For a while I’ve been trying to get a photo of this particular tree a little north of Granger, but the angles just weren’t right. Tonight, after tromping through some tall grass, I think I got one I liked. The storm clouds helped. While there, this old barn, obviously visited by recent graduates, got my attention, too. 
It looks like I’m gonna stay with that cotton fascination for a while, but it’s simply a divine thing to see on the Blackland Prairie. Here’s a couple of photos taken so far this week. The first one’s near Noack, Texas, the second, taken around the time of Monday night’s storms, is a patch of wonder a little south of Bartlett. The more cotton, the better you feel, right?
This is a county road northwest of Granger, Texas where I found myself lost a few months ago. That doesn’t happen often, friends. These days I’m finding my way around just fine. Earlier today, turbulent weather knocked out the power at our Taylor home. I was not a happy fellow. When those moods take root, I take to these roads. By the time this bit of sweetness came into view tonight, those storm clouds had returned, bringing thunder and lightning, but not so much rain. These pathways through the prairie, whatever the weather, are resplendent. 
Early Saturday morning I was once again in place for the beginning of dove season in Central Texas. And again, my hosts were the Brinkmeyers, Wilbur and his son, Ted. Each year for quite a while dove hunters congregate near the open prairie fields to try their luck, arriving well before dawn. I was happy to see old friends coming from Louisiana in large numbers, including Daniel and his daughter, Kaitlyn, now 20, who’s been hunting with dad for many years. Kaitlyn’s friend Erin, a college classmate, was here this year, too. And Shane brought Ivy, his 3-year-old daughter, who toted her bright pink BB gun. It’s all good on our Blackland Prairie. 
A bit of this and that tonight, friends. Those barns, photographed a few times, are in Travis County, Texas, but not far from where we live. The grain elevators? Those are at the farm of my good friends, members of the Boehm family in Norman’s Crossing. And trains. That was last evening, between Taylor and Hutto, a photo to pay homage to my 66th birthday. I’ll keep shooting as long as there’s air in these old lungs. 
On December 4, 1956, four famous, or soon to be famous musicians, including Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis, came together for an impromptu jam session at the Sun Records recording studios of Sam Phillips. The Georgetown Palace Theatre opens their production of that session on their Springer Memorial Stage. It runs through September 30. This is a lively and fun production, directed by Palace music director Lannie Hilboldt. There is one female in the cast, playing Dyanne, who also sings. In the actual session, it was Marilyn Evans, a dancer who was Elvis’ girlfriend at the time. These photos were for my friends at the Williamson County Sun.
These are a couple of candid portraits, both taken in early 1980s Atlanta, Georgia. I can’t even recall why I was at Friendship Baptist Church, but this little girl, playing outside the church got my attention. What a wonderful set of eyes she had. It’s here for no other reason than I like it. The other photo is someone football fans might recognize, legendary University of Alabama football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant. This photo was taken on September 11, 1982, the coach’s 69th birthday, which he celebrated on the road, playing at Georgia Tech. With a record 323 wins, coach Bryant retired after this season. He died a month later, on January 26, 1983. This tells me something, friends. Don’t retire. Keep going. 
These are photos taken the last couple of days on the Blackland Prairie. The cotton harvests are still going strong, but I suspect farmers will be wrapping things up over the next week. While it’s available for my camera, let’s visit some cotton patches again, shall we?
Tonight, a little of this and that, scenes around the prairie as this hot August nears its conclusion. One of these, if you pay much mind to this site, is Prince of Peace Lutheran Church in Wuthrich Hill, Texas, a place I return to often. 
Saturday morning I paid a visit to Taylor’s Bull Branch Park for the city’s annual Kidfish, a fishing tournament for kids 16 and under. I didn’t see many kids that qualified as teens, but there were plenty of really little folks, some catching their first fish ever. The city, who, along with Atmos Energy, sponsors the tournament, stocked the park’s pond with 350 pounds of catfish, and from the looks of it, a few bass, too. It’s a low-key, minimum stress event. If families didn’t have their own fishing gear, tournament officials provided them free of charge. These photos were taken for my friends at the Williamson County Sun.
