You had one job...

    Sent this picture to my mom and she replied "Wet Paint?"

"Ahh, no. Take a closer look." I said.

"What the heck are those things running through the railing and under and around the bench?"

Power lines.

Someone built a walking bridge and installed a bench right AROUND the power lines.

The power lines appear to have been there first. I say this because the railings and the

benches on the bridge are all shiny and new and the powerlines not so new. The bridge railings appears to have been built around the power lines. Then a bench was installed.

I have many questions.

First - Did no one inspect the site before work was approved? From a glance, it sure looked like the power lines had been there for some time. They ran straight and true along the road.

Second - Why didn't anyone report this issue? I mean really, if I were building a bridge with a viewing area in the plans that would clearly intersect with rather large power lines, I don't care what my job was, I would have stopped work and asked someone to take a look and see if maybe the plans needed a bit of alteration. You know, for safety's sake.

Third - Who does this? I mean really, that railing had to be put together around the power lines. I don't know about anyone else, but no way I would have built a structure around lines carrying enough voltage to end me.

Fourth - Someone added a bench. Mind you, they were careful not to touch the power lines, so they had to have known there was a danger, but, ummm, did they really think anyone was going to sit there? What was the bench installer's justification? "Well, it says in the plans to put a bench here, so I'm gonna put a bench here. Nobody gonna accuse me of not doing my job!"

Fifth - CAUTION TAPE?

   Yeah, that's gonna stop some bright individual from deciding to take a picture with the power lines. Look at me! Isn't this funny? CLICK. ZAP.

  You say people are smarter than that? I beg to differ. Someone actually built the railings and installed a metal bench with the lines running through it.

I can't help but wonder if OSHA has no jurisdiction in Round Rock.

But then again, we did see a lot of odd things in Texas... like the expressways.

  I'm not saying that expressways are a bad thing, but even Google had a hard time navigating. At first, I thought it was a glitch, but then I saw the reality. Maybe I was visiting an alternate reality. Wherever I was, they are busy building more bridges. A lot more.

I guess if traffic is bad. Just add a bridge. That will fix everything.

Maybe the bridge builders are on to something.

Or just on something...         

 After a day or two of our trip, we began to realize this was just the normal way of doing things.

   

   Well, normal or not, if I bought a condo in this alternate universe, I wouldn't put the couch in the living room!

  Then again, I don't think I would be buying a condo in this building.

   Travel broadens the mind. It also educates the individual. It can serve as a tool to decide where best to live, play, and retire.

    As pretty as this location might be, I'm pretty sure I won't be retiring here. I'd like to live a long, long, long life.