It is not enough to photograph the obviously picturesque. ~ Dorothea Lange Oops. Sorry, Dorothea. It's just that, during a drive with family in Tennessee, my aunt remembered this barn coming up around the corner and she started talking to it, as if she was encouraging a toddling baby, like, "Oh! Here she comes! She's so adorable!" When I … Continue reading Wednesday Words on the Wild: Picturesque
Spies Like Them
Have you seen this new mini-series, Spy in the Wild? I've only seen one episode, but it immediately became my new favorite summer show. This show is extremely delightful. The basic concept might be a bit ho-hummy "filming animals in nature," but what makes this so different is how they do it, and the amazing results. Using animatronic "spy" cameras, such … Continue reading Spies Like Them
Peppermint Ice Cream
As promised yesterday: The Snack Shack at the High School Summer Camp I attended many years ago served peppermint ice cream. Every summer, I consumed as many peppermint milkshakes as I could afford. (I could never afford enough.) Other campers followed trends, like the summer everyone got hooked on raw cookie dough, until some counselor's fears of salmonella … Continue reading Peppermint Ice Cream
Independence Day (2017): Frozen in Time
Happy Fourth of July, campers! Previously, I shared my penchant for milkshakes during camping trips, and a visual of my grandparent's backyard. For many years, my grandparents hosted grand Fourth of July parties in that yard. Overlooking a river buzzing with water skiers, we heard the drone of boat races downriver at the town lake … Continue reading Independence Day (2017): Frozen in Time
Wednesday Words on the Wild: Influences
As the twig is bent the tree inclines. ~ Virgil Wait, no, sorry. Try again. As the twig is bent, so grows the tree. ~ Alexander Pope Whoops! Wrong again. Last try. So bends the twig, so grows the tree. ~ My Mother There. Done. Glad that's settled. Let's pause for a moment, catch our … Continue reading Wednesday Words on the Wild: Influences
Book Review: Celestial Yosemite
If you are a fan of stargazing, do yourself a favor and check out Kristal Leonard's Yosemite night sky photography, either via her book Celestial Yosemite, or her blog: http://www.isntthatbeautiful.com/ Although the book is slight, it reads like a stargazing hors d-oeuvres, just enough to both curb and whet your appetite, satisfying you and leaving you wanting … Continue reading Book Review: Celestial Yosemite
Wednesday Words on the Wild: Summer
And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on the trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer. ~ F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby Hoping your First Day of Summer launches a spectacular season!
Father’s Day (2017): The Foster Campground
A few years ago, after my own father passed away, I decided to honor a friend on Father's Day who'd recently become a father for the second time. In other words, without my own father physically present, I symbolically celebrated Father's Day, and selected someone whose own kids were too young to pay him tribute. These … Continue reading Father’s Day (2017): The Foster Campground
Flag Day 2017: Star-Spangled Banner Flag House
Today is Flag Day in the USA. Happy Flag Day everybody! A couple of weekends ago, the US "celebrated" Memorial Day. "Celebrated" in quotes because the extent of the celebrating I know of was one friend who invited me to attend the closest local parade. Looking to join, I mapped it. Three neighborhoods (meaning "towns" … Continue reading Flag Day 2017: Star-Spangled Banner Flag House
Book Review: Anna Pigeon Series
Over a series of 19 books (as of this post), the author Nevada Barr has guided the fictional character of National Park Service employee Anna Pigeon through various adventurous mysteries, each one of them set primarily within the boundaries of a national park, a national monument, etc. Rather than review one or more of the books (which … Continue reading Book Review: Anna Pigeon Series
