Day Trip to Midland

Donna and I had some business in Midland, so on Wednesday we made a day trip there. Midland was our home for several years from the late 1990's until the early 2000's. Of all the places we have lived over the years, Midland was probably our favorite. We really enjoyed our time there.

We set out early in the morning. Somewhere along US 87 north of Water Valley and south of Sterling City, we came across what must have been some type of controlled burn on the east side of the highway right-of-way. I can't say with certainty that it was a controlled burn, but all of the burn area was along the right-of-way, and had not spread across the fence lines onto the neighboring ranch lands with one exception. And the burned area was not continuous. The burned area spread over a distance of several miles, probably at least 5, and there were a few stretches that were not burned. I wonder what happened.

You can see how neatly the burned area stayed on the right-of-way, not crossing the fence line. And the burn was only on the east side of the divided 4 lane highway.

More burn area, just farther along than the picture above.

Just north of Sterling City, we turned west onto Texas 158. We had not been on this highway for years. I think the last time we were on this highway was when grandson Camden was born, so that was almost 5 years ago. At that time, the traffic was terrible on this 2-lane highway, largely due to the latest oil boom activity in the area. I did not feel safe on that road, so we began going to Midland by way of Big Spring, a route that adds about 13 miles but provided much peace of mind. Since that time, though, Texas 158 has been expanded to 4 lanes. I feel much better traveling this highway now. Most of the traffic is still oil related, which means all kinds of trucks of various sizes driving at high rates of speed and entering and exiting the highway all along the route.

Wow, talk about an ant bed! That Midland is busy, busy, busy. It has changed greatly in the 15 or so years since we lived there. Everywhere we went, traffic was heavy. The exit off I-20 at Rankin Highway (Texas 349) was backed up. The entire west loop had heavy traffic, with everyone in a hurry. At lunch, all the eating places were packed, with traffic backed up entering the parking lot of the place we decided to visit. And new businesses were everywhere. The place has certainly grown. It is an exciting town for West Texas; there is much going on there.

Donna and I travel quite a bit, and we cover all areas of Texas. One thing I've noticed for the past few years or so can be seen in the picture below, which I took as we were entering Sterling City from the north. These two speed limit signs are typical across the state. The first sign shows the speed limit to be 70 mph, which is what it had been for the past several miles. Then, just a few yards beyond it, is another sign indicating a reduction in speed. What is the purpose, then, of showing the current speed if it is about to change? How many signs like this are there around the state? As I said, we see them all over. Our state highway department has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars no doubt -- perhaps more -- erecting these signs. For what reason? Seems like a big waste of taxpayer money to me. I'll give the folks in charge the benefit of the doubt, though, and suggest they may have a good reason. I'd sure like to know it, though. Think about how much each sign costs, then how much labor is required to put up the sign. In a small town like Sterling City, you would have at least 3 of these signs (US 87 as it enters from north and south, and Texas 158 as it enters from the east. Since Texas 158 merges with US north of town, it would not have a separate set of signs.) Now, think of a town like San Angelo, that has many more highways entering. That equals lots of dollars for signage.

I'll leave you with the picture below of the Glassock County Courthouse in Garden City, Texas. The population of Glasscock County was 1,226 folks in 2010. In that same census year, the population of Garden City was 334. For years, agriculture dominated the economy here, but oil production is the big player in the area now. When I worked at Region 18 ESC in Midland, I always enjoyed working with the school folks in Garden City; that was an excellent school in those days, and probably still is.

Glasscock County Courthouse in Garden City, Texas