Shocking Revelations Regarding Rockin' The River Happy Hour Inner Tube Float Fecal Matter E.Coli Cancellations

Unbeknownst to many, a couple days ago, for the first time in history, a meeting of the formerly secretive operation known at the Tarrant Regional Water District Board was streamed live over the Internet for the viewing of those who use non-Apple products.

At this meeting the TRWD's newest board member, Mary Kelleher, suggested that it might be a good plan to spend some money studying how it might be possible to make the Trinity River a cleaner body of water suitable for recreational use, saying ,"Since we are inviting people to get in and tube in the river, shouldn't we make sure it's safe?"

Mary Kelleher buttressed her suggestion with the apparent fact that twice the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats have had to be cancelled due to elevated E.Coli levels.

In other words, too much fecal matter in the water.

The General Manager of the TRWD, Jim Oliver, then said he was unaware of any fecal matter related floating closures.

This had Jim Oliver's TRWD Assistant Manager, Mr. Thomas, informing the TRWD Board and the public attending the meeting and those listening on the Internet, that elevated E.Coli levels had, in fact, necessitated the canceling of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats.

Now, what I am appalled by is the following....

How can it be that two of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats have been canceled due to the river being dangerously polluted with E.Coli without this being major news in any of what passes for Fort Worth's news sources?

Did the Fort Worth Weekly not know of the E.Coli caused Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats cancellations?

No one really expects the Fort Worth Star-Telegram to act like a real newspaper, but really, even though the Star-Telegram is not a real newspaper, is this not some sort of journalistic malpractice not to inform the locals that the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats had to be canceled because too much fecal matter had been detected in the river?

Does this mean that on other days, when the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats have been allowed to float, have the fecal matter levels been not quite high enough to present a public safety issue?

Should not the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats floaters have the right to be informed, prior to getting in the Trinity River, what that day's E.Coli fecal matter levels are?

This is all very appalling and very perplexing for multiple reasons....

Rockin' Live On The Trinity River Inner Tube Happy Hour Concert Series Announced

I really truly believe it is time for some sort of federal intervention in this strange part of America I am currently living in.

A few minutes ago, my best friend, Anonymous, sent me a link to a story on the dfw.com website, titled "Inaugural 'Rockin' the River' concert series announced."

In the first sentence of the article the writer, Preston Jones, writes, "It's an idea so good, one wonders why nobody thought of it sooner."

The idea Preston Jones is talking about is, "Starting June 9, the Rockin' the River - Live on the Trinity summer tubing and music series will take place every second and fourth Thursday through the month of August. Trinity River Vision, the organizers, are billing the series as a "floating happy hour," with free admission and free tubes for the first 600 people to show up, starting at 4 p.m."

An idea so good, one wonders why nobody thought of it sooner?

Actually, it is an idea, so stupid, it is a wonder anyone thought of it now.

But, this is what you get when your local congresswoman puts her unqualified son in charge of a big public works project, when that son is very fond of partying and partial to adult beverages.

The Trinity River Vision is providing 600 free inner tubes. Do those getting the free inner tubes get to take them home with them? How much do 600 inner tubes cost? Is buying inner tubes what voters thought they were voting for back in 2004 when, apparently, a bond vote occurred which some claim is what has validated the TRV foolishness and folly which has evolved into massive Happy Hour Inner Tube Parties on the Trinity River?

Now with music.

The Trinty River Vision will even allow you to bring your own inner tube, along with booze coolers and lawn chairs to set on when you tire of floating in the polluted river.

Apparently the Trinity River Vision's vision has been expanded to include helping increase alcohol consumption. From the TRV's Rockin' the River poster we learn that if you "Want your Happy Hour to last all night long?! Wear your Rockin' the River wristband to a participating bar after the float and receive drink specials ALL NIGHT!!"

Starting June 9, Josh Weathers and the True+Endeavors, along with other Texas acts, will make beautiful music from a waterfront stage, serenading the happy hour floaters out in the river, dodging snakes, turtles, alligator gar, assorted toxins and occasional floating fecal matter.

Happy Hour floats will continue through the summer. Or until someone dies in an unfortunate, totally unforeseen accident. The Happy Hour floating dates are June 23 with Bleu Edmondson, July 14 with Eleven Hundred Springs, July 28 with Ryan Turner, August 11 with the Kyle Bennett Band and August 25 with The Will Callers.

Now, if there is a fatal tragedy, like what happened in the Fort Worth Water Gardens, who is it who will be sued? The Trinity River Vision? The City of Fort Worth? The Tarrant Regional Water District? All of them? Who will pay?

Ultimately You........

This Coming Thursday Rockin' the Green Trinity River's Happy Hour Inner Tubing Party

The ad on the left, advertising the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Live on the Trinity Inner Tube Happy Hour is in this week's Fort Worth Weekly.

The River Rockin' takes place the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the summer months of June, July and August.

This means this coming Thursday is another Trinity River Inner Tubing Happy Hour day.

I saw the Trinity River yesterday as I drove over the bridge heading east on Randol Mill Road. The river has turned a very interesting shade of green.

Did the 2nd Rockin' the River Inner Tubing Happy Hour see an increase or decrease in the number of floaters?

Is the Trinity River turning green due to the water warming up, due to the HOT weather, causing algae and other bad stuff to grow?

You reading this in the Pacific Northwest and wondering why anyone would have concerns about inner tubing in a river, well, the Trinity River is not like pristine Pacific Northwest rivers. It is more like a ditch or a slough.

In the Pacific Northwest context, going inner tubing in the Trinity River would be like going inner tubing in the Straits of Juan de Fuca off the coast of Victoria, British Columbia. With the Straits of Juan de Fuca being a waterway in which Victoria pumps raw, untreated sewage.

However, if you went inner tubing in the Straits of Juan de Fuca, off the coast of Victoria, the polluted water would be your only thing to look out for. You would not be sharing the water with scary fish like alligator gar. Or actual alligators. Or snapping turtles. Or snakes like water moccasins.

What is the reason the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle has added Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats to its vision? How much do the Happy Hours cost? Is the cost being covered completely by the sponsors?

Are J.D. Granger and his mom, Kay, going to be in the Trinity River on Thursday? If not, why not?

Following My Handlebars To Check Out Cowtown Wakeboarding & A Bridge To Nowhere

That Is Not Me Wakeboarding At Cowtown Wakepark

Today I decided to emulate one of my favorite blogs, that blog being Hometown by Handlebar and go check some locations in my current hometown via my own handlebars.

We'll be following the handlebars from Cowtown Wakepark to the Phyllis Tilley Bridge to Nowhere.

The parking lot for the Cowtown Wakepark is also a Trinity Trail parking lot. Which is one of the reasons  it was the starting point.

I would think a nice warm day, with that day being the first Saturday of summer, that Fort Worth's premiere urban wakeboarding lake would be really really busy.

Well, I thought wrong. There were two people in the water being pulled around the pond. The mechanism that does the pulling is ultra-quiet. I could not figure out how it worked. Not that I spent all that much time pondering. I'd not noticed the little pond on the right, in the picture, til today. It appeared to be some sort of training pond. There was one person in that pond who looked as if he or she was trying to stay on a waterboard, without much success.

In the main pond it looked like there are only two tow bars. Which would seem to mean only two people can be wakeboarding at a time. The wakeboarders zipped rather quickly around the pond, so I would think more than two at a time could get dicey. No idea how this works. You wakeboard for 10 minutes then give it up for the next person in line? Not that there appeared to be a line.

I think I've mentioned before that the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle has a real penchant for signage. The penchant has grown since my last exposure.

Now you have TRVB signage, plus signage from the TRVB's partner in delusion, the TRWD, as in Tarrant Regional Water District. Currently, you can stop what you are doing on the Trinity Trail and aim your smart phone at one of the ubiquitous "CHECK OUT our NEW Trinity iPhone App!" signs and get yourself some sort of Trinity Trail App.

At trail junctions there are now signs, courtesy of the TRWD, pointing you in the right direction to get to various Trinity Trail destinations. On the south side  of the sign in the picture we are directed to Stockyards, Marine Creek, Buck Sansom Park, Cowtown Wakepark, Gateway Park and Sycamore Creek. The north side of this sign points the way to Downtown, Panther Island Pavilion, Trinity Park, Cowtown Wakepark, Gateway Park and Sycamore Creek.

The redundancy in mentioning Cowtown Wakepark and Gateway Park and others on both sides of the sign is because they are all accessed by crossing that dam bridge across the Trinity River you see in the picture.

I find the fact that Panther Island Pavilion and Cowtown Wakepark are on these signs to be interesting. I remember when the Santa Fe Rail Market was on directional signage in Downtown Fort Worth with me remarking that that will soon need to be altered. I thought the same thing when I saw Cowtown Wakepark on the signs, particularly after seeing how meager its patronage was today.

Rockin' The River Panther Island Pavilion

As for Panther Island Pavilion. That is a Rockin' the River Inner Tube Happy Hour thing that is part of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle. I was surprised to see that a sort of permanent pavilion has now been installed at the Rockin' the River Inner Tube Happy Hour location.

The permanent stage was not the only thing that surprised me in the Rockin' the River zone.

Surprises like there are now two sets of Fort Worth style modern restrooms for the comfort of Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floaters.

One of the restrooms was real upscale. With showers.

I don't know if you are required to take a shower before getting in the river, so as to not add to the pollution, or you have the option of taking a shower when you get out of the river so as to wash off the pollution.

The goofiest thing I saw in the Rockin' the River zone was 3 big, Thanksgiving Day Macy's Parade Float type things floating in the river.

The giant inner tube says it was MADE IN FORT WORTH. Is the creature floating in the inner tube some sort of caricature of Fort Worth's former mayor Moncrief?

Continuing on, let's jump ahead to the most surprising thing I saw today, that being the current condition of the Phyllis Tilley Memorial Bridge to Nowhere.

For some reason I thought the Phyllis Tilley Memorial Bridge to Nowhere was finished, opened, ready to transport bikers and pedestrians from one side of the Trinity River to the other. I was wrong. Instead I saw one of the messiest construction sites I have ever seen. What an eyesore. It did not look as if much work is going on. Wind was blowing construction flotsam up against the cyclone fence. I saw one big chunk fly over the fence.

I think I will end this blogging with the bridge debacle. I may do a part two of today's look at my current hometown by handlebars.

I almost forgot one more thing. One of my goals today was to check out the current state of the supposedly soon to open first new drive-in movie theater in America in a large American city in decades. I could find nothing that looked like a drive-in under construction.

Did Fort Worth get hoodwinked and hornswoggled again?

Rockin' The River 2012 Live On The Trinity River Starts Tonight With Some Questions

CORRECTION: All day long I thought today was Thursday, not Friday. So, the following was written thinking today was yesterday. I hope I did not confuse anyone, causing them to head to downtown Fort Worth tonight to float in a polluted river.

Early this evening the start of Season Two of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Live on the Trinity Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats arrives.

Unless the recent rains have caused the Trinity River to rise too high for safe floating. That and whenever the Trinity River goes into flood mode an astonishing amount of litter floats on top of the flood.

I don't think it would be a lot of fun to float in the Trinity River with a lot of litter added to the already toxic mix.

Downstream, in Arlington, in River Legacy Park, the sign at the Paddling Trail kayak launch warns that the river is not safe to swim in.

I can't help but wonder what gets added to the Trinity River between Fort Worth and Arlington that makes it safe to get wet in Fort Worth and unsafe to get wet in Arlington.

Elsie Hotpepper had sort of promised me that she would put on her onesie swimwear and go kayaking with me at Rockin' the River today. But, as happens much too often, Elsie Hotpepper has gone missing again. I suspect she may not be in Texas.

Rockin' the River perplexes me for many reasons. I know the Trinity River Vision Authority is not a public agency, and so laws about transparency do not apply.

But, I can not help but wonder how much these Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats cost.

The ad you see above was in last week's dfw.com ink edition. In the ad we learn that admission is free, tube rentals are $5 and beer goes for $2.50 a can. And that, this year, you are forbidden to BYOB.

I know that even though the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle Authority is not a government agency it somehow gets tax dollars to spend on their frolicking good times. Like Rockin' the River and booze sodden junkets to other towns.

If the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle Authority was a government agency we, the public, could demand to see the books, to see how much is being spent on what.

Like, how much did the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle spend to build the little lake where the private business known as Cowtown Wakepark operates?

How much does the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle spend on leasing cars for its employees?

How much does the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle spend on the well stocked liquor supply at TRVB headquarters?

How much has the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle spent on Dallas hotel rooms, when it is such a short distance to drive to spend the night back home in Fort Worth?

How much is being spent on event insurance for the Rockin' the River floats?

And will J.D. Granger and his mama be floating with the feces, garfish, snakes, turtles, alligators and litter tonight?

J.D. Granger Is A Great Family Man, Faithful Husband & Brilliant Project Manager Rockin' The Trinity River Better Than The San Marcos River

Today I got a couple interesting blog comments from someone calling him or herself Anonymous in which Anonymous sort of comes to the defense of Fort Worth's favorite rogue, J.D. Granger and the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats.

I'll copy the two comments from Anonymous below...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "J.D. Granger's Trinity River Happy Hour Tubing Party":

J.D. is a great guy. Loosen up a little.

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Rockin' Live On The Trinity River Inner Tube Happy Hour Concert Series Announced":

In response: Study your geography. The Trinity River is constantly moving. Goes thru Texas out to the ocean. No still, standing, stagnant water. The events are totally funded by sponsors, not the tax payers money. There is a lifeguard there and there are port-a-johns and people do use them. Neither of these are available at San Marcos. Its your choice to what beverage you bring. Life is all about choices. Learn your facts people!

______________________________________

In response to Anonymous informing us that J.D. is a great guy. Well, we already knew that. Great family man, faithful husband, top-notch mega-project director. A tea-totaling saint of a man who has deserved every dime he has earned while on the public dole. And need we mention how blessed J.D. is in the mother department?

As for Anonymous making a very strong case for the idea that floating in the Trinity River is a better deal than floating in the clear San Marcos River, because Rockin' the River has a lifeguard and port-a-johns, while the San Marcos River does not. Well, who can argue with that impeccable logic?

Anonymous also helps us geographically challenged sorts understand that the Trinity River is constantly moving. Constantly. On its way to the ocean. With no still, standing, stagnant water.

Except for that water that is not moving much, right now, behind the many pond creating dams that block the Trinity, in multiple locations, as it flows through Fort Worth.

Like the pond at the confluence of the West and Clear Forks of the Trinity River, at the location where the Rockin' the River Inner Tube Happy Hour Floats take place.

I hope Anonymous appreciates that I've loosened up with J.D. Granger today, as per his or her Anonymous request....

Will J.D. Granger Be Floating In The Trinity On a 4th Of July Rockin' The River Happy Hour Inner Tube??

J.D. Granger With Gaggle Of Gals

Someone named Anonymous left a new comment on an old post this morning. The old post was posted a few days ago, a cautionary tale about turning around before drowning on the Trinity River.

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Turn Around To Not Drown While You Are Rockin' The River": 

There's a photo at DFW.com of JD Granger rockin' the river. It looks like JD attended the 6-29-2012 event and he is in party pic #114. 

When I got to pic #114 I was expecting to see J.D.. Granger in an inner tube, floating in the Trinity River, with a beer cooler.

Instead I found a photo of J.D. Granger wearing a t-shirt with a slogan that informs us "I DELIVER FOR THE RIVER."

I have absolutely no idea what that slogan means.

I agree with the others, whoever they are, who find it odd that J.D. Granger has not demonstrated his inner tubing skills whilst Rockin' the River at one of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Thursday Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats.

One would think J.D. would do so to demonstrate to all the naysayers that it is perfectly safe to immerse oneself in the Trinity River water, even though testing shows high levels of things you don't want to have at a high level in anything that gets you wet.

Someone, I don't remember who it was, suggested J.D. can't get in an inner tube in the water because he is embarrassed by his beer gut.

J.D. Granger Demonstrating His Beer Drinking Technique

That is ridiculous. Looking at the above photo of J.D. do you see a beer gut? I don't. Which is remarkable considering the copious amounts of beer J.D. is rumored to consume.

Even if J.D. did have a beer gut that he was embarrassed to expose to the general public, there is no river rule prohibiting covering a beer gut with a t-shirt.

Methinks that maybe J.D. has seen secret reports with detailed data about what is actually floating in the Trinity River.

I believe this Thursday's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Float takes place a day early, on Wednesday, because Wednesday is the 4th of July.

I am thinking maybe J.D. Granger has been waiting for a special occasion, like the 4th of July, to participate in his first Trinity River Inner Tube Float.

Rockin' The Trinity River With J.D. Granger's Mama Kay

Kay Granger with Mystery Woman on the Left

The last Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Float, of Floating Season 2, was last Thursday.

It seems like only yesterday I experienced the first Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Float and blogged about it in a blogging titled Rockin' The Trinity River with Pictures & Video.

In the photo we are looking at the mama of J.D. Granger, Fort Worth Congresswoman, Kay Granger, in attendance at the last Rockin' the River of the year.

I do not know if J.D.'s mom went floating in the Trinity River last Thursday. I would guess not.

It was mama Kay who got J.D. his job running the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle where he has been able to be the genius behind events like the Happy Hour Floats in the Trinity River.

All us naysayers who thought it was absurd to encourage people to get wet in a polluted river may need to re-think our naysaying.

We have now had 2 years of people floating in the Trinity River with no reports of anyone getting sick from e.coli or any other river bacteria.

There have been no reports of anyone having an encounter with an alligator gar, or an alligator, or a water moccasin, or a snapping turtle.

There also have been no reports of J.D. Granger, or his mama, floating in the Trinity River in an inner tube.

Will E.Coli Levels Be Low Enough For Six Saturday Fort Worth River Rockin's?

Big announcement in this morning's Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

The Trinity River Vision Authority is moving its hugely popular Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats from Thursday to Saturday, with six floating events, with Saturday allowing for extended floating  hours.

From the Rockin’ the River series moves to Saturdays article...

Rockin’ the River is changing course this year. The weekly summer concert-and-tubing series, thrown by the Trinity River Vision Authority at Fort Worth’s Panther Island Pavilion, is moving from a Thursday happy-hour event to an all-afternoon Saturday festival to be held over the course of six Saturdays.

"Thrown by the Trinity River Vision Authority at Fort Worth's Panther Island Pavilion" where the island is imaginary, and I think that spot where the guitar player is strumming is what America's Biggest Boondoggle misnomers as a pavilion.

The article's illustrative photo shows a lot of floaters.

I have long been puzzled as to why the fact that so many Fort Worthers are willing to get themselves wet in the Trinity River, what with occasionally cancelled river floats due to E.Coli pollution levels being too high, that, and the occasional visiting alligator, is not seen as being a real pitiful indicator that Fort Worth is sadly, badly lacking in water venues in which to cool off when Summer gets HOT.

Just a couple days ago I was similarly puzzled when I read that downtown Fort Worth's only venue that even faintly resembled a grocery store, Oliver's Fine Foods, had closed. I would think that the failure of downtown Fort Worth's only grocery store-like venue would prompt some sort of realization that there must be something not quite right with downtown Fort Worth.

Other big cities, smaller in population than Fort Worth, about which I am familiar, have multiple large full functioning grocery stores in their downtown zone. Along with multiple department stores.

Downtown Fort Worth has not a single department store. Not a Neiman-Marcus, not a Nordstrom. Not even a Sears or a Dillards. One would think the lack of a department store, and grocery store, would  prompt some serious thinking about such a downtown's vitality. But, I guess it is easier just to continue to trumpet the imaginary wonders of Sundance Square, where there is no square, but there finally is a plaza, called Sundance Square Plaza, after confusing Fort Worth's few tourists for decades with signage pointing to Sundance Square, where there is no square.

As for Fort Worth's lack of a place for the locals to cool off and get wet in mass. All of Fort Worth's ponds and lakes, like Fosdick Lake in Oakland Lake Park, forbid swimming due to pollution problems.

Fort Worth does have one pristine water venue. Burgers'  Lake.

From the Burger's Lake website...

Located in Fort Worth, Texas, Burger's Lake offers summer fun for everyone. Burger's Lake is a 30-acre park featuring a one-acre spring-fed lake for swimming. Our facility includes two sandy beaches for sunning with wonderful big trees for shade.

Burger's Lake is run as a private business, charging a semi-hefty admission fee.

The "government" in its various forms, which runs Fort Worth like an oligarchy fiefdom, has no qualms about abusing eminent domain to take private property, even when it is not for eminent domain's intended use of taking private property for the public good.

Instead, in Fort Worth, eminent domain is abused for the private gain of those whose property value stands to increase due to the theft.

How about a correct use of eminent domain, for once in Fort Worth's sordid eminent domain abuse history? Why not take Burger's Lake for the public good and turn this pristine spring-fed lake into a public park? With Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats in an E.Coli, alligator free environment.

Or build a HUGE water venue. This has been done in other locales in America. In towns much smaller than Fort Worth. Take Garden City, Kansas, for instance. Population less than 30,000.

Garden City has a pool, bigger than a football field, originally called "The Big Dipper", now simply called "The Big Pool". The Big Pool is big enough for water skiing to take place. On a HOT summer day as many as around 2,000 people can be found cooling off in The Big Pool.

What stops a city like Fort Worth, obviously in dire need of such a venue, from digging itself a Big Pool? I know the usual excuses. Lack of vision.  Horrible city leadership. Corruption. The same type thinking which has the majority of Fort Worth city parks lacking running water or modern restrooms.

And much of the city's streets lacking sidewalks....

Was Proper Trinity Testing Done Before Thursday's Rockin' The Sewage Happy Hour?

I think I have already mentioned earlier this week that a raw sewage carrying pipeline burst, sending a flood of untreated water into a creek which flows into the Trinity River a short distance upstream from the downtown Fort Worth location where America's Biggest Boondoggle hosts Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats at an imaginary pavilion near an imaginary island.

Spokesman for The Boondoggle claimed the raw sewage had been contained prior to posing a threat to the Trinity River and to those choosing to float in that dirty river. It was also claimed that testing indicated the water was safe, with that testing taking place prior to The Boondoggle's inaugural floating beer party of the year.

Well.

In an article this morning in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, titled Fort Worth pumps water out of Mary’s Creek after sewage spill we learn....

On Thursday, the city was collecting samples from the creek and from the Trinity River, which connects to the creek just west of Southwest Boulevard/Texas 183, Gugliuzza said.

The samples’ bacteria levels will be tested, and the results won’t be ready for a day or two, Gugliuzza said. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality was notified Wednesday.

People “definitely” need to stay out of the creek until further notice, Gugliuzza said.

The spill was not expected to affect drinking water, authorities said, but residents with private water wells within a half-mile of the spill site should boil or distill water before using it until further notice.

So, the Star-Telegram is reporting that on Thursday samples were collected from the Trinity River, to be tested, with those test results ready in a day or two.

So, how was it The Boondoggle was able to claim testing indicated the Trinity River water was free of dangerous pathogens, and thus safe to float in, that same Thursday the samples were taken, if the results of the testing were not available for a day or two after the scheduled floating beer party?

Like I think I have mentioned before, something just ain't right about Fort Worth.

It's like the town has the backwards mentality of an undeveloped small Southern town of a few thousand, instead of the mentality of a modern city of around 800,000.

Fort Worth is definitely the most un-sanitary town in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex mess. Fort Worth is the only town in the D/FW zone with multiple city parks with no running water and no modern restroom facilities of the non-outhouse variety.

A town being okay with having parks without modern restrooms, without a place to wash ones hands after using an outhouse, fits right in with a town having a mentality that it is okay to sponsor a water event in river water downstream from a raw sewage spill.

Now, I do not generalize to suggest that all the citizens of Fort Worth are okay with having their city parks so far behind modern times. Or having floating parties in the Trinity River. I am sure the majority of Fort Worth citizens would like to see their town modernized to a level at least matching other towns in their shared metropolitan zone.

Modernized like Haltom City, Keller, Watauga, North Richland Hills, Arlington, Grapevine, Dallas, well you get the drift.

Just this past Wednesday I enjoyed a pleasant picnic, under a shelter at Capp Smith Park in Watauga. The covered picnic area was connected to a modern restroom. Drinking fountains and running water were also near the covered picnic shelter.

What a concept.

I can not imagine a 21st century American city, other than Fort Worth, hosting embarrassing floating beer parties, with music, in water commonly believed to be dirty and polluted, let alone hosting such a thing after a big raw sewage spill  occurred a short distance upstream.

Fort Worth is badly led by bad leaders. I don't know why this is the case, but it is. No other large American city opened itself up to being poked by thousands of holes in the ground to be fracked with pollutants, along with other associated post poking pollutants damaging the life quality of its citizens.

It is a bit symbolic of Fort Worth's backwardness that at the site of the Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats you will also find no modern restrooms. Just a couple outhouses encased in cement enclosures. Methinks most modern American town's sense of civic pride would have the people of that town feeling a bit embarrassed to have permanent outhouses installed at what The Boondoggle propaganda claims is the premiere urban waterfront music venue in Texas.

I know, gag worthy and again embarrassing.

Fort Worth can and should and deserves to do better. The Good Ol' Boy and Girl Network, also known as the 7th Street Gang, needs to get the boot, with Fort Worth getting replacement leadership which truly represents all the people of Fort Worth, improving all areas of the city for all the people of the city.

As it is, Fort Worth just keeps falling further and further behind the rest of America, and its own suburbs.

Like I said, embarrassing....

Who Is Testing The Rockin' The Trinity River Water Where The Happy Hour Inner Tubers Float?

I was looking at the Party Pics section of DFW.com ink edition's photos of the latest Trinity River Vision Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Float and thought to myself that this sure looks fun, and surely must be the biggest number of bikinis on display in one concentrated location in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

I also thought to myself that I wish I was able to believe that the Trinity River was not way too polluted to go floating in, so I could feel all right about joining in in the regularly scheduled Thursday floating fun.

Last year, on September 22, 2011, to be precise, WFAA Channel 8 had a story titled Questions about Trinity River water quality.

To find out if the Trinity River water quality was safe to float in, WFAA hired an independent water tester to test the water where the TRV happy hour inner tube floaters float and also the water in the Cowtown Wakepark pond where wakeboarders get wet.

Somehow the Wakepark pond tested safe. The Rockin' the River area did not test safe.

Part of the WFAA article...

One of two samples at the tubing area was enough to make you sick. The sample found 387 E. coli organisms per 100 milliliters of river water. That's well above what the Environmental Protection Agency recommends as acceptable for a single sample.

An environmental scientist at the University of North Texas, Dr. Joon-hak Lee, said more samples are needed at all sampling locations to protect the public.

In response to last year's WFAA Trinity River dirty water expose, the project manager for the Trinity River Vision Authority, Woody Frossard, said the Trinity River Water District was going to start testing the tubing and wakeboard pond areas regularly, starting last fall.

Has this been done? Has the TRWD been doing testing? If so, what are the results? Does the floating public not have the right to know the results of any testing a public agency does on the water in this controversial river?

Apparently J.D. Granger Delivers To Or For The River Without Floating In It

Yesterday I blogged about the Lone Granger and Nepotism.

Someone named Anonymous commented on that Lone Granger and Nepotism blogging with the following...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "The Lone Granger Wonders About Trinity River Vision Boondoggle Nepotism":

The latest Rockin' The River pics are out and The Lone Granger appears in pic 56 of 156.

He's sporting eye glasses in the photo and doesn't look like he gets in the water.

Pics here: http://www.dfw.com/2013/06/21/804604/pics-062013-rockin-the-river.html

I tortured myself by scrolling through 55 photos of scantily clad people enjoying the pure, crystal clear water of the Trinity River before I got to photo #56 to find two guys sporting eye glasses, neither of whom look as if he may be getting in the water.

I am going to go way out on a limb here and make a guess that J.D. Granger is the guy sporting eye glasses on the right. I am making this guess because the guy on the right is wearing a t-shirt that says either "I DELIVER FOR THE RIVER" or "I DELIVER TO THE RIVER."

Since J.D. Granger has delivered hundreds upon hundreds of sacrificial floaters to the Trinity River, methinks it would be he who would be wearing a t-shirt touting this incredible accomplishment.

J.D. Granger Working On His Beer Gut

Now, regarding it appearing that J.D. is not prepared to get in the water, I can not help but wonder if, during the course of all the Thursdays when hundreds upon hundreds of people have enjoyed the pristine waters of the Trinity River in the Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats, has J.D. Granger not joined the throngs he has delivered to the river, even once?

Is J.D. shy about exposing his beer gut to the unforgiving eyes of the numerous cameras documenting the Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats?

Even if J.D. is shy about exposing his beer gut I still think it would behoove him to show a good example and deliver himself to the river.

At least once.

Lamenting No Rockin' The Trinity River In Dallas While J.D.Granger Delivers For The River In Fort Worth

This past Thursday marked the return of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's, I mean, Panther Island Boondoggle's World Famous Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats in Fort Worth's crystal clear Trinity River.

More on that later in this blogging, but first I must mention that this morning I learned via an article in the Dallas Observer titled 10 Dallas Places We'd Like to See Host Concerts that there are some people, well, at least one, that being the writer of this article, who wants to close the river floating gap between Fort Worth and Dallas.

On the list of 10 was #5, which you see screencapped above and copied below...

5. The Trinity River Basin
Fort Worth is way ahead of Dallas when it comes to making the banks of the Trinity a legitimate destination for concerts, drinking and various forms of revelry. Screw the city council, screw the naysayers. Let's take advantage of the dry summer conditions and get a stage up between Fuel City and the Oak Farms Dairy for some serious, urban park-style entertainment. If it rains and floods a bit, grab some inner tubes and let's float this sucker. Get your tetanus shots first, and then stop worrying. There's a fancy bridge for a nice backdrop and it doesn't always smell that bad. Let's close the Trinity-As-Entertainment gap that lies between us and the Panther City, Dallas!

The only part of the above which sounds to me like a good idea is the tetanus shot suggestion. Methinks White Rock Lake would be a much better location in Dallas for Rockin' the Lake Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats.

Which leads me to change the subject and ask, why is swimming not allowed in White Rock Lake? It always looks so inviting, to me, swimming-wise, certainly more so than the Trinity River.

Now, changing the subject back to Fort Worth's Rockin' of the Trinity River.

This morning someone named Anonymous made a couple comments regarding an aspect of Thursday's Trinity River Inner Tube Float....

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Walking With The Village Creek Indian Ghosts Through A Flurry Of Snow & Snake Concerns":

J.D. Granger sighting at Rockin' the River:

http://www.dfw.com/2014/06/06/898726/pics-rockin-the-river-june-5-2014.html

Photos #68 and #74 include Master Granger. 

That is the #74 photo of Master Granger to which Anonymous refers, below, with that being Master Granger on the left.

Another person named  Anonymous, or maybe the same one, made another comment regarding the above photo....

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Walking With The Village Creek Indian Ghosts Through A Flurry Of Snow & Snake Concerns":

#74...needs a bra.

Well.

Looking at the photo I can see why Anonymous has made the bra suggestion, but as a full-figured fellow myself, I take umbrage at someone making such a rude remark....

J.D Granger Wears T-Shirt Anonymous Finds Incomprehensible

A couple days ago I mentioned I had suffered a Multiple Blog Comments Publishing Faux Pas.

Among those blog comments was one from way back in early August from someone named Anonymous...

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "Heading North To The Smoky Pacific Northwest Without Elsie Hotpepper":

There's a Star-Telegram pic of J.D. Granger at the final Rockin' The River event of 2017. 

Granger is in pic #32 wearing a stupid tee shirt that is incomprehensible to me.

Rockin' the River at Panther Island Pavilion, August 5, 2017

Well.

I think I can read, for the most part, what is written on the tee shirt which Anonymous finds incomprehensible...

OF COURSE

I DON'T GET OUT,

IT ALL GOES

TO DALLAS

ANYWAYS

I think what Anonymous may be finding incomprehensible is the fact a grown man in an imaginary position of authority, being the pseudo Executive Director of a quasi public agency known as the Trinity River Vision Authority, would wear a tee shirt which basically informs us he does not get out of the Trinity River when he needs to relieve himself after excess beer consumption, because that of which he relieves himself flows to Dallas anyway.

J.D. Granger is talking about urinating in the Trinity River whilst floating on an inner tube, drinking beer, listening to music emanating from a shed propagandized as a pavilion on a chunk of land propagandized as being an island.

In other words, Rockin' the River at Panther Island Pavilion.

Now, if J.D. were to decide to exit the river when he feels the need to urinate he could avail himself of one of the lovely outhouses his agency has installed on the banks of the Trinity River. These may be the most luxurious outhouses in all of Fort Worth. They are surrounded by concrete enclosures, which almost disguises their outhouse reality.

As I scrolled through the photos to which Anonymous directed me, searching for the one of J.D. Granger's tee shirt, I also saved a few other photos for documentation purposes to show people in other parts of America, and the world, and Amazon, that which passes for a mighty fine time in Fort Worth.

Above is the first photo one comes to in the Rockin' the River at Panther Island Pavilion, August 5, 2017 article. In the foreground a couple heading to the river, with the male half proudly sporting a tank top properly paying homage to the American flag, with the message "BACK TO BACK WORLD WAR WINS".

Behind the couple we see throngs of floaters contributing to the flow of polluted river water making its way to Dallas.

A closer look at some of the River Rockers, in the not crystal clear water of the Trinity River, many with future Dallas river water in hand.

And above we get a look at that stunning architectural wonder known as Panther Island Pavilion. I do not know which world renowned architect designed this iconic symbol of Fort Worth.

That is the imaginary island, known as Panther Island, upon which the beautiful pavilion sits. Currently the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision, more commonly known as America's Biggest Boondoggle, is struggling to build three simple little bridges over dry land to connect the Fort Worth mainland to that imaginary island.

One day, far in the future, a ditch may be dug under those three bridges, with the Trinity River diverted into the ditch, creating what Fort Worth propagandizing illusionists pretend will be an island.

I am fairly certain it would be accurate to say the majority of the people who live in Fort Worth are appalled at the idea of using the Trinity River for water recreational purposes of the float on an inner tube sort. Multiple times the Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats have had to be cancelled due to dangerously elevated e.coli levels, among other pollutants.

One would think, if Fort Worth had actual city leaders, actually leading the city in some semblance of sanity, that those city leaders would see it as a sad commentary on Fort Worth's lack of fun, outdoor recreational opportunities, what with so many locals willing to inner tube on a polluted river while drinking beer listening to music emanating from a river side shack.

And here we have one of those aforementioned supposed city leaders, J.D. Granger, working on helping contribute to the flow of water heading towards Dallas...

Come Join Me Today Rockin' The River Live On The Trinity With Lifeguards & No Guns

It seems like I've been waiting forever for this day to arrive. That day being the first Trinity River Vision Boondoggle Happy Hour Inner Tube Float of the year.

Now with music. Starting at 6pm today loud music is going to be rocking the Trinity River floaters. The floating starts at 4pm and lasts til 8:30pm.

If you are concerned that some of the inner tube floaters might be packing heat in addition to alcoholic adult beverages you will be relieved to know that the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Trinity River Happy Hour Inner Tube Float webpage advises floaters to "DO NOT BRING" firearms or weapons.

What other weapon might someone bring other than a firearm? A knife? I suppose some maniac might go poking holes in inner tubes with a knife if knives were allowed. Where would you pack heat or a knife in a swimming suit?

Another relief is the fact that there will be lifeguards ready to come to the rescue in case a cluster of water moccasins decide to join the fun, or an alligator gar, or some snapping turtles, or an alligator or some other totally unanticipated river danger.

Anyway, I gleaned from the official TRV Boondoggle "Tube the Trinity - Rockin' the River Summer Music Tubing Series" webpage the details of today's big event and copied them below....

Admission:

• This is a completely FREE event every 2nd & 4th Thursday in June, July & August!
• The first 600 attendees will receive a FREE tube!
• Do you have your own tube??  Bring it!
• Receive your Rockin’ the River wristband at the Sign In Tent!  Attendees will be required to sign a waiver and receive a wristband prior to entering the river.

Time:

• 4:00pm – 8:30pm
• Live Concerts begin at 6:00pm

Location:

• Panther Island Pavilion in Trinity Uptown

Parking:

• Free parking at the "Old Tandy Center"

What to bring:

• BYOB & Coolers – NO GLASS OR STYROFOAM ALLOWED
• River Shoes
• Sunscreen
• Beach Towel
• Lawn Chair
• Blanket
• Water tight container for your keys, phone, etc. WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR LOST OR WET ITEMS.

DO NOT BRING:

• Glass or Styrofoam containers
• Firearms
• Fireworks
• Weapons
• Noise Makers

MORE INFO:

To access FREE parking at the "Old Tandy Center" lot: From Henderson Street, turn west on Belknap and merge right onto Forest Park Boulevard. Take the immediate right on Purcey Street and proceed to the parking lot.

Hop on the school bus shuttle that will take you and your cooler to the Sign In Tent FOR FREE!

Check in at the Sign In Tent to sign your waiver and receive a Rockin’ The River wristband.  YOU WILL NOT BE ALLOWED IN THE RIVER WITHOUT A WRISTBAND.

This event includes loud music and alcohol.  Please use discretion in bringing young children.  Children under 12 years of age will be required to wear a life vest at all times while in the water.  Free life vests are available for use, but must be returned at the end of the event.

Lifeguards will be on duty, however all attendees enter the river at your own risk. Pets must remain on a leash at all times.

Hopefully Rockin' The River Live On The Trinity Is Back Bigger Than Ever With Beer & Free Coolers

Earlier today I learned I am going Over the Edge with Elsie Hotpepper this coming September. And now this afternoon I've learned I have something else to look forward to.

That being that this summer the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Inner Tube Happy Hour Floats are back bigger than ever.

Meaning this summer the Floating with the Feces starts Thursday, June 7 and every Thursday there after, until August 9, with the exception July 5, when there will be no Feces Floating due to that Thursday being the day after the 4th of July.

This year the TRVB will be providing no free inner tubes. But the TRVB will rent you a tube for $5. Or you can BYOT. You are forbidden to bring your own alcoholic beverage or a cooler to contain alcoholic beverages. But the TRVB will sell you a can of beer for $2.50 and provide you with a free cooler to float your beer in.

I do not know if you have to buy a can of TRVB beer to get a free cooler.

The below specifics were gleaned from the official TRVB Rockin' the River informational page...

Elsie Hotpepper is refusing to put on her bikini and go kayaking with me among the Feces Floaters. Maybe CatsPaw will put on her bikini and go floating with me.

Recently people got sick from e.coli from contact with water in the Oklahoma River. Oklahoma City has banned swimming in the Oklahoma River or any Oklahoma City lake or river.

I know the TRVB makes the Trinity River Feces Floaters sign some sort of waiver before letting a person get  in the river.

But, I can not help but wonder what sort of threat/risk assessment has been done by the TRVB. As in, it is logical that there is a 1 in a certain number of instances, of a person getting in the Trinity River, that they are going to drown, get bit by a water moccasin, bit by an alligator, bit by a gar fish or get deathly sick from e.coli or flesh eating bacteria.

Has the TRVB bought insurance to protect Fort Worth from the inevitable law suit that would arise should someone get hurt or die do to this foolishness?

Fort Worth foolishly lived with the risk of someone drowning in the poorly designed whirlpool in the Fort Worth Water Gardens. Four people died before that engineering mistake was fixed. How much did this cost Fort Worth?

How much will it cost Fort Worth if someone dies while Rockin' the River?

Instead of risking Rockin' the River, why not hold these events in one of Fort Worth's clean water swimming venues.

Oh.

I forgot. There are none.

And that fact is the real problem that should be addressed, rather than Rockin' the River all summer long.

The Trinity River Vision Boondoggle needs to have an adult in charge of the operation, instead of having it operate as the private playground of a corrupt congresswoman's playboy son.

Below is a video I made of my visit, last summer, to the first Rockin' the River, just to get you in the mood to do some Feces Floating in less than a month....

Wondering Why So Many Fort Worth Locals Think Tubing Polluted Water With Gators Is Fun

A few minutes ago I found myself Googling for images of America's Biggest Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats to find myself surprised to find a lot of the images were from this very blog you are looking at right now, including the Pigs in the Trinity image you see here.

The Pigs in the Trinity were from a blogging titled Elsie Hotpepper's Artist's Rendering Of Rockin' The Trinity River With Pigs from way back on August 7, 2013. No wonder I didn't remember it, that's a long time ago.

The reason I was looking for a Rockin' the River image for illustrative purposes came about due to a conversation I had recently with a fellow transplant from the Pacific Northwest, during which the fellow transplant asked me why I thought the locals here turn out in such big numbers for things like Rockin' the Polluted River and Funday Sundays in the same polluted river? And in large numbers to do something rather, I don't know, un-fun looking, like that Slide the City deal a few weeks ago.

Well, I gave this question some thought. And what I concluded is there are not enough fun things to do in Fort Worth of the playing in water type fun.

The only other big city, with which I am familiar, is Seattle. I may have mentioned that before.

I can say with 100% certainty that if Seattle had a polluted river running through the town, which it doesn't, but if it did, there is no way you could get 100s of people to get in that dirty water to float on inner tubes and listen to music.

Why?

Because, unlike Fort Worth, Seattle has multiple venues where the public can enjoy being on a beach and get themselves wet in clean water.

Such as Green Lake, a lake several times bigger than America's Biggest Boondoggle's proposed Pond Granger. Green Lake has a big swimming area. With lifeguards. An actual pavilion. And now that you're making me think about it, an actual island. Green Lake is surrounded by a wide jogging, biking, blading paved trail with designated lanes and directions.

On Elliott Bay there is Alki Beach, miles of beach with beach amenities, like running water and modern restrooms. And on a warm day you can have fun playing in the waves or swimming. If you are like me and like cold water.

Near the Ballard Locks you'll find another beach at Golden Gardens Park. You saw that beach if you watched Sleepless in Seattle.

In Seattle Lake Washington also has several parks with beaches allowing for warmer swimming, in summer, than getting wet in Puget Sound. Such as Madison Park and Denny Blaine Park, which can be topless and clothing optional, at times.

Now, isn't it interesting I found so many links to Wikipedia articles about these various Seattle beaches and attractions? How many Wikipedia articles do you find when you Google for such things located in Fort Worth?

NONE. ZIP. ZERO. NADA.

Hence why hundreds upon hundreds of people will show up for something as unappealing as America's Biggest Boondoggle's Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats in a dirty, turtle, snake and gator infested river and think they are having themselves a mighty fine time, because a mighty fine time is hard to find, of the water sport sort, in Fort Worth.

Something needs to be done about this. The fact that so many people are getting in that dirty river is a symptom of something amiss that needs to be addressed. There used to be something called Casino Beach on Lake Worth. Could that be revived and turned into a legit swimming beach?

I have been told that long ago, in Fosdick Lake in Fort Worth's Oakland Lake Park, swimming and boating was allowed. Fosdick Lake is rather small. But small is better than nothing. With a little effort could not Fosdick Lake be restored to a non-polluted state and made beach and fish friendly?

Fort Worth needs to do something. That seems obvious, with the symptom of something being dire wrong being the fact that so many think it is a fun thing to go floating in a murky, dirty, polluted river.

While drinking beer and listening to music.

And now featuring alligators.....

Turn Around To Not Drown While You Are Rockin' The Trinity River

Pedaling on the Trinity Trail on the downriver side of the Rockin' the River zone, I saw an orange boom spanning the river.

I assumed the orange boom was in place to keep Rockin' the River Inner Tubing Happy Hour Floaters contained within the pollution-free safe to swim in section of the Trinity River.

A short distance downriver from the orange boom I saw two signs I'd not seen before, one sign on each end of the big arch of the Main Street Bridge that spans the Trinity River.

STEEP DROP AHEAD
TURN AROUND
DON'T DROWN

Sounds very dire. I had no recollection of ever seeing a steep drop on the Trinity River in this location, so, of course I was curious.

On the right you are looking at the Main Street Bridge. And the warning signs. The Main Street Bridge is also known as the Paddock Viaduct. It was built in 1914. The first bridge in America to have self-supporting arches of concrete.

I do not know if being the first bridge in America to have self-supporting arches of concrete made the rest of America green with envy, or not.

The bridge was named for B.B. Paddock. He was a Fort Worth mayor and newspaper editor.

I know these things because I read them on a plaque stuck to a big rock near the bridge. On the south side of the bridge, that's the right side in the picture, there is a State of Texas Historical Marker that goes into more detail about the bridge. I came upon this Historical Marker years ago whilst exploring the area around the now sadly defunct Heritage Park

That drop off does not look all that dire, not that I'd want to go over that mini-Niagara Falls floating on an inner tube.

I wonder if a Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floater went over the falls, thus prompting the installation of the orange boom and the TURN AROUND DON'T DROWN warning sign?

Where Funkytown Gets Down Rockin' The River Live On The Trinity With Clean Swimmin' Dirty Livin'

When I saw the advertisement on the left in this week's DFW.com Ink edition I wondered whether these brilliant ads are produced in house by the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle, or does the TRVB out source this to an advertising agency.

We are now into the 3rd summer of 100s of people floating in the Trinity River every Thursday.

If I remember right the original version of this activity was called the Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Float.

For summer of 2013 it is now "Rockin' the River Live on the Trinity".

No mention of "Happy Hour" or "Floating".

However the ad does inform us that the TRVB will sell you alcohol in the form of beer for $3. And that you are forbidden to float your own beer in a cooler.

The slogans in the ad are very clever.

"WHERE FUNKYTOWN GETS DOWN".

"CLEAN SWIMMIN' DIRTY LIVIN'".

I'm thinking "DIRTY SWIMMIN' CLEAN LIVIN'" would make more sense.

When did Fort Worth go from being known as Cowtown to being Funkytown?

Fort Worth is Funky? How? Where?

The ad does mention floating, even if floating is no longer in the name for the event. At the top of the ad we are advised to "FLOAT UP TO FRONT ROW SEATS AT PANTHER ISLAND PAVILION."

Has anyone located Panther Island yet? Or figured out what the pavilion is?

I have to admit, now that we are in the 3rd summer of 100s of people floating in the formerly polluted river, that a few things surprise me.

I would have thought by now there would be incidents of people acquiring a bad rash from being in that water.

I would have thought by now there would be incidents of people getting sick via contact with E.Coli bacteria in the water.

I would have thought by now there would be incidents of encounters with water moccasins, garfish, turtles or alligators.

But, as far as I know, there have been none of the type incidents I thought would likely happen when 100s of people decided it was an okay thing to go floating in the formerly polluted Trinity River.

So, today, with it being Thursday, I am pondering if I want to go Rockin' the River Live on the Trinity tonight and have myself some of that beer and food  available for purchase, mentioned in the ad.

I'll see if Elsie Hotpepper wants to go floating live with me tonight....

Spencer Jack Getting Wet Thinking About The Skagit River Vision

Click here for info about the May 23, 2013 I-5 Skagit River Bridge Collapse.

This morning, in my email box, there was incoming from Spencer Jack's dad, my nephew, Jason, with the email's subject line being "42 Days Without Rain Leaves Skagit River Near Empty."

In the picture on the left that is Spencer Jack playing in the near empty Skagit River.

In the picture you can sort of see how clear and clean the Skagit River is. With no rain falling, the water in the river would be coming from the melting snowpack and glaciers high in the Cascade Mountains.

Those looking at these pictures, whose closest river is the Trinity River, please make note of the fact that you see no litter floating in the Skagit River.

If the Trinity River is ones main river frame of reference, one might wonder, if this is the Skagit River being almost empty, what is it like when the river runs with a normal flow.

Well, it really does not look all that much different.

I can not tell which bridge Jason is letting Spencer Jack play under. The I-5 bridge? Or is it the downtown Mount Vernon bridge? If that is where Spencer is in the river, well, it really is running low.

In the second picture I know for sure the bridge in the foreground is the I-5 bridge because I see the new bridge that connects Mount Vernon to Burlington behind it.

The Skagit River has what is known as a current. As in the water in the river moves. In downtown Mount Vernon the Skagit River is only a few miles from where it empties into Puget Sound. When the tide runs high the saltwater acts as a dam, slowing up the Skagit River, when the tide runs low the Skagit River speeds up.

I was in a small motor boat, years ago, launched near downtown Mount Vernon, going with the flow of the river, towards the Sound. The motor died. We had rows. The tide changed, the river started moving fast. I don't recollect ever struggling harder to get something to move. Eventually we made it to the river's bank.

Okay, in the last picture I can clearly tell where Spencer Jack is, in the Skagit River, because I can faintly see the Downtown Mount Vernon Tulip Tower in the background to the left of Spencer.

With the Tulip Tower on the other side of the river that would put Spencer Jack in West Mount Vernon. To the north of Spencer, with the river this low, there would be a huge sandbar, likely with a lot of people fishing from it. If I am remembering correctly.

Standing under the Downtown Mount Vernon Skagit River Bridge is something I don't recollect ever seeing before. So, the river really is running low.

I wonder why Mount Vernon does not have a Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Float on the Skagit River, like Fort Worth does on the filthy Trinity River? I can think of one reason. The Skagit River water is cold. Like I said above, the water comes from a melted source.

Downtown Mount Vernon currently has its own version of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle. Only the Mount Vernon Skagit River Vision is not a boondoggle. Unlike the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle the Skagit River Vision is an actual needed flood control project. A flood wall is being built to protect downtown Mount Vernon from a Skagit River flood. Part of the project will be a Mount Vernon Riverwalk.

The Mount Vernon Skagit River Vision is well underway and will be completed, I think, by next year. There are no wakeboard parks as part of the Skagit River Vision. And no local congresswoman's unqualified son is employed to oversee the Skagit River Vision.

Several Hours After The Above Was Written....

I logged into Facebook to see that Spencer Jack's dad had Facebooked a picture of Spencer Jack that he did not email me this morning. This picture would have alleviated me of my confusion as to what bridge Spencer was under. In this picture Spencer Jack is on the Skagit River Bridge that connects Downtown Mount Vernon to West Mount Vernon.

To those reading this for whom the Trinity River is your local river, does it appear to you that the Skagit River, as it flows by Downtown Mount Vernon, is bigger than the fabled, ever shrinking, Town Puddle, that is one of the key parts of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle, giving Fort Worth its long desired waterfront?

I wonder why the Skagit River is that nice blue color, whilst the Trinity River is currently a jade shade of green? Even with a blue sky overhead.