Category: The Early Days

Crazy Times, In and Around Austin, Kenny Lewis, On The Job, The Construction Biz, The Early Days3 Comments

Tumbleweed Hill

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Kenny had only been out of the Army for a short time. He was working for the company. I had a 1976 Chevy 4 Wheel Drive Pickup that I handed down to him. We had a project installing a new waterline that extended from near Mesa Dr, along Far West Blvd. The line would end near FM 2222 and Bull Creek Rd. This was Kenny’s project to oversee. We were for the first time living a role reversal, where I was his boss. I made an early morning drive by to check the progress and didn’t see Kenny anywhere, even … Continue reading Tumbleweed Hill

Cecil Lewis, Crazy Times, Smithwick, The Early Days4 Comments

Ingrown Toenails

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As a teenager I was plagued with ingrown toenails. They came and went. One day as I complained about the pain, probably using it as an excuse to get out of work, my dad had heard enough. “Come here boy, I am gonna fix those toes of your” As I set in the kitchen floor, he brought out a syringe that we had recently used while castrating hogs. It had the largest and coarsest needle you can even imagine. He had the same medicine we had used for deadening the hogs. He loaded that syringe full of it and as … Continue reading Ingrown Toenails

Crazy Times, Smithwick, The Early Days, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

What Didn’t Kill Us, Made Us Stronger

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Was online texting back and forth this morning with my little sister/cousin Jan Beaver. We grew up to be parents that jerked our kids up and hauled them to the doctor every time they had a snotty nose. I guess we were making up for the lack of us going to the doctor when we were kids. Jan told of climbing up on the cabinet next to the stove top where Bonnie Gay was making Mustang Grape Jelly and turned the pan over, spilling it all over her arms. She grabbed her up and ran cold water on it and … Continue reading What Didn’t Kill Us, Made Us Stronger

The Early Days, The Jollyville Years, Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

The Texas Freemason Magazines

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I would have been 11 or 12 years old. We still lived down on the creek, out of Jollyville. I was left at home alone, which was unusual for my family to do when I was that age. I guess they didn’t know if there would be a house to come back to if they left me there by myself. I was prone to experiment with stuff, as that was when Chemistry Sets were popular. But on this Saturday there was no testing of stuff going on. I remember it being a very cold day, one where stepping out on … Continue reading The Texas Freemason Magazines

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

The VW Bus Was Parked In A Bad Spot

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I wasn’t long out of school, probably had just turned 18. One of my first jobs was driving a haul truck for Nelson Lewis, a cousin in the utility business. He had just landed a project in downtown Austin, laying a wastewater line up West Ave. It started down at 7th St and would continue up to about the 24th block on Rio Grande St. Right up in the middle of the University of Texas Campus. The first piece of equipment I hauled to the job was an old White-Oliver Rubber Tired Backhoe. It was a beast, 4 wheel drive … Continue reading The VW Bus Was Parked In A Bad Spot

The Construction Biz, The Early Days2 Comments

Learning To Fly

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In my younger days in the construction business I had a bookkeeper, G.K. , that was always after me to take up flying. He wasn’t a pilot but claimed he almost was. He told me how we could fly to faraway destinations to look at and bid jobs. How we could head out to the coast and go fishing at the drop of a hat. I was a little queasy about me flying an airplane, but I finally figured that I’d get used to it, as many people had. Why would it be different for me? Finally one day I … Continue reading Learning To Fly

Marble Falls and the Area Around it., The Early Days8 Comments

Melvin Wright and The Country Store

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You know you haven’t strayed too far from your early years when you can go to the refrigerator and make yourself a sandwich with ham, jalapeño cheese and Best Maid Sandwich Spread on plain white bread on a Saturday Night and it tastes just like Melvin Wright had made at the Country Store well over 50 years ago. Of course I’d always get me a bag of BBQ flavored potato chips and a quart of Superior Dairies Chocolate Milk. The milk was to wash it down and the chocolate part was my dessert. It tends to make me feel a … Continue reading Melvin Wright and The Country Store

The Early Days, The Jollyville Years, Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

May Day Celebrations

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I had all but forgotten an annual celebration that we did back when I was a kid in elementary school. The May Day Celebration and the May Pole Dance. It may still be something that is recognized and I’ve just missed out on it. Or did the separation of church and state put a lid on it? We didn’t erect a maypole back at Pond Springs School in Jollyville. We just used the flagpole. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maypole http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_Day Continue reading May Day Celebrations

The Early Days, The History of Texas, Thoughts and Musings3 Comments

A Little Bit About Cattle Auctions

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I was once researching livestock auctions and when the actual concept of a ring with auctioneers started. While there were some used in the 50s (maybe as early as the 40s) it appears that it mostly became a widespread way of selling cattle and other stock in the early 60s. Prior to that, the Livestock Commission was mostly a place to bring sellers and buyers to a central location where they would get together and strike a deal. Then the house would weigh and facilitate the transaction and collect their fee. If anyone has knowledge about or if you actually … Continue reading A Little Bit About Cattle Auctions