Twisty, Curvy Roads

But I often have no idea where the rest of the world lies in relation to my location. I left Round Rock at about 3pm this afternoon headed for Colorado to visit my son,  Patrick, and his family for Thanksgiving. Usually I navigate by a loose sort of dead reckoning..., since Colorado is to the north and a bit west of Round Rock, I just point the front of the FJ somewhere in that general direction and hang on for the ride. Typically I have only a very loose time schedule, so if I see anything that looks interesting I turn that way. That means I often turn a one day trip into a three or four  day excursion! Today I decided that I would go by a more direct route. I pulled the GPS unit from the glovebox and set it for my  Son's address in Colorado. As I suspected it would, it pointed me straight up IH35 toward Ft. Worth.  From where I live to Ft.Worth is close to 200 of the most boring miles on this planet.  Well, perhaps "boring" is not the correct word. It w...

With the rain over the last few days has had me feeling cooped up, so I decided to hitch up and make a short trip through the Texas countryside. I pulled out of Round Rock fairly late this afternoon and headed for my Uncle Jarret's gravesite near Tunis, Texas. Uncle Jarret was my great-great Grandfather's younger brother. They grew up together in Jackson County Alabama, and while still very young, went with Andy Jackson to fight in the Florida Wars. My family has not produced many musicians, but Uncle Jarret evidently had enough skill to become a bugler in the war. Sometime after they returned from the Florida War, Uncle Jarret moved away from Jackson County. First to Mississippi near his wife's family, and then, around 1850, to Caldwell County Texas, where he lived the rest of his life. Jarret Jones Ivy's headstone Uncle Jarret, his wife Eliza, and one of his sons, Bill, are buried in Providence Cemetery near Tunis, Texas. This is a very old cemetery ...