Ye can taketh thy man out from Texaf yonder, but ye shant e’er taketh thy Texaf out of thy man.

Chaucer: The Canterbury Tales, Ch. XLVI



I come from Uvalde, a small, south-west Texas town named after the great Mexican General, Juan de Ugalde, widely regarded by historians as one of the greatest military leaders of the 19th century, who heroically led the defense against the Coahuila Apaches.

Yes, it is out in the middle of nowhere. Yes, some say that a small town is an intellectual desert and a cultural wasteland, sure on Friday evenings we head out to the highway looking for roadkill to BBQ for supper. All of these things are true. But life wasn't all bad in Uvalde. Rodeos and rednecks, armadillo-racin' and rattlesnake-wrestlin', bull-riders and low-riders, pick-up trucks and guitar-pickers, mariachis and menudo, brisket and BBQ bull steaks.

Ain't nuthin' better than a lazy summer day floatin' down the Frio River on an inner tube with an ice-chest stocked full of Shiner Bock followed by a BBQ brisket and menudo chowdown.

Uvalde has produced more than its share of famous people, such as John Nance Garner ("Cactus Jack", vice-president of the United States, 1932-1940), notable for quotes such as

"the vice-presidency ain't worth a bucket of warm spit"

"a leader with a headful of good horse sense....and guts"



Every year hundreds of thousands of tourists flock to Uvalde to see the Grave of one of the most influential political figures of the 20th century. Uvalde is also home to former Texas Governor Dolph Briscoe, Hollywood superstar Dale Evans (wife of Roy Rogers), outlaw Pat Garrett (moved to Uvalde after shooting Billy the Kid), 700 Club man Ben Kinchlow , notorious frontier sheriff and outlaw, J. King Fisher and Hollywood actor Matthew McConaughey. Uvalde is at the intersection of the nation's two longest highways.

Uvalde is also famous for its abundance of trees, many of them in the middle of the street; Hence the town motto - "Uvalde is Tree-mendous!"

Now that I have painted an romanticised portrait of my hometown, don't misunderstand me. Uvalde is not utopia ( Utopia is in fact 40 miles due north of Uvalde, off Highway 83). It's not quite paradise either ( Paradise is about 3 hours north, up by Dallas). Just go see for yourself. But remember, avoid the summer season and the hordes of tourists.


Please continue on..................

Welcome - The Badger Family Finland - land of ice-bears and penguins?

Other worthless info Email me, please! Others' comments

Badger family breeding habits!