Local History

Several more items on my bucket list were marked off last Friday and Saturday.  On September 9th, I travelled to Fort Richardson State Park in order to participate in the ten o'clock tour of what was left of the original outpost.  A few of the buildings were reconstructed represenations of what they would have looked like while a greater majority were original to the time it was an active installation.  Park Ranger Conner performed an excellent job guiding another camper and me throughout the area.  Once we were finished, we chatted inside the incredible Interpretive Center at the forefront of the historic grounds.  At the conclusion of our time together, I immediately set out to discover what the park had to offer.  Two of the hiking trails piqued my interest as I wanted to explore nature at its finest.  To cap off my excurion, I smoked a cigar in the pavillion/playground area.  Discovering a communal firepit, I'm already planning my next trip to include a fire.  Of course I took a lot of pictures during my time there.  On the way back to Fort Worth, I stopped off at a mom and pop diner in Springtown.  Guess I was in the mood for something different.  Honestly, the food wasn't all that great, but the exceptional service and overall value and portion size of the food are what impressed me the most.  I was exhausted once back at the apartment, and it showed in how well I slept that night.  The following Saturday the 10th, I took a guided tour of Top O' Hill Terrace in Arlington.  Now located on the campus of Arlington Baptist College, this historical site has an infamous, rather notorious history of gambling and drinking through the 1930s and 1940s.  The employee went over-the-top in her presentation.  About an hour and a half was spent watching a PowerPoint presentation with the last half-hour actually touring the facilities.  The requested $10 donation didn't seem adequate for the level of work invested into and amount of information received during the visit.  I will definitely make it a point to spread the word about Top O' Hill Terrace, as well to frequent it again and again.  Hopefully I can continue to engage life and to check out what the D/FW Metroplex has to offer.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Party on the Porch (Amon Carter Museum)

On Saturday, September 30th, I attended the annual Party on the Porch sponsored and hosted by the Amon Carter Museum.  I attended this function about twelve years ago with a friend and his family.  For whatever reason, the festivities fell off my radar till I saw a banner for it a few weeks prior.  Deciding it would be good for me to get out, even if it was alone, I requested a ticket and downloaded it to my phone.  The best part of the shin-dig was it's free of charge!  Yes, you read that correctly.  Both Party on the Porch and the Museum itself are funded by a perpetual trust established upon the death of Amon Carter himself.  (Take that, you other museums who charge an entrance fee!  Because of the lack of admission, I am able to frequent the art gallery as often as I can.)  Free parking for the event was available across the street at the surface lots of the Health Science Center.  (Another plus to showing up for the event.)  There were several people managing the entryway.  On
Read more

Seeking Closure!

Last week I was able to get away from the land of exile in order to visit and spend time with family.  Even though part of our plans for a trip to East Texas fell apart, I very much enjoyed spending three wonderful days with my mother in Yoakum.  During this time, as she still had to work her shifts at the church, I was able to scratch off quite a few items from the bucket list.  Many of these items have been on there for several years awaiting much-needed closure.  On top of the list, but really in no particular order, was to visit the Alchoholics Anonymous group in Victoria where I tried to get sober in 2004.  Even though I didn't recognize anyone in attendance, I did enjoy the time spent in fellowship.  Then a visit was made to Memory Gardens Cemetery where three acquaintances are interred.  One in particular, my friend Amy, was buried there in 2021.  Regretting not being able to attend her funeral services, I made every effort to locate her grave, along with the graves of her m
Read more

Reprieve from the War Front

** This is another letter from my father in Korea during the war of 1950-1953.  My intention in posting these letters is to capture the very personal side of war.  The letter is typed as written.  Any mistakes in grammar, punctuation, and etc. are intentional. 17-Oct-53 Dear Mom & Dad           I have just returned from a splendid seven days leave in Japan.  My seven days were filled with just about everything a person could want in a leave.  Steak, lobster, french fried potatoes, and onions, and many other fried foods.  The special service hotel at which I stayed is the most beautiful in Tokyo, Ga-Jo-En KANKO Hotel.  It is composed of three buildings connected by hallways, five stories high.  It has many facilities such as Grill, Bar, Cocktail Lounge, PX, Game Room, Barber Shop, Dining Room, Wrapping Service, and Dining Room, where meals are very cheap: 15 cent breakfast, 25 cent lunch, 45 cent supper.  The elevators of the Hotel are lined with mother-of-pearl formed into wa
Read more