by Phil Houseal | Jun 10, 2015 | All Articles, History, Philosophy
June 10, 2015–I was thinking about my Aunt Rose this week. She was 250 years old. At least she seemed to be that age in my childish worldview. She was actually born in 1898, the ninth of 10 children, and sister to my Grandma Annie. As parents do with all old...
by Phil Houseal | Apr 15, 2015 | All Articles, History, People of the Hill Country, Philosophy
April 15, 2015–Readers sometimes ask what is the best show I have ever seen. Well, it happened in a dusty cattle barn on a cold January morning. My kids and I had taken in our three goats to be sheared in preparation for the stock show. We arrived at 7:30 a.m. so we...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 15, 2015 | People of the Hill Country
It was a great Hill Country day to take a tour of Garrison Brothers Distillery. It was on our way and combined three irresistible draws: a trip that starts with a wagon ride, ends with a shot of bourbon, and is near a town whose name is a greeting–Hye. We pulled into...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 15, 2015 | People of the Hill Country
You know… our parents were right. About everything. As I lie in the sun and contemplate the world, I realize that their parenting style worked, because it was based on real consequences. If you didn’t plant the garden, you didn’t have beans and berries to put up...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 10, 2015 | Events, People of the Hill Country
Feb 4, 2015–It’s a science nerd’s dream. Can you imagine playing in a 3-dimensional sandbox? Or standing inside a silo with LEDs that light up in response to ambient cell phone use? Or walking through an aquifer as you follow a drop of rain on its journey to become...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 10, 2015 | Events, People of the Hill Country
Jan 28, 2015–As I recently watched a family member travel the dim journey through dementia, I was intensely curious how the disease appeared from inside the mind of the victim. Fredericksburg Middle School theater teacher David Remschel had the same question, and...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 10, 2015 | People of the Hill Country, Uncategorized
Jan 14, 2015 We would have no use for stories Backyard streams would flow undammed There would be no actors for an old man’s memories And the prophet’s cry would go unheeded If not for children. While digging through old files last week, I found that ode to children I...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 10, 2015 | People of the Hill Country
Jan 21, 2015–If you’re not making mistakes, you’re doing something wrong. Goes against everything you’ve learned, right? We grow up thinking mistakes are bad. We fear goofing up in front of peers. From when you made the last out in slow pitch to when you gave the...
by Phil Houseal | Feb 10, 2015 | Music
It’s a hackneyed line: What is the difference between a fiddle and a violin? The question came up because one of the selections at this Saturday’s Pops concert with Symphony of the Hills is the Charlie Daniels string-burner The Devil Went Down To Georgia. Not your...
by Phil Houseal | Sep 24, 2014 | All Articles, Education, History, Philosophy
Sept 24, 2014–I remember the year my dad took a painting class. It changed the way I looked at grownups. This happened around my fourth-grade year. My dad would have been in his early 40s then… a very old person in my worldview. At dinner one evening, he...
