Mid-September with Charlie

 A Beagle’s Report

Hello! I had some good times this week and I’ll show you pictures, but first, here’s my portrait with a filter called Black-and-white Drawing. It makes me look like a wolf!

This week I went to Seven Bends State Park two times. I saw some turtles. Do you see them?

Yesterday there was a new sign in the park.

It looks like there’s a goat race! I bet I can run faster than a goat!

Ranger Megan invited us to a talk that a lady was giving about the CCC. They planted a lot of trees a long time ago, and built some parks, but not this one. 

I was very good and made friends with a woman who was sitting behind us. When we left, it was already time for dinner.

Every week I spend an afternoon with my friends at the veterinary day care.

Today I did something exciting. We picked up Miss Deborah, and we went to a horse ranch!

Fort Valley Campground and Ranch

I met some people and dogs.

Guess what? I’m not afraid of horses, even though they are big.

Some girls were feeding them.

It was really interesting. I would like to have a horse as a pet!

Wading at Chapman Landing

The season for swimming and wading is almost over, but folks are making the most of the warm weekends.

This is the North Fork of the Shenandoah near Edinburg.

Blog Post #9600

Old Self Portrait

 

I was going to post something else when I remembered that my blog has reached 9600 posts, so I should celebrate that. It’s an old blog now, and I’m an old person, and this is an old photo! 

I was taking a photography class when I set up this shot. I used a timer because we didn’t have a selfie feature in cameras back then. We didn’t have digital photography either. This was taken on film with a 35 mm camera. I used window light.

I decided to resurrect this old picture because I needed a profile picture for Facebook. I had been using a cartoon-type picture, and Lynn complained that it was ugly, which it was, and it wasn’t amusing me anymore. I found this shot, but I wanted it to look antique to suggest that it’s not a current photo. After all, it’s from the last century!

So I tried to make it look sepia-toned but it came out too dark. I used AI to add a Victorian frame. Then I brought it back into the Photos app and lightened it. I also made another version that’s even lighter, but I prefer the richness of this one, so I’m using it for now. 

Crowding an Ordinary Day

Blog Post 9599.

Here we see today’s evening sky. It was turning pink, but was not a spectacular sunset because the only clouds were low near the horizon. I looked around for something to make it interesting, and noticed the shiny decoration hanging from the porch rail. Since the rail was basically in the way, I couldn’t really frame the shot properly so I just held the phone down between the rail and the decoration. Later I straightened the photo a little and cropped it. 

Today was a tiring day because I had an appointment in Harrisonburg. That is not so far that the drive is exhausting, but I usually crowd other things into the trip to take advantage of being in a larger town and not having Charlie with me. (I left him in day boarding, and did not need to pick him up until 5 PM.) I went to two grocery stores, because I can never find everything I need at one store. Even so, I couldn’t check everything off my shopping list because some items are out of stock, as usual. I also had lunch, bought gas because it’s cheaper there and went looking for a mural. I found the building, but there was no place to park and I realized that I was running short of time so I didn’t get that picture.

There was a sudden rain storm while I was at physical therapy. It was still raining lightly when I got back in my car. 

Long Gliding Wings and Small Busy Wings

Vultures are not glamorous birds, but they glide gracefully, sailing on air currents high in the air. 

Tiny hummingbirds are admired for their beauty, but their wings beat so fast that I’m lucky when they don’t look completely blurry in a photo. 

That shot was taken by a motion-activated camera mounted in a birdfeeder. The model I have was designed for birdseed, but I set it up for hummingbirds in the summer. 

I have a hanging feeder for them too. Recently they’ve been visiting many times a day, gathering energy for a long migration southward. 

I took this picture yesterday while relaxing on the deck. 

Another visitor to the deck was this butterfly. The “Siri Knowledge” app says this is a hackberry emperor. 

Colorful Clusters

When I took photos of the mural that I posted yesterday, I also snapped a few pictures of flowers across the street.

The next floral collage is a group of yellow flowers and leaves from earlier blog posts

Linkups: Mosaic and Gardens

Last are red begonias recently seen at Bryce Resort.

Mural at Broad Porch Coffee

Harrisonburg, VA

Monday Murals

This mural was painted by Earth Surprise. The coffee shop faces Court Square, and is directly across from the Rockingham County Courthouse, which I was going to show you, but Blogger has decided not to load any more photos right now.

Three Pictures from Front Royal

E. Wilson Morrison School

This elementary school opened for the season on August 12, and closed 10 days later. On August 22, a notice went out that the school had to be closed due to "structural damage to the building that requires immediate assessment and remediation." School was closed for two days so an inspection could be completed and plans made for students to go to a different school. The school is 91 years old, and apparently age and moisture caused weakening of the facade.

I took this picture when I went to Front Royal on Tuesday for a dental appointment. I had a small filling done, but it wasn’t very painful. (I decline Novocaine for fillings because it makes me nauseous, and the shot hurts worse than the drilling.)

After my appointment, I had lunch at Spelunkers. I’m not a fan of showing food photos, and all I had was lettuce-wrapped burger and fries. In spite of being a burger place, they have fresh flowers on the tables. 

After that, I made a brief trip on Skyline Drive, which is right next to the town and has fantastic views.

Deer, Dogs, and Other Fine Things

First, some deer at Bryce Resort.

Next, a report from Charlie.

Hi! I had a pretty good week. I got to play with Sadie several times.

On Sunday, Mom took me to Strasburg Town Park. No one was at the dog park, so we went down by the river where all the people were. 

I saw another beagle! Her person said she was shy so I barely got to meet her.

At home, we still see the little hummingbirds sometimes.

Mom asked StarryAI to draw a paisley cat. I don’t know why she said that.

Here is something about beagles that she found on the computer.

Beagles are famous! Yesterday we were walking on this road at Seven Bends State Park. A man got out of his car and came over to ask, “Is this Charlie the famous beagle?” He said I was even more handsome than my pictures! He has seen me on this blog.

I think I can rest on my laurels now.

Solemn Tourist with Reflection

Flight 93 Memorial

Today was the 25th anniversary of the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. It was also the day that Flight 93 crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after passengers fought the hijackers. 

I visited the Flight 93 Memorial in 2022 and posted pictures a few weeks later. I did not post this one the time, but today I cropped out some distracting parts of the image to make it cohesive. 

Twenty-five years is a long time, so perhaps now that we’ve made it through a quarter-century, I’ll be able to handle the future remembrances without crying. No guarantees though.

I remind myself that I was very fortunate that no one close to me was a victim of the disaster. My daughter Marie was traveling overseas, but she had lived and worked in New York City before she embarked on a world tour.

Today’s Sky and a Remembering

Tomorrow is the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. I remember the beautiful sky that morning, and how it made the newscasts sound surreal. 

This week I heard a few broadcasts on NPR about the after-effects of 9/11. It’s tragic that many of the first responders and volunteers who went toward the disaster at the World Trade Center have suffered and died from the effects of the toxins that were in the air.

I remember being shocked when Christine Todd Whitman, the Bush administration’s head of EPA at the time, stated that the air quality in Manhattan was safe for citizens, except for those working to clear the wreckage. It was obvious from photos that the city’s air was still smoky and polluted. Years later, she apologized after finding out that she had passed on dangerously incorrect information.

Both the US government and NYC Mayor Giuliani failed to inform citizens and workers of the health risks. It took years of efforts by injured workers and activists, including TV personality Jon Stewart, to secure adequate healthcare and benefits for the first responders. 

I am thankful for fire fighters and all the others who come to the rescue in times of crisis.

Link: No Responders Left Behind: The FealGood Foundation