These are a pair of photos taken in none-other than the capital of the nation – Washington D.C.
Both taken in/around the national mall, in fact.
It was on one of my early trips to DC that we visited the mall, and I was intrigued by the wildlife present in the city.
Coming from Wellington I was used to birds, but not so much other ground creatures. Maybe I just didn’t notice (and no, pigeons on the ground don’t count).
What else could it be? This is Crash, my golden retriever. He weighs 115lb (not overweight, either, he’s just that big!), he will beat you to death with his excited tail, and is generally a furball of happy.
You may have noticed the last four posts resemble an old adage.. It wasn’t intentional, at least, it wasn’t when I posted the first one. Something new, something old, something moo, something gold. Cheesy, yes. I just hope that someone enjoyed it!
Just cows. That’s all. They are on a dairy farm just off VA-259 a couple of miles west of Fulks Run. I took the photo a year or so ago while with some friends who live right beside the farm. Good times, good times.
Nestled in the grass on a family home in West Virginia are 4 old trucks. If only they could tell of the travels they had before they were left to the elements.. Where had they been? What cargo had they carried? Who had ridden in them?
Maybe their stories would all be boring and mundane – but maybe, just maybe, there would be something only they could know. Something worth knowing.
“I am I plus my circumstances.” — Jose Ortega y Gasset
Truer words are rarely spoken. Someone else said that life’s circumstances can make you bitter, or better. The choice, I believe, is yours.
Worst case day: I get fired. The choice is mine as to whether I am sad and wallow in self pity, or whether I take the opportunity to do things I couldn’t do while looking for a new job – maybe finding something better than I had before.
Bad things happen to everyone, it doesn’t matter if you’re a good person or a bad person, at some point something bad will happen. If nothing bad has happened recently, then now is a good time to prepare, because there is probably an onslaught coming. Also, just because you don’t see bad things happening to other people, doesn’t mean they aren’t suffering too – maybe they’ve already made the decision to be better, rather than bitter.
I am I, plus my circumstances. How I deal with that combination, however, is entirely up to me.
I try really hard to take photos of things that aren’t trains, and most of the time this endeavor fails. Most Fridays I can be found somewhere close to a railroad track, holding a camera, listening to a scanner, and probably watching ATCS to find the next one. Last week I tried something new, I tried to break out of my regular photographic style a little. It kind of worked, though it is certainly in need of practice.
Typically I go for shots taken from close to the tracks, whenever possible. I have a few spots that I know well and use regularly. On Friday I tried to break out of that, and try firstly a different method of composition, and a couple of different places that I’ve never used, or never used in the same way before.
Such as the siding at Lynnwood (just south of Elkton, north of Grottoes). Usually I take up position on the east side of the tracks and get a nice tight view of the northbound train. This time I took the west-side, way back from the tracks and went for a wide view. The composition was good, but on reviewing the shots later, the camera didn’t cooperate with focus at all.
I did get this one, however, a little later in the day, at La Grange, just west of Staunton. Amtrak train #51, the westbound Cardinal between New York and Chicago is running a few minutes late on a Friday afternoon. If you look closely, you’ll see a full-length dome at the end. That is Amtrak’s last, and is placed on the Cardinal for a couple of trips during fall every year.
… was a man who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, and was the personal physician to Lord Byron. As well as a doctor, he was also a writer.
In June of 1816, after being a part of a group who all read aloud from a particular collection of horror stories, it was suggested that they should each write a ghost story.
It is because of this, primarily, that we were invited to visit with friends in Charlotte, North Carolina this weekend. Every 6 months or so there is a group who meet and share their creative written works, completed or otherwise, for the rest of the group. The general rules are an unwritten limit on time (ie, 10 page readings are generally frowned upon), an expectation that it is a new work (the idea being that it was written that day, or in the day or two beforehand), and a general air of support and positivity. It isn’t so much a place to critique works (although that can be performed later), as to simply share ideas with each other.
Before reading your piece, you have the opportunity to make a disclaimer. In my case, I am not a fiction writer. I’m not good at making up stories. Typically, my best opportunity is to take a real event and either try to adjust it or totally change it so that it works but is not the same. In this specific story, I have to concede that neither the original story, nor the idea utilized in it are totally mine: I’ve read three similar stories in a book several years ago, and decided to try my hand at the idea. I also apologize to anyone who understands banking a lot better than I do.
This is the story I wrote and shared on Saturday:
For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his wealth.
And unto one he gave five talents, to another two talents, and to another one talent; to every man according to his previous performance; and straightway joined the great queue that was for airport security, where he did wait upwards of forty five minutes.
Then he that had received the five talents went and traded on the stock market with the same, and made them other five talents.
And likewise he that had received two talents, he also gained other two talents.
But he that had received but one talent went and deposited in a local savings bank, with a minimal interest return, and hid his lord’s money.
After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.
And so he that had received five talents came, saying, “Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five more.”
His lord said unto him, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”
He also that had received two talents came, and said, “Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two talents other beside them.”
His lord said unto him, “Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”
Then he which had received one talent came and said, “My master, how was thine flight? I trust the staff did treat you well and granted unto thee many blessings of food and wine.”
His lord interjected his blathering and said unto him, “The flight was fine, the food, I have had worse. Now, where is that which I entrusted unto thee? I wish to see what thou hast done with mine wealth.”
“Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and I was uncertain of the stock market and how it doth worketh, and went and hid thy talent in the local savings bank, with minimal interest return: lo, there thou hast that is thine.”
His lord answered and said unto him, “Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to bonds with a good history, or gold, or perhaps put it unto reliable enterprises who grant dividends, and then at my coming-”
And he did stop speaking, for he was distracted by the sudden weeping and gnashing of teeth from those who had doubled their moneys, and asked of them what was wrong.
And they did look up from their intelligent telephones, with looks of great horror, for they had just seen the news.
And they did share the news with their master, for he was looking at them expectantly.
And they said “It has just been reported that the companies in which we had bought stock are failing, and the value of our shares has dropped unprecedentedly.”
Their lord opened the drawer of his desk and withdrew a bottle and four small glasses.
And he said unto them, “Well, I suppose we can ask the government for an bail out..”
But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.
Have you ever read the United States Declaration of Independence? It’s an interesting read if you can get through it.
I realize I have clipped a section for my purposes, but I strongly encourage you to read it in it’s entirety for context.
http://www.ushistory.org/declaration/document/
As a quick backstory, for the non-Americans (or those who have forgotten), the United States was born of people who migrated from England (among other parts of Europe) and was initially an English Colony. King George III was being somewhat of a douche towards the colonists. After much agony inflicted by the King, they decided to separate, to declare their independence.
They outline their complaints against the King and his government: refusing to approve laws believed to be for the common good, forcing his government into accepting his will, dissolving the government on multiple occasions for refusing to accept his views, for placing armed troops among them [the colonists] and protecting them from trial for any murders they commit, cutting off trade, imposing taxes without consent, depriving the right to a trial by jury, etc, etc.
The point is, at some point, the common belief of the people becomes that the government has long ceased to meet their needs, and that change needs to happen. When the government has long proven it’s unwillingness to listen to the people, then according to the Declaration of Independence, it is the duty of the people to rise up against the government and replace it with a more suitable form.
I’m not suggesting a violent overthrow of the government as it stands, I’m certainly not suggesting that the current system of government is being nearly as oppressive as King George III was all those years ago, but I think the United States is long overdue for a discussion on the purpose of government, the duty of government, what the people want and expect from the government, and then action to create a government that is of the people, by the people, for the people.
After watching what is going on in the Occupy movements, I see a group of people who are wanting to start the discussion, but none of the right people are listening. It’s time they stood down their security forces and listened to what their constituency are peacefully requesting. After all, “Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.” – John F. Kennedy
In the scenic county of Highland, Virginia, lies the small town of Monterey. Known for it’s regular events intended for drawing in tourists from all over, it apparently also had a Fallout Shelter built in the Courthouse/Jail building.
Not much seems to be publicly available about the shelter, though with a capacity of 55, and a town population of 150 or so, not everyone would fit..
“Women don’t want to hear what you think. Women want to hear what they think – in a deeper voice.” — Bill Cosby
One of the many things that attracted me to my wife is that she is not a stereotypical woman. I’ve been in trouble before for mindlessly agreeing, for not having my own opinion. I am encouraged to think for myself, and to have independent thoughts that don’t necessarily coincide with what she thinks. In matters of important decisions we usually come to some kind of agreement, in other matters we may decide that I am going to go one place and she is going to go somewhere else and we’ll have a great time, see each other later.
This is a trend, it’s something I really believe, but men, think for yourselves even if it results in conflict with your wife or girlfriend. If it’s something you just can’t get past as a couple, then maybe you need to re-evaluate your relationship. Same with you girls.