This incident happened 15 years ago today. I got up early and rode my Honda Gold Wing down to Corpus Christi. Before the day was over, I’d end up in Brownsville where we had a project ongoing. The screen shot … Continue reading A Day I’ll Never Forget
I think at 73 years of age, I have finally left a couple of recurring dreams behind. I had these dreams until sometime in the past 10 or 15 years. The first was driving in a car at a high rate of speed between home and town. Home was at Smithwick and town was Marble Falls. Everything would be fine as the car would float along because a turn or dip caused you to let off the gas, but when you topped out at Winn Hill, there was a long curve and a mostly straight stretch down through Mesquite Flats … Continue reading Recurring Dreams
I was in DC back when the Obama shutdown happened. It was the second one during his term, in October 2013. I attended a rally at the Mall in front of the Capitol Building. The shutdown had been going on for a few days. Garbage collection wasn’t happening, therefore the grounds were strewn with trash. I joined a large bunch of others and we started to walk along picking up litter. Someone had anticipated what would happen when a bunch of patriots saw the condition of the grounds and had boxes of trash bags at the ready. We went along … Continue reading I received a message from a FB Friend with several Honor Flight Austin clips in it.
Isn’t that always the claim!!!!! Once when Madeline and I were newly married we decided to go to Six Flags in Arlington. I was somewhat familiar with the area so I figured I could drive right to our hotel without looking at a map. I admit that once we got close I became slightly disoriented. I may have driven in a circle for a moment. It was late and Madeline wanted me to stop and ask for directions, which wasn’t something I would have ever done. I had her busy looking at a roadmap while I drove. Finally, exasperated she … Continue reading Men Never Stop To Ask For Directions
Back when we had our house in Corpus Christi, I was home alone. I hadn’t slept well, but what’s new. I got up and went down stairs and made myself a cup of coffee. I went over and took a seat in my easy chair where I would be waiting for the sun to rise over Corpus Christi Bay. I was dressed in my usual attire for the coast, shorts and a tee shirt. As I started to sip my coffee I started to notice that my mouth wasn’t working exactly right. I’ve been drinking coffee for over 50 years … Continue reading Is It Bell’s Palsy or a Stroke?
My wife and I married in Marble Falls at 3:00 PM and had what was a fairly short reception. I’m not sure what happened to the time that day, but we hit San Antonio well after dark. We pulled that 1967 Chevrolet Caprice Automobile into this place out by the Airport, like we had good sense. I went inside while the bride stayed in the car and told them we needed the nicest room they had. The feller at the counter said we are pretty full tonight and our Wedding Suites are booked. He said, “You didn’t make a reservation?”. … Continue reading Airport Ramada Inn San Antonio, Texas Nov. 6, 1971
I hope I can explain this without it become too technical and going right over your head. But I saw a segment on How It’s Made (it was the next one after watching sanitary napkins being made) about making reinforced concrete pipes. I videoed the TV screen for a short while to give you some idea of what this little story is all about. That clip will be at the bottom of the page. I had a project for the City of Austin one time that was running a 48” wastewater line right beside and back and forth across Onion … Continue reading The Pipes With The Broken Bells
I have written before ago about the Inks Dam Project that we did a few years ago. Madeline reminded me of the story or stories of me and the crane. All of my guys that worked on that job made sure that Madeline was kept up to date with the happenings out on that project, when it came to me and the crane, Big Jim Palmer being the main one. He made a trip by the office in Bertram as often as possible to keep her nervous. She, being in the office all the time and never coming to the … Continue reading The Link Belt Crane At Inks Dam
I’ve Never Really Been Afraid Of Heights, But……. In the hustle bustle of being in the construction business you hire people and trust that they know what they are doing. If a business stays small you can keep your thumb on it and watch every move. But as you expand and grow you have to allow decisions to be made that you are responsible for but you didn’t exactly make. This really applied in the following story. I had a guy, Tom, that was a very smart fellow working for me in a project management roll. Tom was an A&M … Continue reading The Inks Dam Anchoring Project
(This post was originally written about 5 years ago, right when COVID 19 was getting underway and causing most of us to completely recalibrate our lives. We all had time to sit and think, figure out what was really happening) I often drive down the road and see someone working on their road and I know they aren’t an accomplished road builder. They are there trying to improve things a little and hoping to make a difference. Sometimes I wonder if they’ll actually be able to get up and down it by the time they are done. I don’t stop … Continue reading You People Don’t Be Ruffling My Feathers
Angora Chronicles 