The 31st day of the 10th month of the year of the OP

Boooooooooooo!

The 30th day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

THE "GIGGLERS OF LEXINGTON"

On this the eve of "All Saints Eve" I did not see any of the "Little people of the Kudzu" whilst walking on the Riverwalk today. But rather did occasion upon the aforementioned "Gigglers of Lexington".

These pleasant people are nothing like the Little Kudzu People in that the were actually handing out candy to fellow walkers. And if you have been following me (And most intelligent people do), you already know that the Kudzu People steal little children's candy.

As you can see in the top photo, they were also handing out "Brown-E's". Laughing and giggling all the while. Now, this is a way to make an already beautiful day even more lovely. Strangers actually talking and laughing with other people. What's the world coming to.

I am always amazed at the number of people who go through life staring at that six inch area just in front of their own feet. Just plugged into their iPod world and without a clue.

These ladies knew how to make their own day just a little better and in turn helped allot of other folks to enjoy their day.

Thank you "Gigglers" for the Brown-E and the good humor.

The bottom photo is of another friend I made on the walk to day. This is Molly who has owned a nice young couple for the past two and half weeks. She is an English Pointer, and one of the few that I have seen in the past hundred years. We used to own one when I was growing up and we kenneled and trained her in Delaware. We would travel from New Jersey (My dad and I) and hunt quail over her. She had one of the best noses in the world, could smell game from across a field, and stand on the classic hunting dog points. My Dad and that dog taught me all there is to know about hunting etiquette and sportsmanship in the field. Bless them both.

Memories come from the strangest places.

Another 29th of the Tenth month of the year of the OP

Three miles today

I decided to go over the the Columbia side of the Broad River for my walk today and did three miles. Longest walk since my operation and it is getting easier.

I wanted to see how the colors were progressing and it seems as tho we are not quite there yet, or it's all over. Hard to tell which.

You can see from the photos that this side of the river is quite different than our side. Despite more people and being heavier travelled, I saw a doe munching her way along the opposite side of the canal. Also got a fairly close shot of a brown thrasher (bird not shark) and a cat bird. So, you take what they give ya.

I did see a sight which concerned me. A young, early twenty's type girl (very pretty) came strolling along. Wearing very tight shorts and top and bopping to her iPod. Now this is a major metropolitan area with it share of crime and scum buckets that frequent the public areas. There was a time, I think I remember, when such a sight was important to me but I can't remember why. I can only imagine what some of those younger homeless guys were thinking of doing. Parents and Grandparents get up with your kids and tell them about the world they have to deal with! Ok, nuf soapbox!

Beautiful morning with the sun finally coming out and the cloud front moving eastward. Nice time to be alive.

The 29th day of the 10th month of the year of the OP

FIXIN TO GET READY!

OK, you happy Hallo Weenies only a couple days to go but be careful when you pass the portals to my abode!

There may be a surprise or three!

Hahahahahahahahaaha!

The 28Th day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

A BLAST FROM THE PAST

This is going to be a long entry, so all you hallo weenies be patient because you only have three more days.

Last night around 9:00 I had a phone call from someone who I have not seen nor talked to in close to sixty three years! Talk about surprise!

I would like to welcome to the blog and my current life, my long time friend and childhood playmate now from Texas-------Tom Big Eagle!

Now, if you have been following this blog..........and most intelligent and noteworthy people I know have..........you will remember my story about the black walnuts and the farm upon which I reached the age of third grade.

The back of the farmhouse where my grandparents lived is the middle photo (now a museum) and the top photo is the final resting place of both my grandparents and parents at Concordville Friends Meeting in Concordville, Pa. It literally took the four of them to raise me and to this day I am not sure how they did it. I always thought that if I lived to the ripe old age of 40, I would be satisfied. Now pushing 70 I want more. Go figure. Bless them for their patience. Wish I told them when they were all alive.

Not mentioned in that entry, which was on the 23rd day of the year of the Op, was my friend Tom Big Eagle, his brother Herby, and his father James (reverently referred to as Jim T ), and the rest of his family who all lived on my grandparent's farm. They lived in a house, now gone, which was in the distance beyond the picnic table in the bottom photo. Also not in the photo on the distant right would be my grandmother's vegetable garden, upon which they lived most of the year,

Jim T was my second father type, as mine was working in New York City at the time during the week. As I pointed out I had the run of my grandparents farm. My playmates were Jim's children and boy did we do some stuff!

Jim T was in charge of maintaining the livestock which included the few horses, the chickens, and the cows. He taught me how to hand milk a cow and to know the difference between those you milked and the bull whom you didn't try to milk. He taught me how to feed the cats and kittens at milking time with milk directly from the cow. He would yell in the grain shoots, trying to scare me while he pretended to be the barn's ghost. And the list goes on.

As I said to Tommy last night, it is just a wonder that we both lived through our adventures on that farm. It was only 100 acres, but we thought it was Nebraska. Somewhere I got a 22 caliber rifle....what were my parents thinking? We would go around the farm "Hunting" for pigeons in the hay barn, squirrels in the "Big" woods, and rabbits along the hedgerows. We once found a 300 something caliber rifle belonging to one of the hired farm hands, and not knowing how to use it, we almost shot ourselves with the one cartridge we found with it. Equally amazing is the fact that we didn't kill anybody else.

There was a stretch of lilac bushes about one field away from the building complex and it was probably 300 yards long. We both go back there whenever we smell that flower no matter where we are.

When I got free from daily chores that my mother or grandmother would heap upon me, I would end up in the cow barn. There was a holding pen type of area outside of the back of the barn and it was fenced in with a concrete wall about 10 feet high. I would somehow get my body on the top of that wall. I would walk along it (and no I didn't become a gymnast) and call for Tommy whose house was about 400 yards away. He would hear the call and the day's adventures would start.

There were times when we would just go out into a wheat field, we weren't much taller than a stalk of wheat, and roll down the stalks making I guess what today would be called crop circles. Who knew? Maybe that's where the idea came from? If there was something big going on on the farm we would get involved. It might have been following the potato machine picking up spuds. Or sneaking into the mushroom houses just because they were dark. Or milking cows but I would never go into the horse stalls. The were big, it was dark in there, and I didn't trust them. Besides they just plain scared me. To this day I prefer not to ride horses.

I remember, at age six, one Thanksgiving dinner my parents found me missing from the dinner table. I guess the conversation was pretty good for them, but not evidently for me. When they found me I was on my way up the back lane atop a very large and powerful tractor. Lord knows how I figured out how to start and run it. I am sure I would have no clue today.

There were always eggs to collect and roosters to chase (or the other way around). Tommy told me that the reason for the call last night was to remember an incident in his yard.

I guess we were playing in a pile of leaves, must have been this time of year, and found some kind of large snake. He wanted to know if I remembered and what kind of snake could it have been. Well in Southeastern Pennsylvania, there are not a lot of different kinds of large snakes and probably no poisonous ones. I don't remember it, but he did remind me that I was the one who ran faster and farther.

I still don't like being surprised by a snake............maybe that's where that phobia comes from.

It is truly amazing that I would write about that place and four days later he would call. Call it fate or some other liberal, transcendental, garbage..........but it is what it is. And I appreciate the call.

Thanks Big Eagle!

The 26th day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

BEWARE OF THE LITTLE PEOPLE OF THE KUDZU FOREST

There's so much of this fast-growing vine in the Southeastern U.S., you might think it was a native plant. Actually, it took a lot of hard work to help kudzu spread so widely. Now that it covers over seven million acres of the deep South, there are a lot of people working hard to get rid of it!

Kudzu was introduced to the United States in 1876 at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Countries were invited to build exhibits to celebrate the 100Th birthday of the U.S. The Japanese government constructed a beautiful garden filled with plants from their country. The large leaves and sweet-smelling blooms of kudzu captured the imagination of American gardeners who used the plant for ornamental purposes.

But that is not the rest of the story.

The legend is about the "Little People who live in the Kudzu Castles" like you see in my pictures.

The are like leprechauns, but of Japanese decent.

I have not seen one, but have seen the leaves rustling as they run away from my approach. I understand that they are prone to wear green, brown, and black clothes so as to not be seen. It is pretty dark under all that vegetation and I am not sure what they eat, but do know that they come out into our world at night.

I have seen their tracks. The ladies seem to wear spiked heels as long as your thumb. And the men hobnail boots. Or is it the other way around.

They build their castles of kudzu that take over the original trees and shrubs. Some of their castle spires are as much as a hundred feet high. They do seem to be very busy as I hear them scampering amongst the giant leaves used to form their residence, and this morning I think I saw one was chased off by a mocking bird but am not sure.

Legend has it that the only night that they venture far from their castles is "All Hallows’ Eve".

It is said that they have a sweet tooth, and candy pilfered from little children's bags is like creme brulee to them.

So beware all children and grand children of the little people of the Kudzu when you are out begging from your neighbors this Halloween!

An idle and unwatched bag of candy is just what they look for!

The 23rd day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

'Au revoir Miss Siagon!

As most of my more intelligent and informed readers are aware, I travel to New Hampshire each spring fishing with a bunch of cronies who have been doing this for close to 40 years.

If your not aware of that or don't fit into one of the two categories above.....you need to follow me more closely!

My friend from Hilton Head has for years carried his boat from HH to Wolfboro, NH (2131 miles) and used it as his personal fishing craft. The images here show the last voyage, 2008, of "Miss Siagon".

She is an antique and for sale.

You cannot pass on this investment opportunity! Well, you can but I can't keep my used car salesman attitude hidden for that long!

1. 3136 Ducker’s were produced
2. Built from 1947-1969
3. This one is serial number D2427 was built in 1957
4. Ducker D2427 was built by the Alumacraft Corp. in Minneapolis, MN.

She is for sale and any offer over $4000 will greedily be accepted. You also have to pay shipping and of course I have other pertinent photos of said boat.

She originally was built as a boat used to hunt waterfowl. Two hunters would venture forth in this thing and because of it's low profile was a pretty good hunting tool. Trust me....two people is crowded. And.....the recoil from one shotgun alone would move the boat three feet on a calm day!

Perhaps there will be more interesting stories in one of my upcoming books about this craft and the lunatics who make that trip. Needless to say she is a pretty cool boat that is associated with allot of really nice memories.

The 23rd day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

SO NOW I AM A TREE SPECIALIST...............Not!

Back to the Riverwalk today for a mile and half. Wonderful blue sky and crystal clear...invigorating!

After telling a new facebook friend, whom I met on the walk, that I knew nothing about trees, I stumbled upon these black walnut seeds. They still have the husks on them so they look nothing like what you would buy in the supermarket.

Not even one of those markets that specialize in raw, fresh, natural, twigs and bark type of stuff!

Which unfortunately is becoming my food of choice......twigs and bark that is.

I did find the tree from which these things originated and that is the top image. Not all that interesting I know.......But,

Growing up (until the third grade at least) was spent on my grandparents farm in southeastern Pennsylvania. They had 100 acres of land upon which they did general farming. I had the run of the place and my parents would not see me for most of each day. Probably scared the H--- out of them, but I had a ball on that place. They had amongst other things two walnut trees and yes my grandmother would use the nuts to cook with. And I remember those husks really were greasy and stinky when they ripened.

They had a small herd of dairy cattle (about 35 head), two or three work horses, and grew wheat, corn, mushrooms, peonies, chickens, and potatoes. A general farm but to a boy of five and six it was heaven. The dairy barn had a labyrinth of shoots for feed for the livestock, and a hay mau (even spell check doesn't have that one) which held hundreds of bales of hay. Built forts all over the place, milked cows by hand, fed the cats and kittens when milking, and generally was the farm pest.

But then the time came and I had to grow up. So sad! Still don't know what I want to be when I get there.

All that from a couple of seed pods.

The 21st day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

DOUBLE NOR'EASTER

Last weekend was spent doing a show in North Wildwood, NJ. Fourteen hundred miles and four days of travel.

Two days spent semi outside in one of the worst Nor'easters ever to hit the Jersey shore. The weekend was a lighthouse tour, state wide, and at least three of the lights were closed due to flooding. As can be seen in the one image of AngleSea, or North Wildwood, the back bay was the problem in most areas.

The amazing part about the photo of town is the telephone wires. I never noticed them before, but I guess when you have flooding, it's not so good to put them underground. A real cluttered image.

The inlet was a mess as can be see in the photo looking north east into the ocean, and this was at low tide.

Fortunately, I was in the gazebo which they covered with sheeting to stop the rain and wind. Rained most of Saturday and Sunday with winds approaching 50 mph. The crowd was down, understandably, about thirty percent. I thought that was pretty good, but their buying was off by fifty percent. So not so good! But could have been worse, at least the public could get to us.

Next show in Easton, Md mid Nov.

The 15Th day of the 10Th month of the year of the OP

THRUST INTO FALL

The weather channel is talking about all the fall colors from Maine south through the Appalachian chain. But a double nor'easter this weekend which may knock some of that color out of the mountains and certainly along the coast. Plans to view all the spectacular scenes we are blessed with, at this time of year, may have to be delayed.

I thought that it was just the July fourth and the temperatures were in the high nineties.

Then came September, but it has still been warm. Getting dark here around 7:00 pm now and I guess that is another hint that the seasons are shifting again.

We just seem to go through these seasons at warp speed, sometimes without notice.

This jogger on the Riverwalk seems to be handlig that natural change well, holding onto nature's chameleon beauty.

14Th day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

BEACH WEAR!

I am headed to North Wildwood, New Jersey for the NJ Lighthouse Challenge this weekend.

It's a long way with a lot of stuff in the car, but worth it to see old friends and be part of the Challenge, which I understand could be the last. We have been doing it for 10 years and have upwards of three thousand people who take the weekend to see a dozen or more lighthouse.

Unfortunately, I understand that we will be looking at a Nor'easter all weekend and this will be a first rain out the event in ten years. In the past we have had blue bird skies and great fall weather. Maybe mother nature will fools us and this stuff will blow out before Saturday.

The photograph of the Hatteras Lighthouse was taken during just such a north east blow and you can readily see the "Beach wear" or erosion that such storms create. In fact, you can see from this image just why they had to move the lighthouse inland almost a mile. Beach erosion is terrific during one of these storms. Actually more damaging than a hurricane because they normally blow for three days.

While I love the beach during a storm, I am not looking forward to reduced traffic due to bad weather heaped upon an already bad economy. But lighthouse freaks like me will spend money on their hobby regardless.

It will be fun, so put on your slickers and I will see you there Saturday and Sunday. The Hereford Inlet Lighthouse in North Wildwood, NJ. I'll be in the tent that looks like it was made with duck tape!

The 13Th day of the 10Th month of the year of the OP

SHADOWS

Today was absolutely beautiful. Temps in the high sixties and low seventies with crystal clear skies.

Walked two miles on the Riverwalk and saw how the lighting struck the walkway.

I am always on the lookout for something that would make a decent wall accent.

The shadows were just right today and they became the study for the day and walk. Nothing complex, just decent composition as the sun cast itself into the woods and made some interesting shapes and textures.

It was almost as the sun was showing it's delight after being hidden in clouds and rain for the past two days. All it took was someone to recognize it!

The 12Th day of the 10Th month of the year of the Op

NATURE WINS!

A few years back, in Maryland, a doe deer gave birth to the little guy pictured here. Now, there is nothing new about that....critters have been doing this for a Melania. It is a little buck as, even at this age, you can see the spots on it's head where the antlers will eventually grow.

The different thing about this is that the fawn was lying against the base of a giant oak tree at the end of my driveway and only 20 feet from a fairly active two lane street. I could not believe my eyes as I was leaving the house and here he was in the corner of my eye.

I now had a dilemma! Should I leave the critter alone. All kinds of dogs wandered the area and cars speeding along in excess of 25 mph were just a leap away and where the devil was it's mother.

Of course the only sensible thing to do was to photograph it and then worry about the logistics of it's future health. Sorta like your golfing buddy having a heart attack on the 15Th hole......you gotta drag him three holes until your finish your round. "Hit the ball, drag Billy Bob." Get the picture first!

I knew that when deer are first born, they have absolutely no scent. Nature's protection. Predators couldn't find the little fella as long as he didn't move. Well, he would not move....in fact would not even he make eye contact with me or the camera. I called the vet just to be sure as to what to do. Leave him alone, his mother will care for him. Nature wins, leave it alone!

Sure enough the doe came to feed him at night and was never more than a hundred yards from his location. So for two days and nights, this guy worried me and, I would check on him every two hours just to make sure all was well. Like having your own kid!

After he got strong enough to run with his mother, off they went. I did get to see him grow up for his first year and watch the spots vanish as he romped through adolescence. Quite a fun experience.

Another 11Th day of the 10Th month of the year of the OP

I"m Baaaaaaaaack!

Started to walk again on the Riverwalk yesterday when I did about a mile and half. Felt good and today did about three miles.

First time since about last May that I have been down there. I guess that they're right...............What doesn't kill you will only make you stronger.

At least I hope!

Probably overdoing it, but wanted to see some of the old spots that I like down there.

I am not power walker.

Slouth-like might be a more accurate description.

Or maybe a stalker.....looking for things of interest and to photograph (no not the ladies).

What I lack in speed and cardio exercise or build up, I make up for in distance. At least that's my take on the whole thing.

Saw only a few of my old friends because it was a weekend. That means I had more time to walk, and not obligatory chat time . The serious walkers have other things to do on Saturday and Sunday.

The weekend jog, walk, run, skip, crowd was out and seemed to be enjoying themselves. I guess they figure that if they exercise only on weekends, the Monday through Friday desk work won't hurt em.

Did see a couple of fishermen on the river but no finny friends came to the hook and line. A couple of guys were releasing a possum that they had live trapped somewhere. I guess they had enough for dinner and this one seemed a little small. Although, it would probably have been fairly tender............Yuuuuuuuuuuck! Like the man said, "Never had it and don't want it again"!

I saw nothing of photographic impact but that too will change over time and I still think that this five mile stretch of walkway is one of the best ways to spend tax dollars. But then I am biased in more ways than one.

11Th day of the 10th month of the year of the OP

A CARPET KITTEN UPDATE

Why is it that dogs love you and will do anything to please.

On the other hand cats will do whatever they can to annoy, particularly dogs and mocking birds (but that's another story).

Our dogs love to sit at the front door (glass) and bark at whatever is going on. Drives me nuts, but they love it.

The Carpet Kitten, as reported here some time ago, is thriving amongst the four or five neighbors who feed, pet, play, and doctor it. Really a nice cat but one that loves to walk under your feet and get his nose into whatever it is you are working on. Loves to put paw prints on the glass in the picture frames I am cleaning.

At any rate, this potted plant is three feet away from the front door. The cat must love the background noise of dogs barking because it was sound asleep when the mutts let me know there was something going on. The cat just knew they couldn't get to it. Could have cared less about the dogs or the photographer.

The 9Th day of the 10Th month of the year of the OP

Looking forward to fall!

To me it means changing colors, crisp mornings with just a bit of haze on your breath, pumpkins and dried corn, some snow covered peaks, geese in flight, and deer in the field.

Or maybe little kids dressed up as something they wished they were....at least for one night.

I used to deer hunt a hundred years ago. Then I found the camera. I am still fond of the outdoors and the elusive white tail. And capturing one on camera is just the icing on the cake to a day in the wild. This one was not so elusive and found in Cades Cove, Tennessee.

Ah the Great Smokies.....if you've never, you should!

The deer there are practically tame and you can virtually walk right up to them. Hard to remember that they are wild creatures in such a setting. In other parts of the East, all you would see at this distance is a tail or white flag disappearing in the brush. Still makes my heat beat a little faster and the adrenalin flow. I will never forget the first one I walked up on in Northern New Jersey as a high school junior. All I saw was tail and heard the crash of an alarmed something in the woods. Quite a thrill and I was hooked.

There was a time when folks needed to hunt these critters just to survive and the native Americans were the experts in stalking them. Today, in most states in the Northeast there are too many of them and they eat their habitat to death. Hunting has been frowned upon and populations have exploded. For instance in New Jersey, where there are more deer per capita than anywhere else in the country, a large deer can be no larger than a big German Shepard. In other parts of the country where hunting is controlled, a money sport, and property is managed to the benefit of wildlife, some huge specimens can be found.

This image speaks to me of times lost. A single buck grazing before an ancient mountain range. All I needed to see was a native American stalking along the edge of the cove with bow and arrow to complete the mental image of a time long ago.

The 8Th day of the 10Th month of the year of the OP

BAIT EM AND THEY WILL COME!

It's that time of the year again when the birds are beginning to look for food sources provided by humans who think the poor things just can't get by on their own.

The feeder is now full and the suet is out and we are open for business.

This morning dove is one of the most unwary of the birds to come to my feeder/bait stand/------collector of birds for photography spot.

I have set up a tray feeder just outside a window and am able with a small lens to get some fairly close shots. A suet log helps to attract those that prefer grease.

The only problem is that "Missy" our border collie mix dog also watches the feeder for squirrels. Her movement just doesn't help with the birds, but she does try to herd the squirrels and that does help. If she didn't have cats and squirrels in the neighborhood, she would have nothing to do all day but sleep and bother me.

We have a decent collection of bird types that invade our backyard nature habitat each fall and winter. The doves are but one, followed by the usual suspects such as cardinals, house and purple finches, chickadees, blue jays, red belly wood peckers, and a host of others. It is fun to occasionally see something new in the form of some migratory critters. And every once in a while I will get an image that actually sells.

The 7th day of the Tenth month of the year of the OP

While getting ready for the Easton Waterfowl Festival in Maryland on the weekend of Nov. 13 through 15th, I ran accross this image which I will be showing.


http://www.waterfowlfestival.org/



Tundra swans nest in the tundra or sheltered marshes on the Alaskan and Canadian coast near the Arctic Circle. The swans which migrate through here winter in flocks on shallow ponds, lakes and estuaries along the east coast near the Chesapeake Bay and in the marshes of Virginia and North Carolina. And you thought you had a bad commute?

http://www.swanmigration.org/


These birds were formally known as whistling swans because of the sounds their wings make in flight. The really do whistle. I can remember standing on the shore of the Chesapeake at a place called Eastern Neck Wildlife Refuge and simply listening to them as they flew overhead. Majestic is not a term which does them justice. The are a large bird with a wing span approaching seven feet, and hence move alot of air when flying.


It always amazes me when the discussion of migratory critters come up. Whether it be swans, ducks, geese, caribou, or even butterflies. The distances are just incredible that some of natures best must travel each year.


The bird pictured here is a cignet or first year bird. I found him/her on Assateague Island in Virginia. The background of sunlit water cyrstals make the bird stand out, yet give it a soft touch. The long neck curvature is of course all swan and when the bird matures the feathers will be totally white.


We all see swans in local parks all around the country, but mostly they are not tundras, but rather "Mute swans". The mutes were introduced into this country from Europe and are differentiated from the tundras by their yellow bill. The bill of a tundra swan is black. The mute is also a bit of a problem to most of the habitat they share with the tundras. They both feed on bay grasses and winter wheat, but the mute eats the entire plant roots and all. Thus helping to deplete the grasses upon which they feed. The Tundra on the other hand will clip the grass off, thus allowing it to grow back.

The sixth day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

By semi popular request, some more of the Bluegrass festival images.

Avenues pop corn merchant!

A local dog dressed up!

Is this what is called a "Unicorn"?

The early crowd!

5Th day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

Roseate Spoonbill

Whilst in Florida last we happened to take a cruise down the inter coastal waterway. It was interesting because on one side of the waterway was nothing but commercial buildings and homes. In fact some were shanties. No other roads quite like Rt. A-1A in Florida.

The other side.....the wilder side.......was a typical Floridian wildlife habitat. This spoonbill presented itself in just the right light to capture the bright pink colors of the feathers. If the light is wrong, the colors just don't pop. But in this case the critter allowed us to see not only the bright pink of the feathers, but the brighter red in the eye and legs.

Sometime, you just gotta wonder what God was thinking when He put together some of these critters. Just imagine your dental bills if you had a bill like that. For them it works, but for us not so much. And do you think that all those colors blend in with the habitat? I guess so cause they have been around for a long time.

Just seems to me that they would fit in to some "Florida Rooms" rather than the great outdoors, but then again there's no accounting for some humans taste either.

Despite how awkward they look, and like the Pelican, they are a beautiful bird.

The fourth day of the tenth month of the year of the OP

Having migrated from Jersey by way of Maryland's Eastern Shore to sunny South Carolina, I guess that I have come out from "Under the Boardwalk" only to climb "Old Rocky Top"!

Yesterday was spent serving my community in one of the three money raising booths at a blue grass festival. My first one..........blue grass that is.

Our "Avenues Assoc." booth sold sodas and popcorn. The Cayce Ladies Club sold hot dogs and chili. And the Cert group was there to draw attention to emergency planning and community volunteers.

We do get busy!

Our little town puts on this "Congaree Blue Grass Festival" and it is really a fun event for all the family.

First it was free!

Second, they don't serve any adult beverages!

And thirdly, the whole family can find something to do.

Most food venues sold out by dinner time and the music went on till about 8:00 PM. The music was good, kept toes tapping regardless of your taste, and I might even have seen a Texas two step or three.

Our group of friends worked hard, enjoyed each other's company, made a little money, and got some name recognition for our organizations.

I made some images but none where the names had to be changed to protect the innocent.

Second day of the 10th month of the year of the OP

OK, I have been remiss!


Not writing nor keeping up with activities.


Since the last entry, I have been visiting places like emergency rooms, zoos, Florida, and a number of other exotic spots of interest.


The four days spent in Florida towards the end of the month last was fun and I did get a few interesting shots which I hope to share here in the next few days.

I have been busy getting ready for the show in North Wildwood, NJ on the 17Th and 18Th of this month, and hope some of my Jersey buds can find their way out from under the boardwalk to say hello. I will probably be set up by 8:30 each morning and will go till about six on Sat. and four on Sunday. Just email me at skipw@sc.rr.com if you want any info on the show or the one in Easton, MD in Nov.

The Cuban tree frog shown here is an invasive species to Florida, but a fun little critter. There were about a dozen different tree frogs sleeping on the railing of the condo where we stayed. Saw a great number of anhinga, osprey, blue herons, lizards, and one confused little snowy egret on the beach. Well, I guess he wasn't confused but it is different to see a surfing snowy. All in all a good trip with good friends, fine weather, and some decent photo ops.