Moon over Venus

I really am going to miss Picnik after April! These two were reworked there. I like the mirror frame. It will be time to purchase a photo editing program and get serious. The top shot taken on the S95, the bottom on the D5000. Tonight. January 26,2010.
And the Mizpah for today which I have neglected?
Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Romans iii.24.
I am crucified with Christ,-
With Him nailed upon the tree;
Not the cross, then, do I bear,
But the cross it beareth me.
Solemn cross on which I died,
One with Him, The Crucified. Dr. H.Bonar.

Many lessons to learn along this journey. One is the letting go of bitterness and frustration at wanting to be doing this and that. The impatience, the fear, the trusting in myself....To get back to the cross, the justification, the moon and Venus below.

Fifty beyond Seven

by john clare

at seven beyond fifty the realization that I'm here hits me
Looking about the things I did at seven still intrigue me
The bike, the boat, the drawing pad and oils, the sandpile.
From twenty to fifty I set them aside for a time
But always kept them close just for this time
When no one really minds that you
stay in your sandpile and quietly play
with the bike, the boat, the oils, scribbling silly lines,
digging toward China.
And living in a past that left you half a century ago.

Fire Starter

From the vantage point of the tree stand.

Catching Ticks

Don't show this to mommy please...

Cannot Camo Joy

Found the old camo head gear at the base of the stand. A good fit for Nathaniel.

On the stand

Nathaniel climbs the Meat Stand ladder with his father Landon. It was our first outing together to the Osceola.

The Long Haulers

And so we pass the ole pigskin to another long hauler. Perhaps the old half back will live to see the fleet Nathaniel from the Trenton stands make that first touchdown. Perhaps he shall hear, like I heard my fathers voice above all the cheers, Way to go John! It echoes to this day.
It shall always resound. And still the little boy runs for that touchdown. And still the fathers cheer them on.....

We could have gone to State

...had I played football instead of basketball! Looking back, looking back, always looking back like Uncle Rico in Napoleon Dynamite! In my earlier JV days, I was quite the football player if I may have an Uncle Rico moment. I was a half back with Johnny Henry the fullback. We had that end around toss play, with Johnny leading the blocking, along with Bill and Jack Whitehurst pulling off the line, and off we would go. It was good night Louise and hello end zone. In the old year book is the skinny little halfback with the apt title, John makes another long haul. Sammy Miller, the varsity football coach tried to get me to go out for the team, but in my high school rebellion, opted to play point guard on the all-black basketball team. Again, in Uncle Rico fashion, had I to do it over, it would have been football and basketball.
What were we thinking back then? Well, it sure keeps this Rico thinking even now, What if? What if?

Faith Temple

Shot by sticking the camera out the window as I drove through downtown on my way to the shoals. I enjoyed the time I walked up Marion Street photographing the buildings and people. This Faith Temple was once the old movie theatre on Marion Street.

WWF Paul

And then with the excitement of the two Toms still upon my mind, just ahead was Paul Christie walking in front of his house. Paul is a janitor with the County. I suppose this day he was out for an exercise walk. Long ago, when my dad was the minister at the United Methodist Church, we went out to eat with Paul and his parents, now both deceased. Paul was in a leg cast. He had been to a WWF wrestling match in Jacksonville and the wrestler in the ring dared anyone in the audience to come and wrestle him. Paul obliged and in the first throw got a broke leg for the bravado. His fifteen minutes of fame coming to an abrupt end.

Frantic Tom

On the ride up to visit Big Shoals on the 23rd, while on Lassie Black road, two Toms ran across the road in front of me. I came to a stop to watch them. They did not try and fly over the fence, but kept repeatedly framing into the fence, trying to force their way through one of the holes. It looked like this one was not going to get stuck and I was about to get out of the car and help him, but he squeezed on through and mad a bee line to the pines beyond.

The Eastern Lights

Another dashboard composition. On the journey to Olustee ten PM Tuesday evening to get Jordon at Olustee, I set the tripod mounted S95 on the dash for a 15 second exposure of the sky. On the straight stretch of US90 heading east, I was surprised how the stars stayed in relative sharpness, due no doubt to my wonderfully skillful steady driving. We left the PT Cruiser there that night and returned yesterday, trying again, this time with success to get it started. It is one quirky vehicle.