Part II of our Sunday

My previous post was about how surprised I was coming into the small town of Mineral Wells on our recent Sunday drive. We had decided that maybe a jaunt out into the countryside would possibly be the perfect med to cure our boredom.

Just a few miles west of Mineral Wells was  Palo Pinto, the county seat of Palo Pinto County. Therefore we were expecting a larger town....oops not so.

This little sleepy county seat has a whooping population of 333 people. There was not a soul about making  look eerily like the back lot of a movie studio!

The old gas station across the street was still intact, just missing it's pumps.

A lot of the homes, including this church were built out of local stones,

with the exception of this one that only had a stone fireplace.

The old jail is now a museum, but I couldn't help noticing that the jail was larger than the church...

Turning south at Palo Pinto on Farm to Market Road 4

 the terrain quickly changed to rolling hills and a winding road.

 We occasionally passed a small farm,

and glorious patches of our annual State Flower the Bluebonnet.

We ended our adventure back at Mineral Wells City Park where we enjoyed the small picnic that we had packed.

I hope that you too are able to get out of your house and enjoy the great outdoors.

Stay healthy!

Janey

Making a Comeback

Don't know about you but we are getting a bit stir crazy staying home day after day. So, yesterday we packed a picnic lunch and headed out for a drive. One good thing, is that the price of gas is lower than it has been in twenty years. We paid $1.45 a gallon. Of course that has had a negative effect on drilling in Texas, putting many out of work. So, I guess that is what is called a double edged sword.

Roughly 50 miles west of Ft. Worth, we came into the small Texas town of Mineral Wells, with a population of around 17,000. I was surprised to see such a huge structure looming large on the horizon. Seems it is the famous old Baker Hotel. Mineral Wells was founded in the late 1800 by a family headed west  hoping to find dryer climates to improve their health. Not far from the Brazos River, they heard stories of Indian raids further west, and decided to stay where they were. To make a long story a bit shorter, they discovered that the strange tasting water with minerals in it improved their health. Therefore they seized the opportunity to let the world know of it's healing powers and it worked.

The Baker hotel was constructed in 1929 and was quite the resort in it's heyday, with the likes of Clark Gable, Judy Garland and Lawerenc Welk signing it's guest register. Falling on hard times the Baker finally closed it doors for good in 1972.

So, why does it look like a construction site? Well, investors are pouring 65 million into renovating it and plan to have it in full operation again in 2022. I wish them well in light of what is happening now!

For more info on the Baker Hotel and Mineral Wells go HERE.

Hello From Texas

Hi,

I feel sure we are all doing about the same thing. Taking walks, cooking, and staying in touch with loved ones via Internet.

Spring has sprung here in north Texas , and it’s my favorite time of the year.

The warm weather and blooming flowers make taking a walk the highlight of our day.

I hope you have nice weather for walking too.

Matter of fact we walked a bit too far and wished we could hitch a ride home....whew!

Not the best picture but someone  ask how my espalier was doing...It’s doing great and has enjoyed our wet winter.

My little NC granddaughters enjoy me reading to them on FaceTime,

and Hannah seemed to be interested in my lesson about France.

Tell me what you have been up to.

Staying in Touch/Helping Out

All of our lives are a bit on hold at the moment. I know parents are faced with the added challenge of home schooling. My daughter in Austin, Tx ask me  to put together a lesson for 7 yr old Hannah, since she is also busy caring for an infant. Eek...I am not a teacher! 

So, I decided to make a book on my first trip to Paris ( in 1967) and why I fell in love with this city. My book will be presented on Face Time . Maybe I can pass along my love of travel to my granddaughter and she can learn a bit about another culture.

Using the Internet I located some pictures of the Eiffel Tower in 1889 when it was the centerpiece of the Wold's Fair.

First, I needed to show her where Paris...and France are. I also wanted to explain how I was able to afford such a trip. You see I was what they called a Stewardess at the time, and could fly on other airlines for free...well I did have to pay the taxes. My trip on TWA came to $45.00 roundtrip.

Next, I located my old uniform (yes I still have it). I feel sure to her it will look like I was  police woman or meter maid.

I flew to Germany and stayed two weeks with my Aunt and Uncle who were stationed there in the U.S. Military. They hooked me up with a three day bus tour of Paris (by myself). Here I am with a few of the other tourists. Notice how we dressed to sightsee in the 1960's!

The rest of the book consists of pictures of things I found unusual. Like a sidewalk Cafe. Being from a small Texas town, I had never seen one.

I had also never seen a subway

and was amazed that I could travel all over town swiftly, and cheaply under ground.

You get the idea...so I wont take you through the whole book.

Oh, I did find a picture of a little girl in a beret that looks a lot like my little Hannah. ..and I will tell her that one day I hope to take her to Paris to see all of the sights herself.

Tom is not too happy that I used up all of the ink in the printer...oh well.

Let’s Take a Walk

We have had rainy weather this week which makes staying in even more difficult. So when the sun does pop out we quickly get on our walking shoes.

I decided to snap some pictures of things that caught my eye. Like this Japanese Maple

and  these pretty gates.

Some red berries 

A tidy yard

A large Cactus

An door open, but probably not for me.

An Espalier

Azaleas

and a pretty doorway.

It looks like rain again, so I am happy we went.

What are you doing to pass the time ?

A Day Out

My enrollment at our local universities senior citizen program also allows me to sign up for special interest groups. My favorite of the three is The Art of Fort Worth. This group has a couple of outings a month and all are very interesting. This week our group was invited downtown to the offices of Downtown Fort Worth, Inc. to hear how our towns’s wildly successful Main Street Art Festival came about.

Poor quality photo of a slide. 

Started in 1986 it is now the third most successful art festival in the country. Main Street is closed to traffic and eight blocks magically become a huge art gallery. There is a juried selection process and only about 200 artists are chosen From the 1400 who apply.

I was surprised when I got to the meeting (obviously early) that they had little gift bags for us.

After our very interesting presentation we then walked a block to the beautiful new Frost Bank Tower  (center) where we were to have lunch.

It is hard not to notice the artwork by Donald Martiny in the lobby. You may not realize how large it is, but I left the lobby chair in the shot for scale.

There is a casual lunch spot (The Branch and Bird) on the top floor.

We would have eaten on the outdoor terrace but it was a bit windy.

I discovered that there are fabulous views in two directions.

This will probably be my last outing as Tom and I have stocked up on food and medications and will stay home and watch movies, read (including your blogs) and try not to come in contact with this nasty virus. Stay well and wash those hands! Janey

Passing Time

It gets a little boring waiting for my upcoming surgery...and wondering if  like so many other things  it will get cancelled.

Not to make light of this pandemic....

I understand it is difficult to buy a mask to wear., so I thought I would try to make one that that I saw online.

Fold a paper towel like a fan

Loop each end through a medium size rubber band

Staple

Voila’

I am not saying this will keep you from contracting the virus, but maybe it will keep you from touching your mouth and nose...or at least give you a craft to do.