Giving up on the kiosk

My water bottles are piling up. Those empty gallon jugs that I haul around with me every time I leave the house. 

A thought occurred to me today: why am I paying .25-.35¢ more per gallon over my water bill? I pay about .024¢ for municipal water, which is a really good deal! Why would I pay more? It's cheap and convenient, and it comes right out of the tap!

Thinking back, I can trace my first use of filtered water back to the fires of 2011. The drought was so severe at that time that the City of Snyder, where my water originates from, had to use reserve wells for residential water. That water reeked of dirt, with a cellar-like smell. While I appreciated that I had water for washing clothes and bathing, I would not drink it. 

The tea made from the filtered water is so clear and pretty. That advantage was another factor, besides the smell, that convinced me that the decision to gather drinking water from a kiosk was worth the effort.

These days, I don't make tea that often. There isn't a household full of people to serve. It goes bad before I can drink a whole pitcher. Back when the kids were still home, I had to keep two pitchers of tea going; one sweet, one unsweetened. It was a never-ending task to keep up with a family tea drinkers. 

The city water ceased to be odoriferous quite a while back, years ago. Clear, pretty tea is no longer a goal of mine. I drink coffee all day long. It tastes and looks the same with or without the extra filtration. 

I've been perpetuating a long held habit that is no longer sustainable due to a change of circumstances.

I think I'm going to chance it and save myself the extra effort by going full tap.

A satisfactory substitute

I have missed the old Twitter. I used to have it embedded on the home page of Hobbs Holler and I could quickly post thoughts, observations and photos.

It changed when ownership changed. A person had to be logged in to see the posts and then it kinda got weird in the feeds, so I cancelled my account.

I tried BlueSky, which worked much the same way as old Twitter, but there was a mind-reeling amount of pornography in my feed. I cancelled that account the same day I opened it.

Thought bubbles (notes) in Messenger are sort of a satisfying substitute. I can't add them on my HH page, but I like the idea of posting something without expectation of response or comment. There's a large collection of music on Messenger where you can choose little snippets of songs to play in your bubble. Right now I'm using it to purge the music that is constantly playing on my internal jukebox. I'm finding it's a good way to get rid of an earworm.

It's a cool little gizmo, but it doesn't have all the songs that pop up in my head. Where's Donnie Iris's Love Will Rock You? Oh, well, can't have everything, right? Not too much of a loss. I'll just wait for the next song to play.

District court set for February 5

The 32nd Judicial District Court will convene Wednesday morning at the Fisher County Courthouse.

The following cases are on the docket for Fisher County: 

• State vs. Cruz Antonio Fortuna - motion to proceed pretrial
• State vs. Willard Leon Roddy - disposition hearing
• Eagle Permian Partners, LLC vs. Wales, et al - application for appointment of receiver

Arrest details can be found under Bail Forms on the Texas Online Public Information site.

Public sales and auctions February 2025

Perdue Brandon doesn't have any local tax sales for the upcoming month.

The City of Snyder is accepting sealed bids for 3102 El Paso in Snyder. The deadline is February 14.

Jones County has three foreclosures: PR 4286, Hawley; 10 acres located at 2306 CR 475; and 1432 Avenue K, Anson. These will be disposed of by sheriff sales at the courthouse in Anson on February 4.

Texas Communities Group has one property for sale, 631 Ave H in Anson. Bidding ends February 4.

Rotan Self Storage will be auctioning off the contents of a unit on February 3. There's more information about that in this week's issue of the Double Mountain Chronicle.

Love's is supposed to be posting some storage units from their Sweetwater site on Storage Auctions. The Sweetwater Reporter is running a classified ad with specifics on those sales.

District court set for January 22

The 32nd Judicial District Court will convene Wednesday morning at the Fisher County Courthouse to choose a new grand jury and to hold council for relevant hearings.

The following cases are on the docket:

• State vs. Charles Curtis Dodd II - motion to revoke
• State vs. Francisco Sergio Campa - extension of commitment
• Travis Dean Lee vs. Peggy Coffman Williamson - dismissal
• Fisher County Appraisal District vs. Carreon - tax hearing
• Fisher County Appraisal District vs. Van Loon, Rogers - tax hearing
• Rotan ISD vs. Boone - tax hearing
• Marina Sofie vs. ASC Transport, LLC and David George Warner, Jr. - pre-trial

Source: 32nd Judicial District Court Calendar

A better experience

Here's a tip on how to view the Hobbs Holler website. While the mobile version is fine, it does not show the links and information on the right-hand side of the full site.

On the desktop/PC version, everything shows up. To get the same experience on a mobile device, go all the way to the bottom and click on "View web version". Then you won't miss a thing.

Thanks for reading!

McMurtry book store legacy continues

Since I was on a Larry McMurtry redux this week, I decided to look up his book store in Archer City to see how it was faring.

Booked Up is no longer a physical store front, but books are available online. 

Khristal Merklin, McMurtry's book-selling partner, sold the buildings and books that were left to her after his death.

She brought the store name back in virtual form in 2022. It looks like a good source for researchers and readers alike.

Of course, you can also find McMurtry's books for sale there. Personally, I would like one of those t-shirts Merklin is wearing in her photo on the About Us page.

According to the Archer County Appraisal District website, the current owners of the former stores on South Central are the First Baptist Church, on the west side, and The Archer City Writers Workshop on the east.

Notes from the west Jan 2025

- Cats rule -

It was so cold this morning that the cat was hogging the heater. She sat her little chin on the bar and gave no thought to my comfort.

I went out to the mailbox to post a letter just as a fellow working for the appraisal district was slowly driving by in the barditch. He got out and introduced himself, but I didn't catch his name. It's too bad he had to see me in my pajamas.

The commissioners meeting yesterday was a two part deal, both very short. Stuart Posey, the new commissioner for precinct three, had his first day with the court. 

It was good to see that Jeanna Parks, county treasurer, was there.

The quorum went into a closed session about 10 minutes into assembly, then returned for about six minutes before adjourning.

One thing that caught my interest was something said by Micah Evans, the commissioner for precinct four. The meeting had resumed after the closed session and a motion was made by Judge Ken Holt for approval on a professional services contract with Sterling Burleson, agenda item 12.

Right before a unanimous vote of yes was given, Evans said, "This is just in regards to the case that's...".

I wonder what case that is. I'm hoping to see some clues in the next issue of the Double Mountain Chronicle.

Commissioners meeting

Fisher County Commissioners held a meeting at 9 a.m. this morning. The agenda and the meeting (2 part) can be accessed from the home page of Fisher County, Texas. Click the YouTube link in the upper right hand corner for the videos.

McMurtry got it right

- Scott's Corner & Rotan -

When I get frustrated with all things political in Fisher County and the outlandish behavior of some local high profile individuals, I am just going to think about Larry McMurtry's Texasville and know he hit the nail on the head. It's not so far-fetched that a giant wall of tumbleweeds would take out the town. Not at all.

The water line project has gotten to Scott's Corner. Further lines have been staked out along FM 611, going east towards Rotan.

Now that Dollar General in Roby is open, I can make a little drive to Rotan to get .25¢ gallon jugs of filtered water from the kiosk next to Dairy Queen, then on to Roby for shopping. It's nice to wheel a cart around a brand-spanking new store and pick up some essentials.

The Rotan DG looks finished and the lights are on, but the building is sitting empty at this time.

Ace Hardware is coming along. There are a lot of workers there finishing up the store.

The condemned house is still standing on the corner lot of Sammy Baugh and North Richard in Rotan. City council talked about getting someone to tear it down in their meeting this week.

The old hospital hasn't had any work on it since the city sold it, but the grass is cut and foliage is trimmed.

The photos are of Scott's Corner, Ace, the condemned trailer house and the Callan Hospital building.

Another new sheriff

During a special meeting, called for December 31, Fisher County Commissioners voted unanimously to appoint John "Pat" Dickson as sheriff.

Commissioner Micah Evans, Precinct 4, advised Dickson that his duties would be administrative. This is due to Dickson not holding a peace officer license. 

Officers who have been appointed to fill a vacancy in an elective office have two years to get licensed.

Commissioners also voted unanimously to accept Sheriff Tom Pohlman's resignation.