The Empty Cross in Kerrville Texas

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Today’s post is short, and mostly pictures. Have you noticed that as my photography skills improve, I’m writing less? And I’m sure you all can guess why… “A picture says a thousand words.” Which is awesome because I’m going to use the extra time to clean my house and paint my nails.

High atop a hill in north Texas Hill Country and visible from Interstate 10, a giant cross watches over the town below.
The view from above.

The view from above.

Kerrville, Texas, is home to The Empty Cross, a 77′ 7″-tall, 70-ton steel tribute to Christianity. It is the largest cross I’ve ever visited, but it isn’t the largest in the world, nor the largest in the US.

The cross tops a hill, the side of which is a sculpture and scripture garden. As you enter the park, you are greeted by this sculpture of three nails. The cross is seen in the background.

Three spikes at entrance to park.

Three nails sculpture at entrance to park. The Empty Cross is seen in the background.

But, wait! There’s more…

Moving slower than molasses on a cold day.

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The Good, The Bad, and The Pretty

Moving slower than molasses, I’m still in Ohio but determined to leave this week for Pennsylvania. It’s cold, it’s flat, and women are often treated as objects, and men are reluctant to stand up for a woman when they see a man verbally abusing her in public (a church-like environment). I didn’t witness that event, but heard of it in detail from a man who was bothered by it. A few of the other men listening said it was none of their business to say anything to this man they knew, a man who had done this before.

As the only woman present for this discussion, I was quick to tell the men who said it was none of their business that it was, in fact, their business to teach the other members of the fellowship how to treat people, to be respectful. I pointed out it was easy for me to see why I was the only woman there… they had chased all the others off as much by the aggressive behavior of some as the passive behavior of the others.

I probably just lost all male readers in Ohio, but I call them as I see them. Needless to say, this is not an isolated incident in that town but rather an underlying part of the culture in this area (near Dayton). It’s not everywhere, but it is a far more common and accepted occurrence than I’ve encountered in a long time. But this happens to some degree every day all over this country…

UPDATE:  This article better describes how pervasive this problem is in our culture. Please read.

Now for something pretty… (hey, I never claimed to be good at segues)

Kerrville Chalk Festival

Every summer Kerrville, Texas, hosts a chalk art festival. But, wait! There’s more…

Ten Things Tuesday: Ways Texas Made Me A Better Person

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For Ten Things Tuesday – on a day that might actually be a Tuesday – I present Ways Texas Made Me A Better Person

(Once upon a time, I used to post a random ten things on a Tuesday. Sometimes it was Tuesday, sometimes it wasn’t, but that’s besides the point. It’s been some time since I posted a Ten Things Tuesday post so don’t feel bad if you don’t remember. I promised infrequent posts, and I’ve kept to that.)

I’m in Ohio for a short stay. I missed Texas as soon as I left it five days ago. I miss the wonderful people I’ve met there, I miss the weather, I miss the low cost of living (especially fuel), I miss the slower pace of the country life, and the slower pace overall.

The place in Texas that I left. What was I thinking? Oh, yeah. Work, that's right. Note to self: Buy a lottery ticket today.

The place in Texas that I left. What was I thinking? Oh, yeah. Work, that’s right. Note to self: Buy a lottery ticket today.

 

Before I came to Texas, for a long time I felt drawn to the state, a desire to go to there. I had no idea what it was really like, and no idea how much of an imprint it would leave on my soul. Texas changed me for the better. That may seem silly to say, but it is so different from the other states in which I’ve been – it really is like its own country.

(It may seem in some of the items below like I’m picking on California. I don’t mean to bash California. It is the one other place I lived for a long time, therefore my best reference point. I still consider it one of the most beautiful states.)

Ten Ways Texas Made Me A Better Person:

Driving polite. Oh, how I love the polite drivers in the Texas country! I’ve mentioned this before. Having come from the rush-rush “me first” attitude that seems to permeate the California cities, polite driving and polite drivers were a surprising – and refreshing – experience. As a whole, people in Texas don’t tailgate. If they want to go faster than you, you just drive on the shoulder for them until they pass. If there’s no shoulder, they pass you in the opposite lane when it’s clear. When they’ve passed, they even tap their brakes at you to say “Thanks”. But, wait! There’s more…

A Tiny Church in Ingram and other stuff

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There is a teeny town in northeast Texas Hill Country, right next to Kerrville, called Ingram. It was the first time since being in Texas that I saw actual hills. (“Hill Country” is a misnomer… what they call hills in Texas, they don’t acknowledge as a change in elevation in California.)

Ingram is home to fewer than 2,000 people, and there’s a large gap in the population between the upper and lower income brackets. One of two things generally define the two: lots of silver jewelry from a local, quasi-famous jewelry shop, or lots of tattoos and piercings. The people weren’t as openly friendly as much of the Texas country. They stick to themselves, but many are friendly once they decide you’re okay.

Below are several photos from around town. The captions tell the story. The cute tiny church is at the end.

Indian in a truck.

Indian in the back of a truck.

Back of Indian in a truck.

Back of Indian in the back of a truck.

But, wait! There’s more…

Meanwhile, back at the ranch named Meanwhile there was a giant ant.

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If you had a ranch, would you name it “Meanwhile”? Because someone did.

Meanwhile back at the ranch named Meanwhile.

Meanwhile back at the ranch named Meanwhile.

When I was in north Texas Hill Country near Kerrville, I would walk through the neighborhood. One day, shortly after I snagged the photos of the giant ant in their front yard (below), this fence and gate showed up.

These same folks put a giant ant on a small hill in their front yard. But, wait! There’s more…

A rough day at Rough Canyon, or Does This Look Broken?

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The day was hot – hot like only central Texas can be in mid-August. The kind of hot that would burn an egg on the sidewalk. Waves of heat radiated off the asphalt road. We were headed to Rough Canyon at Lake Amistad for the day, pulling a boat behind us. It’s a long drive from north Hill Country to Lake Amistad, a long barren drive through miles of nothing, punctuated by the rare intersection named as if it’s an entire town.

It was in the middle of this long stretch of nothing, the kind of nothing where cell phone signals are non-existent, that we got a flat tire. Because, you know, that’s where stuff happens – in the middle of nowhere with no cell signal.

Parked off to the side of the road, an area covered in fire ant hills (for you non-Texans and non-southwesterners, those are aggressive red ants that leave a burning bite) my friend fixed the flat with the help of a roadside mowing crew that I flagged down. (Because your tax dollars are hard at work, mowing the sides of roads in the middle of NOWHERE.) They didn’t speak English, and my limited Spanish wasn’t much help, but we all used hand signals. (All joking aside, I’d like to add that country Texans and native Mexicans are some of the kindest folks, always ready to lend a hand to someone in need.)

After numerous fire ant bites (on everyone), a nasty gash on a finger or two (not mine), and a string of cuss words (also not mine), we were back on our way to Lake Amistad. Like the weather, the truck was running hot for most of the trip but we finally made it to…

Rough Canyon at Lake Amistad

It's a BIG lake.

It’s a BIG lake… this picture doesn’t do it justice, but it’s the only long-shot I took.

The following is a slide show of the high cliffs and caves. Native Americans once lived in these caves. But, wait! There’s more…

Like a duck on a June bug

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Why the title? Because, ducks. Specifically, The Duck Decoy Museum in Havre de Grace (don’t ask me how to pronounce that), Maryland.

The museum website proudly proclaims the town of Havre de Grace the “Decoy Capital of the World!”

At one end of a long boardwalk that winds along a portion of Chesapeake Bay, sits The Havre de Grace Decoy Museum, two stories of decoy after decoy after decoy. Over 1,200 decoys by famous decoy makers (yeah, I’m not that deep into it, I just wanted to look at the ducks) are artfully showcased on two floors. Also displayed are various old shotguns, and other duck-hunting-related items. I’m out of stuff to say about that so, Slideshow! (You’re welcome.)

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But wait! There’s more! (No, it’s not a Ginsu knife.)

It was also my first time But, wait! There’s more…

A Midnight Kiss in Hershey

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A midnight kiss in Hershey, Pennsylvania, on New Year’s Eve

For someone who loves cheezy roadside attractions, chocolate, and for whom New Year’s is her favorite holiday, it was a near perfect night.

Forget about the crystal ball. On New Year’s Eve towns all across Pennsylvania drop (or raise) a plethora of odd items: a strawberry in Harrisburg; a giant Peep in Bethlehem, where Peeps are made; ping-pong balls in Strasburg; a pickle in Dillsburg; a mushroom in Kennett Square; a wrench in Mechanicsburg (I love the sense of humor!); a 100-pound stick of Bologna in Lebanon; and shoes, cigars, race cars, and dozens of other oddball items.

My favorite holiday, chocolate, a goofy roadside attraction, and a big kiss at midnight.

My favorite holiday, chocolate, a goofy roadside attraction, and a big kiss at midnight. ( Beanies are not my best fashion attire, but it was cold! I’d have made a terrible neighborhood gangster – no one would’ve taken me seriously.)

In Hershey, they raise a giant Hershey Kiss at midnight on New Year’s Eve. It’s seven feet tall, and 300 pounds of shiny steel shaped like the delectable dessert. The “flag” (kisses label) adds an additional five feet to the colossal confection.

The New Year’s Eve event was But, wait! There’s more…

Going down in Pennsylvania: Indian Echo Caverns

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This wasn’t my first time… I’ve been down before. Twice. But my trip to Indian Echo Caverns in Hummelstown, PA, is the second time in my life I’ve been underground. It was cool, literally and figuratively speaking.

This is the pond/lake! The blue color doesn't show up as well on film, but in person it's a lovely light turquoise.

This is the pond/lake! The blue color doesn’t show up as well on film, but in person it’s a lovely light turquoise.

From the Indian Echo Caverns website:

Natural Splendor along the Swatara.

Like many caverns in the Mid-Atlantic states, Indian Echo Caverns is a limestone cave. Cut through Beekmantown limestone, which is over 440 million years old, they were formed through the erosive properties of water. As time progressed, geological forces led to an “uplift” of the surrounding limestone, eventually allowing more and more water to flow through the formation. As the water flowed over the limestone, it began to create small crevices, these small crevices led to larger ones, and eventually, over a series of millions of years, it created the caverns as they are today.

The temperature inside the caverns is 52 degrees year around.

‘… 52 degrees year around.’ See? It’s “cool.” *rim shot*

Ok, But, wait! There’s more…

We forged through the valley: Valley Forge, really famous old stuff

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It wasn’t my choice; my friend picked Valley Forge National Historical Park.

We’d seen some goofy sights, so I had to compromise. You all know how I feel about famous, or not famous, old stuff. I didn’t much care for history in school, either, other than ancient history. It’s not that historical old stuff is boring, it’s just that I like the goofy stuff so much more.

Except we both thought this one was a bit boring.

Don’t get me wrong, I am grateful for and honored by the many sacrifices of those who gave their life and fought for our freedom. But they weren’t there. If they were, it would’ve been more interesting. Not like that, I mean I would’ve rather known more about the people than the place, etc.

The biggest problem? The park was huge – much too big to see and appreciate the exhibits on foot. You had to drive around the park from one monument or exhibit to the next. (Unless you’re an athlete – and there were more than a few folks there who seemed to use the long trail around the park for exercising rather than sightseeing.)

Lucky for all you blog-reading non-athletes, I took pics and looked stuff up on the web… Here’s your virtual tour (mostly of just the church and bell tower). You’re welcome.

Two of the exhibits and monuments in the park were particularly memorable: the museum exhibit showcasing the day-to-day life of the soldiers, the minutiae of their livelihood; and the Washington Memorial Chapel with its stunning National Patriots Bell Tower.

The National Memorial Arch at Valley Forge.

The National Memorial Arch at Valley Forge.

The National Memorial Arch is dedicated to But, wait! There’s more…