Archive for June, 2009

Tomorrow and Sunday Fort Worthians (and Dallasites if they’re so inclined) will have the opportunity to tour six private gardens in the Ridgelea area of Fort Worth.

It’s a fundraiser for Historic Fort Worth, which works to protect historic structures and promote historic preservation here in the City.

You’ll see hidden lakes, fountains, pools, waterfowl, local and exotic plants and trees, and the exterior of some lovely homes as well.

If you’re a gardener, a supporter of Fort Worth historic preservation, or just one of the “Lookie-Loos” you’ll enjoy this 1-2 hour self-guided tour of local gardens.

Hidden Gardens of Fort Worth Review and more details

Back when I was a kid, we used to lie around every afternoon after school, watching Speed Racer, Giligan’s Island, Star Trek, and Adam-5 on TV. It wasn’t as good as the movies, but it was something to do. And it was free. TV didn’t cost anything, that was part of the argument in its favor.

Ther were a lot of ads for breakfast cereal, beer, and plastic toys on TV, but my parents told me the ads were for people who could be influenced to buy things that weren’t good for kids and which they didn’t need, which didn’t include us.  As I grew older, it did seem that TV promoted almost exclusively discretionary, low-utility items. Which means, stuff that you didn’t need, that wouldn’t help you if you did buy it.

Now, according to Yahoo News, today is the day that analog (antena) TV service will finally be cut off to those who don’t have cable.  Since we don’t have cable, this means we will no longer have access to TV signals over the TV.

This family’s response, however, is a collective yawn. That’s because, truth to tell, we haven’t watched TV in years. Literally. Last time we watched TV was when  someone rigged up an antenae in 2005 so we could watch Benedict XVI come out of the papal conclave and declare that, while he felt he was unworthy for the job of Pope,  he would give it a spin anyway.

That afternoon four years ago was before we figured out you could watch important broadcasts, such as presidential debates and my son’s favorite situation comedy, The Office, on the computer for free.  Provided you pay for DSL servics through AT&T.

The exile of regular TV broadcasting from my home was one of the most successful coups of my mom-administration.  The TV died and I never replaced it. The kids were young back then, they weren’t very good ad arguing and in truth, they didn’t care much.  We started watching videos (back then they were VHS) instead. Since our weekly diet of video entertainment was less than 5 hours, and we liked things that genrally weren’t broadcast (feature moves) no one ever really wanted to get the TV reconnected and thus it stayed for the next 15 years.

As they’ve gotten older, the kids have occassionally asked about this. Generally they say something along the lines of “Why can’t we be like everyone else?”

“We are not everyone else.”

And we’re not. Along with the lack of TV, we are largely out of touch with a huge host of products, including sweetened drinks and snack foods, that I think are bad for children. My kids all have healthy weight. Coincidence? Maybe not.

Today, at our local elementary schools I see a lot of overweight kids. If I could tell their parents anything, I would say to get rid of television. But I’d be thought of as insane, or at least unrealistic. So when I hear they’re not going to have TV broadcast, I’m actually encouraged.  Because the TV has promoted a sedentary lifestyle as well as a lot of very bad products very widely.  I’m not sure it’s actually been good for America.

Relationships can  have restaurants. And if the relationship is a marriage, it helps if it’s  a restaurant that’s easy to get to, easy to pay for, and easy to enjoy, a place that’s “Old Faithful.” But it should also be somewhat mysterious. You wouldn’t want to settle for something predictable and boring.

China Jade has been Dean and my special restaurant over the last 7 years. The entrance is small, in a strip mall across from an Office Max, but if you have the right address you can find it without too much trouble. Look for the Foo dogs standing on either side of the entrance.

Once inside you wind your way past a small fish pond and the sound of running water, and sit down in a dining room hung with large chinese lanterns.  Under glass, the placemats detail the Chinese zodiac, with the years of each animal’s patronage and the characteristics of those born in those years.  I have spent untold time studying these images and numbers. I was born in the year of the Snake. People born under this sign are known, it’s said, for “wisdom and charm, romantic and deep thinking,  and being stingy with money.”

Apparently the placemat isn’t aware of what would happen around here if someone wasn’t stingy about money. But China Jade is the best deal in sit-down dining I’ve ever seen, especially if you get the two for one entrees coupon from an Albertson’s receipt; then you can be out of here for $20.

I always have time to study the placemat while Dean decides what he’s ordering. My husband is a Horse, according to the Chinese Zodiac. This sign, it is said ”is very independent. They thrive when they are the center of attention. While intelligent and friendly horses have to  guard against being egotistical. ”

About the time I’m wondering if this describes him or not, Dean will break into my thoughts,  tell me to stop looking up people’s Chinese Zodiac signs and start thinking about dinner because he is hungry.

But I can afford to review zodiac signs, because I don’t really need to look at the menu. I almost always have the same meal: egg drop soup, appetizers, fried rice, cashew chicken, hot tea, and a fortune cookie. Dean gets the same thing, except he likes the wonton soup and changes entree’s.

The food is all good —  vegetables crunchy, meats well trimmed, soups seasoned just right.  The cashews in the cashew chicken are browned outside and crunchy inside.  The fried rice is delicious, speckled with bits of egg and peas. The egg rolls are crispy outside and fragrant inside. So I don’t worry about the food. It’s quite reliable. Dean, on the other hand, enjoys searching the menu for something different and adventurous.

It’s true, I didn’t like Chinese food as much before I met Dean. I’ve come to like it quite a bit, though I only really trust China Jade, not just any old Chinese restaurant, which though fancy or plain might not have the consistency of quality I expect. Although I can, I don’t eat with the chopsticks, which Dean insists on. He’s such a purist!

The service staff changes, but the owner is always there.  ”If it would have been an Italian restaurant, we would be on a first name basis with the owner long ago,”  Dean commented recently. I realize he is right. We know Luigi of Luigi’s in Denton, and have only been there 4 or 5 times. I met Vance Martin of Lilli’s the first time I showed up there. Not so forthcoming is the owner of China Jade.  But this is said to be typical of a Chinese restaurant.

Nevertheless, I can tell the owner knows us by the look of recognition we get when we come in.  That slight nod  is part of China Jade’s mystery, which is carried on by the wall hangings, my favorite of which is a wall sculpture of the Great Wall of China. It’s monumental — perhaps 5 feet high and a dozen feet long, and depicts  waves of water, castle walls, and tiny figures frozen in the landscape. The wall sculpture makes me feel like I’m in another world.

That’s a valuable sentiment, being away from it all while staying close by home. Perhaps that’s why I’ve come to love China Jade. It’s the perfect restaurant for a marriage, familiar, mysterious and consistently good.

China Jade

5274 S Hulen Street

Fort Worth TX 76132

Phone: 817-292-1611

Business Hours
Monday – Thursday: 10:30 am -10 pm
Friday & Saturday: 10:30 am—11 pm
Sunday: 11:30 am—10 pm

So you’ve started using the twitter social networking site and you’re tweeting regularly. Suddenly you’re deluged with different kinds of twitter messages from people you’ve added back  and you don’t know what they all mean? It’s not as confusing as it seems. There are actually only so many types you’ll meet on twitter, and it will help if you know what they are:

Multi Level Marketers – you will know them immediately by the DM’s about making money or looking for “investors.” Run, don’t walk.

Parents at home — A lot of jokes about the trials of having small children.

Pet people – Animal lovers, bond together! Speak in the voice of your pet! Make jokes about “my human”  or “the two-legged creature!” Twitter can be a pet paradise where animals finally get their voice.

Newswire services — often focused on a region or topic. These are usually great until you read about some appalling violent crime that you didn’t know about and you wish that you still didn’t, and it happened in your area, not in Dallas, which doesn’t have anything to do with us here and anyway,  anything can happen in Dallas.

Publically PR people — usually sane and witty. For whatever reason, they don’t generally tweet about work. Though some will blog about it.

Privately PR people – this is those celebrity tweeters that are actually written by a ghost writer. You won’t be able to recognize them, generally, unless you pay close attention. But if someone says he’s the Dalai Lama, be aware –it’s possible that the Lama takes time off from meditating to tweet, but it’s more likely  some freelancer in LA who’s got a publicity gig. Or it’s a complete fake, that’s happened too.  If he DM’s you and wants to offer you a great way to make money, again, run don’t walk.

Writers — often looking for an agent, working on a novel, or slumming as copywriters. Or already wrote a book and trying to promote it.  Or they’re a really  sucessful writer and they’re tweeting because their agent said they have to. In that case they’re not really “into” it. Yet. But they will be. Soon. They promise.

Professionals who are networking — could be teachers, engineers, headhunters (oh I mean corporate recruiters, sorry) or anyone who can derive professional benefit from meeting others in their field.  Or other fields.

High Techies — their tweets make zero sense to me, because I don’t know how to “code.” However, they are some of the best tweeters to know, because they can help you when you’re buying a computer or fixing up your WordPress site.  Just explain first that you don’t know the lingo.

Drunks – Unlike the high-techies, these tweets half make sense and often use bad language. They can be funny but you might want to be careful about following if you have children who are big enough to read your tweetdeck board, as I do.

People with a Political Ax to Grind — there aren’t as many of these as you’d expect, but they’re out there. Take it with a grain of salt — much political writing isn’t very well thought out, but when you take a few seconds to write a tweet, it’s even more casually constructed. Perhaps they didn’t mean it. They’re probably nice people.  Really. Even if you don’t agree with them. But if it goes on too long, yes, you may want to unfollow.

Exhibitionists with really cool lives, whose twitter job is to make you worry about why they’re always in some foreign country on the beach, and you’re at work, and they just go from one exciting adventure to another. If you need proof that life is not fair, this is it.

There are probably more types, but there are the main ones I’ve seen. Twitter gives you the world at your feet — the good, the bad, the ugly, and those who won’t be quiet. Feel free to add any other types you’ve met in the “comments” section … I’d love to hear if there’s someone I’ve missed!

Top picks of the week:

Inkognegro writes about abandonment, about being a father and being a son, and about learning about your father after he’s gone in a post that lays it all on the line …Emily at the Balcom Ad Agency blog writes about how she feels about her tattoos …

Battling Episcopalians

Newly installed Bishop  Edwin F. Gulick Jr. has sent a letter to Fort Worth Episcopalian Clergy who have stated their intention to leave the American Episcopal church with Bishop Iker, asking them to reaffirm their desire to defect to the Provence of the Southern Cone which is headquartered in South America. For more on the rather bizzare legal battle about who actually is the REAL Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth, see a post by Virtue Online (written by conservatives). The more-liberal Episcopal Life Online blog last covered the story in November 2008.

Arts and Leisure:

Dave at Dallas photoworks has done some creatively colorful flower photography out at the Colony

Fort Worth Hole in the Wall goes to the Swiss Pastry Shop and by the time you’re halfway through the review you’ll want to go, too … Austin checks out Berri Blu, a healthy yogurt place on Camp Bowie.

Fort Worth South began it’s Fridays on the Green concert series, according to Fortworthology, and Ellerbie’s Fine Foods has opened this week …Julie at Silversmyth is designing a cute silver mouse pendant … with more to come soon.

The Amon Carter Museum blog reminds us that it was June 6, 1944 when Amon Carter handed over the deed to the land for Big Bend national park, after he and the Star-Telegram spearheaded the drive to purchase the land.

Education:

The Extra Credit blog reports:  A high school senior from Mansfield won a national contest to decorate a fiberglass cow.

Politics, etc:

Fort Worth Can Do continues its exploration of urban gas drilling,referring to a New York Times story on methane emissions and cattle about how dairy farmers are cleaning up their act. Why, they ask, can’t Chesapeake energy do the same?

Fort Worth is becoming more bike friendly than Dallas, according to Bike Friendly Oak Cliff blog in Dallas.

Social Media and PR:

Richie Escovedo has a post that comprises a #chat group on twitter. That means he’s posted an entire tagged thread on his blog using a site called Scribd... it happens to cover Public Relations types taking the PRSA exam. An interesting idea to get tweeted information to non-twitter uses, which there are, of course, a lot of. Now if I could just have a thread for experienced teachers to tell those of us currently looking for a first job how to handle that, it would be great.

My preview of the Hidden Gardens Tour reminds me that I haven’t been keeping you updated on my garden progress. Actually, it’s not because I have let the garden go to seed — no pun intended. If you want to know how I doing on my gardening resolutions, now, six months into the deal, let’s do a blow by blow and check it out:

1. As I said before, I (well, my step-father) built the raised beds.

2. I said I would construct a quality irrigation system using drip irrigation with  a timer. Progress. We have installed a quality irrigation system but somehow the timer was broken when installed, so there is no automatic drip, there is just drip when you turn it on. It’s working well, though, with the plants, overall, thriving.

3. I will make a reasonable and well thought-out planting plan. I hate to admit this but I’m not really sure I did as well as I might. The tomatoes, despite being almost two feet apart, are  turning into a forest.  I don’t know if it was the rabbit manure or what. The peppers are being dwarfed. The squash was planted late and hasn’t bloomed yet. The parsley turned out to be cilantro and quickly went to seed, but not before I almost put it into a pot of spaghetti sauce, which would have been a dreadful mistake.

4. I will keep up with the weeding. In the beds, yes. But outside, the weeds are raging. I’ve won many battles, but still fear I will ultimately lose the war. Fortunately with the drip irrigation, I have the comfort of knowing that no water is going to weed-infested areas.

5. I will not start any other time consuming major projects or new hobbies between March and June. Well, I basically am doing okay unless you count … doing the full time music teaching job or starting a home summer school.

6. We will not go on any two week long vacations during the harvest season this year. We are going to Minnesota, but only for a week around Independence Day. By that time the tomatoes should be at their peak … at least it’s only for a week. The road to hell is proverbially paved with good intentions, you know.

7. I will try to keep well-informed and inspired by reading blogs about gardens. Joe the Gardener is a good one.  He’s currently working on something called the “$25 victory garden.” Also very useful is the Dallas Morning News chart of what to do each month in the gardens here.

8. I will update this blog regularly with my successes and failures.  I have done that, if you count every other month as regular. Okay, I could have said more about the garden.

Familiar and exotic flowers and stonework decorate the six homes of the Historic Fort Worth Hidden Gardens Tour

If you’re a gardener or a plant lover, next weekend you may want to check out the Hidden Gardens Tour sponsored by Historic Fort Worth. A kind of pub crawl for plant lovers, this year the tour will visit gardens in the area surrounding Ridgelea Country Club. Ridgelea has just come of an age eligible for historic preservation, and with its large-sized lots and many period (1950′s era) details and landscape design concepts, it turns out to be an excellent site for exploring the potential of gardening in North Texas.

A Japanese style bridge arches cozily over a swimming pool in this Asian-themed garden on the tour

The tour consists of 6 homes. The gardens were chosen for creative use of space, diverse plantings, unique sites, ourdoor living, and overall aesthetics.

The owners of the homes on the tour have incorporated stonework, statuary, water, both natural and engineered, and plantings of shrubs, groundcovers, flowers and trees both local and exotic to create separate worlds in their own backyards.

The flavor of the tour is both nostalgic and optomistic.  In the 50′s, automobiles had just become the general mode of transit, the country was growing rapidly, and people expected prosperity and expansion. As you walk through the gardens, you can see how the designers  incorporated the outdoor ideals of that age, using large windows in the houses, creating outdoor patios off the kitchen for dining al fresco,  or placing a wooden bench just where you’d need it for relaxing under a tree. Looking out over boats tied up on one of Ridgelea’s two secluded lakes, one does seems to have stepped into a another time.

A swan comes to investigate the garden tour at a home off Bal Lake

Arching trees form a canopy over the backyard of this contemporary home next to a creek, making for a secluded retreat.

I visited the gardens yesterday morning with the docent/volunteers who were getting ready to host the event. They will be stationed along the tour, meeting people at the various houses and answering questions. Many of these garden hosts are Tarrant County Master Gardeners, who will be wearing large blue nametags. Master Gardeners have a wealth of information about how to make a North Texas garden, having been trained extensively by Texas Agricultural Extension. If you have a problem in your landscape, you can ask and get an answer that’s both well informed and local.  Some of the master gardeners specialize in conventional methods; other focus on purely organic gardening technique.

How To See The Tour:

Saturday, June 13^th the gardens will be open between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.  Sunday, June 14^th The gardens are open between noon and 4:00 p.m.

Admission: $15 per person in advance of the tour; $20 per person on tour days.

Rain or Shine!

For information or to obtain tickets contact Historic Fort Worth at 817-336-2344 or visit  www.historicfortworth.org. Tickets will also be available at Archie’s Gardenland, 6700 Camp Bowie Boulevard, Dorian’s Designs, 2701 South Hulen, Into the Garden, 4600 Dexter Avenue, and Into the Garden,4527 McKinney Avenue, Dallas

Proceeds from the Hidden Gardens of Fort Worth Tour benefit preservation programs at Historic Fort Worth, Inc. including the ongoing maintenance and operations of Fort Worth’s two cattle baron mansions, the Ball-Eddleman-McFarland House and Thistle Hill.

Seth Godin speaks about my greatest blogging fear when he writes a post called:  You’re boring.

This is something I’ve been worrying about. It’s good to be a fluid writer, but what if I have nothing to say? If there’s no there there, so to speak,  it doesn’t matter if I’m a stylistic genius, there’s still no point in people reading what I’ve written.

In the context of daily blogging, what’s a person to do to keep from being boring and losing readers? Some just have a gift. Others have to work at it. I have found the following to be helpful in considering whether blog posts will resonate and generate hits or not:

1. Posts about activities that people could do, such as attending a concert, are always more attractive.

2. Posts that offer information about a skill or institution that people may be trying to research, such as how to start tomatoes inside or visit the botanic garden, are more likely to be read.

3. Posts that are written in great emotion, whether fear, anger, or love, are more attractive and interesting.

4. Posts that focus on others or offer service to others (profiles, our Fort Worth on the Web posts, reviews) are attention-getters as well. They are helpful particularly  if they save readers legwork. If I check a place out, you  don’t have to take a risk. It all comes down to this: what will the readers take away when they go?

This morning I’m going to preview the annual Fort Worth Hidden Gardens tour organized by Historic Fort Worth. I’ll enjoy the tour, and then I’ll write a review so you’ll know what it’s all about.

• Free to Enter Jewelry raffles
• Food
• Refreshments
• And Plenty of Silversmyth Jewelry to Try on and Purchase!

Thirty percent of proceeds benefit Arts fifth Avenue a non-profit organization that brings the arts to the community of Fort Worth! Public Welcome~ Feel free to forward on this invitation!

When: Sunday June 7, 2-5 pm

Where: Arts fifth Avenue

1628 5th Avenue (Corner of 5th and Allen Ave in Hospital District)

Fort Worth TX 76104

All major credit cards, cash and checks accepted!

Custom Orders are welcome!

Click the link below to see sterling silver jewelry handcrafted by Julie Hiltbrunner in her home studio in Fort Worth TX.

www.silversmyth.com

Twitter: @Silversmyth

LinkedIn: Julie Hiltbrunner

From a press release by the City:

What: The Code Compliance Department’s Animal Care and Control Mobile Adoption Unit will appear tonight to kick off CatsCare, a partnership between the shelter and the Fort Worth Cats baseball team.

When: 6 p.m., Friday, June 5, 2009

Where: LaGrave Field, 301 N.E. 6th St., Fort Worth
About the program: The “CatsCare” program promotes responsible pet ownership. Its aim is to educate the public about the need for and benefits of proper pet licensing, vaccinations and spay/neuter programs, and the availability of adoptable pets at the city shelter. With the Fort Worth Cats’ support, the Animal Care and Control Mobile Adoption Unit will make regular appearances at LaGrave Field on game nights, and the Cats have agreed to support a number of special nights that will offer fans chances to adopt pets – including a Pet of the Week promotion at home games; to get their pets licensed or micro-chipped; to give fans a chance to have their pets spayed or neutered; and to offer donations for the shelter.