If only we all had this kind of latitude…:)

Every mile I have pedaled these last three days in hill country and now into east Texas I have thanked Lady Bird Johnson, the force behind the Highway Beautification Act (signed by President Johnson in the late 1960s).  After torrential rains at the beginning of the week (a hindrance to cycling but a boon for spring), the roadside and meadows have been bright with blue bonnets, Indian paint brush, and a sea of yellows, pinks and purples.

 

 

Thanks to Lady Bird and LBJ for scaring the devil out of anyone who might consider littering – and for creating a Federal Act to inspire planting all those wild flowers.

I am about to cycle out of Texas after nearly 1000 miles crossing this varied landscape and there are some historical and modern day themes that underscore this renegade state’s heritage:  Virtues, vices, warnings and temptations (some that never occurred to me!), along with several surefire ways to get OUT of trouble…

 

 

 

mess with Texas!

Here’s the kicker…