Hurricane Sally Aftermath

Trees all over Baldwin County took a horrific hit. At Centennial Park in downtown Foley many of the majestic trees were destroyed.

An old Oak.

Debris from the Copper Kettle Tea Bar in downtown Foley, AL

A picket fence destroyed in the community of Josephine, AL.

A dock, water slide and other debris pushed into the backyard of a home on Perdido Bay at Bass Point, AL.

Debris of all kinds line the streets at Bass Point near the edge of Perdido Bay.

Household debris at the side of the road in Bass Point.

A twin masted sailboat washed ashore in the surge on Perdido Bay at Bass Point, AL.

Overturned power boat on Perdido Bay at Bass Point, AL.

Utility crews from Illinois work to restore power to residents in Josephine, AL.

The Symbol, Icon, Meme, Dress Code for the Year 2020

Dreary Sign of the Times

Not a terribly scenic photo, but it is a sign of horrible economic times in south Alabama. All Gulf Coast beaches have been closed since March 27. Most businesses have closed and tourist rentals stand vacant. There were no spring breakers, no Snowbirds and the Hangout music festival has been cancelled. This portable sign sits at the edge of the Foley Beach Express about ten miles north of the Gulf of Mexico beaches at Gulf Shores and Orange Beach.

Winter on the Gulf of Mexico

Fort Morgan, Alabama – Mid-day, the end of January. It’s cold, but calm. People come down to the beach for their morning walks, to collect seashells or driftwood, perhaps. Two men at the far right, near the horizon, were fishing from beach chairs while a Great Blue Heron closely monitored their activity.

Disaster Strikes near Richmond

Downed utility pole lies on the lawn of farm just west of Richmond, Illinois

Lightening struck and knocked down a utility pole during the late evening hours Tuesday causing widespread power outage to a farm just west of Richmond, Illinois. Richmond is a small town about 70 miles northwest of Chicago.

Both lanes of Illinois route 173 were closed nearly three hours while a utility crew cleared downed power lines. Early morning traffic was backed up nearly an eighth of a mile in either direction. As of 2:30 this afternoon power still has not been restored to the affected farm, although crews are on site working to repair the damage.

As a result of this disastrous electrical outage residents on the farm have been deprived of highly informative radio and TV political advertising campaigns more than 12 hours, just days before the critical mid-term elections. This is not “Fake News,” however, despite the far reaching implications of this natural disaster; the white house thus far has failed to respond.

Residents of the farm have returned to their fields to resume the fall harvest and have been unavailable for comment.

The Montague Flood – 2018

Standing water in Montague, Michigan after several days of heavy August rain.

After several days of heavy rain, Twisters Ice Cream shop in Montague is bounded by standing water to the south across the bicycle trail.

Butternut Creek rises with the rain, but quickly drains into the White River, which empties into White Lake. The water level in the Lake is 3 to 4 feet higher than it was two years ago. The beach on Lake Michigan, about 7 miles to the west, is almost non-existent.

Buttermilk Creek in Montague, Michigan. Although the water has receded significantly, it is still much above its normal level.

Long Since Abandoned

Morning Juxtapositions in the RV Park

Photo captured with a new cell phone and processed in Photoshop CS5.

Nuevo Progreso

A sunny Saturday in Nuevo Progreso, Tamaulipas, Mexico just across the border from Progreso, Texas. It’s a tourist town catering to Winter Texans who come south to escape the cold winter in the north. Primary businesses are pharmacies and dentist offices. Prescription medicines and dental work are less than half the cost for the same products and services in the U.S.

However, street vendors sell food and trinkets throughout the town. Many of the salespeople are very young children. Although they appear impoverished, popular legend has it that these children and their parents go home at night to beautiful homes in various communities in Texas and  upscale neighborhoods in Reynosa, Mexico.

(Click on each of the photos to see a larger image.)

Little boy sells chewing gum to patrons in an outdoor restaurant.

 

Little boy sells backscratchers to patrons in an outdoor restaurant.

 

Little girl sells trinkets to patrons in an outdoor restaurant.

 

Troubadours perform in a bakery/cafe.

 

Man sells hooked rugs from a stall on the main street.

 

Man sells knit hats from a stall on the main street.

 

Waiter prepares flaming Bananas Foster table-side at Angel’s Restaurant.

 

Woman prepares nopales (prickly pear cactus leaves) for sale from her stall on the main street.

Taqueria food cart on the main street.

 

Yard Sale in the RV Park

Pentwater, Michigan

New Face at the Soda Fountain

Click on the photo to see a larger image.

Ali O’Connell of Wichita Falls, TX, is the new face at Lipka’s vintage soda fountain in Montague, MI. Every year about this time she travels to Michigan to spend a month or so with her grandmother. (What a sweet young lady. I can’t get my grand kids to visit more than a couple days, if they come at all.) This summer she elected to work part-time while she’s in town and will be dipping ice cream six afternoons each week until the end of June.

Ali will be a high school senior in Wichita Falls next fall. While she plans to attend college, she hasn’t yet decided just where. Her goal is to teach little kids in elementary school. In the meantime, she spends much of her time volunteering and she’s proud to say she has accrued more than 300 hours of community service, primarily at the local hospital – where she also serves ice cream – but she volunteers for other community projects as well.

When at home, if she’s not practicing with the high school cheer-leading team she plays golf and “just hangs with family and friends.”

Free Fishing Weekend

Families line the bank of White Lake for Michigan’s biannual “Free Fishing Weekend.”

The state of Michigan offers two free-fishing weekends a year. This year’s summer event occurred June 13^th and 14th. The purpose is to encourage children and families to enjoy the great outdoors, especially the wonders of sport fishing. It is thought that people who fish are more attuned to the demands of the aquatic environment and will help to improve and maintain it.

Payton Ohs, with her mother, and brother, shows off her prized Bluegill early in the morning. (click on the photo to see a larger image.)

Families with their children traveled from around the state to participate in the White Lake Area Sportfishing Association fishing contest for children.

Jaxton Monroe, 8 years old, poses with his dad and their freshly caught Bluegill. (click on photo to see a larger image.)

Sunrise on White Lake

Click on photo to see larger image

Sunrises and sunsets on the lake are almost always spectacular. This was taken on my smartphone yesterday morning about 7:00 o’clock. There were more fishermen out than I had expected; 10 minutes earlier we couldn’t see the boat next to us because of the fog.

By 11:00 o’clock, it had greatly dissipated, but not completely. We nearly had our limit of Bluegills and headed for the cleaning station at the Montague boat launch to beat the rush of other fishermen who might have the same idea.

I keep thinking, “I am not a morning person,” nonetheless, I have posted many more sunrise pictures here than sunset pictures. I would much rather go to bed well after sundown and sleep in the following morning, but it seems that whenever my friend, Wes, asks if I want to go fishing, I always say, “Yes, of course. What time?” – Oh crap, he wants to go early in the morning. So, there I am, often before sunrise, helping to launch the boat. Clearly, I am not the man that I think I am.

Blue Hour Fishing

Fishing on White Lake during the blue hour, that hour or so after the sun drops below the horizon. This photo was taken with a Motorola Droid smartphone.

 

Artist gets “touched-up” by his own Illustration

Three Mexican artists demonstrated their skills in Mission, Texas last February 14 on the street outside the Mission Historical Museum. Unfortunately, the spectacular chalk sketches lasted only a few days before being worn away by wind and traffic.

 

Working Mom

Shoe Shine Boy (following post) also wanted a photo of his mother and her baby. Mom escorts her son through the streets of Nuevo Progreso watching over him while he shines shoes for tourists.

 

 

Shoe Shine Boy

Even though I was wearing hiking boots and not in the market for a shine, Shoe Shine Boy wanted me to take his picture. He approached us in the Plaza at Nuevo Progreso, Mexico, yesterday afternoon. It was extremely warm in the sun and he had apparently been working the streets all day. He seemed glad to take a break in the shade.

Sonora Street

Casual Sunday morning on Sonora Street in Nuevo Progreso, Tamaulipas, Mexico. The photo could have been taken in the 1950’s, but it was only two weeks ago in February, 2015. As always, click on the photo to see a larger image.

Los Ebanos, Texas

Surprisingly, the place is still open, although with a very limited stock of cigarettes and liquor. It is the last “Duty Free” shop operating in Los Ebanos, TX, an historic border village, where the last hand-pulled ferry in the U.S. still operates. The Brady shop, just down the road, did not open this season. There is a new, multimillion dollar Customs station at the river crossing, but tourist shops and the only restaurant have been closed the past several years. It is a shame; with a little investment, a few improvements and this could again be a thriving tourist destination in the Rio Grande Valley.