Today, we are going to take a look at the lovely photos of the winners and honorable mention entries in the Lakeway Annual Photo Contest. The contest is open to residents of Lakeway and provides opportunities to win in seven categories. They are Birds, Community, Deer, Flora, Foliage, Vistas, and Wildlife. All photos must be taken in Lakeway. We are catered by Emmer and Rye of Austin, and our entertainment is Ringo Starr.
Get on board.
So here we are – The Winners.
Birds – Charlie Cobb – Breakfast
Community – Michael Paule – Sunrise over Honey Creek
Deer – Troy McLean – Velvet and a Bloom
Flora – Jennifer Landis – Lovely Lark
Foliage – Bill Galloway – Contemplative Bench
Vistas – Debbi Varela – Flight Across the Moon
Wildlife – Keith Everill – Squirrel
The Runners-up
Birds – Robert Kormos – Catch Me if You Can
Community – Joe ReceR – Snow Day in Tuscan Village
Deer – Renny Eisele – Fawn
Flora – Madison Cottey – The Bloom’s Buzzkill
Foliage – Robert Kormos – Hidden Song Falls
Vistas – Keith Everill – Rainbow over Mount Lakeway
Wildlife – Bill Galloway – Nothing to See Here
I hope you enjoyed the photos. Now it is time to relax with some music and food. I hope you have a great week.
Today the coffee machine greeted me with the following message. “We here at AI headquarters want to wish you a happy day.” Like a fool, the thank you came out of my mouth so fast it could not be stopped. Who thanks a heartless machine is the thought that came to mind. Pressing the Latte Macchiato button and waiting for the frothy brew to be delivered, causes more thinking about the anthropomorphic nature of this machine. It amazes me that a greeting in the morning is a hook sufficient enough to pull me in to say thank you to a piece of stainless steel and electrical components. The coffee is delivered and at the first sip Egor’s baying hounds reacting to the doorbell shatter the feeling of peace. A quick toss of a chew toy into the soundproof room followed by a slam of the six inch sound proof door, brings back peace in the valley.
Checking the monitor shows a large grey blob that take up the screen. The process of attempting to find out who is there is met with the delivery answer. Of course the delivery has to be signed for so there is no chooice but to open the front door. With a sigh the security shut down process is begun. The SWAT team needs to be put on standby. A quick text to the leader confirms that status. Also, the flight of A-10 Warthogs must be diverted. Another call to the commander puts that worry to rest. The SEAL team needs to be called off, and a call to the leader makes that possible. A call to the tow truck driver stops the deployment of an M1A1 Abrams Tank. The control panel simplifies the shutdown process of the security system. The boiling oil vats are put on standby, the turret mortars disengaged, the Trebuchet on safety, the concertina wire rolled, the Claymore mines reset, the tower Gatling guns on safety, the moat net dropped, the alligators fed, and the IEDs and shoulder-held rockets put away. The Proton torpedoes switched off. The gamma ray beams covered. The high-powered maser guns switched to standby, and the nanorobots were chained in the basement. The locks on the door are thrown. And the door opened.
Before me is Dumbo the elephant holding an envelope and clipboard in his trunk. He gives me the envelope and a place to sign on a clip board. Returning the signed clipboard the ubiquitous sign of a tip expected is made with the right foot. “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken,” is my tip as the front door is slammed. The envelop is from Linda Hill and inside is a message It reads: Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “hook.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!
This week’s good news story comes from Yahoo News ‘The Cool Down. Many thanks to Noelle Granger for sending this story to me.
Creature hunted nearly to extinction makes stunning comeback: ‘It’s thriving’
Hannah Slusher
In a remarkable win for both people and the planet, the Eurasian beaver — once hunted to near extinction in France — is making a triumphant comeback.
A single beaver family that arrived in the tiny hamlet of Montlahuc in 2020 has transformed a dry, sun-scorched pasture into a thriving wetland, showing how one small species can help fight the negative impacts of a warming world and revive local communities.
Montlahuc, a village of just 40 residents in the Drôme region, had suffered years of worsening drought that left meadows parched and local farmers struggling. But within three years of the beavers’ arrival, a once-barren field now holds more than 2,000 square meters of standing water.
Birds, insects, and lush green vegetation have returned, inspiring residents to rethink how they manage their land.
“We used to graze this land only once a year,” local farmer Marc-Antoine Forconi told Futura. “Now, it’s thriving.”
Beavers are often called “nature’s engineers” for good reason. Using their powerful teeth and instinctive building skills, they construct dams and channels that slow water flow and store moisture in the soil. This natural water management supports healthier ecosystems, creates habitats for other wildlife, and provides a low-cost, low-maintenance way to help landscapes withstand drought.
Inspired by their furry neighbors, Montlahuc farmers have even built their own small dams to retain water — though, as Forconi joked, “The beavers outperformed us.”
Once reduced to only about 100 individuals in the early 20th century, Eurasian beavers are now protected and number between 20,000 and 25,000 in France, according to Futura. The species’ return highlights how protecting wildlife can lead to unexpected climate solutions, echoing other success stories, such as the resurgence of gray wolves in Yellowstone or the rewilding of bison in Europe.
This quiet resurgence is more than a feel-good story. It’s a reminder that working with nature, rather than against it, can create healthier landscapes and a more resilient future for communities everywhere.
The good news in this story is that nature has once again demonstrated that good practices and effective land management can help reverse environmental damage. Today’s JohnKu talks about taking that lesson to heart. I hope you have a delightful weekend.
Today, I randomly opened Detour on the Eternal Road to page 137. With eyes closed, I pointed to the page. The word closest to my finger is “floor.” This is our prompt.
This list was authored by Marie Ann Bailey and me, and ran on June 16th, 2014. Since people still travel by airplane, it might prove to be useful.
Top Ten Things Not To Do When Traveling by Plane
10. When traveling by plane, do not think that you can fake being 75 or older so you won’t have to take off your shoes, since you are self-conscious about foot odor. If you do, at best, the TSA agents will just roll their eyes as you stoop and shuffle over, and then will patiently insist that you remove your shoes since your ID makes it clear that you are not as old as you claim. At worst, the TSA agents will decide that you must have some mental health issues and flag you as someone to be examined in the TSA office, which causes you to miss your plane and totally gross out the TSA agents in the small examination room with your smelly feet.
9. When traveling by plane, do not expect that the happy, cooing baby seated behind you will remain happy and cooing once the plane takes off. If you do, at best, the parents will attend immediately to the baby whenever it starts to cry. At worst, the parents will ignore the baby, as apparently they always do, and it will be your eardrums that will suffer more from the baby’s ear-splitting screams than from the change in cabin air pressure that is causing the screaming.
8. When traveling by plane, do not assume that the carry-on bag you bought online for half price will actually fit in an overhead bin. If you do, at best, you’ll be the first to wedge your bag into the bin and can ignore the other passengers whose bags are smaller but unable to fit because your bag is so large. At worst, a big guy named Tiny will pull out your bag, drop it in your lap, and put his own in. You’ll be stuck having to check your oversized carry-on at the last minute unless you foolishly want to argue with Tiny.
7. When traveling by plane, do not think you can escape screaming babies by hiding in the lavatory. If you do, at best, you’ll only face a long line of angry passengers when you finally come out as the plane is preparing to land. At worst, the flight crew will summon an air marshal and forcefully extricate you at a most inconvenient moment.
6. When traveling by plane, do not think you can time your use of the lavatory to coincide with the smoothest part of the flight. If you do, at best, you’ll be lucky and only be slightly jostled about on the toilet as the plane hits some minor turbulence. At worst, the plane will hit an air pocket, causing the plane to drop sharply, you to accidentally open the lavatory door as you grab the handle for stability, and the flight crew to be forever marred by an image of your blue water-colored naked bottom half.
5. When traveling by plane, do not assume that the passenger behind you won’t mind if you put your seat all the way back. If you do, at best, that passenger and all the ones behind will be doing the same thing, causing a strange but convenient domino effect. At worst, the passenger behind you will show displeasure by choosing that time to pitch forward and have a sneezing fit over your head, making you wish you had brought an umbrella.
4. When traveling by plane, do not think it would be a fun idea to tease your fellow passenger’s cat while the passenger is in the lavatory. If you do, at best, the cat will only hiss and growl as it backs into the corner of the pet taxi when you stick your fingers through the grate. At worst, you’ll have a lot of explaining to do to the flight attendant and your fellow passenger when you ask for help in retrieving your hand from PsychoKitty’s clamped jaw.
3. When traveling by plane, do not think that you can imbibe several alcoholic drinks and somehow be sober when your 10-hour flight ends. If you do, at best, the flight attendant will be aware of your naiveté and water down your drinks so you can disembark without assistance. At worst, you drink yourself into a Bermuda Triangle stupor and wake up hours later in a TSA office, strapped to a wheelchair and not having answers to the questions being asked by Fritz, the head interrogator.
2. When traveling by plane, on your return flight, do not think your fellow passengers will find it amusing if you sing along with the movie Happy Feet, which you’ve seen several times already. If you do, at best, all the passengers will choose to use headsets to tune you out. At worst, you may be faced with a mass passenger mutiny, where walking the plank takes on new meaning at thirty-five thousand feet.
1. When traveling by plane, do not pull an Alec Baldwin and insist on taking a cell phone call just when the captain requests that everyone turn off their phones and other electronic devices. If you do, at best, a flight attendant will gently but firmly take your phone away from you and refuse to return it until your plane has landed. At worst, the captain and flight crew will pay a personal visit to your seat and escort you off the plane (after landing, if you are lucky), totally ignoring your claim to be a very important person.
A new art gallery has been established in the Bee Cave Sculpture Park by members of Lake Hills Service Unit Junior Girl Scout Troop 2065.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held for the Bee Cave Little Free Art Gallery on July 23.
As part of a troop project to create more accessible art for local communities, the gallery welcomes visitors to leave their own art to share with others or adopt art from the gallery to bring home, a troop representative said.
The Bee Cave Little Free Art Gallery, or BCLFA, has its own Facebook page and hashtag. The troop encourages individuals to use the hashtag when adopting or donating art, and to share the project on social media.
Since we missed the ribbon-cutting ceremony, we are going to the Bee Cave Sculpture Park to have a look. Additionally, we will examine some sculptures that have been added since our last visit in 2022. Here is part I and Part II.
We are catered by 1886 Cafe and Bakery in Austin. Our entertainment is from the movie Footloose.
In the beginning, coffee in our house was made by dripping water through a filter filled with ground coffee from a can. The result was hot caffeinated brown water. Then, in a quest for better coffee, a French Press was (wait for it) pressed into service. It was more or less the same as water dripping, but was pushed through grounds that came from a bag filled with freshly ground beans. The result was a hot, brown-colored water that tasted more like coffee. Now, where are we? Today, it is a snark-filled monster machine that delivers any kind of coffee drink at the push of a button. You talk about first-world convenience. It has arrived. Today, the selection is a flat white. After delivery of the first sip, the Westminster chimes cause my gold fillings to vibrate and the hounds to levitate while demonstrating how they can bark an intruder to St. Louis.
Tossing a few chewy treats into the soundproof room and slamming the door brings back the silent pre-doorbell condition. Checking the security monitor, it is obvious that an Elmer Fudd look-alike can’t read the “Do Not Ring the Doorbell” sign. The usual exchange of greetings determines that the door must be opened. The security system needs to be disengaged. With a sigh, the process is started.
The SWAT team needs to be put on standby. A quick text to the leader confirms that status. Also, the flight of A-10 Warthogs must be diverted. Another call to the commander puts that worry to rest. The SEAL team needs to be called off, and a call to the leader makes that possible. A call to the tow truck driver stops the deployment of an M1A1 Abrams Tank. The control panel simplifies the shutdown process of the security system. The boiling oil vats are put on standby, the turret mortars disengaged, the Trebuchet on safety, the concertina wire rolled, the Claymore mines reset, the tower Gatling guns on safety, the moat net dropped, the alligators fed, and the IEDs and shoulder-held rockets put away. The Proton torpedoes switched off. The gamma ray beams covered. The high-powered maser guns switched to standby, and the nanorobots are chained in the basement. The locks on the door are thrown. And the door opened.
“Have you seen that wrascally wabbit?”
“No.”
“Sign here then.”
While signing, the shotgun in this guy’s hand causes some concern. “You hunting today?”
“No, I work for the delivery company. Just being careful, that’s all.”
Handing back the clipboard, the guy gives me an envelope and holds out his hand.
“Keep your powder dry,” is my tip, and the front door is slammed. Looking at the security monitor, the guy has gone.
The envelope is from Linda Hill (what a surprise). Inside is a message. It reads.
Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “at the beginning.” Use it any way you’re inspired to. Enjoy!
Francine, the calico cat, is back home at a Lowe’s store in Virginia after going missing for a few weeks, hitching a ride on a truck that turned up at a sister facility in another state.
Two employees from a Lowe’s in Richmond made the 90-minute drive early Monday to pick up Francine, who disappeared in September and was recently discovered at the company’s distribution center in Garysburg, North Carolina.
She was back on the job Tuesday, playing with customers, posing for photos, and soaking in affection.
“Francine is one of us,” store supervisor Wayne Schneider said in a telephone interview. “She’s just amazing. What she means here to the store and the employees, you really can’t imagine the outpouring that the employees and also the customers give her daily.”
In this photo provided by Lowe’s, employees welcome back Francine, the store cat, after she disappeared unexpectedly in September, at the Richmond, Va., Lowe’s, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025. (Kevin Ridley/Lowe’s via AP)
Francine spends much of her time either at the customer service desk or in the store’s seasonal area. But things went awry in September as the store brought in items for the upcoming Christmas season. Store general manager Mike Sida said that disruption may have prompted Francine to seek comfort elsewhere.
After store employees hadn’t seen Francine for a few days, they reviewed past surveillance video. There were glimpses of her in the appliance section and then the receiving department, where she darted into a truck. An overnight manager is then seen shutting the truck’s door, and off it went to Garysburg, about 85 miles (137 kilometers) to the south.
“And then, of course, when she got down to the distribution center, she shot off the truck,” Sida said. “That’s when we found out where she was, and she was missing.”
An animal control office set up humane traps at the distribution center, where photos of Francine were posted throughout. The center had dozens of monitoring cameras, and Lowe’s brought in thermal drones to survey the area. An Instagram account unaffiliated with Lowe’s dedicated to finding Francine grew to more than 34,000 followers.
On Saturday, Francine was spotted on camera near the distribution center. After more humane traps were installed, a volunteer checked each trap throughout the night. Finally, one of the traps triggered, and Francine’s meows could be heard.
Schneider and Sida got in a car early Monday and drove to get Francine.
“That ride going down, knowing that we were going to get her, was just heartwarming. Knowing she’s safe and that she’s coming back to the store to get off her two-week vacation,” Schneider said.
In this photo provided by Lowe’s, a customer welcomes back Francine, the store cat, on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025, after she disappeared unexpectedly in September, at the Richmond, Va., Lowe’s. (Kevin Ridley/Lowe’s via AP)
Francine was a stray when she started living at the Lowe’s store more than eight years ago. Cats are commonly seen around feed stores and garden centers, which contain large amounts of grain and seed that can be attractive to mice and rats. In New York City, cats are beloved fixtures of the city’s bodegas and delis.
At the Lowe’s store, Francine “just showed up,” Sida said. “We had a bit of a mice problem. So, of course, I’m like, wow. I like this cat a lot because it’s helping me.”
Lowe’s doesn’t have an official policy about cats in stores. Asked why Francine wasn’t taken to someone’s residence after showing up, Sida said she is loved by employees and the community.
“Francine picked us. We didn’t pick her,” Sida said. “Later, we would embrace her as our store cat. But at the end of the day, she came to us. Where she’s at is where she wants to be. She does whatever she wants.”
Unlike Lowe’s employees, Francine does not wear a vest. She had been previously outfitted with several collars but escaped them all. Now they plan on fitting her with a harness that includes identifying information.
A local brewery will host a “Francine Fest” community event on Wednesday to celebrate the homecoming, while the store is planning its own team party.
The good news in this story serves as a poignant reminder of the attachment we have to those who love us unconditionally. Francine demonstrates that love every day. Today’s JohnKu talks about unconditional love. I hope you have a lovely weekend.
