Cloudy Drippy Semi-Chilly Return To Lucy Park

I needed to refresh my supply of reading material, so it was to downtown Wichita Falls I ventured this morning, to that socialist operation known as the Wichita Falls Public Library.

After the library, since I was in the neighborhood, it was to another socialist operation, Lucy Park, I drove.

As you can see via the photo documentation of the sycamore tree in the middle of the photo, we are not seeing blue sky today at my Texas location.

Clouds!

With some raindrops dripping.

And a temperature of only 84 degrees. Not quite a sweater wearing chill, but much more pleasant than when the outer world is heated to more than 20 degrees warmer than 84.

It was seeming eerily quiet in here, with traffic noise being able to be heard. I wondered why the atmosphere was seeming so different. And then I realized, the air-conditioner is not running.

This cold snap will be short lived, with a quick return to being heated to over 100 degrees HOT. I shall be enjoying the respite while it lasts...

Record Breaking Temperature In Wichita Falls & All Over Texas

This morning CNN online had an article titled "Here are some US cities that set records Tuesday as temperatures soared to as high as 115 degrees".

I clicked the link thinking I was going to see record high temperatures set all over the U.S.

Instead the record breaking temperatures were mostly in Texas, with a couple in Oklahoma.

With the HOTTEST record breaker being the town I am in, Wichita Falls, which sizzled to 115 yesterday.

I had thought our high here yesterday was 113, and said as much to a friend from high school who was visiting Tonasket in Eastern Washington and had posted on Facebook how he was on the edge of suffering heatstroke due to the temperature being 90.

I proceeded to inform this person that he was a temperature baby.

Today is scheduled to be cooler, a predicted high of only 107, with a chance of some rain and thunderstorming. 

During yesterday's sizzler a wildfire erupted just out of the eastern border of Wichita Falls. The wildfire forced the closure of Highway 287, the freeway route between Wichita Falls and DFW. 

I do not think I have ever been so eager for summer to come to its end as I am currently.

From the CNN article...

Here are some US cities that set records Tuesday as temperatures soared to as high as 115 degrees--

Here are some of the record highs for July 19 that were set in Texas and Oklahoma:

• Wichita Falls, Texas: 115, breaking a record of 112 set in 2018.

• Borger, Texas: 111, breaking a record of 109 set in 2018.

• Abilene, Texas: 110, breaking a record of 108 set in 1936.

• Oklahoma City: 110, breaking a record of 109 set in 1936.

• Amarillo, Texas: 108, breaking a record of 105 set in 2018.

• San Angelo, Texas: 108, tying a record set in 2018.

• El Paso, Texas: 107, breaking a record of 105 set in 1980.

• Camp Mabry in Austin, Texas: 106, breaking a record of 105 from 1914, 1923 and 1951.

• Midland International Air & Space Port in Midland, Texas: 105, tying a record from 1981 and 2018.

• Houston: 100, tying a record set in 2000.

And there is this I saw a few minutes ago on Facebook. This version has the Wichita Falls temperature record being 113...

Sizzling Tuesday At 113 Degree

The temperature forecast for today, Tuesday, July 19, 2022, is what you are looking at.

113 degrees Fahrenheit.

This morning I saw it suggested that the elderly stay indoors in an air-conditioned space today, and the following days, until natural air-conditioning returns.

So, I will not be going outside today, or tomorrow, but maybe I will do so on Thursday, with the current forecast predicting the high on Thursday will be a relatively chilly 98 degrees.

Grass at my north Texas location is no longer green. Green has turned brown.

Rolling my bike north on the Circle Trail on Sunday I came upon an area where the brown grass had caught fire. For about 100 feet the brown had been turned to charred black, from beside the Circle Trail down the slope to now, mostly dry, Holliday Creek.

Sizzling Sunday At 109

Screen shot from my phone this HOT Sunday afternoon in Texas. The A/C seems to be running almost nonstop to keep the abode cooled to 78 degrees Fahrenheit.

Before it got too HOT I went on a bike ride this morning. It was more enjoyable than yesterday's bike ride. I think pumping up the tires helped.

The coming week is predicted to be the HOTTEST yet. It really does get a bit tiresome...

Rolling In The HEAT To Sikes Lake And Beyond

My bike rolled me around Sikes Lake and some other locations this HOT Saturday in July.

I don't know why, but I am not enjoying the bike riding like I used to. The HEAT is easier to take whilst bike riding, compared to fast walking. Rolling through the air creates a cooling wind chill, adding to the chill factor of the wind speed.

But, as soon as I stop rolling I quickly overheat and become a sweaty mess, which adds to the cooling as soon as I begin rolling again.

The bike's speedometer/odometer device malfunctioned today. It would not let me reset the distance. As in resetting the miles rolled back to zero. Instead, it added today's rolling to the previous distance rolled. Which forced me to use my limited mathematic skills to calculate how many miles I rolled, and how long I rolled, because it also would not reset the timer to zero.

Looking at the temperature forecast, starting tomorrow, through Wednesday, we are about to be our HOTTEST yet.
 

I do not recollect previously experiencing 110 degrees in Texas. In California and Arizona, I have been hotter than 110, over 120 in both states, with the hottest being in Death Valley in California.

So, it looks like Tuesday the Texas grid is going to be facing its biggest challenge yet, during this ongoing day after day after day after day over 100 degrees...

Today Lucy Park Falls Signage Did Not Help Start My Dead Vehicle

Today's warmly HEATED visit to Lucy Park turned into the longest Lucy Park visit ever.

But, before we get to that let's talk about the signs directing Lucy Park visitors to The Falls.

On my first visit to Lucy Park there were no directional signs. An event was taking place in the park, with the Texas Visitor's Center having an informational booth. It was at that informational booth I got the information needed to find The Falls.

It is rather easy to find The Falls in Wichita Falls, from Lucy Park. Simple follow the Circle Trail next to the Wichita River and you will soon come to The Falls.

About one out of every four Lucy Park visits I am stopped by a visiting tourist and asked how to get to The Falls. I never rudely say, "Just follow the signs." I politely provide the needed information in the same way it was related to me on my first visit to Lucy Park.

Above and below you see examples of the Lucy Park signage which now exists which make it easy to find your way to The Falls. And yet, I still get asked for directions.

The above sign even includes a map to make finding the correct direction real easy. This sign is a the Lucy Park entry to the Lucy Park suspension bridge across the Wichita River.

The above sign pops up at a trail junction a semi-short distance from the sign by the suspension bridge.

The signs really seem easy to follow, to me. 

Now, on to why I had such a long Lucy Park visit.

I arrived at the park before 11 this morning. I finished my fast walking exercise bout before noon. Went to start my vehicle and it would not cooperate. It had had the same problem a month prior, and had been fixed, supposedly, by an auto mechanic at a place called Alley's. It was a simple fix. Corroded connections. 

When the same thing happened today, I took off the connections, to see if they looked corroded. They didn't. But, I scraped them anyway. Put them back on, still did not start.

Called AAA. Was told help would arrive by one in the afternoon. One in the afternoon arrived, but no AAA. And then AAA called to say that it would now be three in the afternoon that help would arrive in the form of something called Pigg's Towing.

Every morning I hear an ad on the radio for Mike's Towing. It is a memorable ad. So, I called Mike's Towing. About ten minutes later Mike's Towing arrived to tow my dead vehicle back to Alley's where it had been supposedly fixed a month ago.

The Mike's Towing guy then deposited me back at my abode, where I was starving hungry and semi-dehydrated.

I guess I will now cancel AAA, since their road assistance appears to be worthless...

With Linda Lou Visiting Mount Vernon Farmer's Market & Hank Frank

Late yesterday afternoon, Mount Vernon's Linda Lou went walking with me in Walmart.

During the course of our walk talk Linda Lou told me about a Mount Vernon Farmer's Market she had been to that day. 

Linda Lou described to me the location of this Mount Vernon Farmer's Market, at the west end of Blackburn Road. So, this morning I used Google Earth to visit Mount Vernon.

I believe that is the Mount Vernon Farmer's Market Linda Lou told me about, above. Linda Lou described a big variety of Farmer's products at the Farmer's Market. Three types of cucumbers, the greenest parsley she'd ever seen, bright ruby red radishes. And more, much much more. 

Including a walk-in cooler with various Farmer's meat products.

And shopping at this Farmer's Market used the honor system. As in, no checkout with a clerk. You pick the products you want to buy, estimate the total, and then insert the right amount of cash into a secured container.

I would have trouble shopping at this Farmer's Market, due to needing cash. All my transactions are made using a debit card. I suppose if I were in Mount Vernon I could get myself some cash to get myself some fresh products from this Mount Vernon Farmer's Market.

This type food shopping is something I miss at my current location, where no such similar thing exists.

Mount Vernon also has another produce selling location that I wish existed here. That being the Skagit Valley Co-Op.

The Co-Op is located in downtown Mount Vernon, in the old Penney's building. I could find just about any food product I wanted to find, at the Skagit Valley Co-Op. Including things like candied ginger. I've never been able to find candied ginger in Texas.

The Skagit Valley Co-Op also sold products other than food. Things like clothes and homemade soap. And there is a restaurant. I remember going to Friday night spaghetti and garlic bread at the Co-Op's restaurant.

And now I suspect a product has been added to the Skagit Valley Co-Op product line up which I definitely can not find in any Texas store.

As in various cannabis-based products. The Skagit Valley Co-Op likely now has entire section devoted to pot products. I must remember to ask when next I talk to a Skagit Valley local.

Since I was in Mount Vernon, via Google Earth, I decided to make a quick visit to Hank Frank's place on Beaver Marsh Road.

I am just about 100% I found Hank Frank's house. This is where Google Earth took me when I entered my Favorite Nephew Joey's address.

Someday, hopefully sooner than later, I will find myself visiting Hank Frank in person...

UPDATE:  Via Linda Lou we have now learned the correct name for the aforementioned Mount Vernon Farmer's Market is Waxwing Farm. And that Waxwing Farm has a website where you see how their organic farming operation works, along with a KING5 news video story about the farm.

Having A Heat Wave A Non-Tropical Hot Humid Heat Wave

The 12-day forecast. No relief from 100 degrees in sight.

I did not leave my abode yesterday til after 5, to go to Walmart for some extreme air conditioning.

So far the Texas grid hasn't failed. At least at my location.

The heat pump and new climate control system which was installed last summer is making this so much more tolerable than the climate control system it replaced. The new system is quiet, cool and does not use as much electricity as the previous system did.

I see the prediction for Saturday, July 23, is 104 degrees. Months ago I thought it likely I would be in Washington on that day.

If I were to go to Washington this summer I would be shivering the entire time due to being acclimated to the non-stop Texas HOT sauna steambath, with Washington feeling like someone turned the air conditioner to a way too cool setting.

With rain...

Monday Heat Waving In Shady Lucy Park

I have let the HEAT keep me from getting any endorphins via fast walking in an outdoor venue.

Instead, I have been being aerobic in air-conditioned Walmart, pushing a grocery cart for a couple miles.

But, today, on this second Monday of the 2022 version of July, I opted to drive to Lucy Park for some shady fast walking, arriving earlier than the norm, hoping it would not be too HOT.

As you can see via the photo documentation, it was so HOT in Lucy Park that that big tree you see above is glowing orange, like it is on fire.

It did feel sort of good to be in the outdoor sauna steam bath. I probably won't repeat the experience tomorrow.

Today apparently there is some worry that the Texas grid may get over taxed due to the entire state experiencing triple digit temperatures.

We are being asked to be conservative with using electricity.

I have my A/C set at 78 degrees. Is that conservative enough?

I don't know what it would be like to experience a long lasting summer blackout, such as what happened winter before last, with the temperature below zero. I escaped to a motel which still had power.

If the power goes out I assume one would not want to be opening the refrigerator door. Water-soaked towels might be useful to keep cool. A cold shower would not be much relief, due to the fact that currently the cold water is warmer than lukewarm. The swimming pool is currently like a warm bath.

My vehicle's gas tank is full. A full tank should be able to power the A/C for a long time, if the situation grows dire...

Birch Bay Postcard Bandit Strikes Again

Late last month I blogged about a Mystery Postcard From Birch Bay Washington.

That postcard was a mystery because there was no information informing who it was who sent the postcard.

Or why.

And now, this second Saturday of the 2022 version of July, I found another mystery postcard from Birch Bay in my mailbox. Actually, the postcard is about Birch Bay, it was from, or mailed from, Seattle. Just like the previous mystery postcard.

That is both sides of today's Birch Bay postcard photo documented above.

Previously I said I wish I had not discarded last year's batch of Christmas cards, because I figured I could find a writing style match.

Well, this morning I found that I had not discarded this year's batch of Christmas cards.

I found no penmanship match. Not even close.

Is the reason for these Birch Bay postcards something to do with the fact that the past two summers, well, last summer and this one, I thought I was going to be having fun at Birch Bay with all my siblings, except the un-fun one?

But, no Birch Bay plan became known to me. I do know that the ones I was most looking forward to seeing, and building sand castles with, David, Theo, Ruby and their parental units, are going to the other Washington, this month.

I think it is closer for me to go to the other Washington than the Washington with Birch Bay. Maybe I'll make a surprise trip to D.C. to see the Tacoma Trio...