Archive for September, 2009

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Scenic Sunday # 62: Charleston

September 20, 2009
East Battery Street, Charleston, South Carolina. June 22, 2008.

East Battery Street, Charleston, South Carolina. June 22, 2008.

This is my post for the Scenic Sunday meme, which shares beautiful scenes from around the world.  To see more Scenic Sunday posts, or to join and show your own pictures, click HERE.

The picture above was taken on the seawall of Charleston Harbor in Charleston, South Carolina.  It shows some of the beautiful homes on East Battery Street, many of which date back to the Civil War.  Fort Sumter, site of the first shots of the Civil War, is in the harbor off to the right.  Behind me and to the left is White Point Gardens, more commonly known as The Battery.

I lived in South Carolina for three years and have visited Charleston several times.  It’s a beautiful city and I thoroughly enjoy walking through the the historic district (as long as it’s not too hot!).

The picture above was taken in June, 2008, when Betsy and I visited Charleston on our anniversary trip.  If you would like to see some more scenes from the area around The Battery, click HERE.

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Posted in Scenic Sunday | 10 Comments »

Keeping Up With the Kids

September 19, 2009

4-DIRECTV_HDDVR_Pro_receiver

Yesterday was a  big day for Betsy and me.  We finally caught up with a couple of the kids as far as technology is concerned.

When we visited Betsy’s son Mark and family in Texas earlier this year, we were very impressed with their DVR.  Not only could they record television  shows to view later, they could pause a show to answer the phone and then catch up (skipping over the commercials in the process), and do all kinds of other neat things.

As I said, we were impressed, but we decided we really didn’t need it.  However the subject of a DVR kept popping every once in a while.  We kept missing a favorite show when we went Hendersonville to see my parents, and then two of our favorite shows from last season were scheduled against each other this season.  So we decided that perhaps we could use a DVR after all.

We’ve had DirecTV for several years now and Betsy was able to get us a ‘deal’ by contacting them.  The technician came out yesterday and installed our DVR.  The only thing I wonder about now is if Betsy will want to get a TV as large as Mark’s?

Now that I think of it, we’re  not doing too badly on the technology front for a couple of senior citizens.  We each have our iMac, and when Betsy got her laptop we converted to a wireless network in the house.  And I do have an iPod Touch which is pretty neat technology.

As I said, I think we do a pretty good job of keeping up with the kids.  But now that I think of it, my son does have an iPhone . . .

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Posted in Technology | 13 Comments »

Skywatch Friday: Oh, What a Beautiful Morning

September 18, 2009
Sunrise at Ormond Beach, Florida. August 6, 2009.

Sunrise at Ormond Beach, Florida. August 6, 2009.

No, the picture above was not taken in Oklahoma, but in Ormond Beach, Florida.  It was the day after Betsy’s birthday and we would be heading home later in the day.  But when this morning picture was taken we were able to enjoy the start of a new day as the sun came up over the Atlantic.

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 21 Comments »

Autumn Colors From Long Ago

September 17, 2009
Barren River State Park, Kentucky. October 7, 2001.

Barren River State Park, Kentucky. October 7, 2001.

Actually it wasn’t all that long ago.

We had another  rainy day here on the Plateau, so I got to do more work on some of my older pictures.

Both Betsy and I moved to Tennessee in December, 2000.  Prior to that move I had lived in the Midwest and the Carolinas, while Betsy lived mostly in the South and Texas.  As a result, she didn’t get to enjoy the seasons nearly as much as I did.

The autumn of 2001 was the first chance Betsy had to enjoy autumn colors.  We heard about a nice hiking trail in Ashland, Tennessee, and went up there one Saturday to enjoy the colors.  Betsy had a thing about red leaves and she found several, which made the hike even more enjoyable.

One Sunday we took my parents up to Barren River State Park in Kentucky and also enjoyed the color up there.

The photos I found of these two expeditions aren’t great works of art, but I must admit that it was fun to go back and see what we looked like as newly weds.  If you would like to see more of our searches for autumn color click HERE.

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Posted in Autumn | 13 Comments »

Watery Wednesday # 53: The American Falls

September 16, 2009
The American Falls at Niagara. August 30, 2002.

The American Falls at Niagara. August 30, 2002.

This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

We got some much-needed rain here on the Plateau yesterday and I had a chance to work on some old pictures.  In the process I came across some forgotten pictures from a trip that Betsy and I took in 2002 to Niagara Falls.  I even came across a folder with pictures that I don’t even remember seeing before.  The picture above is one of the pictures from that folder.

We stayed in Canada while we were at the falls, but we did spend one day on the American side.  While there we went down to the base of the American Falls and then walked to an observation deck on the side of the falls.  That’s where the picture above was taken.  The sight and sound of all that water tumbling over the falls is absolutely tremendous.

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Posted in Watery Wednesday | 18 Comments »

My World # 49: The Look of Autumn

September 15, 2009
Our front yard, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. September 13, 2009.

Our front yard, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. September 13, 2009.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, Louise and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

There’s a hint of autumn in the air here on the Plateau.  The leaves on our dogwood tree are getting reader and some of the trees are starting to drop leaves, as you can see in the picture above.

The temperatures are now cooler, which is something the roses like.  They are now starting to put on their fall show.  Not only are the blossoms pretty (at least we think so), but I can enjoy the fragrance any time I’m in the front yard.  Even mowing the lawn yesterday was a pleasant experience!

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Posted in My World | 14 Comments »

Eight Years Ago Today — Barbados

September 14, 2009
Barbados

The view from Gun Hill Station, Barbados. September 14, 2001.

Last week Betsy did a post about where we were on September 11, 2001.  We were on a cruise that week (a belated honeymoon) and that got me to thinking about that cruise.

Eight years ago today (September 14) we were on the island of Barbados, the last island on our cruise.  Barbados is the eastern-most island of the Caribbean islands.  Barbados was a British colony from 1625 – 1966, when it became an independent nation of the British Commonwealth.

While on Barbados we visited Gun Hill Signal Station, which was the largest and most important of the British military outposts on the island.  We also visited St. John Parish Church (Betsy was still a Methodist minister at that time and enjoyed checking out the Anglican church), and Sunbury Plantation, a 300-year old plantation on the island.

To see more of our visit to Barbados, click HERE.

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Posted in Travels | 4 Comments »

Scenic Sunday # 61: St. Maarten

September 13, 2009
Sunset off Philipsburg, St. Maarten. September 11, 2001.

Sunset off Philipsburg, St. Maarten. September 11, 2001.

This is my post for the Scenic Sunday meme, which shares beautiful scenes from around the world.  To see more Scenic Sunday posts, or to join and show your own pictures, click HERE.

Betsy, in her blog yesterday, told about our day on September 11, 2001.  The beauty of St. Maarten in  the Caribbean was a surreal contrast to the events taking place in the United States.

The picture above was taken as our ship was leaving Philipsburg, our port of call in St. Maarten.   In spite of all the tragedy of the day,  This scene gave us a sense of calm and peace.

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Posted in Scenic Sunday | 12 Comments »

Waterloo Falls

September 12, 2009
Waterloo Falls, Cookeville, Tennessee. February 23, 2008,

Waterloo Falls, Cookeville, Tennessee. February 23, 2008,

As you know if you’ve read this blog very long, Betsy and I collect waterfalls.  We started back in 2001 when we were dating.  We had gone to Fall Creek Falls here in Tennessee for the day, and while viewing the waterfalls there we realized we were falling in love.

We began our waterfall collection in honor of that day.  Since then we have visited 343 different waterfalls.  Some of the waterfalls are very well known — Niagara Falls is a good example.  Some we found because they are listed in waterfall books.  Some we found out about on the internet, and others we have just accidently stumbled across by driving on back roads.

An example of a waterfall (actually two waterfalls) we found through the internet is the waterfall above.  Betsy did a search for waterfalls near us and came across a mention of Waterloo Falls north of Cookeville.  I checked our books and couldn’t find any reference to it, but Betsy was able to get some general directions.

So one Saturday we set out to find Waterloo Falls if at all possible.  We were successful and were rewarded by a second, smaller waterfall upstream from the main waterfall.  When we got back home we found that the smaller waterfall is known as Upper Waterloo Falls.

If you would like to see more of these two waterfalls click HERE.

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Posted in Waterfalls | 11 Comments »

Skywatch Friday: Mountain Morning Sky

September 11, 2009
Morning sky in Otto, North Carolina. May 29, 2009.

Morning sky in Otto, North Carolina. May 29, 2009.

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

The picture above was taken in May of this year while we were visiting friends in western North Carolina.  It was cloudy and overcast when we got up, but the clouds started to lift as the morning went on.  We could definitely see blue sky after we finished breakfast.

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Posted in SkyWatch Friday | 14 Comments »

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