Smokey

Smoky - Author's Picture

Smokey's face looks quite offended. She didn't like that we were paying attention to a puppy rather than her. She's a tabby; maybe mixed with something else. Not my cat, but it is my picture.

Timber Rattler

Timber Rattler

I've found several of these (but none this big) at our place. "The timber rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus) is a large, heavy-bodied pit viper species native to eastern North America. It is also known by the names canebrake rattlesnake and banded rattlesnake. It is a very poisonous snake with a deadly bite." Source: Google. Image: Meta via Texas Snake Identification.

Find out more on howstuffworks.

5 Facts About Popcorn

Popcorn Stand - Author's Picture

I took the picture of the popcorn stand, but I don't remember the exact location. Curiously, while I was thinking about this post, I was traveling to a town. I saw something ahead on the road and swerved to miss it. When I got closer, I saw that it was a container of popcorn that someone had thrown out onto the road. Or lost, I don't know.

1. Popcorn has been enjoyed for thousands of years in the Americas.

2. Cracker Jack, a type of caramel-coated popcorn (and peanuts), was created in 1896.

3. It is estimated that corn was domesticated c.a. 9,000 years ago.

4. Americans consume about 17 billion quarts of popcorn every year. 

5. One cup of unpopped buttered popcorn will give about 28 cups of popped popcorn.

Sources: Google, ctrlcalculator.com.

Antique Bottle

Unknown Type of Bottle - Author's Picture

I can't find an exact match on Google Image Search. There is embossing on the bottom, but I can't tell much about it. I think it's just numbers; the bottle is made in such a way that you can't do a tracing on the bottom (I tried). I dug this bottle myself, out of an old trash dump in a certain wooded area. Many of the other items I found date back to the 1940s and 1950s. I suspect this one does, too. Anyway, if you're looking to buy something like this, they're going to be pretty cheap.

Daisy

Daisy - Author's Picture

Daisy was almost too dark to get a good picture. She belongs to my in-laws; the wife was checking on her while the family was at a doctor's appointment that required them to be gone overnight. She was so cute that I had to take a picture and, naturally, post it.

Sam Houston Memorial Park, Part 2

In this section, I post more pictures of a visit to the Sam Houston Memorial Park, in northwest Red River County, Texas. I think I took these pictures in May of 2025.

General View - Author's Picture

The image shows a general view of the grounds, looking northeast. Mrs. Jane Chandler Gill's head is located right of center. It's the white color, or maybe off white, image. Further back is a monument to Sam Houston. The very large plant in the middle of the picture is a cactus. Learn more here.

Pine Tree - Author's Picture

It can't really be seen, but this image shows one of the largest pine trees I have ever seen. The larger visible branch is, in itself, as large as some pine trees.

Jesse Bowman Marker - Author's Picture 

This historical marker commemorates Jesse Bowman (1785–1836), a pioneer who volunteered for duty at the Alamo. He perished there with many others. The marker is transcribed below.

"Jesse B. Bowman was born in Tennessee about 1785. By 1811 he was living in Illinois where his son Joseph T. Bowman was born that year. Bowman and his family settled in Ouichita County, Arkansas, until it became more populated and they moved to Hempstead County. In the 1830s Jesse B. Bowman and his family moved with his brother and other family members to this area of Texas, where they soon qualified for a league and labor of land. On February 23, 1836, Bowman answered the roll call at the Alamo garrison in Bexar. He was listed as a private and permanent volunteer under the command of Jim Bowie. On March 6, Jesse Bowman lost his life at the fall of the Alamo. His body and those of the other Alamo defenders were burned by the Mexican army under General Santa Anna."

Learn more about Jesse Bowman here.

Moss

Moss - Author's Picture

The pictured flower is called moss, or Portulaca. 2025 was the first year that I got it to grow, because (in previous attempts) I didn't give it enough sunlight. It's native to South America. It's a plant that survives/thrives in full sunlight. Check out the Martha Stewart website to learn all about this very pretty plant. The picture was taken in June of 2025.

Dimple Community, Texas

"Dimple, TX. Dimple is six miles north of Clarksville in north central Red River County. It had a post office from 1901 until 1921. From 1914 through 1986, the estimated population of Dimple was reported as twenty-five. In 1990 and 2000 it was sixty." Source here.

Nowadays, the chief historic feature of Dimple is the New Haven Cemetery. The cemetery used to be located alongside the New Haven Missionary Baptist Church. Years ago, the church built a new building that is located just across the road from the cemetery. Walking through the cemetery, for me, is troublesome, as I once knew several of the people who are buried there, both young and old.

New Haven Cemetery - Author's Picture

This is the sign you see just before you enter into the cemetery. It needs repainting, badly.

"New Haven","Cemetery","1859","New Haven","This cemetery is located in the northwest quadrant of Red River County, Texas. GPS COORDINATES: Datum WGS84: 33 Deg 42.866N, 95 Deg 04.834W. From the Dimple Community proceed west on FM 2120 about two miles. The church and cemetery is on the north side of the road. RED RIVER RECOLLECTIONS page 52: Acreage, 2.75 acres 'situated on the waters of Pecan Bayou and upon which said Church and School House now stand' for a community church, school, and cemetery was deeded on 6 May 1859 by George M. Sargeant. A later deed dated 14 Feb 1898 and filed for record on 4 Jun 1898 in Book CH Vol 33 Page 593 for 5 acres of land on the E. H. Tarrant survey from John M. Jamison et ux to New Haven Baptist Church. The oldest marked burial is for George W. R. Rolston who died in 1859. This cemetery was surveyed by Lawrence and Sue Dale on Sunday 19 Jan 1997. We visited on 14 Jan 2004 to take GPS Coordinates. We also did a re [sic] walk of the cemetery adding new burials and noting marker changes." Note: The church is no longer on the north side of the road. It is now on the south side of the road. Source here.

Sarah Jane - New Haven Burial - Author's Picture

The only thing I could make out on the marker is that it's for "Sarah Jane." She was 30 years old at the time of her passing. At some point, the stone seems to have fallen over. Someone came along later and poured concrete to support it. It's still lying in a "turned over" position. Edit: I found Sarah Jane Roberts Walker on the Find a Grave website. She possibly died in or shortly after childbirth. She lived and died in the 1800s, so long ago and a world away.

Squirrel - Author's Picture

At some point, I noticed a visitor who was just as quiet as I was. He was very dark for a squirrel. He didn't stick around for long, and I couldn't get a better picture.

The Loss of The SS Vestris

Ship Wrecks The Sinking Of The SS Vestris

From the channel of Old Shipping lines.

On the twelfth day of November, 1928, the SS Vestris sank in the Atlantic Ocean. She was overloaded and her hatches were not secured. On the eleventh of November she encountered a storm that was so severe that she began to list (lean) to starboard (right side of the vessel). Over 100 people were lost in the accident. This accident is notable not only because of the death toll, but also because the disaster was photographed by pantryman (a butler) Fred Hanson.

Sinking of The SS Vestris

Image Source: Wikipedia; Public Domain Image.

Cat Nest

New in the House

I recently posted about my Ghost Secret Mission Unboxing. It came in a large box. As it happens, I found a use for the box as well. The cats claim it as a sleeping spot.

Well, the New Year has begun, and it's amazing how quickly Christmas 2025 came and left. I had a voice appointment with my VA doctor. Tomorrow I see my physician (I don't really know why; they said to be there, so I'll go). On Friday, I have to drive my mom to her annual eye exam. Above all that, I'm beginning to be worried about my wife's health, which consumed much of my thinking and worrying in 2025. I know better than anyone that it does no good to worry about anything. I do it anyway.

In the online world, or in matters related to the online world, I've been using AI to create monthly graphics to add to the blog, well, monthly. I've also started fleshing out the character of Izzy. I'll need to work on Tiffany Williamson before too long. It's fun creating a literary universe. It's falling together without really any effort.

Rat Snake

Eastern Rat Snake - Author's Picture

My mom's dog, Chaos the beagle, found a rat snake on the front porch. The picture was taken in the summer of 2015. It had dropped by to try to steal the eggs from a bird that had nested on the porch. These snakes can grow to be 7' long. This one looks like a long one.

Eastern rat snakes used to be called black rat snakes. When I was little, we called them "chicken snakes." When (as an adult) my daughter raised some chickens, we frequently found them raiding the nests for eggs. They ate little chickens, too.

Orange Day Lily

Orange Day Lily - Author's Picture

According to Google Image Search, the plant is the Orange day lily, aka Hemerocallis fulva. Cats are allergic to it. They are edible, but I don't think I'd take the chance. The picture was taken in July of 2025. Check out the article on Wikipedia.

2025 Christmas Decorations

Christmas Decorations

12/30/2025: I'm preparing to renew my yearly membership with the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society. Anyway, I'll do it in the next week or two. Right now I have money in my billfold and it's on fire to go out and eat dinner one night. I'm thinking Tex-Mex. Not just thinking, but that's what it's going to be. The picture shows my 2025 decorations, taken with a gifted Vivitar camera. I'm still trying to figure out how to learn/operate the camera.

Happy New Year

Fireworks - Author's Picture

Happy New Year!

It's that time of year again, and fireworks will blow up and stream through the sky. This is a view of my friend's fireworks stand, in the process of being stocked. It's operated from a customized shipping container. I hope, maybe, that I can take a video of a fireworks show.

Sam Rayburn Memorial Veterans Center

Sam Rayburn Memorial Veterans Center - Author's Picture

The center in this photo dates to 1948. It is "my" clinic, where I see the dermatologist and mental health professional. Samuel (Sam) Rayburn, who was the speaker of the United States House of Representatives, attended and spoke at the clinic's groundbreaking ceremony.

See also: TSHA entry on Sam Rayburn Memorial Veterans Center.

Christmas Ham and Turkey

Christmas Ham and Turkey

I cooked the usual ham and turkey for the Christmas Day meal. I always cook the meat. The ham was just okay, because of the brand and being pre-sliced (too thin), and I only had one bite of the turkey. I don't care for turkey, so I don't eat much. We did have plenty of ham, and yesterday I put the rest of it into a freezer bag to store it. We cook it with pinto beans in the crockpot. I was busy and didn't have time to take pictures after I had cooked the meat. I did get a picture when I was getting ready to cook it.

Storm Picture, 2

Storm Clouds - Author's Picture

The photo is a second picture of a storm that blew through Carthage, Texas. It was taken around 2006. It looked worse than what it turned out to be. It got dark, and it rained, but that was about it.

A Christmas Present

Vivitar Digital Camera

We're in that time of year that I call the "lull," or transition point, counting down to the New Year. I don't like these few days. And I can't remember the last time we had a white Christmas. On Christmas day, it was in the low 80s (F). The picture is a camera I wanted. My wife gave it to me for Christmas. I also got $100 worth of Amazon cards from the kids, and my nephew gave me a screwdriver set that has a number of bits and sockets (metric and standard) included with it. I'm not sure if I'm going to like the camera. After snapping an (admittedly few) photos, it kind of seems like my iPhone camera is the superior camera. Still, it's nice to have.

Storm Picture, 1

Storm Near Carthage, Texas

I took this picture near Carthage, Texas, shortly after I completed a SKYWARN class. The picture dates to c.a. 2006. The storm produced some heavy rain. Ultimately, it did not damage anything in its path.

Just a Coffee Cup

Cup - Author's Picture

The picture shows a coffee cup that I found somewhere. It is quite large, though you can't tell it from the picture. I don't know if I got it from an antique store, a flea market, or Goodwill. I had to have it because it features my motto: more coffee.