Chimneys Gained A New Suporter Today.

It was a long awaited trip back to Hillcrest Avenue, the retail side of S.M.U.west campus.  Since selling my car, it was one of just a very few spokes of my Wagon Wheel Route through the Metroplex photographing most things Urban that I discovered could not be reached via bus or rail. It was a void that drew us in that lane some 20 plus years ago when we discovered a few things that were being missed in stock photography in the Dallas Metroplex. One, things where we live. Two, things that are above our heads because we all (well most all) have their noses buried in their phones. And three, as the Big Tuna, Bill Parcells, one said, about football, "the circus doesn't stay in town forever". And how true that is. Just this week I counted over 50 images in our portfolio that are not even there any longer. Bulldozed right out of history for the most part--- except for old men that have captured it with a camera in days gone by.

One young man ask me today what I was taking pictures of. "Chimneys", I said. He came back out of the store that he had entered and said, "forgot my wallet". A few minutes later, he was back and said, "You got me thinking about chimneys now, I counted three around the corner." Not only did he have a great personality but one that will do him justice in whatever field he enters.  As Author Gordon wrote in his book, A Touch of Wonder, on rare occasions on a chance meeting, a spark jumps between two people. Usually, the person is older but age has little to do with it. The spark either jumped or it didn't, but when it did, it left them changed. That encounter today, left me changed.

As I sat on the sidewalk bench outside the 7-Eleven a bit longer, I got up to start heading toward Daniels St. When I looked up and saw something I have never witnessed in my 69 years looking through the eye piece of a camera. Five parallel contrails from high altitude jets going east with the FAA 5- mile separation between each of them. It just goes to prove that people just do not look up to see what is above their heads. Not a clue to their surrounds which includes the up-slope side of the universe, too. That stopped me in my tracks. After getting a shot or two, I realized that I had not had lunch and went down Asbury St. to New York Sub, where I had the best brisket/pastrami sub since I left behind the three week long junkets up an down the eastern seaboard from Florida to Main I did yearly. I once recall thinking as I looked out the window of my flight and saw the sunlight gleaming on every swimming pool below. "That's my steel in those pools" And it was, and a lot of other places like the end of Long Island or Boston or Maryland, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, and 3-mile Island after the melt down. I've had a pretty amazing life overall. But in retirement, that capture of any of my images that people buy over and over again is one of the most rewarding in life overall. 

KP and I had plans to open a gallery, but his life was cut short way to soon. In his poem, I wrote," I knew I had to release you to fulfill your better dreams." His graduation from Ohio State made me so proud. He worked hard; did every thing right. Now, after all the years of grieving, I now celebrate his life each and every day, seeing him but only in a glimpse in others as they pass buy. I know that sounds strange to some. That's another reason that I continue  to flip the shutter on my camera daily. It's for my Sanity Health. It keeps me in the realm of reality and grounded not only as a human being, but in my faith as well. No father could ask for a better son and what he accomplished in 27 shorts years. While my other two make me  equally proud, loosing a first born son is more difficult in life than anyone who has not experienced that, knows. 

So, this beautiful fall day was a delight on a lot of fronts. And I need to get some things done with my editors in that I had to remove the 10,000 plus images from my webpage portfolios because someone hacked into my system using one of the direct links. Still, my customers and editors have been good to me and I will continue to keep them in mind as I shoot my wagon wheel route covering the Metroplex. Postings to the blog will begin to pick up again. I think I have two upcoming doctor's appointment at the beginning of each of the next two months. That will slow me down some, but I'm not concerned about that downtime. 

For those that are still interested in our portfolios, you can go to each of their websites and search for our images at Alamy (4400) in the UK; Getty/i-stock(482); Dreamstimes (2097); Adobe813; Big Stock(1102); and of course out curio outlet, Zazzle under Glendines Design Fashion Works, Moontripper, or Blue Wind Designs. That's how the media buyers do it anyway. (for those that are bean counters, the numbers don't add up to 10K you say. And, you be right. That is because I don't count the ones in the Vault that will never be divulged.) They are counted as assets that won't be released until long after I am pushing up daisies. Some of them, go back to the beginning days of dallaspaparazzo, even before the dotcom was added to the name.

                     Light. It is the morning sunlight that stuns the architecture here

The image below was posted last night and this morning, someone had hacked "STOLE" the image. I have alerted those that publish images including others that have a bit more power to trace the IP that downloaded from the image. This is exactly why some of my images are stored in the vault and have never been published on the internet.

                                          Actually, there are 6 contrails in this vector

                                              A Methodist and a Presbyterian

                              
                              My chimney collection contains some 50 plus chimneys

                                  60 feet below grade at S.M.U./ Mockingbird Station

Color Peaking Has Started

The colors in North Texas are beginning to peak, finally.

This guy is one of the old bird. He has a large metal band  on, but it's not 92 that comes year after year. This guy has a 4 but could not see the second number.

Still Shooting Leaves

Although some of the trees are now devoid of leaves, it was a driving force to continued to shoot fall leaves with such amazing colors. The weather up until today has been awesome and perfect to be out walking with camera in-hand.

Thanksgiving, however was a day of rest and cooking. Yes, my chef skills still manage to cook a full Thanksgiving meal. Turkey, dressing and the sides. The cranberry sauce was passed on this year. It was more difficult to find fresh cranberries and cranberry from a can is a cardinal sin. So, with the dressing and turkey, the condiment was huckleberry preserves this year and it was just fine; might have re-kindled an old tradition again.

So, Wednesday, seems to be the very last day to shoot leaves this season. With the strong winds and soaking rains the leaves are pretty much coming down with this round of weather-induced  conditions. Over the past week alone, over a thousand images have been cataloged for this season of color in the Dallas area. The focus has been on sycamore trees until Wednesday when I found some oaks that were orange and red. And, there was a discovery of a totally new stand of sycamore trees that produced excellent results.

It is to be hoped that y'all all had a wonderful Thanksgiving in whatever way was meaningful to each of you. Here are a few of those images from Wednesday. It seems that there might be a second posting just to include the full range. Right now, it's all depends on who much time can be mustered away from editing to actually do the post.

Seldom seen in Texas. It reminds me of the Maples in the Great Lakes area. The reds have always been a favorite.

The textures and colors are amazing

The new stand of Sycamores found

A Personal Request for more Color at American

American Pilots Agree, then U.S. Air makes offer of  8B$ U.S. for American. Anyway you look at it, the polished aluminum finish will most likely change. Why? because the new fleet of planes at American will be composit and must be painted.  So buckle up. The ride is still gonna be bumpy a bit longer but your seats should stay fastened to the floor.

 Actually, a new face lift wouldn't be a bad thing with the old look being one of the oldest in the marketplace. It's tired. It needs to be upgraded. Be bright, but not white! Let's put some color on Runways 17R,17C,17L;18R,18L and 13 R and 13 L. Now that would brighten up the sky over DFW and the world over! When Brantiff first started using color, they were the talk of the industry. Southwest still gets instant notice when one of their animal planes is spotted. United had a chance with their new paint scheme but missed the mark.American, let's get on it!  Win one for DFW big time.

In Great Admiration and Respect

Today, in the warmth of a delightful fall afternoon, I started out in search of that one fall splash of color that say, "here, it's not New England but it can be from time to time almost as perfect." Last year, I found it in a patch of woods beneath the dam at White Rock  in the old fish hatchery stands. It was every bit as pretty as I've seen in New England, which is hard to wrap my mind around while remembering that while there are stands of maple trees in Texas, they are many,many miles away from the Dallas area. But every fall, I begin the annual search.

My mother, as a little girl, had grown up with some pretty famous names in baseball coming around. She was nearly 80 before I was able to find out that she had been a Dodgers fan and even rooted for the Yankees a few times. On the other hand, I had grown up on the St. Louis Cardinals and later the Detroit Tigers, but I did know the big names of the day even if they played for the opposing teams. Thinking back now, I had shoe boxes of baseball cards. and mom was hard to beat in answering questions about facts printed on the cards. This really was a side of my mom that I wish that I had understood more then than I do today, but thankful I heard her tell some of the stories when she was growing up.

Yet, when I start out on a shooting trip, the trips are pretty much routed out in a circuit and it follows the events and on-going construction, openings, discoveries of new projects starting or seasonal event. The shoot schedule isn't that large of a schedule but it does have to consider car or train, walks or doctor's appointments , shopping or living in general. The price of gas has cut down on a lot of travel by car and the trains have been a good back-up, but  sometimes, there is that magnetic-like pull that causes you to follow your instincts. Today, although it didn't start out that way, ended up that way and I'm happy that it did.  Mom was a rather self-contained person that would be like an earthquake that she knew or even had a friendship with some people. But, the proof was in the pudding as they say and she usually came out on top in that department. Yet, even today, I pay respect  to the dearly departed  when I can. After paying tribute to one of mom's -never-would-have-guessed friends, I decided that I would go in search of one of my boyhood idols that was in the same cemetery and not very far from where I stood while visiting one of mom's friends.



The plaques on the crypts of Mickey Mantle and his wife.
The two boys are in crypts below their dad.

Note the rows of copper (pennies) stacked up from visitors to the crypt. The two that I found most interesting were the stone and the bent nail. Stones are usually a Jewish tradition left after a visit. The bend nail, I am not sure, but it has it's significances most certainly.

The American Flag stands in the corner of the private crypt area where Mickey is entombed.

It is with much respect and admiration that I post these images in the love for the sport, the players, the institution that baseball is to so many. Mickey, you were my hero in baseball.