Author: lewisotr

One Hell Of A Guy, If I do say so myself.
Construction, Crazy Times, The Construction BizLeave a comment

Just One More Accident

lewisotr

I had a new gold and beige colored crew cab Chevrolet. It was a beautiful truck. It had everything imaginable on it. This was in the mid 1980s. It still had paper tags on it. I pulled up in front and center at Holt Caterpillar in Austin one morning. Just as I reached the front door I heard a crash. I looked around to see a one ton welders truck had backed into the drivers door. As I got closer I saw that he had a pair of fork lift forks on the bed of his truck. They extended over … Continue reading Just One More Accident

Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

You People Don’t Be Ruffling My Feathers

lewisotr

I often drive down the road and see someone working on their road and I know they aren’t an accomplished road builder. They are there trying to improve things a little and hoping to make a difference. Sometimes I wonder if they’ll actually be able to get up and down it by the time they are done. I don’t stop and explain what they are doing wrong and how if they will do this or that it will be much better. If I did stop I’d probably hurt their feelings. That guy is doing the best that he can. He … Continue reading You People Don’t Be Ruffling My Feathers

Another Daily Happening, Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

Another Day In My Life

lewisotr

I find myself (you notice how everything is about me) in a quandary. If this sheltering in place lasts very much longer I am going to end up one swallowing of my tooth crowns. I’ve got two loose ones at the moment that need the real good dental glue. Every few days one or the other of them comes out. I clean them up, removing all the old adhesive using some of my tiny drill bits and CNC tools. After brushing my teeth and rinsing well I dry the stud with a cotton swab. Then it’s time to fill the … Continue reading Another Day In My Life

Cecil Lewis, Crazy Times, Marble Falls and the Area Around it., Old Dog - New Trick, The Construction Biz2 Comments

Eating Foods You Hate

lewisotr

When I was about 13 years old, on a hot summer day Cec took me to a John Deere Front End Loader on the top of Taylor Mountain, as we always called it. From up there you could see Marble Falls, because you were up there looking down across the town. It was far into the distance. I was clearing off brush on several lots and then leveling them up for future house site. It was early in the morning when he dropped me and I didn’t think about taking a jug of water. When noon rolled around I had … Continue reading Eating Foods You Hate

Crazy Times, Kenny Lewis, SmithwickLeave a comment

Ride With Me To Austin And I’ll Take You Back To Smithwick Tomorrow

lewisotr

Once Kenny and I were fooling around doing God only knows what one Saturday in Smithwick. I was living in Austin and Kenny was at a “flexible stage” in his life. I’m referring to when he was blowing in the wind, unattached. At some point something happened and it became necessary for us to go Austin. He wanted to go get his pickup, but knowing it was going to take up valuable time, I said “come on and ride with me and I can drive you back up to Smithwick tomorrow”. He agreed and we spent the night at my … Continue reading Ride With Me To Austin And I’ll Take You Back To Smithwick Tomorrow

Amazing Things, Construction, Crazy Times, On The Job, The Construction BizLeave a comment

The Day The Dollar General Truck Caused Chaos

lewisotr

Once when we were working on the Inks Dam anchoring project there were many obstacles to overcome everyday. There was one day when the stars aligned and it appeared we would have a banner day of pouring concrete. We ordered up 2 huge concrete pump trucks that were capable of sending concrete all the way across the length of the dam. They came out of San Antonio, at a hefty price for mobilization. We had a huge team of finishers that we had hired out of Austin to help place and finish the concrete. The concrete was batched out of … Continue reading The Day The Dollar General Truck Caused Chaos

Meeting New People, My FriendsLeave a comment

Let Me Tell You About Bill

lewisotr

Bill is a woodworker. Actually he is a woodturner, mainly. His works are beautiful. He lives in Bertram. It’s an amazing story of how we met. Madeline has a cousin in Houston that owns a bookstore that specializes in Murder Mysteries. In fact I think that’s all they carry. The name of the store is Murder by the Book. I think it’s been there for many years. This younger cousin worked there, then bought it after a time and married the bookstore manager. I may have the sequence of events out of order, but that’s the story for the most … Continue reading Let Me Tell You About Bill

Funny HappeningsLeave a comment

Funny Things Can Happen If You Let Them

lewisotr

Something funny happened one time a few years ago when my son, Mike, his wife Katherine and I took a trip the NYC. We had been out sight seeing and our hotel was right at in the middle of Times Square. As we headed back to the hotel in a huge throng of people, as is usual, we started across a crosswalk just bumper to bumper with other tourists. A woman was right beside me, with the man, mostly likely her husband, a step ahead of us. He reached back for the lady’s hand, I guess as to not get … Continue reading Funny Things Can Happen If You Let Them

Crazy Times, The Early Days2 Comments

The Lemon Wedge

lewisotr

Some of the simple things that happen in life prove to be the most memorable.. The Country Road Restaurant was a good place to eat lunch. You’d go through the line and fill your plate. We ate there often, as it was close to our office. One day our accountant Woody, Kenny and I went there. A fellow sitting across the dining room from us was drinking tea from one of the large mouth ice tea glasses. It had a lemon wedge on the lip of the glass. This fellow continued wearing his cap, with it pulled down low on … Continue reading The Lemon Wedge