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"Together Alone,"
Country Lifestyle,
September/October 2009
It feels slightly ironic to
meet Susan Wittig Albert at a busy book store coffee shop. After all,
I'm interviewing her regarding her newest book, Together Alone: A
Memoir of Marriage and Place, which documents her journey into
self-discovery, a journey rooted in solitude and quietness. But there
are many facets to this jewel of a lady, each reflecting life
differently, yet part of the whole person.
Together Alone,
released in early September, is a memoir derived from journals that
Albert kept for several decades. Now age 69, she had packed mountains of
events, feelings and descriptions into her daily diary, along with a lot
of ordinary observations about life. But the commonality of these
entries is the glue that binds her impressions into a cohesive story
about her marriage, writing career, and the Hill Country homestead she
loves and nourishes. |
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"Pining for the Perfect
Tree?,"
Texas Highways,
December 2009
The steady stream of cars
rumbling toward us, Christmas trees lapping over the roofs and kids'
hands waving out the windows, hints of the frenetic activity ahead. My
husband, Larry, and I have just turned off US 290, east of Elgin, onto
Roy Davis Road on a trip to the Elgin Christmas Tree Farm.
After a few more twist and
turns, we arrive at the farm's fill parking lot, where customers load up
and tie down their mesh-encased greenery. Beyond them, on the main
grounds, children jump and tumble on haystacks. |
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"Food Processor,"
Texas Journey,
July/August 2009
Ross Burtwell, owner-chef at
the Cabernet Grill Texas Wine Country Restaurant in Fredericksburg, is
known for his loyalty to Lone Star State products. Like a child at play,
he energetically mixes and matches his seasonal menus with a wine list
that features 81 Texas varieties. The restaurant is a member of the
Texas Department of Agriculture's Go Texan program, which promotes all
sorts of businesses that sell homegrown and homemade products. |
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“Filling
Empty Bowls,”
American Profile, October, 2008
In November 1990, art teacher John
Hartom wanted students at Lahser High School in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
(pop. 3,940), to participate in a local food drive, so he came up with a
unique idea - students would craft ceramic bowls, invite the faculty to
a soup lunch and request donations. |
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“Sound
Lessons,”
American Profile, May 11, 2008
Golf instructor Mike Houston, 40, is in constant motion—twisting and
turning, stooping low and pointing high—at Plum Creek Golf Course in
Kyle Texas, while teaching his deaf students the game’s fundamentals.
Houston’s hands do his talking, whether it’s demonstrating a grip on a
golf club or offering praise through sign language. |
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“Preserving
Paint Rock’s Pictographs,” Texas Profile, February 10, 2008
Kay Campbell, 80, walks along a dusty trail on her central Texas ranch,
leading a tour group of school children. She stops along the way to
point out dozens of crude drawings painted on a rock bluff overlooking a
once popular American Indian campground. Ranging from a few inches to
several feet in size, the rock art is the legacy of American Indian
tribes that roamed the area centuries ago. Some of the
drawings—animals, human figures, weapons, stars and suns—tell stories
that experts can decipher, while others remain mysterious, vague
communications from cultures that existed some 200 to 500 years ago.
Contact for complete article |
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"The
Passion of James Avery" American Profile, January 2008.
Sitting on a
small wooden bench he built more than 50 years ago, James
Avery, 85, dons safety glasses and picks up a thin wire to
scratch out a pattern on a thumbnail-sized piece of silver.
As his long, nimble fingers mark the piece of metal, he
transforms from a man talking about jewelry to a man making
jewelry. After hammering and filing, the metal begins to
take on the shape of a cross. It’s a process Avery has honed
through decades of handcrafting exquisite jewelry.
In his
Kerrville, Texas (pop. 20,425), workshop, Avery meticulously
fashions simple religious symbols into wearable art—a
passion that netted more than $100 million in sales in 2006
for the company that bears his name. Known simply as James
Avery to collectors of his timeless designs, his creations
are destined to become heirlooms for future generations.
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"Into
the Light" Country Lifestyle, November/December 2007
Artist Mikki Senkarik
watches eight hummingbirds flutter among feeders outside her window. She
gazes at 200-year-old spreading oak trees, flowers blooming in her
garden, and clouds of butterflies flitting around her front door. "It's
like magic," she says, grateful for the ability to enjoy such vivid and
uplifting scenes daily.
Senkarik and her husband
Jack White, also an artist, have lived in the Hill Country area for only
a few months, but they love the rural setting. Early mornings find them
in the garden, a place Senkarik says gives her plenty of reference
material for her art. |
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"Sky's the Limit"
Country Lifestyle, July/August 2007
The loud hum becomes a momentary roar,
and Joann Anderson steps out her back door just in time to
wave to her neighbor as his plane ascends into the cloudless
sky. This is a common occurrence since her backyard ends at
the runway of Lakeway Airport.
Some Lakeway
residents think having a fairway for a backyard is paradise.
Others live on the edge of Lake Travis with their boats
docked just a short walk from their homes. But perhaps the
most enthralling are those who can taxi their private planes
straight from garage to airstrip. That's what life is like
for Lakeway residents Joann and Jimmy Anderson.
Contact for complete article
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"Teaching
Clover and the Kids" American Profile, November 2007
Makena Mailer, 4, loves the greeting
he gets each morning at The Greenwood School, in Oak Hill,
Texas. Waiting inside the door is Clover—a black Labrador
retriever—tail wagging and ready to play.
Just for a
second, Clover gets a little too friendly. Makena calmly
gives a command, “Sit,” and Clover immediately responds. “I
like when she listens to me,” Makena says with a grin.
Clover isn’t
an ordinary pet. The fun-loving 2-year-old Lab is in
training to become a guide dog for the visually impaired.
The children—ages 2 to 5—at the home-based preschool help to
enforce the rules of her specialized training.
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"Leading
an Inspired Life" American Profile, October
2007
On his
daughter Lana’s wedding day in 1994, Bill Hyche surprised
her with a special gift he had been working on since she
left home to attend college five years earlier.
Like many
anxious parents whose children are setting out on their own,
Hyche, of Lakeway, Texas (pop. 8,002), wanted to share
values he considered important. After struggling for two
years to compose a letter, he threw it away, electing
instead to print a colorful poster featuring sayings that
offer simple, sage advice, such as “Exceed Expectations,”
“Do Not Judge,” “Learn to Communicate,” “Forgive Others” and
“Give Money Away.”
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"Cap Guns Not Just Kid
Stuff" Antiques & Collecting, October 2006
On first glance, the
Trois Estate at Enchanted Rock blends into the rocky landscape of
Central Texas, with its Western décor and tan stucco buildings. But
wander inside, and you'll find an entirely different world, a myriad of
fascinating collections comprised of thousands of historic, artistic,
even eccentric items that Charles Trois has spent a lifetime amassing.
His specialty is
memorabilia from the Old West, including cowhide vests and jackets,
original peace medals given by the U.S. government to American Indian
tribes, holsters, knives, antique firearms, intricately carved saddles,
heavily beaded purses, and more. Items literally fill every shelf, wall
and room of the estate. "I got hooked and started collecting," Trois
(rhymes with Joyce) remarked, an understatement for sure.
Contact for complete article |
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"Airport Rangers"
Texas Profile, October 8-14, 2006
A purple bandana wraps
Emily Perez' brown curls as she mounts her horse Kee, who trots off down
a tree-shadowed trail near Houston's George Bush Intercontinental
Airport. Moments later, Perez, 41, and several other riders burst
through a wooded area and head across an open field. Among them is David
Poynor, shielding his eyes to watch planes roar down the runway to go
skyward. His gaze quickly drops to the wire fence separating grass from
concrete and he scans the landscape for irregularities.
Wearing bright orange
vests and red T-shirts, theirs is an equestrian coalition with a
mission. Poynor, 67, is coordinator of the Houston Airport Rangers, a
group of 800 volunteer citizens who patrol and secure the airport's
12,000-acre wooded perimeter.
Contact for complete article |
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"Plastic
Fantastic" The History
Channel Magazine,
September/October,
2005
Flying a plastic airplane in
the 1950s meant gliding a child's toy - except for Leo Windecker.
A dentist in Lake Jackson, Texas, and an
amateur pilot, Windecker had long been interested in airplanes when he
began experimenting with materials for use in wing construction.
Remembering his university studies ("Many people aren't aware that a
dental degree is about half medicine and half engineering," he says),
Windecker saw clues to efficient aircraft design in the load-carrying
anatomy of the human skeleton.
Contact for complete article |
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"Aiming
for Gold" American
Profile,
May 8, 2005
Cinda Brooks, of Spicewood, Texas, triggers her revolver, takes aim at a
paper silhouette target 25 yards away, and fires off rounds with amazing
accuracy. Between target practice, the 43-year-old lieutenant game
warden for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) hits the
track, running several miles with her dog, Rusty.
All of the shooting and
running, as well as hours of biking and swimming, are part of a weekly
routine for Brooks, who's training to defend her title as a six-time
Women's Biathlon Champion at the World Police and Fire Games, scheduled
June 26 to July 5 in Quebec, Canada. |
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"Return
to Flight" American
Profile,
April 17, 2005
The dream of
being an astronaut began in fourth grade for Eileen Collins.
It was a daring dream for a young girl in the 1960s—a time
when the United States wasn’t sure about continuing space
exploration and all of the nation’s astronauts were men.
But Collins
didn’t need a role model; instead, she became one. Not only
did she serve as NASA’s first female shuttle pilot in 1995
(on a rendezvous mission with the Russian Space Station
Mir), but she also became the first—and only—female shuttle
commander in the space shuttle’s 24-year history when she
led a Columbia mission in 1999. A veteran of three space
flights, Collins has logged more than 537 hours in space.
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