Category: In and Around Austin

Amazing Things, Crazy Times, Funny Happenings, In and Around AustinLeave a comment

Capitol National Bank and a Slight Misunderstanding

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Back when my friend Winfield, the CPA, worked for me we were being courted by one of the big downtown Austin banks. Emory Thompson was the pitch man for The Capitol National Bank that would come by and try to get us bring our business to them. I knew him, his family had owned a big tire business that had sold and he went from being a tire salesman to being a money salesman. We had been doing business with a small local bank in north Austin, aptly named North Austin State Bank. They had done everything I’d ever wanted … Continue reading Capitol National Bank and a Slight Misunderstanding

Amazing Things, Another Daily Happening, Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, The Jollyville YearsLeave a comment

Rattlers Were Ever-Present

lewisotr

The Lewis Brother’s holding up a couple of large rattlesnakes back in the spring of 1960. We lived “Down on the Creek” as referred to it. That was just above Bull Creek out of Jollyville. The hilliest, rockiest piece of ground you ever tried to walk across. We were riding horses, our enterprise back then was breaking and training shetlands, when we rode up across the hill looking down toward our house. These two snakes were rearing up and wrapping themselves around each other. I’m sure we thought they were fighting, but mostly likely they were romancing. Kenny tore on … Continue reading Rattlers Were Ever-Present

Construction, Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, On The Job, Past Angora Chronicles Stories, The Construction Biz, The Early Days, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Big Loser

lewisotr

I know I’ve told y’all this story before, but I can’t pull it up. That may be because it was in the comments of another story. Anyway, I don’t have much going on this morning so I’ll just re-tell it. It’s actually worthy of being a story all on its own. Back in the late 1970s I contracted to do the excavation for the Capitol National Bank in downtown Austin. The project called for the removal of approximately 100,000 cubic yards of solid limestone. The excavation was a hole that was a full block square by about 30’ deep. It … Continue reading The Big Loser

Amazing Things, Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, On The Job, The Construction Biz, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Pipes With The Broken Bells

lewisotr

I hope I can explain this without it become too technical and going right over your head. But I saw a segment on How It’s Made (it was the next one after watching sanitary napkins being made) about making reinforced concrete pipes. I videoed the TV screen for a short while to give you some idea of what this little story is all about. That clip will be at the bottom of the page. I had a project for the City of Austin one time that was running a 48” wastewater line right beside and back and forth across Onion … Continue reading The Pipes With The Broken Bells

Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

It wasn’t my intention to be rude.

lewisotr

I went in a restaurant, to have coffee and a light breakfast this morning and catch up on some emails I needed to answer. Shortly after sitting down a fellow came in and they seated him facing me in the next booth. Immediately he started talking to me. Mostly nonsense. Trying to be polite, I engaged with him for a couple of minutes. I could tell it was a conversation that was going nowhere. After a bit, he noticed that I was no longer responding to him, his voice level lowered. But he continued will a nonstop dialogue with himself. … Continue reading It wasn’t my intention to be rude.

Amazing Things, Cowboys & Rodeo, In and Around Austin, Marble Falls and the Area Around it.3 Comments

Pat’s Saddle

lewisotr

I was visiting with Pat Taylor this morning about making the move from Loving, Texas where he has spend the better part of five decades, back to Burnet County. He mentioned all the stuff you can accumulate in that length of time. He was telling about his many saddles that he has acquired over the years. He mentioned of all the saddles he has the Dee Collier Saddle he got back in 1965 was his all time favorite. I told him that I would check around and see what I could find out about Dee Collier Saddle Maker. Sure enough … Continue reading Pat’s Saddle

Amazing Things, In and Around AustinLeave a comment

Something Strange Occured As I Watched An Episode of 48 Hours

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A couple of nights ago I was going through a bunch of saved television true crime shows I had saved. I title caught my eye, so I clicked on it to read a little about it. It had happened in Austin. The name of the episode was The Shootout at the Shaughnessys’. The story took place back in 2018, but I had no recollection of it ever happening. It was about a Jewelry Store and a couple that owned it. I watched a few minutes and a scene flashed up showing the front of the store. Then soon thereafter it … Continue reading Something Strange Occured As I Watched An Episode of 48 Hours

Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, The Construction Biz, Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

The Rio Motel and Club – Austin, Texas.

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I knew about The Rio because in the mid 1970s several of us that were working on the I-35 expansion from Airport Blvd up to US 290. We used to go there and drink coffee and eat breakfast or lunch sometimes. I was surprised when I opened the Austin Statesman newspaper one day to find out that The Rio had become really famous in the history of Austin. There was a club there also, but I never remember going to it. But there were several notable Austin people found it to be a great meeting place. There was a well … Continue reading The Rio Motel and Club – Austin, Texas.