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Island Area News ● Events ● Entertainment

August 30, 2012

The Island where more than half the fishermen think they’re above average Next Publication Date: 9/5/2012 Facebook: The Island Moon Newspaper Year 15, Issue 438

Around The IslandBy Dale Rankin [email protected] Hurricane Isaac has thrown itself at New

Orleans and failed take out a single levee. It pushed a little water up on our beaches but that was about it. We got the outer cloud bands Tuesday night and some overcast that provided relief from the heat but no rain. The reaction here on our Island was pretty much that we would take 80 mph winds if we could get twenty inches of rain. We get winter cold fronts with higher wind than that on a regular basis.

The Island is filling up

There are now somewhere around sixty houses under construction on The Island. You can tell there are a lot of construction guys running around by the number of hot dog weenies rolling around on those machines in the Stripes stores. Those things are getting rare as tourists after Labor Day on The Island and 24-ounce Roofer Beers are almost as scarce.

The recent spate of home building was spurred by the low cost of vacant lots which could be had hereabouts for as low as $20,000 just a few months ago…but no more. Due to the demand lot prices are heading back up and at some point will likely work to slow down the home building spurt.

The next crunch may be a run on waterfront lots – “wetlots” in Island parlance – since there are now only about 200 of them left on The Island. One of the unique things about our Island is that we confound the old axiom in the real estate business, you know the one, where the “expert” throws his head back and stuffs his hands in his pockets and says, “You can’t go wrong buying real estate because they aren’t making any more land.”

Well, as a matter of fact around here that’s not true. Our canals and waterways are in constant need of dredging and all that sand has to go somewhere and when it gets pumped up from the bottom…presto! New land!

Dredging

Speaking of dredging the City Council on Tuesday approved $1.5 million to dredge Packery Channel next year. When the channel was opened about six years ago $4 million was set aside for what was expected to be a need to dredge the channel each year. But as it has turned out that hasn’t been necessary as the channel has actually widened and deepened due to a higher than expected water flow though it and there have been only two major dredging projects during that time.

The last one, early this year, had to be cut short due to the beginning of turtle nesting season and left a plug of sand just inside the channel’s mouth. For reasons having to do with water flow across the channel opening it is unclear if it is best to leave some or even all of that sand in place and the studies to determine that are ongoing. But in case dredging is necessary the city set aside the $1.5 million from the money raised by the Island Tax Increment Finance District for that purpose.

PAC meetings

Mark your calendar for the evenings of September 19th and 26th. Those are the nights that Islanders will gather to decide who to back in the city elections in November. The Island United Political Action Committee, made up of all of the registered voters on The Island caucus to vote on who they want to throw their support behind. The meeting on Wednesday, September 19 will be to choose candidates in the races for Mayor and for the seat for City Council District 4. The following Wednesday, September 26, it will be to decide on candidates in the race for three At-Large council seats. The site for the meeting has yet to be determined but we should know by the next issue.

Inside the Moon...

Live Music A11Katrina Revisited A4

Photo by Miles Merwin

Fishing the Land Cut A10 Texas Women Anglers Tournament A14

Around continued on page A5 History continued on page A2

Schlitterbahn Water Park in Galveston

What’s In the Canal Water?

By Dale Rankin

On the last day of each month a city worker goes down to the Whitecap Water Treatment Plant and takes a sample of the outflow as it flows into the Island canals and the results of that sample are sent to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. Since 2009 that sample has been over the allowable limit for the bacteria Enterococci 21 times.

The latest was at the end of June and on July 5, 17 and 20 TCEQ issued Letters of Non-Compliance to the City of Corpus Christi.

According to test results released this week by TCEQ the latest test at the end of July found that the Enterococci level in the outflow was 271 times the maximum allowable levels. Engineers for the City of Corpus Christi have said fixing the problem will require a new $5 million ultraviolet light filter system but have set no date for its installation.

But what do the accelerated levels of Enterococci coming out of the plant mean for water quality in Island canals? Dr. Russell Miget, with the Department of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services at Texas A&M University at Corpus Christi, has been sampling canal water every two weeks for the POA for over thirty years. However, he doesn’t test regularly for bacteria.

“I used to test for it,” he said. “But never found any so the regulatory agencies stopped requiring tests for it in the late 1970s.”

A little Island history

Raid on Progresso, South Texas is Depopulated,

Don’t Mess with Old Man McAllenEditor’s note: This is the latest in a series

of stories on the Border War which launched South Texas into the front lines of a conflict between the United States and Mexico in late 1915.

By Dale Rankin

By early September, 1915, there were more than 6000 U.S. Army troops stationed in the southern tip of Texas from Kingsville south. There was daily fire across the Rio Grande from both sides and the American general in charge of the Army was asking for another 2000 troops.

It was a very bad time to be an American of Mexican decent in South Texas. Most of them loaded up their belongings and headed south to Matamoros where they had been promised a pardon if they would cross the border before September 16 – Mexican Independence Day – and had been promised work at good wages. Many left crops in the field. It all left Anglos in the area nervous that the members of the Mexican diaspora knew something they didn’t. it turned out they did.

Raid on Progresso

By the middle of the month the Border War was letting up enough that photographers for the Associated Press, the Chicago News and the International News Service were heading home. That was until September 24 when the town of Progresso on the American side - now the favorite border crossing for

Americans looking for prescription drugs and cheap liquor – was attacked by a band of about 80 raiders who crossed from the Mexican side. Progresso then consisted of a combination Post Office/General Store guarded by a three-man outpost of the 12th Cavalry.

An eight-mile stretch of the river above and below Progresso consisted of several resacas – bends in the river cut off when the Rio Grande shifted course which were covered with tall vegetation and were too swampy for the cavalry to ride horses across.

The eighty attackers were bent on fomenting an armed revolution called the Plan de San Diego that would eventually overrun Brownsville, Corpus

Christi, and Austin and return Texas to Mexico. The group consisted of guerrillas and Mexican Army Regulars who crossed the river by boats in the pre-dawn hours and looted the store and torched it. Two of the U.S. cavalrymen guarding the post managed to escape but one, Private Richard j. Johnson, was captured and taken across the river. The firefight lasted two hours as American reinforcements arrived and the raiders re-crossed the river under the cover of fire from 100 Mexican troops on the south riverbank.

The Mexicans fired more than 2000 rounds and the Americans 1000. One U.S. trooper

Logo of the McAllen Ranch Today

Can anyone help Hoja?

My name is Hoja and this is my story.

(Part 3)I’m sure that some of you remember me from

last October 2011 and the things that I have been through during my short life of 3 years. For those of you who have never met me before on these pages I will tell you a little bit about my life to date.

I was found last October under a tree dying from a head injury, multiple pregnancies, starvation, dehydration, internal organisms, heartworms, and red ants. I was not expected to live through the night when I was brought to the veterinarian hospital; and this is where I thought my problems would end; finally.

In a bad place

Well to my surprise as well as too many others I made it through the night and for the next thirty days I lived at the hospital and slowly I began to heal. During that time the family that saved me worked very hard to think about what would be the best option for me and the remainder of my life. After much thought and research they decided that when I was strong enough to be moved that I should be placed at a pit bull refuge and training center. Here I could finish my recuperation in peace, the medical issues that I still had would be addressed, I could be with others much like myself, and I would receive care and training directly related to my breed and abuse. I would then be placed using a strict policy of research and proper matching. I was placed at a facility called Spindletop Pit bull Refuge in Willis, Texas.

Spindlebottom

If you have not heard the refuge was raided based on the information of former employees and their accounts of the cruelty that went on here towards the animals. Please look up Spindletop Refuge on your web pages and read the articles concerning the facility. I and 300 hundred other dogs were abused, mistreated, re-bred, medically deprived, and we were kept as prisoners in our own excrement in cages all the while that this organization was lying to the people who really cared for us. Many of the

Hoja continued on page A10

Canals continued on page A13

Island United PAC

Volunteers Needed for ‘The Walk’

October 9th & 10thThe Island United Political Committee needs

100 volunteers to step forward and offer their time to distribute Door Hangers to Island residents on October 9th and 10th. These door hangers, which the PAC have distributed before, will contain information about the Endorsed Candidates voted on by Island voters on September 19th and September 26th. The hangers will also contain relevant information about the voting and ballot process. Past distribution of door hangers have increased Island voter turnout at the polls.

The combined November election is a new process in Corpus Christi and the ballot will be longer entailing the need to familiarize oneself prior to going into the voting booth. The PAC’s

Hurricane Isaac may have hit 550 miles away from us but it still brought high tides to Island beaches. The storm hit just four days before the full moon when tides are normally the highest anyway. The water didn’t make it all the way to the dunes but was high enough that Padre Island National Seashore was closed to traffic. It also brought severe rip currents to our beaches resulting in one rescue on the beach north of Packery Channel on Tuesday.

High Tides from Hurricane Isaac Hit Local Beaches

PAC continued on page A10

A 2 Island Moon August 30, 2012

Sep

was killed and two wounded. By 9 a.m. the shooting died out and the battle was over.

The clash caused U.S. General Frederick Funston to order a battery of four mountain howitzers of the 4th Field Artillery from Fort Bliss to Progresso which arrived October 2 and dug in.

Bad day to be Private Johnston

One of the reasons for Funston’s reaction was the sad tale of captured Private Johnson. Johnston was listed as “Missing” for several days hoping he would be released. But it was not to be. An Army intelligence chief found out from a local Deputy Sheriff what Johnston’s fate was. Private Johnston had been “shot four or five times” by Mexican troops and decapitated, and had his ears sliced off as souvenirs for Mexican troops – although it is unclear in what order those injuries were inflicted. His mutilated corpse was then tossed into the river where the Army was able to recover it. In the meantime the Mexican troops impaled the unlucky Johnston’s head on a stick which they then paraded along the south bank of the river for the American soldiers to see.

History Continued from A1Don’t mess with Mr. McAllen if he’s been drinking

In a raid on the same day a contingent of eight bandits went after what they considered low hanging fruit, the McAllen Ranch in Hidalgo County. There were only two people at the ranchhouse when the raiders arrived; the elderly owner James B. McAllen and his housekeeper, a Mexican woman who was a

fugitive from the Revolution. The raiders told the woman to bring McAllen out of the house, saying, “We want McAllen’s head.” Realizing they meant to kill him the woman woke him from his nap, gave him a shot of whisky and a loaded shotgun, and told him he would have to fight for his life.

The windows in the front of the house were covered with thick green shutters and McAllen fired both barrels of his ten-gauge shotgun loaded with buckshot through one of the shutters. The blast killed not only the bandit leader but his horse as well. The Mexican woman ran to the window, grabbed him by the arm and jerked him away saying, “Don’t ever shoot but once from the same

place and then move away or they’ll kill you, and now they’re going to kill me too.” The astounded bandits scattered and laid siege to the house.

McAllen proved a worthy foe. He placed a gun by each window and moved around the house shooting and moving from spot to spot. Each time he fired, the Mexicans would pepper that window, but he would move on to another one and fire again

For twenty minutes gunfire raged. McAllen killed another bandit and wounded three more. Finally the bandits issued forth a series bloodcurdling threats saying, “That’s okay, we have 80 more men and we’ll be back” then turned tail and ran. McAllen took them for their word and he got up to leave the ranch. The Mexican woman begged him not to go, saying that if they really had 80 men they would have brought them in the first place, and they were gone, not to come back. But he left the ranch and wandered out into the brush.

The cavalry was riding a Dodge

A neighbor heard the shooting and tried to get to the Ranger station for help but the bandits had cut the line 56 times. Texas Rangers were soon driven to the scene in a brand new Dodge automobile and went after the bandits.

The Rangers went up the river to Los Ebanos, a little village on

the border and arrived around four o’clock in the morning. The only light that they saw was an old Mexican woman living alone, sitting there drinking some coffee. They rode up in their Model T’s and when they got out, the lady invited them in.

She said, “The men you ‘re looking for just crossed the river about twenty minutes ago. They can’t be more than two miles from here. I gave them some coffee. There was only three of them that was still alive. One of them is in awful bad shape. He’s sick and another one’s in bad shape, too. One had his whole shoulder shot off, but there was one that wasn’t hurt. The rest of them are on the road between here and the ranch, either dead or dying.”

The Rangers tracked the bandits to a nearby farm owned by a 67-year-old Hispanic man named Jesus Bazan where they had hoped to dress their wounds and water their horses. The Rangers killed two of the wounded who could not keep up with the desperados fleeing the wrath of Old Man McAllen.

For good measure the Ranger Captain Henry Ransom – alternately branded a hero and a cold blooded killer – returned to the ranch and killed Bazan and a companion who had helped the bandits.

“What had happened was the Rangers had found some bloody rags at their place and they killed them for lying to them,” according to a contemporary account. “These Mexicans were afraid that if they told the Rangers anything, the bandits would kill them. They were right in the middle of it and didn’t know what to do. You felt sorry for them.”

Between the beheadings and ranchers on the American side the events of 1915 sound much like the events of 2012.

South Texas depopulated

The Progresso raid combined with the ranch raid had enormous impact on the Border War. A federal Bureau of Investigation agent in Brownsville wrote; “Conditions serious…present forces inadequate to cope. Danger increased by presence on other side of several thousand Mexicans who recently went from this side…the outlying districts in Texas are almost depopulated. This section being ruined my opinion is martial law with increased forces justifiable.”

The Texas Ranger force in the Rio Grande Valley was only thirty-eight and was stretched to the limit. Ransom, whose orders were to kill as many Mexican bandits as he could had only fourteen men in his command. His Sergeant had recently been diagnosed with tuberculosis and was also beset with a case of raging hemorrhoids which meant straddling a horse sent him to new heights of pain.

Ranger Captain Bigfoot Sanders, due to political pressure from the King Ranch was permanently assigned there meaning he could not chase bandits into the brush. His company consisted of fully one third of the entire Ranger force in the state. He was re-assigned to Alice and as they left King Ranch owner Caesar Kleberg outfitted them with horses, and a chuckwagon.

Things get really ugly

A week after the Progresso raid a discovery was made that was horrific even by Border War standards. Eleven Mexican bodies arranged in a row were found by the Army at Ebenezer’s Crossroads near Donna and the next day three more were found in the brush nearby. They had been killed in late September and according to press reports friends and relatives of the dead men were afraid to bury them lest they suffer repercussions. The coroner even refused to go to the scene without an armed escort. The Rangers took the blame but in light of later facts it is uncertain if they were the culprits.

The shooting war on the border had reached a stalemate. Each side could hold their ground but neither could cross and occupy territory lest it cause a declared war which could quickly take on international proportions as the European powers were lining up to take sides in the looming war there. What was needed was a political solution. But before that could happen someone had to win the ongoing Mexican Revolution.

Into the breach stepped the American government.

Next time: Mexican bandits highjack a Brownsville train just

like in a Spaghetti Western.

American Air Force in the Rio Grande Valley

order Bandit as portrayed by Hollywood. We want McAllen’s head!

General Blackjack Pershing and Pancho Villa at Fort Bliss 1913.

Three Men Injured During Home Invasion on Cruiser

8/28/12, 4:23 am Aggravated Assault 15600 Cruiser

Officers responded to Bay Area Hospital for a walk-in assault victim who had been taken to the hospital by his roommate. Upon their arrival, Officers found the victim being treated with serious facial and head injuries.

Further investigation revealed that the three victims were asleep when several masked men entered the residence and began assaulting them. The men demanded the victims’ money and fled taking one of the victim’s silver 2003 Mercedes CK5.

The 22-year-old victim was transferred from Bay Area to Spohn Memorial due to the seriousness of his injuries. The other two victims, 22 and 23 years of age were treated by CCFD Emergency Personnel and released.

Anyone with any information on this crime is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 888-TIPS or submit a tip online at www.888TIPS.com. Callers will earn a cash reward if the suspects are arrested.

I Hope I Get the Job, It’s Such a Friendly Town

Tuesday, August 28 2:00am, 600 Leopard Street, Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle

Corpus Christi Police arrested a 33-year-old man after he was found driving a vehicle taken hours earlier from an 18-year-old woman.

An 18 year old woman told police that she and several friends came to Corpus Christi from Nacogdoches to interview for jobs. The 18-year-old and her friends went to a bar on the sea wall after the interviews and met 33-year-old Gerry Brooks (2/9/1979).

Brooks offered to drive the friends around town and to a bar on Leopard Street. The friends agreed and got out of the car at a bar on the 600 block of Leopard Street. The 18-year-old woman said Brooks left alone in her silver 2003 Mitsubishi Gallant.

The 18-year-old woman reported her car valued at $2,500 stolen to the Corpus Christi Police at 10:30am when she was able to gather the vehicle information to provide to police.

Corpus Christi Patrol Officers found the stolen vehicle moving on South Alameda at Cole Street at 1:18pm. Patrol officers stopped and arrested Brooks for Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle, a state jail felony punishable by up to 2 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.

The vehicle was returned to the 18-year-old woman.

Public Health Alert for Nueces County Residents August 28, 2012 Roeanne Peppard, Health

District Information Aide, 361-826-7292; email [email protected]

Nueces County Public Health District reports that it has received confirmation of the first West Nile death in a human from the Texas Department of State Health Services. This is the first confirmed death of West Nile Virus (WNV) in Nueces County in 2012. Nueces County has been upgraded to Risk Level 4, indicating that the probability of human outbreak of WNV is at a higher risk.

According to health officials, the patient was a female between the ages of 45 and 60 who was hospitalized locally and then transferred to a neighboring city hospital due to co-morbidities. The patient’s condition worsened and the patient expired on Monday, August 27, 2012.

Dr. William Burgin, Jr., Local Health Authority, alerts all residents to take necessary preventative measures to lower their risk. “Stay indoors from dusk to dawn when mosquitos are most active. If you must be outdoors during these times, dress in pants and long-sleeves and apply insect repellent that contains DEET”, states Dr. Burgin.

According to Dr. Mobley, Local Health Authority for San Patricio County, “WNV risk is high between neighboring counties even though we have not had a positive human case”. Because mosquitos can travel on people, in vehicles, etc., Dr. Mobley is advising San Patricio citizens as well as neighboring counties to follow the listed precautions.

West Nile Virus is a disease spread by the bite of an infected mosquito, rather than by person-to-person contact. In Texas, there have been 783 human cases reported of West Nile Virus and a total of 31 deaths in 2012. Nueces County has had three human cases and one death in 2012.

Health Officials advise residents to follow the 4 Ds:

• Dusk and Dawn are the times of day to avoid outdoor activities

• Dress in long sleeves and pants when outside

• DEET is an ingredient to look for in an insect repellent

• Drain standing water in old tires, flowerpots and clogged rain gutters

Residents can keep mosquitoes outside by fixing or installing window and door screens.

Not everyone who gets infected with WNV will have any symptoms. Up to 20 percent of people who become infected have symptoms such as fever, headache, and body aches, nausea, vomiting, and sometimes swollen lymph glands or a skin rash on the chest, stomach and back. Symptoms can last for as short as a few days, even though healthy people have become sick for several weeks.

Serious symptoms in a few people include high fever, headache, neck stiffness stupor, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. These symptoms may last several weeks, and neurological effects may be permanent.

Approximately 80 percent of people (about 4 out of 5) who are infected with WNV will not show any symptoms at all.

Health District officials urge anyone who is experiencing these symptoms should see their doctor. Although all Nueces County residents and neighboring areas are at risk of getting West Nile Virus, persons over 50 years of age have the highest risk of severe disease.

Drive it Like Somebody Stole It!

The C.C.P.D.’s commitment to “Keep Corpus Christi Safe” has continued with its “Zero Tolerance No Insurance Initiative”

On Saturday, September 1, a total of 86 cars, trucks, and motorcycles will be auctioned at the Corpus Christi Police Department new Vehicle Impound Lot located at 5485 Greenwood Drive during our monthly auction. The new site has four paved acres for an auction lot.

Approximately 16 of these vehicles are “No Insurance” impounds. On Friday, August 31, the general public will be allowed to register and view the vehicles to be auctioned from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. There is no registration fee.

On the day of the auction, the general public can continue to register and view the vehicles from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. The auction will commence promptly at 10:00 a.m. on September 1, 2012. The vehicles to be auctioned can be viewed at www.siskauction.com. An auction list may also be downloaded from the same website.

The department’s strong stand and enforcement of this “Zero Tolerance No Insurance Initiative” will continue and all vehicles involved in accidents will be impounded and the driver cited if they are unable to provide financial proof of insurance. Driver’s license and proof of financial responsibility checkpoints will continue to be conducted at the Shift Captains’ authorization.

Officers issued 5,509 citations and impounded 1,212 vehicles for Failure to Maintain Financial Responsibility during 2011. During August 1-27, 2012, Officers issued 266 citations for Failure to Maintain Financial Responsibility and impounded 61 vehicles for the same charge.

Police Calls6300 block SH 361 4 a.m. August 22

Burglary of a building

6600 block SH 361 11 a.m. August 27 Burglary of a vehicle

Beach Marker 207 1:20 a.m. Agusut 26 Pubic intoxication

SH 361 and Zahn Road 4:36 p.m. Agusut 26 Intoxicated Assault with a vechile with

bodily injury

13800 block Suntan 4 p.m. August 25 Burglary of vehicle

13800 block Primavera 1 a.m. August 22 Criminal mischief

14600 block Aquarius 9:24 p.m. August 25 Public intixocation

14300 block SPID 9:51 p.m. August 27 9:51 p.m. Public intoxication

15200 block SPID 2:05 a.m. August 26 Criminal mischief

15600 block Cruiser 4:23 a.m. Agusut 28 Burglary of habitation/other felonies

14200 block Punta Bonaire 10:20 p.m. August 25 Criminal trespass

15300 block Cartagena 2:45 p.m. August 24 Fraudulent use of indentifying information

August 30, 2012 Island Moon A 3

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Home Invasion on Cruiser, Public Health Alert from Nueces County

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Jeep

Stuff I Heard on the Islandby Dale RankinAs I sit here

watching the satellite image of Hurricane Isaac bouncing off the Louisiana coast

images of seven years ago are never far from my mind. I was sitting on the beach then wondering what the poor folks were doing when my phone rang. It was my friend Richard Tillery who owned a news service in Washington.

“The Japanese are looking for you,” he said. “Do you want to be found?”

“What do they want? I don’t think I owe them any money.’

“They want to know if you will go to New Orleans and they got money.”

That last part was important because I didn’t.

Over the past decade I had done several freelance jobs in Mexico for the Japanese network NHK and as they scoured their files for people to throw at New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina my name popped out.

You’re gonna need an RV

“You’re gonna need an RV,” I told them. “That’s a low lying town and there won’t be any electricity and the hotels will be closed.”

This was the Sunday of the storm and when I started calling around the closest RV I could find to rent was in El Paso, fifteen hours in the wrong direction. Finally I called a friend who worked at an RV place in Rockport and by nightfall I was behind the wheel headed for Baton Rouge to meet the Japanese.

I stopped at every WalMart along the way and bought all the gas cans I could find. There weren’t’ many. I drove all night and arrived in Baton Rouge at ten the next morning.

“Do you guys have any water or food?” I asked them. Their blank stares were the answer.

Baton Rouge was like a boomtown as refugees and a few relief agencies were showing up.

It was the jumping off point of civilization as everything south was either blown down or underwater. I got $2000 cash from the Japanese and set out looking for supplies. I got to Home Depot just as an eighteen-wheeler pulled up and the man there said, “These trucks get here when they get here and we don’t know what’ in them,” and with that he opened the rear door and the bidding began.

I got outbid for an electric generator at $1500 but I hit paydirt on two boxes or Pork and Beans and two cases of flashlights. I also bought six plastic jerry cans which I filled with tap water and I liberated four ten gallon buckets which I found in the alley behind the store which I filled with gasoline and stored in the RV. With eight crews of Japanese journalists following along I

headed south in the cab of the RV smelling like a Louisiana siphoning party.

A wide open city

I had no idea exactly where I was going but after spending sixty days camped out a few years back at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco I knew that the first thing do to was find the location of the media scrum that gathers at such events. If I could find the Masters of Disaster I could trade some of the water and gasoline I had, and maybe some of the cash, for

information on the lay of the land.

I headed for the airport since I figured the networks would have to move their satellite trucks in by air due to the bad roads. I didn’t even know if there was a road to New Orleans open.

I soon found out that New Orleans was a wide open city. We pulled into town Monday afternoon and didn’t see a single policeman for almost three weeks. When dusk settled in an eerie silence fell over the pitch black city with nary a light to be seen. The first night we pitched camp at the airport after getting caught in the perimeter thrown up by the Secret Service in anticipation of the arrival of officials unknown. It turned out that there was no media scrum yet, we were it, and it took me three hours

to talk them into letting us leave.

“Where do you want to go?” they kept asking.

“That way,” I said, and pointed toward the river. I had no idea what was there. We wandered around New Orleans for three or four days doing live shots at broken levees and in flooded neighborhoods getting information only from residents as there were no official types to talk to. We were on our own.

But Japanese time was at the opposite end of the clock from New Orleans so the live shots were at night and with no light

at all it was impossible to convey the vastness of the destruction on camera. I knew we had to somehow get downtown.

By the end of the week the soldiers had started to arrive along with some scattered news crews. News of the extent of the devastation had been slow in getting out for the simple reason there was no way to get the word out and it was now hard to get in as the National Guard had thrown up roadblocks. As we would move about the city people would come up and tell us how glad they were that we were there because someone

had to get out a plea for help. At that point there was absolutely no relief coming in. Citizens were looting stores for water and food.

Plenty of firepower

I set out with the Japanese in tow heading in the general direction of the French Quarter and encountered a convoy of trucks with about one hundred soldiers in full gear with M16s heading east. In the middle of the convoy was an NBC satellite truck with the mobile dish that had rolled into downtown Baghdad during the war, it could broadcast live while moving. I walked up to the cab and asked the driver if I could join the convoy.

“Join the party,” he said. “I have no idea where we’re going but we got plenty of firepower to get us in and get us out.”

I have to say it was a surreal experience as I stood in the middle of the street and held up my hand to stop a line of Army trucks filled with soldiers and motioned the Japanese to get in line. There were no other people to be seen in any direction and by this time we were under martial law. It was a situation I never would have thought to find myself in when I signed up for my first journalism course in order to dodge the math department back at school.

We rolled over the Huey P. Long Bridge onto the Westbank where we passed sandbagged machinegun positions on deserted streets. A few people came out to ask for water and food, and at one stop I paid thirty dollars for an ice chest full of ice, but for the most part the streets were deserted. It got even more so as we approached the toll bridge and headed the back way into downtown New Orleans.

Stuff Continued on A9


Who Are the Moon Monkeys

Mike Ellis, Founder

Distribution

Pete Alsop

Island Delivery

Coldwell Banker

Advertising

Jan Park Rankin

Raeanne Reed

Office

Lisa Towns

Classifieds

Arlene Ritley

Design/Layout

Jeff Craft

Contributing Writers

Joey Farah

Devorah Fox

Mary Craft

Maybeth Christiansen

Dr. Tom Dorrell

Jay Gardner

Todd Hunter

Danniece Bobeché

Ronnie Narmour

Dr. Donna Shaver

Photographers

Miles Merwin

Office Security/Spillage Control

Riley P. Dog

Editor/Publisher/Spillage Control Supervisor

Dale RankinAbout the Island Moon

The Island Moon is published every Thursday, Dale Rankin, Editor / Publisher.

Total circulation is 10,000 copies. Distribution includes delivery to 4,000 Island homes, free distribution of 3,000 copies in over 50 Padre Island businesses and condos, as well as 600 copies distributed in Flour Bluff, 1,400 copies on Mustang Island and Port Aransas businesses.

News articles, photos, display ads, classified ads, payments, etc. may be left at the Moon Office 15201 S P I D. Suite 250. For more information call 361-949-7700 or contact the Moon at 15201 S Padre Island Dr., Suite 250, Corpus Christi, TX 78418 or by e-mail to [email protected].

Letters to the Editor

Located in the Loma Alta Plaza 14254 SPID, Suite 109

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Recipient of the People’s Choice Award

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Michelle Matthews

Hair Cuts & Color, Waxing, Hair Extensions, Special Occasion Hair, Airbrush Make Up, Feather Extensions

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Third Annual Ferry Art Contest

See Your Art on the Dingwall

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) announced the start of its third annual ferry art contest to select art work to be featured on the towers of three ferry boats in the Port Aransas ferry system.

The contest is open to anyone and includes two age categories – children (age 18 and under) and adult (older than age 18). The deadline for submitting art work for the contest is 5:00 p.m. Central Time on October 31, 2012. Winners will be selected by the end of 2012.

Winning entries will be reproduced on the towers of three ferry boats (the Burnett, the Goode, and the Dingwall).

“Many of the folks who ride the ferries enjoy the art work,” Ames said. “When we did a survey at Spring Break, the majority of the respondents felt the art work added to their ferry experience in a positive manner. It adds color to the vessels that would otherwise be plain white.”

After the first art contest took place in Fall 2010 and had 66 entries, last year’s contest also had over 60 art works. Three pieces of art from the adult category and three from the children’s category were selected to placed on three boats..

Artists wishing to enter the contest are encouraged to submit works that illustrate the people, places, plants, animals, environment, scenes, settings, events, or activities relevant to the Port Aransas ferry system and the community.

“The ferry system is about more than just getting from one place to another. It is an important part of the visitor experience in Port Aransas,” said Gillespie. “It’s a short ride, but it captures so much about what is great about this coastal community.”

Contest guidelines can be found on the TxDOT website, on its Facebook page, and on the agency’s Twitter page.

The PAC’s slogan is truer today than ever…if we don’t hang together we’ll surely hang separately.

Schlitterbahn update

There has yet to be a date set for groundbreaking on the Schlitterbahn Waterpark but the machinery is on the way. Schlitterbahn owners are in the process of transporting earth moving equipment from recent work on new facilities in the Rio Grande Valley and Kansas City to their New Braunfels headquarters in preparation for work on the Island park.

Developers are in ongoing talks with city planners to get permits in place and as of Tuesday the last hurdle for funding on the SPID Water Exchange Bridge was cleared when the City Council put the finishing touches on plans for money from the 2008 bond election which will be used to pay for it. Design for the bridge by the city is moving forward and the opening date for the waterpark is still spring of 2014.

Ban the bag

As the city’s voluntary ban the bag campaign kicks in with a whimper and not a bang we are still urging Islanders to use recyclable shopping bags rather than the single use plastic ones that have become the Official Island Bird as they fly hither and yon. We still have Moon bags and there are several types that can be found in various places.

In that vein we are delivering the copies of the Moon that go to City Council members this time in Island Moon bags. We’re thinking of cutting eye holes in them so the council members who voted to do a voluntary program rather than a real program can wear them on their heads.

In the meantime say hello if you see us Around The Island.

Around continued from A1

ColleenMoon Editor

Finally we have a City Council candidate for District 4, Colleen McIntyre, that will get things done “right” for our fair city.

Ms. McIntyre is keenly intelligent, has a distaste for special interest, and is driven by a burning desire to serve the community.

Our city’s complex problems require special skills of problem solving, strong accurate observational powers, rigorous analytic discipline, balanced effective judgment, and timely plan execution tempered with lots of common sense. Colleen is all of that and more!

Colleen is non-special interest and is fiercely community interest. She is not influenced by political players but is solely guided by what is good for all the people and the future of our city. You can count on Colleen!

Ms. McIntyre has a long history of extraordinary community service, the island foundation, the political action committee, our local schools and the like. Colleen will continue helping our community!

Please get out and vote for a real civic servant who will do her very best to represent us in District 4. You can help us change the tide of local government, please go to her website “electcolleen.com” for more information.

Bryan Enos

Home InvasionDale,

Know anything about the violent home invasion on Cruiser?

Charlie Marshall

Editor’s note: There is a report in the Police Blotter this issue but not much else. It was a violent incident in which some masked men entered the house in the middle of the night wielding baseball bats. From what we know at this point it doesn’t sound like it was random, it appears there was some previous history between the parties.

Hoop DreamsClaudia Kochheiser- Burge

Where is the closest basketball gym to shoot hoops? Indoors????

Editor’s note: Seashore Charter Schools have two gyms on The Island that are sometimes open to the public. The hours vary according to availability but if you call them they can fill you in.

Other than that, it is either outdoors at Island parks or private exercise centers.

Sand Dune

Moon,

Question....Has that pile of sand on the seawall in front of the Holiday Inn been designated a sand dune by the Core of Engineers? I would think since that stretch of seawall sees more tourists per year than any other part that they would care enough to clean up a little. At least clear a path for walkers/cyclist. It makes the hotel look like a dump from the water side.

Darryl Harris

Island

Editor’s note: As far as we know Darryl there is no Hysterical Marker planned for that dune but if that thing was human it would be in the second grade by now. The high water from the storm this week nibbled around the edges but so far our second grader is intact.

Forward email

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Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce | 1501 N. Chaparral | Corpus Christi | TX | 78401

The Public is Invited to a Windstorm Forum Next Wednesday! file://///SERVER/Data (D)/Our Docs/# Moon 438 August 30/Dale File...

1 of 1 8/29/2012 4:34 PM

Senior of the MomentLee Gaines

A Flour Bluff resident and a regular member of the Ethel Eyerly Senior Center. Lee Gaines was recently nominated for the Corpus Christi Greatest Treasurers Award. The lead in to the awards says

“Sitting on a couch complaining is not the fate of seniors nominated for the Greatest Treasures Award. Instead, they took up sewing needles and computer mice, board positions and community projects to stay busy and help their community. The Greatest Treasures Award has been given annually since 2001 to a Corpus Christi resident over 65 who makes a significant difference in others’ lives.

Greatest Treasures is different from other awards because it recognizes any person who makes a difference in the community, not just official volunteers with an organization.”

Meet Lee (Leota) Gaines , who is a young 80 years:

In 1965 while living in Kerrville, she was widowed with 3 small children. In 1967 she remarried and moved to Flour Bluff. In the 1970’s she and her husband were foster parents to 23 children, and adopted 2 of the children. Worked as a volunteer with the Yule Toy Board, bringing used and abused toys back to life for Christmas gifts fore to distribution to needy. In the 1980’s she volunteered a half day each week as volunteer ceramics instructor at Oak Park Recreation Center, While doing that, she started volunteering a half a day each week as a ceramics instructor at Coastal Haven Senior Apartments. That effort grew into 5 days a week plus numerous trips to McAllen. Brownsville, Mexico, San Antonio Dallas and a Caribbean cruise. During this time she also served as a “Band Mom” at football games and trips by the band. A few years later, she had to drop out of the activities, due to an accident which destroyed an elbow, requiring two surgeries and a long rehabilitation before she could return to her very active lifestyle.

Lee’s Dolls

In the 1990’s Lee assumed the duties as a half-time caregiver for her father. During this time she sewed clothes for dolls and bears for the Salvation Army. Her creations have won many awards.

With her busy schedule she has managed to squeeze in some long planned trips. Much of this travel was made possible by sweepstake winnings.

In 2009 a contest was conducted to find the best original Christmas ornament representing the Corpus Christi area. Lee’s ornament on which she had painted Santa fishing in the ship channel, a ship going under the harbor bridge, Whataburger baseball field, a Christmas tree and the SS Lexington, was chosen the best of all entrants and was placed on the Texas size Christmas tree on the capitol grounds in Austin.

Lee’s Prize Winning Xmas Ornament

Lee currently keeps very busy volunteering to help conduct a varied number of activities at the center. As a volunteer she works on the birthday board, calls bingo, helps with the food bank, helps supervise the lunch sign-in process, collects meal tickets at the monthly Dinner Dance, makes stuffed animals (over 2000 to date) for Driscoll Children’s Hospital, the Police Department Xmas Gifts to Children Program, Ronald McDonald House and the Flour Bluff Fire Department’s Santa.

Thanks Lee For All You Do!

Moments Tech TalkThe Ethel Eyerly Computer interest Group

Monday Meetings have resumed:

The Ethel Eyerly Computer Interest Group has resumed the weekly meeting and will be meeting each Monday, 12:30-2 pm. The meetings are held at the Ethel Eyerly Senior Center, 654 Graham Road in Flour Bluff. If you would like more information about this group, please call or Email Dotson. We hope to see you there; it is a fun and informative meeting.

Moment NotesThe fall Del Mar College Senior Education

Computer Classes will begin September 4, 2012. The schedule was shown in the August 2nd issue of The Padre Island Moon. Please call 361-698-1328 to register for a class or 361-949-7681 for additional information. Call soon if you wish register for a class, seating is limited,


Activities at the Ethel Eyerly

Senior Center654 Graham Road

(Flour Bluff)Phone:

361-937-3218Monday

Silver Haired Fitness 10 am

($7 month, Ladies Only)

Computer Interest Group 12:30-2 pm

Wii Bowling 12:30 pm

TuesdayBingo 10 am ($.50 Cards)

Silver Life Fitness (Co-Ed) 11 am Zumba

Table Tennis & Table Games 12:30 pm

WednesdaySilver Haired Fitness 10 am


AARP Chapter 4181 1 pm 2nd & 4th Wednesdays

ThursdaySilver Life Fitness (Co-Ed)

11 am Zumba

Wii Bowling 12:30 pm

Quilting Guild 2nd Thursdays Starts 10 am

FridaySilver Haired Fitness 10 am


Table Tennis 12-5 pm

Bingo 12:30 PM ($.50 Cards)

Line Dancing 2 pm

Ethel Eyerly Monthly Dinner/Dance

Every Third Friday

4:30-7:30

For Further Information

By Dotson Lewis

[email protected]

Senior Momentsand classes will fill-up fast.

Moment in PassingNeil Armstrong, the American astronaut who

made “one giant leap for mankind” when he became the first man to walk on the moon, died Saturday. He was 82.

“We are heartbroken to share the news that Neil Armstrong has passed away following complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures,” Armstrong’s family said in a statement.

Armstrong underwent heart surgery this month.

“While we mourn the loss of a very good man, we also celebrate his remarkable life and hope that it serves as an example to young people around the world to work hard to make their dreams come true, to be willing to explore and push the limits, and to selflessly serve a cause greater than themselves,” his family said.

If you have questions and/or comments regarding “Senior Moments” please contact Dotson at the Email address shown above, or Phone 361-949-7681; Cell 530-748-8475

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DEE-SCOVERIES

Everything’s Coming Up Rosesby Devorah Fox

KJ Willis and Cathy Thomas took over Flowers by the Sea on Cut-Off Road in April of 2011 and haven’t had a spare minute since they opened the door. The two women have been busy busy busy creating and providing floral arrangements and fruit baskets and staffing the shop which offers delightful décor items. They’ve been so busy that they haven’t even had time to have a grand opening.

Both women are Port Aransas residents. KJ moved here 12 to 13 years ago from Dallas. A Port A High School graduate, Cathy is a member of a longtime Port Aransas family, the Littletons. The two were looking to open a business or a shop of some kind. A Realtor for 10 years, KJ had always been involved in staging to one degree or another, arranging furniture and decorations to show properties in the best light. Cathy meanwhile had always worked with flowers, like making corsages. A florist shop seemed like a good way to combine their talents.

Still, the job of running a florist shop held a few surprises. One was the challenge of offering a quality product. No one wants faded flowers so they have to be skilled at inventory management. What they didn’t anticipate was how hard it would be to find vendors. Local vendors are few and far between, so to get the raw material they want, KJ and Cathy range as far as Hawaii.

You might wonder how a local florist shop manages to thrive when there are so many opportunities to order flowers online. KJ and Cathy have found that a lot of people simply prefer being able to come in to the shop to work with and order from a local florist. The two especially enjoy being from Port A. “It’s fun to know all the people you deliver flowers to,” says Cathy. The Floral Reef delivers to a lot of condos so that baskets of flowers and fruit are on hand to greet visitors on arrival. Tropical arrangements featuring orchids and birds of paradise are especially popular.

Of course weddings are a big source of business. Their September and early October schedule is already filled with weddings, especially beach weddings . “Destination weddings are getting to be a big deal,” says KJ. There have been numerous occasions when out-of-towners have come to Port Aransas for a beach wedding, forgot to bring their flowers and ended up ordering replacements from Floral Reef. KJ and Cathy have had to hustle to fill an emergency order placed in the morning for a

wedding being held later the same day.

Looming large in their business history is a huge destination wedding that they did for a couple from Gonzales, Texas, that included a big church wedding and a reception on the beach. The tent erected for the reception was

a huge service tent and a special berm had to be erected to make sure that the Gulf waters stayed a respectable distance. “There were so many flowers to put together,” says KJ. “There were 18 or 22 pews that needed decorating. We had flowers hanging all over the shop until

they could get arranged and delivered.”

Delivery presented problems of its own. The decorations included several very tall flower-filled urns. “How are we going to get these to the church,” Cathy had asked since the urns didn’t fit into any of their vehicles. They ended up loading them into a golf cart. Transporting them still wasn’t a breeze as there was a 30-mile per hour wind that day. “That’s why florists have vans,” Cathy says.

They’ve also helped decorate the wedding cakes. On one

occasion, the wedding “cake” was tiers of cupcakes made by Catie Pettit of Beaches intermingled with Floral Reef Flowers.

KJ still does some staging, and the decorative items found in the shop are handmade. The painted wooden signs are very popular, especially the one that reads “You can’t drink

all day unless you start in the morning.”

Increasingly, they’re providing concierge service. Such service typically includes making restaurant reservations, arranging for spa services, recommending night life hot spots, booking transportation (limousines, airplanes, boats, etc.), getting tickets to special events and helping with travel arrangements and tours of local attractions. It’s a logical fit with what the Floral Reef already does for condo owners and renters to make their stay more enjoyable.

They’re also enjoying working with two young girls who have all the makings of future florists. Nearly every day, the two girls come into the shop and count out their spare change to spend on individual stems of flowers. The two youngsters take great pains to study the flowers and make notes of the varieties’ names, colors, shapes and sizes. “We don’t know what they’re doing with all those flowers,” says Cathy, “but they are very serious about the whole thing.”

For more information about the Floral Reef visit the Web site at www.thefloralreef.com. Call 361-749-ROSE (7673) or send an email to [email protected]. Or just visit the shop at 600 Cut-Off Road, Suite 3. I’ll see you there.

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Scoopy’s VerandaSun - Sat 11am - 10pm

Carry-out Available!

13313 S. Padre Island Drive Corpus Christi, TX 78418

Snoopy’s (361) 949-8815Scoopy’s (361) 949-7810

I can feel the crescendo of summer coming on; the atmosphere is slightly destabilizing, and our very own

high pressure has been shoved off it’s mound several times already, albeit not very far. A good front is eminent that will claim, although temporarily, the king of the hill status. Many locals I know are looking forward to fall; it’s not just a break from the heat they’re looking for; it’s a break in this mundane weather. Hot coupled with windy doesn’t really do anyone but the windsurfers any good; boats can’t get out of port, and it’s hard to keep your popping cork and bait in the water from a 20 knot wind pushing a 5 knot current zooming up the channel.

Crazies on The Island

Although most of the kids have gone back to school, there are still a few roaming around the Island beaches. Guess some northern schools aren’t back in yet, and folks will be cramming as much summer fun as they can in the next couple of weeks. This weekend is of course Labor Day weekend, and there will be a last hurrah of the Crazies out on the Island. If you’re reading this, that means you snuck out in the boat down to Snoopy’s and grabbed a copy of Moon while you had a fish sandwich before noon on Saturday. Now if only you could get to Whitecap Liquor by boat you could avoid the whole driving a car deal and things would be golden.

By this time this comes out, Hurricane Isaac will have made landfall somewhere in the Louisiana vicinity. As I write this on Monday, I’ve watched the “cone of uncertainty” move west about 100 miles a day for the past four days. Never east; they keep moving it west. However, it is moving pretty fast, so like I said, by the time you’re reading this the waves will already have subsided on the beach and the entire Gulf will be getting back to business for the holiday weekend.

Hot hand for kingfish

Dwade has had a hot hand lately when it comes to catching kingfish. He’s landed three or four, all on lures while standing On the Rocks (photo by Eric Ozolinse courtesy of extremecoast.com). As we approach fall and the gulf subsides from the storm, the fishing should be pretty good here on the back side of the full moon. If you do get into some kingfish, there’s a

On the RocksBy Jay Gardener

couple things to remember; one being that there is a health advisory on consumption (there’s a small sign posted at the Packery Channel launch, otherwise, no one would really know). Children and those that are pregnant or trying to get pregnant should probably just cut it out all together. The rest of us should only have a couple portions a month or something.

Kingfish however, can actually be pretty tasty. My buddy Tyler Thorsen likes to smoke the balls. Now do what?! One way to clean a kingfish is to “ball it out.” This is actually a really simple method, although it does waste a little meat. The idea is to cut slices on each side of the kingish, about 2 inches apart all along the length of the king, perpendicular to the spine, and all the way down to it. Then, using your fingers, you pry out the two tenderloin “balls” in between each slice. This gives you the best portion of the flesh, without any of the “blood line”. These balls fry up pretty good, especially on the same day it’s caught (and hopefully you’ve cut the tail or the gills while it’s still alive and bled it out). You can fry them in your favorite batter (beer, tempura, or corn flour are all good) or do like Tyler and put them on the smoker. They come out pretty good that way too!

Birds are humming

Anyway, migration is about to go off, and the hummingbirds are showing up in force. I’m also hearing reports from folks like Billy Sandifer that a lot of warblers and vireo’s are showing up too. Keep those feeders full and your eyes peeled. We’ll be continuing to fish after work during the week as dove season will open here towards the end of the month, and I’ll see you on the rocks!

Our Lady of the Rosary Catholic School

in Flour BluffAccepting

Late Registration18 Months - 2nd Grade

Take A Tour Today!361-939-9847

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Dwade and son Connor with a kingfish.


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New Listing

Mary Ann McShane, Realtor, GRI, SRESe-mail: [email protected]

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Call or Email Me! 361‐658‐1092 [email protected] ∙Over 10 Years on Padre Island ∙ Knows the Market inside & out ∙ There for you every step of the way Betheny Bell Listing & Sales Specialist Licensed in the State of Texas

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• Over 10 years on Padre Island• Knows the Market inside & out• There for you every step of the way

Island Real Estate Ticker

9 Commercial Properties For Sale From $150,000 to $4,557,465

2 Multi-Family Units For Sale From $385,000 to $2,500,000

157 Lots and Land For Sale

56 Parcels on a canal or water From $99,000 to $1,850,250

101 Parcels not on the water From $25,000 to $1,529,000

219 Island Residences For Sale

103 Attached Homes For Sale From $69,900 to $495,000

68 Detached Homes on the water From $230,000 to $2,200,000

48 Detached Homes not on the water From $139,900 to $494,900

Real Estate RoundupBy Mary Lou White

As human beings, we have a common need to communicate with others. We benefit from “Group Therapy” and flounder in

isolation. Left to our own devices, we stagnate and it has been my experience that interacting with others stimulates new ideas and helps to embrace change. Actually, this is a common theme on every level of life, from the personal to the professional. Sometimes, when I look at my calendar, I think I might be “interacting” a little too much. However, if you are working in a specific professional field, especially as a self-employed person, you need some way to stay informed of new ideas and industry requirements. Over the decades, that void has been filled primarily by the “trade” association. Predominately, these have a common structure. The top tier is headquartered in Washington D.C., where laws and policies are made that affect all U. S. citizens. The next level is the “state” organization that usually is located in the “capital” city, also for the purpose of monitoring state legislation. Finally, the “grass roots” level consists of local members who join for the purpose of sharing information and education. This common “structure” theme promotes communication in both directions. From the “top-down” and from the “bottom-up”. Another common element to these organizations is they are predominately manned by volunteer members who devote their time and contributions to building a better industry. I have a long personal history with two of these organizations and I have been informed about a third local group that affects all of us, as well.

National Association of Realtors

Founded in May 1908, in Chicago, this trade association is one of the oldest and also claims to be the largest, in the United States. It’s goal is to provide support, guidance, free education, news and research to it’s members and the public, for the primary purpose of insuring the right to own, use and transfer real property through efficient and ethical practices by highly skilled professionals. No small task and one that requires daily effort. There are more than 1400 local associations that funnel into 54 “state” associations that represent all 50 US states, plus the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. At the end of July 2012, that represented a total membership of 993,715. One year ago, the total

membership was over one million members. You might be interested to know that Texas ranks third out of those 54”state” groups, with 76,040 realtor members, which is an increase over one year ago. We are surpassed only by California (152,533 members) and Florida (108,748 members). Fourth in line is New York with 47,790 members.

National Association of Homebuilders

Founded in 1942, as a separate entity, after breaking away from the “Real Estate Board”, to combat the huge war-time issues of rationing, shortages of building materials, and multiple government agencies regulating the homebuilding industry. By 1949, this organization claimed 14,000 members with 120 local chapters and 35 national staff members. My father joined this group in the early 1950’s and it has been an integral part of my life ever since. Today, their website claims more than 140,000 members nationwide. One third of that number represents Homebuilders and/or Remodelers, while the remaining two thirds represent Associates working in sales, marketing, finance or manufacturing and supplying building products. Their primary goal is to ensure housing remains a national priority with all Americans having access to safe, decent and affordable housing. They work daily on issues that affect the housing industry such as governmental regulations, mortgage finance, codes, energy and environmental requirements and member support and education. They claim that 80% of all new homes built in the United States, both single family and multi-family units, are built by NAHB members.

Air Conditioning Contractors of America

I was told about this group by a local member. Their two primary goals consist of promoting high industry standards and encouraging member education. This is a nationwide group organized by and for HVACR (Heating,Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration)businesses that design, install and maintain indoor environmental systems. It was incorporated over 40 years ago, which would put the time frame around late 1960’s or early 1970’s. I know from personal experience, my father started to install home “central heat and air” systems about 1954 and actually had to send one of his subcontractors to “school” to learn about the installation process. Let’s face it, history shows that only after “air

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Beach House Realty361-332-1021

PRESTIGIOUS PORT ROYAL 2/2 facing the Gulf of Mexico. Private, beautiful view. Upgrades, split plan, tile counters, fully furnished, wawsher/dryer. Spacious patio, assigned covered parking, huge pool, ship’s store and restaurant on premises. Low $200’s.

WATERFRONT--Fortuna Bay’s finest! 3/2 penthouse with high ceilings, completely redone in style with stainless, glass tile, granite, quality fixtures throughout, sumptuous baths, attractive furnishings, storage closet, boat dock, community pool/hot tub, tile/carpet. Ready to go, just move in or rent out--vacation rentals okay. Bring your boat. $164,900

CHARMING WATERFRONT single bedroom condo with washer/dryer. Remodeled interior, beachy colors, tile floors, upgraded bath, elec box/plugs switches replaced, ceiling fans, new baseboards, window coverings, privacy door on patio. This is a must see showing pride of ownership. Close to the proposed new Schlitterbahn and convenient to everything. Think investment! $99,900

Beach House Realty, Gail D. Spinn, Agent

BIG REDUCTION! UNDER OPTION

conditioning” became a viable option, did the Western and Southern portions of our nation start to grow. Today, that population shift (based on a comfortable environment) affects every area of our lives, especially politics. It has helped to distribute the “power base” away from the Northeast, much to their dismay. At the end of WWII, only one city, outside of the Northeast, claimed a population of over one million and that was Los Angeles. You cannot possibly underestimate the impact that this single industry has had on our daily lives and yet it is something we all take for granted. Contemplate for one moment the way America might look or what our energy infrastructure might be, without having the ability to control the temperature inside our living spaces. The ACCA maintains a professional staff at their national headquarters in Arlington, Virginia. However, locally they are hoping to strengthen their numbers. There are over 400 licensed H/A contractors in Corpus Christi, but ACCA has only 11

Contractor members and 5 Associate members. Their goal to promote education and consistent high standards requires support from inside their volunteer organization and from outside, in the local community. As with all non-profit organizations, funds are required to meet their needs. In South Texas, we need “cool air” and we like to FISH. So, you can support the local ACCA group, by entering their Fishing Tournament scheduled for Saturday, 6 October 2012, at Marker 37. Check-in starts at 5AM and weigh-in starts at 3:30PM. Anglers pay a fee of $35 each until September 7th (early bird discount), then the fee becomes $40 each. For any further information, you can contact: Priscilla Soliz by email: [email protected] Check the ACCA website: www.acca-coastalbend.org for local H/A contractors, who are members. Being informed is a good thing.

Looting the water plant

We were the first people to reach downtown after the storm as we rolled down I-10 and came to a stop amongst a throng of desperate people who had made their way out of the flooded Superdome and up onto the only dry ground around, the highway. I estimated the crowd at eight to ten thousand and they had not eaten anything but what they could liberate from vending machines in a week and had nothing but the cloths they stood up in. It didn’t escape my notice that I was driving an RV full of food and unless those solders were willing to fire into a crowd there wasn’t anything between us and anarchy except the fact that the crowd didn’t know what I was carrying. I locked the RV door and told the Japanese not to open it.

A group approached me and asked if we had water. The fact was we didn’t.

“There’s a water plant right over there,” I said. There was a warehouse just down the exit ramp with a sign. A group of about a dozen of us waded waste high water and broke out a window. We formed an ant trail and started moving ten gallon plastic bottles of water from the warehouse to the highway. I loaded them into the RV through the passenger side door to keep from opening the main door and I piled them to the ceiling. The weight made the thing drive like it was underwater but it was the only water we had for the next two weeks. The sun was starting to set and the Japanese were starting to pitch camp.

Master of Disaster

“We’ll stay here tonight,” their boss said.

“Wait right here,” I told him, and walked up to the Sergeant in the cab of a truck loaded with armed men.

“Are you guys going to stay here overnight,” I asked him.

“Are you nuts?” he said. “We’re not going to be around this crowd after dark. We’re getting the h--- outta here.”

“Mr. Shiuchi,” I said to the boss. “Those guys have thirty armed men in their truck and we got none and they’re leaving. If you want to stay it’s against my advice and I’m going with the soldiers.”

As we headed back across the bridge the dark city engulfed us. You couldn’t see it but you could feel it the same way you can always feel the powerful vibe in New Orleans - the City That Care Forgot. I had food, a full load of water, plenty of gasoline, cash, and a steady good paying gig with the Japanese whose checks never bounce. I was in front of every other journalist except one network at the center of the biggest story on the planet.

Stuff Continued from A4


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Gone Fishin’Back To The Cut

Capt. Joey Farah (361)442_8145 Facebook: Farah’s Backwater Fishing Adventures

As Fall creeps up on us many species of fish start to migrate towards the deeper areas of the bay system and the open Gulf of Mexico. One of the best place to get in the way of these fish migrations is the Land Cut. This narrow part of the Intracoastal Canal lies 37 miles from the JFK bridge and is absolutely accessible only by boat. You are a long way from home, the dock, cell phone service, and civilization when

get to “THE CUT”. Years ago it was a magical place where we hunted and fished. Many camps line the edge of the bank and years ago it was a everyone knows everyone community. Swarms of shrimp would come through and everyone would be catching them in small shrimp trawls. The big lights would come on at dark and you could find a barbecue, fish fry, and open bar at every camp. Many of those old timers are gone and the cabins have all been improved with a/c and big generators. The skyline is no longer the most remote parts of the Kennedy and King Ranch, but spotted with hundreds of wind mills. The fishing is still some of the best in the world and definitely one of the most consistent in our area. Right now look south to the Land Cut for a great opportunity to catch a great box of fish in protected water, if you have a boat sound enough to make the journey south, and back.

Huge schools of Black Drum have been up shallow early in the morning in the Land Cut with anglers catching them just off the drop-off with live shrimp, as well as sight casting to them with dead shrimp. Chumming them up with a few crushed crabs or tiny bits of live shrimp thrown into the water will bring them up to an aggressive feeding. The spring drum spawn is famous here in the Cut but at the present there are thousands of drum in the Land Cut ready to keep your fishermen hooked up and their drags running out.

The cool moving currents of the Land Cut and the over abundance of lots of bait is a reason that a huge population of mature trout live in

the Land Cut all year long. The angler that really enjoys fishing with artificial can be very productive all year long in the Cut. The clear water, grassy western edge of the channel, and the clear water make the Land Cut one of the best places to get a lure bit in the entire bay. Top Waters at first light along the drop off is an explosion waiting to happen.

Flounder flock to the Cut for the next three months, concentrating around the shallow edges were small minnows are targets for these silent hidden predators. As kids we loved flounder gigging there and snorkeling with spears along the channel. My friend Cody Bates taught me tricks to catch these tasty flat fish from the Cut.

Most of his tactics are to jig soft plastics and small finger mullet or mud minnows along every piece of structure along the edge of the channel. Any irregular sandy spots or bends in the channel are key as well as the few cuts back to Nine Mile Hole. But The Hole is a entire separate world full of Redfish.

I’ve been surfing till I can’t move in South Padre so I apologize for the short tease, forgive me and I’ll see you next week with a good story and some great pics to get you out on the water.

There are great numbers of drum in the Land Cut.

Leah Harmon with a nice flounder from the edge of the Intracoastal.

The Land Cut is a great place for young anglers for many reasons.

dogs are still unaccounted for and possibly in a large mass grave that no-one was supposed to know about!

The people who took care of me ten months ago were informed of my situation by a friend in California who heard of our plight. They then had to review photographs of all of us and see if I was one of the survivors. The management at Spindletop would not help in the identification or produce any paperwork verifying who each one of us was. I was eventually found, sorted out, and brought back to Corpus Christi where all of this began. I still have heartworms, I have not been spayed, I have a lung infection, and I may have had another litter. I am still trying though and I just can’t give up yet.

Please help

I would like to find a forever home close to the family that has saved me now twice. Their situation has not changed – they already have three rescue dogs and a cat. I am very needy at this time and I hate to be alone or locked in a kennel during the day, and male dogs seem to scare me a bit right now. My attitude is good but I will admit I need some training on manners, people skills, and personal relationships. On the bright side I am learning to walk on a leash, I have no fear of noises, I love to ride in trucks, and I do sleep thru the night in my kennel. I am going to the beach this weekend to see if I can swim and if I like the water.

I love to be held and will fall asleep on your lap in under a minute if you rub my head, or just be in the same room where people are. I will lie down quietly just as long as I can see or hear you close by. My current medical bills will be covered by my present foster parents all the way to my heartworms going away, my lung infections healing, and my spaying operation. I would really like to be an only dog or in a home with only one other dog and live happily ever after.

Thank you for your thoughts about me and others like me. My foster parents can be reached at 361-877-8521.

Hoja Continued from A1goal is to complete ‘the walk’ all over the Island and to again successfully increase turnout at the polls.

It is not too early to volunteer your time. You will be picking up the door hangers at a specified location and distributing them in a specified area. By volunteering early, you may choose ‘the walk’ containing the blocks/area you prefer. Please contact Pam Maupin at [email protected] or phone 949-8708; give your name and contact information and you will be placed on the volunteer list. Our goal is the have the volunteers signed up by September 26th so we can proceed with this needed project…. and we must have enough volunteers to reach all residents. Your Island PAC is looking forward to meeting you and working with you. See you on ‘the walk.’

PAC Continued from A1

Beach Bums!

On August 21st, the Island PIPPs Chapter of Red Hats held their traditional

August luncheon at the Corpus Christi Yacht Club. There were many prizes and laughs. A special thanks to our hostesses

Lauret Bridgford & Judy Johnson.

Red Hats Soiree

Back Porch Katie prepares for battle at the Texas Women Anglers Tournament

held last weekend in Port Aransas. A full list of winners with more photos is on

page A 14

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