“Whooping Cranes”
Every year, in late fall, a flock of whooping cranes arrives
at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge for the winter. Since they stay in
the coastal marshes next to the gulf and the inter-coastal canal they
are difficult to see from within the refuge. They can be seen from a
tower within the refuge; however they are at some distance away. The
best way to see them is from one of the charter boats that comes from
Goose Island, which is across the bay from Rockport, Texas.
As I was painting this peaceful scene, Hurricane Ike was out in the
gulf and on a path aimed straight at our house. Like so many hurricanes
in the past, we anticipated that it would change directions and go
someplace else. This time it didn’t—it passed right over
our house. Unlike so many of our neighbors, we did not have too much
damage to our house and trees. Since we had no power to operate the
circulating pump for the fish ponds, we lost 10 large (over 20 inches)
KOI fish. They each had a history, a name, and a personality and I
miss them.
Our son-in-law, Dan Crowley, had a generator sent to us which arrived
on Sunday night a week ago. Since then we can power the circulating
pump for the fish ponds, a refrigerator, a few lights, and this computer.
There are thousands of work crews here from all over America to remove
the trees off of power lines and repair the electrical power lines.
Six crews from Kansas have been in our neighborhood for the last three
days removing trees from power lines. We are hopeful that the electrical
lineman can start today to repair the power lines.
Interested? Please sign up here!
I listen to the tone (which could imply a problem)
of the noise of the generator more than I do the pulse of my heart.
If the power is restored, my wife and I plan to go to Colorado
on Thursday of this week to visit our friend’s ranch in the San Juan
Mountains south of Gunnison . In the meantime, hurricane or no hurricane,
I have been very busy preparing for having a booth in the Bayou City Art
Festival, in downtown Houston on October 18th and 19th.
Cheers,
Acree
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