Going To Tulalip Casino In Marysville Via Microsoft & Fort Worth

This showed up in my email Microsoft OneDrive Memories from this Day. I think it was August of 2004, so clearly not a memory from this current June day.

I do not remember when last I was in Washington in June, since moving to Texas. Likely I have not been in Washington, in June, since moving to Texas.

The above is part of the large Pacific Northwest Native American themed installation in front of the Tulalip Casino in Marysville, Washington. Including a large statue of a Tulalip Indian, trying to catch salmon. Not visible in the photo is an oversized Orca leaping out of the water.

The entire Tulalip Casino is ocean themed, inside and out. Inside the decor makes one feel as if you are under water.

Near to the Tulalip Casino is the Tulalip Cabela's sporting goods store.

Long time readers of this blog may remember way back when Fort Worth became the first Texas town to get a Cabela's. Much fuss was made in the local purveyor of misinformation, known as the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, touting that this Cabela's was to be the top tourist attraction in all of Texas. This was repeated repeatedly.

It was not long after the Fort Worth Cabela's opened that it was no longer the only Cabela's in Texas. One opened to the south, near Austin. And then another opened in Texas, on the Dallas side of the DFW Metroplex.

Cabela's used the con job touting that their store would become a top tourist attraction to extract tax concessions from the city it was wanting to open in. Apparently Cabela's was known for using this con on towns susceptible to being rubes. Thus Fort Worth was an easy mark.

The Cabela's top tourist attraction con was attempted when Cabela's built a store in Lacey, a town near Olympia, or after that when they built the Tulalip store.

Cabela's tried the con in Lacey, but was told if it did not make economic sense to build the store without concessions, then do not build it. Same with the Tulalip Cabela's.

Clearly not a Fort Worth level of rubes in Washington.

Fort Worth has such a long history of getting conned into doing dumb things.

Ever heard of the Trinity River Vision? An embarrassing boondoggle which has been limping along since the start of this century, with the Vision's main accomplishment, so far, being the building of three little bridges over dry land, to connect the Fort Worth mainland to an imaginary island.

One day it is hoped  a cement lined ditch will be built under those three little bridges, with Trinity River water diverted into the ditch, creating the imaginary island.

You can only have imaginary islands in a town where the majority of the people are rubes. Seems clearly obvious...

Looking For Texas Rainforest Whilst Looking At Hoh Rainforest In Olympic National Park

With rather regular frequency I see something somewhere, like Facebook, which triggers what I guess is a bit of a homesick feeling.

I saw that which you see here, yesterday, on Facebook. A scene from the Hoh Rainforest in Olympic National Park in my old home state of Washington.

The Hoh Rainforest is the most well-known of the Washington rainforests. But, it is not the only one. It is not even the only rainforest in Olympic National Park.

Upriver in the Skagit Valley, the location where I lived in Washington before moving to Texas, there are rainforest zones.

But, the best, by far, is the Hoh Rainforest. Walking the trails in the Hoh Rainforest is a sort of otherworldly experience.

I do not know if there are any rainforests in Texas. I suspect not, though the vegetation can get a bit lush in Texas, in some locations, I've seen nothing which comes close to looking like a rainforest.

My most recent time walking in the Hoh Rainforest was in the middle of winter, back late in the previous century. Rain dripped, with fog making the rainforest look even more eerie than it usually does. Raincoats and umbrellas made the rain tolerable.

False Accusations Of Going Against Facebook Community Standards

 Earlier today I wrote a blog post titled Remembering Rodeo Grandmas From Ellensburg In Fort Worth.

As I often do, I posted the link to this blog post on Facebook. Seconds after doing so, that which you see above popped up.

I followed the steps to challenge this, indicating there was nothing nefarious about this post that violated supposed Community Standards.

Apparently, this gets reviewed, I assume by a human.

What is totally perplexing is, of late, as in for weeks now, Facebook has been allowing fake posts that trigger a malware warning locking up your computer til you fall for the scam. Or know how to kill it.

Apparently that does not go against Facebook Community Standards. Despite many people complaining.

I shall post this blog post on Facebook and see what happens...

Remembering Rodeo Grandmas From Ellensburg In Fort Worth

That which you see here showed up a day or two ago in my email, via Microsoft's OneDrive Memories from this Day.

You are looking at a parade float in a parade celebrating the opening of Fort Worth's National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.

Seeing this float was a bit of a surprise, what with it being the Rodeo Grandmas of Ellensburg.

Ellensburg is a college town in Eastern Washington, home of Central Washington State University, a location where I once matriculated.

I webpaged the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.

That parade had many memorable moments.

Drippy Texas Tuesday Downpouring

The drippy early Tuesday afternoon view from my kitchen window.

Rain was not predictably scheduled to arrive in copious amounts today.

But copious amounts of falling water has arrived, currently in downpour mode.

Walmart was my walking venue this morning. At that point in time, that which later became a downpour was in drizzle mode.

Well, drizzle mode on the drive to Walmart, downpour mode when exiting Walmart a half hour later.

Return To Winter-Like Cool Makes For Pleasant Sikes Lake Walk

Overnight the temperature has plummeted dozens of degrees, chilling the outer world into the 70s.

It's like a return to Winter.

And a nice thick layer of clouds is blocking that annoying sun, keeping it from being able to overheat the part of the planet I currently call home.

I do not know how long this respite from HOT is scheduled to last. I do know rain in on the predicted weather menu for later today.

In the cloudy view above you are standing with me on the bridge at the west end of Sikes Lake, looked east across the currently gray lake.

The sudden return to cool had a lot of people enjoying the walk around Sikes Lake today.

The past couple extra HOT days may have toasted the biting bugs. I have not had a new bug bite for two days. 

The air conditioner just cycled on. Why? I do not know. Outdoors is cooler right now than what I have the A/C set to...

Microsoft Memory Of Someone Holding Baby Sister Michele

 A couple days ago I blogged about a Long Ago Microsoft OneDrive Memories I Don't Remember.

In that blogging there was a photo of me holding my little baby sister, Jackie. I then wondered if a photo would show up in my email, from Microsoft, showing me holding my littlest baby sister, Michele.

At the time I said I had no memory of such a photo.

And then, today, in the Microsoft OneDrive Memories from this Day, there is a group photo, including baby sister, Michele, in which I can not quite tell who it is who is holding her.

I don't think it was me.

This photo has all the Slotemaker/Jones/Barry/Hershberger cousins, surrounding Grandma Slotemaker.

From the left, on the ground, that would be Sheryl Slotemaker, then Carol Hershberger, then on Grandma's lap is the brat, Mike Slotemaker, then Steve Hershberger, sitting next to Jeff Slotemaker, with Danny Hershberger behind Steve and Jeff.

Standing up, from the left, is my little brother Jake, then me, with baby sister Michele in front of me, with sister Jackie next to Michele, with sister Nancy behind Jackie, then Linda Barry and her big brother, Scott Barry.

During the time frame in which this photo was taken, back in the previous century, the Hersbbergers visited from Australia once every four years. I do not remember which of those four-year visits would have been the year this photo was taken.

My best guess would be 1979...

Wichita Falls Hotter 'N Hell 100 Degrees First Time in 2024

Today my Wichita Falls location is scheduled to get heated to 100 degrees HOT for the first time this year.

All indications are indicating that this coming Summer is going to be a real HOT one. 

The past two days high speed walking has taken place in Walmart, to escape the heat.

Today Lucy Park will be my walking venue, way earlier than the normal walking time, hoping to beat the heat by a few degrees.

I am hoping the high heat will kill off the biting bugs.

I've grown tired of being mealtime for biting bugs...

Scary Mount Baker Bridge Crossing With Nephew Jeremy 30 Years Ago

It seems, if my faulty memory is serving me at all well, that within the last year or so I previously blogged about the day the photo you see here was taken.

This photo showed up today in my daily email from Microsoft with OneDrive Memories from this Day.

Trouble is, I clearly remember this particular memory is from 30 years ago. In August.

Hard to believe 30 years have gone by since then.

That would be my nephew Jeremy, 30 years ago, on a suspension bridge over a creek on a trail that leads to the Mount Baker volcano.

When Jeremy saw that we were needing to cross the creek on that scary bridge he sort of panicked. It took some coaxing from Aunt Michele to convince Jeremy it was okay to cross the bridge. Jeremy insisted no one could be on the bridge at the same time as him.

So, I was posted at one end of the bridge, someone else at the other end.

With Jeremy triumphantly making the crossing, celebrating in the photo I took from the volcano side of the bridge.

30 years ago. 30 years gone by so fast. I shudder at the realization of how old I will be if I make it another 30 years...

Long Ago Microsoft OneDrive Memories I Don't Remember

Several long-ago photos showed up in my email in this morning's Microsoft OneDrive Memories from this Day.

I know what I am looking at in these photos. I just do not have any memory of the photos being taken.

In the above photo I would guess we are at Deception Pass State Park. That is my dad holding my eldest sister, Nancy. I am next to dad. And the little guy next to me is my little brother, Jake.

And now we are in the front yard of the house I grew up in, 1027 Washington Avenue in Burlington, Washington.

That would be me holding my little baby sister, Jackie, current mother of nephews Christopher and Jeremy and grandma of Cade.

That would be the aforementioned sister Nancy between me and brother Jake, current of father of nephews Jason and Joey and grandpa of Spencer Jack and Hank Frank.

It would be a few more years for a photo of me holding my youngest baby sister, Michele, mother of nephews David and Theo and niece Ruby.

I actually do not remember if there might be a group photo with me holding baby Michele. We shall see if one shows up in my Microsoft memories on some upcoming day...