Patterns- A Thematic Photographic approach

Greetings 


"Humans are pattern-seeking-story-telling animals, and we are quite adept at telling stories about patterns whether they exist or not." -  Michael Shermer


THEMATIC PHOTOGRAPHIC

Patterns


Here's picture proof of a castle in South Dakota!

Masonry stonework, pattern stonework, imitation stonework, nothing to smirk at ever, in all of your life.

Patterns, patterns, everywhere a pattern.  Did you notice the pattern in Lyra's computer screen?   Would you believe it's a reflection?

The brain not only receives information, but interprets and patterns it.

The Mag - 12 October 2014

"It is more important to click with people than to click the shutter." -  Alfred Eisenstaedt, photographer and photojournalist




THE MAG

Self Portrait Vivian Maier

HER SELFIE

Herself

aka, The Nanny

"We have to make room for other people.  It's a wheel.  You get on.  You go to the end.  And someone else has the same opportunity to go to the end.  And so on.  And somebody else takes their place." - Vivian Maier

When I grow up

I long to be

just like the -

secret street photographer
that folks
call Vivian.
 She's a matter of fact
tell it like it is gal
snapping to evoke
the very nature of folks.

A hands on the hip kind of gal
showing young minds
the world outside
even if it blows their minds.

I'd go on a shooting spree

not to fill up

a shutter of captures

like a pornographer
might do
but rather
just like Vivian
shooting life's little details
her focus 
not so much on crocus
but rather
bits of ruckus
upon ordinary streets


People at their most silly, or vulnerable moments

being just like

a demographer

or a autobiographer

one shutter at a time

taking 150 thousand captures

like a secret street photographer-

photographs
everyday.

I see a lot of myself within Vivian Maier and her captures.

To see a short clip of her work check out the link below.

The Vivian Maier Mystery Movie video here 

Who Took Nanny's Pictures?

Six Word Saturday - 11 October 2014

TODAY IS DECLARED AN UNSCHEDULED HOLIDAY

- Lois Lowry, from The Giver

Don't squander it!

SIX WORD SATURDAY

Reveling in the Sound of That

Today is "It's my party day."  Really.  

Remember, "It's My Party?"

Don't believe me? 

 Check it out here, and enjoy the song, "It's My Party here" Taken from the list of Bizarre holidays.

How does that quote go, "Throw caution to the wind?  I say throw caution to the  rule book of holidays!   For instance have you read the list of fictional holidays?

Sometimes, not following the rules, is everything.

FEED YOUR INNER CHEERMEISTER

Sepia Saturday - 11 October 2014 Abandoned But Remembered

Empty, abandoned houses, buildings or especially churches are just that, abandoned.  

We understand anything abandoned 

is usually

doomed and

left to rot and decay away.

Sad, but true.

Unless, someone cares enough to step in.

SEPIA SATURDAY

Just simply abandoned.  That is all.

Are you ready for an adventure as we step back in time?

The place- Fredericksburg, Virginia

The photo reads, Filling their canteens, and was taken sometime between 1861 and 1865 (possibly May 1864) during the Civil War.

Abandoned But Remembered.

I learned about this lovely forest equipped with buildings which appear like you've stepped into an Elizabethan village of Stafford in the 1580's.   It's known today as the abandoned Renaissance Faire, of Fredericksburg.

(Not to be confused with their current location link here.)

The link below is a tour of the abandoned Renaissance property as it is today.

This video is worthy of your attention.  Perfect six minute tour of the Abandoned Renaissance Fair in Fredericksburg.

 George Washington's Mother owned this land at one time.

So what did the area look like in days gone by?

A few photos from back in 1927 Stafford County, Fredericksburg, Virginia

Photo from 1927

I'm not sure is that a dog, cat or cub, and do you think is it living, or not?

This photo was also commissioned by Mrs. Devore the restoration to her estate near Fredericksburg.

Chatham, Fredericksburg 1927

Also from 1927 in Chatham

Again from Mrs. Devore's Estate.  Is this feed for animals?

Beautiful birdhouse as well.

Perhaps these are the hungry ones waiting to be fed?

Listed as Ferry Farm, original office building, boyhood home of George Washington.

Apparently this is the location of the boyhood home of George Washington.

Ferry Farm, Fredericksburg, Virginia.

So be sure to stop by the other Sepia Saturday posts and see what everyone else posting.

Good Fences #29 - 9 October 2014

Early morning thoughts today,

 from where Gnomes roam.

GOOD FENCES

Please meet my treasured earthly groundskeeper, Mr. Gnome.  He may be wearing a smile this morning, but he's carrying a heavy burden.  His friends are wilting or worse, drastically drying up around him.  

Of course, this bit of news just in from his friends on the west side of my house.  Jack Frost is still sleeping across our yard as this is being announced.  See, life is so much brighter on the east side in the morning hours.  

Proof - sometimes, somebody else is struggling even more.

"My life is a lovely story, happy and full of incident."  -  Hans Christian Andersen

Whatever comes your way

wear your days proud. - Karen Sather

"Just living is not enough... one must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower."  - Hans Christian Andersen

Be kind to your flowers.  

Cover them nightly, stretch out their days.  

Trust an old Gnome, 

you'll miss them when they're dried up!

My morning perspective?  Beware the hungry wretched bite of Jack Frost.  Get plenty of sunlight, and for all those friends you bring inside, study daylighting now.

Always remember, "Life itself is the most wonderful fairy tale."  -  Hans Christian Andersen

Be sure to check out more Good Fences.

Hanging Out With Frogs

What could be more hopping fun than hanging with frogs or toads along the Cannon River in Northfield, Minnesota?  Croak, croak, crOAK!


"Frog in a little pond can be much happier than fish in a vast ocean." - Mehmet Murat ildan

Hello there, "Little Green Frog (song by Rainbow songs happy child's song)

F

Lunching at Froggy Bottoms.

"When I play with my band around the U.S.A. the most requested song is 'Peace Frog'. - Robby Krieger

"I'd rather be ignored as a frog than eaten as a human." - E.D. Baker

"Curb your fretting, tadpole, or the frog of your future will fail to croak.' - Thaddeus" - Paul Collins

"Don't be a fish; be a frog,  Swim in the water and jump when your feet hit the ground." - Kim Young-ha

Froggy Bottoms is crawling with frogs.  They're every where.  No matter where you look.  How many can you spot just in my photos?

Count the correct number of frogs, and be a winner
of knowing you can correctly count frogs! 

Thematic Photographic - # 311 - Run Down

THEMATIC PHOTOGRAPHIC

Carmi's theme this week is

RUN DOWN

Luckily, (and perfect for our run down theme) this funny thing happened today while eating lunch outside.  No, it wasn't rain.

Always look up when walking or sitting under  freshly watered flower pots.

Northerners, The Story of Life in a Magpie

I'm sensing her concrete determination to escape.  What do you think?

Will she free herself?




THE MAG

THE STORY OF MY LIFE

by

A Girl, Through the Eyes Of A Leaf

(Based on a true story)

ONCE UPON A SUMMER

Being all tip-top and rather dependable leaves, we pretty much just cling to our branches.

Trouble is, most everything around us stands out so much more.

Of course the occasional photographer arrives a lot.  But they eagerly snap nature and decide- blossoms take precedence over the leaf.

Not that long ago, life was ripe with new growth around here.

Until a few of us began to dry out and change our colors drastically around here.

Yes, the air grew sharp

when once we winced in explosive heat.

We now felt crisp around the edges

so chilly our air grew sharp

it was quite capable to freeze any fart.

....an so it goes.  Frost gathers again like a sneaky, toothy dragon at the window of our souls.

Another wintry wrap begs to move in.

A sudden oppressive air blows by, pushing folks to exchange their mowers for snow-blowers.

Heat made everything swim with delight.  While we Northerners now immersed in cold pockets are pulling down our shades, preparing for wintry blasts unfit for human exposure.  No more bonfires, no more porch gatherings, forget tent camping or outdoor swimming........ WAIT!

Sure our arid heat lingers from a distance but ye old weatherman has just declared-

A sunny week with our temperatures in the 60's for us!

Win! Win!

As for the girl caught by barbed wire-

she escapes

boards 

a plane 

for Tahiti 

and lives

for wild surfs!

Shady Shades of Ghosts- 6WS

Shady shades of, ghosts?

SIX WORD SATURDAY

Welcome to downtown Northfield, Minnesota.

SOME STRANGE ART 

AT PLAY HERE

"Modern art is what happens when painters stop looking at girls and persuade themselves that they have a better idea." - John Ciardi

"A good question is never answered.  

It is not a bolt to be tightened into place 

but a seed to be planted 

and to bear more seed toward the hope 

of greening the landscape of idea." - John Ciardi

ART is much like that.

"My face looks like a wedding cake left out in the rain." -  W. H. Auden

(In fact my entire body looks that way.)

IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN

WINDOW DESIGNS-

takes on an entire new meaning to art don't you think?

What is that strange, almost human like creature hosting an eerie sense of fashion; as if, desperation got the better of him?  Seriously Mr. Pumpkin Man you had to wear football gear? 

Obviously, Mr. Skeleton Man is glaring sightlessly back at us with the most peculiar over sized glove any skeleton would ever dream of wearing.

What did the skeleton say when his brother told a lie?  "You can't fool me, I can see right through you."

Don't be fooled by his toothy smile.  He's hardly a scary or fearsome creature doomed to rest upon a stool behind glass in a store that hasn't even opened yet. Notable for his bony stature, perhaps a bit unpredictable in nature and yet, his days ended long ago.  He doesn't scare me.

BUT THEY HAVE GRABBED PEOPLE'S ATTENTION

A closer look at Mr. Pumpkin Man reveals-

"Men are like pumpkins.  It seems like all the good ones are either taken or you just can't make up your mind as to which one you should take home."

Do you think this passerby was impressed or viewed the window scene sardonically?

What do you see on closer inspection little munchkin?

WINTER NEARING, DE-CLUTTER,CREATE MORE ART

If you're into yarn, knitting or crocheting- or perhaps

YARN BOMBING 

CHECK THIS OUT.

Yarn Bombing can be quite tasteful see here.

Or totally outrageous. 

AND THIS LINK.

See you all later, it's time to go Arting!

Enjoy your weekend.