Where's our veteran?

It was really cold that day but we wanted to see if the memorial brick for Calvin Williams had finally been placed. And we found it (thankfully) within about 20 seconds. Calvin was a Buffalo Soldier, was stationed at Fort McKavett (after marching hundreds of miles on foot) and settled in Seguin. He was also the grandfather of "Smokey" Joe Williams, who later was an amazing pitcher in the Negro Leagues. Joe was inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1999. I know all this b/c my husband has done extensive research on the Williams family.

Misty Guadalupe River

This was taken last week actually but I only have some time and a good connection for posting it. This was on one of our ice days and we got to play hooky from work. It was very nice that the City of SA decided to close rather than have employees try to make it to work.

I really liked the misty setting when I saw the river. It was about 29 or 30 degrees that day.

Arctic Blast!

I am sure you've seen our area on the news the past couple of days. It's not everyday we have arctic air blasting through here with ice, sleet and snow! Seguin didn't get any snow unfortunately but the icy conditions did give us an "ice day" which made me feel like I was in school again. A day off meant lots of knitting, watching news coverage of the big storm and lots of photos being taken, of course! To be near and below freezing for so many consecutive days is rare here in South Texas.

Mark was nice enough to scrap ice off the car and drive me around town in search of interesting things to photograph. I had several cool shots and it was hard for me to pick one but I decided on this light. Love all the icicles!

Update on the Memorial

You may recall I posted a shot of the Guadalupe County Veterans Memorial November 8. Well, every time I drive by, it appears that they have added another component to it. I thought it was completed already! Personally, I liked it as it was on Nov. 8. It seems a bit busy now though I do like the eagle. What do you think?

Mockingbird on Pecan

Happy new year everyone!

This one is for Annie of Little Rock. This is from my kitchen window looking up into the pecan tree in our backyard. The birds were very active this weekend. The weather has been gorgeous after the rain last weekend. Temperatures are in the upper 50s, lower 60s during the day. And as you can see, no clouds! It was gorgeous.

I also spied this cool woodpecker. There were two of them flying around and I wanted to practice with my new digicam. More pics of the backyard animals are on my Flickr page.

Cruella De Vil

I loved this car! It looked so coooool! Where are the dalmations?

Gingerbread House

I don't know how long ago their tradition started but in the 10 years I remember driving around Seguin, this home decorates for Christmas. It's a gigantic g-house! The little gingerbread people move -- the cowboy's lasso moves round and round, the decorators' arms move up and down with the strings of lights, etc. It's a pretty big job and lots of people stop by to admire the scene.

Fall finally arrives!

I was doing stuff in the kitchen and noticed that it finally looks like fall in Seguin. That's a crepe myrtle in my neighbor's yard. The pecan trees don't really turn color. They just somehow go from green leaves to brown leaves. Nothing in between. And then the leaves drop all around. And yes, we probably can use a rake...

Pool Company

I have always liked this cute little building! I love the color and the waves.

Toasty

Another shot of Hair Haus but this time it's inside...where you can get toasty with hot stones. I've had wonderful massages here but haven't tried the stones yet. Everyone have a great weekend!

Texas Theatre

I have posted the Theatre before but from a different angle and on this day, the lights were on, which I rarely see!

Christmas Lights

The square is now all lit up for the Christmas season. I took tons of pictures but none came out like I hoped or envisioned so I'm still working on it. Meanwhile, I'll at least post this one. I love Christmas time.

Hair Haus

This is my all time favorite place to get my hair cut. And that covers the places in North Carolina as well as the San Antonio places I have been in the past. The owner is named Audra and she opened her new building last year. She's a great stylist and the place is so cool, cute and super clean. For a small town, this is a real treasure. You can get your hair done and also do the nail pampering as well as super massages.

Unique Home

Such a cute little house. Not sure I want one for myself but I like driving by and looking at this one. I wonder what it's like inside and it is very small.

Pecans

It's that time of year again. No, not just Christmas! It's time to harvest pecans (or buy somebody else's harvested work). These were picked up from our front yard. There are lots of pecan trees in Seguin, as you may recall from an early post I had of our Big Pecan.

This year, the worms did not kill off the harvest but as usual the squirrels are doing their best at eating up anything they can get a hold of. What kills me is that they only eat 1/3 or 1/2 of the pecan and then they toss it down. Anyway, that's another story. I am not fond of our huge population of squirrelly squirrels.

I missed the PecanFest this year. Not sure when they had it down at the Pecan Bottom but it has not yet grown much beyond a display of pecans and printed info and occassionally some baked goods.

I will soon snap a shop of a great place to go for pecans and other gifts -- Pape's Pecan House, home to yet another "big pecan." There's a dispute over who has the right to claim this.

Downtown Building

Another one of the many old buildings you find near or on the square in downtown Seguin. Just posted a shot of a downtown building in San Antonio as well. Just a happy coincidence. The first level is not unique but the 2nd floor has possibilities I thought as I gazed at it while at a stop light. If you click on the pic and look at the details on the 2nd floor, it's pretty cool and has great potential. Looks like there used to be big windows up there, which would be consistent with other buildings along there. Might be fun to have an office or apartment near the square, especially during Christmas and other event times.

Doll House

This is the fanciest doll house in town. It is attached to a historical site so I'm not sure who the owner is or how it is used. It's an interesting find in a not-so-well-traveled part of town.

Guadalupe County Veterans Memorial

This memorial is not yet completed -- there are still many memorial bricks purchased that need to be cut and placed around but it still is very nice. This is located on the square, at the corner of Austin and Court Streets. The great pecan is close by, just beyond this memorial. It had to be moved in order to accommodate this new feature. Oh, this is also in front of our courthouse.

Cup of Joe

This is our only "real" coffeehouse in town. I really enjoy it and was so glad that we finally got our own place in town. It's on the square and there is a good selection of coffees, cold beverages and snacks. Last time I was there, there were also 2 computers with net access. Don't know if they have wireless yet. I'll check it out soon.

A lot of the downtown storefront properties seem to be owned by the Vivroux family (big name in town). I notice most of the buildings have two stories and the top floors are often not in use. I don't know if it's storage areas or what. It'd be cool to convert those into downtown apartments down on the square.

Big & Tall

It is hard to get a great picture of this place from a distance b/c buildings, power lines and other things get in the way. I have always thought it a bit creepy myself. I have been in Seguin about 9-10 years and this place has been out of commission the entire time. I am not sure who owns it but the properties near it have been, are being or will probably be soon redeveloped. I think it's a neat looking place, with the adjacent silos and all. Maybe they can develop something which incorporates the basic structure here. I'd love to be able to go up there to get a view from that height. Maybe.