(…and there’s a title which Google will never serve up in a search)

Or it keeps the blues away. I don’t know. I can’t be expected to remember these things. It’s all I can do to remember what I had for breakfast this morning. (Go on, take a moment… can you remember what you had for breakfast? I rest my case. Probably. Maybe. Oh, never mind.)

The small town of Bastrop, Texas, population around 7,300, is thirty miles southeast of Austin. Sadly, it is apparently most known for a huge forest fire that happened over a year and a half ago. The fire devastated the area and the beautiful pine trees that are rare in this part of Texas. Every time I mention Bastrop the other person in the conversation always mentions the terrible fire. Poor Bastrop may never live down that fire.

Much of the land remains just as it was after the fire was extinguished over a month later, charred and barren. I’m not sure why they haven’t been able to clear the land and restore many of the homes. The drought may not have helped because the burned area is devoid of any emerging greenery.

But Bastrop and the surrounding area is smiling about something. It seems they are all about the smiley face water tower.

This water tower kind of reminds me of a smiley Stay Puft marshmallow.

Bastrop has a charming downtown area, which I didn’t get a chance to visit, and some rather large stores for such a small town. There’s even an app for that. Seriously, they have an app for Bastrop, Texas. How many towns with populations under 10,000 have an app?? I couldn’t make this stuff up if I tried.

They should paint the other two and call it a smiley party.

In addition to all that, in nearby Lost Pines there is a fabulous “high-end” Hyatt, nestled in the middle of some, uhh, lost pines, complete with golf course, fine dining, spa, and “lazy river”.

Have a great day! 🙂

The area seems to be much more than the charred forest that most people seem inclined to remember. And you’ve got to love all the smiley face water towers. Remember the Watermelon Water Tower in Luling in all it’s green awesomeness? Yes, very cool.

But these smiley-faced water towers sure make you want to smile. Have a great day! 🙂