On This Very Day, 18 Years Ago

We had no idea what the future held. Emma Nicole Lewis popped out into this world and has entertained us all every day since then. That blond hair was always mostly seen sticking out from underneath a cap, worn backwards most of the time. As she entered Kindergarten at Bertram, she wore her cap everyday. Although wearing hats in school wasn’t permitted, they gave up on that rule with Emma, if I remember correctly. It just wasn’t worth their effort to change her mind. She had a very nice early career in Quarter Midget Racing, along with her brothers, Nate … Continue reading On This Very Day, 18 Years Ago

A Dream Come True

When the ones we love go away to college, we are as full of dreams as they are. Our very precious oldest granddaughter, Holly finished high school just a little less than 4 years ago and headed off to Waco to attend Baylor University. It took her a little while to determine what her best direction would be with her major. She finally settled on a Communications Degree (actually it’s something about “Digital Communications”) and she went to work and graduated after 3 1/2 years. Because of her outstanding performance she was allowed to spend the final semester of her … Continue reading A Dream Come True

He Bit My Thumb

There are a few things in life that really don’t mix. Being really tough and drinking too much are a good example of this. Cecil Lewis was tough guy and he drank a way more than he should have. Back in 80 – 81 I had contracted to build a new state park and campground area down on the Guadalupe River near the little community of Bergheim not far from Boerne, Texas. When I needed him my dad would help me out on projects. On this job he mostly drove a water truck driver. He never drank while on the … Continue reading He Bit My Thumb

My Green Thumbs

This is one of those stories from the early days of Angora, that I wonder why I even told it. Oh, I know……..it really happened. I could be a little foggy on how much help I had when I went to the restroom. Looking down in the comments section , I have had a lot of THUMB debacles in my lifetime. When we were kids, well teenagers, Cec had Kenny and me building a new shop building out from the house in Smithwick. It was a pipe frame, a simple structure. The cross bracing was used sucker rod (the steel … Continue reading My Green Thumbs

Wooden Pallets aren’t just for the homeless anymore.

There is no greater honor than having your grandchildren ask you to do something with them. My granddaughter Holly wanted to build a bed-riser out of used pallets. So the two of us went to work repairing a bunch of pallets. She got the hang of using a power saw. I left her sanding and getting ready to stain them. She send me a photo later after she had the first group stained gray. Now I will awaited the finished project. I’ll tell you young men out there this girl is a real catch. She graduated from Baylor last December … Continue reading Wooden Pallets aren’t just for the homeless anymore.

The Mean Streets of Houston

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

It Comes That Time When It’s Time To Throw In The Towel

There have been a lot of happy years, but I finally think it’s time that I go a different direction. It seems like it has become more about money than about trying to please. As time has gone on, her equipment has become outdated and my tolerance level isn’t what it used to be. Sometime today it will become official. After over 20 years, of a mostly blissful relationship, DirectTV is showing up and when they get me hooked up, I’ll box up all this DishTV outdated crap and send it back. Wish me luck. This old dog doesn’t adapt … Continue reading It Comes That Time When It’s Time To Throw In The Towel

I always heard this fellow was from Austin.

Dr. Gerald “Jerry” Hurst was someone I used to often see on Forensic Files and other shows of that type that deal with crimes including arson. He seemed very knowledgeable and a foremost authority on the subject of arson. Sometime or the other it mentioned he was from Austin. I googled his name recently and found out he passed on back in 2015. He was an inventor that has several inventions to his credit. His bio mentions that he has a connection to White Out, the correction fluid. Perhaps a improved version. I thought Bette Nesmith Graham. an American typist, … Continue reading I always heard this fellow was from Austin.

Is it only a coincidence?

The Granite Mountain in Marble Falls put that little town on the map. When I was growing up it was called Texas Granite. (Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not an expert in the subject) Sometime in the 1970’s or 1980’s it was taken over by Coldspring Granite from Minnesota. (Depending on where you look on the internet, it is called Coldspring Granite and Cold Spring Granite) Coldsping Granite is a very old company from Cold Spring, Mn. So the creek at the base of Slaughter Mountain and converges with Backbone Creek just above FM 1431 that is called Coldspring … Continue reading Is it only a coincidence?