These were taken just as the last light of day tried to hold on.  At first I noticed cows silhouetted on a hill south of Taylor, but continued to watch as a little family gathered for a few moments.   After the little one skedaddled, mom and dad stayed close.   Note that I detest power lines, but don’t remove them to create a more aesthetic scene.   That is not done in documentary photojournalism.   The photography world I’ve known is being swallowed by post-processing dishonesty.   

Nearing completion of my daily wandering near Coupland,  the sky was adorned with a tiny sliver of  moon, a Waxing Crescent moon, at 3.4 percent visibility.   Within a few short minutes, it was consumed by clouds, but not before recording what I saw.

The luminaries filled the night skies at Georgetown’s St. John’s Methodist Church on Saturday, here for the duration of the holidays.   The church is on a very busy University Avenue, something calming as you deal with traffic woes.  A second photograph gives you a sense of the area.     Be sure to see them if you are in town. 

While waiting on full darkness to arrive on Saturday, I made a brief visit to the San Gabriel River for those golden few minutes near sundown.   I’m not sure who coined the phrase “golden hour,” but it’s far more brief.   Just snippets from those minutes, including a fisherman calling it a day, lugging his kayak, unaware of a visitor overhead.   And a gentleman taking it all in from the comfort of his chair.    The post concludes with two scenes.   A quiet few minutes, friends.

The daily walk photographs continue, all from Taylor.   There’s likely repetition from week to week, but it’s a good way to stay occupied during these strolls.  A friend’s Sweetgum tree is included.  And an entertaining squirrel.   So far, the offerings are all taken with an Olympus OM-D E-M10 mirrorless camera equipped with a 45-150mm Panasonic Lumix lens.   In the micro 4/3 world, it’s equivalent to a 90-300mm lens.   A higher-end Olympus equipped with faster lenses might be nice, but keeping costs low is helpful.  

A few photographs from tonight’s Lighting of the Square in Georgetown.   Even though I arrived 90 minutes early, parking was at a premium.  Four blocks away wasn’t too bad though.  The post begins with a sweet lady closer to my age group.  She was a visual gift.   Others require no explanations.

A few good hours were spent today taking photographs at the annual Georgetown Community Thanksgiving, held in the San Gabriel Community Center at San Gabriel Park.   Two hundred pounds of turkey breasts,  plus a bunch of fixings, drinks and desserts were provided free of charge to anyone who came.   For homebound  residents, hot meals were delivered to their doorsteps.   Helping make this possible are members of the Georgetown Beard Club, the City of Georgetown Police and Fire Departments, plus a whole bunch of volunteers.   When mentioning the Beard Club in previous posts, I’ve been asked what that means.   The Beard Club is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that does a lot of good things in the area.  Click on the link provided.   I begin the post with three photos of  a couple in their 90s.  He is completely deaf, she has mobility issues.   Volunteers were on hand to make sure they got what they needed.   Before the serving line opened, one young man brought along a book to read.  He and dad are both avid readers.  That’s nifty.   Each year this event draws people from all walks of life.   Some of them are homeless.   A couple or three of those are pictured here.   Enough explanations, friends.   Just some photos now.

These photos are basically just silhouettes seen as I wandered around our area the last couple of days.   The opening photograph is from Monday evening in Milam County, Texas.  The other two are both from this evening, each (barely) in Travis County, but not far from home.   Passing  often-photographed grain elevators I was intrigued by the shaft of sunlight streaming between them.   The last one is mostly just a sunset and clouds configuration, but if you look closely you might see  a commercial aircraft to the right of the sun.  I’m sure the airplane was departing Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, heading to points north.   Many are traveling this holiday weekend. 

Well past sunset last evening a farmer worked well after sunset, tilling that Blackland Prairie soil in East Williamson County, Texas.   Maybe I’ll share something more later, but this quiet rural scene might fulfill a need to offer something to my friends.  

Friendship Park is an area near Granger Lake, named for a community that once existed here before the San Gabriel River was dammed to create the lake.   I would’ve loved to have seen Friendship, but the area is really nice.  Anglers flock to the lake in large numbers.   Trees and prairie grass are abundant.   And deer find it to be a safe haven.