On a warm, sunny day we stopped to explore the Shoreham Covered Railroad Bridge, one of only two covered railroad bridges left in Vermont. The bridge was built in 1897 and last used in 1951. It was located on a short section of railroad that connected the Rutland Railroad with the Delaware and Hudson. We ate our lunch in the parking lot and took several HDR photos inside the bridge. We then moved to another bridge so I could take the photo below. And then I noticed behind me (photographers should always turn around to check the view behind them) that here was this fellow who was putting his canoe in the water. His dog was ecstatic to be going with him! I shouted that if every fishing buddy was as enthusiastic as his dog, no one would stay home. Oh, he's excited all right, the guy replied, but we are not going fishing. Tomorrow is the first day of duck season and we are going out to check on my blind. I got nearly as excited as his dog because they really made my picture better. And he even wore a red shirt. Now, that's special.

I waited on the bow of Norwegian Dawn for departure, and for sunset. Standing next to me were new acquaintances, Kate and Daniel, charming and inquisitive young people. Daniel had his camera and was hoping for a sunset. Kate was doubtful that the clouds would part and give these two nearby photographers a spectacular sunset. I have shot a ton of sunsets, in hundreds of locations, even on black-and-white film. Sometimes the sunset is spectacular, even if my photo fails to capture the glory. I have always waited in hope that this time would be incredibly awesome. But I admit that this evening I was doubtful, too, that the heavy overcast would surrender to the setting sun. It had rained all day, from the time we boarded the bus in Portland, Maine, through our arrival at South Boston Station to the short, but wet, walk to the pier provided by the gracious city bus driver who went beyond her scheduled stop. As we watched, there was a hint of a golden line that might get better at the right time. But it wasn't happening. And then the ship began to move away from the pier, further away from Boston Harbor. Daniel and Kate gave up on the sunset and bid farewell as they went to their cabin. I stayed on the bow, caught in the excitement of seeing the night skyline of Boston from the ship. I wasn't disappointed in the scene nor the image I captured. The adventure was just beginning.

My eye was captured by this pair during a recent trip to Cheekwood, the local botanical garden here in Nashville. The gardener obviously intended for visitors to see the contrast of color and shape and texture. But these plants were not the stars of the show. Or were they?

We all notice the obvious blooming accents of color that is scattered throughout the acreage. This display of greenery could be viewed as the backdrop to the blossoms. But I stop and ponder that it is the overlooked, the ordinary that gives structure to the garden. These plants provide interest, and often endure longer than the blooms. They invite touching. They have a depth of being. The viewer is invited to a deeper relationship. I know some fascinating people because they function in the same way: quiet, deep, strong, vital, interesting.

Yes, I stood in the stream to get this photo. I found secure spots for the legs of my tripod so that I could blur the rush of the water with a longer exposure. I could have stood on the bridge, but that wasn't the photo I wanted. Sometimes, you have to get wet to create the image. 

I got wet swimming today. Duh, by definition that happens. But today, it rained while I swam. I have been using a full face mask to allow me to strengthen my knee since the injury last September. So for lap after lap, my view point is from the underside of the surface of the water. It is another world experience with the sunlight sparkling through the ripples on the surface. Today, it rained as I completed the last few laps and the drops would pierce the surface about an inch or so during the brief cloudburst. It was awesome. And I felt the cool raindrops on my body as I swam and saw them plunge into the pool as I watched them. Wow! It's great to be alive!

We stay home during the summer. A pool and a daylily garden with 100 varieties encourage us to enjoy our personal resort. But we have been taking extended trips in the fall. And 2018 has all the possibility of being another fun experience with a cruise, and train rides, and bus trips, and a lobster boat, and Niagara Falls and completing our visits to the fifty states. I can't call it a vacation since I no longer work. I just call it fun.

I began with film, long before there were digital images. And when I first developed my film and printed my first photograph, it was black and white. I was stunned at the magic, despite the absence of color. One of my first jobs was working in a black-and-white darkroom, processing film and printing enlarged photographs. I love the simple monotone images.

But I forget even my own attraction to them. It is simple in Adobe Lightroom to see a black-and-white version of any color image by pressing the letter "v" on the keypad. I need to consider that option more frequently, like this one today.

Most of my adult life, I have watched the dial on the bathroom scale jump from one number to another. I admit I have been a comfort eater in my attempt to deal with personal stress. So I gained weight each time I moved from one community to the next. It wasn't a great amount with each specific move, but it added up over time. I would go on a diet when I reached a number that I thought was too much, and I would lose pounds. But they seemed to always come back. About ten years ago, I did reach my peak. I was too heavy. I see how obvious it was in old photos. I did lose some pounds and gained back some. And the roller coaster continued until recently. And I have been diligent with Weight Watchers online and exercise for 4 1/2 months. I will continue as I am probably just a little over halfway to my goal. I regret that I hadn't been more successful in the past. But I am doing it this time. And it's pretty exciting. The good news I found out in June was that my bathroom scale weighs two pounds heavier than the one at my physician's office. So this post is not photography related, but I wanted to depict how erratic I see the pointer as it bounces between the numbers on the scale. I took a number of photos where I varied the weight on the scale. And then I opened each photo as a layer in On1 and used the multiply blend mode and then merged all the layers. And you see the result. Pretty easy. 

Judy and Maddy spotted this bug floating in the pool yesterday. I took this photo with my iPhone so that I could identify it. Apparently, it is a red footed cannibal fly, Promachus rufipes. The size of these species of robber flies is 28-35mm. It was every bit that big. And looks ferocious. It is predatory with every other insect and will even attack hummingbirds.