To West Texas

(This post is better appreciated if you click on the pictures to see them in all their glory while listening to this)

Ah yes, good ol' Texas. If you don't remember about where I live, go down to a post called "And the Sky Darkened" in November or December.

Huge expanses of mesquite-strewn land, crops, and sweet nothingness to disturb stargazing. Rich history: Native American, cowboy, black and hispanic lore alike. While no mountains can get boring, it can also be beautiful: the sky is bigger here than anywhere I've ever been to. Home to the second-biggest canyon in North America and some big bugs, too. Wait, "show, don't tell," is the motto many teachers live by. So, here goes.

Houses like these are all over the Great Plains, left over from homesteaders facing hard times. Some of these are left over from the Homestead Act of 1862, while some I reckon are abandoned due to the Great Depression and the famed Dust Bowl.

The second largest canyon in North America, aka the Texas Grand Canyon aka Palo Duro Canyon in Canyon, TX

As a wise man said, "All these historical markers telling of atrocities to the Natives should start with 'It is with great shame that . . .'". I figure it is because of the shame that they say it.

My mum, dad and sister looking down on the Canyon.

At the end of the stick, my dad is holding a centipede.

Yup. Scared my mum and sis half-to-death.

Although BBQ is king here, it still can't beat a Guatemalan churrasco.

Sunset over the plains.

"The stars at night are big and bright *clap clap clap clap* deep in the heart of Texas!" The song was banned in the UK during WWII because distracted workers would slow down production to join in the clapping.

Spring and Summer mean storms pop up somewhere over Texas every evening. I've seen softball sized hail before.

A tornado roping out by I-27 en route to Lubbock. My mum pointed it out and we weren't sure it was a tornado. By the time we were convinced it was and my camera was out, it was roping out. My sister and I called 911 and called it in, only 1 of 2 tornadoes reported that day in the US. Thankfully, it never touched the ground and the storm did not spawn any more tornadoes. 

After the storm, several rainbows appeared. How fitting.