Handicapped Motorcyclist

Bison Rolling in Dirt

      Bison wander around the Wichita Mountains. We found them close to the road and watched one roll in the dirt.

Ah, feels good! 

Where the Squirrels at?

Bess, tongue wagging, ears flapping, while hanging outside Judy's window.

Squirrel in the Tree

  What joyous and great interest dogs show in squirrels!

Vultures in the Trees

Stepping outside my porch this morning, I heard fluttering in the canopies above me. 

NIMBY. Not in my backyard. 

I discourage them from developing the habit of roosting in my trees. 

A laser pen beam works well enough to startle them away, 

or maybe I stomp around underneath them that I startle them. 

Always make sure you do not shine the laser in the path of an airplane. 

Searching for Beaver Dam

      We heard from Clay that a beaver had saved a part of the farm by building a dam. In this day of drought, we welcome any partner whose enterprise will help maintain moisture in the country.
      Thanks to the beaver, other wildlife benefit from the pond he created with his dam. We saw a flock of fifteen or twenty blackbirds flush from the reeds, and we heard frogs. Nearby, a Northern Harrier buzzed a sandpiper, sending into harried -- yes, pun intended with glee -- screeching.
      MyMrMallory and I made our way across bushy country in search of the dam. Here I show some of the images I made as we walked along the countryside.

Salt-resistant grass grows among other hardy plants.

Green, yellow, brown . . . 

Colors of autumn.

Tumbleweed, salt cedar, and mesquite grow near a gate.

Dead tree and perch for a Northern harrier.

Ah, reeds! We felt sure upon seeing the reads that we came closer to the beaver dam.

Water! And a sandpiper.

Racoon paw prints along the shore. 

We recognized paw prints by other wildlife, such as deer, 

coyotes, hogs, birds, and finally those of the beaver.

Following the edge of the water, we expectantly waited to find the dam. 

And here it is!

Mud-packed wall of the beaver dam. 

Photo of a beaver by Steve. Thanks, Steve.

Patriot Guard Riders

      I could reach out to touch one, a Patriot Guard. I could reach out and hug one. I could choose one of twelve to hug. They stood by their bikes ready to answer questions about the Patriot Guard.

      "Are you here to recruit us?" I asked. And without hesitation, Inez said, "Oh, yes." Promptly, too, Ted reached into his vest and brought out his PGR card, and handed it to me. "Just go online, join, and email me here to put you on the list."

      One doesn't need a motorcycle to join the Patriot Guards. Many members drive their cars to missions to provide support for the riders and other Patriot Guards as they stand with respect, holding the flag, as the procession passes by. One of them told the story that when a reporter asked a Patriot Guard how much it cost to join, the Guard said, "That's what it costs," as he pointed to the flag-draped casket of a fallen soldier. The only requisite to join the organization: Respect for the deceased and their families.

      Respect disallows the Westborough church from joining. Their hatred served as the catalyst to found the Patriot Guards. "From something bad emerged something good," my friend Lita said.

      Upon the request of the families, the Patriot Guards line the road with flags to show respect for fallen soldiers, firefighters, police, and medical responders. They also greet soldiers returning home. 

      Not a dry eye or cheek stands before them.

   

Tiny Vast Landscapes

With some imagination, small, flat stones provide opportunities to see landscapes. 

Volcanic island in stormy sea.

Sand storm blowing over the hills and mountains.

Lightning storm over the hill.

Celestial Objects

     Look closely at an old wall, and with some imagination, one can see all manner of landscapes.

A celestial object over a mountain.

Comet.

Star Trails.

Planetary conjunction.

Full of Character Around Town

      Old, intriguing, full of character things will make me come to a stop, whip out my iPhone, and snap images just because I love to make images of  . . . old things. iPhone photos post-processed in the digital darkroom with Snapseed.

Someday I will return to this building, pull back the branches, and read the text. 

Blindfold on Landings

Instruments, old and new, VOR radio shown above the Garmin 796.

iPhone 3 photo.

     Quite a while passed since I last flew one soul on board, namely me. My flight started out in good company, MyMrMallory. We headed into Shawnee for MyMrMallory to retrieve his helicopter, Mark having repaired it and finished its annual inspection.
     On our short flight, we wondered where all the turbulence went; the air felt smooth as silk, having to do with the cooler temperatures of October. The entire flight went smoothly.
     We spoke to several control centers, Sheppard three times, Fort Sill, Fort Worth, and Oke City before switching frequencies to Shawnee traffic. Talking on the radio is so much fun. Talking on the radio used to intimidate me, way back long ago, two years now since I started flying around North Texas; but I've grown to appreciate the assistance by the controllers. And the entertainment, too, provided by other doofus pilots saying comical things, or un-professional things. Lo to the un-professional pilot on the radio. Our cockpit drips with snide remarks and giggles. We chuckle because we say the same doofus things sometimes.
      Our arrival into Shawnee surprised me for its lack of traffic. Usually we maneuver between helicopters or streams of Civil Air Patrol planes in training. We had the runway all to ourselves.
      My landing was not too bad. I struggled a bit trying to make up my mind which rudder to push, and which aeleron to lift, when I finally allowed the plane to fly. On the runway, my wheels squeaked a bit, left one first, then right one, and then the nose came down. I missed a couple of taxiways, but that's because I did not want to press the brakes too hard.
      "What?" I said to MyMrMallory, my greatest critic of landings, everyone else's, and most particular his own, as a perfectionist who demands the best from himself.
      "Nuh-uh," he said, followed by what sounded like a growl. I might blindfold him next time before I land my Scissortail with him in the right seat.
     Out hopped MyMrMallory and went friskily towards Mark's hangar, where the helicopter waited for its flight back home.
     As I taxied to runway 17, my radio began to cackle. I stopped, pushed, turned, and pulled buttons, until I figured out the squelch was set too high. Thank God it was a simple solution. I began to taxi again when again I had to stop, for the GPS went blank. Oh, well, I thought, I still have my radios, one of which was set for my destination. I pushed and fiddled and messed with the Garmin, and finally it started up again. Then, doggone, the VOR radio went blank. Maybe my iPhone works at 4,500 feet, but then again, maybe not. Their new map is very bad, I read recently. I thought of looking at my sectional to see which highway or river I could follow home, when, thankfully, the radio came back up.
     And there you have it, the thing about flying: Flying provides a joy puntuated with moments of anxiety. The seriousness and complexities of flying make it imperative to develop the discipline to employ the added adrenaline to solve problems. It is discipline that helps you maintain your settings, follow lists, and a level head. The joy of flying far exceeds the difficulty in training for discipline, and that is one destination I would love to reach.

A Storm for Ben

As I spotted this cloud I thought of storm-chasing Ben. See his photography at his blog, Majestic Noise.

Storms rolled across North Texas yesterday, bringing much needed rain. 

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.