Category: Thoughts and Musings

Amazing Things, My Family, Thoughts and Musings4 Comments

My Mother

lewisotr

This story was written back on my mother’s birthday, January 18, 2015. So as you read this just know that my mother would be 88 now. I didn’t rewrite it or even feel like editing it to bring it up to today’s date. I guess that comes from laziness or perhaps because I just don’t want to change it. This is the story of my mother. Bonnie Gay would have been 82 today. She grew up poor, in a very large family. She was the 8th out of 11 children. Her father died when she 9 years old. She married … Continue reading My Mother

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

The Pipe Bursting Experiment

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Back in the 1980s I was contacted by the owner of an apartment complex over in “Apartment City”, the area along Riverside Drive east of I-35 in Austin. The city was requiring them to upsize the wastewater, as it wasn’t adequately handling the amount of flows that the apartment was generating. Evidently a few years before, when the project was built there had been a sizing miscalculation. With it being a nice property with beautifully landscaped yards they wanted the disruption to be held to a minimum. I made some phone calls and found a company in Louisiana that was … Continue reading The Pipe Bursting Experiment

Amazing Things, Old Dog - New Trick, Thoughts and Musings5 Comments

I Love Technology

lewisotr

I got ahold of the computer thing pretty early on, I guess it was 1985. We had bought the kids a Commodore I think a year or 2 before that. It was a box you hooked up to the TV for playing games and learning aids. We set it up on Madeline’s sewing machine cabinet using a spare TV we had for the monitor. It didn’t take long for one of the boys to turn a box of straight pins over on the keyboard and fried the whole thing. But in 1985 I started working with a Compaq Portable Computer … Continue reading I Love Technology

Crazy Times, Funny Happenings, Meeting New People, Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

Have You Ever Gotten A Business Proposition That Sounded Like A Scam? Of Course You Have.

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Below is an email proposal that I once received and then my response. For some reason Andrew never contacted me again. “The Proposal”Dear Ronnie Lewis, (Lewis Contractors)My Name is Andrew Dunlop and I work for a company based here in Canada. I have a business proposal which will benefit both of us. I will give you a brief overview on the proposal. I request that you act as an intermediary agent/supplier to my company. In so doing, this will yield high dividends for both of us. However, I need your co-operation to make this business opportunity a success. My company … Continue reading Have You Ever Gotten A Business Proposition That Sounded Like A Scam? Of Course You Have.

Smithwick, The Early Days, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Salt Cedar Switch

lewisotr

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

Cecil Lewis, Thoughts and Musings3 Comments

Cecil Lewis, The One And Only

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When I’ve told stories about my Dad, I’m always hopeful that I don’t give the impression that Cecil Lewis was only an outlaw or something. He kinda was, but what can I say, he was Cecil Lewis. Truly a one of a kind. If he liked you he’d do anything for you, if he didn’t like you, he’d still do anything for you. He was liked by most people, respected by many but people knew to give him a wide berth. I owe much of my success to him. Not only in the things he taught me to do, but … Continue reading Cecil Lewis, The One And Only

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

The Wine Making Kits

lewisotr

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

Kenny Lewis, Thoughts and Musings, Uncategorized1 Comment

A Bank Just For Women

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One day in the 80s Kenny was driving and I was the passenger. That’s generally the way we have always have traveled. Who needs to listen to a bunch of belly-aching about my driving? Not me. So I didn’t have to watch the road and see what he was about the crash into, I decided to read the newspaper. There was a story that I found intriguing. It was about this new bank they were opening in Austin and they were only going to have women customers. Relating the story to Kenny got him all stirred up. “This Women’s Lib … Continue reading A Bank Just For Women

The Construction Biz, The Early Days, Thoughts and Musings2 Comments

It’s Strange The Things We Remember

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It’s been almost 45 years ago that I walked into G & L Stationeers on South Congress. The year was 1977. They were in a building just north of where the Night Hawk Restaurant was at So. Congress & Riverside Drive in Austin. I had decided it was time to put a distinctive mark on my company. They had a graphics designer that worked with me to make a company Logo. I still remember his name, Duane Kelly. In just a few minutes he was putting the finishing touches on the big LC that would grace our new sign out … Continue reading It’s Strange The Things We Remember

Amazing Things, My Friends, The Construction Biz, Thoughts and MusingsLeave a comment

The Difficulties Growing Up A Black Kid In Today’s World

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As hard as it is growing up in this world for teens now, it has to be so much harder for black youth, especially in any of the large urban areas. I often think back to a half dozen black kids I befriended in the Oak Cliff in the late 1980s while doing a job there. I’ve written before about them; Freddy, Herman, Terry and the others names escape me just now. I would load them up in my suburban, after checking with their mother, grandmother or other guardian, (always a female – never remember even one of them having … Continue reading The Difficulties Growing Up A Black Kid In Today’s World