For the past few years a visit to a cotton gin has been on my visual radar.   That gin has been Waterloo Gin, just east of Taylor.  The weather is producing some pretty good cotton this season.   Gin co-owners Clement Strmiska and David Woollett  and their crew will no doubt be busy.   If another cotton gin is operational this year I’d be glad to take a few photos there, but in the last couple or so years Waterloo has been the only one doing this  work in Williamson County, Texas.   These are from last evening, Clement resting in his truck at the end of a long day.  After the gin powered down, Rocky, the little dog in the last photo, surveyed the darkened area.

When September rolls around it’s a good bet the egrets and ibis at Taylor’s Murphy Park rookery  will move on until Spring.   With that in mind, I stopped by there for a few photographs last evening.   Once they’re gone, we’ll have plenty of year-round residents nearby, including herons , cormorants, cattle egrets, geese and ducks.    A federally-protected species, these Great Egrets and Snowy Egrets are  a visual treat.  

One of the nicest places I visit is a 189 acre farm a few miles northeast of us.  To say the property owner is a dear friend just isn’t enough.   He’s allowed me to visit  the farm anytime I like.   Hopefully, I won’t take advantage of that.   While the windmill is a joy, the rest of this space also is comforting.   And very very quiet.   You’ll see photographs from there occasionally.  

It had been cloudy all day, with no expectation of seeing even a snippet of tonight’s full moon.   But the moon did peek out for a brief spell.   Better late than never.  The last one is the moon’s reflection in a nearby lake.

Another batch of photographs taken on morning walks last week, narrowed down to fourteen this time, still too dang many.   All are in Taylor.   Countryside ramblings are usually more expansive.  These walk photos are mostly tighter, mainly because these walks are slow.  Just watching light.  You notice things at a slower pace.

We were expecting a cloud cover and rain this evening, but something else came along.   I’ve got a ton of stuff that needs doing, but decided to chase the moon for a few minutes instead.   Tonight’s moon is almost full, in a Waxing Gibbous phase at 99.2% visibility.   Three photographs from East Williamson County, Texas are offered, including Zion Lutheran Church in Sandoval, a curious Texas Longhorn and a pond reflecting the moon a little bit, encompassed by blue evening light.  We truly need the rain, but seeing the moon is nice, too.

Photographing K-9 Kerplunk is a blast.   For the past few years Georgetown Parks & Recreation has held this event at the outdoor kiddie pool at their recreation center.   The dogs love it, and so do their humans.   The dog in the first photograph is named Merle Haggard, now 12-years-old, but with an abundance of joy in him.   Merle spent the better part of an hour underneath a water spray, oblivious to everything going on around him.   It’s a joyful event.  I finally stopped when running out of lens tissue to clean the water off the lenses.  

The moon, at 96.6% visibility, shines over Southwestern University in Georgetown on Friday night, September 5, 2025.

From this morning’s sunrise in Taylor.   While usually awake before sunrise, I’m usually having coffee and reading.   It was nice to see that flock of egrets getting an early start, too.  Avian sunrise.

Tonight’s Waxing Gibbous moon, at 91% visibility, shines beyond a favorite windmill.   While I seldom offer things in black-and-white,  let’s try it tonight.   Which is preferred?