by Phil Houseal | Oct 10, 2018 | All Articles, History, People of the Hill Country, Venue
Oct 10, 2018–G-g-g-g-g-ghosts? In Fredericksburg? Afraid so. “Every building on Main Street has a ghost story,” said Derek Spence, head wraith wrangler for his new endeavor, Fredericksburg Ghost Tours. “The hardest part has been narrowing the scope to keep the...
by Phil Houseal | Oct 4, 2018 | All Articles, Events, Music, Philosophy
Oct 3, 2018–One night while playing drums in a smoky bar somewhere in Texas, I kicked off the band on a Hank Williams song we’d played 99 times before. But on this night for some reason, I listened to the words for the first time. It was, I realized, a good song....
by Phil Houseal | Sep 27, 2018 | All Articles, Events, Music, People of the Hill Country, Venue
Sept 26, 2018–When you talk about “picking” with folk and bluegrass singer/songwriters Katy Lou and Penny Lea Clark, you need to make sure you are talking about playing music and not harvesting the colorful legumes that gave their band its name–The Purple Hulls....
by Phil Houseal | Sep 20, 2018 | All Articles, Music, People of the Hill Country, Philosophy
Sept 19, 2018–When I heard the news that the world lost Mark Hierholzer last week, I didn’t want to believe it. I didn’t want to write about it, either. But I changed my mind. Mark Hierholzer made a lot of people change their minds. For those not aware of his...
by Phil Houseal | Sep 13, 2018 | All Articles, People of the Hill Country, Philosophy
Sept 12, 2018–Four years ago I watched a family member travel the frustrating journey through dementia. Standing by helplessly as they navigated the confusing, twisting, vexing path made me yearn to understand what the person was experiencing, if only so I could know...
by Phil Houseal | Sep 6, 2018 | All Articles, Education, Music, People of the Hill Country
Sept 5, 2018–When you think of Schreiner University, the first thing that comes to mind is not mariachi music. But if an enthusiastic group of young musicians have their way, mariachis might take their place alongside Mountaineers. When Courtland Gully, a Junior from...
