Back in 1973, Donn’s Depot had just opened. In the beginning it was called McNeil Depot, as the building had in an earlier life been the Rail Depot at McNeil, north of Austin. It was located at the northwest corner … Continue reading Dink and Barmaid
I’m not sure if it was because of the wreck or just because, but Mary Alice has always been the classmate that Madeline and I have held the closest and been the most constant friend throughout the past 54 years since moving on from high school. She has spent many holiday feasts with us and watched our sons grow up and them have kids. Our sons think of her as the crazy old aunt (said in an endearing way). She has the ability to talk about any subject and talk she can do. One time, 15 or 16 years ago, … Continue reading After The Big Wreck (sequel to the 13 Vehicle Accident)
Usually you think of multi-car wrecks happening in Austin or Houston or Dallas. A little known fact is there was a wreck that happened right in Marble Falls, Texas that involved 13 vehicles back in the spring of 1970. I was involved. It was my senior year and I only went to school in the mornings and worked at a local car dealership in the afternoon. This one afternoon things weren’t to busy at the car lot so I ran home and grabbed a small trailer mounted air compressor and headed to Kingsland to drill a few holes for dynamite … Continue reading A 13 Vehicle Accident In Marble Falls
We had moved to Dripping Springs in the mid 80’s. It was a great place to raise kids. Life was really wonderful. Madeline was able to find something to occupy her time with every second of every day. And night. All of the little angels were involved in sports and a variety of other activities. We had an active church life with a great church family. Madeline was the Den Mother for the younger boys. It was Christmas time and we were hosting a party out at our place. Bunch of little Cub Scouts everywhere. Madeline could talk my brother … Continue reading Santa Comes to Dripping Springs
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 almost 40 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 one … Continue reading The Gifts That Mean The Most
Fallout or Bomb Shelters were both used to describe these underground structures. Talking about the Nike Bases that were built to protect Bergstrom Air Force Base made me think back to the early 60s in Austin. My dad was working for a construction company doing what I’ve spent my lifetime doing, installing underground utilities. The company transitioned into building “private underground bomb shelters” all over Austin. The only one I remember ever seeing built was over in a neighborhood off of Airport Blvd., very near the old Austin Airport.I wonder how many are still intact after all these decades. The … Continue reading Private Fallout Shelters in the 1960s
It was at dusk on Sunday evening 12/15/13. As I drove north on I35 nearing Hillsboro, Texas I had an encounter with an apparent drunk driver. In front of me I saw a white S-10 Chevrolet pickup (an older vehicle … Continue reading The Mystery
If I started telling you about the Willy Willy Christmas Tree you’d have no idea what I was talking about. But to Madeline and me, we have known this special tree by that name for 50 years. That special tree is the Zilker Park Christmas Tree that just about every Austinite has probably stood under and twirled around. When our first born son, Matthew (born in 1974) was young, 2 or maybe 3, we had planned to go see “The Christmas Tree” one evening. There had been a big build up to seeing it, he had probably seen it on … Continue reading The Willy Willy Christmas Tree
Bonnie Gay would have been 93 next month, but she left us behind 35 years ago. She was only 57. Her sudden death on December 14, 1990 was one of the greatest shocks in my lifetime. It just didn’t seem like it was that time. She grew up poor, in a very large family. She was the 8th out of 11 children. Her oldest sibling was born in 1916 and the youngest was born in 1937. Her father died when she 9 years old. Bonnie went through the 8th grade at Smithwick Community School, then the 9th grade at Palm … Continue reading My Mother
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. 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 the middle of UT. 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 and all. It didn’t travel real fast, so the … Continue reading The VW Bus Was Parked In A Bad Spot
Angora Chronicles 