Perfect Wichita Bluff Nature Area Conditions With Washington License Plates

With weather conditions near perfect, on this last day of the 2022 version of October, also known as Halloween, I took myself to the west entry to the Wichita Bluff Nature Area for some salubrious acquisition of endorphins via fast paced hill hiking.

As you can see, there is a little cloud action, rendering it not a totally clear blue-sky day.

That covered picnic pavilion you see here is my turn around point when I hike the Bluffs from the west.

This is also the high point of the Wichita Bluff Nature Area.

Heading home, after the Bluff hiking, I saw something I have rarely seen in Texas, that I used to see all the time when I lived in Washington.

A car with a Washington state license plate.

I do not know why zooming in on the license plate caused the water drops effect. I suspect my windshield is in need of being washed.

Washington has not changed its license plate design since the celebration of the centennial of Washington becoming a state in 1889.

That mountain you can almost see on the license plate is Washington's biggest volcano, Mount Rainier.

The current primary Texas license plate is plain black and white. And has changed several times since I've been in Texas.

I don't know why Texas does not have a license plate with the biggest volcano in Texas on it...

Final Sunny Sunday October Lucy Park Visit

On this final sunny Sunday of the 2022 version of October, my motorized means of motion took me back to Lucy Park for some salubrious nature communing.

As you can see via the photo documentation, the recent rain has raised the water level of the Wichita River, but not high enough to reach the deck of the Lucy Park suspension bridge, which is something I have eye witnessed happening.

You can also see via the photo documentation that the leaves in the trees are finally beginning to get their proper fall color scheme.

In a couple hours I get to watch the Seattle Seahawks in my time zone for the first time this football season...

Another Tale Of Two Cities

No, that is not the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth you are looking at here, or a completed section of Fort Worth's imaginary waterfront on its imaginary lake or imaginary island.

Speaking of Fort Worth, last week Elsie Hotpepper Took Us Back To America's Biggest Boondoggle where we learned that the pseudo public works project known as the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island Vision, a vision Fort Worth has been trying to see for this entire century, now estimates it will take another decade to manage to dig a cement lined ditch, to add Trinity River water to, flowing under three little bridges, which took seven years to build, over dry land.

Seven years to build three little bridges. Over dry land.

About the same time Fort Worth began trying to build those three little bridges, another American town, Seattle, being boring a tunnel under its downtown, so that the earthquake damaged Alaskan Way Viaduct, which had long been a blight on Seattle's waterfront, could be removed.

That tunnel has been completed for three years. The Alaskan Way Viaduct is long gone. And the re-build of the Seattle waterfront is well underway, to be competed in 2025.

That photo at the top is from an article in today's Seattle Times titled Seattle Aquarium’s Ocean Pavilion will transform its focus and the waterfront.  

That photo is the first good look I have had of what a section of the Seattle waterfront looks like without the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

How is it one town in America can get big things done, whilst another town in America gets little done, in slow motion?

An excerpt from today's Seattle Times article shows a stark contrast between this ongoing project in Seattle, and what you might read in Fort Worth print media about its decades long project and its slow fruition...

YOU HAVE TO squint and use your imagination to visualize the finished product, but a transformation is underway on Seattle’s central waterfront. Where the Alaskan Way Viaduct once loomed, a walkway connecting Pike Place Market to Puget Sound is taking shape. The outlines of parks, playgrounds, bike lanes and a broad pedestrian promenade are beginning to emerge. One pier already has been rebuilt to welcome the public, and another is in the works.

Civic leaders say Seattle hasn’t experienced such a profound makeover since 1962, when the World’s Fair reshaped public infrastructure and propelled the city into the future. When the work is completed in 2025, foot traffic along Elliott Bay is expected to triple.

“This landscape that was dominated by a big, honking, gray, rumbling freeway will now be a massive public park for the people,” says Seattle City Councilmember Andrew Lewis, whose district includes the waterfront.

At the center of it all will be the Seattle Aquarium’s new Ocean Pavilion: a 50,000-square-foot exhibit space featuring sharks, rays and other animals and ecosystems from the tropical Pacific. Integrated with the city’s elevated walkway, the structure’s roof will be a public plaza with unimpeded views of the sunset and Mount Rainier. At ground level, a circular port called an oculus will allow passersby to peer into a 325,000-gallon coral canyon teeming with thousands of fish and invertebrates.

Projected to be done in mid-2024, the expansion is Seattle Aquarium’s most ambitious and costly undertaking since it opened 45 years ago in a wooden building at Pier 59. It’s a natural fit to anchor the waterfront redevelopment, Lewis says. The aquarium is already hugely popular, he points out, and the new building will enhance its ability to attract and educate new generations of visitors.

You reading this in the DFW zone, can you imagine reading an article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram about such a project underway in Fort Worth? 

No. A town that takes seven years to build three little bridges over dry land, has some serious issues in dire need of being addressed...

Friday Rain Floods My Location Along With A Lot Of Thunder

Rain arrived, as per prediction, last night, along with the also predicted thunderstorming. Several hours into daylight the rain continues to rain down upon us.

Rain down upon us in amounts so copious that my primary exit route to my vehicle is flooded, which is what you are looking at in the photo documentation, looking down from my elevated patio vantage point.

I think this is the highest I have seen my exit route flood since I have been being flooded at my current location.

It may be possible to get to my vehicle, dry, via another route. 

I think I will just be content to stay indoors until the rain abates...

Google Remembers Driving Miss Daisy To Monument Valley & State Fair Of Texas & More

Two days in a row, for the first time, Google has sent to my email, emails purporting to be memories from that day, in which I actually remember all the memories. 

At the upper left, that is me looking at my antique, long gone Casion digital camera, which had a feature which allowed you to rotate the camera lens towards oneself making for what, in this century, is known as a selfie.

In this particular 'selfie' we ae in Monument Valley, in Arizona, two days after getting off a Lake Powell houseboat. The day we exited the houseboat we stayed at the San Juan Inn, in Mexican Hat, Utah.

Below the selfie, on the lower left, that is the sky ride at the State Fair of Texas, in Dallas. 

The upper right is the lake in Veterans Oasis Park in Chandler, Arizona. Below the lake photo is Driving Miss Daisy Around Chandler Veterans Oasis With Snakes. 

The lower right is an arch in Arches National Park in Utah.

And now, on to today's Google memories...

The upper left is, once again, the State Fair of Texas.

The other four Google memories are all from Dreamy Draw Park at Piestewa Peak, in Phoenix. At that location we did Dreamy Draw Hiking Miss Daisy In & Out Up Piestewa Peak.

That was a memorable day. Mom had a lot of fun getting rolled on trails through the park. I remember at one point mom memorably saying, "I didn't think I'd ever get to do something like this again." 

I do not think mom realized how steep the trail was, a couple times. The transit chair had good brakes.

So, there you go, my Google memories from the past two days...

The Dreaded Holiday Season Has Begun At Midwestern State University

A few days ago I saw that the annual installation of the Burns Fantasy of Light had begun at Midwestern State University. 

For me, this signals the start of the dreaded holiday season. 

We are now on the fast track to Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and a Happy New Year.

I stopped at the Fantasy of Lights on my way back from Lucy Park today, to photo document Cinderella's carriage.

The evil step-sisters have not yet arrived.

Nor have Dorothy, Toto, the Tin Man, Cowardly Lion and the Scarecrow.

High Tide At Sikes Lake With Happy Geese

The sky has returned to being totally blue at my North Texas location, after being gray most of yesterday. 

The incoming rain dropped enough wet stuff to have water spilling over the spillway of the Sikes Lake dam. 

That incoming rain came in with a cold front with chilled in the 40s, last night, was warmed to only 58 degrees when I drove to Sikes Lake this morning.

It did not seem like enough rain rained down to fill Sike Lake back to full pool. But, apparently it did drip enough.

The former low tide tideflats are now back covered by a high tide. The geese seemed to be enjoying floating again, without their goose feet scraping the lake bottom.

I Googled "goose feet" to see what goose feet are actually called, and learned the proper term is pes anserinus.

Yes, I can see how pes anserinus would easily be the common term one would use when referring to goose feet.

Even colder temperatures are on the menu later in the week. Into the 30s. I need to go on my annual long underwear hunt...

Monday Morning Rainy Day In North Texas

It is a dark and stormy Monday morning at my North Texas location.

So far no thunderbooming, but strong wind gusts are blowing rain sideways.

In the view above we are looking west out of one of my living room windows.

The rain has already flooded my primary access route to the carport.

I need to make my way to the carport this morning to drive to the library to replenish my book supply.

This is the first heavy rain in many months. I don't know if one rainstorm can end a drought, but it seems it should put a dent in it...

Strong Wind Grounds Sikes Lake Geese Population

On this next to last Sunday of the 2022 version of October, a cold front is moving into town, with wind gusting around 45 mph.

The temperature drop is scheduled to arrive later today, along with some rain and thunderstorming.

So, it was to Sikes Like I took myself for some high speeding leaning into the gusting wind. 

The Sikes Lake geese appear to be a bit traumatized, and grounded, by the strong wind. In the photo documentation it appears the geese are having a meeting, trying to decide what to do about the shrinking lake, pondering if maybe they should fly to some new roosting grounds, once the wind dies down.

I can not remember when we last had a strong thunderstorm at my location. In previous years such happened frequently. 

The cold has not yet arrived. It is 84 in the outer world, right now, coming up on 2 in the afternoon...

Elsie Hotpepper Takes Us Back To America's Biggest Boondoggle

Yesterday, Elsie Hotpepper tagged me in a Facebook post, which is what you see a screen shot of.

For decades now, Elsie and I have been blogging about the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision.

More commonly known as America's Biggest Boondoggle.

The project to create an imaginary island has been going on for most of this century. I recollect the first time I found myself befuddled and appalled by this was a long ago Sunday edition of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, with a HUGE banner headline touting "TRINITY UPTOWN TO TURN FORT WORTH INTO VANCOUVER OF THE SOUTH."    

What fresh ridiculous nonsense is this, I read and wondered? Who could have imagined the ridiculous nonsense could go on for so long, for decades, with little to show for the effort.

Well, there are those three little bridges, built over dry land, to connect the Fort Worth mainland to that imaginary island. Those three little bridges are waiting for a cement lined ditch to be installed under them, with Trinity River water diverted into the ditch, making the imaginary island.

The article Elsie Hotpepper directed me to was in the Fort Worth Report, titled City of Fort Worth prepares to kickstart Panther Island development — again.

Just the title to this article struck me as odd. The city is preparing to kickstart America's Biggest Boondoggle again?

I was not aware the development had stalled. The last it was much in the news was when Congresswoman's Kay Granger's son, J.D., was removed from the executive director job he was totally not qualified to do, whilst being grossly overpaid, and then hired by the Boondoggle, post firing, to be a Trinity River Vision Boondoggle consultant for $12K a month.

The only other news about the Boondoggle that I can recollect in recent years is those three pitiful little bridges finally being completed, after seven years, that, and Fort Worth got $400 million from the Democrat's infrastructure bill, which J.D.'s mother voted against.

It has long bugged me that, if, as touted, this is a vitally needed flood control and economic project, why has it limped along in slow motion, begging for a federal funding, rather than voting to pay for the vitally needed project themselves, like town's wearing their big city pants do?

And, need we repeat, this vitally needed flood control project is in an area which has not flooded in well over half a century, due to flood control levees already in place, which you in the more prosperous parts of America, already paid for. While other areas of Fort Worth, as in East Fort Worth, and other areas of Tarrant County, have real, serious, un-addressed deadly flood control issues.

Now, let's take a look at some of the gems of nonsense from this article about America's Biggest Boondoggle...

The Central City Flood Project could transform a partially blighted expanse of land just north of downtown into about 440 acres of prime real estate — also known as the Panther Island Project. 

Could transform a blighted expanse of land? Could? After all this time, all this money, this project is stuck at could? And it is now known, simply, as the Panther Island Project? When did that happen? Whatever happened to the Trinity River Vision Authority, over which J.D. Granger was the Executive Director for years.

No mention is made in this article of the Trinity River Vision Authority.

Or J.D. Granger.

Or that J.D.'s mother voted against the funding that might finally give Fort Worth enough money to dig that cement lined ditch under those three bridges.

The project, which has experienced decades of delays, received over $400 million in federal funding this year, enough money to design and build two bypass channels. The corps recently projected the project will take eight to 10 years to complete.

Is there no investigative journalist in the Fort Worth vicinity who might want to look into why and how this project has experienced decades of delays? We are up to two bypass channels now? Taking another decade to complete? Yes, this seems very vitally needed.

And the nonsense continues...

The new strategic plan will be the second iteration of a plan for the Panther Island Project. The city and Tarrant Regional Water District initially developed its plan for the island, also known as the form-based code, in the early 2000s and revisited it in 2016 — all before the project received over $400 million from the federal government.

New strategic plan? Does anyone know what the old strategic plan was? The city and TRWD initially developed its plan for the island, known as form-based code? So, the new total name of America's Biggest Boondoggle is Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Form-Based Code Vision?

And then we have this doozy, including a Fort Worth staple...

A redevelopment project the size of Panther Island in the core of the city is unique, said Kenneth Barr, chair of the Real Estate Council. “Other cities would be very envious of us having the opportunity,” Barr said. 

Oh yes, many towns in America would be envious to have an industrial wasteland adjacent to their downtown. And another one east of their downtown. Most big cities do not develop with such tracts of wasteland adjacent to their downtowns. Hardly anything to be envious of.

And, finally...

“My vision for Panther Island is that it’d be a world-class place for tourists to come and visit and see the best of Fort Worth, but also a place where our local residents can enjoy and feel like it’s for them as well,” Landeros said. 

How can anyone who has been to an actual world-class tourist destination possibly think this imaginary island can ever possibly be such? Just look at that stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth you see in the screen cap at the top. This is not a world-class town in any sense of the term....