Today was Flag Day in the United States. Tonight, I photographed our fine symbol at the Taylor Post Office, with the moon hovering in the distance. And I stopped at Murphy Park, watching one lone duck, born this Spring, amble gracefully along. 
Sunflowers are adding their little touches of yellow to the Blackland Prairie landscape in recent weeks. These aren’t to be confused with the gigantic sunflowers that grow as large as your head. These grow wild, and much smaller, but no less delightful to see. Mostly, I see them along the roadside, next to fields of our abundant late-Spring corn crops. Over the last few days, I’ve made a few stops for photos. Last night, as the sun was setting, I shot a few more. Rain was forecast, but didn’t materialize. The sun, being the sun, added a bit of texture to these little wildflowers named for her. Enjoy them while they’re with us, friends.
On a somewhat sizzling Saturday, I spent my time taking photos at a farmers market, at Georgetown’s Wolf Ranch shopping center, where I encountered a 3-year-old selecting his own peaches, plus two Pomeranians, Chester and Bailey, enjoying the morning with their mom. As the temperature rose, I meandered over to the Georgetown Square for Market Days on The Square, held the second Saturday each month. There I found a vendor, relaxing under the shade of a big oak tree on the courthouse lawn, a fellow cooling off next to a big misting fan, and Gerty Belle, a 2-year-old Juliana pig, out for a stroll with her folks. Gerty Belle is fully house-trained, topping the scales at only 45 pounds. It was a good day, for both two-legged, and four-footed friends.
Minimal words with tonight’s post. The corn crop on the Blackland Prairie is thriving. These photos were taken at sunset tonight. The first three were taken at small intervals, as the sun continued to disapppear. The last photo is sans the corn, just sun and clouds.
Although your calendars will tell you that summer officially begins later this month, in Central Texas, folks, it’s here now. After the usually-quick spring season, we went right into some good old Texas heat, really beginning in April. So it’s a good thing the City of Georgetown’s Parks Department has some very fine, reasonably-priced city pools where you can beat the heat and have fun in the process, perhaps bond with your kids, or, like the 4-year-old young lady near the end of this post, with your grandpa. These are some of the photos taken this week for my Williamson County Sun friends. Stay cool, friends.
Just a little drive near home tonight after finishing up a paying assignment in Salado. What is about egrets and cattle? Why are the birds attracted to livestock? And how do the cows feel about it? One photo has no birds, just a mom and her calf. Have a good night.
On Saturday night in Georgetown, Texas, a concert was planned, part of the 2016 Festival of the Arts. The weather, however, had left San Gabriel Park quite soaked. Saturday afternoon, the Georgetown High School music ensembles, the evening’s scheduled performers, decided to cancel. That didn’t stop a handful of people from showing up, for fireworks, which did not cancel. A brief shower did come through a little before 8p.m. People scurried, and actually left. 4-year-old identical twins Ella and Anna Daniel, however, were there with their mom, dad and grandparents. They like the park, and fireworks, too. The Crockett family, including Dale, his wife Sherry, and their sons, Luke and Joshua, took in the colorful lights about 9:30 Saturday night.
Cameron James Sharp, our grandson, lives over 900 miles from us. We don’t get the opportunity to see him, or his mom and dad, that often. Needless to say, we don’t like this, but for now, it is what it is. We won’t be leaving Texas anytime soon. It took far too long to get back. With that in mind, here are some photos taken of Cameron and dad (my son, Austin) at Bull Branch Park, in Taylor, Texas on Friday evening. They boarded a plane back to Atlanta the next morning. Any family member of ours must see the Taylor ducks whenever they can! The last photo in this post is just a moment between Cameron and his dad after leaving the park.
Early Friday afternoon, the school board offices in Georgetown, Texas advised my friends at the Willamson County Sun to anticipate Georgetown High’s graduation ceremonies being moved into the school gym, not the district’s beautiful stadium. When I arrived around 6:30, however, officials decided to go with the original stadium plan. Before showtime, students gathered inside the Klett Performing Arts Center, checking those phones. Family and friends were happy: the stadium had plenty of room for all. Those storm clouds did hover quite a bit though! Despite the weather, principal Cade Smith made almost through the M’s before lightning came. With safety in mind, the ceremony was halted, 418 graduates scurrying beneath the bleachers on the visitors’ side, parents and friends doing the same under the home-side stands. After about 30 minutes, principal Smith gave the command: “Let’s go.” Things moved fast after that! Before the last diploma landed in happy hands, the rain came, slowly at first. The ceremony over, the bottom really dropped out. Following tradition, graduates tossed bags of corn starch into the air. Even with rain setting in, graduate Jo’Vonta Grimble couldn’t help celebrating a bit more, the empty seats surrounding him. Over the loudspeaker came the iconic song, “Celebration,” by Kool & The Gang. Jo’Vonta, and all these kids, got it done.
This couple of photos has nothing to do with what I was actually covering this evening, but storms are interesting. This was on the way home, about a mile from my house in Taylor. That reflection at the bottom of the first photo is the hood of my car. Through the years I’ve found that dogs don’t like this kind of weather, but sometimes us humans do.
