Views of the Neighborhood – Belt Sander Races

April 15, 2018April 14, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 78 Comments

There is a saying around town that we now know things are getting back to normal after Hurricane Harvey. Evidence of regular is as follows:

The popcorn machine and coffee pot are back in operation at the ACE Hardware store.

The lights at Alister and Avenue C are now working.

The Belt Sander Races are on again at the Gaff. The truck in the foreground is the Gaff delivery vehicle or a chicken coop. No one knows for sure.

Here is a photo of the race contestants.

Here is the track. Notice the extension cords running the length of the path. That’s so the belt sanders can keep going.

The spectators are fueling up for an afternoon of racing. There is music as well. The one thing that is missing is the roof. Last year there was a roof.

The announcers stand.

A warning to parents about rowdy kids.

Pit crew

A bold statement but as far as I know totally true.

One last look at the contestants.

Views of the Neighborhood – Wooden Boat Festival

April 8, 2018April 7, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 68 Comments

This weekend is the Wooden Boat Festival. The business is all things wooden and boats. I started taking photos on Friday so that you would be able to see the progress of the family boat builders. These folks are building an entire boat over the weekend.

Here we are on Friday at the boat building tent. That big piece of plywood will become the hull.

This shows parts that will be used to build the boat.

This photo shows a group of experts all concentrating on one thing. Building plans you ask? No. How to get the glue opened.

Work is underway.

Here is a shot of the grounds on Friday. The weather was in the high 70’s and beautiful.

Checking in on Saturday we find the boat builders have made real progress.

There are two boats being built. The one in the background can’t be seen in this photo.

Here is another shot of the grounds on Saturday. A front moved in, and the temps are in the 50’s with a feel like in the 40’s. It is also misting rain.

Part of the festival includes a silent auction. Here are some old spikes and charts.

There is also an antique ship’s binnacle available to buy. What’s a binnacle? It houses the compass and other navigational aids and keeps them safe from wind and sea.

There are lectures on many subjects.

Many boats

I like the colors on this sailboat.

Here is a sailboat with an enclosed cockpit. The important thing about the festival is that the boats are made of wood and are constructed by hobbyists.

I hope you enjoyed the wet, chilly, walk.

Views of the Neighborhood

April 1, 2018March 31, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 73 Comments

Here are a few photos that should serve as a catch-up kind of post. The reason this situation has occurred is my Producer is out of town for puppy pick up duty. Usually, she has investigated what is going on in Port Aransas and sets up the shooting schedule. Well left to my own devices you can see what happens. We all miss the Producer I’m sure.

Looking North, this looks much like Spring Break. There is a difference most of these people are adults.

Same kind of scene looking south.

The kites were out in force.

A couple of more beauties.

Notice there are no police cars. Mostly families enjoying the sun.

Full moon last night.

Finally, a shot of a storm over the Gulf taken last September but I never ran it. (this is called filler)

Views of the Neighborhood – Galveston Book Festival

March 25, 2018March 24, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 98 Comments

Yesterday I was in Galveston for their Book Festival. I had to drive 41/2 hours. Such is the life of an Island dweller. Everything is hours away.

It was two lane road the whole way. This garbage truck in front of me was my best friend for twenty miles. He kept me from exceeding the speed limit. In fact, he was so concerned he held me at least five miles per hour under the whole way.

The Festival is in the grade school.

Here is the setup. You can tell we are in the gym by the doors.

I thought I would take a shot without the doors

Would you buy a book from this guy?

A view of the other setups around me.

More booths

Here is a far away shot of my booth.

Happy book lovers.

Final shot. Now for another 41/2 hours back to the island.

Views of the Neighborhood – Spring Break II

March 18, 2018March 17, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 86 Comments

Here is a shot of a foggy Saturday morning. A few cars and campers. This is looking North.

Another Saturday morning shot looking South.

The same shot looking North in the afternoon

South. The cars are two deep as far as the eye can see.

Down at the sand level, we have the Game Warden looking for drugs

The police asking a crowd to move on.

Only in Texas would you see calf roping on the beach

The Game Warden is the highest level of Law enforcement in the state.

This shot is through the windshield of our golf cart. I just had to have a picture of that ugly truck.

I liked the shot of the dog which I thought was cute.

Now we are into the heart of darkness. Can you feel the bass?

More carrying on. Notice the person in the unicorn head. “Yes, you with the green beads. Do you have a question?”

No spring break day would be complete without an EMS run or ten.

Another familiar scene a State Trooper giving a field sobriety test. Public intoxication is a crime in Texas.

I thought I would throw in a shot of the local gentry taking in the scene.

Let’s leave the tour looking at an excellent, mild, and portable game of beer pong.

Views of the Neighborhood – Spring Break

March 11, 2018March 10, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 61 Comments

Walking the pups on Saturday, it looked like the day was going to be overcast. Secretly I was hoping the fog would stay since it is spring break time.

Well, no such luck. As you can see the first day of spring break was beautiful. Kites in the sky told me there were people on the beach.

Looking North my worst fear was confirmed.

The ground view did not show any improvement.

Camps were set up.

The Beach Patrol was on the prowl.

The kids were getting warmed up for a good old-time. (to be read drunk)

State Troopers were there with drug-sniffing dogs. We witnessed an interrogation and search of a suspect.

The crazies were out with their motorized equipment, lawn chair and carpet.

The pelicans were keeping formation in spite of the chaos below.

The blue heron was keeping watch over his mile marker perch.

To support law enforcement who come from all over during spring break, our neighborhood volunteered to fix two-weekend meals for the officers, EMTs and support staff.

Saturday night was Chili night. Debbie Robertson organized the event, and our community is Beachwalk II.

There were about 72 meals served.

The meal gave the officers a little time to relax and share stories.

Here are the volunteers of Beachwalk II. My Producer is one of the volunteers.

Views of the Neighborhood – Girding Loins for Spring Break

March 4, 2018March 3, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 91 Comments

So we have a lovely walk on the beach. Quiet and serene with only the pelicans as company. Wait! What is that?

Oh no. The dreaded water truck filling blue barrels. Why fill barrels? You ask?

These barrels are to keep a clear path by designating no parking zones for the thousands of spring breakers expected to show up.

Here is a long view looking back at the truck. Those poles on the right are for trash cans. Unfortunately, Hurricane Harvey took them, and the city is not sure if the new ones will arrive in time. (Spring Breakers start arriving on the 9th) We may be up to our necks in trash. Spring Breakers are not very good at picking up their trash.

Here is my attempt at an art shot showing the barrels going off into the distance.

I figured you could get a better look from the cart over. Those barrels run from our place to the downtown area (four miles). There is no parking on the left side so that emergency vehicles can get through. Yes, there is always the need for emergency vehicles.

Here is the old police station. It is no longer viable and is slated to be torn down. Why show you a picture of the police station? Because a lot of underage kids usually end up here.

Here are the temporary police headquarters. It is across the parking lot from the old.

You can tell it is the police department by the cars around it.

This is a shot of the jail which is connected to the temporary police building. It doesn’t look like a jail, does it?

How about now? This is the right side of the building with four cells.

Here is the left side with four more cells

Here is a shot of one cell. Notice the metal floor, sink, and toilet. Not very comfortable. Well, let’s hope no one we know ends up here.

Views of the Neighborhood – Whooping Crane Festival

February 25, 2018February 24, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 55 Comments

Here is a description of the festival taken from http://www.whoopingcranefestival.org. You can visit the site for information on events.

This festival in its 22nd year is a one of a kind event, focused on the Whooping Crane, the rarest of cranes and one of the most endangered birds in the world.

The Whooping Crane population is at a record high –an estimated 431 cranes wintered at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge last year. This summer, a record 63 Whooping Crane chicks fledged on the cranes’ breeding grounds at Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada. The Whooping Crane Festival celebrates the annual return of the cranes to their wintering habitat. The Texas Coastal Bend is the only place where you can see the world’s last naturally occurring population of Whooping Cranes.

World-renowned crane expert, Dr. George Archibald, Co-Founder of the International Crane Foundation, will be one of the featured speakers, along with representatives from Wood Buffalo National Park, Operation Migration, the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, and more. Festival activities include boat tours to view the Whooping Cranes, interactive workshops and seminars, birding and nature boat and bus tours, a painting and wine tasting class and a free nature-related trade show.

A whooping Crane

Visitors from all over the country come to Port Aransas for the festival

The registration desk with a hanging quilt depicting the T-shirts from 20 festivals.

This year’s shirt

The Whooping Crane chicks are hatched in Wood Buffalo National Park in Canada.

Representatives of the International Crane Foundation

Information on the Estuaries program and how to keep the Gulf beautiful.

An overall shot of the room. There were just too many booths to feature here. There were gifts, art, jewelry and more.

The famous King Ranch was represented offering birding tours.

Information for birders on the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival.

The Port Aransas Animal Rehabilitation Keep was well represented.

Need binoculars?

Fisherman’s Wharf is represented offering tours to the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, home of the Whooping Cranes. This is a model of the Wharf Cat, the boat used for the trip.

If you blow up this photo, you can see which birds have been spotted so far.

A picture of the Wharf Cat and bird enthusiasts waiting to board for the tour.

Another shot

The captain surveying the landlubbers.

Another event that is part of the Whooping Crane Festival is the Wine and Art workshop at the Arts Center

There are wine and snacks too.

Everyone works on their individual rendering of the same piece. Here an artist is drying the background to get ready for the foreground.

Did I mention there was wine?

The artist instructor is demonstrating the application of the foreground.

Here is what each participants piece will look like.

I hope you enjoyed the walk around. It was good to see everyone enjoying themselves.

Views of the Neighborhood – Sure Sign of Recovery

February 18, 2018February 18, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 63 Comments

A sure sign of recovery in any disaster area is when the folks get together to put on a craft or Garage sale. Well, we had both this week. It is almost as if the last five months have led to pent-up sale demand. We will visit both, but I have to warn you the attendance is a lot less than other events in the past. Since there is a scarcity of housing, it is estimated that three out of four Winter Texans could not find a place this year and stayed home or went somewhere else.

The craft sale.

These are crafts made primarily by Winter Texans.

A lot of shell jewelry. The creator is from North Dakota.

Some nice watercolors.

Some original wood art.

A friendly oil painting artist.

Beads and stuff.

This woman painted the crab and heron. Both were honored by being duplicated on the side of a ferry. The crab is on the Mark B. Goode and the heron on the William G. Burnet.

Now on to the city-wide garage sale.

This is one of the stores that the owners decided to move away. They are selling everything.

Slim pickings. They were mobbed early. The Producer and I tend to amble in and miss some stuff.

The city-wide sale is all over town. There is a map which you can use to go to all the stops. We went to the civic center, and that was it other than the store above.

Tables filled with typical garage sale fare.

And like most garage sales there is always someone on the phone. I was interested in whatever was free, but I didn’t want to disturb her.

Stuff.

More stuff.

The sale is sponsored by Keep Port Aransas Beautiful. Donations accepted.

You can also join the organization by paying $10.00 or buying a shirt.

It was good seeing people out and about for these two events.

Views of the Neighborhood – The Fence

February 11, 2018February 10, 2018 ~ John W. Howell ~ 58 Comments

Some of you may recall on one of my tours there was a fence covered with numerous objects found on the beach. Hurricane Harvey took it and there was not enough left to take a photo.

I did have a photo of the original.

I am pleased to report that the fence has been rebuilt.

Here is a shot of the one corner. The items on the new fence have for the most part been donated by residents.

Here is a longer view. That orange plastic thing on the right is a utility connection. The cover is gone, and the city ran out, and the plastic is temporary.