Along Autumn Texas

       Sometimes a nice drive along highway 281 may take me a bit longer, for I stop to make images of some pretty extraordinary subjects. I begin with the flowers along the road . . .

The eryngo begins flowering in summer, looking gray, then turns purple in the fall. 

The powderpuff grows low to the ground.

A wasp enjoys sipping from the goldenrod.

Sunflowers grew everywhere near fences, barns, pumps, horses, cattle, and . . . a zebra.

Crepe myrtle grows on the fence around the Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells.

Cardinal flowers.

And at the end of a drive, a sunset over Hill Country. 

Nikon D3200, auto everything.

Alamo at Sunrise

      I stood early in the morning before the Alamo. Still dark, a photographer had set up his camera, his tripod, and his remote shutter release, and we both huddled in the cool temperatures. I assumed he knew more than I did about the conditions, and had arrived better prepared than I had, just toting my camera, strolling around town, stopping with curiosity where I saw his camera and tripod.
      As we waited in the darkness, something magical began to occur on the Alamo. With the rising sun behind the Alamo, its rays reflected on the mirrored buildings in front of it, casting its light upon the stone, moving across its facade, as if through a window of a chapel designed to illuminate the altar. I sat on the curb and rested my elbows on my knees, trying to keep my camera as steady as possible. The other photographer ignored the magic as I made a few images of it, in between my breathlessness.

D4, 17-35mm cropped, ISO400, f2.8, 1/2500, +2EV.

Come and Take It!

      In 1835, Tejanos and Texians did battle with Mexican dragoons sent to retrieve a six-pound cannon. Unwilling to relinquish the cannon, the Texians said, "Come and take it," but fired upon the dragoons as they approached. The battle gave time for the colonists to gather volunteers to fight in the Battle of Gonzalez, the beginning of hostilities against General Santa Anna.

Image found at The Eleventh Screen.

      The Institute of Texan Cultures displays an exhibit of the Tejanos and Texian men, the battle flag "Come and Take It," and the six-pound cannon. The flag and the canon symbolized the desire of the the colonists to live freely and not under the new policies of General Santa Anna.

The six-pound cannon on exhibit at the Gonzalez Memorial Museum.

Reflecting pool designed by Phelps and Dewees, Gonzalez Memorial Museum.

Art deco museum built of shell stone and limestone, Gonzalez Memorial Museum.

Reenactment of the squirmish against the Mexican dragoons in 1835.

The City of Gonzalez celebrates annually the Come and Take It Festival.

D4, 17-35mm.

Solemn, Hallowed Alamo

Upon hallowed ground I walked. 

The Alamo.

The flags of men who fought for a better future for their children: 

Come and Take It, New Orleans Greys, and the 1824 Constitution Flag.

Room where surviving women and children huddled 

during the siege of the Alamo.

The cenotaph named "Spirit of Sacrifice" by Pompeo Coppini.

The inscription reads, "In memory of the heroes who sacrificed their lives 

at the Alamo, March 6, 1836, in the defense of Texas.

'They chose never to surrender nor retreat; these brave hearts, with 

flags still proudly waving, perished in the flames of immortality that 

their high sacrifice might lead to the founding of this Texas.'"

In the Cathedral of San Fernando, a marble but modest coffin 

holds the ashes of William Travis, Jim Bowie, 

David Crockett, and some of the men who fell with them at the Alamo.

I could not help but lay my hand upon it and pray.

V 1, 10mm.

Texas State Cemetery

     Founded in 1851 upon the interment of General Edward Burleson, Texas Revolutionary veteran, the Texas State Cemetery lies in downtown Austin. At rest there lay other revolutionary veterans, Civil War veterans, elected officials, and other people of note -- all who made a contribution to Texas culture -- including athletes, such as El Diablo. Writers Walter Prescott Webb (1888 - 1963) and Fred Gipson (1908 - 1973) rest there.

Edward Burleson's grave, and the first internment at the Texas State Cemetery.

Mosley Baker.

The white stones indicating the graves of Texan Confederate veterans.

    The story that our pleasant guide related to us holds that back in the 1930s, in order to raise federal funding to renovate and expand the cemetery, they designated a road as a state highway. As it turns out, if a state highway runs through a cemetery, the grounds qualify for federal funding. I pondered the cleverness of lawyers as I watched a sedan slowly make it way down the cemetery on the shortest state highway in Texas, State Highway Number 165.

Texas State Highway 165 runs through the cemetery.

Notable people rest under the trees.

An eight-hundred year old statue of Saint Andrews, imported from England,
stands at John B. Conally's grave site.

      Artistically, such as a horse's hooves indicating how its rider lost his life (or not), what does a raised hand mean in this statue or Stephen F. Austin? Nothing! The artist, Pompeo Coppini, intended to place the statue along the avenue leading toward the state capitol in Austin. The statue's hand would have pointed toward the capitol; instead, those who commissioned the statue placed the statue at Austin's memorial, and his hand pointing away from the capitol. 

One of many serene places in the cemetery.

D4, 17-35mm.

Hall Building

A delight to see old buildings renovated.

Ralph Stearns murals.

D3200

Announcing RAIN

Nikon D3200, f16, ISO200, aperture priority.

Familiar Bluet

     Click to read fascinating information about the Enallagma civile at Odonata.

    Among other interesting things about the life of a bluet, the female will walk along a twig or branch into the subsurface of the water to lay her eggs, while the male will remain on the surface keeping watch. They live along brackish water. 

Nikon D3200, aperture priority, ISO 400, 55-300mm, auto WB.

Steven in Town

     Steven Schroeder came to town bearing the gift of poetry. His daughter, Regina, brought a gift, too, of lessons in paper-making. I would not miss a minute of any of it.
     Schroeder named the event "from page to poem, with music," presented by the Wichita Falls Literature and Art Review. Antuan Simmons, Sheri Sutton, James Hoggard, and Kenny Hada also contributed to the event. The Dutchess provided food and wine for the audience.

The two-day event began with Regina's paper-making workshop.

Sift the cotton in the frame, gently, firmly, until it looks glassy.

Lay the paper on felt to dry overnight.

Regina Schroeder, from the Boston Paper Collective, shows the different kinds of paper she makes.

     I arrived quite late, having enjoyed a pleasant lunch visit with Claudia, John, and Jesse. Jesse treated us to chocolate chip cookies for dessert. Normally, I do not eat sweet foods or desserts of any kind, but out of politeness I discovered a world of taste I had missed by denying myself before . . . the chocolate chip cookie. My first bite made a discovery which I know I will remember for a long time. I ate the whole cookie, then, and decided to treat MyMrMallory with one later in the week.

    I could hardly wait to draw and paint a chocolate chip cookie, relishing the memory of its taste -- AND the memory of a pleasant, relaxing lunch with some fine people. 

     My relaxed feelings slipped off my back as I hopped on my bike to rush to the Forum, having missed two hours of Regina's paper-making workshop. No worries, she indicated, "Come up to my studio in Boston any time." I admired her calm demeanor.

     After plunging my hands in the water to swirl the cotton fibres, I scooped them up in her frame. I felt the cotton, the water, the heavy wooden frame, and the copper that held it together, and felt convinced that I would indeed travel to her studio in Boston to experience more in depth the endeavor of making paper. 

    In the evening, Antuan Simmons read his work first. I have noted his work to uplift the spirit of the reader. Simmons contributes to our world with a new website BlackmobileTV for smartphones, and Black History Films in the online version. 

Simmons read at the event from page to poem, with music.

Sheri Sutton and James Hoggard read their work as Kenny Hada accompanied them with guitar music.

    The next day, Schroeder held a poetry workshop, also at the Dutchess. Students sipped coffee and tea. Since we celebrated Ellen's birthday the day before, and I had left my share of the cake there, she sliced it in several pieces to share with the students. That was the second time in two days that I learned that denying myself sweet foods had kept my taste buds from reveling in life.

Infrared Saint Ben

Saint Benedict Orthodox Church

Could not drive by a beautiful building on a sunny day knowing I had an infrared filter in my car.

Ferris Wheel and Clouds

   

      Nikon d3200, ISO200, f14, 1/1000secs, constraints set by photography class assignment and a cloudy day. I post-processed in Lightroom and Photomatix to bring up the shadows.

No HDR on this image, but simply, bringing up the shadows. 

Reaching

D3200, 18-55mm, 1/4000, 200ISO, shutter priority.

Wichita Trucks: 1911-32

Good good article written by Hugh Hemphill 

on the Wichita Falls Motor Company: 

http://www.txtransportationmuseum.org/history-wichita-truck.php

Wichita truck on exhibit at the Wichita Falls Railroad Museum. 

The Holt Hotel is seen in the background of this image.

Wichita trucks were strong and reliably built for the oil fields, 

among other difficult fields found all around the world. 

A worn tire.

Behind the driver's seat, a copper plaque showed instructions. 

Notice to Truck Driver 

In order to obtain -

         the most miles per gallon

         the best power

         the smallest repair bills

the truck driver must personally take 

an interest in keeping the motor at about

180 F.  in all seasons of the year.

The driver should get the motor temper-

ature up to 180 F. as soon as possible af-

ter starting by closing up the radiator.

The choke should be used very sparingly.

Do not let the motor idle unnecessarily.

Nikon V 1, 10mm lens, no post-processing in the digital darkroom except for cropping.