White Rock and a Record Rainfall

Most rain ever in the month of January 4.27 inches officially at DFW International Airport.

The roar was amazing

The noise of heavy rain after it falls was a crowd  draw today at the spillway of White Rock Lake. Several mentioned that this was the highest that they had ever seen the water. I can't recall a time when it was more. Love Field,which is closer to White Rock, had 4.46 inches, but the official record keeper is DFW, some 20 miles to the West.

The Old Katy Railroad Bed

Straight out of a James Bond movie, men were down in the drain pipe as it was covered over and new sections were added in the front. But, the history here lies in the railroad bed that the drain pipes are now below.
The Katy or the Missouri,Kansas,Texas Railroad (M-K-T) was the first railroad to enter Texas from a Northerly point. It was chartered on  May 23,1870. The railroad's stock symbol was K-T and soon, the railroad was know as the K-T. Later it was changed to Katy. Today the 3.5 mile long section of the Katy Trail has been  converted to a trail from the Park Cities area to the American Airlines Center downtown. There is a Katy Trail extension that runs through the M-Streets and connects with White Rock Lake. This new section is just North of Mockingbird Lane and runs South/Southwest to the Katy Trail Extension just before T and P hill. Following the railroad bed that has been removed, the former track parallels the water filtration building, is now an active finished trail that crosses Grand Avenue at Gaston and continues up the hill behind the golf course off Samuel Blvd., where it once tied into the Union Pacific track section that is live rail today. At this point, the trail turns and heads to Fair Park.
Going North from this point  the former rail bed travels along its present course crossing Greenville Avenue just North of Meadow Road, traveling along what is presently used by DART on the Red Line adjacent to the Royal Oaks Golf Course .

Looking North toward the Meadow/Greenville Crossing

A symphony of equipment working in unison to travel forward with drainage culverts buried under the old Katy Railroad tracks.

A Sneak Preview of the March Celebration

Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge

There were people on the bridge today en mass. The excitement for the first weekend in March celebration  grows as people check out the newest landmark on the Dallas skyline. Here are a couple of images from  today.

The Santiago Calatrava portion of the bridge begins where the cable stays begin, 600 feet eitherside of the signature portion  that stands 400 feet. So, 1,200 feet in the center is cablle stayed, holding the bridge deck up.

Follow Up to Jan.13 Exxon Mobile Headquarters, As the Crow Flies.

Since I was in the neighborhood visiting my bank branch, it was not out of the way to get some images and provide some added strength to the previous article. And, with the Carpenter Freeway being the main route, to and fro, it was also a bonus to stop and get some images of the Abbey that sits on a hilltop. The abbey was constructed from thick blocks of Texas Limestone and the rough-cut appearance makes added beauty to the architecture in general. The Cistercian Abbey of Las Colinas is another treasure for Texas diversity, Dallas Metroplex specifically. Here are the images.




Cistercian Abbey in Las Colinas.The order has been around for years.

 Years ago, Exxon Mobile did something for my family that I can never forget. It is something that will always glow a warm spot in my heart. So when I mentioned them in the post of January 13th, it was not in a negative way. But, hidden behind hack berry and mesquite trees, the Exxon Mobile compound does position itself in a clandestine-kind of operation. Anyone with any corporate experience from inside looking out knows that a certain degree of clandestine operating is totally necessary.And.....the bigger you are......the more you need.

Looking North across the John Carpenter Freeway for which Las Colinas was named, lies the world headquarters for Exxon Mobile Corporation.



Surrounded by acres of hack berry and mesquite trees, the compound is fenced and monitored.



Two Words Cut in Stone

Going up the steps up to the plaza area in front of the Hall of State, two words are cut in stone. Adventure on the right. Fortune on the left.

Step Testing at Fair Park

 With the vast acreage at Fair Park, it becomes a venue for practice.  As I was walking over to the Cotton Bowl I passed a lady that most likely retired was putting on her roller blades. She said she comes to Fair Park to skate because the traffic is more controlled and between the streets and parking lots, she has miles of hard surface for skating.The young man also has vast areas in which to practice his sport. It occurred to me that the people in Santa Monica have been doing this for years at the pier!
I have often wondered why Dallas doesn't spend the money and focus on Fair Park improvements rather than what is being done. Fair Park would be more for the betterment of the entire city population than a few that benefit from some of the other projects. Besides, Fair Park is a jewel in the city's crown. Dart just finished the South end of the Green Line right at the front door to Fair Park.

 There is a massive Ferris wheel that sits idle after the state fair leaves until the following year. There is a cable car system that is there waiting for the next years fair. With the Texas Discovery Gardens, the African American Museum, the Museum of Antique Cars,the Hall of State, the dancing fountains, and the three or four museums that have not moved into their new own new places, let's not forget Music Hall and summer stock or the Cotton Bowl that is still physically  located at Fair Park but actually played in Arlington in the new Cowboy's Stadium.

It's an art



It's a learned skill
It's a sport.



Fair Park is also one of the largest assembled city of art deco with buildings showing corner stones of 1906,1908,1934 (the art deco era) . The midway portion of Fair Park could  run year long.

Denver's Elitch Gardens about as old as Fair Park, is 70 acres. Fair Park on the other hand has 277 acres. There is a bill board atop the Cotton Bowl's gate K that says that 2012  the tallest ride in Texas is coming to Fair Park. Is it going to be available year round once it's here?

 The marketing departments of the convention center, the convention center hotel,Dealey Plaza,Arts District,Deep Ellum,West End, City of Dallas,Parks and Recreation,private developers, Aquarium, Science and Nature at the Perot should be working hand-in-hand with Friends of Fair Park.

It's Not Bah Humbug New Year, but It's Close

As a child growing up in small town America, many things marked the beginning or ending of years. This year, I'm nine, but  n-e-x-t year, I'll be 10, was one of those count downs. Then, it quickly became tax years. Come to think about it......it's still tax years! But, yesterday, while at Fair Park, old memories came back that seemed to freeze time for the rest of the day. Well, maybe not frozen, but slowed way down as I saw things that I had not seen in 60 years. Soon, I'll be able to see it again in actual motion and not just sitting in a fenced in museum when the American Railroad Museum moves from Fair Park in Dallas to it's new home in the city of Frisco the old town but new bedroom community North and West of Plano. The engines will travel on live rail there as it was stated in the press when it was first announced that the museum was moving.



As a child, I can recall seeing these stop at our small town' s rail station to let off and pick up passengers.



Then, I recall seeing one of these for the very first time coming down the tracks! As a boy, it was the WOW factor!

So, as 2012 rolled over around the world and finally  struck  midnight here in Dallas, the relevance of time just does not have the meaning that it did when I was nine. That's  why I take each day as it arrives. Happy New Year to those of you that are still counting!