Catching up

When I let 8 or 10 days pass without a report, stuff tends to pile up and I'm forced to post "mega" blog entries like the one you're about to delve in to. Enjoy!

Catching up with the kids

Well, it's the 3rd of June and the kids have already been out of school for close to 2 weeks. May 24 was the last day (Jeers to the Keller Independent School District for turning them loose on me even before Memorial Day!) We celebrated M's graduation from Kindergarten on May 23.

M's kindergarten graduation

An expression of joy at Babe's in Roanoke

Doing the Hokey Pokey at Babe's

Meanwhile, we celebrated L's eleventh birthday at Joe's Crab Shack on the 27th and a week later at Texas Roadhouse. The staff of both restaurants had her doing "stupid human tricks" to provide the appropriate level of embarassment for an 11-year-old.

L impersonates a rooster at Joe's Crab Shack

Will it ever quit raining?

Don't get me wrong, I love the rain -- it could rain everyday through the end of August and I wouldn't complain, as long as it keeps the temperatures down. But it has been cutting into some of my bike riding time, and it has prevented the kids from getting out of the house as much as they probably should. One evening last week, they broke out and ran wild in the front yard during a downpour...

Enjoying a nice spring rain


Another day of liquid sunshine...

On the road

The rain hasn't kept me from shifting my bicycling into high gear... I racked up 453 miles for the month of May -- my highest recorded total ever for a single month. I did get caught in a heavy downpour during a ride last Sunday... had to ride through heavy rain with no available shelter (fortunately there was no lightning) for about four miles before it let up and by then I was completely soaked! But I've been having some good rides, and am hoping to increase my weekly mileage to as much as 150... I'll need the stamina if I'm going to ride the Century at the Hotter'n Hell Hundred in August...

This switch engine put itself in an Auto-Max sandwich.
Seen during a bike ride near Haslet, TX. May 31, 2007.

Still funny after all these years

FOX aired the 400th episode of the Simpsons a couple weeks ago -- this one was a takeoff on the popular action / suspense series "24". It's hard to believe the Simpsons have been around for close to 20 years. During the past few years, I haven't watched the new episodes as faithfully as I once did, but it's good to see that Matt Groening & co. are still churning out episodes worth tuning in for. I need to remember to program our DVR to record those.

The Simspons parody of "24" even included a Jack Bauer appearance...

Pop culture rap sheet

I could really give a flying turd whether Michael Vick is sanctioning dog fights, Britney Spears is in rehab, Paris Hilton is in the hoosegow, or Lindsay Lohan is passed out drunk in her car. I'm only interested in what Michael Vick is doing on the football field, and as for the others... well, I'm not interested in much of what they do at all.

But it IS interesting to see that fame and fortune doesn't seem to contribute much to the judgment skills of people who lack self control or who are easily influenced by those around them. And it's just as interesting to draw a few parallels between their problems and some of my own experiences at a similar age (albeit without the fame and fortune).

Passed out in a car at age 20? Oh, hell YEAH! Considering how much I used to drink, imagining myself in rehab or even in jail isn't that much of a stretch. ( Is anyone reading this who knew me during my sophomore year of college?) I suppose I'd be least likely to be involved in something like Vick's alleged dog-fighting ring; I just have no interest in that kind of crap. But fast cars? Maybe a little... Alcohol? You bet!

I'm fortunate, though, that I had the self control to prevent my bad habits from becoming too big of a problem in my life. For this, I credit the influence and values of my parents and some of my closer friends. And in that regard, I consider myself a HELL of a lot more fortunate than Vick and Britney, Paris and Lindsay, even with all of their millions.

Clusterf*ck, Texas

Take a look at the photo below... look familiar?

Northbound I-35W at Heritage Trace Parkway

If not, you must not be from north Texas... it's a photo of the traffic congestion we are enduring in the D-FW area on an increasingly frequent basis, on roads which should have been expanded YEARS AGO when our region's population first began to skyrocket. Even two-lane roads which once allowed hassle-free travel through sparse traffic are now virtual parking lots during rush hours, especially where they provide access between huge, new neighborhoods and the amenities which support them (grocery stores, gas stations, restaurants). In our part of town, alternate routes are often just as crowded, or sometimes don't exist at all. The freeways don't have enough lanes; they haven't for years. There's no margin for error; a lane closure due to an accident or construction can back up traffic for miles. The state spends millions to redesign and re-construct freeway interchanges, only to have the traffic pile up a few miles down the road at the next bottleneck. There is no mass transit to speak of... Trinity Railway Express has five stations here in Tarrant County on one line that goes to Dallas. City buses don't run within 3 miles of our house!

And it's not just the roads and highways... you should have seen the line at the post office the last time I went to buy stamps. This was at the large, Jack D. Watson post office intended to serve all of north Fort Worth. I was there between 11 am and noon on a Friday morning and they had ONE WINDOW open. The line of customers stretched nearly all the way out of the building. And the only self-service stamp machine that accepted credit cards was out of order.

Want more? Our kids attend crowded schools... the school districts literally can't build them fast enough to keep up with the growing population. Wal-Mart is always packed with customers, and there are never enough checkout lanes open. Every summer, we are told to ration our water for lawn use... even when the lake levels are up, the water infrastructure can't meet the demand, and the water mains start to break. The air quality is terrible and gets worse every summer.

It's a simple fact that our quality of life here in north Texas is declining. And it's due in large part to the failure of our elected officials to plan and properly prepare for the increasing population. I think I can tough it out until the kids are out of school, and I might even finish my career with the railroad here. But I have no intention of sticking around here for the long haul. As soon as my obligations to my kids and my employer have been met, I'm GONE, baby!

In the meantime, here's a proposal -- everyone who has relocated to the D-FW "Metro-mess" during the past 6 years has to leave. We'll handle it on a "last in, first out" basis. If you just moved here, beat it... call up Atlas or Mayflower and tell 'em to take you and your stuff back where it came from. For my friends who are recent arrivals... sorry, dudes... it's not that we don't want you here... north Texas just isn't ready for you yet. Here's the deal -- as soon as our local and state governments have installed the infrastructure to accomodate you (roads, transit, water lines, amenities) without inconveniencing the rest of us, you can come back. If nothing else, I'll sell you my house when I leave.

WSC

np: Rangers at Mariners