Did you know about the hybrid zeedonk, a crossbreed between a zebra and a donkey? The North Texas Fair and Rodeo (NTFR) featured zeedonks in the NTFR opening parade in 2009. The Denton County Fair and Blooded Stock Association (DCFBSA) hosted the first Denton County Fair in 1885. This year’s 2024 NTFR kicks off for…
Keep ReadingTexas Outside covers the entire state of Texas divided into these regions. The Hill Country / Central Texas The Piney Woods / East Texas The North Central Plains / North Texas The Great Plains / Panhandle The Gulf Coastal Plains / South Texas (Gulf Coast (Padre Island?) The Big Bend Country / West Texas We…
Keep ReadingThis is a question we can sink our teeth into. Fairly recently (in terms of a historical time frame), in 2019, a book brought about a Texas historical scholarly debate on this issue. Archeologist and historian Jorge Luis Garcia Ruiz published Texas: The False Origin of the Name. Mr. Ruiz has a point—a well-researched point. …
Keep ReadingStrawn, Texas, opens into Palo Pinto Mountains State Park, where the park’s centerpiece is Tucker Lake. Texas established its relatively new Palo Pinto Mountains State Park in 2011. Clear spring water feeds the 90-acre Tucker Lake surrounded by white sand beaches and a diversity of wildlife and flora, and live oak, mesquite, cedar elms, and…
Keep ReadingHurricane Beryl led to widespread power outages, initially affecting over 2.5 million people. Entergy Texas in a 6 p.m., July 15, Monday update reported that power has been restored to over 96% of its 252,000-plus customers who lost power during Hurricane Beryl. July 15 begins the second week that Centerpoint Energy customers are still without…
Keep ReadingWe always want to avoid misjudging conditions when swimming, boating, or enjoying the multitude of water sports. The most common cause of boating accidents is operator inattention. As always, it never hurts to refresh safety precautions when we take our families to have summer fun on lakes, rivers, and oceans. Avoid Alcohol Operating a watercraft…
Keep ReadingThe one silver lining to a grasshopper infestation cloud is that kids can easily catch them for fishing bait or a pet with little energy. Texas witnessed an overabundance of grasshopper nymphs this spring. Farmers, gardeners, ranchers detest seeing them at the beginning of each growing season. While some regions in Texas have received significant…
Keep ReadingLady Bird Lake holds a special place in Austin hearts. We have to go back to the 1970s to find that Texas' population grew more than twice as fast as the national average during the 1970s. And we go even further back to President Kennedy’s assassination and the power of Lyndon Baines Johnson’s (LBJ) presidency…
Keep Reading2024 marks the 40th anniversary of Addison, Texas’ Kaboom Town. Kaboom Town is nationally recognized as one of the most exciting Independence Day celebrations in the U.S. Addison takes up a wee 4.4 square miles, a tiny space squeezed in between far North Dallas and the larger Carrollton. In 2024, the big Kaboom happens on…
Keep ReadingEvery year on the 4th of July, Texas lights up with patriotic pride and vibrant festivities during the 4th of July. Across the Lone Star State, communities come together to celebrate Independence Day with an array of parades and celebrations that showcase the rich culture and spirited history of the state. From bustling cities to…
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