Daffodils

Jonquils

The jonquil is a member of the Narcissus family.  There are many varieties of this bulb, a smaller and less showy cousin of the daffodil.  They are prolific in East Texas in the spring along roadsides, in flower gardens, and they linger long after homes and their inhabitants are but a memory.  Whenever you see clumps of jonquils growing in the country, it's a sure bet that in days gone by there was a home in that spot.  This particular variety grows as  cluster of half-dollar sized blossoms on one stem and are frequently called Sweeties because of their sweet aroma.  The jonquil has a shade of yellow named for it and is also the birth flower of the month of March.

23/100 Strangers ~ Buster

Earlier this week I went on a little road trip to Douglass, Texas (population, approximately 75), a small comunity west of Nacogdoches in search of a truss bridge which has been featured in local news the past year because it is in danger of being torn down.  I met my Uncle Joe Buck (that's his middle name, Buck!) at the trading post in Douglass because he was a schoolteacher for many years in that area and supposedly knew where this bridge was located.  At age 86 Joe Buck is my mom's "baby brother" and is somewhat of a character who never met a man he didn't like nor did a man ever meet him and not remember him. 

On our way to search for the bridge we stopped on a narrow country road so I could take some pictures of blooming jonquils at an old house place, and while we were trudging around through overgrown berry vines, bamboo and cane, a county worker on a John Deere tractor came through mowing the side of the road.  Since my truck appeared to be in his way, I waved at him and and mouthed, "Hang on, I'll move it!"  He quickly shut the down the tractor and I was waiting for some irritable words about how I was keeping him from his job, but instead he loudly asked, "What's your name," looking at Joe Buck.  Joe Buck is hard of hearing so I screamed, "He wants to know your name!"  When he replied, the man jumped down off the tractor and exclaimed, "I knew it was you, Mr. Joe Buck!"  As it turned out, this now grandfather whose name is Buster was one of my uncle's students when he taught agriculture at Central Heights High School.  Here is their initial greeting to each other.

After ten or so minutes of remembrances and catching up on whatever happened to Johnny Mack and Billy Bob, we went on our way in search of the bridge and left Buster to his work.

I think Buster probably has an ideal job.  He gets to ride around all day on a big John Deere tractor (its tires were much taller than even I am!) out in country settings where it's quiet and the scenery is beautiful and he does it in peace with no one to tell him how or what to do and he doesn't have to listen to the office gossip or get involved in the politics.  Now that's a satisfying job!  You can tell he loves it by the smile on his face!

If you'd like to see the historic truss bridge you can find it here on my picture-a-day blog. 

Songbird in a Willow Tree

21 and 22/100 Strangers ~ Fred and Poogie

I realized recently that I had put my 100 Strangers project to the side after I moved to Texas, being somewhat enthralled at all the photo opportunities here.  You know, you just can't beat all those cute farm animals and when you throw in the historic nature of the place being the roots of the Texas War for Independence against Mexico, well, I just got suckered in.  So yesterday while I was ramblin' around in the old town of Nacogdoches (purported by some to be the oldest town in Texas) I spotted the  perfect stranger!  Meet Fred.

Fred is a glass sign painter.  I had totally forgotten that these artists once thrived in towns and cities all over the world.  Fred says he's one of the last one in these parts.  A native of Nacogdoches, he currently lives in Harlingen, some 470 miles away in the Rio Grande Valley, about 30 miles east of the Gulf and 30 miles north of the US/Mexico border.  He was just back in town for a few days and doing a little work while he was here.  In Harlingen he also owns a cactus nursery.  Before I knew it, someone else had joined our conversation.  Meet Poogie!

Poogie (aka Nathan Alders) just happened to be driving down the street and saw his good friend Fred talking to this old grandma.  Wondering what was up, he whipped his big diesel-engine truck into a parking space right behind Fred's van to investigate.  That's one thing nice about living in a small town ~ there's always plenty of parking places!  It turns out that Poogie is a retired fireman, is supposedly  the mayor of Shirley Creek (off to Google I go and learn that Shirley Creek is a campground and marina down on the Sam Rayburn Reservoir - a HUGE lake that spans the Texas/Louisiana border in this region) and is the co-star of Maule In the Morning, a local radio talk show hosted by Brad Maule, the former soap opera star of General Hospital.  Goodness, what a lot of information.  I even found a short video of Poogie getting thrown by a donkey on YouTube!  Yep, that's him.

So, Fred and Poogie, thanks for making my day!

On another note, just before running across Fred and Poogie, I had just photographed one of the most beautiful ads on brick I have ever seen and one which is in pretty much pristine condition just around the corner from where Fred was painting his window sign.  In doing a little research on glass sign painters, I learned a little about both of these dying artforms.  The artists are called walldogs and what I termed ads on brick is more appropriately called brickads (I wasn't far off, was I?).  I'm starting a series depicting this type of art on my other blog which depicts daily life in a rural setting if you'd like to see the first of the brickads.

Mary Allen Seminary ~ Crockett, Texas

All that remains of the Mary Allen Seminary is this lonely burned-out building sitting high atop a hill at the edge of town in Crockett, Texas.  Named for the wife of the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, Mary Allen, it was established in 1886, although the school originally had operated under another name since 1871.  It originally was a school for black girls, but eventually admitted male students and in 1944 became a four-year liberal arts institution.  It closed in 1972.  Once the site of a 12-building campus, it sits as a reminder of the proud heritage of Texas’ black population.

Sunrise on a Foggy Morning

Marshall Cemetery

Sitting high atop a hill in Marshall, Texas, is the city's cemetery which contains many pre-Civil War graves.  Across the street to the west is a row of Victorian houses (this is the cemetery referenced in the post about the creeeepy house a few weeks ago) and to the north is a feed mill.  The historic Texas and Pacific Depot is the red and white building in the upper left.  This active Amtrak station is featured on my picture-a-day blog here.

Blue Door

I believe this to be the back door of a shop in downtown Nacogdoches.  The door actually faces a tiny street which today is more like an alleyway.  The sidewalk on this side of the street is about two and a half feet above the pavement and the doorways and windows are rather unkempt.  On another trip I must make an attempt to find the front door of this shop and see what's inside.

Scoring High on the Rustometer

Davy Crockett National Forest

Ratcliff Lake

The Davy Crockett National Forest, named for the legendary pioneer who gave his life for Texans’ freedom, contains more than 160,000 acres of East Texas woodlands, streams, recreation areas, and wildlife habitat. Located in Houston and Trinity Counties, the forest is centrally located within the Neches and Trinity River basins.  It is a diverse forest of towering pines, bottomland hardwoods, upland forests, and boggy slews.



Almost Frozen

This almost-frozen pond of yesterday is a thing of the past today. 

The morning dawned bright with sunshine and blue skies and most of the snow has disappeared.

A Dusting of Snow

A Convention of Birds