Happy Halloween

I'm taking a friend and her granddaughter trick or treating in my neighbor shortly so this is going to be short and sweet.  Went to a Costume party last night and had a blast.  I went as Medusa ... took me all DAY to get ready!  When I get copies of the pictures I may just have to share.

On a sadder note another friends ex wife was shot and killed last night.  I know her because they were friendly and I often saw her when she was bringing or picking up their autistic son.  She was a nice, friendly person.  I haven't gotten to talk to him yet but  I'm sure the family could use any prayers you can spare.

For now I'll just wish you all a safe an Happy Halloween.

Sunshine Yellow

 

Thematic Photographic 121 see more interpretations of Yellow at Written Ink

Once again Carmi has made it difficult for me to choose between photos ;)  With a color theme there are just so many different ways you can go.  Unlimited subjects, limited only by color.  Most often I like to choose the less traveled path.

Halloween is the Pagan New Year.  And while I have a traditional spooky shot or two left to post for the holiday (and will before Sunday) I got to thinking about the meanings behind the customs.  It was a day to celebrate the harvest and prepare for the coming dark of winter.  In lieu of that I thought I would make use of this theme to honor the Sun that I so deeply miss during the winter months.

Nothing says sunshine to me like flowers.  Hope y'all enjoy them as much as I do.  I may revisit this theme later in the week for some yellows that aren't flowers.

Sometimes I like to play with my editing program.  The colors and the spread of these petals reminded me of the rays of the sun.  The little guys in the center seemed to be paying homage, so I titled it Worship.

The South Carolina summer sun is harsh, very bright and intense.  Someday I'll get a polarizer for my camera.  These are Golden Ragwort, a weed wildflower.  If you look closely you'll see the one on the left has a hitchhiker. 

  Sometimes it's just all about the texture.

This is Wild Strawberry blossom.  Unlike the wild strawberries I remember growing up as a kid in Michigan, these seem not to have any taste at all.   

I'll leave you with this shot, which like my first photo, is a Yellow Jessimine ... the State Flower of South Carolina.  While the first is a macro of the inside of the flower with the sun shining behind, here she is in all her glory basking in the sunbeams.

 

Weird Wednesday: Doctor Dolittle

My Magic Man was no angel.  My personality type is basically conservative with a wild streak.  He, on the other hand, was a wild child with a old fashioned streak ... rebel to the bone.  Seems he was always in trouble with the law, and much of the time we were together was spent apart because he was in jail.

Now before you start thinking that I'm as bad as my blogger bud Just Plain Tired's Useless Co-Worker, and lacking a few screws in the judgment department, let me just say that this was in small town, rural Kentucky.  Think more along the lines of Bo and Luke of The Dukes of Hazzard and you'll get the idea.  Only in real life the "Boss Hog"s of this world mostly win and the boys end up in jail.  Hard as it may be to believe for most city folks, that show was really not much of an exaggeration.  The culture shock wasn't easy for me at all.

Hawk was Magic Man's totem animal.  They were always around him and when he went to jail it seemed they watched over me like a guardian spirit.  I wouldn't see them for weeks, but whenever I had a decision to make they would show up again. Whenever I made the drive to visit MM they would act like spotters along the way.

One time there was an accident up ahead of me on the freeway, but no way for me to know it.  The traffic hadn't even started backing up yet.  As I approached the exit before the accident, a shitload of hawks gathered and circled and swooped above the exit (hawks ... not buzzards, I know the difference) and acting strange enough to get my attention.  I knew something was up, exited the freeway and stopped at a gas station.  Because I had paid attention to the hawks, I avoided a big mess.  When I had to make a choice where to live, a hawk came up and landed on one of the trailers I was looking at.  I knew I had found our home. 

When I got back to South Carolina after the funeral for MM, I was an emotional train wreck.  In the space of about 6 weeks he had left me for the 2nd time, a friend had totaled my car, I had bought a truck, packed and moved to a place where I knew no one, got a job, got the call about the accident, gone back to Kentucky to bury him and had survived the funeral from hell.  Suffice it to say I was not thinking much about the mechanical workings of my 'new to me' used truck.

I wasn't feeling up to socializing at my new job yet.  When lunchtime came around, I'd go outside and find a place to sit by myself in the sun to eat and contemplate life.  My attention was pulled out from the constant running dialog going on inside my head one day by the sound of a hawks cry.  I looked up, there were several of them off in the distance, riding the thermals and calling to one another.  I watched them for a bit before I went back inside. 

When I came back out at quitting time, I heard the first cry ... out of sight and to one side of the parking lot.  Then an answering cry from another.  Definitely hawks, I was quite familiar with their voices by this time.  It felt rather surreal as I walked towards my truck. Suddenly there is a loud screech right over my head as this big black hawk flies over me to my truck where he swoops down and all but lands on the hood ... okay, okay you have my attention! ... only to fly on, then circle around and come back toward me BITCHING at me the whole way!  What in the world could that be abo .... "Check the oil"  ... what?  Where did that thought come from? "CHECK THE OIL"  Okay! Okay!  So I lifted the hood and checked the oil.

The dipstick was bone dry, nary a drop of oil on it anywhere.  DUH!  It's  a wonder I hadn't blown up the engine.  MM was great with engines and could fix anything mechanical.  I hadn't had to think about car maintenance in a long while because that was his department, so I don't suppose it's any great surprise I hadn't thought to check it.  A co-worker took me up to get some oil to put in before I drove it any further and all was well.

Some of you, I'm sure, will have what you consider to be a more rational explanation for this story than the bird put that thought in my head.  I can understand why you might think so, but I'm telling you that Hawk told me to check the oil.  Animals can communicate just fine, if we will pay attention to their language.  It's not always verbal, and when it is ... it's not always English, or even necessarily "audible".

Pieces of Eight

              Medicine Wheel

The years they pass so quickly now
The wheel turns, the seasons change
The Wheel of Fate spins round and round
I've learned to accept it's motion
To go with the flow
To play the cards I've been dealt
But I have to be honest ... the game is rigged
And I kinda miss tilting at windmills

Eight years
Eight cycles
It feels like a lifetime
They say time heals all things
The wheel turns, the seasons change
Yet it always comes back to October
The pain itself has faded
But the dreams remain broken

Memories are sweet
but they make a poor compass

Eight years ago today a car wreck ended the nightmare that my late husband's addiction began.  This time of year is always reflective for me and a bit sad, but this year has been particularly difficult.  My best friend's battle with cancer seems to be nearing it's end, and my Dad's got the news this past week that his carotid arteries are blocked, one 100% and the other 60% and that there's nothing they can do surgically.  Aside for my worry for them there also been a selfish fear that I would lose yet another person during the time that already haunts me.

Words have been tumbling around inside of me begging for release.  I sat down thinking to write a memorial for my Magic Man, but these are the words that came out.  Sometimes writing is like that for me.  The words demand their own expression.  I'm not even sure if I understand it exactly, so if it seems obscure to you just chalk it up to emotional release.  If you'd to try your hand at virtual shrink you are welcome to share your interpretation.  You may even see something in it that I haven't thought of.

THE GOLD FRAMED DOG

Many thanks to Gary of klahanie, who is obviously a man of refined taste.  After all, an internet star such as Penny (pictured in the above award) wouldn't have just any ordinary pet.  If you haven't yet discovered this sweetheart of a guy, this would be a fine opportunity to check out his blog.  He's warm-hearted and kind and has a slightly warped sense of humor that any readers of mine should really appreciate.

I'm honored to be among the first to receive this award created for animal lovers everywhere.  It's a fun award without a lot of silly rules (can I get an amen from the anarchists among us?) and is species tolerant.  It is to be displayed or passed on as the recipient sees fit.  In Gary's own words ...

"If you do choose to pass it on, it does not have to be forwarded to someone who has a dog.  No, if you know of a blog, for instance, that has a great love of garden slugs, hey, that's great!   If you visit a blog that thrills you with their affection for Vietnamese pot bellied pigs, I say, fantastic!   If you know of a blogger who just adores cats....well...ummm.....okay. "

I take my responsibilities seriously and normally, I'd have to think long and hard about who might be most deserving of such a prestigious award.  In this case though, the answer was clear before the thought was even fully formed in my mind and I know Penny would approve.  I proudly present the GOLD FRAMED DOG Blog Award to *drum roll*

Mrs Midnite at Mrs Midnite's Mutterings who harbors the two adorable little terrorists, Star and Sasha.  Don't let these innocent furry faces fool you!    They have lethal tongues and laugh at the law while running roughshod over their neighborhood corrupting children everywhere.  You can read about their exploits there, as well as other interesting tales.

And with that I believe I'm going to call it a night ... before the sun gets up (yes I see what time it is, my sleep schedule has been rather erratic lately) G'night all

****** Edit******
I guess I shouldn't post when I'm so tired I can't see straight.  I had two recipients in mind when I went to post and I totally aired out here and forgot to include Juniper of Dreams and Reality and her handsome boy Django.  And my minds been so muddled the last couple of days I didn't realize it until just now.

So Juniper, please accept  my apologies for botching the presentation of your very own GOLD FRAMED DOG Blog Award.

Let's Do Lunch ...

Thematic Photographic #120   see more interpretations of "Savor" at Written Ink


or perhaps it should read "Step into my parlor ...".   Okay, I admit I know that this was probably the last thing you expected to see if you were going by the title or if you knew this weeks theme was 'savor' before you got here.  But it is also just 9 days until Halloween and really, is there a more appropriate time for a Spidey shot?  And I would argue that it fits the theme because I'll just bet she savored every last drop.

Spiders get a bad rap.  This beauty is a common Garden Spider.   They eat lots of the bugs that are bad for your garden or pests in your yard.  Handy to have hanging around and they weave a beautiful web that sparkles like jewels in the morning when covered in dew.

Weird Wednesday: Fire Science

It's time once again for this week's version of Weird Wednesday.  This week's edition came up in a recent conversation over at Dreams and Reality when Juniper and I were comparing screws.  Oh, get your mind out of the gutter!  I'm talking about the not so little metal twisty things that are sometimes used to repair broken bones.  She got her's as a result of a car accident.  I got mine in the line of duty when I was a volunteer firefighter.

It doesn't sound weird at all when it's put that way does it?  Although the statement is 100% accurate, it really doesn't paint a picture of how it really went down at all. I  was  working when I got injured and the whole mess was duly covered by workman's comp, but it wasn't a search and rescue or a mighty feat of heroism that did me in.  I wasn't, in fact, responding to an emergency call at all.  I was selling bingo sheets.

As you may or may not know, Volunteer Fire Stations get precious little monetary help from the government.  That's one reason they stand out on the street corners waving those boots around trying to get donations.  Next time you see one of them drop a couple bucks in if you can.  They aren't getting paid.  They're trying to raise funds to buy gear ... from fire trucks to turnout gear ... so they can save your house, and maybe your life.

 My station was in rural Kentucky and there wasn't too much by way of entertainment around there.  After struggling to nickle and dime it for years they hooked up with a professional promoter, rented a gymnasium,  had us dress up in our dress uniforms, and once a week we had the biggest, baddest Bingo around.  Big jackpots, refreshments, professional callers, and firefighters selling bingo sheets ... it was a hit.  Such a hit that we started running out of room to seat people.

Not wanting to lose any of those dollars flowing in, we found ways to accommodate the overflow.   At one end of the gym there was a stage with stairs on either side for access.  We put card tables and chairs up there to seat the extra people.  I was working that area, selling extra sheets between games.  If  you've ever been to a bingo hall you know just how impatient those little old ladies can be.  I should have been watching where I was stepping, but I was hurrying to get to the next person and stepped half on, half off that stage and down I went.

To further complicate matters,  there was a board that ran parallel to that stage and my foot slipped up in there, trapped between the board and the stage while my body fell down into the stairwell.  My leg bent sideways at the knee.  Shattered the bone just under the knee and they had to screw it all back together.  Imagine my surprise when I met my orthopedic surgeon ... and he was in a wheelchair.  Not exactly the kind of thing meant to install confidence, but other than the Frankenstein scar the staples left he did a fine job.
 

Between him and the PT team (who I told at one point that in a previous life they had worked in the torture chambers in a dungeon somewhere ... and LIKED it) I have probably 95% use of my leg.  It gets stiff sometimes, and it drags a bit on stairs, but I can do most anything I could before I injured it.  Well, it IS damned difficult to get up again when I sit crossed legged on the floor, but it can be done.

My biggest complaint is that you can feel the head of one of the screws from the outside.  If I bang that against anything metallic *shudders* omg it feels like someone hit a gong inside of my knee.  It is a most unpleasant experience, not so much painful as, well, ... just weird ;)

Things that make me go brrrr

Frozen Wishes

Thematic Photographic #119  see more interpretations of Turning Colder at Written Inc.

Fall has always been my favorite season.  Football, apples, hayrides, the fresh, crisp smell of the air as the humidity of summer had faded away, the aroma of burning leaves and toasted marshmallows, the fun of dressing up for Halloween, the glorious feast at Thanksgiving, fairs and craft sales ... there was nothing not to like.  School maybe, but I was a bit nerdy and actually kind of liked it ... except for the structure (I was never really good at rules).

I could never decide between summer and winter for second place among my favorites when I was young.  I loved both equally; summer for it's freedom and because I love anything to do with the water, and winter for the snow and ice skating ... and it had Christmas!  Spring was a bust because I grew up in Michigan and Spring meant soggy, dirty snow, then mud up to your butt 'til the end May ... and I considered that the beginning of Summer ;)

Nowadays I live in South Carolina and my bones are much older.  There was one winter when I lived in the mountains in SE Kentucky, I had LP gas for heat and the tank had no gauge to tell you how much was in it.  Invariably, when it snowed the tank would run out of gas and there was NO WAY, even if I had the money to fill the tank ... gulp! (and most of the time I didn't) a gas truck was getting up that 'hill' until the snow melted ... because there SURE wasn't any chance the road was getting plowed. 

There were a couple of times that winter that I got REAL cold before I found a way to get a kerosene heater.  These days, if I never get cold again it will too freaking soon.  I keep saying I'm going to keep moving south until I'm straddling the equator, and then I'll probably still bitch about being cold.  I get cold easy, even here where it almost never snows.  We did get some last year though, and somewhere I have a picture of a snow woman to prove it (yes I said female ... don't ask)

Although we don't get much snow, it does freeze and we get frost most of the winter.  Not this early in the season, so no, this shot isn't from this year.  I have had to break out the real shoes and socks though, sad to say.   I may be the only woman on the planet that HATES shoes.  But on the bright side I've gotten to get the blankets out too, and I love cozying up in a snuggy blanket, so things even out I guess. 

Weird Wednesday: Flaming Crazy

 

For this weeks Weird Wednesday post we'll again hop into the Way Back Machine and visit my senior year in High School.  One of my friends had a car, and as he had to go by my house on his way into school anyways, he'd pick me up so I didn't have to ride the school bus.

This particular day started out like any other and I had no inkling what was to come.  As was our habit, we arrived a bit early so that we could meet up with the other kids in our gang and hang out for a few minutes and catch up on the gossip before school.  We had gotten out of the car and started walking toward the entrance of the wing our lockers were in when I realized I'd left some homework in the car and had to go back after it.  My friend went ahead on in to meet the rest of our group.

I got my stuff out of the car and started back.  When I looked up there was an old guy standing there staring at me.  It kinda creeped me out and as soon a I made eye contact he started talking.

"I know what you did"

No, I couldn't possibly have heard him right, "What?!"

"I know what you did and you're not going to get away with it"

"What are you talking about?  I don't even know you,  who ARE you?"

"Do you know what fire feels like when it's burning your body?  Do ya?  It's burns your hair and skin and ..."

Okay THAT was enough for me, I took off around him and bolted for the doors.  I didn't even look back.  I got inside and my friends are all there standing in a semi-circle and want to know whats gotten into me scurrying in that way.  No sooner do I start to tell them, than this creepy old man comes in the door behind me ... he'd followed me into the school!  And he was still talking shit.

One of the boys in my class (big guy, on the football team) heard some of what the creep was saying to me and asked if I was okay, and did I know the guy.  When I said no, he told the creep to leave, and the guy acted like he was going to ... for a minute.  Football player takes off.  All of my friends are still in the semi-circle and I'm on the end because I was the last one in. 

Creepy Old Guy is still spouting nonsense and just before he heads out the door, he whips around, grabs hold of my arm and tries to drag me out with him.  My friends grabbed my other arm and yanked me back, and Creepy Old Guy takes off.

Where the football player had gone off to was the office, to get some help.  The Principal and Asst. Principal, not knowing the details of what had happened, found the guy in front of the school and told him he had to leave.  Creepy Old Guy agreed, and headed toward his car.  As soon as they turned around to go back in however,  he started to go back to the entrance I had used.  They were still watching him though, and came back out to chase him down.  He saw them and ran back to his car, got in and drove off.  When he got to the road he stopped and tried to grab one of the girls trying to cross the street, but she got away.

The school called the cops and I had to tell them the whole story.  They already had him by the time they talked to me.  He'd stopped down by the elementary school and tried to grab yet another girl.  Come to find out, he had escaped from a mental institution.  He said he was going to Florida and was just looking for a little company.  God knows where he got the car.

And that's as close as I ever want to come to being a headline story on the evening news.  Why me?  Who knows?  Just lucky I guess, I'll leave it to you to decide if it's good or bad luck ;)  Some think it's bad luck that this kind of thing happens to me.  Others say I'm lucky because I didn't get kidnapped.  All I'm sure of is that I seem to be a drama magnet.

Misplaced Dreams

Guardian 

Some days are lost to memories
stray thoughts meandering down a path that leads ever backwards
wondering how in the world it went so wrong

So much water has passed under the bridge
I can walk this path now without drowning in tears
but the wind blows wistfully and whispers in the treetops
telling secrets I can no longer hear

I remember what it was like to walk between the raindrops
to feel my roots in the earth and see the future in the fire
... to dance with the elements and embrace the magick

The wind still blows and the wheel of time keeps turning
taking me farther and farther from the time that was
into a future that has yet to be dreamed

Gone but not forgotten you will always be ... a part of me
a candle burning bright in the the recesses of my mind
in the here ... in the now
Memories are powerful, they can defeat even Death

It's my dreams I need help finding
so I can create a future in which magick survives

Wisterian Bondage

Thematic Photographic #118  click on the link to see more interpretations of Branched


Wisterian Bondage is so named because what looks like huge coils of rope twisting around and around the trunk of this very tall tree and tying it to the ground is actually a wisteria vine.  If you look closely you can see the little bits of purple and green WAAAY up at the top of the tree.  The stormy day just added to the sinister feel and the name was a natural.

When given an assignment it is my nature to stretch the boundaries of the theme.  I generally like to do something a little unexpected and out of the ordinary.  When Carmi posted the theme this week he made a point of telling us that how we interpret a theme could be as "out there" (hey that's MY phrase!) as we wish.  He said that branches didn't have to be something that originated as a seed, that the goal was to stretch those boundaries.   

Contrary brat that I am, that's not what I want to do this week ... go figure huh?  The thing is, the theme he chose was "branched" ... and it happens that trees are one of my very favorite subjects.   I know ... we see trees everyday, but how often do we really look at them?  I think I can present you with a few shots of 'branches' that are all different from each other and hopefully, thrown in a few surprises.

 

Sweet Gum

 This osprey is just begging for a caption

Still Standing  that's the Morris Island Lighthouse in the background

As much as I hated the idea, we had some pine trees taken down a couple of months ago.  The were huge and brittle and hanging over the roof ... and hurricane season was upon us.  It was fascinating to watch these guys in action.  They tied off the branches and then used the ropes to lay the branches right where they wanted when they cut them.

Chaotic Good  Came across this tree out on the marsh near the lighthouse.  Wonderful old tree will all the personality of the Whomping Willow without the attitude.

Weird Wednesday: Ghostly Parallels

I hope I don't freak anybody out, but I have admitted to being a bit to the far side of what is considered normal and this IS Weird Wednesday after all.  I chose this photo partly because it fits the "Parallel" theme, partly because I tend to celebrate Samhain (Halloween for all you non-pagan types) all month long, and partly because I really like graveyard shots and have a bunch of them.  But the biggest reason for choosing this particular photo was to introduce this weeks Weird Wednesday post, which is about ghosts.

Being a bit of a skeptic myself, I fully understand those of you that are rolling your eyes right about now thinking "OMG, she's gone batty" really I do.  I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't lived through the experience myself and my feelings won't be hurt if you say something to that effect in the comments.  But having lived with a ghost once I can't deny their existence,  and although the situation was bizarre I didn't find it scary at all.

I was in my late 20's and going through my first divorce.  I was waiting tables at a 24 hour coffee house.  One of the ladies I worked with was sweet little Virgo woman who had lost a son to a motorcycle accident a few years back.  He was the fun loving sort, big heart, trouble magnet.  Had he lived, he would have been about my age.  I was in serious need of some fun at the time and sincerely regretted that he wasn't around to kick it with.  He would have been just my type.

Mama Virgo was always telling us stories about Brian and when she did, strange things would happen.  One night it was a bus tub that came jumping off the shelf to crash on the floor.  Another time a light about an empty table exploded.  When we were at her house, doors would suddenly swing shut.  She said she and her family always attributed those things to Brian.

She let me come stay with her for a couple of weeks while I was waiting for the trailer I was moving into to become available.  While I was there, there was a lot of "activity".  She was getting ready to move to CA and said that the reason for all the commotion was that Brian didn't like the idea of her going there.  It was where she had met his father and he didn't think much of him.  Smart ass that I am I said "Well, if Brian doesn't want to go to CA with you he can come move in my new digs with me."

At the time I didn't think much about it.  I didn't necessarily NOT believe in ghosts, but hadn't seen anything to make me believe either.  Sure, strange things had happened, but I wasn't sold on any particular theory as yet.  I moved into the trailer, and Mama Virgo moved to CA, and almost right away things started happening.

If you've ever lived in a mobile home you know that you can feel the vibrations in the floor when someone else is walking in the house.  I would be sitting back in the bedroom and I swear, you could hear the footsteps, and feel them coming down the hall.  Then the bedroom door would open.  I couldn't see anyone but could hear the footsteps around the end of the bed, up along side ... then the bi-fold closet doors would open and shut again ... then all would be quiet.

This happened most every day!  I checked the doors, of course.  The bedroom door was clicked shut.  The closet doors weren't just loose.  Neither ever opened or shut on their own without the footsteps.  I never heard the footsteps that I couldn't "feel" them.  There were no vibrations without the "sound" of the footsteps.  There was no scary feeling, no coldness, nothing you normally would associate with "ghosts".  Didn't take too long before I would just say "Hey Brian" whenever it happened. 

A couple came over to party after work one night.  I hadn't said anything at work about any of this because, well it sounds crazy you know?  They ended up staying the night.  When I got up in the morning they both come out of the other bedroom and they kept looking at me funny.  I hadn't heard anything myself that night but I knew from the looks on their faces they had.

"Something's really strange here Sally"
"What?"
"Didn't you hear all that last night?"
"No, what did you hear?"
"Somebody was stomping around in the hallway, but when we opened the door no one was there"

Aha, independent confirmation!  I wasn't going crazy.  I told them the whole story then, of course.  They were like wow, but they didn't let it spook them and came to stay often.

I was going away for a weekend once and another friend wanted to know if he and his girlfriend could stay at my house while I was gone.  I said sure, but he should be aware that I had a ghost, that he was friendly enough, just don't be surprised if he makes himself known.  He just shook his head all yeah, yeah okay.

I came back two days later.  His eyes were big as saucers.  "You have a ghost!"
"Yeah, I know, I TOLD you that before I left"
"Yeah you did, but I didn't believe you.  I just thought, well you know ... "
"Yeah I know, you just thought I'd gone off the deep end"
"Yeah, I just though it was one of those Sally's out there things"
"Well, now you know"
"Yeah, you may be out there ... but you do have a ghost."

Brian was with me until I moved out of that trailer.  I don't know where he went then, but it's quite possible he went back to Mama Virgo's. She hadn't stayed in CA too long and was back.  I lost touch with her when I moved, so I haven't ever heard.

That was the only time I ever lived with a ghost, although I've gotten "messages" from a couple of others.  But I think this is enough "out there" for one day.

Anybody else got any ghost stories they'd like to share?

Fallen Leaves

 

It's been an interesting weekend.  I went back out to play rock star of course, because ... well, that's just what I do.  I'm not really used to going out both Friday AND Saturday, but since I really don't do much else and my presence was being requested why not?  My hat got neither asked out or stood up this weekend, however it did get ME a to-be-determined lunch or dinner date sometime later this week at an ooo la la ... nice place, or at least that's the plan.  We'll have to wait and see if this one chickens out.  It IS October and I do have a standing record, especially at this time of year, for something I call the Medusa effect.

You see, I have this way of scaring fellas off.  I don't know what it is.  One day they're all up in my face, ooh baby, let's this, let's that, I wanna wear your hat, will you be here tomorrow, or next week, or whenever, or I'll call ya.  The next thing you know whoosh, bam, they're GONE and you never see or hear from them again.  Or if you do and like, have the unmitigated gall to say something really personal like "hi" or something, they get this deer in the headlights look and will disappear as quickly as I break eye contact, like suddenly my skin has turned green and I've grown snakes for hair.

 I've never figured out what happens between one day and the next.  Not that it matters much.  Any guy that spooks at the general small talk I make with strangers certainly doesn't have balls enough to handle the truly strange things that happen to me in day to day life.  And really, I'd sooner know that before I waste any time on them so it's all good.

After I got home Saturday night I jumped on the intertubes to see what my friends were up to and was delightfully surprised to find that I'd been "awarded".  It's my first, and I'm tickled pink!  Many thanks to my friend, The Blogger Formerly Known As ... we call her "Mask" because TBFKA just sounds so ... generic ... which is the idea I realize, but well, we have to call her something and she's much too nice for it to be 'yo beeatch'.  So Mask it is.  You really should check out her blog, it's comfortable and funny ... and she has cookies.  And since I don't seem to be able to make her button link you can use this link 

This is an award that's meant to be shared with others you feel are deserving so I have the honor of presenting it to:

Laura at ForestWalkArt

Just Plain Tired at justplaintiredof and

Max at It's the Journey

Who all do indeed, have lovely blogs and all of which I hope will be as pleased to receive it as I was.

Now all I have to do is wrap my technically challenged brain around adding gadgets to my page ... wish me luck, I'll need it.

Decisions, Decisions

Carmi's gone and done it again.  He picked an unusual theme, and my first reaction when I saw the theme was Parallel was "I have one of those" because I like to dabble in abstract occasionally.  Then I clicked on the link to Written Ink and saw the photo he opened with ... mine could be its sister.  So I couldn't just enter that, it wouldn't be cool.

Now granted I could ... it's not like there's a rule about it, but I'm a bit off beat to start with and I kinda like traveling to the beat of a different drum.  But I was thinking, this could be tough, other than a couple obvious things not a lot came to mind ... to start with.  But as my Magic Man always used to tell me "You have to look at it sideways" and the more I thought about it, the more things I came up with ... and I couldn't pick 'just one'.

Thematic Photographic 117 at Written Ink    Click the link to see more examples of Parallel


Bright Eye   St. Augustine, Florida

This is perhaps my most unique take on this theme.  It is inside a lighthouse looking out.  It was quite the heady feeling to be seeing all those parallel perspectives simultaneously.  So this will be my entry, however I have runners up too :)


Golden Ear

Technically this isn't one of my best, but it's fun.  This was one of my very first experiments with selective color when I was learning how to edit photos.  The rows upon rows of kernels argued they best represented the theme.  Mother Nature presents us with different types of parallels also ...


 Umbrella


Canopy

And yes, now that I've shown that I CAN think for myself I'll show you the abstract too ;)


DiagonAlly

Thanks Carmi, I had fun with this.