Poodle

Pine Hill, NJ

This image is the bark and lichen at the base of an oak tree found on our property. As I played with it a lovely little poodle took shape.

Rock Star

Pine Hill, NJ

I have been so busy this week that my Thursday blog is being finished today Saturday. In July my mother fell again and broke her leg, the same one as last year and she is in the hospital unable to put weight on it for 2 more months. My days off are spent visiting her and trying to catch down time. The rest of the week finds me working a 40 hr a week job. This hasn't left much room for Bill and I to get out and enjoy the summer. So I'm a little behind on blog entries. This image came about by looking at the bark of a tree and as I worked with it I began seeing a man and a guitar with his leg out in front. I liked the name "Rock Star" and like a real rock star the red spot light captures the star as he prances and dances and sings.

Pitcher Plant

Pine Barrens, NJ

If you walk along the many trails of the New Jersey Pine Barrens it is inevitable that you will come across a pitcher plant. Bill took this photo in the early 1980's while it still had one blosson still open. It blossoms May-June.

Man as Both Good and Evil

Philadelphia, PA

This bark is that of the Ginko tree. I found one on 2nd Street in Philadelphia, PA. I cropped the image until I had what I wanted and then I did something else. I deleted all of the image around the main picture making it black. As the picture evolved, I imagined that the center face with the open mouth and a bit of a sky nose as a politician. Then in the lower right I had this masked figure. At the top of the head is a man with an emblem on his shirt. I was reminded of a crusader during the holy wars. I now had my final image and I simply call it "Man as Both Good and Evil".

The Jazz King

Philadelphia, PA

Bill and I made a trip to Philadelphia and found ourselves walking around "Olde City". I was outside City Tavern on Second Street looking at the bark of a tree. I have no idea what the tree is called but I do like its bark patterns. Tourists must have thought I was a little strange taking closeups of the bark. This image is one from that bark.

The Trumpet Player's Solo

Pine Hill, NJ

I decided on this abstract to use a different image of the same cut tree that was used for "Catching the Baby". This image was slightly different but not by much. I flipped it over and cropped it closer until I saw what looked like a trumpet.

A Tyrant Enters On Stage

Pine Hill, NJ

I have several new abstracts that I want to put on the blog. It was difficult which one to pick first. I chose this one "A Tyrant Enters On Stage". When I first looked at the tree bark, I thought I saw an old fashioned school teacher in long dress. Then I began to work with it more. The school "marm's" face took on a bigger reptilian-like head. The dress was still there which made it look even more bizarre. I didn't aim at any one person or country as the tyrant. It could be anyone or any place. Take a look at the curtain on the left, can you feel or see the eyes staring at the tyrant. Bill sees a face with a long nose. That image is nearly half way down the picture and I see a snakes head at end of the nose spitting out venom. This head opens at the top to let in all those tyranical ideas. To the right is the audience. If you look very careful there is a man in the audience at the bottom right. Does he remind you of Hitler? Check it out and see what you think.

Spatterdock

Pine Barrens, NJ

Today is the first day of June and the spatterdocks are beginning to bloom. These aquatic flowers are also called yellow pond-lilies. This image was taken by Bill when we were walking in the pines near the Mullica River. I don't know where the name spatterdock comes from and none of my guidebooks mentions where the name comes from. Howard P. Boyd's guidebook, "The Field Guide to the Pine Barrens of New Jersey" lists it as yellow pond-lily, spatterdock or bullhead-lily. It will bloom from now through early September.

Virginia Meadow Beauty

Pine Barrens, NJ

This time of the year is beautiful. A walk in the Pine Barrens in New Jersey can show some of the most beautiful flowers in the state. While walking one of the many trails we came across this beautiful meadow beauty.

The Final Resting Place

Haddonfield Baptist Cemetery

Haddonfield, NJ

Every year around Memorial Day, Haddonfield's American Legion Post 38 would place American Flags on the graves of the war veterans. My Dad was a member. Today he is buried there along with my great grandfather. Dad was a veteran of World War II, my great grandfather a veteran of the Civil War. Bill took this photo many years before Dad died. He captured a woman placing flowers on the grave of a loved one. Today is May 30th. Years earlier it was considered the true Memorial Day. I can remember standing here at this very cemetery listening to speeches and gun salutes to honor those who could no longer be with us.

Don Quixote's Adventure Begins

Pine Hill, NJ

I began working on this image of tree and bark and as I did I saw a man. A Spaniard. My first thought was of Don Quixote. I had been reading a murder mystery, "Birds of Prey" by J. A. Jance. In the story his name is brought up. Then I thought about the Inquisitions. So I was going to call it "The Inquisitor". Back to Don Quixote. I imagine a man ready to enter into a new world and new adventure. "Don Quixote's Adventure Begins" is another of my bark abstract series.

Our Thanks

Vietnam War Memorial

Philadelphia, PA

Flags

Vietnam War Memorial

Philadelphia, PA

Tomorrow we honor those who served in our Armed Forces. Throughout the country big and small towns will hold solemn ceremonies, shake hands or slap comrades on the back. They will reminisce about their time in the service. There will be a gathering at Philadelphia's Vietnam War Memorial. It will be nice for those who attend.

The Lost Warriors

Vietnam War Memorial

Philadelphia, PA

Remembrance

Vietnam War Memorial

Philadelphia, PA

Welcome Home. We are glad you are back.

Vietnam War Memorial

Philadelphia, PA

Over the next 5 days I will be putting images taken while visiting the memorial every Memorial Day. This Monday Bill and I will make the visit again. As a Vietnam Veteran Bill feels that this is important.

Gosling

Gloucester Township, NJ

Several weeks ago I put a picture of a Canada goose and her gosling. Today I cropped the image to see what it would look like and this is it. I think this is a much nicer image. I call it "Gosling".

Royal Tapestry

Pine Hill, NJ

I have been working on a lot of abstracts and I decided that this is the one I want to put on our blog. I call it "Royal Tapestry" because the tecture reminds me of woven wall hanging. In the center is a young prince waiting to take over the thrown. But what make's him so sad?

Red Knots

Reed's Beach, NJ

The shorebirds should be arriving. I read that their numbers are still dangerously low. The above image was taken in 1994 and we had stopped at Reed's Beach on the way home from a weekend in Cape May. The beach was swarming with tiny shorebirds and gulls gobbling up the horseshoe crab eggs. I hope our grandchildren will someday see this same sight of thousands and thousands of birds coating the Delaware Bay shorelines.

Log

Pine Hill, NJ

I took a walk around the yard looking at the trees and photographing the bark to make abstract images. Our rear yard backs up to the school parking lot with a large crop of trees separating the two properties. At our side of the trees I found an old tree branch that had been cut and left to lay there. I photographed it and made copied the slide onto the computer. My original version was dark and filled with tecture but, I felt that I had lost the log. Today I started over and came away with this version. It still shows tecture and a little bit more.