I haven’t blogged in a while because it has been a little crazy around my homestead. Over the past 19 years since I moved into my home in Texas many things have changed in our area, but others have not. All have this has been done in the name of progress. But some things still remain the same.
I used to live in an isolated subdivision off a Farm-to-Market road. To get here you had to drive past the cutest cows on a corner pasture that had a little wind mill and a creek running through it. As you traveled down the road you would drive by some small farms with crops that flanked each side of a two lane road. Further down the road it came to a “T” intersection, so to continue on you had to make a left onto a small two lane highway. A few feet later was a quick right turn and you were back on FM 2305. On the corner was the most beautiful pasture where horse would run sometimes run along side of you as you drove past. I love to watch these majestic animals in trot. Occasionally you would see some of the local kids riding their horses along side the road either going towards town or towards the lake. In the early spring, blue bonnets would fill the field and family’s would stop to take family portraits. Then there were a few more cow pastures, Frank’s family restaurant, some wooded acreage and finally my subdivision.
Living in this subdivision we had city water by Temple, population 46,000 in 1993, it’s much bigger now. Coming from the Washing D.C. area I didn’t really considered a city, but folks around here did and who was I to argue. Although water was piped in, sewage went to a septic tank. I didn’t know anything about septic tanks, or the fact that we even had one, until the water backed up into our house. Not something you are used to coming from the city. Our home was built in the late 70’s and what I also learned this past week is that septic tanks have a life span. This week we had to have it pumped and pay to have my concrete patio, which was already in place when we bought the home, destroyed by jack hammers in order to get to the main line to clear a clog that could not be reached through the vent stack or clean out under my sink.
Since purchasing our home in 1993, the city of Temple, has annexed most of the surrounding land around our subdivision. In fact all of it leading up to our home. For those of you who live in cities, land that surround a town that does not belong to any particular town or does not incorporate to become a town can be “claimed” by another town in order to extend its borders. After annexing all of the land down FM2305, the crops slowly began to disappear. Homes, shopping plaza’s and business now flanked the thoroughfare. The two lane road that zig and zagged grew to be five lanes wide, two going north, two south and one in the middle for turning, is now as straight as an arrow. A large over pass was built over Hwy 317 which required the city to basically take the land the horse grazed on, eminent domain. So, no more horses. And recently, I noticed a sold sign in the cow pasture with the creek that runs through it.
With all this change you would think they would do something with the sewer systems or lines, but no that would be a good changed. Instead, they continue to chip away at what once used to be a picturesque land scape down a quaint country road. I miss having to call the sheriff to come herd the cows that escaped on a weekly basis and blocked the road so I could get to work on time. I miss seeing families out for a ride on their horses. I miss seeing the crops swaying in the wind. I miss watching the horses running in the pasture. I miss the fields of blue bonnets. All now gone all in the name of progress.
Maybe someday they will make a change to the sewer system but until then I guess I will just have to live with my little tank. But, I do have to say after five days of not being able to use water or my bathroom I have a deeper appreciation for my toilet.
The Noise Inside My Head 