Lew's Other Pics

My World Tuesday - Soybean harvest

2009-11-09T16:10:00.004-05:00

Out in the field I heard such a clatter
I looked out the window to see what's the matter.
And what should I spy, but a giant green Deere
Running through the soybeans, a cloud at its rear.

It reaped and it thrashed, and held the beans inside
And then a red truck pulled along side.
The Deere disgorged the beans through a spout
As it continued its work up the soybean route.

Nearer and nearer the giant did come
until the roar made me deaf and dumb.
What will become of the beans now gone?
Tofu or cattle feed I think will be done.

And soon the green giant did disappear
and the dust settled, leaving the field bare.
The quiet returned to our peaceful abode
And I returned to my PC to compose this ode.

(with apologies to Henry Livingston and/or Clement Moore)

Odd shots - What did you say?

2009-11-09T01:04:00.003-05:00

Buster probably wants Maxine to move so he can take a nap. A more typical view of this pair is here.

To see more Odd Shots, start at Katney's Kaboodle and follow the links.

PhotoHunt - Veterans

2009-11-07T00:59:00.006-05:00

Arlington Cemetery from USAF Memorial, February 16, 2008

When I saw the PhotoHunt theme for this week, I knew that I wanted to recognize the men and women who have served in combat to protect us over the years. I also wanted to recognize one particular veteran of Iraq who is near and dear to me. Though I did not serve in the Armed Services, my work over the years has often been in support of the US military. The first two images are of Arlington National Cemetery. What looks like show through the middle of the above image are the 300,000 headstones. Approximately 28 funerals a day are conducted at Arlington. Some are veterans of WW II, Korea and Vietnam; others are veterans of Afghanistan and Iraq.

Section of Arlington Cemetery, May 30, 2004

My oldest daughter is the individual I want to recognize. During her freshman year of college, she called me and said "Dad, I got an ROTC scholarship." She wanted to be a doctor so when filling out the Army paper work her senior year, she wrote "medical" as her preference. Army Personnel wrote back with "signal." After serving her required four years as a Signal Corps officer, she took the admission tests and was accepted at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. Upon graduation and completion of her internship, she served as medical officer in Korea and then entered surgical residency. She also completed a vascular surgery fellowship. During this time most of her patients were retired military. In January 2004 she deployed with the 31-st Combat Support Hospital to Ibn Sina Hospital, Baghdad, Iraq. During this time the team treated US and coalition wounded, Iraqi civilians and enemy prisoners.

Promotion to LTC atop Ibn Sina Hospital. October 23, 2004

photograph by member of 31-st CSH

Upon her return we had a family reunion in Hershey, PA. (She wanted chocolate! It doesn't survive the heat in Iraq!)

Reunion with Dad, Hershey, PA December 4, 2004

photo by Marianne

Since returning from Iraq, her work has focused on the wounded warriors, first at Fort Sam Houston and now at Fort Hood. The shootings Thursday at Fort Hood are tragic, especially since the shooter was one who had dedicated his life to helping others. We were able to talk to her briefly after the first news here and learned that she is okay but very busy. Last night I reread the journal she kept while in Iraq. I was reminded again how much our soldiers have sacrificed and the complete dedication of the medical professionals who care for the wounded. The person who committed the terrible acts Thursday is an aberration.

Ginny, I am so proud of you and I thank you for the service you and your colleagues have given and are giving to our country.

Sky Watch Friday - Sky colors

2009-11-05T14:17:00.003-05:00

Gold and silver - October 25

Black and gray - October 31

Purple - November 1

Pastels - November 3

Window Views - Heritage Farm Park

2009-11-04T15:03:00.006-05:00

Have you ever looked out one of these moon shaped windows?When I was 4 or 5, my grandparents lived in a house where the bathroom facilities were outside. They did move to a farm house with indoor plumbing. Heritage Farm Park near us is a farm that has been turned into a community park. The historic manor house and barn still stand but most of the land is not used for recreational activities: baseball, soccer, football, golf and disc golf. There are trails for hiking and biking as well as picnic picnic facilities.

The old barn has windows, as well as vents in the brickwork which can be seen through the above window opening. The tractor windows (last image) are of a more recent vintage.

My World Tuesday - Halloween around town

2009-11-02T20:19:00.004-05:00

Here are a few of the Halloween decorations for sale at Colorfest last month.

And the haunted house in the middle of town.

A full yard down the street.

And a haunted globe.

Historic Bridges - Loy's Station

2009-11-02T10:53:00.003-05:00

Approach from the south

Loy's Station Covered Bridge is one of three remaining covered bridges in Frederick County. This multiple king post bridge was built around 1860 over Owens Creek in the northern part of the county. It was reinforced with steel beams and a center pier on the 1930's; and rehabilitated in 1976. After a fire, it was rebuilt in 1994 with contributions from people of the county. There is a small community park along the creek, making this historic bridge one of the best for parking and photographing. Bring a picnic and enjoy the sun, fresh air and beautiful setting.

King post detail

Side view from island in the creek

South abutment

Odd Shots - Blue bird of Halloween

2009-11-02T01:55:00.004-05:00

Have you seen the blue bird of Halloween? One shows up around here in October and is gone by Thanksgiving (I think the large turkey that flies in mid November scares him away.) The blue bird roosts in the happy tree and feeds on pumpkin seeds.

To see more Odd Shots, start at Katney's Kaboodle and follow the links.

PhotoHunt - Trick or treat bags

2009-10-31T00:38:00.004-04:00

How many Halloween treats do you think this bag will hold?

Maybe a couple of small bugs for the spider at our door.

And here are the bags of treats for our visitors!

Sky Watch Friday - October 22 skies

2009-10-29T14:54:00.002-04:00

We have had lots of "sky action" the past week (see Dewdrop's blog for the meteorological info). Here are some views from October 22; first 2 in the morning and last 3 at sunset.

Window Views - Halloween windows

2009-10-28T15:30:00.003-04:00

Halloween apparition in our window

Ghosts and spiders at the door

and on the windows

Windows and door of haunted house at Colorfest

My World Tuesday - Fall colors

2009-10-26T23:24:00.005-04:00

Pasture and horses low on the mountian

Catoctin Mountain is one of the prominent geological features of Frederick County. The mountain is a ridge across the county from the Pennsylvania border into Virginia. Much of the land on the mountain is parkland: Frederick City Forest, two state parks and a national park. Sunday I drove up to Gambrill State Park looking for fall color in the trees. Many of the leaves were blown away by the storms that came through over the weekend, but still a beautiful fall afternoon. Here are a few images from the mountain.

Color beyond the pond

Fish hatchery and mountain

Up a narrow road

Deer by the road

City of Frederick and surrounding towns and farms

Odd Shots - A pair from Colorfest

2009-10-26T00:55:00.004-04:00

I spotted thes two oddities at Colorfest in nearby Thurmont. I did not try the fried Snickers and I had enough cash so I did not use this mobile bank.

To see more Odd Shots, start at Katney's Kaboodle and follow the links.

PhotoHunt - Tied up in traffic

2009-10-24T01:03:00.000-04:00

This intersection is the I-70 exit at Market Street, Frederick's main street through downtown. I ran some errands Friday to the south side of town and got tied up in traffic on the way home. Home is a right turn and go through town (3.5 miles); or straight and on I-70, then US 15 to by-pass the city streets. On Friday afternoons it is a toss up as to which is faster. It took about 30 minutes to get to my next stop ( a little beyond home) to pickup some groceries. I am glad I am no longer commuting 50 miles home on Friday afternoons!

Sky Watch Friday - Contrails

2009-10-22T15:13:00.004-04:00

Contrails and wires, March 22, 2009

This week I decided to focus on contrails rather than other sky features. We live under the flight path of planes leaving Baltimore to points west and by the time they fly over, the outbound planes are high enough to create contrails. (Inbound flights are too low.) On Tuesday I spotted a contrail with the unusual (at least for me) condition of casting a shadow on the clouds above it. So I went back through my archives for more contrails and selected two taken in March, one in May and the last two this month. There is a companion image of the last one on Lew's Pics.

Bird, sky and contrail, March 27, 2009

Contrail and cloud, May 23, 2009

Contrails and moon, October 11, 2009

Contrail to the sun, October 20, 2009

Window Views - Colorfest windows & a door

2009-10-21T16:01:00.003-04:00

View through the front doors at Rose Hill Manor

I took the above shot from inside Rose Hill Manor during the Fall Festival there. The windows below were found during the Colorfest in Thurmont.

Pumpkins in the window, cold beer and crab cakes inside

Bank windows

Reflections at the glass and mirrow shop

My World Tuesday - Catoctin Colorfest

2009-10-19T16:18:00.005-04:00

On the 11-th I went to the Catoctin Colorfest in Thurmont, MD. This town of 6,000 residents, nestled on the edge of Catoctin Mountain, hosts about 150,000 people over a two-day festival every October. Around 350 artists, photographers, potters, woodworkers, jewelers, food vendors, etc attend to show and sell their handmade items. The center of town is closed to vehicle traffic and free shuttle buses are provided. Parking is provided at schools and businesses outside the festival area. Local churches, Scouts, fire department and businesses support the festival. The Colorfest Organization supports local community activities with proceeds from the festival. Some local residents also hold their yard sales on this weekend. I captured some of the color of the festival to share here.

I was told the crowd was larger on Saturday.

Only a few of the many food places.

There is a small light on top of the post.

I don't see hand made brooms anywhere else.

Odd Shots - Lonely bike

2009-10-19T10:46:00.003-04:00

At the fall festival I attended, this was the only two-wheeled vehicle present. It looked odd by itself among all the older red farm tractors. The Maryland International Harvester Collectors club was also present in force at the festival.

To see more Odd Shots, start at Katney's Kaboodle and follow the links.

PhotoHunt - Old farm engines

2009-10-17T00:06:00.001-04:00

One cylinder engine

I found these at the Rose Hill Manor fall festival two weeks ago.

Titan tractor

Rumley tractor

Sky Watch Friday - Dark clouds

2009-10-15T15:58:00.003-04:00

Tuesday our skies darkened with the approach of rain clouds and predictions of four days of rain. The sun appeared large and dramatic through the clouds. So far the rain has been gentle, but steady. These shots were taken shortly after 6:00 PM.

Window Views - Rose Hill Manor

2009-10-13T15:18:00.004-04:00

Rose Hill Manor is a 200 year old house built by the daughter and son-in-law of Maryland's first elected governor. The house, other buildings, and grounds are now a Children's Museum and one of the Frederick County Parks. The first two windows are in the parlor. For more images and info on, see my posts Rose Hill Manor and Ice House or the museum web site.

Log cabin window

Barn windows and loft door

My World Tuesday - Rose Hill Manor

2009-10-12T17:50:00.007-04:00

Rose Hill Manor

Rose Hill Manor is well known because it was the retirement home of Thomas Johnson, the first elected Governor of Maryland. He was born in Calvert County in 1732, was admitted to the Maryland bar in 1753 and to the Frederick bar in 1760. He was active in the Maryland legislature and events of the American Revolution, including commanding the Maryland Militia. He was a delegate to the First Continental Congress in 1774. He also served as an Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court. In 1778 he purchased the land known as Rose Garden and renamed it Rose Hill. However, he then purchased land further north of the City of Frederick and built his home there. He gave Rose Hill to his daughter Ann Jennings Johnson and she and her husband built the home shown here. After the death of his wife, Gov. Johnson lived with his daughter until his death in 1819.

In 1964, 50 acres of Rose Hill were sold to the City of Frederick for a high school, which bears his name. In 1968 Frederick County purchased the remaining 43 acres for to establish the first county park. Today Rose Hill is a Children's Museum, providing a glimpse into life 200 years ago in the early like of the US. The museum offers tours to groups as well as individuals. Spring and fall festivals are held in addition to other events during the year.

In 1977 the Farm Museum was established at Rose Hill. It provides a look at farming on the late 1800's and early twentieth century. There is also an exhibit of fine carriages and sleighs from the collection of Robert H. Renneberger.

Rock wall

Original log cabin

Dairy barn

Hay ride at the fall festival

Odd shots - Wooden dollars

2009-10-12T01:00:00.004-04:00

At the Oktoberfest, wooden tokens were used to buy food and beer. The craft vendors accepted US $ and/or credit cards.

To see more Odd Shots, start at Katney's Kaboodle and follow the links.

PhotoHunt - Tractor pulling

2009-10-10T00:07:00.001-04:00

Weigh in

Last Sunday I went to the fall festival sponored by the Frederick County Farm Museum Association, Inc. The festival was held at Rose Hill Manor (more about this on my posts next week). In addition to hayrides, making apple butter, cake contest, displays of farm machinery, and music, there was a sporting contest. Many of you may not know about tractor pulls, but I would guess that thchick has seen one. In this case the tractors were antique, not the old steam powered, but from 30 to 50 years ago. The basic goal is to see who can pull the sled the farthest. As the tractor pulls, the weight on the sled moves forward to create drag. While I was watching, the longest pull was around 130 feet. For more info on tractor pulling, see Wikipedia and the links in the article.

Farmall starting pull

The ladies also compete

Coming at you

Sky Watch Friday - Reflected skies

2009-10-08T15:51:00.003-04:00

Last Saturday was a beautiful day, with blue sky and fluffy white clouds. The windows at the Oktoberfest reflected the sky nicely.