Friday, November 13, 2009

MyEllisCountyTX.com Website AND Thanks to Our Founders

I am so excited about finally getting the website published. It should be up on Nov. 15. I pray this site will help residents of and visitors to Ellis County find our businesses and our service organizations. There are individual pages for our 55 names communities plus a Calendar of Events, Job Bank, and Classified section. A Training page will offer resources for how to start a business.

Another feature of the website is to provide histories of our communities. I am still in awe that Bristol lost being the State Capitol by ONE vote. Even our "ghost towns" have links to historical information.

Also included is a link to the 13-part map of Ellis County that shows the cemeteries, schools, railroads, and creeks that were detailed a century ago. Another link takes viewers to North Texas University, where one may read The History of Ellis County, a lengthy old book available online.

We had lots of rain recently and many yards looked like lakes. Red Oak Creek came almost to the top of the bridge on Neck Road and the frontage roads on I-45 were closed due to overruns of the creeks. I don't know if I-35 was hit as hard.

My point is, as I viewed all of this water and mud, I couldn't help but think of how difficult life was for the Native Americans prior to the immigrations of the Spanish, French, and English. And, how hard it was for our early settlers, trying to drive horse and oxen drawn wagons and cattle across ankle-deep mud.

People all over our planet have worked hard for thousands of years to make life a little easier for the next generation(s). Our Ellis County settlers, both those that stayed here and those that homesteaded temporarily on their way farther west, are to be appreciated for their determination. We have a wonderful county because of the many people before us. A special thank you to them.

Small Appliances Left Plugged In Can Cause A Fire

Today, just down the road from us, a home was totally destroyed by fire. Thank God, no one was injured. The home owners were in Dallas and drove home to find devastation. We stopped by to see how we could help. The Red Cross was on site. As we receive information of what the family needs, I'll post it here.

It is believed the fire started in the kitchen, although official determination is not available this soon. Because of this possibility, I just wanted to remind everyone to never leave small appliances plugged when one leaves the house. Also, we should never leave the washer, dryer, or dishwasher operating when we're not home.

Years ago, in Plano, I had a friend whose house burned. While the humans were not home and, therefore, were not physically injured, their beloved dog was in the home and died. According to the Fire Chief's report, that fire started in the kitchen as a result of a coffee maker, which had been left plugged in, although it was turned off. I was told back then, that there are many, many fires caused by small appliances which may be "off" but are plugged into the wall receptacle.

After my friend's tragedy in 1994, I made it a point to keep small appliances unplugged and to never leave an appliance on when I left the house (with the exception of the refrigerator, of course). Even my clocks run on  batteries, so I don't worry about a tiny object creating a fire.

Our hearts are heavy for the loss of our neighbors and our prayers are with them. Thank you for your prayers, as well.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Strengthening Ellis County TX communities

On November 15, our new website will be posted at http://MyEllisCountyTX.com. I am very excited about the interest already shown for this idea.

We have a number of businesses throughout out county and it is important that we buy locally, so that our neighbors have jobs. We also have many wonderful home-based businesses without business telephone numbers and therefore without a listing anywhere. Hopefully, this new site will provide a venue for these businesses. Our cities and towns have many service organizations and non-profits in the same situation as some of the home-based businesses. Without phone numbers listed in the Yellow Pages, many of our citizens don't know of the existences of these volunteer groups. The more our residents and guests know about them, the more support there will be for them.

The site also provides a Calendar of Events, Classified ads, and a Job Bank. Other features may be added as we move along.

As always, thank you for your support. I think most all of us want to have a home with a great quality of life. By getting involved in our county and its many communities, we can influence the ideals of positive living.

Friday, June 19, 2009

What is happening in Palmer and surrounding areas these days?

This past year has been CRAZY. I moved from Dallas to Ellis County and have been busier than anytime in my life. It has been a year since I started the blog. Now that I'm settled, I hope to post regularly and look forward to posts from my lifelong and new friends and "family."

Weather is hot and it is only June. Even hotter is the banter about politics in Palmer. How does that get cooled down, so that everyone can be on the same page regarding goals for the future?

What is the purpose of government and citizenry? I think it should be creating the safest, most responsible, best-serviced environment IN THE WORLD for our children, teens, and adults. I happen to think this is possible, if 1) there is accurate and truthful information available to citizens and 2) if those citizens are participating in the government processes.

There are a lot of wonderful people living in the area. These are kind, generous, and hard-working Americans who want the best life for their families. Fortunately, more of them are getting involved in the political scene and offering ideas for improving the neighborhoods.

In my conversations, citizens are telling me they want law and order, which provide safety for us. They say they want everyone to be treated fairly. They tell me they want unbiased news, so they have facts, not just opinion.

They want safe streets without potholes. They want taxes to be reasonable and affordable. They want adequate (and in some cases, abundant) clean water. They want schools that provide the very best education for their children, so that those children will have every opportunity for successful careers. They have a lot of other desires.

They especially want the drug scene gone, since this is such a dangerous arena for people of all adults. As always, the drug issue is money versus health of a community. With the economy at a low ebb, drug money seems to have become more important to some people. However, there are various horrible consequences down the line. In my opinion, it is better to give up extra dollars now than to face God for the discussion about why one sold drugs and caused such personal damage to humans. I happen to believe, one way or another, we pay for our wrongs to others.

While drugs are negative, let me share with you a couple of positive activities that have happened this week.

First, a great idea was presented at the City Council meeting this past Tuesday night. This idea is for a package to be presented to new residents when they request their water meter setup. The package would contain information from the various local non-profits so that people can become aware of services and resources available. Kudos to RC for bringing this before the council. Kudos to the council members for unanimously (with one person absent) voting "YES!"

(And, by the way, City Council members are trying to find a way to avoid tearing down the historic water tower, also known as a storage tank. As always, funding is an issue and, fortunately, the possibility of grant money will be investigated.)

Second, the Palmer Lions Club held a fundraiser this past Monday. The 2nd annual bridge tournament, hosted at the beautiful, historic Blocker House, was a great success. Money raised will provide eye exams and glasses to people who can't afford them. This is especially helpful to school students. A huge thank you to all who turned out to play bridge (from various towns and cities in Ellis County), to the generous supporters, and to the Lions members who worked hard to make the event so outstanding. Congratulations on a great fundraiser!

Thank you for reading my post and I welcome your comments. This post is NOT the place to name-call and slander. I will be decided what gets posted. There are other websites online for all the poison about people in Palmer you want to share. We don't want poison. We want prosperity and positive actions. THIS post is a place to make suggestions for improving the community. The past is over. We can't change all that. We have the power to make today and the future better.

Every moment, things are getting better or worse. Thanks for joining me in striving to always make life better for everyone!