Meeting Up With A Legend

A funny yet strange encounter happened at a Roadside Rest Stop today. In my travels today I had to go up to a job we are doing out west of Waco. It’s up where SpaceX tests its rocket engines. After seeing everything I needed to, I left there and the same thing happened that always happens when I go up there. I had to make a pit stop when I got south of Salado at the very nice Highway Rest Stop. When I came out I noticed an older gentleman sitting in his pickup. He motioned for me to come … Continue reading Meeting Up With A Legend

I Have A New Friend

(This is a story written back in 2015) She is not really a new friend, I’ve known this lady for most of my life. But what was just a causal meeting from time to time has develop into a great fondness and friendship during the past few weeks. We were brought together by me calling her to invite her to our MFHS 45th class reunion. One thing lead to another, with me sending her a copy The Angora Chronicles book. You see, Mrs. Doris Phillips taught many Marble Falls students as well as others in places such as Mason, Bertram … Continue reading I Have A New Friend

So Here’s The Deal

It’s time I shoot straight with all you kind folks. I posted on my personal wall earlier tonight about a problem I’m having with carpal tunnel in both hands from typing on my iPhone too much. This is that other post: https://www.facebook.com/1525699623/posts/10225073004522025/?d=n Well here’s the deal. I’ve been working with my oldest Granddaughter, Holly Lewis to do a bunch of my stories digitally. Holly has a degree from Baylor in digital communications, so we are pretty sure that part could be accomplished. What I’m not so sure about is how this country bumpkin hick voice of mine would sound. I … Continue reading So Here’s The Deal

Some Of The Craziest Things I’ve Even Seen Involving Fire

I was watching the PBS Program Nova tonight. It showed a guy cutting a metal baking pan using bacon for the fuel. He had fashioned a tube out of bacon and by sending oxygen though the tube it made a dandy, yet crude cutting instrument. It made me think back to other wild things I’ve seen using fire. Of course growing up, I was like many kids that got out and built fires, like camp fires but we weren’t camping. We just built fires to entertain ourselves. The following is a story about those campfires https://www.facebook.com/groups/729839877052650/permalink/2260462960656993/ Below is a story … Continue reading Some Of The Craziest Things I’ve Even Seen Involving Fire

We Were A Couple Of Night Owls

No one else that I know has his first car 50 years later. Much less all the paper work that came with it. If I could write about all the things that happened, just when it was the two of us in that Blue “68” Roadrunner, it would fill several books. Some things would be worth telling, yet others we may not want to admit. We drove the streets of Marble Falls and the roads all around Burnet County almost nightly for a few years, almost always in that Roadrunner. Many times our adventures wouldn’t start until we had each … Continue reading We Were A Couple Of Night Owls

We Did Things Much Differently Back Then

I grew up around construction equipment and trucks. In the 60s when I was in high school Cecil Lewis ran a fleet of dump trucks. Among other things we had the contract to haul the blasted rock from the Pure Stone Quarry out south of Marble Falls back to the crusher in town. Even as young and as small as I was at 14 or 15, I commonly and single-handedly pulled transmissions and replaced clutches in those old dump trucks and did brake jobs. I knew how to do all that then. Now I have trouble putting a spare tire … Continue reading We Did Things Much Differently Back Then

The Wreck At The South End Of The Marble Falls Bridge

Early one Sunday morning with it raining and the road slick, I had taken Kenny out to the Pure Stone Quarry to pick up a dump truck. I would have been 14 or 15 years old. For whatever reason they thought a 14 year old had any business back in those days. It was just becoming light and as I came down the hill and that old “63” short wheelbased, step-side Chevrolet pickup spun out and smacked the guardrail right on the end of the bridge. I was more than likely going too fast for the conditions. Let me back … Continue reading The Wreck At The South End Of The Marble Falls Bridge

Cecil Let A Blast Get Away From Him

Back in 1967 there was an old service station in Burnet at US 281 and League St. The owner decided to replace the old gas tanks with new larger ones. After they had removed the old tanks it was discovered that some rock would need to be blasted so the hole would become large enough for the new tanks. Cec (the name that Kenny and I called him by – short for Cecil) was contacted about coming up to Burnet to drill & shoot the the rock. (Shoot the rock means to dynamite it or blast it) Off he went … Continue reading Cecil Let A Blast Get Away From Him

The Unfortunate Happening On The Side Of Ben White Blvd.

John Harlan did a lot of our road-bores back in my early days in the business. A road-bore is where we drill underneath a roadway or other obstacle to install a pipe for some type of utility. John wasn’t the easiest feller to get along with, but if he and his sons showed up on the job, one thing for sure is they would get the bore done. Besides it was a real sideshow watching them hollering, cussin, and storming around at each other. Back around 40 years ago I had a project in Austin and was waiting for John … Continue reading The Unfortunate Happening On The Side Of Ben White Blvd.

The Bet

I need some of my friends on here to help me. I’m having a little trouble collecting a bet out of my brother. He has just locked completely down and won’t even discuss paying me. I’m thinking there may have to be some public shaming needed to get him to turn loose of that money. Here’s what happened. I was telling him about the story I told on here a couple weeks ago about this hunting trip we took up to Utah back in about 1984 or 85. When I got to the part about how he, Coy Foust and … Continue reading The Bet