Views of the Neighborhood – Lakeway Skate Park and Pool

April 21, 2019April 20, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 69 Comments

Happy Easter to you. This week our walk is to visit the skate park and community pool in Lakeway. It is a beautiful Easter day so come along.

The first stop is an informative sign pointing out that dinosaurs used to roam this area. There a couple of footprint replicas below the information.

Outside the pool area is a climbing wall for the youngest.

What is water without a sand volleyball court?

Here is part of the skate park. Looks like fun if I were 15. Now at my age, it seems like it would be a one way trip to the ER.

You can see the pool from one of the lips of the skatepark.

Signs warning that you could kill yourself but if so, don’t sue us.

The skatepark is on the site of the old community pool. Here is a ten-foot basin that you can skate into but not necessarily back out.

A shot of the pool. The pool was closed so getting inside for some great shots was not possible.

I did poke my camera through the fence for this shot. You can see the water slide and water. The shadow on the right is what I overcame.

I hope you enjoyed the walk. Have a great week

Views of the Neighborhood – Lakeway Air Park

April 14, 2019April 13, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 68 Comments

There are several amazing things in Lakeway. One of them is an airport smack dab in the middle of houses and a golf course. The airport was originally used as a landing strip for a ranch. In 1964 a 3200-foot runway was built to support air interests of residents and later expanded to 3,983 feet. It is a private airport and receives no government funds. Operations are supported by fuel sales and landing fees. I hope you enjoy a look around.

Here is an aerial view of the park. There are eight homes that have driveways connected to the runway. They are on the left.

A ground view looking South.

This is the central building. entrance is by keycode.

A sign explaining the fees. Note that the fee box is by the front door and compliance is the honor system backed up by a camera.

How much for aviation fuel? $4.02 a gallon here. 100 is the octane level and LL stands for low lead. This fuel is good for piston driven engines. Jet fuel is not available at the air park.

Here is a sign with some information about the airport. To the left is the elevation of the field (905 feet) to the right is the airport common frequency. This is used so pilots can communicate their position to other pilots in the area. This airport does not have a controller so awareness of other aircraft is important. The first item should be cause for concern. Deer on the runway are not a good thing. The second indicates this airport is not lighted so operations are restricted to daylight hours only. The third explains the landing pattern has a left hand approach at 1900 feet Mean Sea Level (A measurement against a calculated sea level standard) So, if you are intending to land your approach to the airport needs to be on the left side of the runway and at 1900 feet. If all planes use the same method collesions are avoided. The next advisory says upon take off pilots should stay on the runway heading until a mile away and at least 400 feet (Above the Ground) altitude. Let’s assume the take off heading is 340 degrees the pilot would hold the 340 degree heading until 400 feet AGL and one mile. No touch and go’s which means no practice take off and landings. The last one which says use at own risk is self-explanatory.

The last shot is of an airplane taxing toward the fuel station. Those bright spots on the wing tips are strobe lights. The propeller doesn’t look like it is moving thanks to my super-fast camera phone. You can see the houses located with access to the runway in the background. Way off to the left is a group of golfers getting ready to T-off.

Hope you enjoyed the visit.

Views of the Neighborhood – Garage Sale – Lakeway Style

April 7, 2019April 6, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 71 Comments

There is a monthly garage sale in Lakeway at the Activity Center. The entrance to the event is free but a donation of food or money to help the homeless and the animal shelter is suggested.

This 8,100 square foot building, with a theater seating capacity of 400, or a dinner seating capacity of 250, also has smaller meeting rooms, a full size commercial kitchen, a raised stage complete with modern computer operated lighting and sound systems, a baby grand piano, dressing rooms for performers and a large drop-down front projection screen. The Activity Center is a beautiful venue. I hope you enjoy the tour.

A shot of the outside of the center. The style of architecture is in keeping with the community. I would label it Craftsman Texas Hill Country. The rain yesterday made for a gloomy day.

The main doors to the Center. Notice the stonework and lamps.

This first photo of the sale is on the veranda. Arched doorways in keeping with the Craftsman style.

A photo of the veranda showing the pillars, metal roof, and the lights

The inlays on the walk are dedication bricks. The guy is thinking of buying that trimmer, but he couldn’t get it started.

A covered lounge area.

Another photo of the veranda which gives you an idea of the stonework on the walls.

Inside the Center, you can see the mirrored ball and chandeliers which are a nod to dances, weddings, and other events. There are room dividers for smaller events.

More shoppers and sellers.

I liked the idea of “Do What You Love.” Good advice for all of us.

The Center also has a stage for theatrical productions. These lamps made good use of the dark.

A photo of the courtyard. You can’t see the rain running of the downspout, but that rock basin in the foreground is where the water falls.

The food donation station.

I hope you enjoyed the tour of the Activity Center and the Garage Sale.

Views of the Neighborhood – A Look at Lakeway Park

March 31, 2019March 30, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 66 Comments

The park in Lakeway is celebrating the Twenty-Fifth anniversary. Since the Producer and I have never visited in our three weeks here, we thought it a good idea. We were surprised by the size and services offered. As a side note, the city council bearly passed the approval for the park when it was first proposed. Now it is a city treasure. I hope you like the tour.

A sign letting you know that this is it.

Unique cactus at the entrance.

A surprise was a full-sized ball diamond named Ranger Field after the excavating company who made it possible. (Not named after the Texas Rangers)

A view of the outfield from the umpire position.

A shot of the bleachers and dugout down the first base line.

A huge playground. I noticed that this part is for 2 to 5-year-olds. Given the directions of not wearing a helmet, I think the children learn to read very early here.

A pavilion for parties including a dance floor.

A Texas-shaped stone honoring those who made the park possible.

A sigh with rules.

A shuffleboard needing some TLC.

A cactus garden

The cactus garden dedication.

A dog park with an agility course.

Rules of the dog park.

A kayak launch site on Lake Travis in Lakeway Park.

A place to borrow a life jacket if you left yours at home.

Sand Volleyball courts.

A view of the lake. The construction is a new park bench. (Not in view)

This is very unusual. It is a butterfly garden with all manner of flowering plants to attract butterflies. You can see some Texas Bluebonnets in the background.

I hope you enjoyed the walk around the park

Views of the Neighborhood – Mailbox Decorations

March 24, 2019March 23, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 77 Comments

A lot of things are made of rock around here because it is plentiful. I noticed some substantial mailbox’s around the place, so I decided to take some photos of them to share with you.

We do have some squirrels in the neighborhood. Here is a tribute to them.

I haven’t seen any owls yet, but I’m sure they are here.

Looks like a cactus garden and a cactus statue. These guys must love cactus.

This one is unusual. A cup with lips. I could see fighting for coffee in the morning

Here is a burro with horns. (It could also be Bevo the mascot of The University of Texas which is located in Austin. I’ll bet that is it)

Here is a majestic elk standing on an ordinary mailbox.

A parrot. Must be an homage to a family pet. Of course, there are parrots in Austin. I just haven’t seen any around here.

Ah, the regal cat. No explanation is necessary.

I hope you enjoyed the little tour.

Views of the Neighborhood – Lakeway Texas –

March 17, 2019March 16, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 68 Comments

Happy St. Patrick’s Day. This is the first Views of the Neighborhood from our new home. Today we are going a couple of blocks away to visit a park that celebrates service. This is not a place of loss but of recognition. It is here that the men and women from Lakeway who served in the military are honored.

The central arch lets visitors know what to expect inside.

The story of the Spirit of Freedom Monument

The spirit of Freedom Monument was originally erected to honor World War II veterans.

The Koran War was added.

The Vietnam War

Gulf War, Afghanistan, Iraq, and El Salvador

Gulf, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Panama

Another view of the whole setting.

On the other side of the arch is a statement of truth.

The well from the original ranch house established on this spot. Lakeway was once a ranch.

One view of the original ranch house. The house is made out of stone.

The entrance to the ranch house

The Heritage Center filled with information about Lakeway

The Heritage Park sign. The monument is in the background

A reminder that no matter how cute, deer are better off not being fed. Lucy and Twiggy better obey the little sign as well. I hope you enjoyed the first outing in Lakeway.

Views of the Neighborhood – Book Fair in Killeen Texas

March 10, 2019March 9, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 71 Comments

I was at a book fair in Killeen Texas yesterday sponsored by Texas Authors. The Views of the Neighborhood this week will hopefully give you a taste of what went on.

Here is the entrance to the fair.

The main desk

A lot of authors are in attendance

Here is a shot of my booth.

More authors

I was happy to finally meet Jan Sykes. Here we are at her booth.

Gwen Plano was visiting Killeen and stopped by. This was the first time we met in person.

I call this “Thorn Between Two Roses.” It was so much fun seeing Jan and Gwen.

I hope you enjoyed the brief tour of the Killeen Book Fair.

Views of the Neighborhood – Say Goodbye to Port Aransas

March 3, 2019March 2, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 118 Comments

As I mentioned on Friday, today the producer, Lucy, Twiggy, and I will be relocating to the Austin Texas area. Since this is my last Port Aransas post I decided to give you a view of my neighborhood. I have taken many pictures of other neighborhoods but this is a first for my own. We enjoyed the last twelve years living by the Gulf but now is time to move to a new chapter. I hope you enjoy the little tour.

Here is the entrance sign to our neighborhood. After Hurricane Harvey a number of things needed to be replaced. This sign was one of them.

Marie will hate this but here is our main gate

This is the golf car crossover to the beach.

Speaking of that here is the first picture of our golf cart. Notice the raised suspension and nubby tires. All the better in the sand. That number and red flag denote our lot number and residence status. (All carts in our community are registered.)

Bit of fog yesterday when I took these photos

A shot from the crossover of the pool area.

That little house contains the bathrooms and pool pump. By the way, The Producer was tasked with developing the color scheme for the neighborhood. She redesigned all signs and chose the colors.

Here is a shot of the expanded lanai.

This is a view of the front of our house. The Producer also designed our home and worked with an architect to bring it to reality

Here is the back view. I have taken many photos from the backyard but this is the first from this view. My office is on the third floor overlooking the pond.

I hope you enjoyed the Port Aransas series and next week we start anew from Austin.

Views of the Neighborhood – Whooping Crane Festival

February 24, 2019February 23, 2019 ~ John W. Howell ~ 71 Comments

This weekend is the Annual Whooping Crane Festival here in Port Aransas. The Whooping Crane Festival celebrates the annual return of the cranes to their wintering habitat at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. The Texas Coastal Bend is the only place where you can see the world’s last naturally occurring population of Whooping Cranes. From a low of 16 in the 1940s, the population is now 306. I hope you enjoy the photos. No, I didn’t get a shot of a Whooping Crane.