The Walmart Wanderers
I admit, I shop at Walmart. And sometimes I go without having eaten anything before hand. Being diabetic, that’s not such a good thing, so I usually grab something quick to eat in the car while sitting in the parking lot. Now, being the photographer that I am, I tend to look at things and people [even though I don’t take people pictures] and lately I’ve noticed something about the parking lot at the Walmart that I visit. I call them the “Walmart Wanderers”. They are the people that have been in the store long enough to forget where they parked their car. They wander from aisle to aisle and back again lost, but eventually finding the vessel that will whisk them away back to the safety and familiarity of their castle. Some remember to “call” their car using their key fob, but at times that doesn’t even help, especially if they’re too far away from the car. Strangely, however, this isn’t just a Walmart phenomenon as I have noticed this behavior in other retail parking lots as well. And now, I’m thinking I should take my video cam and vid this new phenomenon.
Okay, I have a confession….this has happened to me on two occasions, once in a Walmart parking lot in Dallas, and once in the Walmart parking lot close to where I now live. And, FWIW, this behavior is divided evenly between men and women!
Posted in Uncategorized by Jason with no comments yet.
Pardon the Dust!
When I mentioned a few posts ago that there would be changes coming, I certainly didn’t mean what you are seeing as of 3/8/2024! In a WordPress update apparently a “critical error” zapped my blog and by the time I was able to get it up and running again, the blog looked completely different, leaving me with just a plain old every day type blog – nothing at all like what it did. 😭 But! at least it was back up, a plain jane no frills blog. It could have been worse; I could have lost everything, but only lost my background, which I have restored, and links, which so far I have not been able to restore, but I will keep trying. It’s been a frustrating several days, but there have been some positive gains in all of this. Like re-learning how to do all of this! Patience, dear man. Patience! And at my age, patience is a premium. 😉
Update….. Got the links back! after a lot of trial and error, but now you see a nice little number after each one. I did not put those numbers there and have no clue at the moment how to get rid of them; they are Rating numbers. So, I will keep plugging away here.
After three days of phone calls to my hosting company, and many hours of trying this and that, I think I’ve done pretty good getting back what I had. But, like I said, the recent changes were not exactly what I had in mind and what I had in mind wasn’t front facing at all. Those changes will still be happening sometime in the near future. For now, however, I am still unpacking and getting rid of things I don’t need after my move, but with the nicer weather I am really hoping to get out and start getting some photos! After all, it’s what I love doing!
Posted in Uncategorized by Jason with no comments yet.
*I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old, familiar carols play,
and mild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
Till ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime,
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
Then from each black, accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said;
“For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth He sleep;
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men.”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1863)
*This is one of my favorite poems written by Longfellow, and it can be found in many hymnals, although it’s not a song that is often sung these days. You will notice the stanza that starts “Then from each black, accursed mouth The cannon thundered in the South”. This stanza is commonly left out of the hymnals. Longfellow wrote this poem on Christmas Day 1863 during the Civil War.
Posted in Holidays, Personal Thoughts and tagged Christmas, Poetry by Jason with no comments yet.
It’s Always Hard to Say Goodbye
If you’ve ever owned and loved a pet and had to have them put down at any time in their life, you know how hard it is to say good bye. It is heartbreaking and brings tears to the most hard-hearted person. No matter how hard we try to hold back the tears, it’s just impossible to do so. And even our vets shed tears when having to put an owner’s pet down because they, too, have invested their hearts and caring into that pet.
And so December 5th, three “parents” said goodbye to little Lexie Starbright. For two years she battled renal failure and finally was too weak to go on any longer. She defied the odds by staying alive much longer than anticipated. But then, this was a Maltese that loved life and everyone in it, and was so full of joy that it was hard to not feel happy around her. I knew from the moment I picked her up as a puppy we would be going home with her, and I’m so glad we did. What a spark of fun she was! That winter we had enough snow to play in [and to make driving a pain] and Lexie thought it was the most fun! running around like crazy! With her snowy white coat and the white of the snow, the only way you could tell where she was was as she was kicking up snow behind her while she was running. And, of course, with the cold brought static electricity so when she rolled around on the couch all of her hair stood out on end! Oh man, was she ever cute! She almost looked like someone’s science experiment!
Seeing her decline over the last two years wasn’t easy; more so for my ex-wife and her husband than for me because I was several states away. But even when I came to visit her I could tell. Somehow, though, she’d always seem to bounce back, but not completely. Each time she was a little less healthy, and when I visited in April it was becoming very apparent that Lexie wouldn’t be around much longer. And when I saw her last Thursday, the decision was made that it was time. It was a hard decision, of course, but the right decision. And so the appointment was made. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to be there.
Little Lexie Starbright, go shine in the heavens my precious one. And go run and play with your brothers and sisters. You will be missed, but you will be in our hearts always. We love you. ❤️
Posted in Pets by Jason with no comments yet.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving! Please remember those that are no longer with us this year by leaving an empty chair and place setting. Also, remember those in the service that aren’t able to be here with us at the Thanksgiving table.
I am thankful for my friends and family, here and around the world, and for all that I have. And especially for my sweet little Roby Lincoln R Scott who has been a wonderful blessing in my life.
Love, blessings, and grace to all!
Posted in Holidays by Jason with no comments yet.
The History Of Us
History. It tells us a lot about where we’ve been, and sometimes where we might be going in the future. Many of us tend to ignore it, or tried to just squeak by in school, and then never really giving it too much thought after that.
Today marks the 60th anniversary of the assassination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy, our 35th President of the United States and the youngest President ever elected. There have been a lot of theories about who assassinated him that day in Dallas, TX but there has never been an absolute answer. We may never know.
I was at the grocery store yesterday and I picked up a copy of Time’s 100 Photographs The Most Influential Images of All Time. I love books and magazines like this and I have collected quite a few over the years. [A dear friend started me down this path of “photo books”.]
A lot can be told about our lives through photographs, especially the last 150 years. Imagine photos taken that long ago where there were wide open empty spaces; no houses, no lights, no cars, very few people! Photographs exist of Abraham Lincoln delivering the Gettysburg Address. That can be mind boggling when you think of it. 1863! That’s 160 years ago. Want to be even more blown away? How about the earliest known photograph to exist? 1826! I feel sorry for the guy that had to sit there for 8 hours without moving!
Photographs have also documented our wars, from the War Between the States, to both World Wars, Korea, Viet Nam, and continuing up to today. They show the tragedy, heartache, death that war brings mostly to innocent people. It shows our history. History from all over the world. And shows how vulnerable we all are, and that we are all humans.
Photography doesn’t just chronicle us; it chronicles our lives and struggles, poverty and affluence, births and deaths, good times and bad. Photography takes us to the stars and to the underwater depths. It shows us the amazing and the shocking. It makes us laugh and cry. And what is so fantastic about photography today is that it now can be shared with the world via the internet.
So, you see, photography IS history, whether the images are produced by the most expensive cameras that exist or by that little communication device we know as our cell phone. A piece of us, and our lives, and all that gather around us, from peace to wartime, our pets, animals in the wild and in our backyard, the stars above and the ocean depths – it all becomes the History of Us.
Posted in Photography, Reflections by Jason with no comments yet.
Changes!
Chachacha Changes! They are a’coming! At the beginning of November I am moving from Texas to Florida. I used to live in Florida and I would either drive or ride my motorcycle all over the state, lots of times carrying my camera with me. I am excited about moving back, especially to the area where I am moving to. I will have access to both the Atlantic and to the Gulf, but both require a drive to get there since I am locating to the South part of North Central Florida.
There will probably be some changes to this website and blog as well, but not for a little while after I move because, well, unpacking and getting organized, finding new doctors and a new vet, and where all those great shopping experiences are as well! I will probably start modifying and changing the blog beginning in January, and some of you subscribers might find yourselves being removed, so if you want to stay with me, you might want to send me an email [enrjyzr at enrjyzr dot com] so that I won’t delete you.
I haven’t had time to go take photos because of packing, but I can’t wait to get back to Florida to start taking photos again. When I left Florida digital cameras were just coming on the market, but it was a while before I was able to get one. So now I am going back to Florida with a digital camera. Yes, I still have a film camera, and those are still in use by a great number of people. Remember the days when you could get your prints back in an hour? Those days are gone, unless you can find a photo lab, because most places you take film in to be processed now has to be sent out. Now, you can take your camera’s card in, order the prints you want by looking at a screen, and Voilà! 30 minutes or less later, there they are! Of course, you can also print them from home, which is faster and ultimately cheaper.
The countdown is on!
Posted in Uncategorized and tagged changes, Florida, moving by Jason with no comments yet.
Soaring Above Sights
I have a friend named Peter Hamilton. I met Peter online because we work together. I soon found out that he was an amateur photographer and the photos that he shared on Facebook were macro photos [extreme closeups]. That world of insects that we don’t often notice in our every day life. I was incredibly impressed.
And then a guy that Peter knew encouraged him to take photos of eagles. Oh my gosh, the photos that he got! With his equipment, and lenses, those photos made you feel as though you were right there in front of the eagle. It was like you could just reach out and touch them.
And then the owls! I was already beginning to feel somewhat jealous – no, more like envious. And just when I thought I was calming down from THAT wouldn’t you know that Peter started photographing ospreys catching salmon. Let me tell you, you really have to be ready to catch a bird in flight after catching a fish and you have to have the right settings. And Peter does it all on manual settings! Blown away now, totally past the envious stage, and jealousy is no where to be seen!
I am really proud of Peter and his photographic accomplishments. And I see him as turning professional in the not to distant future. I am providing a link to his Instagram account so if you’re interested, or you’re on Instagram, take a look. I think you’ll enjoy what you see!
Posted in Photography by Jason with 2 comments.
Those Phone Cameras After All
Well, I have posted before that I rarely use my phone to take photographs. And it’s still true! I rarely use the camera on my phone for taking photos with the exception of taking photos of Roby. Yes, I do take photos of him with my cameras, but it’s much harder to get candid photos of him with those since it’s either in my apartment or on the patio.
And, I have mentioned that I haven’t been able to get out much to take photos with my camera[s], and that is still true. Right now, with this oppressive heat we’ve been experiencing I just can’t get out to take photos, and it’s bugging me. One of the places I really want to get back to is Cedar Hill State Park. I used to live in Cedar Hill and I went to the park quite often; it’s a great place to go and I had a State Park pass so I could go as often as I wanted.
However, I have been taking photos with my phone. I admit, it has come in handy for a few photos, and that would be flowers. Flowers. Flowers in grocery stores! I mean, have you ever noticed them? Some of those arrangements are really cool and the flowers are awesome! Honestly, I used to go in and pass by them never even giving them a second glance. And then one day I stopped to look at some of the flowers and I was blown away, so much so I just had to take some photos. Out came my phone. Granted, not all came out the way I wanted, and some didn’t come out at all. But, I have gotten some really great photos.
So, I will admit, using a cell phone can be used to get some great photos. As I told my therapist once, never say never because it will come back to haunt you!
Posted in Nature and tagged flowers, phone camera, phones by Jason with 2 comments.
The Star Spangled Banner
We see it every day, the flag of our country. It’s displayed in yards across America, at schools, the Post Office, government buildings, hospitals, cemeteries, and other establishments. And it is always displayed at the White House and our military bases at home and around the world. It’s just there; it’s become a part of us, our every day life. But we probably notice it most often when the President orders the flags around the country to be flown at half staff, meaning half-way up [or down] the flag pole. And you will notice, too, that the flag is the background of this blog, a photograph that I took while visiting a National Cemetery.
We don’t know exactly who designed the first flag, although many historians think it was New Jersey Congressman Francis Hopkinson and sewn by Betsy Ross.1 We do know that it had thirteen stripes, alternating red and white, and thirteen white stars on a blue background; the stars signifying the new 13 states which before had been colonies. And the rest is history, as they say.
So, where did the song “The Star Spangled Banner” come from? It is from a poem that Francis Scott Key wrote in 1814 [the War of 1812], although its original title was “Defence of Fort M’Henry”, when seeing the flag still flying at dawn after a night of the British bombarding Fort McHenry. The poem was so popular that within a week it was suggested the words be sung to the tune of “Anacreon in Heaven”2, a popular song at the time and then becoming known as “The Star Spangled Banner”. In 1931 it was adopted as the national anthem of the United States of America3, 117 years after Francis Scott Key wrote the poem.
Over the course of history our flag has undergone many changes as the national flag, but always with thirteen stripes, and then white stars on a blue background. On August 3, 1949 President Harry S. Truman declared June 14th to be National Flag Day4.
But, as we all know, this is one of the hardest songs for the majority of us to sing. Those high notes….oh, those HIGH notes! Many people have suggested an alternative, any alternative, to The Star Spangled Banner, but would it evoke the same emotions as The Star Spangled Banner? I think not. Even if we can’t sing it, we become just a bit more proud of our country when we hear it, maybe even becoming a bit choked up and teary-eyed. The song and the flag together just symbolize to us the best free country in the world and, as in the founding of this country, we will defend that flag, along with the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, and the freedoms it gives to us, until the end.
For me, probably the most definitive rendition of The Star Spangled Banner is when Whitney Houston sang a pre-recorded version of it in 1991, backed by the Florida Orchestra, for Super Bowl XXV. [Yes, she apparently did lip-sync it! but it’s still incredible!] While this is my choice, I’m sure that you will have your own favorite version, one that you might lip-sync to – just as I tend to do!
Yes, I know this has nothing to do with photography, but then, this is my blog and it doesn’t always have to deal with a camera and a subject. ? Unless, of course, you really enjoy taking photos of our flag!
“O! say can you see by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous fight,
O’er the ramparts we watch’d, were so gallantly streaming?
And the Rockets’ red glare, the Bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our Flag was still there;
O! say does that star-spangled Banner yet wave,
O’er the Land of the free and the home of the brave?“
And forever in peace may it wave.
1
https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/long-may-it-wave-the-evolution-of-the-american-flag/francis-hopkinsons-claim
2
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Star-Spangled_Banner
3
https://www.politico.com/story/2018/03/03/star-spangled-banner-becomes-us-national-anthem-march-3-1931-432140
4
https://www.trumanlibrary.gov/library/proclamations/2841/flag-day-1949
Posted in Holidays, Personal Thoughts, Reflections by Jason with no comments yet.