Winter Texan Times

I-2/I-69C closures scheduled

PHARR – The Pharr exit ramp (146A) from westbound I-2 will be closed for six months beginning Tuesday, March 9, 2021. Motorists needing to access this area from westbound I-2 will need to utilize the Veterans Boulevard exit ramp (147A).

Additional mobile operations will take place next week, March 7, 2021 – March 12, 2021. Details are included below.

Nightly, Sunday, March 7, 2021 – Thursday, March 11, 2021 from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m.
Traffic will be intermittently slowed on the I-2 eastbound and westbound main lanes between Cesar Chavez Road in San Juan and 2nd Street in McAllen. The mobile operation is necessary to provide a safe work zone for crews clearing debris from the main lane shoulder.

Ocelot Festival this weekend

Ocelot4 600px The 2021 Virtual Ocelot Festival will be held this weekend, Friday, March 5, through Sunday, March 7. The event will feature an auction, a series of speakers, a month-long virtual run event and more. The festival is brought to you by Viva the Ocelot, Friends of Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge.

Aid available for winter damages

Texas homeowners and renters in the 77 counties designated for individual assistance who sustained damage may now apply for disaster assistance with FEMA.

If you have insurance and are applying for disaster assistance, you must also file a claim with your insurance company as soon as possible. By law, FEMA cannot duplicate benefits for losses covered by insurance. If insurance does not cover all your damage, you may be eligible for federal assistance.

Seven things to stop doing in 2021

In January, we typically look back over the previous 12 months and contemplate what we intend to do differently in the upcoming year. Curiously, these resolutions are often the same ones we made and abandoned the year before. With 2020 behind us—and none too soon, you will probably agree—you will take a different approach this year.

Rather than adding to your already jam-packed to-do list, look for what you have been doing that is not serving you well. Then quit doing it.

“Many people found that 2020 stripped away their illusions and showed them the parts of their lives that aren’t working,” says Steve Cook, author of Lifeonaire: An Uncommon Approach to Wealth, Success, and Prosperity. “Wherever you’re suffering—finances, lifestyle, relationships, spirituality—if you dig down to the root you might find the problem is you’ve bought into a cultural narrative that tells you to hustle, grind, stay busy, and keep pursuing more.”

The Lost World of the Coahuiltecan

photo of lisa kay adams Quinta Mazatlán is hosting author Lisa Kay Adam on Thursday, February 11th, 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on The Back Porch at Quinta Mazatlán. Adam has taken the whispered and fragmented words of the ancient Coahuiltecan peoples and expanded the meanings into poems and stories. Her book, xuai, will be for sale and signing for that unique Valentines gift.

The book, xuai: mission-house-village-town, opens up a window of imagination into the experience of indigenous peoples who lived in the Spanish colonial missions of South Texas and northeastern Mexico. The poems incorporate phrases and words from their long-silent language, as well as elements from the history, natural history, and archeology of the region. The book features color illustrations from a rare colonial map of the area.

SPI Chamber holding treasure hunt

The South Padre Island Chamber of Commerce is holding a treasure hunt on the island and Port Isabel. Pick up your Treasure Card at a participating business or the Chamber, then visit other participants to receive stamps.

Once you receive the 20 stamps, submit your card to the Chamber to be eligible for $500 in gift certificates from participating businesses.

Some of the businesses include BurgerFi, Holiday Inn Resort, Isla Tours, KIC’s Ice Cream, Osprey Cruises, Pirate’s Landing, and more. A full list of participants can be found at https://business.spichamber.com/events/details/treasure-hunt-8212.

KMB holds virtual Arbor Day event

Keep McAllen Beautiful (KMB) will be celebrating its 10th Anniversary of the Arbor Day Celebration on Saturday, March 6, 2021. The Arbor Day Celebration is a fun-filled event where participants take part in a 5K, 10K run, 25 mile or 100 kilometer bike tour. Due to COVID-19, the event will be held virtually this year, which means that participants can set their own date, place, and time to get those miles in, get active and enjoy the beautiful Rio Grande Valley spring weather.