frank. 

UPDATE: This morning I learned via the Seattle Post-Intelligencer that snow has fallen of late in the lowlands of Western Washington. Which would seem to render it possible that Hank Frank's snowman and snowball are recent productions. I remain skeptical though...

Sikes Sunset With Good Shepherds Joining Three Wise Men

Yesterday, that would be Sunday, for some reason that day's morning multi-mile walking at Lucy Park did not fill my aerobically induced endorphin needs. 

So, about an hour before the sun was scheduled to set I took off on a bike ride, heading north on the Circle Trail to Hamilton Park, then through the festively decorated Beverly Hills of Wichita Falls to the equally festively decorated campus of MSU, and then on to Sikes Lake where I saw that which you see above.

A few days ago I mentioned discovering what appeared to be an abstract hoohoo rock sculpture installation which appeared to possibly be an homage to the Three Wise Men awaiting the arrival of Baby Jesus. 

Last night, as you can clearly see, it appears some Good Shepherds have arrived to join the Three Wise Men to await the arrival of Baby Jesus later this month.

 A short distance from the abstract hoohoo rock sculpture installation I stopped my bike again to take another photo when I realized the sun was quickly leaving for the day. The sun sets fast at this location of the world.

I took the photo and then skedaddled at high speed the approximate mile back to my home base. There was still some ambient light when I arrived at that home base. But not much...

Wise Words About Fort Worth's Trinity River Vision Boondoggle Mess

A guest editorial type opinion piece appeared a couple days ago in the online version of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. The subject was America's Biggest Boondoggle, also known as the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision.

A Vision which has been trying to be seen for almost two decades, with the primary accomplishment, thus far, being three supposedly iconic signature bridges built over dry land, taking seven years to build, due to being highly complex feats of engineering. 

That is a drone image of one of the bridges you see above. Breathtaking, isn't it. People will be wanting to come from all over the world to drive over those bridges and marvel at the engineering feat and the cement lined ditch.

But, you don't see that cement lined ditch in the above image, do you? Like we said, the bridges were built over dry land, to connect the Fort Worth mainland to an imaginary island. Currently there is no funding for the digging of the ditch, due to multiple complications and incompetency's. 

You probably will be paywall blocked from reading the After another Panther Island disappointment, city and private sector should step in opinion piece. This guest editorial by Chris Putnam makes multiple excellent points. Chris Putnam tried to replace Congresswoman Kay Granger, but his overly enthusiastic support of Trump doomed that effort.

We shall go through Putnam's piece and share those aforementioned excellent points...

Once more, our community finds itself lamenting another Washington budget cycle in which the Trinity River Panther Island project has not received federal funding. 

Every year, about this time, is Panther Island Groundhog Day. To quote the Star-Telegram Editorial Board: “As Washington spews $1.2 trillion for infrastructure, none for Panther Island. Why?” 

Yeah, why? Good question. And Putnam answers it...

But another question arises, too: How do we get out of this mess?

To answer these questions, it is important to understand how we got here. Panther Island was sold to taxpayers and voters as a “flood control project.” But the reality is that it was always principally a commercial real estate project conceived by Rep. Kay Granger. “Flood control” was the justification for the massive federal expenditure required to construct the proposed Trinity bypass channel. 

A proper flood control feasibility study has never been produced. In fact, the Tarrant Regional Water District, which oversees the project, refused money that the Trump administration offered just last year to perform one. The water district knows full well that, as currently structured, the project will never survive the review.

The lack of a feasibility study has long been the major roadblock to what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle. Putnam further elaborates...

Digging a bypass channel for the Trinity is the principal element of the project’s economic development element — creating a San Antonio-like river walk. This has been the primary issue with the project all along. U.S Army Corps of Engineers projects and budgets cannot be used for economic development projects. 

The water district may have successfully confused local bond voters with this shell game, but it’s well understood in Washington, which is why the project remains unfunded. Compounding this problem is the political reality that no one in Washington wants to attach themselves to the bad optics of nepotism and potential conflicts of interest in approving such a large budget with the requesting congresswoman’s son in charge of the project. 

The mention of "confused local bond voters" in the above paragraph perplexed me. There has never been a bond measure voted by the voters which specifically dealt with voter approval of the Trinity River Vision. The Vision was foisted on the public without the public's voting approval.

Continuing on...

As a community we must be honest about the project’s origins, its challenges and the roadblocks to funding. The flood control element must be clearly and truly separated from the economic development project. This is a clear requirement for Corps flood projects. 

It has been perplexing for years now why those who are foisting this project on the public think they can somehow skip this key error in the actualizing of the project.

J.D. Granger should be completely removed from the project and all perceived conflicts of interest eliminated. Private partners should be brought in, along with fresh leadership that expands the city of Fort Worth’s role in governance. 

A legitimate, transparent public/private partnership approach should be implemented. Developers not controlled, approved or managed by J.D. Granger would contribute matching dollars directly to the bypass channel construction, thus becoming a true partner with the taxpayer and federal government. This is how other infrastructure costs are structured with developers. 

J.D. Granger being given a high paying job, for which it is now totally clear he was not qualified, has long been controversial. Hired to motivate his mother to secure federal funds. Which has not happened. And which likely sours many in Congress who know the details of Fort Worth's Boondoggle.

Continuing on...

Asking J.D. Granger to step away from the project, increasing the city’s governance role and asking the private sector entities who will ultimately profit to share in the channel-construction expense will help restore public trust and demonstrate good faith to Washington.

Political realities in D.C., Kay Granger’s nepotistic conflict of interest and the mismanagement of the project for the last 20 years dictate that she simply cannot steer this project to completion. Fort Worth civic leaders, local government entities, and the community at large must change strategies. 

Mr. Putnam has opined the most sensible take that I have read of the mess Fort Worth has gotten itself into. And Mr. Putnam suggests a sensible way forward out of this mess. A sensible way which makes sense. Making sense is something which has been sadly lacking from day one of what has become America's Biggest Boondoggle...

Foggy Saturday Nature Commune At Lucy Park

At dawn's early light, this Saturday morning, a dense fog rendered almost zero visibility looking out my bedroom window. Yesterday's record breaking high got mixed up with an incoming cold front making for a foggy mess.

It is now two hours past noon and the sun still has not managed to melt away the foggy cloudiness.

So, even though the outerworld was a bit uninviting, and creature of repetitive habit that I be, I rolled my wheels once again to Lucy Park to commune with nature and dodge disc golfer's discs.

Each visit to Lucy Park of late has seen less and less color and fewer and fewer leaves in the trees. The evergreens are still green, though, hence the name. The one above is a good evergreen example. It looks like an overweight Christmas tree.

I thought the above now naked tree looked interesting. The photo does not much do justice to how interesting it looked. That trail you see here is not the Circle Trail. Lucy Park has multiple lesser trails meandering through the park.

Another interesting looking tree next to another meandering trail. It looks like a ghost town of dead trees.

Had never walked through the above section of Lucy Park before. Multiple sheltered picnic tables hidden in a grove of trees.

I wonder where I will commune with nature tomorrow?