A Fabulous and Fantastic Friday,

So, I walked to the mail box yesterday, opened the door, pulled out the latest copy of Texas Highways magazine and saw the trunk of a burnt loblolly pine from the Lost Pines. It was right out of “Uncle Joe and the Lost Pines.” Then, I turned to the article on kolaches, and right there on page 20 was a picture of the interior of the Village Bakery in West, Texas, which is about 15 minutes from Uncle Joe’s farm, and on the wall behind two young boys, I could see the picture of the great train wreck spectacle that occurred in Crush, Texas on September 15, 1896, right there on the wall in the picture was the picture, exactly where I first saw that picture and first learned of the Crush Crash that is in “Mary and the Red Shoes, A Haunted Closet Story.” Wow, Wow, which is a Double Wow and a Yipp Yipp Yipp of happy excitement. In my hands, hot off the magazine presses of Texas Highways, were the settings for the most recent Uncle Joe and Mary stories. Don’t you just love stuff like this? Some might say “coincident” and I agree, and I would also say “just plain fun, too!!” Two much!!

Grandson Baby Felix is doing very well. He is home with Mom and Dad. The young man had his first visit to the pediatrician yesterday and passed with flying colors. It is reported that the babe sleeps a couple of hours at a time, stretches a lot and make sounds like a pterodactyl, which is a prehistoric soaring dinosaur. I can’t wait to hear that noise and give the little guy a hold and a hug.

Hawaii is the 50th State of the United States, having joined the Union on August 21, 1959, getting close to 53 years ago. It is the only state that is all islands, and it is located some 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers) from the California Coast in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Out there by themselves are hundreds of islands spread over 1,500 miles (2,400) of salt water. The eight main islands are grouped more closely — it is about 173 miles (278 kilometers) for the main airport of Kona on the Big Island of Hawai’i to the Honolulu airport on O’ahu. On the Big Island of Hawai’i sits the tallest mountain on the planet. Mount Mauna Kea is 13,796 feet (4,205 meter) above sea level, but if you measure its height from the sea floor, that mountain stands 33,500 feet (10,200 meters), which would make it taller than Mount Everest. We will be staying on the Big Island of Hawai’i not that far from Mauna Kea, so I hope to see that mountain and maybe make a report back. I’ve never been over that way so it will be an adventure. There may even be a story out there somewhere.

You never know what you may find when you look around.

Enjoy the sights and sounds,

Grandpa Jim