Burbs have it rough. Edmond and Norman both have tourist attractions, but Oklahoma City is the central state star.

Texas towns around the Dallas-Forth Worth metroplex have the same challenges.

Cleburne, 30 miles south of Fort Worth, isn’t exactly a suburb but shares the dilemma. For anyone looking for small-town (population 30,000) delights and relief from big city congestion, Cleburne has treats in store.

Arriving late in the afternoon, our first Cleburne outing was dinner at La Cima Mexican Cuisine, a roomy eatery with an extensive menu. If you’re not in the mood for Mexican food, skip this spot. There are a couple of salads, but authentic Mexican food is their specialty.

I ordered camarones con guajillo — shrimp with a chile sauce — accompanied by sautéed vegetables and cilantro lime rice. We binged on tortilla chips and a salsa with a moderate heat level and guacamole, which was exactly to my taste.

My shrimp platter came out still sizzling and steaming and tasted wonderful. Jack always orders a burrito — this time with brisket — and rated it great. La Cima has a number of margaritas from the traditional to prickly pear, cucumber and jalapeño pineapple. We were too stuffed to try dessert.

It was still in the high 90s when we got to The Depot at Cleburne Station, home of the Cleburne Railroaders, which plays in the American Association of Professional Baseball, an official partner league of Major League Baseball.

The stadium plays up the history of railroading in the town — Cleburne was once home to the Santa Fe Railroad machine shops — and displays several train cars on the grounds.

The stadium can accommodate 3,750 fans. This is a perfect park for families with lots of on-field antics during lulls in the game and margaritas from Fort Worth’s famous Joe T. Garcia’s.

The night was hot, but the Railroaders were not. Their best pitcher had just been picked up by the New York Mets.

We were hoping the Winnipeg Goldeyes would be defeated by the heat, but the Canadians were made of stern stuff. Still, baseball is always fun, and faithful fans stuck in with the hometown team.

I’m a Southern breakfast junkie, and the R and K II Café on Main Street was the perfect spot, a gathering place for lots of locals. I enjoyed my artery-hardening egg, grits and biscuit and gravy.

I have very high standards for my over-medium eggs — no runny white, runny yellow and no frizzle around the edge from cooking it too high or too fast. Sated, I gave my breakfast a definite thumbs up.

This was the week where Texas was over 100 for the whole week, so we started our explorations at the Chisholm Trail Outdoor Museum and Big Bear Native American Museum as early as possible. A long string of metal silhouettes (the largest in the nation) makes the museum hard to miss. The 66 figures, longhorn cattle and mounted cowboys recall the area’s position on the Chisholm Trail.

Among the buildings on the property is the oldest log courthouse in Texas. Built in 1854, this rustic, 14-foot-by-14-foot building first stood in Wardville, the first county seat in Johnson County. Subsequent moves and subsequent buildings replaced it. Reconstructed, it is now listed as a Texas historical landmark.

Other historic buildings include a mid-19th-century mule barn used by the Johnson Stage Line.

Fun fact: Mules were often used to pull stagecoaches and were less likely to be stolen than horses.

The Nolan River School served students from 1855 to 1877; contemporary students come today to experience an old-fashioned school day.

The Terry Building, also a historic structure, is headquarters for Terry’s Texas Rangers. The Rangers, a re-enactment group, relives Civil War history on weekends. The building also houses collections of Civil War artifacts and law enforcement history.

A real little gem on the grounds is the Big Bear Native American Museum. Most of the artifacts were collected by Leonard “Big Bear” Beal and range from prehistoric items to more contemporary pieces.

Open days are limited, so visit chisholmtrailoutdoormuseum.com or the museum’s Facebook page. Live demonstrations, concerts and other activities — including a bird-watching stand — make this a Cleburne “must see.”

Our next stop was Gone with the Wind Remembered, the private collection of Vicky Lynn Rogers. Collected over 30 years, this is possibly the most extensive museum on the subject.

Beautifully displayed and well-labeled, the assemblage includes over 600 “GWTW” dolls, all sorts of souvenirs and memorabilia, displays on Margaret Mitchell, the international reach of the book and film, and sections on the cast.

Among the many costume displays are a surprising number of items original to the film: Scarlett’s mourning bonnet, one of Bonnie Blue’s outfits, Belle Watlings fur-trimmed jacket and more. Take time to sit in the small theater and see a video about the making of the movie.

There are several other museums in town, including one in the county courthouse. It closed just before we arrived, but seeing the gorgeous interior of the building was worth the walk.

Because of the extreme heat, our stroll was limited. We spotted a number of antique stores but headed for Trovato Street, a candy store and root beer bar.

Here was a tasting room I could get excited about. We bellied up to the bar for a flight of root beers.

We were treated to four of the approximately four dozen root beers available. In a beautifully restored historic building, this one-of-a-kind shop is a worthy destination.

We topped off our Texas stay in style with live theater at the Plaza Theatre Co. at Dudley Hall.

The facility is first-class, an intimate, in-the-round theatre with fantastic production values. We saw “Mary Poppins,” which had costumes and moveable set pieces as professional as anything I’ve seen in major venues.

All in all, Cleburne exceeded my expectations. It’s a lovely little city with enough attractions to tempt tourists.

We had to cut our visit short — a minor medical emergency — and I discovered Cleburne’s greatest asset: the people. I was amazed at the number of people who offered assistance and even personal help.

Fortunately, we didn’t need it. But it restored my faith in the kindness of strangers.

Thanks, Cleburne, for a great experience.

Braving Thursday’s heat to cut the ribbon on their grand Cleburne location opening were Orthman Conveying Systems officials and employees joined by members of the Cleburne Chamber of Commerce, Cleburne and Johnson County officials and leaders as well as team members from the nearby Cleburne Walmart Distribution Center and other area corporate partners.

The Lexington, Nebraska based company designs, engineers and constructs conveyors and other equipment, parts and equipment they sell to John Deere and other major manufacturers.

Looking to expand, the company purchased the former GE Oil and Gas 6 acre property at 650 W. Industrial Blvd. In 2020.

“We’re really excited about today and thrilled to be here, Orthman COO Jimmy Rios said.

Also on hand was Orthman Manufacturing President John McCoy, who spoke of the company’s community outreach.

“On behalf of the McCoy family, we’re thrilled to be in Cleburne, Texas,” McCoy said. “We’re looking forward to becoming part of the community and making you as proud of us as we are of you.

“As you get to know us you’ll come to know that we invest in the community highly. And you’ll see that over time as we get operational.”

McCoy called the expansion into Cleburne a labor of love.

“This project started in conversations with Jimmy and I about four years ago,” McCoy said. “We really got active in it about three years ago. We got the site located, purchased and then we were off and running.”

McCoy thanked Cleburne Economic Development Foundation Executive Director Jerry Cash, members of the Cleburne Chamber of Commerce and other city and county officials for their parts in helping the project become a reality.

“We have $11 million investment in this facility,” McCoy said. “Which is our single largest investment for our conveyance system group.”

The timing and location are perfect, McCoy said, name checking Martin Sprocket and Gear, Thomas Conveyor Company and other area companies in the conveyor industry.

“We think it’s important for this time in our company’s life cycle to be here as well as being located in really the hub of the conveying industry or conveying alley as we reference it,” McCoy said.

With that, Cleburne chamber ambassadors presented plaques to McCoy and Rios and all joined in to cut the red ribbon stretching across the plant’s main entrance. Attendees then toured the plant to get an up-close look at the manufacturing process.

“They should be a great corporate partner and a great addition to Cleburne,” Cash said. “They actually added on to the building they bought. It was about 20,000 square feet originally and they’ve added more than 30,000 square feet of space to that.”

Cleburne Economic Development Director Grady Easdon agreed.

“They’re already up to 50 employees or so from what I understand and pay wages above average so that’s a good boost to the Cleburne and Johnson County economies,” Easdon said. “They made a point this morning of saying how they get involved in the community. I’ve already seen them at several chamber events and it looks like they’re going to be a good community partner for sure.”

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The good news, Cleburne Assistant Fire Chief Keith Scarbrough said, is that the occupants escaped unharmed. The bad news is that a historic home at 521 N. Anglin St. may be a total loss.

“Just looking at it now, I'd say it's substantially damaged,” Scarbrough said while still at the scene of the Tuesday fire. “With a regular house this would be a total loss. But, with the history of this house and all, I don't know if the owners will try to restore it or not. If they do, I'm guessing they're probably looking at replacing 70 percent with new construction.”

Cleburne firefighters responded to the home at about 5:15 a.m. Tuesday. Firefighters were still on scene at 10:30 a.m. Checking for hot spots and performing overhaul cleanup activities. Rescue activities led to the closure of Anglin and surrounding streets throughout Tuesday morning.

“Extensive damage,” Scarbrough said. “The roof burned completely off. It's a two-story house, but there's damage on the first floor from partial collapses in parts of the home.”

No cause had been determined for the fire as of 10:30 a.m.

“Our investigators are here still trying to figure that out,” Scarbrough said.

C.B. Stratton, a Civil War Confederate soldier, built the house between 1899 to 1900, according to Historic Homes of Cleburne. Several sales of the home and remodels followed up through the current owners, the Culpepper family. The original brick, two-story carriage house remains intact behind the house.

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street closed higher, led by excitement around tech stocks and a surge for Facebook’s parent company, Meta Platforms. The S&P 500 rose 1.5% Thursday, a day after hitting its highest level since the summer. The Nasdaq composite jumped 3.3%, led by a 23.3% surge in Meta. The Dow lagged behind because it has less of an emphasis on tech. Several other tech giants are reporting their results after the closing bell including Apple, Amazon and Google’s parent company. Stocks have already been on the upswing on hopes that the Federal Reserve may soon pause on raising interest rates.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is rallying more on Thursday, led by excitement around tech stocks and a surge for Facebook’s parent company.

The S&P 500 was 1.4% higher in afternoon trading a day after hitting its highest level since August. The Nasdaq composite was 3.3% higher, as of 2:09 p.m. Eastern time, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was lagging because it has less of an emphasis on tech. It was down 35 points, or 0.1%, at 34,058.

Meta was helping to lead the way with a 26.9% leap after it reported better revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected and said it expects to spend less this year than earlier forecast. While its latest profit fell short of expectations, Facebook's parent also announced a program to buy back $40 billion of its stock.

Stocks had already been on the upswing through the start of the year on hopes that the Federal Reserve may be set to pause soon on its hikes to interest rates. Such increases help stamp out inflation but also hurt the economy and investment prices.

A day earlier, stocks and bonds took off after Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank is finally starting to see progress in its battle against inflation. Markets took that as a cue that a pause may indeed be imminent, and investors even raised bets for cuts to rates late this year. Rate cuts act like steroids for markets, juicing prices and providing support for the economy.

That’s despite Powell saying on Wednesday that a couple more rate hikes will likely be appropriate to get inflation down to the Fed’s target. He also said he did not foresee any rate cuts in 2023 and again pledged to “stay the course until the job is done” on beating inflation.

“The market is saying the Fed may have its cake and eat it, too: inflation falling and growth not falling off a cliff so far,” said Ella Hoxha, senior investment manager at Pictet Asset Management.

She said the market seems to be putting a 75% probability on the Fed engineering a “soft landing” for the economy, where inflation can drop from its soaring heights without sending the economy into a painful recession.

“We would say at best it's 50%, potentially lower,” Hoxha said.

She said there's still a risk that the Fed will have to hold a tougher line on rates than markets expect if the U.S. labor market remains tight. That gives her pause as stock and bond prices rally so strongly around the world.

“It does feel like the market wants to pick pennies in front of a steamroller,” she said.

Thursday's rally stretched across the Atlantic, where markets rose after central banks for Europe and the United Kingdom also raised rates in their efforts to squelch inflation.

The European Central Bank raised its key rate by 0.50 percentage points and said another would arrive next month. The Bank of England also raised its key rate by half a percentage point and said it's seeing signs that inflation has turned the corner, though it also stressed it's too soon to declare victory over inflation.

European stocks rallied, with the German DAX returning 2.2%. The FTSE 100 in London was up 0.8%.

Moves in Asia were more modest, with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng down 0.5% and Japan’s Nikkei 225 up 0.2%.

The next big event for Wall Street will be a suite of earnings reports from Big Tech companies coming after trading closes Thursday, including Apple, Amazon and Google’s parent company, Alphabet. Each rose more than 3%. Because these stocks are the biggest by value, their movements carry more sway on the S&P 500 and other indexes.

After those will be Friday’s jobs report, where economists expect to see a slowdown in hiring. The job market has largely remained resilient even in the face of swift rate hikes by the Fed over the last year.

Big tech companies have announced high-profile layoffs recently, but a report on Thursday suggested job cuts are not that widespread. Fewer workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than expected, and the number dropped to its lowest level since April.

Treasury yields dipped further Thursday, an indication of expectations for an easier Fed. The yield on the 10-year Treasury, which helps set rates for mortgages and other important loans, fell to 3.39% from 3.42% late Wednesday. The two-year yield, which moves more on expectations for the Fed, fell to 4.08% from 4.10%.

AP Business Writers Joe McDonald and Matt Ott contributed.

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Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

DEER PARK, Texas (AP) — Toxic wastewater used to extinguish a fire following a train derailment in Ohio has been transported to a Houston suburb for disposal, according to a county official in Texas who said there are outstanding questions about the transportation and disposal of the material.

Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said at a press conference Thursday that 500,000 gallons (1.8 million liters) of the wastewater had been delivered to Deer Park, Texas.

“I know that our community was taken aback by the news just as I was," Hidalgo said. "I also want folks to know there are many things we don’t know that we should know. That doesn’t mean that something is wrong. And I want to stress that point.”

Hidalgo said the county on Wednesday learned of the wastewater transfer from the site of a fiery Feb. 3 derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, which prompted evacuations when toxic chemicals were burned after being released from five derailed tanker rail cars carrying vinyl choride that were in danger of exploding.

The wastewater has been delivered to Texas Molecular, which injects hazardous waste into the ground for disposal. The company told KHOU-TV it is experienced in managing this type of disposal.

“Our technology safely removes hazardous constituents from the biosphere. We are part of the solution to reduce risk and protect the environment, whether in our local area or other places that need the capabilities we offer to protect the environment,” the company said.

Hidalgo said Texas Molecular informed county officials that it had taken delivery of a half million gallons of firefighting water with the expectation of an additional 1.5 million gallons hauled to the site by about 30 trucks per day.

"It’s a very real problem we were told yesterday the materials were coming only to learn today they’ve been here for a week,” said Hidalgo, who wants more information on precautions taken at the injection well.

The delivery also raises questions about the methods of transport, which she said may include trains, and the possible health impact on workers involved in the transfers and the communities between the Ohio crash site and the disposal area in Deer Park, one of 34 communities in Harris County.

Uncertainties remain even after discussions between the county and officials from the federal Department of Transportation and Environmental Protection Agency, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and other industry and environment experts, Hidalgo said.

“The government officials have readily provided the information they have, but what we’re learning is that they themselves don’t seem to have the full information," she said. "I’m not clear on who has the full picture of what is happening here and that is a problem,"

She noted Harris County has around 10 injection wells capable of receiving hazardous commercial waste, making the area one of the few places where the materials could be disposed. But she said there are similar facilities in Vickery, Ohio, and Romulus, Michigan, that also could handle the wastewater and are located closer to the crash site.

“There may be logistical reasons for all of this. There may be economic reasons. Perhaps Texas Molecular outbid the Michigan facility,” Hidalgo said. “It doesn’t mean there’s something nefarious going on, but we do need to know the answer to this question."

Hidalgo added that she first learned Harris County was the disposal site from a journalist, “not from a regulatory agency, not from the company," which she said was "unacceptable.”

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality told KTRK-TV that Texas Molecular “is authorized to accept and manage a variety of waste streams, including vinyl chloride, as part of their ... hazardous waste permit and underground injection control permit.”

Dr. George Guillen, executive director of the Environmental Institute of Houston, said the chemical is “very, very toxic” but the risk to the public is minimal.

“This injection, in some cases, is usually 4,000 or 5,000 feet down below any kind of drinking water aquifer,” said Guillen, a University of Houston-Clear Lake professor of biology and environmental science.

Guillen and Deer Park resident Tammy Baxter said their greatest concerns are transporting the chemicals more than 1,300 miles (2,090 kilometers) from East Palestine to Deer Park.

“There has to be a closer deep well injection,” Baxter told KTRK. “It’s foolish to put it on the roadway. We have accidents on a regular basis ... It is silly to move it that far.”

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who visited the derailment site Thursday, has warned the railroad responsible for the derailment, Norfolk Southern, to fulfill its promises to clean up the mess just outside East Palestine and help the town recover.

Buttigieg also has announced a package of reforms intended to improve rail safety while regulators try to strengthen safety rules.

Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

CLEBURNE, Texas – The second weekend of the 2023 Kansas baseball season will get started on Friday at 3 p.m. CT at The Depot at Cleburne Station. Kansas will take on Oakland in a series that will stretch from Friday to Monday.

Last weekend, KU won its opening series by beating Valparaiso in two out of three games. Graduate pitcher Collin Baumgartner helped Kansas get off to a strong start to the season on Friday. Baumgartner got the nod to start opening day and allowed only one run over five innings and did not walk a batter while striking out six.

To close out the series and secure a series win, junior pitcher Stone Hewlett pitched three scoreless frames. Hewlett entered the game immediately after the Jayhawks built a two-run lead. He kept Valparaiso’s offense quiet and earned his second career save.

WHAT STOOD OUT LAST WEEKEND

• Defensively, Kansas only committed one error in 108 chances in Corpus Christi against Valparaiso. The Jayhawks lead the Big 12 with a .991 fielding percentage, which also ranks 24th in the nation.

• Sophomore pitcher and Tennessee transfer Gavin Brasosky earned his first career save after pitching four scoreless innings out of the bullpen in Friday’s opener against Valparaiso. He recorded a career-high six strikeouts, matching his total from all of last season combined.

• Eighteen Jayhawks made their debut in a Kansas uniform.

FITZGERALD’S FIRST

Kansas won its first game of the season and the first of the Dan Fitzgerald era on Feb. 17 against Valparaiso. The combination of graduate pitcher Collin Baumgartner and Brasosky struck out 12 batters. The 5-1 victory against the Beacons improved Kansas to 20-7 in season openers since joining the Big 12 Conference before the 1997 season, including a 6-1 mark in the last seven seasons.

Following the game, Fitzgerald was presented with the lineup card and baseball from the final out. Fans can view the moment by clicking here.

COMEBACK WIN

After dropping last Saturday’s game, Kansas trailed 4-2 in the sixth inning of Sunday’s game against Valparaiso before eventually going on to a 6-4 victory. Fitzgerald has emphasized to his group since the fall that adversity will hit and that they will be forced to respond. Coming from behind for a win on Sunday is one of the first examples of the resiliency, mindset and culture that Fitzgerald is instilling within the baseball program.

QUOTABLE

“They’re a good team [Oakland]. Last year, they put together a 30-win season. That’s the thing I’ve told our guys is that it doesn’t really matter who you are playing. Everyone is good, everyone recruits hard and everyone is developing. We just have to do a good job of playing the baseball. It sounds so coach speak, but it really is true. If we can just play the situation, play the count and play against the ball and not get caught up in whether it’s Oakland, Valparaiso, someone in the Big 12 or SEC. It really is just a faceless opponent and a situation you have to work through.” – Dan Fitzgerald

GETTING ON BASE

Redshirt sophomore infielder and UCF transfer Michael Brooks and redshirt junior infielder and LSU transfer Collier Cranford each hit safely in all three games. Junior outfielder and Cowley Community College transfer Janson Reeder also reached base safely in all three games of the series.

SHOJINAGA SHINES

Freshman and Honolulu, Hawaii, native Kodey Shojinaga made his debut as a Jayhawk last weekend. Shojinaga made his first career start at second base in Sunday’s game. In his first at-bat on Sunday, Shojinaga took the first pitch he saw and blasted it out to left field for his first career home run. He entered the game as a pinch-hitter on Saturday and singled in his first career at-bat.

SERIES HISTORY

Kansas and Oakland are meeting for the first time in baseball since the 2004 season. The Jayhawks hold a 4-0 all-time record against the Golden Grizzlies after a four-game series sweep against Oakland in 2004. KU outscored Oakland 47-11 in the series at Hoglund Ballpark.

Oakland is currently 0-3 this season after getting swept by Lamar University opening weekend in three one-run contests.

DID YOU KNOW?

The series against Oakland is the only team that Kansas will play four times this season.

BAGS ARE STAYING PACKED

Kansas is going to a neutral site for the second straight weekend. The Jayhawks play 22 of their first 23 games away from Hoglund Ballpark.

HOW TO FOLLOW ALONG

Live audio will be available on the Jayhawk Sports Network on KUAthletics.com and the Kansas Jayhawks app. There will not be a video stream for the four games.

Live updates will also be provided on the team’s official Twitter page @KUBaseball.

UP NEXT

Kansas will head to Nashville, Tennessee, to face Belmont in a three-game series. The three-game set is schedule to begin on Friday, March 3 at 4 p.m. CT.