High School Sports

   Football in Texas has become the measure of a community. Its standing amongst peers. The win/lose record becomes all too important to maintain that place for a high school. The younger athletes on the Junior Varsity get little of the pressure, but luckily it is more about learning the game and progressing in abilities and they grow in size and strength. Still fun to watch the kids play

Trying to stretch it out.

 and periodically perform amazing feats of strength and sheer will.

Breaking for a little room.

Under the lights of a Texas evening.

Lining up for another play.

Block, fly and pass all at once.

Sitting on the runner still stops them.

Piling on for a tackle

The Great Migration

  Shuffling around in  cactus garden at an assignment today and a bright orange flash of color flittered by me. Off in pursuit I went trying to catch a frame of the butterfly. It finally came to light on a bloom and spread it s wings allowing me to confirm that the Monarchs have begun to arrive on their great migration  south. Best of luck my fair traveller and may a tail wind help you along the way.

A Monarch butterfly takes a rest on its long migration south. 

A Hike in the Woods

   Another short jaunt to distance ourselves from the summer heat of Texas and where do we end up but a trail in the woods near Taos, New Mexico. We are all getting a little slower and Kimo no longer wants to run up the trail in front of the group but he still enjoys sleeping in the cool forest grass. No matter what is going on in life, a walk on  a trail thru a cool forest always rejuvenates the soul.

A freshly fallen aspen leaf.

A view of the creek with cool mountain water.

Mule deer stare at the company. 

Kimo taking a cool nap.

A family picture Kimo Patty and Yoda in the woods.

Texas Coast

Speed blur of a surfer on a wave at J.P Luby beach park.

Summers are made for sun sand and a little water. If you live in Texas it means the obligatory trip to Padre Island and the Gulf of Mexico. Home of fine sand, brown water and small surf. When the winds kick up the waves get more surf able, the beach scene comes alive and everyone seems to have more fun. You just regret it later when trying to clean the sand out of every nook and cranny of your car. Still great fun and really inspiring to see how well the local crew of surfers can ride what elsewhere would be called shore break mush.

The Packery Jetty breaks down the current and gives the waves some shape.

Beach fires make any party better.

Playing soccer with a little extra baggage.

Lookking for a meal in the shore break.

Moving fast on fast waves.

The sun sets over Packery Channel Jetty

Real Cattle Ranch

  I am so impressed with what Jon and Wendy Taggert are doing with their ranch and raising what he calls "beyond organic beef." His fields near Grandview are covered in natural prairie grasses that change with the seasons but are all native to the area such as bluestem that reseed themselves, need no mowing or haying. maintain nutritional content in the winter precluding him from having to feed and the entire process means he has a better product that he butchers and sells at his Burgundy Pasture Beef retail stores. Great stewards of the land and the environment.

Jon Taggert and some of his angus cattle.

Palm Hats

Amy Moorhouse knows about western fashion, being a fashion consultant with ties to a number of western manufacturers. She believes in keeping the suns harmful UV rays off the skin around her face with wide brim hats and she finds non better than a palm frond hat which she has a number of. Her first was swiped from her dad, Bob Moorhouse who spent years managing the famous Pitchfork Ranch and lots of that time was spent in the West Texas sun. With that much time outdoors, he knows what he is talking about when it comes to sun protection. Amy dresses hers up with a silk flower or interesting hat band but mainly gives them an interesting crease to make a statement. What a great way to stay cool.

A silk flower adds a little color.

A Nevada crease gives a sombrero feel to the wide brim.

After more than 15 years of use, the center of the original fell out.

Texas River Surfing

 It really is getting to be a regular thing in North Texas. For the past few years with all the drought I seldom got a chance to kayak much less surf around here but the past year has seen so much rain that the rivers and thus the waves come up fairly frequently. Another location, this one is on the Paluxy River near Glen Rose where all the dinosaur tracks are. It has a little more texture to the water making it a bit more challenging to ride.

Big Bend Roadtrip

  Went on a little jaunt to West Texas to visit the Big Bend in the Rio Grande River which became a National Park in 1944. A vast desert landscape surrounding a basin of high mountains reaching 7,832 feet at the top of Emory Peak. The river leaders thru canyons and vast planes defining the border between the United States and Mexico. It looks nothing like the Texas that is portrayed in films about the wild west but the area is the epitome of what a wild landscape truly is.

The vagabond travelers hide from the sun as they enter the park.

Looking towards the mountains of the park from Santa Elena Canyon.

Patty fords the Rio Grande. 

The entrance to Boquillas Canyon.

The view from the tunnel as you defend to Boquillas Canyon.

Kim enjoying a respite in the Castolon campground.

Tacos and Breezes

  There is an awesome new little neighborhood taco bar and patio on the West Side of Fort Worth called Taco Heads. With its origins going back to a taco truck, the same awesome mix of street tacos and margaritas are available in a sit down atmosphere with views of the Arts District and Downtown skyline. Dog friendly and a real neighborhood feel, makes it a great hang out even if the tacos aside were not so good and the sauces some of the spiciest around.

Taco Heads even has a bar looking over Montgomery Street.

A shrimp and Asada Taco with Margarita.

Even dogs get to enjoy the atmosphere and maybe a snack as well.

Colorado Mining Town

The idyllic mountain town of Ophir, Colorado.

  Though most of the high mountain mines in Colorado have shuttered over the years as the silver and gold of the past era have dwindled. A few of the hamlets have made the conversion to mining other lucrative streams of revenue such as Aspen and Telluride with their tourist dollars and high end real estate. There are still those that offer the tiny mountain character that they once were to the hearty individuals that are willing to endure a little isolation. Ophir is one of those remnant townships. Basically over a mountain ridge from the disneyland that Telluride has become. The town is tucked in a valley at a lofty elevation of 9,700 feet with less than seventy residences, a post office and no retail businesses it is a bedroom community to neighboring populations especially located for individuals who are trying to develop high altitude edema. The peaks surrounding the area hold their snow well past the closing of ski areas in the state making it a mecca for late season ski touring. There are no paved roads off the highway so it makes a great destination for those trying to create the roughed up four wheeling visual on their spiffed up SUVs. It takes a hearty soul to live there but the views and access to the mountains is the real payoff.

Prayer flags on a porch hoping for snow.

Kimo learns what the hardy life really is.

Climbing for turns on Magnolia Mountain.

Hot feet do not stay that way long.

Sunsets over the west color the skies in winter.

River Rises Again

With buckets more rain falling on Texas the rivers are rising again so I got a chance to go on spring break without leaving town. Surf is good but the board shorts have to stay under the wetsuit thought since the water is a little colder than all those tropical paradises. None the less the surf works pretty well and being in landlocked Fort Worth I do not have to fight any crowds.

Paying Tribute for Life

Some walk to the front of the sanctuary in a slow and stoic amble. Others are bowed head and crying from the mention of the name. All of those gathered are here to pay tribute to a friend, family member or loved one who helped a stranger in need. Every year LIfeGift, the local organ procurement organization takes an evening to remember and show appreciation to those organ donors that gave others a chance to live a more normal and longer life after their passing. I personally am not one to wear my emotions on my sleeve but every year I shed tears for those that passed, many at a much too early age. This year the water works started as a young girl broke down while here parents tried to remain strong and help here pick up a rose for her younger sister who passed away. Though I do not know the back story of all the faces that are portrayed on the screen it makes me appreciate the goodness in the hearts of humankind. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

Dandy Spring Sprout

  As much as the average gardener or lawn guy hates to see them, I know the first time I see them that spring is on the way. Those furry little balls bouncing around in the first views of green are a definite sign that warmer days have already made their presence felt and the seeds of dandelions are spreading on the breeze. Love them or hate them, there is no stopping them.

Bouncing puff of Dandelion Seeds.

The first green field sprouts the fluffy balls.

Big Yawns

   Spending the day outside kind of tops whatever I am doing. For more than ten years I have drug my buddy Kimo along on adventures from the beaches in Baja to mountain peaks in Colorado. A few years ago Kimo got a new friend Yoda who is not as into the outdoor jaunts. Secretly I think Kimo is kind of glad because now as he gets older he gets to hang out and play guard dog for his little friend and send me off on my own. Regardless, at the end of a long day in the Santa Fe National Forest we all seem to be a little worn out and ready for a nap.

Just a little tired all the way around.