The Unofficial Easter Decoration

When traveling by an area, usually, my eye will catch the unusual, new, or what once was. It goes with being a photographer. Photography does train the eye. It has been noted many times by many experts--of course, today, every one is some kind of expert-- but, usually the meaning is of a professional statue.

Never-the-less, Easter egg rolls may be fun for the kids, but they have been done so many times, it just isn't worth the time or energy. And, with no disrespect to the churches that put out a rugged cross and yoke it in the church calendar linen of red or purple for that period in the liturgical calendar, it is about the same as an Easter egg roll that has been done the same year in and year out. While the meaning of Easter never get old, the thoughtfulness and good taste that draws attention is pretty rare today.

However, this year, my interest was peaked when I drove by Royal Lane Baptist Church this Easter Sunday morning.. In fact, it caught my attention so much, I turned around and came back. Usually, I drive with my camera ready on the passenger seat with the bag on it's side to shield the camera from the sun, heat and  dust. Today, the camera wasn't even unpacked but the display at the corner of Royal Lane and Hillcrest Avenue was worth every bit of the effort to unpack for these images. So, if there was a winner to be judged in any contest of sort, Royal Lane Baptist Church was the winner in many ways. Good job and well done. It was a beautiful display for this Easter morn. Hallelujah!

The cross covered in fresh flowers

Coming down Royal Lane it could not be missed!

University of Central Oklahoma Women's Rowing Images

Currently, the images have rotated to page 3 row 8 and continue throughout the 48-hour cycle to rotate downward until they fall off into archives.

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Move Over New York

The electronic arm of the Dallas Morning News, the DallasNews, ran an article earlier this week about the rapid growth that we are experiencing here in the Metroplex and a side bar article mixed in about the even more expansive growth in Houston.  We are the fourth largest area in the country; New York and New Jersey is third.

Dallas came in at 131.000 in the count period in 2013 to 2014. Houston:156,000 in the same period. When you look at the New York and New Jersey numbers in comparison, they added just 91,000. That's 105,000 plus/minus more above each reaching New York's numbers in both Houston and Dallas. That is 287.67 people per day arriving in each  city of Houston, Dallas, The Woodlands, Arlington.

No wonder vacant land, from single lots to open fields, are under construction. For the past month, I have been counting  houses in the framing mode. The numbers add up more than the fingers on both hands, always!

The new homes on just single lots number more than the fingers on each hand in Dallas. That does not include the 300-500 apartment complexes that are going up en mass and the 8-10 unite condos that are squeezed onto 2 or 3 acres.

DallasMorningNew article

 

Term Limits Are Never Needed But......

https://t.co/WzsNGVdPlh#TRUMP HAS MAJORITY of CITIZENS
GOP WILL LOSE PRESIDENCY&CONGRESS
KEEP DISRESPECTIN VOTERS pic.twitter.com/3KbVCXb8mX

— GrandmaE (@TrussElise) March 18, 2016

This is how term limits are intended to work. This is the year to  redo congress. The dome has been redone....now lets redo people in offices in both the office buildings and on Capital Hill's landmark capital building. It's house cleaning time in Washington.Get out and vote. No more GOP secret meetings on private islands in Georgia. No more closed door meetings in Washington to work on ways to stop Trump. Washington's do nothing congress is scared that their 401 is about to go bust!! They let ours go bust. Just remember WE THE PEOPLE!!! Not US the Congress. Vote the bums out!! Then when you walk outside the polling place, pump your fist and scream, "OH, that felt so good!"

A Very Happy St. Patrick's Day

Amazing a Monk Parrot should appear on St. Patrick's Day of the green color variety!

J.R.R. Tolkien, "Celtic of any sort is a magic bag into which anything may be put, and out of which almost anything may come. Anything is possible in the fabulous Celtic twilight, which is not so much a twilight of the gods as of the reason.”

"That's the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, don't you see."~~dallaspaparazzo

Sights, Unheard Sounds, Ramblings & Thoughts

One,  it took 73-days of the new open carry law in Texas before I saw my first two open carries. Yesterday on the way down to the bridge, two motorcycles pulled up along side me on Harry Hines Blvd. at the light. The first open carry was on the man. The second open carry was alongside him and was carried by a woman rider. My reaction to seeing an open carry under the new law was somewhat mixed until I actually saw these two. Surprisingly, there was more feelings of, "Gee! we live in an awesome country!" The cyclist changed into my lane ahead of me after the light change and were ahead of me for a few miles. My attitude was pretty strong that they were exercising their rights on Texas soil like so many pioneers before them and it actually felt pretty good, emotionally, knowing that, like Ronald Reagan, basically, people are good.

Two, it was an above average day with temps well above the average only to hear that tomorrow (Monday) they will be some 20-degrees warmer. We could be pushing near 90 folks! It's not even the Ides of March yet and St. Patrick's Day is still a day away (since this is being written on Monday, now). Every thing is green and colorful. The red-bud trees are awesome, the flowering crabs and dogwoods are bright and gleaming, even the magnolia blooms look great. The tulip beds along Caruth Haven in the Village are spectacular. Beautiful wine colored and yellow iris and,of course, the underrated daffodils that William Wordsworth wrote about in 1815 are still holding true to the poems.

The third was a symphonic sound of a soulful trumpet player under the Commerce Street Viaduct at the Trinity River, which is at flood stage and the discharge on the downstream side of the bridge was swift and could be deadly, yet the sound of the trumpet filled my soul with joy and delight for having heard that majestic, almost state trumpet-like sound bouncing off the walls of the bridge supports and the deck above. Who ever the trumpet player was-- he was a delight to hear and I only hope that he will play again soon.

William Wordsworth poem, Daffodils, 1815

The commercialized meaning of Easter

Patiently awaiting President Obama Motorcade nearing sunset.This image is available for personal use at Alamy.com from the live news archive.  order Image FMR3YC

Daffodils

by William Wordsword, 1815. 

First Verse

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the tree,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Discovering Something Else While In Search of Another

Several articles have been written on this topic. Usually it is on the way to the doctor's and finding a

The second piece is now added to the transition base and the first metal fab piece. It's on its way, folks!

serendipitous discovery. Usually, it makes me happy. Sometimes, not. There are several reasons the not is more unhappy than the other. Basically, in the past few months, there has been more negative people in the mix than at other times. There are those who usually are going to look at a picture and find every excuse in the book to tell you what you are explaining  is not what you said it was. To those, my answer is this: Why would one go to the effort to point out something exciting  just to serve an ego? That has always been a cause to frustrate me and continues to do so today. If you have that big of an ego need to begin with, then my suggestion is to contact two friends of mine over the past 40 years. One is a psychiatrist and the other one is PhD psychologist. Personally, this author would suggest seeing the psychiatrist first.

The juvenile bald eagle of at least 4-years already had the full white head and most of the tail feathers had turned, but not all. Riding the thermals between the levees was a beautiful site.

It was an enjoyable shoot, and the eagle made it even better. After all, it is part of the Great Trinity. Eagles like that old wood setting near water and a fresh food supply. Two weeks ago a spotting of two red tailed hawks were seen on the electrical towers between the levees. It's a thrill seeing such amazing birds in the heart of downtown.

Bird : It's really a Juvy Bald Eagle even though there are those who will do anything to discredit the fact.In this case,  a Texas Department of Wildlife Naturalist confirmed it was a bald eagle. So there!!

The distance between the arches is greater than most think. Originally, there were to be two more arches in the middle of these two arches.

The Magic Hare

I Love This Job!

A Mandrain Duck on Dallas Waters!

About three months ago, one of the Asian photographers that takes bird pictures at White Rock Lake showed me the area and the picture of a Mandrain Duck he had photographed that day.  I have walked the recess areas looking for the duck since with no luck except to see it one time from afar and in an area where access was not possible except by boat.

Then, this past couple of days, two of the local news stations that go out a couple of days a week on location shots reported (with pictures) that a rare Mandrain had been seen in Irving. Now, since Mandrains are from Asia--half way round the world--there should not be two on the loose locally. Or, at least common logic says that there should not be any, let alone two. And, if they have been documented at both White Rock and in Irving, that same logic seems to say that it is the same duck.Furthermore, that the duck most likely slipped away from a zoo's aviary somewhere close. Well, close being relative to not half a world away at any rate.

So, while the masses were voting (I voted early the first day) and the weather was delightfully spring, it was off  to the park in Irving in search of an elusive mandrain duck. As a side bar, the duck at White Rock was seen about a week after  my Asian friend made mention and showed me the picture. Yes, his image date in-camera was checked. When it was seen, however, it was from a distance and not accessible, but it was a Mandrain duck none-the-less. It should also be noted that this photographer loves mandrain duck on the table but now having seen one in real life, ordering up a mandrain will never happen again. They are just to pretty of a bird to eat.

At the same time, while talking to a few photographers and birders on the banks of the river the reports were that no one had seen the little mandrain that the news reports called "frankie" or "fluffy" or "flakey".Whatever. Still, with some faith that luck would come my way, maybe, my walk started down the trail on one side of the river to the bridge at 6th street, across the low water spillway which was totally dry for crossing, and back up the other side of the river. The walk on down to the recreation center and the second crossover was not made this trip.  A couple of years ago walking the same route had been done with the Nikon but never shot with the Olympus and the short lens. So, with no mandrain to report this trip, at least the trip generated some stock updates which need to be done from time to time anyway. So, the trip was not a total loss.

Earlier in the morning, my live news agent sent me an email telling me that the UK dailies were very interested in the American elections and mentioned a hand full of shot types that they were looking for. Upon leaving  the Historic District in Irving my goal was to find some active poling places that were somewhat unusual or had dogs being watched while voters were inside voting but not one turned up on my route. After returning home and already changed into my comfort cloths, it was being reported on the news that some voting places had run out of ballets and lines were long. No, the sense of urgency to get those kinds of shots were not in the cards anymore that day! But, here are a few shots from the river in the Historic District of Irving.

The Shelter House. I have always thought of this as a Cathedral on the water

Under the 6th Street bridge

The first of two low water crossovers when they are dry. They are closed when water begins to overflow for safety reasons.