Texas Independence Day Celebration
March 1-2, 2008 10am-5pm
Washington-on-the-Brazos State Historic Site

Visit this historic site during the 172nd birthday celebration! Enjoy the free two-day historic festival, with folk in period dress, craft demonstrations, military reenactments and music.

Visit Texas authors and have them sign your favorite book about Texas.

View the hand painted lithographs by naturalist John James Audubon, Audubon’s Creations: His Texas Legacy.

Colonel Travis (in spirit) will be on hand to convey why he and 188 other heroes chose to make a stand in San Antonio de Bexar on March 6, 1836.

Watch Gone to Texas, a musical production about the life of Sam Houston or Once Upon a Time in Texas, songs and stories from Texas History.

The historic site includes:

• Independence Hall-relive the moment Texas was created with a tour through the replica constructed on the cornerstones of the original building where Independence was declared. Tours throughout the weekend.
• Star of the Republic Museum-Delve into Texas’ colorful past through the award-winning exhibits and hands-on activities at this outstanding museum. Open 10–5 daily.
• Demonstrators Trail-Period craft demonstrators and reenactment camps bring the past to life with displays throughout the weekend. Located between the Museum and the Visitors Center; also in the Museum.
• Barrington Living History Farm–Visit the home of the last President of Texas, Anson Jones, and learn what life was like on an 1850’s cotton farm complete with outdoor kitchen, oxen, hogs, chickens and chores. Open 10–5 daily.

Interested in Texas and the fight for independence? The historic Texas Independence Trail is a road trip that takes you

Right-click HERE to download the Texas Independence Trail brochure.

Here is a list of the State Parks and Historic Sites on or near to the Independence Trail.

• Bastrop State Park, Bastrop
• Battleship TEXAS State Historic Site, La Porte
• Brazos Bend State Park, Needville
• Buescher State Park, Smithville
• Casa Navarro State Historic Site, San Antonio
• Fannin Battleground State Historic Site, Fannin
• Galveston Island State Park, Galveston
• Goliad State Park, Goliad
• Lockhart State Park, Lockhart
• Monument Hill/Kreische Brewery State Historic Sites, La Grange
• Palmetto State Park, Gonzales
• San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site, La Porte
• Sebastopol State Historic Site, Seguin
• Sheldon Lake State Park, Houston
• Stephen F. Austin State Park, San Felipe
• Varner-Hogg Plantation State Historic Site, West Columbia
• Washington-on-the Brazos State Historic Site, Washington

Find information on any of these parks and historic sites at Texas Parks and Wildlife website HERE.

Note: The Alamo is NOT on the Independence Trail. The defenders of the Alamo held Santa Anna and his arm at bay to give Sam Houston and his ragtag militia time to develop into a fighting force that could defeat Santa Anna.

We Texans have not had this much attention focused on our state since we sent our last governor to the White House, and we are still trying to live that down.

I have answered 25 opinion polls in the past week. In the same time period, I have been solicited for as much cash as I make in a year. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are hitting Texas hard, battling hard for votes in the upcoming Texas primary. They debated once already and will debate again next week. The debates between the two candidates are so incredibly polite that they are almost a non-event.

U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy spoke for Barack Obama Thursday on the campus of Texas State University-San Marcos. Caroline Kennedy will be making an appearance in Austin on Tuesday. I think it is incredibly meaningful that they both came to Texas–where her father and his brother–the hope of the nation, was shot and killed on daytime television on November 22, 1963.

I noticed that Cesar Chavez’s son and Robert Kennedy, Jr. are both actively stumping for Hillary Clinton. Clinton is hoping the strong Hispanic vote will turn out for her. Barrack Obama is garnering support from the unions. I can tell you that the Democrats are early voting in record numbers in my county.

This is a historic election. This is the first time a woman or a black man have been in the running for the top spot of the USA. I only wish they were not running against each other. I guess it is better than having to vote for four more years of the same!

While looking for information on the touring bike rides in my previous post, I happened upon CruiserStyle.com, a cool website for people who are looking for a cruiser bicycle, like the one below. One-speed is all I can handle and I love the whitewall tires. These bikes remind me of the bikes I had as a child. You could go anywhere as long as your legs held out!

26″ XYZ Deluxe Beach Cruiser for women in Vanilla

Truth be told, I still have a one-speed cruiser with fat tires because I feel most comfortable riding this style of bicycle. CruiserStyle has a bike, similar to the one pictured above, with seven gears for those high-tech bikers who know how to use them. I just never got the hang of it. They also have beach cruisers for men and children, including some stretch cruiser bikes. You have got to see these! The bike pictured above is available in flat pink, pink, and baby blue for $145. This is about 1/3 of what I spent on my son’s last bike, which was left to rust in the back yard.

If you want one of the bells like you had when you were a kid, a basket big enough to be useful, or fenders, they have all these accessories too. The only thing they were missing were the tassels for the handlebars that stream out when you are cruising. They are hard to find nowadays.

Well, I enjoyed this trip down my nostalgia bike lane, I hope you did too! Check out CruiserStyle.com if you are in the mood for a basic bike.