313: Memories... The Gazebo .... OOPS!

The Gazebo by Morning Light.

Several days ago I saw this scene and  envisioned it in the morning light.  This morning I braved the chill and the image was even better than I had envisioned.. AS I made the image capture, I started thinking of the romantic scenes involving gazeboes,  Like in "The Sound of Music".  OH, the thoughts of our youth..

But, as I stood there shivering in the morning chill, I got a revelation. Over the past few images I had thoughs about the memories of my youth portrayed in the images, but the revelation was:  I was not photographing memories I was photographing things that reminded me of warm weather.  So I went home and sat by the fire...

Have a nice warm blessed day....

THElmo


PS: Maybe I am not as melancholy as I thought, Just cold...
E.

312: Memories and the Old Swimming Hole

Memories are special and individual things.  An image such as this might being to mind that special place with that special person and no matter how many other people were there you only saw that special one..

Fall at the Old Swimming Hole

So lets do this, click on the image, making it full screen.  Sit back enjoy the image and let it bring back your special memory..

And do have a blessed day...

THElmo

311: Memories and Tire Swings

I went out today in search of fall color to photograph.  I found some for tomorrow morning but none for today.  I did, however, caught a glimpse of this image and as I was continuing my search, I realized this was my image for the day.

The Old Tire Swing

As I get older my mind wanders back to the years of my youth and I have developed a strong urge to go back and visit some of those places.  Having visited some of those places previously,  I realize that it is not the place, it is the people with whom you associate those places with, that make the real memories. The places are seldom as beautiful as your memory has made them.  People make the memories, places just fix them in space and time.

Another thing about visiting memories, they may be somber, happy or perhaps both.  But to enjoy maximum benefit you need to have someone very special with you, someone that knows you, cares for you, and understands you.  At somber places this person needs to recognize those and be one that can walk up after a few moments and place a hand on you shoulder and in doing so say, I understand and I share your feelings.  At the happy places this same person needs to be one that will share your stories of happiness no matter what the situation.  So now this someone enhances the memory.

People are the key to memories, keep them and cherish them.
And may you make a new beautiful memory today.

And about Tire Swings ....some neat memories....

181: Memories

Last post was about memories of long ago, today is more modern. As I sat here today thinking about the proposed upcoming snow/ice storm I ran across this image from this past summer when I was wishing for cooler weather. Be careful what you wish for.

Summer Heat

180: Memories

Memories

Sometimes there must be an explanation. Several weeks ago I shot this after it pushed my thoughts to bygone days.

WPA-> In my youth some of the highpoints related to regular trips to Ratliff Lake. Ratliff Lake was a CCC project (Close enough to WPA for my thoughts) . It contained a large (at least seemed so at the time) lake for various water activities. Lots of trails and camping sites. Just a great place to go and have fun. I do seem to remember someone or ones loaded down the creek feeding the lake with Dye-Markers (the kind used by the Air Force to mark rescue areas in the ocean). Have you Ever seen a BRIGHT GREEN Lake?

Railroad -> Well my dad was a railroader. When they started phasing out Steam as power he quit stating, "real railroading is dead." As a modern day railfan I tend to agree, there is nothing like a real bellowing choo-choo.

San Antonio contains the Alamo. The Alamo is the defining statement of all TEXICANS. As I was born and raised in Texas what else can I say. And besides all my Childhood memories are from Texas.

146: The Falling Leaves

It is a cool damp dreary day, not a good day for phtography. As I looked out my window:

The falling leaves drift by the window
The autumn leaves of red and gold

Brings back some wonderful memories of two very special people.

144: The Balcony

Over the years I have noticed a drift in balcony usage in modern churches. When I was young small children sat with their parent in church. As one grew older there was a right of passage where you moved down front. Not the very front row, that row was for those making decisions.

After a few years down front you outgrew the "kids", so it was back to setting with the parents or in my case grandparents. As one approached their teen years, came the second right of passage the balcony.



After many days of pestering I was finally allowed to sit in the balcony. I was now officially somebody. Being interested in electronics I sat close to the broadcast booth to observe how it worked. After a month or so, the folks setting around got a little lax in their behavior, but no me I was totally innocent (pause in writing this to duck the lightening strike). Suddenly the place got quite. Then with a booming voice I heard "Mr. John Smith, Mr. Harold Jones (names changed to protect the guilty) and Mr. Elmo Bass please go to the balcony and get your Jack, Henry and Bob as they are acting up and disturbing those around them.

Considering that was broadcast on the leading radio station in town, and the family embarrassment I was not permitted to sit in the balcony again, actually I do not remember asking again. Even more I do not think I have ever sat in a balcony again except for a short period of time I ran the sound system in a church some 25 years later.

So when I come and visit your church and sit in your seat, tough, I am setting on the ground floor you go sit in the balcony.

138: Grandpa Tale -- Grapes and Plums

Have you ever wondered why Grapes are always sold in bags? I know, so let me tell you, but to do so I need to tell another memory of my Grandfather.

Grapes and Plums a Memory

When I was a wee lad I used to occasionally go with my grandfather on sales trips. He sold fresh fruits and vegies to grocery stores. One day we were running late and we had not stopped for lunch. As he was taking down an order at a store, he reached down and picked up plum and ate it. Following his example I reached up and grabbed a few white grapes to hold me over. My grandfather noticed me eating the grapes and gave me a strong lecture on stealing and how the store owner would go broke if everyone stole from him.

As the lecture closed I defended my self by stating I had seen him just eat a plum. Without ant hesitation he responded: " Yes I did, but I sold him those plums and knew I would eat one, so I took that much off the price." Therefore, as a result to protect small children, grape are now sold in plastic bags.

Have you ever noticed how many times we as adults make excuses for doing what we tell our kids not to do? I know I do.

128:Birthday Girl

Was very busy today with a Bible study project, so no picture. Then I remembered it is my granddaughter Joy Anna's Birthday. As I posted possibly less than flattering images for her mother and aunt, it is her turn.

And She said "don't do that" but I did

Happy Birthday to my Granddaughter

117: Studio Photography -- Remakes

Last night when it was time to post, I suddenly remembered today's Images were on my computer that is currently out of commission. So I had to wait until after church today to do a recopy.

Here it is as promised, in honor of my eldest, Pam.



I must be fair as I used Carolyn's birthday post (image 21) as part of a story, I must use this on as part of a story. It seems that both this and Carolyn's image are illustrations of my studio work. They were an attempt to make a more sophisticated image of a previous snapshot.



As you can see remakes generally lack some of the character of the originals.

116: Happy Days are Here Again

It was well after dark and no image for the day. I headed downtown turned onto Main street and STOP (Slide Tires On Pavement). This is what I saw.

The Date

There sat a Model A in the driveway of a home (funeral home actually, but close enough for reference). It reminded me of times long ago when a friend of mine had a Model A and we had stopped to drop off one of our dates. Talk about flash backs. The lighting was perfect as the car is in a darkest area (where would park when you brought a date home?) and the porch lights were always too bright for that parting embrace. The setting was perfect, think about where you would park to avoid parental or sibling eyes peaking out of windows? Oh what happy memories.

As a side note when I made this image I was standing beside the lamp post in image 60, where I referenced the Old Lamplighter. My town is a photographers dream, now if I could only meet the task.

99: Saved by Grace

Due to weather no photos taken today, so I decided to share one of my old shots:

Saved By Grace

To understand the image one needs a little background. This is the same area two days before.

Sometimes one needs a little background information to understand the subject. The head of wheat shown in the first image is located just to the right of the fence post in this last image. As you can see the wheat survived the harvest and the raging fire that followed, in spite of growing up among the tares. Reminds me of myself, how about you?

87: The Table at the Back of the Room

I have chased enough rabbits for now so back to the original story. After I moved to the coast I found a local photo supply store with a twist. Way in the back of the store was a table with all the necessary items for critiquing photographs. Starting around 10 on Saturday mornings many of the local photographers started stopping in for supplies and picking up slides. They all seemed to migrate back to the table where the group was willing and able to critique the images.

Around this “table in the back of the room” I did learn a little to help with my technique, but what I learned most was how to have a socially acceptable image. The key was the social acceptability and then the technique as long as the technique remained within the social guidelines.

It took me many years to overcome the social aspects and revert to what is true, and I now enjoy photography more that I ever have since I found the table in the back of the room.

The Table in the Back of the Room

I know some will get up in arms about my image selection of a religious Icon to illustrate a secular idea, but is that idea completely secular or might it have some relation to modern religion? Besides all that, is not our religion to go hand in hand with our everyday life?

81: Still Life -- GrandPa's Peanuts

While talking with my friend Marty this morning he reminded me of an old tale about my Grandfather. As a result I went to the store and got some peanuts, carefully parched (roasted in the shell) them, took them to the table to enjoy and reminisce.

Parched Peanut Snack

This result was a vivid reminder of my Grandfather. He managed a wholesale warehouse that supplied fresh fruits and veggies to most of the stores and restaurants in Central East Texas, and he loved parched peanuts. Every day, a man, carrying a cardboard box slung off his shoulder by a piece of rope, came by the warehouse. The box was full of small bags of parched peanuts and my grandfather bought a couple of bags to enjoy throughout his work day.


Well the story goes like this. The first question my grandfather always asked when he interviewed someone for a job was, “Do you Like Peanuts?” Think about it; he and his desk were covered with peanut shells and husk, what would you say? If you said yes, you did not get the job.

His reasoning was not selfishness but that there was always stuff for one to eat around the warehouse and you were welcome to eat it, but everything in the warehouse except peanuts one could eat with one hand and work with the other. It takes two hands to eat peanuts.

I know this tale is true and it brings to mind a question. Are we, as Christians, eating with one hand and working with the other, or are we just eating?

73: Sun Burst Remembered

Several years ago there was a spectacular sun burst. In an effort to get the perfect foreground, I missed most of it. As fate would have it that image now means more to me than any other image have captured. This is to commemorate that image.

Sun Set -- Sun Burst

70: Good Old Summer Time

I do not know if this is street or landscape photography. Maybe just a snapshot, but it does bring back lots of old memories. Specifically a place called Indian Canyon.

In The Good Old Summer Time

63: Sunday Morning Sidewalk

I awoke this morning and had a Norman Rockwell moment. My mind’s eye envisioned a young family walking into church holding hands. I set out to document such an intimate moment this morning. After two hours of waiting it became evident times had changed.

Sunday Morning Sidewalk

Seems almost all the young families enter the rear of the church to facilitate depositing the kids in the “Children Areas.” When a young family did arrive they entered as a group, but not holding hands. It would have been easy enough to ask them to hold hand for the image, but that would not be “Documenting the Human Condition”.

54: Street Photography -- Days of Old

It is not often the streets of this little town are occupied by multiple people, but this evening was one of those days. Once each month the Downtown Business Association sponsors a Cruse-In. The streets come alive with antique cars and people. The trouble was every time I started to take a picture, seems someone was in the way. And you would have thought there was a photographers convention going on. I am not talking about people with cameras, but people with cameras on tripods. I got a few decent images and then it happened! I got visions of the past. I wonder if it has to do with cars of that era (my dating era)?

Just Crusin'

This lady and gentleman walked up to this car. He opened the passengers side door and she got in. As he was walking around the car she slid over to the middle of the front seat. He got in and she snuggled up close and off they went crisin' into the sunset.

Once upon a time there was a tavern
Where we used to raise a glass or two
Remember how we laughed away the hours
And think of all the great things we would DO
Those were the days, my friend

We thought they'd never end
We'd sing and dance forever and a day
We'd live the life we choose
We'd fight and never lose
Those were the days
Oh, yes, those were the days

47: Details

Seven or Seventy,
A man cannot walk by a firetruck without taking notice.
They always seems to bring out the kid in us.

34: The Very Beginning -- Silhouette

In the beginning I did not have a photograph to show what really turned me on to photography, years ago. It all started on day when I walked into general science class. All the shades were drawn down to about a foot from the bottom of the windows. Shortly after class started Dr. Killiam gave everyone in the class a piece of paper. The instructions were to take the paper to the window, place it on the window sill shinny side up in the sun light. Then place on hand on the paper for 1 minute. After which we took the paper and put it in a tray of some type of fluid. When the silhouette of my hand appeared I was hooked for life.

The Anchor for Every Storm