July 1, 2010

CITY OF JOHNSON CITY has entered STAGE ONE of their Drought Contingency Plan. They are requesting a 10% voluntary reduction.

The practice of inventing constellations, those imaginary patterns among the stars, predates recorded history and has been done by people around the world. In 140 CE, astronomer Claudius Ptolemy of Alexandria, in his book, The Almagest, listed 48 constellations which came to be the accepted list throughout the Mediterranean region for the next 1,500 years. During the 16th-18th centuries, as Europeans began exploring the Southern Hemisphere, they saw new and unfamiliar regions of the ...

Well, here we are at the end of June 2010 already. Where is the year going? Seems time just keeps passing, rather quickly I might add. Just think about this, July 4th is this Sunday. In the United States, Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain.

If you are into praying, you might add rain to the things you would pray for today. I thought we might get some the day before yesterday but it went elsewhere. To be fair, I always hope that whoever gets the rain really needs it but doesn’t get so much that its dangerous for man or animals like recently happened in the New Braunfels area. I was coming home from Marble Falls the other day and noticed that the temperature there was 97 and that’s just too hot.

Jackie and I took off to the big city of Dripping Springs to pay a visit to the Wesley Gallery. They were holding the Austin Fiber Artist Show & Sale. This was such an unusual show. We did not know what to expect. We entered and were greeted by very enthusiastic people.

*****Bubba and Elizabeth Sooter spent 3 days in Galveston this past weekend. They enjoyed the beach, riding the Port Bolivar Ferry and walking around the Strand and eating seafood for every meal. You should also ask Bubba about his first time in the water on this trip? (His encounter with a crab).

For generations, We The People of the United States of America have had freedoms that no other country has ever been able to match. For generations, men and women of our United States have fought and died for our country so that their and future generations would have a better way of life than what any other country can offer: Freedom.

Approximately 7 months ago, local businessman George Schuh, and Round Mountain residents George and Susie Birck were given the scare of a lifetime when their worlds collided with those of real life bank robbers. On November 20th, 2009, three suspects assaulted Cattleman’s National Bank in Round Mountain and used bank employee, Mr.

The Johnson City Chamber of Commerce Ribbon Cutting was held Friday, June, 25th at 2:00pm at Jenny’s Mane Street Salon. Come by and check out the new location – 205 North HWY 281 Johnson City, TX. Jenny’s Mane Street Salon has been serving the Texas Hill Country since December 2005.

"What a great class," said Larry Martin. "My wife and I talked about it all the way back to Blanco." "We would have paid money to go to it!" They didn’t pay for it, of course; the day-long class in helping people with disabilities in disasters was free, taught by the American Red Cross in cooperation with the Blanco County Disaster Response Group and hosted by the Liberty Lighthouse Fellowship. "The course name says ‘disasters’,"

Local seamstresses have joined a national effort to brighten patient lives by making and donating 100 pillowcases to Hill Country Memorial Hospice. Cindy Laurent-Conner, owner of Pocketful of Posies quilt shop in Fredericksburg, coordinated the local event. Other members of the group are Betty Blackwell, Irene Grote, Rosalie Joehnk, Jane Murrell, Moneca Osbon and Colleen Zabreznik. American Patchwork and Quilting Magazine has challenged quilters and crafters to make and donat ...

Being from Arizona, I’ve always been aware of rattlesnakes. However, in all the time that I grew up in the desert, I’ve never actually seen one that wasn’t behind a glass window at the Phoenix Zoo. In fact, I’ve never actually come into close proximity to a wild snake until about a year ago, when I noticed one that was well over four feet in length in the tree outside of my living room window. I called a buddy of mine, Casey Steele, to come over and ...

Dear Editor: Between 1917 and 1924 Willis Newton and his gang robbed banks and trains in Texas, the mid-western states and Canada. They hit 6 trains and more than seventy banks including those in the Johnson City area. I am a Kerrville writer doing research for a new book on the Newton brothers. Two months before Willis died in 1979 I did a lengthy interview with him and was able to get a bed-side interview two weeks before he passed away at the age of 90.

Blanco County Sheriff’s Office Reports These reports were filed between Jun. 18 and Jun. 24. Jun. 18 • 290 East Heading West Bound. 8:25 AM. Reckless Driver • 3232 1/4 Mile Off 290 East. 9:08 AM. Loose Livestock • 2039 Pedernales Hills Rd. 10:22 AM. Close Patrol • CT House. 10:28 AM. Civil Process • 921 Cherry St.

What got so many kids so fired up last week? Would you believe church? These were among the more than 80 Johnson City children who attended Vacation Bible School at First United Methodist Church through the week. They ate, they sang, they danced, they ate some more, played roles in live-action Bible stories, made crafts, fought off shark attacks, protected themselves against a rain of troubles, and even learned to swab the deck.

Kelya Jureczki, Blanco County 4-H’er, was awarded a 2010 Texas 4-H Opportunity Scholarship sponsored by The Richard Wallrath Education Foundation. The scholarship was one of 223, totaling almost $2.2 million awarded by the Texas 4-H Youth Development Foundation during the 2010 Opportunity Awards Ceremony June 11 in Bryan’s Brazos County Exposition Center. The scholarship recipients were selected from 354 who applied, said Jim Reeves, Executive Director for the Fou ...

The annual Johnson City basketball camp was held last week for children who were in grades 1 thru 8 this past school year. The camp was held at the LBJ High School gym. Camp attendance set a record with 76 campers. The camp was divided into 2 sessions with students in grades 1 thru 3 in the morning and students who were in grades 4-8 in the afternoon.

Newly elected directors Chris Perry and Ross Fischer were officially seated June 28 on Pedernales Electric Cooperative’s Board of Directors; all seven directors have now been democratically elected. The new Board, meeting at a special organizational meeting at the Johnson City headquarters, also held officer elections and re-elected District 6 Director Larry Landaker as Board president.

Hill Country Memorial Hospice has set an Aug. 6-8 weekend retreat for grieving families. Scheduled at the Haven River Inn in Comfort, the retreat is free because of a donation from a family who has experienced loss. Rick McMinn, BCC, PSY.D, bereavement coordinator for HCM Hospice, will lead the retreat.

CEO’s are fired in America every day. Most head coaches in America have been fired. City managers are fired. General McChrystal was just fired. Dan Rather got fired and so did Carly Fiorini. In my career, I have been fired. Media and others are free to speculate. While most employers are bound by rules of confidentiality that protect the employee, one might generally assume that the person getting fired has failed to live up to expectations for one reason or another.