Lavon Insurance

09/01/2026

Shortening daylight in late summer and early fall is the primary signal that pushes developing monarchs toward the migratory phenotype. https://www.monarchwatch.org/migration/

09/01/2026

Downtown Brownsville used to be one of the busiest commercial strips on the entire Texas border, and Elizabeth Street was its beating heart. 🛍️ Through the 1940s and into the 1950s, the street was lined with department stores, movie theaters, and family-owned shops that drew shoppers from both sides of the Rio Grande, since Brownsville and Matamoros functioned almost like two halves of one binational city, with residents crossing back and forth for work, school, and shopping without much fuss.

Storefronts stayed busy from open to close, with awnings shading sidewalks packed with people carrying shopping bags past window displays, and the sound of Spanish and English mixing constantly along the same block. It was, by most accounts, a genuinely vibrant commercial district that reflected the deeply intertwined culture of the border region.

Like a lot of American downtowns, Elizabeth Street struggled as shopping shifted toward malls and suburban strip centers in the decades that followed, and many of the original buildings sat vacant or were repurposed for years. Recent revitalization efforts have brought some new life back to the historic district, though the crowds of the 1940s and 50s haven't fully returned. What do you remember about downtown Brownsville, whether from your own life or from family stories? 🌵



This post's image and text were created using AI.

09/01/2026

There is a canyon in far West Texas where the maples turn red every fall, in the middle of the Chihuahuan Desert, five hours from the nearest city of any size. 🍁

McKittrick Canyon sits in Guadalupe Mountains National Park, which also holds Guadalupe Peak — at 8,751 feet, the highest point in Texas. A spring-fed stream runs through the canyon floor and supports bigtooth maples, velvet ash, and chinkapin oak, relict trees left behind from a cooler, wetter climate thousands of years ago. For a few weeks in late October and early November, the canyon goes gold and scarlet against gray limestone, and people drive from all over the state to see it.

The rock is even older than the trees are strange. These mountains are the exposed remains of the Capitan Reef, a fossilized marine reef from the Permian period, back when this part of Texas was under a tropical sea. You can find fossil sponges and algae in the walls.

It is one of the least visited national parks in the country, which is part of its charm. There are no lodges and no restaurants. Just the canyon.

09/01/2026

TROPICAL STORM EDOUARD TRENDING STRONGER WITH RAIN THREAT EXPANDING INLAND🌀🌧️soon-to-be Tropical Storm Edouard is trending stronger, and that should allow its moisture and impacts to reach considerably farther inland across Texas and Oklahoma. The latest NHC forecast now brings the system to around 60 mph before landfall, followed by a northwestward track into East Texas. Rain chances are increasing farther north, with decent chances now extending toward the Red River and potentially even some showers reaching as far north as I-40 in Oklahoma. Across North Texas, the best opportunity for meaningful rainfall remains south and southeast of Dallas-Fort Worth. Parts of the southern DFW Metro could receive around 1 inch, although amounts will vary considerably depending on the exact track and organization of the system. Farther south, rainfall becomes much heavier. The Brazos Valley, Southeast Texas and Upper Texas Coast could see widespread 3-5 inches, with localized totals of 5-7 inches or more. The NHC is currently forecasting totals up to 9 inches for parts of the Upper Texas Coast, creating a significant flash-flood threat in the hardest-hit areas. The biggest change is that this is becoming less of a strictly coastal Southeast Texas rain event. A stronger and better-organized Edouard could transport deeper tropical moisture farther north before weakening, giving portions of Central and North Texas a better opportunity for some much-needed rainfall. There will still be a sharp rainfall gradient, so not everyone in North Texas or Oklahoma will see meaningful rain - rain will be confined to areas directly near the center of the system so small changes in Edouard's track and strength could drastically change which areas see heavy rain and which areas see no rain at all🌧️🌀

08/27/2026

08/25/2026

THIS FIRE IS A MONSTER
18 hours ago, what started as a small vegetation fire has burned through areas of Palo Pinto County and Jack County with evacuation orders and cancellation of classes for Graford ISD.

Firefighters in the area are prioritizing life safety and structure protection, while working to create containment lines.

08/25/2026

Area of US-180 and R D Bell Road ~3 miles SW of Palo Pinto

08/25/2026

It's not even cool in Cool, .

08/24/2026

Trucking

08/24/2026