Dizzy Suspense On Lucy Park Wichita River Suspension Bridge

Under a clear blue, free of clouds, sky, it was back to Lucy Park I ventured on this third Tuesday of May, for some nature communing and high-speed walking and the resulting endorphin acquisition.

When last I was at Lucy Park the suspension bridge over the Wichita River was closed, due to the flood.

The river is still running high, but the suspension bridge is back open.

Walking across the bridge was a bit unsettling, with the river up so high, and flowing fast. The swaying of the bridge, above the fast-flowing river had a dizzying effect I did not find too enjoyable.

But, I found the rest of today's walking, once I got off the bridge, to be totally enjoyable, partly due to the perfectly pleasant temperature being in the mid-70s.

Mostly Sunny Wichita Falls Monday With Possible Flooding Downpours, Hail & Tornadoes

For several days the weather predictors for my location have been predicting stormy weather, flooding downpours, hail, strong wind gusts.

And tornadoes.

But, those dire predictions have not become reality at my North Texas Wichita Falls location. Other than yesterday one short, as in less than ten minutes, bout of some rain falling.

So far today, as in Monday, May 19, the only part of today's weather prediction which has come to pass is there have been some extreme wind gusts. 

Currently the sky is gray, nothing blue to be seen. Some of the clouds look to be thunderstorm worthy. 

My only experience with clouds which produced some tornado action has been where the sky takes on ominous dark gray greenish hue. So far I am seeing nothing of that sort.

What with today being Monday, the tornado sirens should erupt in their weekly test mode around noon, a little over an hour from now.

Tornado sirens are extremely loud. Quite jarring if you are close to one when it goes off...  

Tomorrow It Will Be 45 Years Since Mount St. Helens Erupted

Tomorrow it will be 45 years since a big, loud bang boomed all over the Pacific Northwest, when Mount St. Helens erupted after week after week after week of rumbling and spewing steam.

I was soaking in a bathtub that morning, at my abode in Mount Vernon, about 160 miles north of the volcano, as a bird flies, when I heard three loud, concussive booms. Minutes later the next-door neighbor came over to inform us that the mountain had blown. 

That news that the mountain had blown was the start of a long day of non-stop news, on TV, on the radio, followed by many days of worry about possible ash issues.

By the time the mountain calmed down the Skagit Valley had not been showered with any significant ash, while other locations in Washington, mostly Eastern Washington, as in the east side of the Cascade Mountain range, got covered with a thick layer of volcanic ash.

Mount St. Helens came back to my attention this morning, via emails from my Favorite Nephew Jason, the first of which only consisted of the infamous video about the Mount St. Helens eruption, with the video featuring Harry Truman, who became famous in the Northwest due to his refusal to leave his Spirit Lake location in the shadow of the volcano.

Jason was only 11 months old when the mountain exploded. I replied to Jason's email with a link to one of my blog posts about Mount St. Helens, which included the Harry Truman video.

That blog post was titled Today's 34th Anniversary Of The Mount St. Helens Eruption Has Me Feeling Homesick.

I have flown over Mount St. Helens a few times flying back and forth from Texas to Washington.

I drove to the restricted zone weeks before the eruption. I could not get close enough to see the mountain.

It was not til the early 1990s that I drove back to the volcano. At that point in time one could access the blast zone from the north, via logging roads. It was so eerie, suddenly being in the blast zone with the forest of trees all knocked down, with the landscape void of any green vegetation of any sort. Eventually you got to a sort of overlook, looking down at the log choked remains of Spirit Lake.

The log choked remains of Spirit Lake is what we are looking down on in the photo documentation. I do not recollect if we got a good look at the actual volcano from this location.

The photo at the top was taken shortly before the move to Texas, late Summer of 1998, if I am remembering correctly. By then the Spirit Lake Memorial Highway had been built, with multiple visitor centers to visit on the way to the final visitor center, a large complex with an up-close look at the volcano.

I remember it as being closer than it looks in the photo documentation. I remember there was a well-done film telling the story of the eruption, with the finale of the film having the screen disappear revealing a huge window looking right at the crater. 

At least that is how I remember it. I really do not trust my memory, at times. I remember that as being a tiring day, a day which started at Seaside, Oregon.

Microsoft Sibling Memory From Over Half Century Ago

This totally delightful photo showed up this morning in my email, from Microsoft's OneDrive Memories from this Day.

The day in this photo is from so long ago I have no idea what day it actually may have been when this photo was taken. Or what year, other than being able to say, without remotely possibly being erroneous, that the photo was taken over half a century ago.

At that point in time, I only had two siblings, the one in the middle, my then little sister, Nancy, with my one and only little brother, Jake, on the right.

This particular photo is one of the few in which sister Nancy can be seen in some sort of dress garment. In later years pants became Nancy's signature leg covering garment.

I am also almost certain this photo was taken at the house, in Mount Vernon, Washington, we moved to, from Eugene, Oregon.

The house was located on what is now known as College Way, across the street from where Skagit Valley College is now located.

I have no idea where Microsoft found this photo. Is it on my computer? I do not know....

Thursday's Wichita Falls Cold Front Arrives On Schedule

 As mentioned in yesterday's, Wednesday, Wichita Falls temperature report, reporting that my vehicle was reporting 110 degrees of excessive warmth, with the sweltering predicted to be short-lived, with a cold front blowing in Thursday, also known as today.

Well, the prediction was accurate, as you can see via the photo documentation, I photo documented, when I started up my motorized means of motion to drive to an appointment.

78 degrees.

Brrrr.

That is two degrees colder than I have my interior space's air-conditioner set to.

Long pants and a long-sleeved shirt kept the chill under control.

This return to natural air-conditioning is not predicted to last too long, so I shall enjoy it while it is here...

Sweltering At 110 Degrees In Wichita Falls

Yesterday, when I left the air-conditioned comfort of my abode, to drive to Walmart, my vehicle's temperature monitor indicated the temperature was 106 degrees.

Today, that being the day known as Wednesday, I left the air-conditioned comfort of my abode at about the same time, driving to ALDI, not Walmart.

Today my vehicle's temperature monitor indicated the temperature was 110 degrees. As you can see via the photo documentation.

I've not experienced this level of HOT since getting scorched in Arizona.

Relief is scheduled to arrive tomorrow, with a cold front blowing in, dropping the temperature into the relatively chilly 80s.

I am totally prepared for tomorrow's Big Chill, with sweatpants and sweatshirt washed and ready...

HOT Wednesday Walking With Sikes Lake's May Flowers

With the outer world heated to 91 degrees Fahrenheit, heading to a predicted high of 99 this second Wednesday of May, today it was to Sikes Lake I ventured for some HOT nature communing and endorphin acquisition via high-speed walking.

As you can clearly see, via the photo documentation, the April Showers (and additional showers the current month) has produced a plethora of flowers. Most of the pink evening primrose sort, though I did see a couple patches of yellowish-orangish wildflowers today. 

The yellowish-orangish wildflowers were not located in a location making for easy photo documentation, or I would have photo documented them.

The current HEAT wave ends today, with a chilling cold front arriving tomorrow, dropping tomorrow's predicted high to a relatively chilly 86 degrees.

All the local lakes, including Sikes Lake, are at full pool for the first time in years. Such may not last long with the coming, likely extremely HOT, Summer....

HOT 106 Second May Tuesday In Wichita Falls

 As per the temperature prediction I made mention of earlier today, with the temperature prediction predicting the temperature would get to 99 degrees, HOT HEAT was clearly the case when I exited my abode around 5 this afternoon, getting hit with a blast of HEAT which felt as if I was back in Arizona.

The HOT temperature was mechanically validated when I ignited my motorized means of motion and saw its temperature monitoring device indicating the temperature was 106 degrees, as measured via the Fahrenheit method.

The vehicle sits under a carport cover. Does that increase the HEAT level? I don't know. Does the vehicle's temperature measuring device measure the outside temperature? Or is it the inside the vehicle temperature?

The fact that inside the vehicle it did not feel anywhere near 106 degrees would seem to indicate it is the outside temperature being measured, which is likely made HOTTER by the carport's metal roof.

Soon upon putting the vehicle in motion the temperature began to drop, eventually stopping dropping when it reached 99. Which was one of the predicted temperatures for today's high. With the other prediction predicting a high of 98.

Anyway, methinks this portends for a miserably HOT coming Summer...

99 Degree Possible Record-Breaking Heatwave Wondering Why Beto O'Rourke Was Speaking In Wichita Falls

The above screen cap is from this morning's Wichita Falls Times Record News AccuWeather weather page.

Today and tomorrow predicted to hit 99 degrees as measured by the Fahrenheit method of measuring the temperature.

Also, from this morning's Wichita Falls Times Record News...

Wichita Falls will flirt with record heat on Wednesday. The National Weather Service predicts a high of 98 degrees that day, which is perilously close to the record for the date of 100 degrees set in 1952.

So, apparently the National Weather Service prediction predicts one degree cooler than the AccuWeather temperature prediction.

Also, apparently, if we do hit 99, or 98, degrees tomorrow, this will almost break the 100 degrees temperature record set way back in 1952.

This morning's Wichita Falls Times Record News is not the first time I have made note of the fact that this town's newspaper can be a bit sloppy. 

An example of such, for weeks now the Times Record News has had on its list of Top Headlines, on its front page, a link to an article asking, "Why did Beto O'Rourke speak in Wichita Falls?"

Below is a screen cap illustrating this...

You click on the link and below is a screen cap of the entire article, which clearly does not answer the question posed in the Top Headlines...

It is instances such as this Beto O'Rourke non-article which have caused me to wonder if the Wichita Falls Times News Record has any humans involved in its publication. Wondering if it may be some computer created production.

Ironically, the below appears right below the list of Top Headlines...

Methinks perhaps whoever is doing this alleged working, needs to work a bit harder. 

I know I would like to read a news story explaining what happened to the completion of the Circle Trail link from Lucy Park to the new section of the Circle Trail, which was completed a couple years ago, that being the section which includes the Wichita Bluff Nature Area. 

Also, regarding the Circle Trail, an article explaining what has stalled another missing Circle Trail link, that being the continuation of the trail where it now terminates at the new section west of Lake Wichita Park, which was completed a couple years ago.

And, how about an article explaining what is going on with that creek project one has watched happening slowly for a couple years now, that being the creek that goes under Maplewood, between Kemp and Midwestern Boulevard. 

And, just last week, what was the deal with that big carnival which appeared on the Sikes Senter mall parking lot? Was there some sort of festival or celebration happening that brought this carnival to town?

There you go, I have let those supposedly working to improve my newspaper reading experience know what I think. I'm sure it will make a big difference...

Hot May Day Board Walking Lake Wichita Dam

On this second Monday of the 2025 version of May, it was a short distance to the south, I ventured, to Lake Wichita Dam, to do some well-heated nature communing.

As you can see, via the view through the cyclone fence atop Lake Wichita Dam, water is still spilling over the dam's spillway, well over a week since North Texas got drenched with a lot of rain.

In the above view we are on the Lake Wichita Boardwalk, looking across the Boardwalk towards the dam's spillway we were at in the previous photo.

Still on the Lake Wichita Boardwalk, now looking Northwest, across Lake Wichita, with Mount Wichita making a slight poke to the sky, on the horizon.

Now we are back on top of the Lake Wichita Dam, looking north at a trio of bikers riding off the dam. This paved trail atop the dam is part of the Circle Trail which trails around most of Wichita Falls.

Now we are once again looking Northwest, across the Lake Wichita floating fishing dock, with Mount Wichita again being a slight poke on the horizon.

It has been a few months since I have done my daily nature communing at today's location. The temperature bordered on being HOT today. With virtually no wind blowing, there was no wind chill factor mitigating the HOT.

Walking this location, which I have walked frequently over my years of living in the Wichita Falls location, for some reason a recent email came to mind.

That being an email from a person who had been reading my blog posts and felt she needed to share with me that she was greatly enjoying her new living location, and the bedroom she had turned into an office where she spent hours reading, writing and drawing.

Whilst, she opined, I appeared to be doing the same thing, day after day. But that was okay if I enjoyed it.

For some reason I found this, what seemed to be a totally pointless judgmental comment, to be off putting. Particularly since it was coming from what I had come to see as a bloviated bore, doing basically nothing, day after day after day.

But, of course, polite gentleman that I am, I never shared that opinion. Til, now...