tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-171169072024-03-07T13:27:53.657-05:00ChapeltreeChapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.comBlogger337125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-23964926328715056582015-10-31T19:37:00.001-05:002015-10-31T19:37:47.781-05:00Just a Few Steps Off the Usual Path<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
We ran a weekend errand today<br />
on the campus<br />
where I teach a class<br />
three days a week. <br />
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<br />
Three days every week<br />
I dash from my car<br />
to my classroom<br />
and back again.<br />
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<br />
Today<br />
we took time to wander,<br />
only a few feet from the parking lot,<br />
down a winding trail.<br />
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<br />
I realize not every workplace<br />
has a handy Botanical Garden<br />
a stone's throw away.<br />
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<br />
But a lot of places<br />
have things worth seeing<br />
if we just take the time and effort.<br />
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<br />
Who knows the beauty<br />
that surrounds us,<br />
unnoticed,<br />
day after day?<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-22769747592759736792015-10-05T08:07:00.002-05:002015-10-05T08:07:20.955-05:00Bat Cat<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
A change in the weather<br />
stimulates a return to kittenhood.<br />
<br />
Daisy still plays with toys,<br />
but rarely in the public eye.<br />
<br />
In her more mature years,<br />
the stuffed animals<br />
are more prone<br />
to moving quietly around the house<br />
in the dark of night<br />
or when the peoples<br />
are away at work.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-14797322087064260932015-09-25T20:31:00.001-05:002015-09-25T20:40:52.254-05:00The Koreans in Northern Ireland<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Three of us spent the last week of May<br />
in Northern Ireland,<br />
touring with the guidance<br />
of local folk known<br />
through mutual friends<br />
and internet connections.<br />
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<br />
Our mutual friends<br />
arranged for us to stay at Skainos,<br />
a community center in the inner city of Belfast.<br />
The accommodations were simple<br />
but the people we met were lovely<br />
and rich in hospitality.<br />
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<br />
When Gary gave us a tour of Skainos,<br />
he explained the deep symbolism<br />
in architecture and decor,<br />
with all the elements of the building reflecting<br />
important concepts of theology<br />
and identity with Belfast.<br />
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<br />
I usually had no trouble<br />
understanding the Northern Irish accent,<br />
but when Gary talked about the recurring importance<br />
of the color yellow in the decor of the facilities,<br />
I was a bit confused.<br />
"It represents the Koreans."<br />
What Koreans?<br />
When pushed, he finally explained,<br />
"the yellow CRANES, the H&W cranes<br />
in the shipyard, visible from many parts of Belfast.<br />
Right. The Koreans.<br />
Sometimes we just need to retrain our ear<br />
to hear simple truths.<br />
<br />
<i>Photos: 1) The biowall in front of Skainos. 2) A yellow crane through a window at Skainos. 3) One of the two H&W cranes, pictured from the vicinity of the Titanic museum. 4) Another view of a crane from my bedroom window at Skainos.</i><br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-37340767939249557892015-09-19T09:31:00.002-05:002015-09-19T09:33:49.847-05:00The Unexpected Guest<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
I will admit<br />
that I shrieked just a little<br />
when this rather large spider dropped down<br />
as I closed the gate<br />
to the chicken yard last night.<br />
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I can't say</div>
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that I'd ever previously seen</div>
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an arachnid</div>
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who looked like her</div>
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in color </div>
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or dimension.</div>
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<br />
With a little google<br />
of "yellow backed spider,"<br />
I found that she is a<br />
Marbled Orb Weaver.<br />
I'm somewhat fond of her<br />
when she is not catching me by surprise.<br />
<br />
I had noted that letting the chicken yard<br />
go wild a bit<br />
encouraged the wildlife.<br />
Perhaps it is worth<br />
the occasional shriek.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.cirrusimage.com/Arachnid_marbled_orbweaver.htm">Better pictures and more infomation on orb weavers.</a><br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-34489615451096330762015-09-18T12:18:00.000-05:002015-09-18T12:18:27.417-05:00Ice Cold Water on a Hot Summer Day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
On a hot day in August<br />
we hopped in the car<br />
and drove up to a favorite hike<br />
off the Parkway.<br />
<br />
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<br />
The air was much cooler<br />
on the hike<br />
than it had been at home,<br />
but the effort of hiking<br />
warmed us back up.<br />
<br />
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<br />
We could see the signs<br />
of people who had crossed this way<br />
before us,<br />
stones stacked<br />
in simple art. <br />
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<br />
At the end of the trail<br />
we reached<br />
the ice cold swimming hole.<br />
The swim was short<br />
due to the frigid waters<br />
and approaching thunder.<br />
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<br />
We walked back in sprinkling rain<br />
cool and refreshed<br />
in body and in spirit.<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-77998356201315856512015-09-12T08:13:00.002-05:002015-09-12T09:08:09.146-05:00Going Wild<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-tlmR-9AJ4mP7omyLOXEQl5BmXbVopjuthyphenhyphenCIyAYtnmb0Lw3kdBnzZGfBb-a9jPrMH-QspUPWeazMiEVfNHgYYUVb_pYWXZs44zrMSxjnwVfnQLwRTgNtjZtvCUkgWHqpTCxwmw/s1600/IMG_1963.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-tlmR-9AJ4mP7omyLOXEQl5BmXbVopjuthyphenhyphenCIyAYtnmb0Lw3kdBnzZGfBb-a9jPrMH-QspUPWeazMiEVfNHgYYUVb_pYWXZs44zrMSxjnwVfnQLwRTgNtjZtvCUkgWHqpTCxwmw/s400/IMG_1963.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
When we bought the house<br />
more than ten years ago,<br />
the area behind the garage<br />
served as the garden area.<br />
The ground consisted of hard baked bare clay.<br />
After a few years we moved the chickens<br />
to this area<br />
and moved the vegetable garden to the back yard.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
The first summer ran hot,<br />
and we strung up tarps around the coop<br />
so the chickens would have shade.<br />
They also lacked shelter and protection from<br />
watching hawks and airborne predators.<br />
<br />
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<br />
So we decided to let the goldenrod grow<br />
for shelter and shade.<br />
As beekeepers<br />
we also knew that goldenrod nectar<br />
provided a source of the bees' winter honey stores.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
We've watched the goldenrod<br />
grow taller than our own heads,<br />
and the subsequent gathering of so many<br />
varied pollinators coming to drink of its nectar.<br />
Often bumblebees spend the night<br />
hanging on a golden bloom.<br />
<br />
You could say<br />
our back garden is full of weeds,<br />
neglected.<br />
I've come to think of it<br />
as the most beautiful garden<br />
I've ever grown.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/08/03/my-town-calls-my-lawn-a-nuisance-but-i-still-refuse-to-mow-it/">For further reading on wild lawns...</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-18170131535159362842015-06-24T10:33:00.001-05:002015-06-24T10:33:59.502-05:00Covering our ButsThe inability to hear my own discriminatory language<br />
comes automatically with white privilege.<br />
<br />
I've been blessed<br />
by my parents, teachers, friends, and aquaintances<br />
who have taken the time to<br />
call me on my own racist speech<br />
across my lifetime.<br />
<br />
I've internalized what they've told me,<br />
and now I try to prescreen<br />
what comes out of my mouth.<br />
<br />
Too often there is still<br />
a cognitive step<br />
between the garbage I think<br />
and what I actually say.<br />
<br />
While I've lost most of my fear<br />
of the potential of living with dementia<br />
in my later years,<br />
I'm aware that one of my lingering fears<br />
of cognitive decline<br />
comes in the fear<br />
that I will lose that cognitive step,<br />
that inner filter,<br />
and say things that spring forth<br />
from the racial tensions<br />
and biases I've soaked in<br />
my whole life<br />
from the culture around me.<br />
<br />
I'm struggling this week<br />
with my responsibility<br />
to address, not just the racism I say,<br />
but the racism I hear<br />
and don't address.<br />
<br />
I've often failed to say anything<br />
when people I love say things<br />
that trouble me.<br />
Because I love them,<br />
because I know they are struggling<br />
to be better than the culture around them,<br />
because I know in certain regions<br />
I call home <br />
everyone talks like that.<br />
And, let's face it,<br />
because I don't want to stir up trouble,<br />
or cause them to love me less.<br />
<br />
But we need to start<br />
holding one another accountable<br />
to hear the things we say<br />
that represent our inherited biases.<br />
<br />
We need to continue to work<br />
on our language,<br />
and hope our hearts change as well.<br />
<br />
So, a couple thoughts on<br />
covering our buts.<br />
<br />
If a sentence begins<br />
with the phrase<br />
"I don't want to sound racist, but..."<br />
then the horse has already left the barn,<br />
the chicken has already flown the coop.<br />
Pretty much any sentence that begins with<br />
"I don't want to sound racist, but....,"<br />
well, that sentence already sounds racist.<br />
<br />
And we wouldn't use that phrase if<br />
somewhere in our hearts<br />
we didn't think so, too.<br />
<br />
So we need to listen for that phrase<br />
and eliminate it.<br />
And we need to think<br />
about what we are saying after it,<br />
and whether it needs to be said.<br />
Why does it sound racist?<br />
Maybe because it is?<br />
<br />
The second place we can cover our buts:<br />
Any sentence that includes<br />
a positive description of someone<br />
and the word "but."<br />
<br />
She's black, but she's a good nurse.<br />
He's gay, but he's a good neighbor.<br />
She's Mexican, but she's really smart.<br />
<br />
Ouch. <br />
<br />
We need to keep that "but"<br />
unspoken,<br />
and hear instead<br />
the lesson that<br />
people of all races, ethnicities, and persuasions<br />
have gifts and challenges.<br />
<br />
Noticing our language<br />
gives us an opportunity<br />
to hear the biases we've learned<br />
whether we wanted to or not.<br />
<br />
And so, I ask you,<br />
even if we don't have the kind<br />
of relationship where<br />
we have a covenant<br />
of mutual accountability,<br />
even if we are barely<br />
polite acquaintances,<br />
tell me when my butt shows.<br />
Tell me when I say things<br />
that I don't even hear.<br />
Tell me in love,<br />
and help me battle<br />
my own blindness and deafness<br />
of privilege and bias.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-87296608909328817282015-06-21T10:02:00.000-05:002015-06-21T17:59:20.483-05:00On Guns in ChurchFew things have caused me as much inner turmoil<br />
and reflection on society, prejudice, violence,<br />
and my role in all of the above<br />
as the recent murders of nine people<br />
who had gathered for Bible study.<br />
<br />
I've had time to reflect on the pervasive<br />
and ongoing racism of our culture<br />
and within my own worldview and being.<br />
But that is another important ongoing conversation.<br />
<br />
This morning I'm thinking about the well publicized<br />
response of one member of the NRA,<br />
who indicated that the deaths<br />
were in part the fault of the pastor<br />
for opposing guns in his church.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/06/19/an-nra-board-member-blamed-a-murdered-pastor-for-the-deaths-in-charleston-yes-really/"> http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/06/19/an-nra-board-member-blamed-a-murdered-pastor-for-the-deaths-in-charleston-yes-really/</a><br />
<br />
I wish all the people in that Bible Study were still living.<br />
I wish their families were not faced with the grief of their loss<br />
this morning and every morning to come.<br />
<br />
But I don't wish that one of them had been carrying a gun,<br />
I don't wish that one of them would have shot back.<br />
<br />
I continue to wonder at the fact that<br />
it was a florist with a phone<br />
who led to the shooter's arrest.<br />
<br />
I continue to hear echoing in my ears<br />
the words of both loss and forgiveness that<br />
grieving and devastated family members<br />
shared at the shooter's bond hearing.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2015/06/19/hate-wont-win-the-powerful-words-delivered-to-dylann-roof-by-victims-relatives/">http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2015/06/19/hate-wont-win-the-powerful-words-delivered-to-dylann-roof-by-victims-relatives/</a><br />
<br />
I think about the fact that the shooter<br />
almost abandoned his plan,<br />
telling police later that he<br />
"almost didn't go through with it<br />
because everyone was so nice to him."<br />
<br />
I think about hearing ethicist Stanley Hauerwas<br />
sharing his response a few years ago<br />
when asked if he wouldn't abandon his<br />
pacifist ways if someone threatened the lives of his children.<br />
He responded,<br />
"I want my children to know<br />
that there are<br />
more important things in life<br />
than not dying."<br />
<br />
I have strong opinions about gun laws,<br />
but this is not a blog about that.<br />
<br />
Many years ago<br />
a youth in my church<br />
expressed shock to hear<br />
that I lived in Miami, FL<br />
and did not own a gun.<br />
He asked me about defending myself,<br />
and I explained that you couldn't<br />
use a gun like Wonder Woman's bracelets<br />
to deflect bullets.<br />
You could only use it to shoot someone else,<br />
and I had chosen to not do that.<br />
<br />
I do believe we<br />
as a culture and a society<br />
are called to shoot back.<br />
We are to shoot back at pervasive racism,<br />
by self awareness, brutal honesty, and social changes.<br />
We are called to battle,<br />
to fight economic injustice,<br />
voter suppression,<br />
the undermining of public education.<br />
We are called to fight back<br />
against our own willful naivete<br />
about the history and current practices<br />
of overt and subtle racism in our country.<br />
<br />
Our country needs redemptive action,<br />
but not redemptive violence.<br />
<br />
Our country has heard<br />
the echo of the gunshots,<br />
but have we heard the quiet power<br />
of the love, the faith, and the grace<br />
of the nine and their families?<br />
<br />
<br />
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<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-79226417204145061052015-01-05T13:22:00.001-05:002015-01-05T13:26:15.856-05:00Leaving the Interstate<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
Traveling through South Carolina yesterday<br />
we got off of I-85<br />
and traveled instead along SC 11,<br />
the Cherokee Foothills Scenic Highway.<br />
There were many State Parks and waterfalls to choose between.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Following the WATERFALLS signs<br />
another ten or eleven miles <br />
off our main route,<br />
we paid the $2 per car<br />
admission fee to one of the state parks.<br />
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<br />
I am a fan of interstates.<br />
They get you from place to place quickly.<br />
But sometimes the best journeys<br />
involve exploring the backroads,<br />
taking the time to find<br />
the treasures along the way.<br />
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<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-54140723307784956562015-01-02T13:22:00.004-05:002015-01-02T13:25:08.515-05:00Lichens, large and small.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
I brought home a stick covered in lichens<br />
during a walk around the block last week.<br />
I was interested in the variety<br />
and wanting to take a closer look.<br />
<br />
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<br />
I discovered that by using a handheld 5x magnifying glass<br />
and my iPod Touch camera zoomed in a bit<br />
I could get some amazing close up detail on the lichens.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Who knew they were so hairy?<br />
Now I've got the magnifying bug.<br />
Am looking forward to looking at more things<br />
with low tech enhancement.<br />
<br />
Why look,<br />
it even has me blogging again.<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-80586913891165069232013-04-20T14:55:00.000-05:002013-04-20T15:13:11.156-05:00April Blues<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi03kYDbLq51E-VY4KQO-FlEQveP5CRIVQDWrPFsgcP5KhBDcbf11NnsFWhSyf2jU5KDonJ29GHhN7woHdt6nOIPLq-QU4KQwaEBMjp9wX8wcBiMkwpOZjsSJz8wGRd3YDsoAEmUQ/s1600/April+20+2013+Spring+flowers+005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi03kYDbLq51E-VY4KQO-FlEQveP5CRIVQDWrPFsgcP5KhBDcbf11NnsFWhSyf2jU5KDonJ29GHhN7woHdt6nOIPLq-QU4KQwaEBMjp9wX8wcBiMkwpOZjsSJz8wGRd3YDsoAEmUQ/s400/April+20+2013+Spring+flowers+005.JPG" width="300" /> </a></div>
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Each year by the back door, mixed in with the grass, clover and dandelions,</div>
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two or three tiny stalks of blue flowers pop up. </div>
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They don't look like much from a distance, but up close the bluebells are lovely.</div>
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There are also ribbons of small bluish purple flowers </div>
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all over the lawn (pictured below). </div>
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Picked, they smell minty. </div>
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Magnified, they look like irises, </div>
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with a palette of color and texture.</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
I looked them up in the wildflower book. They're not native. </div>
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Like many of our plants they came over from Europe. </div>
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<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
Ground Ivy, Gill-over-the-ground, Creeping Charlie.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Considered a weed due to the enthusiastic spread,</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
but causing no problems at my house.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Used in the old country to flavor beer.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.thekitchn.com/edible-weeds-ground-ivy-149396">More on Ground Ivy</a> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
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Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-38066576526857440982013-01-25T15:21:00.001-05:002013-01-25T15:21:41.332-05:00Glassy Mountain Views<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
In the warmth of the day<br />
on Sunday afternoon<br />
we hiked up to Glassy Mountain,<br />
one of the trails at the Carl Sandburg house. <br />
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<br />
It was a nice, easy trail,<br />
with lots of friendly people<br />
and their dogs.<br />
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<br />
At the top of the trail<br />
was the payoff,<br />
a nice rocky bald<br />
with lovely views of early evening.<br />
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<br />
This would be a good trail<br />
for visiting Floridians or other flatlanders.<br />
Easy hike, nice picnic area at the end.<br />
Also...lovely park benches at regular intervals.<br />
Love that.<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-36052003259731570342012-12-30T11:20:00.002-05:002012-12-30T11:28:50.319-05:00The Sixth Day of Christmas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
On the sixth day of Christmas,<br />
my true love gave to me<br />
a hawk in the dogwood tree.<br />
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<br />
My camera was nestled<br />
all firm in it's bag,<br />
without a memory card<br />
and the batteries all dead.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv5h3N5dxdBq0fVDyTsNmR9HWIi7VLiqzv3IPFxPIPQ8iuOMuKewDrbJ3w6Rq83c-W09uOoJzxqTnlKkB965gBS_RE0D6ZkKBcT4SIQFX2nF1xPPLO_QGZVFKL31_tEQGc2JfeiA/s1600/Christmas+with+hawk+050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv5h3N5dxdBq0fVDyTsNmR9HWIi7VLiqzv3IPFxPIPQ8iuOMuKewDrbJ3w6Rq83c-W09uOoJzxqTnlKkB965gBS_RE0D6ZkKBcT4SIQFX2nF1xPPLO_QGZVFKL31_tEQGc2JfeiA/s400/Christmas+with+hawk+050.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I'm mixing my Christmas songs<br />
and poems,<br />
but you get the picture.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg64qiI8vfSM9OrJ2wBMPuEzi1k4AIfA_qvL_8XzEbgJZj5uYmF790DidsJeexAXUUgGJw6jLgSBr8fWDywDMyQp8MnXIOpG_cp14WtzpkKPhneegL2liJeUe2axMgV5e_H2b7Shw/s1600/Christmas+with+hawk+067.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg64qiI8vfSM9OrJ2wBMPuEzi1k4AIfA_qvL_8XzEbgJZj5uYmF790DidsJeexAXUUgGJw6jLgSBr8fWDywDMyQp8MnXIOpG_cp14WtzpkKPhneegL2liJeUe2axMgV5e_H2b7Shw/s400/Christmas+with+hawk+067.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
After a brief scramble,<br />
I found the hawk quite patient to my hurried preparations,<br />
willing to wait for me to get my act together<br />
so I could take pictures to my heart's content.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAyVb2KAC6ISxrfqQD2vxpVzWSoEYBuv8OO3p0CHbv74d7M13IwaACSg-7UrAIrO8CY8vAx4mZaeCF9JErXKBwuJDwtv1GpS2mPO8gqla2f6o9WTFDPRxlBdj17WdRS3oC5K2b2g/s1600/Christmas+with+hawk+073.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAyVb2KAC6ISxrfqQD2vxpVzWSoEYBuv8OO3p0CHbv74d7M13IwaACSg-7UrAIrO8CY8vAx4mZaeCF9JErXKBwuJDwtv1GpS2mPO8gqla2f6o9WTFDPRxlBdj17WdRS3oC5K2b2g/s400/Christmas+with+hawk+073.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
And then the hawk turned and launched<br />
to fly away.<br />
Fly away indeed, friend hawk.<br />
Don't eat my chickens.<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-39695890541241656372012-07-20T10:13:00.001-05:002012-07-20T10:14:19.307-05:00July 2012 Garden report<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiDyNvM5D-640xAibduzmFPbK-yRQ-Pn4WwLsR799CvTHeohjR5rUum6WHvw9PhzXMGKwDsz_txkSfvTemVxMsY7KD4ZR_ZcQCiVVVAHuq_pyDEjaz7WkYABoD4nL3NfRqzkBYVw/s1600/July+garden+2012+002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiDyNvM5D-640xAibduzmFPbK-yRQ-Pn4WwLsR799CvTHeohjR5rUum6WHvw9PhzXMGKwDsz_txkSfvTemVxMsY7KD4ZR_ZcQCiVVVAHuq_pyDEjaz7WkYABoD4nL3NfRqzkBYVw/s400/July+garden+2012+002.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
While I don't blog often these days,<br />
it occurs to me that the blog makes a wonderful garden journal.<br />
So an update on the garden...<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
While the rest of the nation experiences drought,<br />
we've had good steady rain this year.<br />
We've got some of the best looking corn in the country.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmg8pmFAniJqr86zR5MQt9lNyGeEV9kAfrQ3G6UiTj6OPk_x7o-27_Is5C1WsjNZAIwi_KgEYARJYYJl0xYYOIZeyAvBMbYfiVlMyISAnwIgZBD4K7YJsy6gnBvxoLCMYTqRNWA/s1600/July+garden+2012+009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOmg8pmFAniJqr86zR5MQt9lNyGeEV9kAfrQ3G6UiTj6OPk_x7o-27_Is5C1WsjNZAIwi_KgEYARJYYJl0xYYOIZeyAvBMbYfiVlMyISAnwIgZBD4K7YJsy6gnBvxoLCMYTqRNWA/s400/July+garden+2012+009.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
We've let the chicken's half<br />
of the original garden<br />
go to tall weeds this summer,<br />
giving lots of shade<br />
and shelter from hawks.<br />
The two younger hens still lay<br />
a steady supply of summer eggs.<br />
Ethel is still perking along,<br />
not moving as well as she used to,<br />
but seeming to take pleasure in her old age.<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-85413776874149741382011-12-17T11:54:00.001-05:002011-12-17T11:54:23.966-05:00At the Maple Tree Watering Hole<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPYBddnToa1OvebrWT1YfVHRBMGHlsd3PzcrfzKQLSWzyRrgpJb2jvcotBMQ2zhz78UdWmgXo8pwmQ-z10HrTfdNXFle7gniXW0jRbMktBwUmrguJ4ybvwyfhsym6jVJFdXq4hQQ/s1600/bird+drink+tree+099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPYBddnToa1OvebrWT1YfVHRBMGHlsd3PzcrfzKQLSWzyRrgpJb2jvcotBMQ2zhz78UdWmgXo8pwmQ-z10HrTfdNXFle7gniXW0jRbMktBwUmrguJ4ybvwyfhsym6jVJFdXq4hQQ/s400/bird+drink+tree+099.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
There's a hollow in the maple tree out front,<br />
where an old branch died<br />
and dropped off.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7OczIxU9BaleIdZU1f9mnjpSTInuK1hCjEQG-HjZ32nXNL9eSRYAY12BwS1ka3-VuP5aOl0O-DOTcLeXxvqQFCIEo1D7oVIgIPAvHloxWFW_-IUDdxy9xqTshTLP1udX_truIQw/s1600/bird+drink+tree+100.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7OczIxU9BaleIdZU1f9mnjpSTInuK1hCjEQG-HjZ32nXNL9eSRYAY12BwS1ka3-VuP5aOl0O-DOTcLeXxvqQFCIEo1D7oVIgIPAvHloxWFW_-IUDdxy9xqTshTLP1udX_truIQw/s400/bird+drink+tree+100.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
When it rains,<br />
the hollow fills with water,<br />
and all the neighborhood birds<br />
come to partake.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5KsR7_WRTCbFSKEq53MmKHzg6FMEcQ5z1grKE3uV9bZ8e5ZhyCLI4RTQ0TU2lwAFMqK7kCpfr07kfBKD5u-0KM12jTnmlul8V-Yhu7FOIPVozws8Uq6aTPNZCYN7WrOiFaFme6A/s1600/bird+drink+tree+101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5KsR7_WRTCbFSKEq53MmKHzg6FMEcQ5z1grKE3uV9bZ8e5ZhyCLI4RTQ0TU2lwAFMqK7kCpfr07kfBKD5u-0KM12jTnmlul8V-Yhu7FOIPVozws8Uq6aTPNZCYN7WrOiFaFme6A/s400/bird+drink+tree+101.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Fun to watch them<br />
tilting to drink <br />
right outside the dining room window.<br />
<br />
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<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-47374340068182495202011-12-03T10:05:00.001-05:002011-12-03T10:10:11.001-05:00Growing Up with Tarzan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkvZ__aI0QDcO6pO1vMpi2Fh1H4egKzsLeQvglPVIEoOm2zPNqBJvG6APseUMOrluiWf2dK6XfOHsnsJbOkidyQP9nmhD396FPrzRSIcukyTWuxO_gBYJQ6fmy-2WjdR6-9huonA/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+078.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkvZ__aI0QDcO6pO1vMpi2Fh1H4egKzsLeQvglPVIEoOm2zPNqBJvG6APseUMOrluiWf2dK6XfOHsnsJbOkidyQP9nmhD396FPrzRSIcukyTWuxO_gBYJQ6fmy-2WjdR6-9huonA/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+078.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
On weekends in my childhood,<br />
we would sometimes visit my mother's parents<br />
who lived on a farm in rural north Florida.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTaaLtoiW4OxkOE6ejYE0iSXHzfX_qFdCtEpH61m4nbObCtH85hUw4NARgBvTxEwnWzZHJ679lQsjoVFRHwlQGTenDiVkQRpMvBd4XdpHG3kLujb99nI8lTxN8B3Fvh7KYXZMJgQ/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTaaLtoiW4OxkOE6ejYE0iSXHzfX_qFdCtEpH61m4nbObCtH85hUw4NARgBvTxEwnWzZHJ679lQsjoVFRHwlQGTenDiVkQRpMvBd4XdpHG3kLujb99nI8lTxN8B3Fvh7KYXZMJgQ/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+099.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I can remember spending Saturday mornings<br />
watching old Tarzan movies<br />
with my grandfather<br />
on their little black and white TV.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA-5505GzIedoY_gSAzGNMrv1mpG_CY7f6JhIx_9H_33nF1-Z9F0B9OBuEPCBceQgqhVylAKJUttojgPWnJc_tgpByQIIXXVaAqMYYUUewrn4zNxtSdXOZotiTEIr0ViLZYB_-tg/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA-5505GzIedoY_gSAzGNMrv1mpG_CY7f6JhIx_9H_33nF1-Z9F0B9OBuEPCBceQgqhVylAKJUttojgPWnJc_tgpByQIIXXVaAqMYYUUewrn4zNxtSdXOZotiTEIr0ViLZYB_-tg/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+102.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I didn't know at the time<br />
that many of those movies<br />
were filmed at Silver Springs,<br />
not an hour away from where we sat.<br />
<br />
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<br />
Was it the black and white<br />
or just my ability to believe<br />
that kept me from recognizing the jungles<br />
of my own home state?<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRHdDPibTl3YLKUI7B2j9b18Cn_EOEJRxSEk-eHLzN1I3kIRkME-67ue9ovgU4SOXrzt-d6WLJKMLoljLpqfUGfupSRsbGseOW3bCn0JazzHDzqz_ez0UA8-MI8Mk9CF1KhWOHtQ/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRHdDPibTl3YLKUI7B2j9b18Cn_EOEJRxSEk-eHLzN1I3kIRkME-67ue9ovgU4SOXrzt-d6WLJKMLoljLpqfUGfupSRsbGseOW3bCn0JazzHDzqz_ez0UA8-MI8Mk9CF1KhWOHtQ/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+112.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<i>(These pictures come from Leesburg, FL, taken last February at a camp counselor reunion.)</i><br />
<i> </i>Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-21860701000450653972011-11-16T16:39:00.001-05:002011-11-16T16:58:41.580-05:00Value Added<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl8SMLwPIxjMIMgk1qQvTHA2zNGglUZPMx2hkSuIGnN0vkVnXJtQI7qoSSxrnZm7qfH-85SzznjzIwL-efqdvddaIKM0RotzCJDVGssxbxt3rJsECkvs450k5CQzPg7n5bUgafZw/s1600/May+2011+066.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl8SMLwPIxjMIMgk1qQvTHA2zNGglUZPMx2hkSuIGnN0vkVnXJtQI7qoSSxrnZm7qfH-85SzznjzIwL-efqdvddaIKM0RotzCJDVGssxbxt3rJsECkvs450k5CQzPg7n5bUgafZw/s400/May+2011+066.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I'm trying to cut back<br />
on watching TV,<br />
surfing the internet,<br />
even reading books.<br />
<br />
<br />
When I am doing one of those things,<br />
I am perhaps staying out from under foot<br />
and not causing trouble,<br />
but neither am I contributing to the world around me.<br />
<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlYgjajjDW1e2-npAEuk3S5VwBBmRr-bPJZza8tGer9MC1WifCuJugMqLvEdTNDWvxN2jX8h75fi0xeYjJyv-rMxj4sjsoGg7crkjPwTQHV6L_0FLY2Z3rmEMBjz16LpDcy6lTSA/s1600/May+2011+067.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlYgjajjDW1e2-npAEuk3S5VwBBmRr-bPJZza8tGer9MC1WifCuJugMqLvEdTNDWvxN2jX8h75fi0xeYjJyv-rMxj4sjsoGg7crkjPwTQHV6L_0FLY2Z3rmEMBjz16LpDcy6lTSA/s400/May+2011+067.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I'm trying to figure out<br />
more ways each day<br />
to add beauty,<br />
kindness,<br />
creativity<br />
and something interesting<br />
to a world full of noise and clutter and meanness.<br />
<br />
Even if it just means sharing<br />
a picture in the woods<br />
celebrating that spring does come<br />
whether we watch for it or not.<br />
<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSGRiJxLbF-3z5XiXyGbJK09fB6ONyGWYMONbltTbOW0JgIiVFc2k6v_2glAsV3ksv_hCAf4EJZ0FLeiiXbex-16ckDonovu2AmHDAsLYb-a1vYO3BDouGkJeVybHCVYbwWC0b4A/s1600/May+2011+040.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSGRiJxLbF-3z5XiXyGbJK09fB6ONyGWYMONbltTbOW0JgIiVFc2k6v_2glAsV3ksv_hCAf4EJZ0FLeiiXbex-16ckDonovu2AmHDAsLYb-a1vYO3BDouGkJeVybHCVYbwWC0b4A/s400/May+2011+040.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
I will ask, not for guilt or pressure,<br />
but simply as a reminder<br />
and some focus:<br />
as my presence here added anything worthwhile<br />
to the world today?<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-89521954555898979802011-11-10T08:59:00.000-05:002011-11-10T08:59:31.962-05:00Public Spaces<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdXq57KtpanVEumOeUTsxrkZj3AzmLmAIsziuNBCW-2aKPYTs0EJbuW_DlR6pDia85_tkVfXLtKH450KxxhItJTU8qbYsXuv2U86_2k296RK4E4RflT9UFUrNv3zQXJOv-vzvGTw/s1600/May+2011+044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdXq57KtpanVEumOeUTsxrkZj3AzmLmAIsziuNBCW-2aKPYTs0EJbuW_DlR6pDia85_tkVfXLtKH450KxxhItJTU8qbYsXuv2U86_2k296RK4E4RflT9UFUrNv3zQXJOv-vzvGTw/s400/May+2011+044.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Sick days at home often stimulate blogging.<br />
I know this from spending much of yesterday<br />
breathing through my mouth<br />
and reading through blog entries<br />
going back six years.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaqjGNkbwJysZI2GxqyJBaWMw6pRJnlojMNr3ALCRvNrKwW2iILz12-cV2lFbV-nWptP_vktefBZhDMRkHe4lmfGftMSC-qfBUNt9hIegugoKd2usAKdnssVqIX7R7jYQc6su5lw/s1600/May+2011+046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaqjGNkbwJysZI2GxqyJBaWMw6pRJnlojMNr3ALCRvNrKwW2iILz12-cV2lFbV-nWptP_vktefBZhDMRkHe4lmfGftMSC-qfBUNt9hIegugoKd2usAKdnssVqIX7R7jYQc6su5lw/s400/May+2011+046.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Another thing I realized<br />
was how many of the pictures<br />
I treasure and share<br />
come from<br />
places we own together.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyugXMLRqoM5CDndDSck1DFT_-HpJ3ucHJSubzksgWG2NAyloSMIdtYmQZ4-UNjdlCI9dHHzU13jXPAhBttTUVCjm8_un54_ZGjXzrxPEpHuCVyNYwnSFkBgf1pSSyjEi6DIWNig/s1600/May+2011+047.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyugXMLRqoM5CDndDSck1DFT_-HpJ3ucHJSubzksgWG2NAyloSMIdtYmQZ4-UNjdlCI9dHHzU13jXPAhBttTUVCjm8_un54_ZGjXzrxPEpHuCVyNYwnSFkBgf1pSSyjEi6DIWNig/s400/May+2011+047.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
State parks, national parks,<br />
public land and forests.<br />
Even the privately owned places,<br />
like the Shaker Village in Kentucky,<br />
are held in trust<br />
so that the public can visit, learn and enjoy.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw216MnIN3I_P7njh1DSshnZYnLPTqniDNrXsYrToKpw06XpsvKK9jTjT2dOKQxoBp128BfGPxrmaSQabO_hFPTbgZIcjygggVpExBKIUAbKdDYmQ70yV9dckjH5Zu67M0W0dNLA/s1600/May+2011+043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw216MnIN3I_P7njh1DSshnZYnLPTqniDNrXsYrToKpw06XpsvKK9jTjT2dOKQxoBp128BfGPxrmaSQabO_hFPTbgZIcjygggVpExBKIUAbKdDYmQ70yV9dckjH5Zu67M0W0dNLA/s400/May+2011+043.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
It turns out that together,<br />
we share an incredible wealth<br />
of views, hiking trails,<br />
winding roads and places of beauty.<br />
How rich we are, my friends!<br />
How very rich!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqklzjzpxJ9aX2jIA5G7rzYhzx6deGtiF0rWnG7F7nKHQINT5c6oAiTC_b2Sl-CSolbIX4uh8RjIwQfjjPvLifL9JGrYcUJhnuVWjKyG_KGY1-sFiRYQHDZ36E9pHmirsLdrFLlQ/s1600/May+2011+045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqklzjzpxJ9aX2jIA5G7rzYhzx6deGtiF0rWnG7F7nKHQINT5c6oAiTC_b2Sl-CSolbIX4uh8RjIwQfjjPvLifL9JGrYcUJhnuVWjKyG_KGY1-sFiRYQHDZ36E9pHmirsLdrFLlQ/s400/May+2011+045.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-43194811373153724602011-11-09T10:16:00.002-05:002011-11-09T10:16:28.531-05:00Craggy Gardens Hike, May 2011<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi58EChbMhyphenhyphenoLKSYcCuTqg_PO0IdVSjGP7O91TVKjT8sqyYS6jmUmjbEgp7H0tGM6dJM7HVqKP2PuCPOAvxeGHvC4z82vILtBVP-RdT2A5GOfSIvq9N_-rkk_4iq_lWSeCB1r-I_A/s1600/May+2011+061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi58EChbMhyphenhyphenoLKSYcCuTqg_PO0IdVSjGP7O91TVKjT8sqyYS6jmUmjbEgp7H0tGM6dJM7HVqKP2PuCPOAvxeGHvC4z82vILtBVP-RdT2A5GOfSIvq9N_-rkk_4iq_lWSeCB1r-I_A/s400/May+2011+061.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
This has been<br />
one of the most beautiful falls<br />
in recent memory.<br />
Which, of course,<br />
leads me to post<br />
lovely pictures from spring.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-_4dBwio4wFsaAyujXfG4E8aHaogynz_UCzf7PXoW1hb5wdPXkILJUPZdxobXjGWKDC7lHZaPnmPVFB-UT1tco05pIDi0ysWXvv1YhfTghXJ2JM0G8YTC90Y0zokzPbKQiJbLPQ/s1600/May+2011+062.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-_4dBwio4wFsaAyujXfG4E8aHaogynz_UCzf7PXoW1hb5wdPXkILJUPZdxobXjGWKDC7lHZaPnmPVFB-UT1tco05pIDi0ysWXvv1YhfTghXJ2JM0G8YTC90Y0zokzPbKQiJbLPQ/s400/May+2011+062.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I was very excited when I took these shots<br />
at the prospect of sharing<br />
this vivid green<br />
on the blog.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQBAfliE0i2oRLvvlsNbwkqu2eX0P9Y7uUnz-7Qo8mtKnUPxilWOnjptZa1QMd6AaGn-yLVjJ5qBKPsYrD_wm4n9go8pZ7gXKnm79qdhkz24WBJqyWZW8ZUshq7fMlFbjzP34-pg/s1600/May+2011+063.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQBAfliE0i2oRLvvlsNbwkqu2eX0P9Y7uUnz-7Qo8mtKnUPxilWOnjptZa1QMd6AaGn-yLVjJ5qBKPsYrD_wm4n9go8pZ7gXKnm79qdhkz24WBJqyWZW8ZUshq7fMlFbjzP34-pg/s400/May+2011+063.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
It took me a while to get around to posting.<br />
But the spring green is worth the wait.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSok8blzTBg8nkW0GPVo9nd2K8rXrTVgpS0j6t_CJi0CzeTy9yk62dJh3MPNs-TcupvfXH570jKNc8QAmddz_7e9qtrasoMuAs4SUZbgyMwW2Tiud6Y56l9szlYX6Vo3zaPrsGxg/s1600/May+2011+065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSok8blzTBg8nkW0GPVo9nd2K8rXrTVgpS0j6t_CJi0CzeTy9yk62dJh3MPNs-TcupvfXH570jKNc8QAmddz_7e9qtrasoMuAs4SUZbgyMwW2Tiud6Y56l9szlYX6Vo3zaPrsGxg/s400/May+2011+065.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
And perhaps,<br />
as we drift towards winter,<br />
this green is just what the doctor ordered.<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-55389000678599693102011-10-23T18:32:00.000-05:002011-10-23T18:35:55.306-05:00A Well Rounded BlogAccording to a recent<br />
New Yorker cartoon*<br />
most blogs consist of<br />
<br />
"1/3 stories about crap<br />
somebody cooked, knitted or sewed;<br />
1/3 self-promotion<br />
and 1/3 conspiracy theories."<br />
<br />
The cartoon awakened me to a basic fact.<br />
I am way behind on my<br />
share of conspiracy theories.<br />
<br />
I just happened to come up with one<br />
on my way to church this morning,<br />
which I will now share with<br />
a public in need of some<br />
new paranoia.<br />
<br />
In North Carolina there is a roundish<br />
brown, garden eating mammal<br />
called a groundhog.<br />
<a href="http://www.google.com/search?q=groundhog&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=N9S&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&prmd=imvns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=GqOkTqrJF8uftgervf2PBQ&ved=0CFYQsAQ&biw=1024&bih=567">(Click here for pictures)</a><br />
We did not have them in Florida.<br />
Apparently they are<br />
NC's answer to armadillos.<br />
<br />
You'll see them as you drive around town<br />
perched on the side of the road,<br />
facing traffic<br />
making little chewing motions with their mouths<br />
but always right there on the very curb<br />
with their nose practically under the cars.<br />
<br />
I couldn't figure why an animal,<br />
much less an entire breed of animals<br />
would perch so precariously<br />
with cars whooshing by<br />
and threatening their fuzzy existance.<br />
<br />
Finally I realized:<br />
they are not mammals at all.<br />
They are electronic devices set there<br />
to monitor us in our cars,<br />
disguised as mild mannered<br />
fuzzy brown garden destroyers.<br />
<br />
I know some ground hogs are real<br />
and a real pain in the patooty<br />
if you are growing your own veggies.<br />
<br />
But those omnipresent roadside hogs...<br />
they are machines,<br />
put there by The Man<br />
keeping us under<br />
his controlling eye.<br />
<br />
Beware of both kinds.<br />
<br />
*September 26, 2011, The New Yorker, page 90, "Blog Breakdown" cartoon.<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-75945062679516470362011-10-22T12:48:00.001-05:002011-10-22T12:48:20.518-05:00Ode to Spanish Moss<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtDBt-HBBrroCMcJM8HXqmmHM-kq7isXjOamWE-bwA_kny0j5aazwopMHJArPcyEEW2CUYlFtq3AhN8PcdTFqMOsJa8pADIV43T5hbNO0o7eFJKEgLM0iSWqnwNfpC92VmkG4m-Q/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtDBt-HBBrroCMcJM8HXqmmHM-kq7isXjOamWE-bwA_kny0j5aazwopMHJArPcyEEW2CUYlFtq3AhN8PcdTFqMOsJa8pADIV43T5hbNO0o7eFJKEgLM0iSWqnwNfpC92VmkG4m-Q/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+007.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
One of the ways<br />
I know am near my original stomping grounds<br />
in the heart of north Florida<br />
is to look to the trees<br />
for the gentle drapery of Spanish Moss.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEQSZd0Q-80Sgs8A3yXSwfoK8B0f6tXdW5F0yUk0kIrT19zLqEsgokm4KMx69Dcf1XQofA46ibPHlkfUElrbbyOilGbKNxa981oO38vmAkhBsQkdogSm6rby78ydU5yPGfeDv0OA/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEQSZd0Q-80Sgs8A3yXSwfoK8B0f6tXdW5F0yUk0kIrT19zLqEsgokm4KMx69Dcf1XQofA46ibPHlkfUElrbbyOilGbKNxa981oO38vmAkhBsQkdogSm6rby78ydU5yPGfeDv0OA/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+008.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
These pictures almost seem <br />
like black and white photography,<br />
but they are color shots on a cloudy day.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUVTo05EpiKSMNM57-EpohAirT0qdkD0joUINBbyph34SxiH7uhaXSudLcRid0cVznyw6YSFkpQdhdh0GD3rTnZfXnFgnrEbZZpKO6KQ0M854GLxQBxwXROdPjv7p_teiYNH__-Q/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+066.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUVTo05EpiKSMNM57-EpohAirT0qdkD0joUINBbyph34SxiH7uhaXSudLcRid0cVznyw6YSFkpQdhdh0GD3rTnZfXnFgnrEbZZpKO6KQ0M854GLxQBxwXROdPjv7p_teiYNH__-Q/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+066.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
The gray of the plant<br />
covers a green interior,<br />
life within something that looks<br />
not quite so living.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHpdT_lvVQP_JNydCFMpwM6UtIHlOyiRYMHud9BUZOwcaAFg0lzmNU56FhJWYR6bSC9tUDNPTVipny9H9sktjtS0Nwpnd5jrw2vNSSXr9KVDosHsgx5Q-jU7ipo8RG44-kvazW9A/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+079.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHpdT_lvVQP_JNydCFMpwM6UtIHlOyiRYMHud9BUZOwcaAFg0lzmNU56FhJWYR6bSC9tUDNPTVipny9H9sktjtS0Nwpnd5jrw2vNSSXr9KVDosHsgx5Q-jU7ipo8RG44-kvazW9A/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+079.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
<br />
Gentle breezes add a certain<br />
living movement,<br />
but one beyond the plant's control.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5vAJHzCzUoFMRr1v0XNtu2qddM0xXI-YTG2fMQ3pnLcmtJbX6uakbZB5s8o6BFXh21gISA-OlGK5j6wAvMnlZUaQs5olk0gcIbRjfKcLQB2UANZKjRFx-_m6atYcF7pl68xtzlA/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+118.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5vAJHzCzUoFMRr1v0XNtu2qddM0xXI-YTG2fMQ3pnLcmtJbX6uakbZB5s8o6BFXh21gISA-OlGK5j6wAvMnlZUaQs5olk0gcIbRjfKcLQB2UANZKjRFx-_m6atYcF7pl68xtzlA/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+118.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
While I love my home in North Carolina,<br />
I have to visit the land of moss<br />
(or more accurately, the land of angiosperm)<br />
on occasion to set things right with my soul.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPsvGBUFtGXr3V1UmJzUcTWPMDlct3ehYSq63l0USTHXgZpnbU1D-ErdCoY5HJey9Uyqb2VeBaLqw26OvPyNqjXmlamZSYWUkuO7lhc3BxwgMi7oySFlObv8AODgAskM-2XAaYgA/s1600/Team+Reunion+weekend+120.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPsvGBUFtGXr3V1UmJzUcTWPMDlct3ehYSq63l0USTHXgZpnbU1D-ErdCoY5HJey9Uyqb2VeBaLqw26OvPyNqjXmlamZSYWUkuO7lhc3BxwgMi7oySFlObv8AODgAskM-2XAaYgA/s400/Team+Reunion+weekend+120.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
(Photos from the Warren W. Willis camp in Leesburg, FL, taken last February).<br />
<br />
<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_moss">More on Spanish Moss</a><br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-61640843219708719352011-10-18T19:49:00.002-05:002011-10-18T19:49:39.992-05:00Looking Down<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqNHoQEuYLiU5Yo4pesO5iulDRMsvesYu6qkUAfpQOlA9TpdjYp9-xoJdCHmm1ylbL3VT2BOjoKA3HsHfpl9qhNqosK44cai1H70kFcrFxB0B2laxLRB-_A6hosGjdUeYLwfLbg/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguqNHoQEuYLiU5Yo4pesO5iulDRMsvesYu6qkUAfpQOlA9TpdjYp9-xoJdCHmm1ylbL3VT2BOjoKA3HsHfpl9qhNqosK44cai1H70kFcrFxB0B2laxLRB-_A6hosGjdUeYLwfLbg/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+056.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
I am sometimes criticized<br />
for looking down at the ground as I walk.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1g0_0A-N0fLg7zniCv937fWjMvhcazmVbSCkdlbtPkiCDDYHSwpLVVx0AmLLAnvZwnq469KZh3tqSLkCkeJA9h891jejuA52AZyo5sSQsPBjgefKkFaszSGVNglFVgUC5_fK0Xg/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+082.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1g0_0A-N0fLg7zniCv937fWjMvhcazmVbSCkdlbtPkiCDDYHSwpLVVx0AmLLAnvZwnq469KZh3tqSLkCkeJA9h891jejuA52AZyo5sSQsPBjgefKkFaszSGVNglFVgUC5_fK0Xg/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+082.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div>
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But it pays<br />
to pay attention<br />
to the ground beneath your feet.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXHkkF3k176cyRPVwdqPK1p7iVXeSgk5-pzgUPVOncPgL7PR1K-yFo_Xlmf_Z3hymE_4bqbLlcJBteJJjv2XQmQBIptp6Q-UMPG4GggmD7qqjRNaZckVYQqMCCV-AhAcvc6earnA/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+086.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXHkkF3k176cyRPVwdqPK1p7iVXeSgk5-pzgUPVOncPgL7PR1K-yFo_Xlmf_Z3hymE_4bqbLlcJBteJJjv2XQmQBIptp6Q-UMPG4GggmD7qqjRNaZckVYQqMCCV-AhAcvc6earnA/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+086.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
There are treasures<br />
all around,<br />
just there for the looking.<br />
<br />
<i>Same springtime hike in Indiana....one walk, so many things to ponder and photograph.</i><br />
<br />
<i> </i>Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-11499355847908291962011-10-04T21:00:00.002-05:002011-10-04T21:01:00.017-05:00Water flowing over rocks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrCLvX5F-MsoEAhhRTV10Q885Ozl-hljRaHarCfyp1h86kV9evNxOqusTHzR6nIKKqnpspdQABU2MzNnUIFVGZb5plDjBv5M_2WIh3vTlqa2G4pOrUn_V45JzNpScdOWecR0k6lg/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrCLvX5F-MsoEAhhRTV10Q885Ozl-hljRaHarCfyp1h86kV9evNxOqusTHzR6nIKKqnpspdQABU2MzNnUIFVGZb5plDjBv5M_2WIh3vTlqa2G4pOrUn_V45JzNpScdOWecR0k6lg/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+017.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Here's something you don't see<br />
while hiking in Florida.<br />
While my home state has lots of water,<br />
they are lacking in cool rocks.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQhyRZ52IMubmZcAr-AHKrpgiDQEYtmTFv-SFIArHw_a4YUJVCmi3glWitzxUkPa_aroxP0JdZcayjUnz8-PBoSLzYdJ8E0odab28WySN3iObOBws86HUIr0KqFfd96kJVf6jUvg/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQhyRZ52IMubmZcAr-AHKrpgiDQEYtmTFv-SFIArHw_a4YUJVCmi3glWitzxUkPa_aroxP0JdZcayjUnz8-PBoSLzYdJ8E0odab28WySN3iObOBws86HUIr0KqFfd96kJVf6jUvg/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+016.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
More pics from Brown County State Park.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpASw5uXAMTVMi168H-Hr0V6kFUWOp6soFYdi62Bc8kjdvTGkXc3mwkZXydJcdi4n5ckxlQ_ENciad_eSDRbbIynLgy-NaQQYSsEnFS0YTWCIwdtpMQe6DMoOTeObqGk-wmdQFKw/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+038.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpASw5uXAMTVMi168H-Hr0V6kFUWOp6soFYdi62Bc8kjdvTGkXc3mwkZXydJcdi4n5ckxlQ_ENciad_eSDRbbIynLgy-NaQQYSsEnFS0YTWCIwdtpMQe6DMoOTeObqGk-wmdQFKw/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+038.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
What is better<br />
than rocks and water<br />
and the bright green<br />
leaves of spring?<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2FOp5a3Mw57gCsvq5C7Y2we7I5nUxckaFqd99bb0AscvAVoLeT6PaMIrBNtwV3oZyBHa74zSMWS711VTzEmNqw86a15hBlurYHJOwUnjYx8V6ABgS5o_F2nXuVosrqBfSdC3t-A/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+041.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2FOp5a3Mw57gCsvq5C7Y2we7I5nUxckaFqd99bb0AscvAVoLeT6PaMIrBNtwV3oZyBHa74zSMWS711VTzEmNqw86a15hBlurYHJOwUnjYx8V6ABgS5o_F2nXuVosrqBfSdC3t-A/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+041.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-69103949478889972152011-10-03T06:16:00.000-05:002011-10-03T06:19:30.692-05:00Brown County Trails<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF7RN5Nf-gNzbgXVS4EnzFZacZL6ZVqnIR1l3oSK-g_uAQ_fSxkLDU7ew5d4r8aGcyvWPB6oMsnXr2nOrEzo6iu07ODrxSTqLp3aVI9EeTAyz8sq6cNxIGErPYck3uKTKAOaQtPQ/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF7RN5Nf-gNzbgXVS4EnzFZacZL6ZVqnIR1l3oSK-g_uAQ_fSxkLDU7ew5d4r8aGcyvWPB6oMsnXr2nOrEzo6iu07ODrxSTqLp3aVI9EeTAyz8sq6cNxIGErPYck3uKTKAOaQtPQ/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+014.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
With four months' worth of pictures<br />
stored on the computer<br />
and never posted to blog,<br />
I'm going to start back in May<br />
and share some of my favorites.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsaHNsmDEJ99b1zIu2Yqq1gO_FSmj_D3HPgUOgwa6bSs6BBGkwz-V-VprGVx2gxYbzfxj86EnbdfLOYFDKwZScrGVlSt7tb0RVszZzsS_tY6PTkWBLtFLyNbaycl9pnC72gHYCQg/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsaHNsmDEJ99b1zIu2Yqq1gO_FSmj_D3HPgUOgwa6bSs6BBGkwz-V-VprGVx2gxYbzfxj86EnbdfLOYFDKwZScrGVlSt7tb0RVszZzsS_tY6PTkWBLtFLyNbaycl9pnC72gHYCQg/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+018.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
More hike pictures from<br />
the State Park<br />
in Brown County<br />
Indiana.<br />
<br />
Wonderful place.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFdnjRUq-Idl-lnW4Iz2dz19mD-nKU9TikNxVqXGpf8YPqtNa1r6vs7OXmmel_MtwgkLciVumz2o6uACXR3KOdeKjj3Vln5EpV8YMLn1mD38d4RLyXxqn0p-uiY26pX7Q-GEgfkQ/s1600/Indiana+Kentucky+090.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFdnjRUq-Idl-lnW4Iz2dz19mD-nKU9TikNxVqXGpf8YPqtNa1r6vs7OXmmel_MtwgkLciVumz2o6uACXR3KOdeKjj3Vln5EpV8YMLn1mD38d4RLyXxqn0p-uiY26pX7Q-GEgfkQ/s400/Indiana+Kentucky+090.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17116907.post-59852268011100336532011-09-26T19:24:00.002-05:002011-09-26T19:48:45.793-05:00Made in AmericaWe've become too cheap for our own good.<br />
We want LOTS of STUFF<br />
for not much money,<br />
and we don't want to think too much about it.<br />
<br />
So jobs have disappeared, disappeared, gone overseas.<br />
And that has led to more bargain hunting<br />
and more disappearing jobs.<br />
<br />
It is time for those of us<br />
who still have jobs and savings<br />
to start investing<br />
in our neighbors,<br />
in each other.<br />
<br />
My new motto....<br />
***Buy less,<br />
***spend more.<br />
<br />
Spend more effort in the shopping<br />
(stop to think and research),<br />
spend more money<br />
(it costs money to pay decent salaries)<br />
and BUY MADE IN THE USA.<br />
<br />
I started with musical instruments.<br />
Both my mandolins<br />
were hand crafted<br />
here in the U.S.<br />
One of the luthiers<br />
has become a valued facebook friend.<br />
The instruments mean more<br />
(and play great!)<br />
<br />
Now I'm moving on to shirts.<br />
I don't need a lot of shirts,<br />
just a few for work and home.<br />
So I'm going to chuck out<br />
more money<br />
for each American made shirt.<br />
<br />
I'm going to think<br />
each time I wear that shirt<br />
of people who got up,<br />
drank their morning coffee<br />
and went to a job<br />
that paid a living wage.<br />
<br />
You know you are going to buy something soon.<br />
Why not spend a little more time and money<br />
and help make an investment<br />
in our future together?<br />
<br />
Links for further thought:<br />
<br />
<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/WN/MadeInAmerica/">http://abcnews.go.com/WN/MadeInAmerica/</a><br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.americansworking.com/">Links to American made products</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Chapeltreehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00377756409159381403noreply@blogger.com0