Worth the Struggle
It’s been a while since I last posted – during the Christmas holidays, actually. For one reason or another I haven’t been taking many photos. I have taken SOME, just not many. I did get my yearly bluebonnet photos, but that’s about it, except for some flowers here and there. I haven’t lost interest in taking photos, I just haven’t been able to get to my favorite “haunts” to do it. My photography is my stress release; thankfully I haven’t had a lot of stress lately. I really have no good reason as to why I haven’t been out, well, maybe I have. The weather has been warm and cold, up and down, with rain mixed it from time to time. I think Winter is finally giving up its grip, however. I love Winter, but as far as I am concerned, after Christmas or New Year’s at the latest, Winter should be over. Of course, all the neat flowers came out while it was raining. Makes it a bit hard for me to get out and take photos. Good old arthritis takes care of that.
I know that I am getting older and arthritis has become a hindrance. Getting down on my knees to take photos isn’t much of a problem, but getting back UP takes a bit of maneuvering. The worst problem is my left knee, which has the worst arthritis. Even going up steps can be a challenge some days. But, the goal is usually worth the struggle.
![DSC_6407c [800x600]](https://i0.wp.com/enrjyzr.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/DSC_6407c-800x600.jpg?ssl=1)
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Posted in Seasons by Jason with no comments yet.
The “Season”
It’s been a while since I have written anything, and that has been for a number of reasons, one of which is I didn’t have much to write because I have not been out taking any photos, or, at least, not many photos. And now, I am beginning a move, which will mean that a new life begins for me after this move; a new year and a “new” life. I am excited about moving, but for a while I might still be limited in the ability to get out and take photos. Hopefully that limitation will only be short lived.
For me, as a Christian, this is the season our Christ was born. At least, December 25th is when we celebrate His birth, even though it is estimated that He was probably born in September. I consider the fact I am moving into an apartment as an early Christmas present. I won’t be fully moved in by Christmas, but hopefully will be by New Year’s. At least that is the plan. About the only packing I have to do is where I live, and then I have to find someone to help me move the furniture out of here. After that I can worry about the storage sheds, but my concentration now is the place I am currently at.
I love Christmas. I love everything about it, well, for the most part. I don’t like most of the commercialism about the holiday [holyday], but I embrace the lights and some of the decorations. I really like the lighted trees – I can stand among them and revel in them and feel SO alive. They remind me of the Star of the East that guided the three wise men to where the baby Jesus was born. Christmas carols, religious and secular both, have people humming and singing and in a lighter mood, at least most of the time. It seems as though the month of December literally comes “alive” with sharing and good cheer, giving, bringing family and friends together. In some ways, it is a rebirth in us all. It is sad, however, that after the New Year all the positive energy fades slowly away and brings us back to the stress and reality of the secular world.
It is the season of celebration, a time of reflection, a time of renewed or new faith. It is not about receiving, but about giving. The giving doesn’t have to be an expensive gift, but can be a hug, spending time with loved ones or someone in the hospital that might not have visitors. There are many ways of giving, and giving doesn’t necessarily belong to one religion or another, one belief or non-belief.
This is a photo I took several years ago at Christmas time that I turned into a Christmas card. I share it now with you. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
From my heart to yours
Posted in Faith, Holidays, Seasons, View Point by Jason with no comments yet.
Pumpkin Patch Time Again
It’s October, time when harvest is over, most fields are bare and have been tilled for winter crops or waiting for spring, trees are in full Autumn color, temperatures have fallen from its summertime sizzle to hints of frost at night, the smell of campfires abound, and Hallowe’en is in the air. There is an air of “excitement” as the end of the year holidays return.
I love Autumn. And Hallowe’en. Pumpkin patches spring up everywhere – fields, grocery stores, road side stands – and no two are alike; some are round and squat, some are tall, some are bumpy, others are smooth. most are orange, some are greyish-white, and some are multicolored. Everywhere you look, pumpkins are sitting on door steps, around trees, sitting on hay bales and next to corn stalks. Carved pumpkins are waiting to be lit with candles on Hallowe’en night. And some kids are waiting to steal pumpkins and smash them in the middle of the street.
I recently got my chance to make the yearly trek to my favorite pumpkin patch in Flower Mound, Tx. The entire month of October a family dedicates the fields around their house to selling pumpkins and providing activities for the kids. And during the month they must have thousands of pumpkins to populate the fields. Corn stalks and hay bales sell out early in the month, but there is still plenty of hay for mazes and a tower for the kids to play in and on.
This year was different, however, because in past years my wife and I took one our dogs up to be photographed. So, this year I was just taking photos of pumpkins and some of the activities. It didn’t feel quite right, but it was okay. It got me out of the house and into fresh October air for a few hours, so that was good. By the time I left, I was tired, and my back was beginning to hurt a little. I took a little over 150 photos, which is pretty normal for me. Well, there is always next year to look forward to, and I am already doing that.
Posted in Holidays, Seasons by Jason with 1 comment.
Texas Rite of Spring
It’s Spring in Texas, and so far, it has been a real Spring. Oh, we have had a few days with unreal temperatures, and we have had a day filled with tornadoes – 12 to 15 of them – and a downpour of rain. Rain. It is something we have had quite a bit of this year, and it is much needed. I don’t think anyone is complaining, either. The tornadoes we can do without, however.
“April showers bring May flowers.” For Texas, though, it’s more like “February and March showers bring out Texas bluebonnet flowers.” And this year because of all of the rain, the bluebonnets are everywhere in great numbers. A beautiful sight to see, given the drought and heat of the last few years, which made bluebonnets sparse. And while they bloom, their fragrance is wonderful.
I always look forward to this time of year. Sure, other flowers abound, but there is something about the bluebonnets that brings out a somewhat controlled “silliness” in people. A small field or rather large clump of bluebonnets suddenly has a parking lot of cars surrounding it with children and adults, some with dogs, laughing giddily while squatting or sitting among the blooms while an equally giddy person with a face glued to the back of a camera snaps repeatedly away in hopes of capturing that “special” moment for all time. Just as suddenly as they appeared the laughing dies as car doors slam and they zoom off in search of a new pristine clump to roll in while another group of equally silly and giddy adults, children and dogs take their place among the now trodden and flattened state flower. In Texas, this is a statewide rite of Spring and quite anticipated. As it should be, since this is the only time the bluebonnet blooms.
I, too, look forward to this time of year, attending the closest festival and driving the “Bluebonnet Trail” in Ennis County. But, this year was different; gas prices have sky rocketed, and driving the Trail alone was not something I cared to do. I thought for sure that I would not get any photos this year, but did manage to work some in without joining in the frenzy. Far less than the two or three hundred photos that had become normal, I took only a handful. I am glad that I was able to do so, however. Somehow it would not be Spring unless I got the opportunity to see, smell, and photograph a few bluebonnets.
A solitary Texas bluebonnet
Texas bluebonnets
Posted in Seasons by Jason with 1 comment.
The Pumpkin Patch
I love Autumn because the colors are so vibrant from ground to sky. Autumn, the time of harvest and of thanksgiving. Cooler crisp weather settles in, campfires smell better, and time to rake leaves and jump in the middle. It’s also time for pumpkins, squash, haystacks and bales and corn stalks, witches, ghosts and magic. I love Hallowe’en; it’s probably my favorite “holiday” of the year, just because it’s so fun – adults and kids alike can put on costumes and be anyone we’d like, our fantasy persona exposed for one day of the year. But, seeing a pumpkin patch filled with pumpkins and squash, I don’t know, it’s just seeing the vividness of orange sitting in a brown field, or sent to a “pumpkin patch” where they are scattered hither and yon on a green field of grass. To me there is something really exciting about that. Large, medium and small pumpkins, the smell of a real wood fire mixed with the cinnamon-y taste and smell of hot apple cider, added to a cool, clear, crisp day filled with the sounds of children’s laughter. Okay, call me a romanticist. It doesn’t bother me. It’s what I grew up with, what I remember, and what I try to re-discover each year.
A shoe view of some of the pumpkins. (Left)
I don’t know who this dad and daughter are, but they were just too darned cute! (Right)
Posted in Seasons by Jason with no comments yet.
Springtime in Texas brings Bluebonnets
Springtime has come to North Texas, albeit shyly. The first few days of Spring brought sunny skies, warm breezes, and temperatures in the mid-70’s to low 80’s. And then Spring played hide and seek for a number of days, leaving us with dreary overcast, and drizzly cold days and miserable nights. Flowers and trees were confused, grabbing little jackets as we all went through closets and drawers dragging out newly stored warm clothing. Of course, it is early Spring and Old Man Winter just doesn’t give up easily. And then Mother Nature is always on the sidelines throwing a twist into our expectations.
But, Texas’s annual sign of Spring arrival, the Bluebonnet, has been showing off its cobalt blue color and attracting bees for weeks now. First, a small clump here, and one over there, and then two converging and then suddenly great fields of this incredibly beautiful flower burst into view, taking hold of Spring announcing its arrival, even days early. Excitement in North Texas is in the air as adults become giddy, putting children and dogs of all sizes into their vehicles of choice and driving up and down country roads looking for T H E choice spot for trampling down the blooms to get that cute and once-in-a-lifetime photo of their loved one. Okay, I’m guilty, too. I admit it. There is just something about this Springtime rite that is irresistible. It is awesome to look out over a field and see large swatches of cobalt blue mixed with green and yellow grass, waving languidly in the Spring breeze. Eventually the Indian Paintbrush will slowly creep in exploding red and orange among the elegant blue, forcing the Bluebonnet to give up and fade to white waving its goodbye until the following Spring.
Last Saturday, before the temperatures took a dive sending us back to late Winter, I grabbed my camera and headed down to the State Park and was blessed with unblemished patches of these spectacular flowers. I could not wait. The first large patch I came to beckoned to me and I pulled over and parked. For the next 30 minutes I stood, bent over, sat, and laid among the Bluebonnets happily taking photos, lost in my favorite color. Cars slowed, heads turned, fingers pointed and I knew that my pristine spot was being targeted for future use as soon as I left. I eventually moved on, taking photos of other things and left two and a half hours later to go home, but I returned later with my wife and our youngest dog Lexie, a Maltese with a hurried brush out. This is not a dog that understands “sit/stay” very well, so it becomes an exercise in how quickly can you focus and hit the shutter button before the little dog moves. Thank goodness for multiple exposures! We both came away with a few good photos. Lexie, however, did not get her opportunity to run unabashed through the grass and flowers taller than her, but she did have a good time.
This weekend we will take our annual drive to our favorite hill in Ellis County so that hopefully we will get photos of the Bluebonnets before they begin to thin out and become trampled by the caravans of people jostling for the best position, the thickest concentrations of flowers, the best lighting and the fewest feet and legs invading our perfect photos. We are always eternally grateful to the people that open their fields to us at this time of year, understanding our passion to digitally capture this Texas treasure that visits us once each Spring.
Texas's rite of Spring
Posted in Seasons, Weather by Jason with no comments yet.
Summertime!
Summertime has come to Texas, at least North Central Texas. It came a bit early this year, and with it 100 degree temps and very little rain. El Nino has now dried up and moved along, it’s current leaving us once again parched and sweltering.
I don’t “do” Summer. Sweat running down the back of my neck, dripping off my ears and eyebrows and in to my eyes is not my idea of a fun outdoor Summer existence. Early Spring, Autumn and Winter. Those are my seasons.
Summer. It’s the “green” time of year. Most of the Spring flowers are gone, the trees that were budding out a couple of months ago now have their full umbrella leaf spread into the welcoming of shade, and the heat waves are shimmering their way skyward from the pavement. Blue sky is beautiful, but blue skies with clouds are magnificent!
People that wore decent clothing during the Fall, Winter and Spring suddenly have lost all their modesty and strip down as far as the law allows, leaving little to the imagination. Grab the camera and “discover” the next “porn” star, but what was considered “racy” to – 20 years ago has now become commonplace. But still, there are
Strange cruise "fashion"
“fashions” out there that could provide some good laughs and chuckles and be immortalized forever.
So, summer is here – for the next 5 months in Texas. Five sweltering months watching the rain bypass Dallas desert, parching what had briefly become green with Spring. Here’s looking toward Autumn!
Posted in Seasons by Jason with no comments yet.
Purely Texas
It’s Spring in Texas and that brings out the official state flower, the Texas Bluebonnet. It grows wild and on the right of ways cannot be mowed until after blooming season. Here in North Texas there is a Bluebonnet Festival, which really consists more of people driving around clogging the country highways, and plopping their kids, dogs and themselves down in the middle of the patches for photos. Of course, avid photographers that we are, we gullibly join the hunt for the best patches. Along with the Indian Paint Brush flower, which is a red to reddish orange in color, the countryside is awash in colors.
Yesterday was the start of the two day Festival in Ennis, Texas, and the only day that we were able to go for our drive. Granted, given the fact the bluebonnets have been out for weeks, we could have gone at any time, but it’s more fun watching the crowd and discovering all the places we could that had yet been trampled. Unfortunately, yesterday started out rainy and cool, so we were afraid that we wouldn’t be able to get any photos, but after a quick prayer, the sky dried up and we were blessed with temps in the upper 60’s to low 70’s and overcast skies – until very late afternoon. It was a perfect day for exploring the countryside and find some good photos.
Posted in Seasons by Jason with no comments yet.
Springtime – at last!
Well, Spring finally made it to North Texas, but Winter is doing its best to hang on for dear life – and failing miserably.
On the first day of Spring it snowed. Oh, not like the snow we got in February, but it did snow enough to stick, at least until the next afternoon. Unlike the previous snowfall, however, I kept my camera tucked safely away. This time the snow wasn’t a novelty, nor was it “pretty”, and while there was enough to stick and show, it just wasn’t awesome enough to really care about. We probably got a quarter of an inch, if that, so it wasn’t worth braving the cold and wind to get a photo.
And so, it’s Spring, for better or for worse. You can tell because the temperatures fluctuate between warm and cold. But, you
Bee gathering pollen
I hope this Spring is a good one for North Texas. In recent years past we have seen our temperatures go from mild in early Spring to hot in mid Spring to down right late Summer like before Spring was done. And no rain. Well, okay, a little rain. But now we’re in an El Nino year and the prediction is that rain will continue at least through May with below-average temperatures. Hey, that will be nice for a change!
With Spring comes the Texas Bluebonnets and with all of the rain we’ve had since last Fall, this should be a great bluebonnet season. I can’t wait to get out with my camera and take a lot of bluebonnet photos, but it will be at least another two weeks before that happens because of our schedule, so I’ll just have to be patient. We almost always head to Ennis for the bluebonnet festival there and I suspect this year won’t be any different except that we might skip the craft fair and just go out hunting for good photo ops – along with a ton of other folks. We also usually take our dogs out for photos in the bluebonnets, but I don’t know if we’ll do that this year; we might, however, because we do have a new member of our family that we didn’t have at this time last year, and being a maltese, she’d look great among the bluebonnets – if she would hold still! The plans are up in the air, then, but bluebonnet photos will happen.
Posted in Seasons by Jason with no comments yet.