Category: The Early Days

Cecil Lewis, Crazy Times, The Early Days, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Cecil and Brackenridge Hospital

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One night in 1963 my Dad, Cecil Lewis fell sick. We lived out on Bull Creek. This wasn’t the first time he had been deathly ill from the same cause. He had a long history of stomach ulcers since soon after he and momma married in 1948. The doctor told him he would need to stop drinking and watch what he ate. When he felt his ulcer acting up he went on a diet of soda crackers, sweet cows milk and raw eggs. Usually a few days of consuming those three things he would improve and go back to eating … Continue reading Cecil and Brackenridge Hospital

Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, The Construction Biz, The Early Days, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Princess Mobile Phones

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Back in the early 70s there was a fellow that started a new mobile phone service operating out of Austin. It was a far cheaper option than Southwestern Bell had at that time. That service could run into hundreds of dollars per month. I believe it cost “X” amount per call placed plus something like 50¢ per minute. Some high rollers would actually spend over a $1,000 per month, but it was the cost of doing business. Larry Bird with Capital Communications, the new guy, tapped into some new technology which allowed for a fairly small radio box to be … Continue reading The Princess Mobile Phones

Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, The Construction Biz, The Early DaysLeave a comment

The Machine That Developed A Mind Of Its Own

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Back in 1973, we were doing a project out in the Northwest Hills Area of Austin. We had just acquired a new C14 Hein Werner Excavator, much like the one below. To make it travel the 2 shorter levers (with the black grips) in the picture below would be pushed forward or back depending on the direction you wanted to travel. Of course only pushing or pulling one lever would cause the machine to turn. If you were traveling for a far distance they could be snapped in, so you didn’t have to hold them. At the end of the … Continue reading The Machine That Developed A Mind Of Its Own

Crazy Times, Marble Falls and the Area Around it., The Early DaysLeave a comment

My Wife Always Tells Me To Pace Myself

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(The following story was written in November 2014, when The Angora Chronicles was but a few months old) My problem is when I think of something I have to get busy with it then and there or I may never get it done. It’s that way with writing stories. When something pops in my head, I need to get it written or I may never think of it again. That may be the reason that in just a few months time I’ve written about everything that’s happened to me and around me in a whole life time. If I had … Continue reading My Wife Always Tells Me To Pace Myself

Crazy Times, Kenny Lewis, The Early DaysLeave a comment

$$$$The Day The Lewis Brothers Became A Little Intimidated

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I’ve been searching for the right way to tell this story and there just doesn’t seem like a real right way. While spending time a while back with Kenny, he asked if I’d ever gotten around to telling it. So here goes. One day while driving through Marble Falls, we encountered 2 very big, very black, very tough looking fellows in their 1960s something Cadillac Pimpmobile. We were at the red light at US 281 and FM 1431. This was about 1969 or 1970. Kenny and I have differing memories when it comes to how this all began, but the … Continue reading $$$$The Day The Lewis Brothers Became A Little Intimidated

Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, On The Job, The Early Days2 Comments

$$$$I Could Never Pass Up Tools Laying In The Road

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It always amazes me how often I used to find tools, like wrenches, hammers, screw drivers and the like laying on the road when I was traveling so much. I always accused my careless mechanic Paul of being the one that lost most of them. Almost any day I could drive out of the yard and find something Paul had left laying under the hood or on the bumper that would fall off. Of course he wasn’t too worried about it as long as I had charge accounts at all the parts houses in Austin. Perhaps Paul’s carelessness fed my … Continue reading $$$$I Could Never Pass Up Tools Laying In The Road

Cecil Lewis, The Early DaysLeave a comment

A Lesson Learned Young

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I was 10 or 11 years old. My dad was on a job in Seguin, Texas. His inspector on that job drove off into the mud and got stuck. By the time they got him unstuck, his sedan was covered in mud. As usual I was with my Dad on the job-site, which I did anytime I could. It was mid afternoon, about the time they always headed for the coffee shop to drink coffee. So the inspector dropped his car off at a new coin operated car wash, gave me a $5 bill, which half should have been enough … Continue reading A Lesson Learned Young

Funny Happenings, Kenny Lewis, The Early Days4 Comments

Going Boating

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Kenny was away serving in the Army, so when he would come home, we spent as much time together as we could. He got home this one time and I had just purchased a Chrysler 17′ fiberglass boat, light yellow, with a 55 HP Chrysler outboard motor. (Yes there was a time that Chrysler got in the boat business – not a real successful venture) It was used, but just gently so. Not a real powerful boat but it would cruise up and down the lake. Gasoline was well south of $.50 per gallon back then. (For those unfamiliar with … Continue reading Going Boating

Smithwick, The Early Days, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Salt Cedar Switch

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I scarcely ever see a salt cedar tree anymore. As a small child there was one growing off the edge of the sleeping porch at my grandparents house. In fact that’s about the only one I ever remember. I saw one a while back down along the river by the lower end of The Santa Elena Canyon at Big Bend. It made me remember why I was so well behaved as a youngun. Just the threat of “Ronnie Gene do I need to go cut a switch off that salt cedar” would get me in line. I’m doubtful that there … Continue reading The Salt Cedar Switch

Aging, Amazing Things, Crazy Times, My Family, The Early Days, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Wine Making Kits

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Back in the early years of our marriage, before we had so many kids, Christmas shopping was something we enjoyed doing together. Of course after a few years and five sons our shopping habits all changed and I would stay home and Madeline would mostly go it alone. In those early days finding the perfect gift wasn’t always easy when shopping for our fathers. It was hard buying for them and staying within our budget. Nothing frivolous for either, they just weren’t that type. They were men of substance and practicality. At the mall at one of the department stores … Continue reading The Wine Making Kits