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The Paz Files
http://thepazfiles.blogspot.com/

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Letter From Llano...
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLLJ9adgApR6_9d-6rjrPQ2nYnBZ8wmyK64CTAQUs6QeEa0oGKfPsL_jcwx8aZbQSgEdMBjLNO5pRYxde3thAM0kf8JJRKwa6HjcFVj_XWrhLsEeEwOl0A_HXJ9bcws0ntaACqLr2aYSh0/s1600/aaaaaaaaaLLANO2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 308px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 217px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5702662290569700130" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLLJ9adgApR6_9d-6rjrPQ2nYnBZ8wmyK64CTAQUs6QeEa0oGKfPsL_jcwx8aZbQSgEdMBjLNO5pRYxde3thAM0kf8JJRKwa6HjcFVj_XWrhLsEeEwOl0A_HXJ9bcws0ntaACqLr2aYSh0/s320/aaaaaaaaaLLANO2.jpg" /></a> By DUARDO PAZ-MARTINEZ The Paz Files LLANO, Texas - The weekly newspaper is full of news: tours at the ancient jail have been nixed by engineers worried about a roof collapse, a community salute to first responders, and the touching story about a city vendor who did a job without getting approval and now wonders if he'll ever get paid. It's the little things that move the ground in Texas's small towns. A happy-go-lucky crowd of just a tad over 3,000 call this town home. But it shakes its own trees enough to give everyone the idea that thngs may be slow, but they're never boring. Llano, located about 70 miles northwest of Austin on Highway 71, has two competitive newspapers, the LLano County Journal and the Llano News, which crows it has been the hoemtown newspaper for 13 years. It is the more staid version of local news. It's front page this week carried the buzz of a story headlined: "LLano Elementary School Names Interim Principal." In the Journal, that story about the vendor, a local security business owner by the name of Bode Barker, had the county judge, Wayne Brascom, asking commissioner's court to pay the man. Barker, argued the other commissioners, undertook the work without getting what is equal to gold in smalltown government transactions: a purchase order. Barker's Cher-Tex Communications had installed cameras at several county communications towers needed, he said about discussions he'd had with county employees, to prevent vandalism. He billed the county a little more than $4,000 for the work he did last month. Discussion at the commissioner's court meeting was country as country could be. As published in the Journal, the issue unfolded like this, after County Judge Brascom asked that Barker be paid: "Do I hear a second?" Brascom said. When no commissioner seconded the motion, Brascom expressed his displeasure. "Can I ask why there is no second?" Brascom asked again. "I'll second it so that we can get on with an up-or-down vote," Commissioner Johnnie Heck threw out. Brascom's request went unheeded and the vendor was not paid. According to the newspaper, Barker's bill will enter the bureaucratic pipeline, with Barker told he'd have to again meet with county employees to set the matter straight, to re-inforce the guideline that all county expenditures needed that purchase order before any work could be undertaken. In smalltown towns, rules and regulations magnify. And $4,000 in tiny Llano is four grand, no small amount to sneeze at during a struggling economy. Interestingly, the "Llano County jail Log" published by the Journal shows a sprinkling of arrests to do with credit card abuse/fraud and the passing of hot checks. Non-payment of child support and public intoxication gets their share of listings in the log. On a sunny Friday, Llano as a quiet town. Not much going on at the city square with the ornate courthouse as centerpiece. Diners were few at The Acme Cafe & Grill, a converted dry goods store on the square charming square. It's been the property of Maurie and Jim Beasley since 2004. "Maurie Kay grew up on a farm, in a little bitty town called Fred," read the notes on its menu, "...just a spit'n distance from Louisiana, where pick'n peas, shuck'n corn and peel'n shrimp were all national pastimes. Maurie Kay learned how to cook from a slew of relatives that believed food was the main attraction. With Cajun aunts, Italian uncles, Alabama cousins, a reunion was a time for catching up and sharing recipes." It's a cute cafe, with wooden floors and a high ceiling, but the food is nothing to make you drive in every weekend. Prices stay in the $7 and $8 range per plate, nothing spectacular. Chuck Wagon Chili Pie will set you back a mere $5.29, a slice of pecan pie is only $2.99. It'll sell you those desserts, but, as the menu instructs: "Ask about our whole pies and cakes...24-hour notice required..." <div align="center">- 30 -</div><div class="blogger-post-footer"><img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/8418586410607151775-422027714013053287?l=thepazfiles.blogspot.com' alt='' /></div>
LINK: http://thepazfiles.blogspot.com/2012/01/letter-from-llano.html

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Saturday, January 28, 2012

The Paz Files

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