Walked an Alley For Two Blocks

 then, I caught the bus to the LBJ Station and took the train to Downtown Garland. It was a delightful day to be out. My strength levels are holding. I feel really well. It was nice to be out with my camera-in-hand and it proved to be fruitful. Today, I shot more images than I have shot in the past 6 months. When I shot 29,000 images annually, it was easy to be happy. But, knowing that every shot counted more than ever, today produced a 51% of images worthy to meet the agencies approval standards. So, it was a good day in more ways than just photography. It was reward time and I had the best piece of carrot cake with coffee at downtown Garland 's Main Street Cafe. After seeing the days results, the ice cream and 3 prime strawberries filled up my reward bowl and now, its watching the Stanley Cup playoffs. The Dallas Stars are playing the Tampa Bay Lightening. I've been a big hockey game fan since high school. 

Tomorrow is forecast to be as good as today with lower dew points---that's cool dry air--- and the comfort level will be ideal to go to the Dallas Arboretum for the fall pumpkin displays.So, I got to do some planning and get everything set so the shoot goes as well if not better than today. Time will tell. Meanwhile, back at the barn, pacing my self will still be key. 

For me, seeing a sign today was reward enough in that several years ago, the Park Managers throughout the Metroplex all agreed that the parks should return to the native prairie grasses of days gone by. Dallas tried it first and it was a huge success. Now, in Garland, there were signs surrounding the Library in the landscape. Landscape architects were seen as added help to get the program going and it was also a way to raise interest for the project. Well, it's working and not only is the landscape changing for the better. The Buffalo Grass was used in Garland and its going to be so awesome to see it in a couple of years. That's another thing that I like about photography. It enables you to see things like that when others walk on by without a reference to it at all. 

Some have already noticed that I pulled the header picture.To much copyright infringements taking place at that size.

Fans in the Stands; Bands in the Stands

 There is no debate that I am and always have been, a college football supporter more than I am being a Pro fan. There are a couple of reasons for that. I grew up when high school football games were a Friday night event. And, I do mean an event. You didn't miss a Friday night football game like you didn't miss going to church on Sundays. Those two days were a no-brainer. 

Today, looking back at those days, I can recall my band days when we marched onto the field right  then up to our seats in the bleachers. We played a few sets and then the game started. My shock was,"Oh, I have to watch the football game?" It had always been the band that I was interested in, not football. But, from that moment on, I was a true football fan. In college, I never missed a Bobcat game, especially when all my friends were there at the game and it was  truly a college experience that I will never forget. After the game, instead of going to the hometown's drive-in restaurant to hang out, as a college student, it was uptown to the main green, to the bars, and later to one of the fast food  restaurants before tackling the hill's down slope to the East Green where I lived. 

When I came back to Texas to get ready to retire, those Friday night lights flooded my memories of younger days. And, frankly, it was something that I am glad to have experienced and not missed. So. today, with the COVID pandemic wrecking most of the year for civilized man around the globe, it just goes to show you that fans in the stands mean so much to our sports figures, albeit high school, college or pro. But as stated earlier, I am a big college fan. I have always been a big Michigan fan and my oldest son was Ohio State. He unexpectedly died just 100 days after his graduation. A couple of years later, OSU had a renovation of Ohio Stadium in Columbus. The quality built folding chairs that had been in the old stadium were sold off by the university as were pieces of the goal post that saw Michigan footballs pass between those uprights many, many times. So, I purchased both a chair and was lucky enough to get a section of the goal post. 

The chair still has a piece of bubblegum stuck to the underside of the wood-slated seat of the heavy metal steel folding chairs that also saw many,many grads who had sat on them in the field to hear there commencement speaker tell them to "go out into the world". It has the sticker that was signed by AD Andy Geiger, to certify it was the 'real deal'. 

When I look over an see that chair or the goal post section on its block of wood, I think of my son and of my days going to college games. But, the most memorable game that I have ever seen was from my seat in the "big house of Ann Arbor." Michigan stomped Wisconsin 63-0. The roar in the stands at the big house was something to behold. 112,000 people. Mostly Michigan fans. It was something I will never forget. No high school game or college game can equal that noise that day. I often wonder if any one had a decimal reading on the sound generated from that game. 

When you hear the sports casters and the players talk about how silent it is today at games from baseball to hockey to basketball, football, soccer, cricket matches and tennis, you better believe it makes a difference. That's as much a part of the sport as anything anything else.

Sorry dude. Now you know why I took your picture.

You were a terrific sport.

I happen to be wearing a red T-shirt with the Ohio State Buckeyes 

January 8, 2007 

National Championship, BCS Arizona.

Hey! at least its all Big10, dude.

The Duchess of Sussex Reads Novels by Anaïs Nin

 and I love her quotes. She was Gore Vidal's partner at one time. She lived 1903- 1977. Her novels came from  8 of her diary books. She is: Anaïs Nin. Born in France. Her mother was a singer and her father a composer. Hence, the lyrical and musical life she knew.in quote 11.

Following are some quotes by  Anaïs Nin, that I have been reading over the years. 

1. "And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to bloom."

2."Each friend represent a world in us, a world not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born."

3. "Dreams are necessary to life."

4. "Each contact with a human being is so rare, so precious, one should preserve it .

6. "Reality doesn't impress me. I only believe in intoxication, in ecstasy, and when ordinary life shackles  me, I escape, one way or another."  NB---The full quote from which this one is take is listed below as # 11 in its entirety.

7. " Good things happen to those who hustle."

8. " Living never wore one out so much as the effort not to live."

9 ."We do not grow absolutely, chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension, and not in another; unevenly. We grow partially, we are relative, we are mature in one realm, childish in another. The past, present and future mingle and pull us backwards,forwards, or fix us in the present. We are made up of layers, cells, constellations."

10. "The possession of knowledge does not kill the sense of wonder and mystery. There is always more mystery."  NB---Albert Einstein said that, "The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious."

11. " I am an excitable person who only understands life lyrically, musically, in whom feelings are much stronger than reason. I am so thirsty for the marvelous that only the marvelous has power over me. Anything I can not transform into something marvelous, I let go. Reality doesn't impress me. I only believe in intoxication, in ecstasy, and when ordinary life shackles me, I escape, one way or another. No more walls."   NB--- Quote # 6 is only a part of this quote. This being, the full quote from which some have taken #6 as a short cut. 

It seems to me that we don't have as many today that make quotes that live on into the ages. And, if there is, they don't send shock waves that our past writes have coined. To me, that is sad. We are so caught up in social media. And it is shocking to some that find out that the social media is robbing us of our private identities in such volume it is not even possible to visualize that amount. It reminds me of the DOT supervisor that I talked with during the new construction of the sub-terrain lanes of the LBJ from the High 5 to the I-35E. He said," if the people of Dallas knew what we were doing high tech wise, it would blow their minds, but you see, we are doing it while their hopes are in the fact that we get the highway construction of the LBJ done on time or even early. Don't you see, they don't even know that this high tech stuff is going in and won't draw any attention.  They are asleep at the wheel. By the time they finally wake up, even if they ever do, it will be to late, then."

There is always more mystery

It Half-Way Felt Like Old Times, Today

 When the weather broke, it was my signal to start walking again. The first outing was just one mile. The second outing was two. Today, the final total from the walk was four mile. The side pack held my battery charger for my phone. In addition, is the inside pack that held hand sanitizer and an extra face mask. 

As I started out, there was uncertainty if the neighborhood wold be the target or would the bus or train be better. Or would a combo of both, be more exciting? The final mental answer would find me in the neighborhood. Not in the residential portion, but in the commercial part. 

Several years ago, I started a watch on where my best sales came from. The answer was within 8-miles of my house. That circle produced the highest sales. It has never been about dollars for me. It's always been about the mission, freelancing in a total urban area. Being aggressive was not in the plan either. In fact, that is for me, the worse attitude for a photographer. Just last year about this time, I ran across a photographer that was just plain rude. She overstepped people that had been waiting for there turn to go out on a specific dock and shoot and then relinquish their spot to another. This babe just stormed onto the dock and was just plain nasty. As it turned out, I ended up shooting for the other side of the lake and got some shots of nature that continue to sell well to this date. That type of aggression displayed to all of us waiting our turn, is not the same type of aggression where people stand your ground in a major situation where fees are paid for a spot. To overstep a common area is the worst kind of aggression.

I have also been reading a lot of quotes from famous people lately and this week it was George Washington Carver,1864-1943. Having come from a family where my dad's uncle founded a radio station,that station is now a part of the Clear Channel Empire. Growing up, I hung around radio stations a lot and it was another one of those things that gets into you blood. My mom was part of a group that sang on that station on Saturday nights.  So, when I read this quote from George Washington Carver; the quote: "I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in.".  It spoke to me, so to speak. And, yes, I do talk to animals (especially squirrels) when out in nature  (see the image of the Chic-fil-A cup and a squirrel fabricating that cup into a piece of insulation for his nest). We had a great conversation that day.

So, being always mindful of that, it has been my method of operation to respect people in general and not be so up tight about such matters. It's payed off in the long run and will be my position to the last day that I push the final shutter button.  Having said that, I looked across the street and saw my neighbor sitting at the bus stop.I would never have thought I would see one of my neighbors at that stop. But it could have been a specific route she was taken. We had a quick catch up on both our health conditions. She had a limb amputated and seems to be doing well. She expressed such in our chat. I continued on and sure enough, keeping with sales, I found two, then three items within a mile of my house. Pure urban material! All from an Asian Shopping Center just down the street. 

Upon completing my walk. I was not tired.Stopped along the way to sip cold water from my trusty metal water bottle that fits into an insulate bag. It has served me well over the years. When I got home, it was time to watch a bit of the final round of the 120th US Open Golf Tournament from along Long Island Sound, in New York. Funny thing! It was as nice here in Dallas as it was 1200 miles to the North East.. Fifty-nine here this morning. That's F° not C°. In other words, it was N-i-c-e for both Long Island Sound and Dallas!!!! What a great day!

 

 

A Waxing and A Waining A Whole Life Cycle

 While it may seen odd to some, a waning moon at the time of my birth was 54.54 % full. Also, a waxing moon can be either waxing or waning moon, because it is a point where going from new moon to being 54 % full is also the same as going from full to a new moon when it hits 54% again on its way to being totally dark for 2 days of its cycle.

The moon takes 27.3 days to orbit the earth. The lunar phase cycle which is new moon to new moon takes 29.53059 days. The moon uses those more-or-less 2 days to catch up because the earth travels 45 million miles around the Sun. During that time, the moon makes a full cycle. And speaking of cycles, the moon lives on a 18.6 year cycle. The current 18.6 year cycle ends in 2024-2025.

A lot of us humans have experienced the rising and falling tides of the ocean at the beaches of the world. Those tides are caused by the gravitational pull of the moon on the earth. The net effect is that by that happening, the oceans of the world are constantly being stirred (and sometimes shaken to the chagrin of Mr. Bond, James Bond). 

Over a 200 year observation period, it has been determined that the correlation is very good that the 18.6 year cycles is a far better forecaster than sunspot cycles according to Iowa State University (A Big Ten School, I might add). And so is the half-cycle of 9.3 years. These cycles can also be found in crop yields and geological formations. And if that isn't enough, the moon is ever-so-slowly receding from the earth, which also changes these periods every-so-slowly as Iowa State researchers have reported. 

The strength of Lunar tides, directly caused by the 5-degree tilt to the Sun-Earth plane is the cause of the tidal strength at any given point on earth in these 18.6 year cycles of the moon. Some  can be more intense than others.

So, I go out every so often to watch the moon come up or even set sometimes.  To think that men from Earth have walked on that surface still blows my mind. Personally, I'm happy that we have been there and further exploration at this point is either going to get someone killed, lost in space, or both. With out the power to travel near the speed of light will still take a life time to get somewhere else. Yes, I know that some will challenge that statement, but you get the point that is trying to be made here. 

Just think, when the recently discovered super massive black hole that  merged with two massive black holes, the shock wave in gravitational waves just got back to earth this year. That explosive collision happened 7 billion years ago. 

 Source: BBC News, Science & Environment. Black holes: Cosmic Signal rattles Earth after 7 billion years.

                                                         You would miss this and others
                                https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-53993937

Labor Day Kicks Off The Holiday Seasons in the U S

 As the old adage goes of a train rider traveling from the east to the west coasts," The sun done rise, the sun done set. Here I is in TEXAS yet." This Labor Day will find a lot of people traveling in their cars because it is a "safe" space from the Covid 19 uncertainty, yet,it helps to kill cabin fever build up. But, the trains are still running with shorter consist. The buses are rolling and American is parking planes again! The old traveler found out just how big Texas was to cross from one side to the other in the days of the old steam locomotives. He really didn't know how good he had it. 

This years holiday shopping will be different, too! And it isn't just a lot of on-line shopping or free pickup at the curb of your favorite store. A lot of those stores will be missing this season. That "Gone out of Business" kind of missing. The interesting thing about turmoil change is that it turns every thing in its path upside down. Take the North Texas girl who made and sold costume jewelry. She turned the online business into a billion dollar  business. That's with a B as in Billion! And on top of that, she is now a celebrity instructor along with the first celebrity instructor at University. She joins Matthew McConaughey teaching at the University of Texas this fall. 

Then, there is education in general. School Districts are having a hard time putting together in person learning vs. on line learning. If that isn't enough of a problem. Dallas' Superintendent Michael Hinojosa, who I happen to think is an excellent man for the job, waged war with the athletic department about Friday Night Football. Basically, his thinking was that you can't let the football program do something that the other students are not permitted to do in the social distance scheme of things among other little quirks. But, in the end, football is happening in North Texas as of  last Friday. The confusion is every where. No two places have the same rule and even if they did, some areas are not enforcing the rules as others do. An if that isn't bad enough, the old gov, Greg Abbot, got into a tiff with Dallas County Judge, Clay Jenkins, of his jailing a salon owner who didn't follow the orders issued to not stay closed.

Imagine the unrest when it comes to letting kids trick-or treat. Or, even more absurd, the Thanksgiving Dinner in some areas where social gatherings are limited to 10. What are you going to do about Uncle John and Aunt Dorthy when you have to tell them, "sorry, no Turkey for you at out house this year! We are only allowed to have a gathering of 10 or less. You are number 11 and 12 on this years list."  I really don't want to think about the Christmas Holiday Season of, gifts, dinners, and Christmas Eve church services. Sure, the big mega churches like First Methodist and First Baptist in main stream religion and some of the not so main street churches that have several thousands of members but not quite as large as First Baptist and First Methodist, can afford to televise or stream their services. But the smaller churches can not afford to do that. It leaves so many scrambling to come up with a doable alternative. 

So, as some go about their Labor Day Holiday as if nothing was going on...I will be mindful of those that have lost lives during this medical ordeal. 

 

I need to go to Grapevine to see Nate and Willy shoot it out again! I need that!

The Silicon Valley Mofia

 When I read the article by Oma Seddiq of Business insider, where Samantha Zager, President Trump's campaign deputy National Press Secretary said," When millions of voters will be making their decisions, the President will be silenced by the Silicon Valley Mafia, who will at the same time allow corporate Media to run their biased ads to swing voters in key states", my deep and projecting voice surely propelled my burst of laughter well into the next block.

Point 1: Given 'em Hell Donald!

Now, before you get yourself into a dither, I am one, from a business point of view, that likes President Trump very much. Even though Jeff Bezos' loss of 8 million didn't make him happy, it is, after all, chump change to Jeff and points out how one sentence can cost money in any job, not just the Presidency, or by him. While I don't have anything personal against the Pres, he does exactly what he said and marked how he thinks and that is: to keep 'em guessing! Corporate Media does not like that one bit. 

Point 2: Business 101 at and between the gray areas

In 1971 on Central Avenue in Evanston, Illinois, while attending a two week seminar by North Whittmore Schults. The guy who made millions from that little metal cylinder that a roll of postage stamps fit into on your desk, was the head of a mail order business. It was the cat's meow of Marketing at the time.I learned one of the key factors of any business. Don't tell the competition what you are doing. Don't let them try to find out who your supplier is. Don't let that one item be the focus point, because you need other new things to keep the competition trying to keep up with the new stuff they soon turn their focus away from that little nifty gadget that holds your stamps and was making you piles of money. It continues ad infinite even in business today. Maybe more so than ever. The copy cats are all hungry for some of the meat left on the bone if not to steal the whole bone.. 

Point 3: Learn from watching people.You soon begin to see those you can trust and those you can't.

I have never been a fan of Mark Zuckerburg from the beginning and as time has slipped away, I have been one of those that feel that Facebook is more than just dangerous, this is like the Mofia of the Al Capone days. They are stealing your personal information right under your nose and have become so greedy its scary.. Recently I started some research about internet and smart phone companies (after all it is a mini computer of its own right). The recent mergers of Sprint and T-Mobil and how the big Verizon Media is more of a monster. It was a surprise greater than first thought. Some interesting stats came out of that and are still producing results. Of web sites visited since August 16, 77% of all sits collected information in fish net lots. The leader was Google at 64%; Verizon Media 14%; Facebook 16%; Abode13%; Warner Media 10%. The rest, totaled 35%, of which Twitter (my favorite) collected only 6% out of the 35% remainder. That's 10% less than Facebook.

I had a long time friend that was much older and had been a U.S. Marshall. He took Lonnie Licavoli, (of the Purple Gang of Detroit) to the federal pen. My friend Al, of the U.S.Marshall Department and my grandfather,who had also been a U.S. Marshall had also escorted prisoners to the federal pen at Fort Levenworth, Kansas. Both Al and my grandfather were much alike in both business and in their personal manors. Listening to Al tell about Lonnie Licavoli was interesting as could be. At the time, Detroit had a pretty active mob. From those stories that Al told (and you had to ask him to get them) I see very much the same in Zuckerberg's comments and actions over the years. In fact, he stuck out so much to me, that I have followed his career through the years. He's had his share of bumps for sure. If his ethics have not already crossed that line between good and bad, or lawful and unlawful, it's only a matter of time. In my book of quotes, someone had said that the gray area is where life happens.You get the picture.

When the Corona virus struck, it didn't take long for the Silicon Valley Boys to board their private planes and head to New Zealand before the government shut down their borders. They had been buying land up for some time and building underground bunkers. I did a little checking on that and sure enough, some just made it before the borders were shut. Why New Zealand you say? Well, they have had about 1800 cases total with 24 deaths at the last numbers being reported. The Silicon Valley Mofia ran like a bunch of scared chickens to New Zealand. Where did they get their information in the first place that caused them to dooms day a chunk of land at the near bottom of the world, all-be-it a nice place at that. With their bank roll, a nice place is part of their M.O.

In final thoughts, basically, mom's teaching us boys that when in a situation where someone is trying to manipulate you, threaten you or even attempt the old pic pocket game (in this case it is all digital) you do an about fact an look the other direction for those that are really behind the meat of what is going on (i.e. what Al Capone was to Lonnie Licavoli and those of the Purple gang). It's like the fashion world. What was fashionable 50-60 years ago is the hot fad today.Things have a way of recycling themselves.

                                                                Canoeing the Trinity