North Texas Fossils

All of my life I have been fascinated by the natural world. By the time I was ten I could be found scouring the fields of North Texas hunting for fossils to lug back home. Not long ago, Martina and I went fossil hunting near our house and brought back quite a few that now decorate our porch. The picture below is of a cephalopod we found that afternoon. I must say that this little squid is very well-preserved.

AMON! The Ultimate Texan

This morning Martina and I had the pleasure of attending AMON! The Ultimate Texan at the Artisan Center Theater. AMON!, which was written by Dave Lieber, is a one-man show about the life of Fort Worth's greatest advocate, Amon G. Carter.

Being a Fort Worth boy who began reading the Star-Telegram in elementary school, I have been aware of Carter's importance almost all of my life, and I am absolutely thrilled to have had the opportunity to see this production. Kelvin Dilks, in the role of Amon G. Carter, gave a memorable performance, and I truly enjoyed the humor, humanity, and beauty he shared from the stage. 

Tonight I doff my Peters Brothers hat to Lieber, Dilks, director Connie Sanchez, and the Artisan for this wonderful gift to Fort Worth and the Lone Star State. Amon Carter, the publisher, philanthropist, and forward-thinking businessman, is surely smiling down from the great Shady Oak Farm in the sky.

  

Please note, gentle reader, that this blog post is not a review, for a Fort Worth native who has known the star of the show for more than thirty years is not exactly an impartial critic. So I'll call this post what it is- a boy from Cowtown's praise for a show that made his heart swell with civic pride. Hurray for AMON! The Ultimate Texan!

Farmers Market

This morning Martina and I went to the farmers market at Bear Creek Park in Keller, Texas. While we were there, we met a gentleman from Texas Fungus, a farm that provides area chefs with specialty mushrooms and truffles. Martina asked about a particular species that grows in the woods in the Czech Republic and is commonly used for soup. The gentleman said that he could get her some.

I asked about a native mushroom I had eaten at a restaurant in McAllen last weekend. All I could remember was that the name sounded like it could be Nahuatl, and it turns out that he knew what I was talking about. The mushroom is called huitlacoche and was highly praised by Diana Kennedy in her The Cuisines of Mexico.

After learning a bit about mushroom farming, Martina and I bought some oyster mushrooms that we will have for dinner this evening. I must say that I always love meeting people with specialized skills and interests. I love to hear their stories and learn about their passions. In fact, having the opportunity to learn about other people's worlds is one of my favorite things in life.

  

Oyster Mushrooms

A Favorite Childhood Fishing Hole