Just a little windmill therapy from the Blackland Prairie  tonight, friends.   I’ll leave it at that.

This is a photo I made during the 2001 Atlanta Journal & Constitution Peachtree Road Race, its 32nd running.   WSB-TV Chief Photographer Don Johnson and I were making aerial images from the station’s helicopter.   At the time, the event included 55,000 entrants.  Now that  number is 60,000.    The Atlanta Track Club made the smart choice this year to postpone the race, normally held on July 4th, instead moving it too Thanksgiving.  Considering the ongoing pandemic, I have doubts that this will happen at all this year, but we’ll see.

Approximately 75-100 people came to the Williamson County Courthouse lawn  in Georgetown this week for the first CommUNITY Prayer on the Square.  The “UNITY” is used here as it was presented.  There were no  protests for this hour-long event, just people together. No political talk at all.  At least a couple of prayer attendees work with the area’s homeless population.  That’s why I included Ashely, pictured in the last two photos.  Ashley, 30, who is homeless, caught a ride last week from Houston to Austin, then managed to walk most of the 28 miles to Georgetown.  I met her over the weekend near where the prayer group met last evening.  Hopefully, she found some help.  She’s very sweet, not asking for handouts, just some guidance. 

Most of the bird photos I post are from Taylor’s rookery at Murphy Park, or ducks and geese at Bull Branch Park, all birds are intriguing.    For the last several years, a small group of trees on the downtown square in Georgetown have become temporary homes for Green Herons, somewhat smaller cousins to Great Blue Herons.   My assumption has always been that herons (and egrets) prefer to stay close to water sources.   The San Gabriel River is a few blocks away, but it still seems an odd place for these little beauties.   Unlike the rookery, you really have to hunt to see these herons.  The nestle in the trees and blend right in.   These were taken last weekend while finishing up an assignment.   All birds are neat.

After 29 years living in the dissonance of Atlanta, we moved home to Texas in 2009, to Central Texas, but specifically to farm country on the Blackland Prairie.    The farmhouse pictured in the opening photo was one of the first things that moved me.   So free and open.  In 2020, that place continues to inspire, engulfed by endless fields of corn.  The second photo is milo (grain sorghum), another crop you might see if you visit our area.

Cemeteries.   How do you see their function in 2020?   I have been fascinated by them for decades.   Walk through one and see the history of families.   These photos were taken recently on a visit to the Bartlett City Cemetery.   People born in the early 1830s are laid to rest here.   In the late-1800s, I noticed, there were burials for little children.   Far too many, but sadly, mortality rates were higher then.   From this visit, however, I was fascinated to see a single corn plant growing by a gravesite.   Since this is farm country (so far), I can only surmise the loved one’s family pays tribute with this planting.   Many of the gravesites are are in poor shape.   Are there family members who can keep the cemetery intact?   I don’t know, but wish the best for this resting place on the prairie.

Remember, folks, this is Texas.   Our summers begin in April around here.   As we approach mid-July, temperatures reach the low-100s almost every day.   Much of this Saturday was spent around the square in Georgetown, where families could find some really good ice cream, making things a little more tolerable.   I made these photos at two popular destinations, All Things Kids and The Baked Bear.   Both do ice cream quite well!   In the opening photo, a young lady, 3, enjoys her treat while Molti, the family’s 6-month-old Bull Mastiff, waits for something to fall his way.  Dad says when he’s grown, Molti will weigh about 160 pounds.  He’s a sweet boy, as his 3-year-old well knows.   The other photos are just icing on a very hot cake.

Recently, I’ve seen more turkey vultures on the prairie, keeping their keen eyes focused on potential food sources.   This gathering was spotted recently near Bartlett, Texas.   While not received well in our culture, they have every right to persevere.  

If you live where we live, in East Williamson County, Texas, you’d be hard-pressed to go far without seeing gigantic fields of corn.   Every growing season, they get my attention.  I tell myself to pass on by.   Then I don’t.   The way this crop spreads its wispy grace across the Blackland Prairie each year sucks me into its orbit.   No harvest photos yet, just cornfields in progress.   From Granger to Noack,  just visual explorations, friends. 

Nothing special with this post, just watching the sun begin its western descent in Noack and Thrall tonight.  I’ll leave it there.

070820 EAST Williamson