Summer re-cap (lightning round)

Following my Chicago trip with M, my summer was pretty low-key. M and L each took separate trips with Mom (M to Palo Duro Canyon and L to Japan), but I didn't do much traveling. That didn't stop me from falling behind on the blog, though... so here's a "lightning round" re-cap of the past few months...

Hangin' with Sprocket (Mom's dog) on Father's Day

L at the Ft. Worth Cats game - July 5

Railroading with M

(belated) Fourth of July fireworks at Miss C's

Cycling along the Trinity River

M is really getting this bicycling thing down...

Miss C joined me for a Gourds show at the Longhorn in the Fort Worth Stockyards. It was just a few days after Michael Jackson died; the band paid its respects by throwing down a rippin' version of "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" (with Kevin singing in Michael Jackson falsetto). Classic Gourds... always a good time.

Kev and the boys get rowdy at the Longhorn

The Gourds - Max, Kev, Jimmy - at the Longhorn (FW Stockyards).

My cousin Marc's wife gave birth to their son a few months ago. We attended his baptism in July. It's good to see that they're raising him proper... (see below)

Promoting the work of Johnny Cash at age 0... way to go, kid.

In early August, the kids joined me for a quick weekend trip to Turner Falls, Oklahoma. Stay tuned for photos... coming soon.

WSC

np: Elvis Costello - "Radio, radio"

No time for the blog... 8

... just the photos. Thanks to everyone who emailed, asking when the next update was going to be. This "lightning round" edition should get things caught up, just in time for me to start with another trip report series. Here's what's been happening in Whiskey, Texas.

Mayfest was cancelled due to the Swine Flu scare.

M finally got the hang of riding his 2-wheeler. We have enjoyed several rides together, including a beautiful Sunday afternoon along the Trinity River.

Riding to school. The school year was almost over when I snapped this pic.

Self portrait - high sun along the tracks in Roanoke.

Six Flags visit - L takes a spin on the teacups.

My cousin Marc has a new critter: Luke, age 0. Congrats, cuz!

Mom got a dog. Meet Sprocket.

A-Kon 2009. M cosplayed as Near from "Deathnote" (seen in 4 of the 8 photos above). I'll plead the fifth as to whether or not I cosplayed...

lunch with Miss C.

M and I just returned from a week-long visit to the midwest; stay tuned and I'll have some trip reports posted soon.

WSC

np: Grateful Dead - "China Cat Sunflower"

Whiskey's religious roundtable

Are you there, God? It's me, Whiskey - Part I

Are you there, God? It's me, Whiskey. My daughter is growing up, God. I walked into L's room a few nights ago and she was reading Are you there God? It's me, Margaret, Judy Blume's coming-of-age novel about a pre-teen girl struggling to find her religious identity as she enters puberty. I remember reading this book, and many other Judy Blume titles, countless times when I was about the same age. Are you there, God? didn't help me find religion, but it did give me an idea of some of the social concerns that the girls in my class were probably facing.

When I saw L reading that book, God, I wanted to run screaming from the room -- kind of like Hank Hill's "aauuaauuaawwhhh!" when he learned that his neighbor's daughter needed a ride to the store to buy feminine hygiene products. With more than a little despair in my voice, I told K, "She's reading about training bras and periods!" Is our little girl really old enough to identify with these kinds of issues, God? Sadly, I guess she is. Please help ease the pain of dads everywhere whose daughters are growing up too fast. And please help me to be brave when it's time to make that first short-notice trip to Walgreen's to buy "Teenage Softies" or whatever they're called...

Are you there, God? It's me, Whiskey - Part II

church sign - Watauga, TX

This seems like an appropriate time to announce a second blog I've started here on the blogger server: Signs of Religion. I have long been interested in the words displayed on those changeable signs located outside churches and other houses of worship. Running the gamut from the spiritual to the humorous to the enigmatic, the phrases displayed on these signs catch the eyes of motorists and other passersby, providing at least minimal insight into the religious philosophies one might find inside the churches they represent.

church sign - Altus, Oklahoma - February 2007

To those of you who don't view me as a very "spiritual" person, some background information on this interest of mine is probably in order. Even though I don't currently attend church on any sort of regular basis, I WAS raised as a Christian. I was baptized and am a confirmed member of the Episcopal church. During my youth, my family maintained a sort of "on-again, off-again" policy with regard to church attendance; we'd attend like clockwork for six months or a year and then suddenly stop going for about the same length of time. This practice seems to have followed me into adulthood. K and the kids and I were regulars at one of the local Episcopal churches until we quit going a couple years ago.

I believe in God, I believe in the Ten Commandments, and I accept Jesus as a savior for my sins. Where I fail as a Christian is in reaching out to others in sharing the Christian faith. I guess I'm what I once heard an Episcopal preacher refer to as a "consumer of religion" rather than a "minister of religion". Christian theology not only calls for its followers to obey certain commandments and doctrines and follow in Jesus' footsteps, but also to share the "good news of the Lord" with others. To me, religion is a very personal choice. Being very much a "live and let live" type of person, I've never felt completely comfortable in sharing my faith -- whether the goal is to convince an atheist to "come to Jesus" or something as innocent as inviting a co-worker to join us for Sunday morning worship. I view it as being meddlesome and "pushy", as though I'm trying to force my religion on someone. And I wouldn't expect anyone to welcome such behavior any more than I would welcome an attempt to convert me to THEIR religion.

So why am I posting church sign photos? I just find them interesting -- that's pretty much it. I like how you can drive down a road and see a sign in front of one church displaying fire-and-brimstone Old Testament scripture, while the sign at the church down the street displays something cavalier and lighthearted and humorous. Signs of Religion is nothing more than a collection of photos of these signs, with new pics added as I discover different signs during my travels. I'm not planning on doing any proselytizing of my own; I'll let the church signs speak for themselves. Check 'em out here: http://signsofreligion.blogspot.com/

My love-hate relationship with cycling

Last year, I was looking for any excuse I could find to set everything aside and go riding. This year -- during the past few months, at least -- I've often been looking for any available excuse NOT to go riding. Maybe I'm just burned out, or maybe I should think about riding some new and different routes. But there's still the occasional ride that tops everything I've done for the past few months and almost makes it all worthwhile. Like last Thursday, for example...

I took a 42-mile ride on Thursday the 13th, one of the best rides I've had in quite a while. I hit Haslet, Justin, Argyle, Roanoke, and Keller, and felt great all the way, with lots of energy. With the cooler temperatures, it's definitely easier to get out and ride hard. Highlights of the ride included...

Trains... pacing a northbound north of Haslet

crossing the county line...

Cattle - it's always nice to ride someplace where you at least FEEL like you're out in the country...

... and money! I was fortunate to discover a huge pile of loose change on the shoulder of the road between Justin and Argyle. It looked like someone had busted open a piggy bank. Would you believe I harvested $16.00 worth of quarters at the scene? I returned to the scene on Thursday the 20th, hoping to gather up the dimes and nickels, but someone had beaten me to it... only the pennies were left.

Anyway, Thursday the 13th was one of those days where riding was its own reward. Even without the monetary discovery.

WSC

np: Discovery Channel - Survivorman

nr: Ayn Rand - the Fountainhead

Six Flags and cycling (or lack thereof)

Six Flags yet again

On Monday, L and her friend joined me for a return visit to Six Flags. We kind of felt cheated back in June when our day got cut short due to inclement weather. In spite of the park's shorter hours in late August, we definitely got our money's worth this time around. We rode Mr. Freeze twice, Batman twice, the Acme Rockin' Rocket three times, Superman once, the Shock Wave twice, the Texas Giant once (against our better judgment -- it seems to get worse every time), and took five rides on the Titan. Visiting the park on a weekday was a good choice; we never had to wait more than 10 or 15 minutes in any line.

On board the Titan at Six Flags

It's fun to see my 11-year-old daughter enjoying rides I would have been terrified of at the age of 13...

That first drop is a "doozie"...

Aww, they won't let you have any fun...

We enjoyed giant turkey legs for lunch...

The Texas Giant - one hell of a rough ride

The Acme Rocket was a surprise hit; the girls had been on it before but I hadn't. It swings back and forth, higher each time, until it makes a complete loop. My attemps at taking pictures of the girls were as much fun as the ride itself. Mr. Freeze is definitely very "cool", the way it launches you out of a tunnel and then straight up into the air... these were only my second and third times to ride it. But of course, nothing at Six Flags tops the Titan -- the fastest, smoothest coaster I've had the pleasure to ride.

Which way is up? L on the Acme Rockin' Rocket

L & A on the Acme Rockin' Rocket

L on Batman: the ride

excuses, excuses

Well, the Hotter'n Hell Hundred is tomorrow, and I won't be going. I just haven't been training hard enough... during the summer, it's tough to get out and do the miles I need to do to get in shape for the full hundred. And the 100-k ride I did on a Sunday morning back in June really took a lot out of me. Plus, my knee has been bothering me some. I've fallen back to less than 50 miles per week during the past 4 to 6 weeks. Once school starts, I'll be able to ride almost every day if I want to... and I might even make it to the Cowtown Classic on September 8. So my riding season isn't over just yet...

WSC

np: Rod Hart - "C.B. Savage"

nr: Ayn Rand - The Fountainhead

Milestones & a picture show

Milestones

On July 11, the odometer on my mike rolled past 5,000 miles. I've had it for not quite two years, meaning that I have averaged a little over 7 miles of riding every day of the year the time I've had it. Four days later, I was headed west on I-20 to do some photography near Abilene and I passed 60,000 on my truck. I've had it for just over three years, so I'm averaging less than 20k a year... WAY down from my years of 25k+ miles when I had the Durango and before that, the Ram Charger. I guess marriage and fatherhood have slowed me down some...

5k on the bike, 60 k on the truck

Picture show

A few photos of some of the stuff I've seen during the first half of July...

This 1-car derailment caused a small amount of excitement in Saginaw on July 6.

Grain trucks line up at the Saginaw elevators.

A Ferromex GE switches at Roanoke on July 11...

The nature of this company's business wasn't immediately made clear. Cisco, TX, July 16.

Double stacks roll past my window...


... westbound on the former Texas & Pacific near Cisco.

I finally caught UP's George Bush locomotive! UP4141 displays Air Force One colors in Fort Worth on July 16.

Coming next... "While the wife's away, Whiskey will play", featuring two days of train watching and my review of a Hank Williams III concert. Stay tuned!

WSC

np: "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" on AMC

Still bloggin'

Still riding

Last Sunday, I embarked on a 100-kilometer (64 mile) bike ride through Keller, Roanoke, Argyle, Justin, Rhome and Avondale. I came home not knowing if I'd be anywhere near ready to undertake the 100-mile ride at this year's Hotter'n Hell Hundred, or if I'd even want to. I felt fine for the first 40 or 45 miles, but it was those last 15 that really hurt. It didn't help that I was riding into the wind for most of them. I flatted near Hicks Airport and ended up having to change my tire in the rain. But it was probably good that it happened when it did, because it forced me to take a break that I probably should have taken several miles earlier. I might never have made it home if it hadn't been for that flat. But Sunday's ride definitely told me something -- I'm either going to have to really step up my training to be ready for the hundred miles, or I'll settle for the 100-k again this year (if I go at all).

I joined a group of other riders for a few miles between Argyle and Justin...

On Monday, I finally made it back to the Trinity River trails (first time in over a year) for a bike ride. Consider it a "recovery ride" after Sunday's long excursion. I had almost forgotten how much I enjoy riding down there. The route closely follows the river so there aren't really any hills; some of the levees provide a degree of protection from the wind; and best of all, there's no car traffic to contend with. It's possible to ride 30 or 40 miles without entering or crossing a single street. And in certain areas, the trails continue on city streets as designated bike pathways. What's more, the trails provide a number of vantage points to observe local rail operations, which is always cool. I'll probably be riding down there a few more times this summer, and might make a weekly trip down there after school starts in the fall.

on the Trinity River trails... Monday, June 25

I met plenty of other bikes... but no cars

Still raining

Every day, the weather radar looks pretty much the same.... lots of green and yellow swirling above Texas and Oklahoma. Our typical summertime high pressure system hasn't developed this year, so nothing has blocked the gulf moisture from flowing inland and unleashing large quantities of rain. I feel bad for everyone who has been affected by the flooding, but in all honesty, I wouldn't complain if it kept raining all summer long. It has been keeping the temperatures down (highs only in the 80s late in the month of June are almost unheard of, and we definitely haven't seen triple digits yet), and is helping to keep our water and electric bills a bit lower than usual. Call me a weenie, but I'm just not cut out for those Texas summers the way I used to be.

Clouds like this build up just about every afternoon...

a rainy drive to work...

Dark clouds looming over downtown Ft. Worth

Still shooting

The rain and clouds haven't stopped me from taking a few photos here and there... I managed to get a few cloudy shots of BNSF's new Genset switchers working in Saginaw earlier this week. And last Saturday morning, a trio of UP Gensets were tied down at Roanoke.

BNSF Genset switcher # 1233 at Saginaw. Tuesday, June 26

UPY 2654 at Roanoke. June 23, 2007.

WSC

np: Lucinda Williams - "Car wheels on a gravel road"