The Collin County Texas Blog

 A small town on the verge of explosive growth. That would be my description of Weston, Texas. If you removed the asphalt from the main street, one could almost envision horses and buggies on the street and people milling about.

 Ok. It isn't that old looking. But the town is small at the moment. With development starting, that won't last, of course. I'll give it a couple years at most. For this writing, Weston is still a small town. If you want to see it before it grows out of proportion, do it now!

 -- Frank

Tesla rolls out its long-awaited electric sports car

By JOHN ROGERS, Associated Press Writer Posted Fri May 2, 2008 1:18pm PDT

LOS ANGELES - It's safe to say Jeremy Snyder gets a charge out of the two-seat Tesla Roadster whenever he pulls one off the lot — and not because it's equipped with an all-electric engine.

As he pulled one of the sleek new automobiles down a side street Thursday and put the pedal to the metal, its lithium-ion battery-powered engine didn't give off sparks. It just emitted a powerful hum, something like a much quieter version of a jet taking off. ...More...

Nice concept. Not overly expensive when one considers it. Nice mileage too. I just can't wait for the electric family car to get here. Or maybe a SUV?

 Right now, I'd settle for some good mass transit in Collin County. 

 -- Frank 

Yes, I'm older than many and younger than some. I remember gasoline at $.15 a gallon, Sock Hops (That's a dance party), Swamp Coolers, and some other things. We didn't have a lot of money. In fact, we had very little money. We learned how make it last. With that in mind:

 Turn the AC off when you are not using it or don't need it. That thing costs a lot more than you think. If the fan unit is in your attic where all the heat is, it's worse. Window units are the least costly in electric usage. If it is a nice day outside, turn the AC off and sit outside. You can wave at the neighbors and the cars driving by. You might even meet some nice people. Don't bother yelling pleasantries at the cars, they can't hear you with the windows up and the bass booming ... but they might notice the wave.

 Speaking of cars, do you really need that AC running? In a traffic jam it might be needed, but flying down the road at 20 mph over the speed limit while trying to get someplace that you are late for because you procrastinated? On that note (middle C), leave in time to get to where you are going without having to drive like a crazy person. That only uses more gasoline and wastes your nerves. Save those for dealing with the booming cars ... and your kids ... if you have any ... still at home.

 There are lots of other things you can do to save a buck. These are just a few that hit me in the head. I'm sure the swelling will go down in a few days.

 -- Frank 

 We wanted to get some photos of blue bonnets for a project. Plus, I wanted to get some photos for Collin County Station. It might seems strange to go to Wylie to do both of these things, but it worked out well.

 Wylie is just south of Lake Lavon. If you locate Farm Road 2514 and Highway 78, you have found Wylie. We paid a visit to the downtown area there and visited a few shops. I was really expecting a large city with the feel of a large city. What I got was a small town with a nice feel to it. 

 Originally named "Nickelville", the town moved to it's current location when the  Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway laid tracks just north of its original location. Just a half mile move, but it must have been a big effort back in the mid 1880s. 

 We got a late start and didn't get to explore as much as I would have liked, but we did get some photos. You can see them on the Wylie page of Collin County Station. I hope to get back to Wylie soon and get some more exploring done.  

 Oh yeah, we drove north on Highway 78 and found some blue bonnets around Mallard Park on Lake Lavon.

 -- Frank 

 Just north of McKinney and partially in Denton County is the city of Frisco. Although started as a "watering hole and whistle stop", it bares little resemblance to that today.

 The corner of Farm road 720 and State Highway 289 gets you to the city of Frisco. From there you can travel south to Highway 121 and the Stonebriar Mall if you like shopping. Or you can head west to the Pizza Hut/Dr. Pepper park which is used for sports and shows of all kinds. Across from the park is the "Frisco Square". The center of the square contains the Frisco City Hall. I understand that there is a Farmer's Market there during the summer months. 

 I hope to make a trip back to Frisco soon to get more photos and explore more. You should make a visit there as well.

 -- Frank

 Chestnut Square in McKinney is hosting Living History days on various dates during the year. Saturday, April 12 was one such day. My grand daughter sent my wife and I a "Flat Stanley" to take around the Collin County area. If you don't know what "Flat Stanley" is, check the link.

 So, with a friend and Flat Stanley in tow, we set off to the Living History days. It was fun. We visited several of the historic houses and Dixie's Store. We watched a Civil War reenactment and generally looked around. Stanley went to the old one room school house and had his photo taken with the teacher. He also met some of the people participating in the reenactment and listened to a story about how things were in the past. You can see some photos and a short movie at the link. Be patient. The server is slow at times.

 As for me, I love to go to things like this. It's fun to see and hear about history. There will be more Living History Days in Chestnut Square. Visit their site for information.

 My wife will be writing a more detailed report for Kateline, I'm sure.
 

 -- Frank

 Just south of McKinney and north of Plano is the town of Allen. There are several exits off of highway 75 into Allen. I like to get there via highway 5 from the south or north. It just "feels" better. There is no Main Street exit, but from highway 5 or 75 when you find McDermott you will be able to get to Main Street and the old downtown area.

 Look for the train tracks and follow them south. They will lead you to the old rail station. It is now a museum. I've not been there yet, but plan to make an outing there. Somewhere, I have yet to find it, is the old railway dam used to facilitate the steam trains that ran through Allen in those days. I'd bet they can tell you where it is at the museum. For information on places to see, you might try the Allen Heritage Guild site.

 Shopping is abundant. The Allen Premium Outlet mall is just off of highway 75 and Stacy Road. And the Central Business District in the area of highway 5 and McDermott. 

All in all, with a little exploring and a visit to the Allen page of Collin County Station, you should have a great time in Allen.

-- Frank 

 Campaigning must be hard work. I know, some will say "Yeah, it is." But what I mean is that it must be exhausting and require a lot of recuperating afterwards. I understand that there is a lot of effort in going out to meet the public, giving speeches and such as that. But really, isn't that what politicians do all the time. Shouldn't one be in shape to do this?

 My point is this. It seems that our County Commissioners and elected officials "hit the campaign trail" get elected and the go to sleep until the next election. Why do I say this? Because many of them don't seem to tell anyone what they are doing in the position for which they are elected. Some have blogs or web sites. These blogs and sites get attention when it is election time. All kinds of notes and articles appear as if by magic. Then, after the election is won, the "lights go out" until the next election. Even more "proof" is that the elected officials that are not being challenged for their position don't even bother to post during the election. The only reason I can come up with is that they are so exhausted after elections that they have to rest until the next one ... or at least until the next one in which they are challenged.

 With that said, I am sure that the elected officials do a lot of things for and in the county. Why not let the people know this on their page and in their blog? If they have no blog, start one. Tell us when you will be at some event that the public could attend. After all, you do want public  input, right? Let us know what you are doing and what is happening. Yes, I know that there are county events and press releases posted on the Official Collin County site, but it's not the same as reading it from the individuals. Heck, I might even post the events on the calendar on Collin County Station.

 With that thought, I think I'll take a nap.

-- Frank 

 Yes, it exists. To find it you locate HWY-380 or 121 and follow either of them to the eastern edge of Collin County. There you will find HWY-78 off of 380 or 160 off of 121. Between 121 and 380 on 78 is County Road 981. Go east on it. Just a bit down the road is a water supply tank that is blue with a frog painted on it and the words "Frognot Texas". Just a bit farther and there are some buildings and houses. Visit the photos on Collin County Station's "Frognot, Texas Photos" for some photos. Maybe I can get some more photos next time I'm out that way.

 If you make a trip out that way and then wonder what to do next, you might try visiting the town of Blue Ridge. It's just the other side of HWY-78 and is a nice place. Farmersville is just south of Frognot on HWY-78 and has a historic town square. If you came from HWY-380, you went past the west side of the Farmersville and if you came from 121, Blue Ridge is on business 78 just west of 78 on 981.

 And there you have it. Frognot Texas.

-- Frank 

 I suppose its an ok day, but I never liked it when I was in school. Seemed that I was always the one getting fooled.

 So when, where and how did this thing get started?  From what I can find, no one knows for sure. It isn't a holiday but seems to be celebrated in many countries. It could be a left over from some celebration or just something that someone started and it evolved over time. Either way, the day seems to have developed a "history" that might or might not be true. 

 With that in mind, what have you done today that was foolish, fooled someone or was just a prank? Need ideas? Just do a search for "April fools day pranks" and you'll get more than you ever imagined. Umm ... Just leave me out of them, ok?

--- Frank

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