Breakfast at Tiffany's

There have  been many fashion shows by the Epiphany Ladies Club in the past, but this is the second annual one at the Willow Fork Club and the second that Carolyn, Peggy, and I have attended...mainly to see our friend, Beth, model and be escorted by her charming husband, Richard.

OMG! Is that Audrey Hepburn with Beth?

Beth told us to get there early since parking would be at a premium as this year they were expecting 200 people compared with 150 or so last year. The event started at 10 and heeding Beth's advice, I arrived at 930, pulled into a great spot, and spied Carolyn coming through the cars to meet me.  I then hit the side of my head and exclaimed, "I forgot my ticket!" Fortunately, we live relatively close by and I was able to hotfoot it back to the house, run in, grab my ticket off the refrigerator, and get back in time to lounge around with the others before we were allowed into the venue.

Ladies at the Garnet Table

Beth had reserved a table for us so we didn't need to hurry up the stairs to claim one for our group. Raffle tickets were sold while we were waiting for our brunch to be ready. We bought an arm's length of tickets which seemed to vary from 15 to 13 but since one of us got 15, we rallied for the others to too. Went out on the balcony and perused the different goodie baskets that were being auctioned. I believe there were 13 of them with varying themes A Day on the Town, Tea for Two, A Pampering Experience, 2 baby baskets, one themed for girls, the other neutral, etc.

Brunch was finally ready. The tables were labeled with  different gem name, ours was Garnet,  rather than numbers identifying them. Acoustics weren't that great. The third table called sounded like 'Garnet'. Someone else agreed with me so we got up to process to the breakfast room, but Carolyn said, "I think that was Onyx." We continued on our merry way, got our food, ate, and as we finished heard distinctly that 'Garnet' was being called to eat. Oh well, we had a good laugh about that.

Lady Beth with the escorts

Beth and her husband, Prince Charming Richard

My lucky number and the prize

The Texas Junk Co and Houston Sights

Sneed heard about this place from one of his secretaries so we thought we'd go down and explore. Aside from the stinky smell, there were some interesting things inside but nothing that we felt compelled to pull out the wallet for...

Sneed enters with little trepidation ~ there's something for everyone... look up, look down, look under - boots, shirts, picture frames, old LPs, Coca~Cola bottles, bowling balls, golf clubs...and as the sign out front proclaims, Over 1,000 used cowboy boots

Interesting door on vacant home across the street ~ great old gnarled tree ~ bricks in the pavement, the Lone Star, and Andy Cordell Reds (the name of the brick company)

More sights around town, uh city, metropolis...Houston ~ Houston Pavilions, the premier entertainment, dining, retail, and office hub in downtown Houston ~ nice architecture on building ~ Islamic Da'wah Center founded by Hakeem Olajuwon in the former Houston National Bank Building ~ ornamentation on side of a building

Note the gargoyles on the wall in front of this new apartment/condominium. The Lopresti Automotive Service facade was left as a frontispiece.

Day 2 - More of the same

Up at daybreak to have breakfast at the Hampton Inn in Decatur where we spent the night. Another nice day and a luckier outcome on our return trip to Dallas.

Jacksboro, Jack County ~ Fire Station across the street

Trivia - A corn club founded in Jacksboro by County Agent Tom Marks in September,1907, was the forerunner of the international 4H Clubs.

Graham is the Daffodil Capital ~ Young County courthouse in Graham

More murals

Palo Pinto, Palo Pinto County ~ County jail built in 1880. The bottom floor housed the jailer's family, the top floor held killers, cattle rustlers, rowdy cowboys and other prisoners. A steel trap door was installed in 1907 to be used for hangings; however, its efficiency was never tested.

The Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells, Palo Pinto County, is a well known landmark in the area built in the early 1900s by hotel magnate T. B. Baker as a spa resort. Unfortunately, it closed in the 1970s and fell into a sad state of disrepair. Reportedly there is a movement to restore it; however, the economy of Mineral Wells would not be able to support it. The hotel is reputed to be haunted.

Braum's ice cream store had my kind of breakfast ~ Mineral Wells is also the home of an astronaut

Weatherford, Parker County ~ $55,555.55 really???

Fort Worth, Tarrant County

Here we are on the Tom Landry Highway with his signature hat on the road sign ~ More of the downtown skyline ~ Big Red in the background

Big Red and the newer Dallas County courthouse - We saw this building yesterday which is across the street from the old courthouse but the name on the front didn't indicate it as the Dallas County courthouse. A little research on the internet confirmed it as the correct building.

John F Kennedy Memorial in Dallas. The Monument is a 'cenotaph' or open tomb that symbolizes the freedom of Kennedy's spirit. It is a space for contemplation, neither open or closed.

Waxahachie, Ellis County ~ This courthouse is one of the most photographed in TX

Some tourists lounging on the courthouse steps check out the gal all duded up to look like a Texan ~ Stats from the trip...almost 1000 miles ~ ignore the max speed (Sneed did all the driving)

Day 1 - Photographing Texas Courthouses

We set off early Saturday morning to travel northward to photograph 16 more courthouses. The loop Sneed designed was around the Dallas/Ft Worth area. The weather was nice in the low 70s with a slight breeze prevailing at times. The only hiccup on this first leg of the trip was in Dallas. Explanation is further down.

As one can see, some of the courthouses will take one's breath away whilst others one doesn't even want to photograph. However, since we hope to compile a book of the 254 Texas county courthouses we have to take photos of them all.Here they are in the order in which they were taken.

Corsicana, Navarro County

City Jail built in 1908 ~ City Mural on wall outside of the Library ~ Ornate Chase Bank Building all in Corsicana

Athens, Henderson County ~ Tyler, Smith County

 2 views of the Quitman, Wood County courthouse ~ one of several murals seen on the side of buildings



Emory, Rains County ~ Kaufman, Kaufman County



2 views of the Canton, Van Zandt County courthouse ~ another mural

Dallas skyline ~ The Majestic Theater ~ a nice building ~ Old Red, the name of the original Dallas County courthouse in Dallas. The GPS froze due to several tall buildings surrounding the car and we weren't able to find the newer courthouse. Fortunately the courthouse loop we were following had us visiting Fort Worth the next day and from there we were able to revisit Dallas without backtracking too many miles.

The old and the new Denton County courthouses in Denton

Familiar sights in Denton ~ Morrison's manufactures cornbread packets and other flour products and is the most recognizable landmark in Denton ~ Your friendly hometown bank ~ another mural this time on the old Opera House across the square from the courthouse

Decatur, Wise County

Ahhh, the pause that refreshes only it's not 5 cents anymore ~ An aptly named road sign albeit for an oil drilling site

Good-bye, Dear Friend

Long time next door neighbor and cherished friend, Sue Skalka, passed away in her sleep this morning. She was a rare person who only saw the good in everyone she met. Like the singular flower amid the clover, Sue will be remembered as an outstanding and loving woman.  A remarkable friend who will be dreadfully missed.

From Galveston to Crystal Beach

Last photos of Galveston before boarding the Robert C Lanier ferry to cross over to the Bolivar Peninsula and Crystal Beach

Seagull with remarkable one-legged balance ~ Dolphins were surfacing next to the ferry. By the time I saw one, it had already disappeared from view

Cathie and Dan's beach house where we had a magnificent breakfast ~ Sneed cozies up to Cathie's Tiki statue ~ Dried grasses along the road going home

Dates and Lauren aka Mr and Mrs Matthew Skalka

The reception was held at the Convention Center - Sacred Heart Cathedral was the wedding site

The program

Bride's cake (really tasty ) and Groom's chocolate cake

The Happy Couple, Matt and Lauren