Category: Thoughts and Musings

The Early Days, Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

The Little Maverick

lewisotr

My wife’s car when we were seniors in high school was a reddish copper colored Maverick. Her mother bought it for her from Tiger Penny. Madeline said he brought it up to Johnson City football game. It was a surprise for her. That little car served her well. After we married I took it down David Fishers Car Lot, along the creek between 8th and 9th Streets and US 281 and traded it for a Ford Pickup. If memory serves me correctly, that car was just under $2000 brand new off the lot. History Of The Ford Maverick (from Wikipedia) … Continue reading The Little Maverick

Amazing Things, Crazy Times, The Construction Biz, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Odyssey

lewisotr

I have a friend, I’ll call him Jack. We had been doing the same type of construction for many years. He had worked for a couple of my competitors, but each were friendly competitors, so we have been in various joint venture arraignments throughout the years. Somewhere along the way, due to a divorce or perhaps it was the cause of the divorce, Jack developed a serious cocaine habit. He came to me in the need of employment. His habit had caused him to be let go from his last job. Not realizing that cocaine addiction couldn’t be cured with … Continue reading The Odyssey

Crazy Times, 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

Crazy Times, My Family, Smithwick, The Early Days, Thoughts and Musings3 Comments

The Battle Of The Smithwick Lewis Family

lewisotr

This story dates back to the late 1950s. I will be telling it from my perspective, which is the side I was born on. FP and Florence Lewis had a bunch of kids. There were two girls and seven boys (couple more died young) and they raised them in Smithwick. Best I know they had several pieces of property but our old home place was originally Stinnett land that they bought from Grandmother Florence’s family or inherited it. It was comprised of 450 acres that stretched from FM 1431 down to the Colorado River. It was approximately 1/2 mile of … Continue reading The Battle Of The Smithwick Lewis Family

Amazing Things, Thoughts and Musings1 Comment

The Gifts That Mean The Most

lewisotr

I am a little sentimental about gifts that my grandkids give me, even more so of things my sons made or bought for me when they were small. One gift that dates back close to 38 years, that I count as one of my most treasured possessions. It stayed out on my dresser for years, but somewhere along the way it got put in my sock drawer and remains there to this day. Most people would look at this prized possession and wonder why I have it in my sock drawer. The answer is simple. It was a gift this … Continue reading The Gifts That Mean The Most

Crazy Times, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

There’s Always More To The Story…..

lewisotr

This was an early Angora Chronicles story. The Doubled Tailed Quarters story is always a favorite of mine. When Kenny got one of the original books from me yesterday he took it and really dissected it last night and this morning. He called a little while ago, to ask why I didn’t finish the story about the Doubled Tailed Quarters. I knew that was coming so I had my ready answer. That rest of the story was the hook to get him on here and involved. Anytime that story gets told, he always adds the karma part, the last laugh … Continue reading There’s Always More To The Story…..

Crazy Times, Kenny Lewis, My Friends, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Double Tailed Quarters

lewisotr

There was a time in the 80s when times were really good in the construction business. I was flying high, as was Kenny and our friend Coy. We all had our own businesses but we worked together at times, hiring each other’s companies to help out on projects. Kenny & Coy had a lot more in common with each other than with me. During that phase of their lives they each were without the benefit of a wife at the time or at least they acted like it. They worked hard and partied hard as the old saying goes. Now … Continue reading The Double Tailed Quarters

Amazing Things, Crazy Times, My Friends, The Early Days, Thoughts and Musings3 Comments

The Mean Streets Of Houston

lewisotr

As a boy going up in the small central Texas town of Marble Falls, I dreamed of getting out of high school and finding a vocation without ever needing to go on to college or any other formal education. I grew up in a family where operating equipment and driving trucks came at an early age. I thought a career as a truck driver and maybe even owning a fleet of trucks one day was in my future. I was a high school senior, but not yet eighteen. At that time, you could get your drivers license at 14 and … Continue reading The Mean Streets Of Houston

Crazy Times, Kenny Lewis, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Incident That Almost Left My Brother To A Life Of Infamy

lewisotr

It was a late afternoon in the late 1970s. Kenny had put in a full day in Austin with the construction business and was headed to Marble Falls to finish off his day with his ranching activities. He headed out of Oakhill on Texas 71 and as he approached Paleface Park he looked up to see a white Mercedes Sedan pull directly out in front of him. With a quick reflexes he stomped the brakes and locked up all four tires. In a cloud of blue smoke he skidded right up within a few feet of the drivers door of … Continue reading The Incident That Almost Left My Brother To A Life Of Infamy

Crazy Times, The Early Days, Thoughts and Musings1 Comment

The Highway Patrolman At Paleface Park

lewisotr

Besides racing Shetland’s at Paleface and eating lots of BBQ at the old Paleface Store, I have one other story that connects to Paleface. Kenny and I together with our wives were heading to Luling for our great grandmother Purcell’s birthday celebration on a Sunday morning. I was driving Madeline’s 1974 Pontiac Granville. This incident happened in 1975 or 1976, given the car we were in. Most likely I was exceeding the speed limit. Oh of course I was. They had reduced the speed limit to a maximum of 55 MPH, so almost everyone broke the speed limit. How were … Continue reading The Highway Patrolman At Paleface Park