Texas Independence Day!

Commandancy of the Alamo
Bexar, Feby. 24th, 1836

To the People of Texas & all Americans in the World– Fellow Citizens and Compatriots–

I am besieged by a thousand or more of the Mexicans under Santa Anna–I have sustained a continual Bombardment & cannonade for 24 hours & have not lost a man–The enemy has demanded a surrender at discretion, otherwise the garrison are to be put to the sword, if the fort is taken–I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, & our flag still waves proudly from the walls–I shall never surrender or retreat.

Then, I call on you in the name of Liberty, of patriotism & everything dear to the American character, to come to our aid with all despatch–The enemy is receiving reinforcements daily & will no doubt increase to three or four thousand in four or five days. If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible & die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor & that of his country–Victory or Death.

William Barret Travis, Lt. Col. comdt.
The flag that flew over the Alamo:

Another flag from the war of Texas Revolution:

From Flags of Texas Independence Movements at Texas A&M University.

Go out and celebrate today!

Red light cameras in Dallas

Frontburner (the D magazine blog) has leaked released a list of the intersections where red light cameras may be placed.  Only 15 cameras will be placed initially, but the list is longer than 15.  There could be dummy cameras at the other locations.

Now, I don’t care for red light runners.  In fact, I dislike the behavior.  But I’m less in favor of computer monitored law enforcement.  This probably comes from my general distrust of the government.

And the argument that these are placed for safety?  Via this fine post at Frontburner I learn of a study by the Texas Traffic Institute at Texas A&M University that says “red-light cameras reduce collisions by just 7 percent overall, while lengthening yellow lights decreases violations and collisions by more than 40 percent.”

The former meeting place of the Domino Club of Brady, TX

Ray Wylie Hubbard

Last night I went with a friend to the Granada Theater and saw Ray Wylie Hubbard. It was part of a week-long premiere of a documentary about the radio station KHYI 95.3 The Range. The premier week started on Sunday, July 23 and will run through Thursday, July 27. Each night before the documentary is shown, one of the artists that is played on KHYI does a short concert. I found out about this while reading the Fine Line Live blog – a local D/FW blog about what is going on in the D/FW area music scene.

Though I’ve heard lots of good things about Ray Wylie Hubbard, and I know that friends of mine that appreciate really good music and really good musicans like his stuff, I wasn’t very familiar with it. I know – being a native Texan I should be ashamed of myself, but now the truth is out there and I feel much better about it.

As for the concert – let me just say that it is one of the best concerts I’ve been to in a long time. He played for around 50 minutes. He didn’t have his band with him for this. It was just RWH, a chair, a microphone, and 2 (amplified) acoustic guitars. I really enjoy performances like that anyway, but this one was just oustanding. And the venue added to that feeling. Since it is in the shell of an old, single screen movie theater, the Granada is on the small side for a concert venue. That made it even better. and it wasn’t even half full. Which for me made it better still (but not optimal for the Granada, I’m sure). The stories he told between songs were great. And with an admission price of 7.50, it was easily the best concert value that I think I’ve ever had. I’ve paid 2-3 times that for concerts that weren’t half as good, and enjoyed them. Everything about the concert was superb. (Have I used enough superlatives yet?)

Then came the documentary. It was 90 minutes, and that made it about 45 minutes too long. I expected more information on the history of the station and less of a commercial for the station and it’s annual Texas Music Revolution music festival. I didn’t really know much about the station before last night. I know a couple of my good friends who have varied musical taste both like it, but that’s about it. I didn’t even know it was a country & western station before I read about this event on the Fine Line blog. And after watching the documentary, I still don’t feel like I know much about the station other than it is an independent station and plays what it thinks is good music rather than what Nashville is pushing as C&W Top 40 stuff. I’ve added it to the presets in my car, and will be listening to it from time to time.

My main recommendation? If you ever get a chance to see RWH do a solo acoustic set, DO IT! If you appreciate musicanship as much as the music, you will be happy you did.

Last Saturday

I took a day long roadtrip with a good friend of mine this past Saturday to Brownwood, Texas to see another good friend.
We visited the Center of Texas…

And had some great barbeque at the Hard 8 barbeque in Brady, Texas