Seasons




I survived my latest foray to the wilds of Northern Virginia. I stayed at the same place each of the last two visits, allowing me to present this touching season-change sequence while looking across the street from the motel.

Holiday in Chambodia


Taken last week while in Atlanta while waiting for a train to head intown. Looking at Dekalb-Peachtree airport from the Chamblee MARTA station.

Sumac


From last month's New England trip.

We made it back to Texas yesterday, but it's off to Northern Virginia for a few days for me for work, so expect more older photos.

Tennessee Tug, etc.


Taken Tuesday morning along the Tennessee River, downtown Chattanooga.
Sunday it's back to Texas from Georgia. But Monday I have to travel yet again, only on business to the wilds of Northern Virginia.
Is it too much to hope that by the time I'm done travelling Chan Gailey will be fired? It's bad enough to lose to Georgia, but it's even worse when they themselves so clearly stunk. I will try not to start on Reggie Ball since he is just a kid.

Happy Thanksgiving!


It seems only appropriate to post a New England fall photo for Thanksgiving.

This Old House


Earlier this week I alluded to this old house. It's the last of its kind on the road on which I used to bike to/from elementary school. This house has been unihabited for at least 6 or so years - the now elderly woman who owns it is in a nursing home I believe. It's pretty much assured that when she dies the house will be sold to a builder who will put a very large house on the lot. The total size of land that's still a part of this homestead is probably about an acre, maybe two. A good portion of that land was, even as recent as ten years ago or so, devoted to crops (mainly corn and veggies). Pictured below, you can see that section is now just a plot of short-mowed grass.


I can't really disapprove of whatever happens. Given the now-intown location of this house, and its current state, I suppose it's unrealistic to expect someone to rennovate this house and live in it - I probably wouldn't want to live in it. And it's not like this house is was the first thing -nor its inhabitants the first people- to be here. History marches on. But when this house goes it will be sad for me. I always enjoyed riding by it and under the huge oaks. The weather seemed appropriate when I took this set of photos on Sunday. It was windy and about 40 degrees out. Just as the big oaks are in autumn, so too is the house, in a sense. Below, as viewed from the side from down the road a little.


Below, a different angle, from the road. In this one you can see beyond to a newer, but still pretty old (and small) house up the street. For a long time when I was growing up it had a big Canadian flag in the window.


Below, a look part-way up at the big tree in front of the porch.


Below, a old school TV antenna on the chimney. I suppose that, back in the day, a nice screen porch, a window AC in a room or two, and a roof antenna added up to a pretty nice set up.




So that's my little ode to this house. Several years ago the next lot down the street was divided several times and some new houses were built. Below is the one closest to the little white house.

Battlefields


We visisted the Chicakmauga battlefield this morning. The weather was great.



We made sure to check out the Texas monument, of course. As we were leaving the monument, some kids on a field trip walked up. Apparently they were assigned to explore in the form of a sort of photo scavenger hunt and one waypoint was the Texas monument. Only they were all just photographing the wooden sign which said "<--- TEXAS MONUMENT" totally oblivious to the actual monument nearby. After watching this for a while and not seeing any sign of movement in the direction of the arrow. I pointed out to them that the actual monument. I don't think they cared, though. I was tempted to tell them about the nice Hill Country Town Mountain granite and how it was also on the Texas capitol (taller than the US Capitol, you know...), but I restrained myself. I'm sure my wife could have done without that, too.


We also visited Kennesaw Mountain on our way back from Chattanooga to the Atlanta area. We made it a lot faster than Sherman, but then we didn't have squirrley Joe Johnston in our way. We haven't burnt anything, either.
Below, Atlanta herself, from atop Kennesaw.

Travelogue & Obituary

We had great weather driving up to Chattanooga this morning: patchy clouds which completemented the maroon-and-gray late fall scenery. Later, we walked out of the food court of a mall here in Tennessee (where we had lunch) and it was snowing (but not sticking). It actually came down pretty steadily for a few minutes. We'll take what we can get. Tommorow during the day we're going to do some sightseeing, so I should have some Chattaphotos to post. Then back to Georgia.

Oh, and see that great lone pine tree to the left side of the foreground of that megahouse in the last post? This morning I went by there again and they were cutting it down. YEARRRRGHHHH!!!
I had actually taken another photo of this tree yesterday. I might as well post it:

Thanks for helping shade my walk home when I was a kid. Given the history of this area, I'd judge you to be about 70 years old. See you on the other side.
And I still need to take and post photos of this tract of pines in Bastrop that burnt up a few weeks ago. At least that was (sort of) a natural occurance.

Rock Blogging and "Progress"


Monday morning we head up from the Atlanta area to an overnight visit to Chattanooga. As always, more changes going on here in what is now the "intown" Atlanta area. Long time readers with a memory for rocks may recall the above schist from an edition of Friday Rock Blogging. It was taken from some woods near where I grew up in Georgia. In case anyone was wondering what ton-sized samples look like, here's a few:


Unfortunately, these are stacked in this manner because another chunk of woods is being turned into a house. I know it's not particularly unusual for this to happen (especially in this case because most of this tract of woods were already gone), but it's still a little sad for me personally. I needed the wide-angle lens to capture all of this house. It actually wraps around half of this cul de sac:


For the record, where that cul de sac now stands once stood a small plot of corn. I think the guy who owned the land just had it for fun, although a few other people on the main road (not pictured) still had semi-serious half-acre-sized fields of stuff when I was a kid. There's actually one of those old houses still remaining, although the field next to it is just grass now. I've taken some photos of it but it deserves it's own full post later this week.

When I walked home from elementary school I would cut through the woods on a trail which ultimately came out here from the left side of the above photo. To the right there was a short (100 yards) dirt road which led to the main road. The subdivision in which I lived was on the other side of that main road.

It's a pretty safe bet that the trees next to this bulldozer cut aren't going to make it.