In the midst of all the Red Poppy Festival activity this weekend, I had an opportunity to spend a few quiet  minutes Saturday afternoon at Georgetown’s Our Lady of the Rosary Cemetery and Prayer Gardens as a group gathered to commemorate the site’s upcoming 20th anniversary.   The founders, Ellen and Nick Brumder, were in town from their home in New Zealand.   It was nice seeing them, but my time here is usually spent seeing the small details.    That’s what you have here, friends.   Just some details, but there are some nice people photos in Wednesday’s Williamson County Sun.

On some days the light quality is just impeccable.   What I saw Sunday evening near Granger, Texas was a natural gift.    The day began with clouds and periods of rain.  Near day’s end that much-needed rain moved on, leaving behind some truly precious light.   Embracing this light is a passion I don’t take for granted.

Frank Armstrong, one of my photojournalism instructors at UT-Austin in the early-1970s, posted on Facebook he would be having lunch at Taylor’s Louie Mueller BBQ.   For many years Frank and his wife Ellen have lived in Massachusetts, but he still stays in touch with his home state.  Frank was in town for his 70th high school class reunion.   Also there was Richard Greffe, who was one of the graduate teaching assistants when I attended UT.  I’d seen neither since graduating from UT in 1974.  May marks my 50th year since graduation.

Our area has had  a mixture of rain, clouds and hints of sunshine today.   This is what I saw tonight a few miles north of our Taylor home.   Pastel skies are soothing.

So as I was leaving the wet Georgetown square early this afternoon, some rain-soaked plants near the library got my attention.   Delicate drops danced across their surface.   Not being a botanical wizard, I still wanted to snap some photos.  A few minutes into the session I asked a passerby if she knew the plant’s name.   Intrigued, she pulled out her phone to take a picture.  “It’s a yucca,” she said, showing me the information under her photo.  “Your iPhone can do this, too,” she explained.   My phone is an inexpensive Android, but I thanked her as she continued an outing with her kids.   Folks, beyond taking photos and a stab at  writing, my knowledge base is limited.   Maybe I’ll investigate that application for my cheap phone.   Yucca plants are elegant. Rain is, too. 

A few photographs from the second day at Georgetown’s Red Poppy Festival, the majority focusing on the parade, plus a bit of the car show, and just moments I like.  Included is a lady celebrating her 90th birthday wearing a wonderful tiara, Speedy, a tortoise cared for by All Things Wild Rehabilitation, a young lady admiring a sand sculpture she created in a children’s area for the festival, plus an 8-year-old doing quite well with his electric guitar.  This and that, friends.

There was quite a crowd around the Georgetown square for the opening night of the Red Poppy Festival.  The festival continues through Sunday, highlighted by a parade at 10a.m. on Saturday.

Today is National Arbor Day, a day to pay homage to the trees in our lives.   This is a simple post, just a few trees.   I open with two photos of a mesquite on the Circleville ranch of Carol Fox and her brother, John.   It’s not a large tree, but commands attention sitting at the crest of a hill not far from the San Gabriel River.   Others are just trees I enjoy seeing.

Cormorants are naturally good at many things, but their fishing skills might be among the avian world’s best.  They’ll be swimming along, then take a deep dive into the water, often coming up with a well-earned meal.   These are from a couple of daily walks in Taylor.  

For weeks I’ve been photographing wildflowers, but not posting everything.  Rather than let these go by the wayside, a few are posted tonight.   The time for bluebonnets is mostly past in Central Texas, but there are more wildflowers to enjoy in coming weeks.