Art More or Less

First of all, Happy Halloween! it has gotten to be a popular holiday even though it is weird, but I guess that's why it's popular. And pretending is fun, isn't it?

I tried out an artificial intelligence image generator that Alan of Yogi’s Den blogged about. Many of my images were failures in my opinion, but I like this witch and scarecrow picture, and this second picture  looks creepy enough for Halloween, although that was not my intention. 

I’ll show you some more AI images this week but for now let me switch to a more traditional form of imagery. This mural of flowers is on a building in Capon Bridge.  (I took this over a month ago when the leaves were still green.)

Monday Murals

Don’t Worry, the Scary Face is For Halloween

"Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil."

Which brings us to Shadow Shot Sunday.

That shot is a close-up view of a small shrub in front of Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Staunton. The church is close to another Baptist church that I showed last week, and its history is interesting.

Soon after the Civil War, a group of former slaves held services in a white Baptist church. In 1868 they rented a log cabin, and erected a better building two years later. Membership grew to 150 people, so they built the current edifice and dedicated it in 1874.

According to an online history, "In every undertaking misunderstandings and differences arise. This happened in 1878 in Mount Zion. There arose a disagreement between the pastor and congregation which resulted in the resignation of Rev. Simpson. He and a large number of the members left and formed the Ebeneezer Baptist Church."

 

Late October Update from Charlie

Hi, it’s me. Charlie. Some people asked how I did in daycare yesterday. I was brave, of course. I got to see other doggies, and that’s always fun.

Sometimes I see other dogs from the car.

 

Riding in the car makes me nervous. There’s noise and I don’t like being confined.

Mom makes me ride in the back seat. I have tried to get in the front seat. Mom doesn't understand how unfair it is to make me ride all alone. I chew on things to calm down.

There’s a lot to see and some of it is strange.

When I get old enough to drive, I’m going to go to the dog park every day.

Folds, Foliage, and Flowers

Gardens of Glen Burnie

Black and White / Garden Affair

Yesterday I had an appointment in Winchester so I put Charlie in doggy day care for the first time. After my appointment, I went to the gardens next to the MSV to see the origami exhibit and the fall foliage. The origami in the gardens is coated metal; picture bent aluminum artfully crafted.

If you get a chance to see this place in autumn, don't miss it. I'll share a few highlights. I took dozens of pictures so I combined some into collages.

Weekend Reflections / Floral Friday

Mosaic Linkup

Characters and Signs

Woodstock, VA

Halloween is coming, and folks are decorating for it.

Skywatch / Signs

There are fast food places clustered near the Interstate exit that compete for attention.

The deer character made me laugh. I think it's worth another look. Since it is doing a little fishing, it's only fair to show you a picture of the river as seen from the state park. The water appears to be low.

 

Four Photos from Skyline Drive

Autumn is a beautiful time of year in Shenandoah, but avoid Skyline Drive on the weekends. Here are a few recent pictures.

I was excited to get a picture of a wild turkey near the stables at Skyland. It's rare that they pose for me. 

 

Ginkgo Gold

Blandy / Virginia State Arboretum 

Wordless Wednesday

Marker in Staunton at Ebenezer Baptist Church

Effie Ann Johnson Day Nursery and PreSchool

When I stopped to take a picture of a mural in Staunton on Saturday, I spotted a historical marker so I walked over to see it. It tells the story of a preschool and is one of a series of Black History Markers. 

"1939. Established by the Depression-era Works Progress Administration (WPA) and supported by the local hospital auxiliary, the nursery opened in the Ebenezer Baptist Church Annex on North Augusta Street."

The history continues with names of early teachers and the groups that supported the school after the WPA was the discontinued. In 1962 the school moved, and eventually it closed in 1997. 

This marker was unveiled on April 2, 2022. It was created by Staunton-Augusta County African American Research Society.

Mural of Fun

Staunton, Virginia

This mural on the side of a bicycle shop was created by Christy Baker. It celebrates people enjoying outdoor activities, as they do in nearby Gypsy Hill Park.

Monday Murals / Blue Monday

I was intrigued to see part of it reflected in a window of an adjacent building.

Here’s a scene in the park, which has 214 acres.

Sweetness in Staunton

Yesterday I drove to Stanton to go to a wedding with Lynn. I met her at a drugstore and noticed this sign across the street. Looks like the letter L fell off! The church itself was a nondescript one-level building in need of TLC.

The wedding was held on the veranda of a building in a park. It was a beautiful autumn day.

Don't worry, I'm not going to bore you with a ton of wedding pictures. I’m not a big fan of weddings anyway but this one was very sweet and not overly long.

Lynn brought a friend along to look after Charlie while she and I attended the event.

Blog Post 8100: Scenes around Edinburg

Black and White Weekend 

There are a number of linkups that I participate in. They require extra effort as far as planning photos and writing posts to include them.  The payoff is more than just having a few more people see my pictures; it is ensuring variety to this blog. I would probably get bored doing it without an inducement to go in different directions on different days.

Participation in these linkups seems to be declining, and I think many bloggers have gone on to other forms of social media. Still, I feel like if I’m in a community of photo bloggers who share some of the same interests that I have.

Saturday Critters 

Weekend Reflections 

The view of the Shenandoah River is from Chapman Landing Road.

Living Under a Flight Path

The northern part of the Shenandoah Valley lies under the flight path from Dulles Airport to all points west. In certain weather conditions, jets leave contrails behind them, or long streaks of water vapor. Soon the streak spreads out to the sides and and either disappears or turns into an elongated cloud.

The first picture is from 7:30 one morning. The second one is from today at 6:30 PM. I took both of these with my cell phone while walking the dog.

Skywatch Friday