Pineapple Fountain

Ellen Trout Zoo

Lufkin, Texas

Sulphur Springs Mural

This mural on a brick wall in downtown Sulphur Springs, Texas, commemorates a longhorn cattle drive.  You might be able to tell this photo was taken last fall.

Shy Kitty

Rusk, Texas

Grapeland - Part 4 - A Gang of Camels

If two can comprise a gang, then the Grapeland Safari has a gang of camels.  When they are chasing you you feel like you're encountering a gang, that's for sure.  They are relentless.  Once they spot you, you're the bull's eye on a target.  You can get away from them but if you're in their sight distance, whenever you stop, they come running!

Shamir is the park's Bactrian camel.  Bactrians have two humps (which do not store water but instead store fat to be converted to water when necessary) and are endangered.  It is estimated that only about 1,000 still live in the wild in China and Mongolia.

I didn't catch this little gal's name but she sports a shedding coat much like Hedda Hopper made a statement with her hats.  I overheard her saying, "I love my rug.  I think it's soooo fashionable."

Here comes Shamir, ready or not.  They had me laughing during our whole encounter.  I simply could not get away from them.

When their store of fat is depleted, the humps become floppy.  These were the only two skinny animals I saw in the place.  The owner told me she had wormed them recently but they still hadn't picked up any weight.  Shamir reminded me of a little old man who is slowing drying up.

"Get outta my way.  I'm gonna kiss her first!"

What's not to love about a face like this?

My trip to Grapeland was one of the most fun times I've had in months.  I'm glad I could share it with you.  I'm thinking spring might be a good time to return when there probably will be baby deer in abundance!

Grapeland - Part 3 - Feeding the Animals

When I entered the park I bought an $8 bucket of some sort of animal chow.  Even though all the animals seemed very healthy and well-fed, they all liked the chow and expressed their appreciation for the snack in different ways.  One of the park rules is that you may not leave your vehicle.  It's obviously for your own safety.  I wouldn't want to be run over by a herd of zebras!

If you aren't careful they will practically crawl in the vehicle with you! 

This guy just grabbed the cup right out of my hand and that was the last I saw of it.  It's a good thing they gave me two cups before I started off through the park.

The deer are fairly skittish and not friendly like the zebras but if you simply toss out some chow they will come along behind you and clean it up.

The geese quickly came up from the pond to get their share.

This little llama was VERY friendly.  She had recently been sheared of her wool and I was surprised at how skinny she was.  Her tail had been brushed into a fuzzy ball, but I couldn't get her away from the window to be able to take a photo of it.
This is where she started talking to me.  (She's already drooling!)

"Okay, lady, stick 'em up.  This is a highway robbery."

"Gimme the grub and I won't spit in your face.  If not, it's all over but the spittin'!"

"Okay, I know you got it.  I can see it in there." 

"Now that's more like it!"

Tune in tomorrow for the last installment of the Grapeland Safari.  I have a very special animal to share with you.

Grapeland - Part 2 - Deer and Antelope

A large herd of fallow deer reside in Grapeland.  A native of Eurasia, the most common color is fawn with mottled spots ...

... although white ...

... and even chocolate or black are present.

Only bucks have antlers, and the racks are stunning.

The addax is also known as the white antelope or the screwhorn antelope.  It is extremely rare in its native habitat of the Sahara region of Northern Africa and has been classified as a critically endangered species, which is predominantly due to unregulated hunting in North Africa.

This group of eland stuck together and away from the other animals around the pond.  Their native habitat is the plains and savannas of Eastern and Southern Africa.  On the conservation index they rank in the category of "least concern."  It's good to know there are actually some animals that are not endangered.

Aoudad mom with lamb twins.

The auodad is a native of North Africa but has been introduced in other parts of the world, including the Southwestern United States.  It is often called Barbary sheep.

Elk cooling off in the pond.

A young sika deer is just waiting for a beautiful rack of antlers to crown his head. Sika deer are native to Asia and are also called Japanese deer.

The scimitar-horned oryx is now extinct in the wild.  It previously ranged over Northern Africa.  It is also known as the Sahara oryx.  Its numbers began to decline because of climate change and it was also hunted extensively for its horns. The  myth of the unicorn may have originated from sightings of a scimitar oryx with a broken horn.

Tomorrow:  Feeding the animals

Grapeland Safari

This week on my day off from caregiving I ventured west about 75 miles to the small town of Grapeland.  I had heard on the news that the Grapeland Safari had once again opened after having been closed for around three years.  I had not had an opportunity to visit and since I love photographing animals I decided I'd better go.  It was easy enough to find on the main north/south highway that runs through this little town of about 1,500 people.  I evidently was the first patron of the day (and it was already after 10 o'clock) because the owner came out of her home to and met me in the driveway.  I paid my $8 admission fee, bought a bucket of feed for $8, signed an acknowledgement that I had read the rules and regulations, and through the gate I went.

I was immediately met by a scraggly group of miniature horses and a donkey. There were some peacocks in a fenced-in area along with some pigs and maybe some small goats.  I was beginning to think I had been duped by a rinky-dink business and was quite skeptical.  I could see no other animals in sight.  The whole place is just a big flat pasture, but I remembered the owner telling me not to drive on the pond dam and I couldn't see a pond so I figured it must be a ways on down.  There were no roads or trails.  You just take off driving and head any direction you want away from the main gate.

After a couple minutes I could see the pond and then soon after I could tell there was some activity around the pond.  There was a huge herd of deer resting by the pond bank.  They were beautiful fallow deer and their racks were amazing.  Then I noticed there were different varieties of African antelope and ...

... a herd of about 30 zebra.  Then I noticed what just made my day!

A baby foal and its mother out for a morning stroll!  When I got too close, Mama Zebra headed out to the pasture and I followed along.  She wasn't too keen on me getting too close.

Wait for me, Mama!  I'm coming!

When I went back through the gate and turned in my feed bucket the owner told me that there are three baby zebras on the property, the two youngest being about two weeks old and then one which was born just that morning!  I said this must be the one that's two weeks old and showed her a couple of pictures I had taken and she informed me that this indeed was the newborn.  When I mentioned that it wasn't the least bit wobbly like a baby horse, she said the zebras basically come out running and don't have that awkward period of finding their land legs.

Here Mama gives Baby a loving nudge.  If these were the only pictures I took that day, the trip would  have been worth it.  But I think I got some pretty great shots of some of the other animals which I hope to share with you in the coming days.

Is this just the cutest, sweetest thing you've ever seen?

Hunt's Tomb

These fences aren't necessarily pretty but they are indeed significant.  The first fence surrounds the pyramid which is Hunt's Tomb, and it represents an important part of Arizona history.  It is the final resting place of Arizona's governor, George W.P. Hunt.  Hunt became the first governor after statehood in 1912 and was elected for seven terms, his governorship coming to a close in 1933.  After having visited Egypt he and his wife became fascinated with the pyramids and he asked Congress for permission to build a pyramid tomb in Phoenix in what is now Papago Park.  At the time it was in Papago Saguaro National Monument, thus requiring Congressional approval.  The tomb was to be used as a final resting place for his wife, Helen, who died in 1931.  Hunt joined her in 1934 and five other family members are also interred there.  One of Hunt's last wishes when he died was "... in my last sleep I want to be buried that I may in my spirit overlook this splendid valley."  The view is indeed splendid as it overlooks the vast Phoenix valley.

Hunt was a forward-thinking man who supported such issues as women's suffrage, the abolishment of capital punishment and secret ballots.  He was also a strong proponent of making sure Arizona got its share of the water from the Colorado River which runs through the Grand Canyon and is the source of hydroelectric power which today provides places such as Las Vegas and Los Angeles with electricity.

The outer fences are necessary because the tomb lies immediately adjacent to the Phoenix Zoo!  So in addition to a beautiful view, perhaps Hunt hears the sounds of the many animals that are his neighbors.

Linking to Good Fences hosted by TexWis.

Horny Toad Farm

Just seeing a sign for the Horny Toad Farm puts a smile on my face.  Do they really have horny toads or do they have horned toads (I feel another smile developing)?

This photo was taken last year during a trip to Arizona when I visited one of Phoenix's wonderful farmers markets.

Post Office Murals -2 (Elgin, Texas)

Julius Woeltz, a native Texan, was commissioned for two Post Office murals in Texas, one in Amarillo and this one in Elgin, a small town 30 miles east of Austin.  He selected work and an abundance of food as a subject of natural interest in this area for his mural entitled Texas Farm.  He wished to portray the essential agricultural activities which were dedicated mainly to the production of grain and feed crops.  I love this mural which shows workers harvesting wheat and picking cotton.  In the background a farmer works with a threshing machine to store the grain in a nearby elevator.  A barn, water tower and windmill are behind him.  In the foreground the sunflowers frame a white rooster overseeing his brood of six leghorn hens.  The overall scene depicts a suggestion of thriving and abundance on a small scale, much different than what most small farms experienced in the very recent Great Depression.

Frequently the Post Office murals are difficult to photograph, being in relatively small lobbies and high along the ceiling.  Often lighting, air conditioning vents and other mechanical apparatus have been added to the building structure which also interferes with a full view.  For the Elgin mural, the artist received $700.

(Historical information for this post has been taken directly from The Texas Post Office Murals by Philip Parisi.)

Imprisoned

Fading Grandeur - Taylor, Texas

Can't you just see the Southern belle on the upper veranda?

Picking Blueberries

One afternoon this week I felt comfortable enough to leave Mother alone for a couple of hours to go with my friend and neighbor Brenda to a blueberry farm just a few miles down the road.  It's actually located in a fairly well-developed country subdivision where most of the homes are located on several acres.  This place was a ten-acre farm with two acres devoted to blueberries and it was an absolutely delightful oasis hidden among the loblolly pines of East Texas.

Upon entering the property we parked in front of the cute little blueberry shed ...

... where everything was well-organized and just waiting for us.  All the necessary information, rules and regulations were posted on the wall, there were plenty of buckets, plastic bags, lanyards to loop around your neck in order to hold your bucket and keep both hands free for faster picking, a cooler full of iced water and cups ...

... and even a cashier which was on duty during all business hours (7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily during blueberry season.)  The entire operation is completely self-serve and runs on honesty.

The owners have a beautiful home adjacent to the blueberry stand but it is almost completely hidden by the trees and gardens surrounding the place.  Plants abound everywhere, in beds, raised beds, pots on patios.  There are even welcoming benches for a place to sit and rest a while.

Hibiscus were in full glorious bloom ...

as were cone flowers and canna lilies and flowers of every color.

Vegetables were planted in a simple raised bed built of concrete blocks which would be soooo easy to do (the wheels are turning) and there were peppers of beautiful colors ripening ...

... next to tomatoes soaking up the sun and just waiting to burst with flavor.  There were also herbs and smaller plants and flowers planted within some of the hollow concrete blocks which served as the second story for the raised bed.

But now, on to the reason we came.  The blueberries!

As far as the eye can see, row upon row upon row of blueberries, three different varieties, 1,150 bushes of them laden with fruit ripening in various stages.

Where does one even begin?  There were gazillions of them!  Thank goodness there is no charge for the ones you eat as you pick!

By the looks of these berries, there will be plenty available for picking for at least the next few weeks.

My friend Brenda works up a sweat but she said it was worth it.

The only other person even on the premises was this chubby lady, who, as soon as I showed her this picture, decided that she must do something about that extra weight she's been carrying.  I promised her I would follow her progress and hopefully have good news and more attractive pictures to post in the coming months.