We were covered in clouds on Monday night, but clear skies this evening presented us with a Waning Gibbous moon, still looking nice at 97% visibility.   On the way to a grocery store run, that lovely moon just glowed so much I first made a few photos of a youth soccer practice at Taylor Regional Park, then onto the grocery errand.   After dropping off store items, I drove to downtown Taylor, blending the moon with holiday lights.

Last week I stopped by a friend’s Circleville ranch to take photos of a beautiful mesquite tree, but made a few other photos during my brief visit.   The ranch is adorned with sections of the San Gabriel River, old-growth pecan trees, Burr Oaks, plus  horses and cattle, but those aren’t represented here. Miles, however, deserves a nod.  Miles is a beautiful collie who, like yours truly, has hearing issues.   It doesn’t stop him from wandering around this beautiful land on the Blackland Prairie. This offering concludes with a resilient fence post and barbed wire.   Like the land, they are survivors.

Tonight’s full moon had to work hard to make an appearance in our area.   Clouds played a game of hide and seek as it faded in and out.   The red barn has been around a long time.  A version taken several years ago adorns my living room wall.   Just south of that a farmhouse  retains its place in the world.   Go a little further south and you come to New Sweden Evangelical Lutheran Church, simply iconic, with or without the moon.   The grain elevators have been photographed a few times.   I’m not sure if they’re in Williamson or Travis County, but I like them.   The post concludes with just moon and clouds.

While stopping to photograph a barn in Falls County, Texas this weekend I looked over my shoulder, seeing more.   I’ve long had an affection for unpaved roads.   They’re hard on our motor vehicles, particularly when it rains, but they personify a quietude, perhaps a nod to a simpler time when we weren’t so eager to get somewhere.   To slow down, maybe even stop.    The swarm of birds flying over was icing on a rural cake.  

Since most of us see the world in color, these posts stay close to that reality, but sometimes a scene presented in black and white is preferred.   This one works that way.   The color on this vintage barn was muted.  A monotone presentation seemed right.   Regarding Texas state flags, they are well-represented throughout our state.   Mentioned before, but I can’t think of any other state that does this with such exuberance.    This one was seen this evening in a part of Bell County, Texas not often visited.

Georgetown’s annual Lighting of the Square is always inspiring.   Friday evening’s nice weather brought out quite the crowd, as it always does.  A Waxing Gibbous moon, at 94% visibility, glowed over the town square.   Arriving 90 minutes before the start, I was lucky to find a parking place just three blocks away.  People were kind to one another.  How nice that would be throughout the year.   The post concludes with a 6-month-old enjoying his first season with his daddy.   Let’s leave it there.

“A Christmas Carol the Musical” opens tonight at the Georgetown Palace, playing on the Springer Stage through December 30th.    Most of the photos will be on either Facebook or Instagram, but I wanted to represent the splendid holiday production here.

Some good hours were spent today at Georgetown’s Community Thanksgiving, held in the Georgetown Community Center at San Gabriel Park.  This annual gathering offers meals at no cost to whoever wants one.   Some come to share time with friends, others because they might not otherwise have a meal to enjoy.   Diners could be served onsite, but volunteers were also packaging to-go dinners to be delivered into area homes.   My favorite moments today led me to the couple dressed in red, both in their 90s, married for 65 years.   Because the serving line might present issues, a friend with the Georgetown Police Department stepped in, offering his help.    Once the couple reached their table, the husband, with a tenderness that spoke volumes, helped his bride cut her food to perfection.    We could all learn more kindness, whatever the day.

Since our time in this area of Central Texas, I’ve called it prairie grass.   Those much wiser have given it other names.  I’ll stick with calling it prairie grass.    There’s an abundance of it around the Blackland Prairie this month.   Perhaps it’s little more than weeds, but the way it reacts to light is soothing.

Granger, one of my favorite communities, has adorned its downtown area with holiday lights.   This Williamson County town has around 1500 people calling it home, but the spirit exhibited there is inspiring.   That moon in the first photo is Waxing Gibbous, 68.3% visibility.