My Father’s House

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Back in March 2014, my father took me and my boys down to Galveston, TX, and we were able to tour the house where he was born and grew up on Ball Street. The house was built before the 1900 hurricane (the worst hurricane in U.S. history) and most recently survived Hurricane Ike. It’s a well-built home.

The family lived in this house until after World War II when they moved to Houston.

Childhood Bedroom

Out on the balcony, my father told us that this was where his bedroom was growing up. It was closed in, but not with much which made the winter’s especially hard. The cold, wet winds off the gulf in the winter can be brutal.

 

1940’s Hurricane

The house was hit by a hurricane in the early 1940s, but since there was a war going on, most people don’t know about that one. My dad told the story that they were sitting down to each lunch after church on Sunday, when the chimney came crashing through the roof into the room where they were eating (see photo above of him pointing up at the ceiling where the chimney fell through.) He was about 12 at the time. He said his father calmly suggested they take their food downstairs and finish lunch. My dad wanted to make sure and get some of the fried chicken, so he grabbed two chicken legs, and stuffed them in his pockets and went down stairs to eat.

 

Starbucks Goes to the Museum: Frisco Heritage Museum

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As I said before, we made a trip inside the Frisco Heritage Museum on Saturday in order to help Heidi with a Starbucks gig. Starbucks was providing coffee and pastries to the museum for a lecture on the Crash at Crush, a famous 1890’s spectacle involving two steam engines pointed toward one another at a high rate of speed. The crash was so explosive, that two people were killed from flying shrapnel and Scott Joplin wrote a song about the event.

Below are pictures of the museum along with the Starbuck’s staff that provided free coffee and pastries to those in attendance. The crew consisted of my lovely wife Heidi, Eddie, and Taylor.

 

Check the Silver: Frisco Heritage Museum

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Made a trip inside the Frisco Heritage Museum on Saturday in order to help Heidi with a Starbucks gig. Starbucks was providing coffee and pastries to the museum for a lecture on the Crash at Crush, a famous 1890’s spectacle involving two steam engines pointed toward one another at a high rate of speed. While they were setting up for the event, having had way more coffee than I needed, I ventured into the museum with my camera. This is a sampling the the trophy case. But please, don’t ask me what the trophies were for. I wasn’t paying attention to that.

 

Cross Country in Canton

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Andrew, my oldest son, had a cross-country meet in Canton, TX, earlier this week. I was able to attend and managed to take a few shots. Since I’m not much into sports photography, I was surprised at some of the shots I captured.

You will see that he finished in 11:35, which we think is a decent time. Because of all the rain, they altered the course, and no one was sure how far they were actually running. They said it was about a mile and a half, but no one was sure about that.

You may also notice that Andrew is the tallest runner out there. Cross country is very similar to the marathon. It goes to the guy who is 5’2″ tall and weighs 90 lbs. I’m still proud of him for getting out there and giving it his best.

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Happy Anniversary Bekah and Tyler

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Last October, our youngest daughter Bekah got married and they asked me to be the “official” photographer. I was more than happy to do so, especially since it justified getting a new camera. The camera I bought was not top of the line, but one that I could get for a fairly decent price at the Canon website. But…it was a huge improvement over and above my previous camera, which was a second generation Canon Rebel, that I got back in 2004. All the recent pictures you see are with the newer camera.

But, this is not about photography. It’s about a wedding. In which, I was the photographer. It was our gift to Bekah and Tyler for me to take the pictures, edit them, and put them into a photo album for them. I think that was a wonderful gift. But again, this isn’t about what I did…it’s about the fact that I have pictures. I have a way to share them. And, I can say, “Happy anniversary Bekah and Tyler! May the LORD bless you with many, many more anniversaries.”

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The Fightin’ Texas Aggies Band

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From the archives, September 2013. I took the boys to a game that started at 2:30 p.m. It was so hot, we ended leaving because Joey was getting overheated just sitting there. I thought it appropriate to post this today, since the Aggies are not playing until next week when they face the Alabama Crimson Tide. I’m not hopeful about the outcome of that game. Let it be known, I’m thinking the Aggies go 7-5 this year. And as I have learned from being in the SEC, that when your team is having a bad years, it’s because the entire conference is having an off year.

 

Hank the Cowdog Illustrator

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I read that the illustrator for Hank the Cowdog, Gerald L. Holmes, died on Thursday. Hank the Cowdog was a staple in our home when the boys were younger. So in honor of Mr. Holmes, I share with you our boys outside of one of the book stores in Brenham, TX, after getting another in the long series of Hank the Cowdog.

 

Wine Snobs

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About a year ago, after looking for apartments in the DFW area, we spotted Eden Hill Vineyard in Selena, Tx on the way back to that place that shall not be mentioned. Two thoughts immediately jumped into my mind. The first: “wow, I didn’t know we had any vineyards in these neck of the woods.” The second: “let’s stop and see if we can taste the wine.”

Of course we could taste it. They make a lot of money on people tasting it. We couldn’t resist, so we pulled in, and ordered a plate of cheeses and sauces that came with the chance to sample six different wines: two whites, two rosés, and two reds.

The opportunity gave us a moment to be wine snobs. We are not wine snobs normally. Our financial portfolio won’t support such activity (we really don’t have a financial portfolio, just a manila folder with the word “finances” written on it). We discovered that we really don’t like white wines, we can tolerate rosés, but like reds. But not for $50 a bottle. We figured the sampling was enough, and left without putting any more of a dent in our “financial portfolio.”

As for our future as wine snobs, I think we are happy drinking the inexpensive wines from Trader Joe’s.