Tag Archives: Fuji X-T4

Hop on Hops

Hops plants growing in a field near Greenford, Ohio

The daughter and son-in-law of friends of ours in Columbiana, Ohio – in addition to being a occupational therapist and family physician, respectively – like to play around with farmer stuff.  They are currently growing hops in their front yard and have a bee hive in their back yard.  That’s way more ambition than I had, even when I was working!  I think they are hoping to brew beer from the hops, but I don’t know their plan for honey.  Maybe mead?  We’ll have to see.  We visited their place while they were off at work in order to check out the progress and to take a few photos.

Bee hive near Greenford, Ohio

Goin’ Fishing

Solitude – Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

It may be a dicey time to try and get out to other parts of the country, but Kathy & I are fixin’ to get back on the road again.  We’ll be headed to Ohio and beyond for a few days.  So I’m going to end the post-a-day I’ve been doing and concentrate on taking photos and spending time with family and friends.  You may see an occasional postcard from time to time.

“Throw this one back “(as soon as I get a photo). Baby hammerhead shark

One thing I did do, for anyone who is interested, is post a gallery of photos from our recent trip to the beach: 2020-06 Hilton Head

Casting Call – Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

Timing is Everything

Sunset From The Patio

Monte commented on my last post about having been inside having dinner when a nice sunset was happening.  As it turned out, Friday’s sunset here was also pretty nice, but I missed it for the same reason.  I’ve often told non-photographers that many of the best landscape photos are taken when people are either eating or sleeping.  Of course, Kathy’s version of that saying is that a sunset is best observed through a glass.  Albeit not a glass in the form of a camera lens. 😉

I had my camera all ready to go on Saturday night but it turned out to be a colorless mass of gray clouds.  But I left everything out in the office to I would be ready last night.  When the first hint of pink started in the sky I went inside, grabbed my gear and headed to the patio.  But in the course of that 1-2 minute window the pink faded as fast as it started.  I did manage to salvage a bit of the last remaining hints of color as it faded.  First photo and last photo were about 12 minutes apart.

Sunset From The Patio

Transmission towers aren’t as nice a subject as palm trees, but they aren’t drift fences, either. 🙂

Sunset From The Patio

Sahara Dust Cloud Was A Bust

On the beach – Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

The ominous sounding Sahara Dust Cloud passed through Charlotte over the last few days, including (I guess) today.  Yesterday afternoon was really hazy and smoky-looking, but it didn’t present the vibrant sunset that had been predicted.  Supposedly the sunset on Friday was pretty colorful, but that might or might not have been a result of the dust.  I was inside a restaurant having dinner anyway, so I can’t say.  Things look pretty clear outside now, dust-wise, although it is pretty cloudy.  The afternoon will show if there is any remaining dust in the air, and an air quality alert is in effect until midnight.

Happy Sunday!

Dinner Out With Friends

On the beach – Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

We survived our first mask outing last evening, not that we expected anything different.  We went to a local seafood place with some friends/neighbors and had a nice time.  It was only our second meal out from home, and it was nice to “test the waters” some more.  One thing’s for sure – it really clarifies the difference between cooking and eating at home and restaurant food, especially in terms of price and portion sizes.  It’s a reminder to keep the restaurant outings to a minimum!

I have four of these little vignettes that I’m planning to post through Tuesday – still drift fences (sorry) but a slightly different view – then I plan to end the post-a-day routine.  It’s been fun but it’s time for a break, so I’ll get back to my not-quite-daily occasional posts. 😉

Time To Join The Crowd

Drift fence shadows on the beach in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina

Read on another blog earlier today:

“Wearing a mask is NOT a political statement. It’s an I.Q. Test.” 

Needless to say, that’s a little harsh.  Until now I’ve resisted the mask thing, but now our Guv’nor says we’re going to have to wear them for a while.  Despite my resistance I do believe in the science.  I’m just…stubborn.  Fortunately we don’t go too many places where it’s an issue, so it won’t have a huge effect.  Interesting how it’s easier to accept something when you’ve been told you need to do it, instead of just having it “recommended.”

Photo is another one of  those irresistible drift fences on the beach.  Sigh…. 😉

Roadside Finds: Blacksville, SC Train Station

Old train station in Blacksville, South Carolina that now houses the Blacksville Public Library

I mentioned this find in the previous post, and here are a few photos.  The rotunda design reminds me a bit of the station in Hamlet, NC but that station is much larger.  This station now houses the public library. I like to see these old stations repurposed and maintained as they should be, respecting their history.

Old train station in Blacksville, South Carolina that now houses the Blacksville Public Library
Old train station in Blacksville, South Carolina that now houses the Blacksville Public Library
Old train station in Blacksville, South Carolina that now houses the Blacksville Public Library
Old train station in Blacksville, South Carolina that now houses the Blacksville Public Library
Old train station in Blacksville, South Carolina that now houses the Blacksville Public Library

Roadside Finds: Kline, SC Train Station

Train station in Kline, South Carolina

There are rail lines all over rural South Carolina, and on our backroads travels we often find them paralleling the highway.  Every time we go through a small town, we look for a likely spot for a train station.  Many of them are long disappeared, but occasionally we come across one.  As we passed through the town of Kline, SC we came across this old depot.  Still in pretty good condition but could use a little TLC.