On an evening drive on Friday, the first day of autumn, I traveled east, along F.M. 112, to Noack, Texas.   Christ Lutheran Church, a beautiful old structure with a congregation in the area for 125 years, was damaged by a tornado that tore through East Williamson County in February.  Thankfully, the main body of the church was spared, but the west wing was sheared off.   When I drove by the other night, all was good!    If it weren’t for the church, you wouldn’t know you’d actually been through a tiny Texas community.   I’m glad it’s here.   Note that the opening photo is presented twice, once in black and white.   I’m not sure what works, but do love monotone imagery.  The third photo here shows the area destroyed, once again whole.   The last photo doesn’t include the church, just a cool little tree out front.  Above the tree?  A waxing crescent moon, of course. 

Georgetown hosted the 8th Annual Williamson County Alzheimer’s Walk this morning at San Gabriel Park.   The event is a fundraiser for Alzheimer’s support and research, with all fund raised staying in Texas.    While there are many terrible illnesses out there, this, it seems to me, is one of the worst.   The opening photo … that’s a daughter planting a kiss on her mom, Becky, during the walk.   Becky is only 51, but was diagnosed last November with Alzheimer’s.   They had a team there, Team Becky, many of them wearing tutus.  Team Becky raised $3,039 today.   Another photo during the walk gives us Anne, with her caregiver from Wesleyan Homes, Laura.   Also taking part were miniature horses from Miniwonders of Texas.   Throughout the year this group takes their sweet little horses around to area nursing homes and memory care facilities.  They were here today in support of another Georgetown group, Visiting Angels.   Taking part in the walk in one photo  was Cowboy Tuxedo, who didn’t seem to mind sharing the trail with Teddy, a Golden Doodle.   The last photo?  That’s a son, probably well into his 50s, holding his mom’s hand during the event.   When we returned to Texas, in 2009, our neighbor was taking good care of his wife, both dealing with this dreaded disease.   What I remember most, before she died, was the slow walks they’d take from their house, him holding her hand, taking it as slow as she wanted.    I hope science finds help for the theft of our cherished memories.   These photos were taken for my friends at the Williamson County Sun.

If you follow my work, you know full well that I prefer the beauty of low light outdoors.  Some might even call them night scenes.  Summer is a tough time for those of us crave this delicate presence.   I’ve said it before, but Daylight Saving Time is not my friend.   Apologies to friends who hold onto that last bit of a day, but not yours truly.   When the light gets low, I get going.   We’re still not back to Central Standard Time, but we’re getting there.   The opening photo, in black and white, is a peaceful road between Weir and Granger.   Ducks gather at Bull Branch Park.   And grain elevators share space with train tracks in Taylor, a waxing crescent moon above, 8.7% visible.    Welcome to autumn. 

These are photos I took a few mornings ago, but held onto them for a while.   It’s an old shack near our home that I’ve photographed a few times.   It rests squarely in the middle of a field used for crops.   When certain things grow (think corn) you don’t really see it.   But it’s there.   These were taken just after dawn,  just two photos, presented here in both color and black and white.   I’ve been remiss about posting b/w images lately.   It’s a good exercise in seeing.    This decrepit structure, from what folks tell me, was once used as a home for hired hands.   Since returning to Texas in 2009, it’s been nicely taking up space in that field.   It’s one of the subjects I like to revisit from time to time. 

Pardon tonight’s brevity, but I’m only posting two photos.   These are a little north of our Taylor home and a wee bit south of Granger.   Both are on the same county road.   Like so many byways on the Blackland Prairie, it’s a nice way to travel with one’s camera.    Although I don’t know why, I like that some folks leave a light on outside their barns.   That little touch adds presence to an already-lovely structure. 

Church bazaars are grand events.   Each year, I try to make my way to the far northern reaches of Williamson County, Texas to document the one put on by Holy Trinity Catholic Church of Corn Hill.   This beautiful church puts on quite a whingding, with plenty of food, music, games, and most of all, a chance to visit with friends and family in a nice setting.  Grandpa, with his 16-month-old grandson in the opening photo, is an example of family ties I like.   Although the bazaar is in the church activity center, and outside on the grounds, visitors are always welcomed to visit the sanctuary of this 100-year-old church.   I ambled over there, too, meeting Mary Ann Nowinsky, visiting with her sister-in-law, Connie Wear.  Mary Ann was married here in 1963, a week before the untimely death of John F. Kennedy.  Some bazaar visitors, like the 2-year-old twins, were awfully close to nap time.   One of my favorite things to do at Holy Trinity’s bazaar is spend time with the folks playing bingo, like the mother and daughter with this post.   The daughter, 10, was feeling some angst when her numbers didn’t fall into place.   The fellow playing the accordion  and trumpet at the same time?  Well, that’s Fritz Hodde.  Mr. Hodde plays some mighty fine Czech polka music.  These photos were taken for my friends at the Williamson County Sun.

These are some photos taken a couple days back while wandering along the country roads a little east of Weir, Texas, in the heart of Williamson County.   They, of course, were taken at evening time, when the light danced across this Blackland Prairie landscape.   Since coming home to Texas, in 2009, I’ve not once seen a train cross the tracks shown in the final photo, but I like those tracks …. and the road you can see to the right.    These are all nice diversions on the road of life.

091517 EAST WILLIAMSON

Today I spent a few hours in Bartlett, Texas, a community of a little over 1600 people on the Williamson/Bell County line.   A portion of the picturesque downtown area resides in each of these counties.   The occasion was their annual Bartlett Friendship Fest.  Like Granger, a few miles south, it’s a community with old-fashioned brick streets.  The house where I grew up, in Texarkana, had a brick street.   As with any festival, there was a parade, music, food, vendors, politicians, and music.   These small towns where I live have large numbers of people with Czech origins.   After being in Texas over 8 years, tonight I decided to look up the meaning of S.P.J.S.T., a Texas-based Czech fraternal group with deep roots.   If what I found on Google is to be trusted, here it is:  Slovanska Podporujici Jednota Statu Texas.   At least I know “Texas.”    One group in the parade was the Austin Jeep Community, a club of sorts.  Those jeeps were crawling all over each other, kind of cool!  They have a nifty mural in Bartlett, included in this post.   At the car show, I was duly impressed by an 8-year-old taking photos with an honest-to-goodness camera, not a smartphone.  While I give smartphones their due (reluctantly), a camera is the tool of choice.   By the way, I really like that Basset hound, Norton.  These photos were taken for my friends at the Williamson County Sun.  

Tonight, while on the lookout for something else, I came upon this scene, a father and his 4-year-old daughter enjoying an early-evening together near Weir, Texas as they strolled along a not-so-traveled country road.  Thank goodness, we have plenty of “not-so-traveled” roads in my area.   Sincere apologies to my favorite singer/songwriter, James Taylor, for the title.   I do love my Texas. 

Here’s one from December 1976, kids taking turns riding the family goat in Elm Grove, Louisiana, one of my little adventures for the Shreveport Journal.   Believe it or not, there was a time before television and the internet took over.