The intensity of our Texas weather is immense.   The skies over Jonah, Texas tonight is one example.   As this is written, we’ve seen just a few drops of rain, but nature lets us know it’s a dominant force. 

The series focusing on barns continues tonight, friends.   Through our years back in Texas I’ve seen a number of barns cease to exist.   Some, however, are holding on.   It’s important to document them before it’s too late.  A few area friends probably know these places.  

Cotton, since it’s plentiful this year in our area, is used as my vehicle  for the transition from summer into autumn.   The photographs begin Saturday evening, meandering around the countryside east of Taylor.  Prince of Peace Lutheran Church is included.   The fields of our “Texas snow”  lovingly reflected the early-evening light.   This morning the official beginning of autumn was at 7:43 Central Daylight Time.  The photos presented were taken just minutes after the change, warm morning light enveloping an elegant field.   Just up the road, Prince of Peace is again offered, with a slightly different look.   And a few bolls to call this post complete.   We who live here will wait a while for cooler temperatures, but we know that autumn ushers in a less abusive time.  Texas summers are  combative.  We have enough of that with fellow humans.

From Saturday evening in Taylor, Texas, the last day of summer.    We’ll look forward to autumn’s arrival ….. in November.  Calendars are hopeful suggestions here. 

I was up well ahead of sunrise for this year’s Texas Mamma Jamma Ride, coordinated by Lone Star Circle of Care.   The cycling event began at Taylor’s Murphy Park, with cyclists trying several distances, including 70, 50, 25 and 15 miles.   This ride raises funds for Lone Star’s Big Pink Bus, a mobile mammography unit  that travels around Central Texas, helping women get care they need.   Quite a few breast cancer survivors ride each year.   It’s a fine event, a great cause.  But take note of the photograph with two women, friends wearing identical  red jerseys.   The lady on the right is Carla, a well-known cyclist from our area.   On June 14th, Carla sustained very serious injuries when struck by a motor vehicle in Taylor.   Thankfully, she not just survived, but has thrived.  She and her friend, a cancer survivor, did the 50-mile ride today.   A number of cyclists wore “Go Carla Go” stickers on their jerseys.   This ride does so much good, but a lot of folks were also overjoyed to see Carla riding again.  She’s an inspiration to many who know her. 

For as long as I’m able, you’ll see photos taken during daily walks, a few tiny landscapes taken with a feather-light Olympus mirrorless camera.   A few photos from morning walks this week, all in Taylor.  

Both photographs were taken at essentially the same location, but with different lenses.   Each is adorned with subject matter I love.   Continued development may impact these places, but hopefully it will be gradual process.   The land and sky are peaceful in our slice  of Central Texas.

The 2023 cotton yield in our area was so bad I didn’t make an effort to do photos at a cotton gin, but 2024 is a far better year, reason enough to spend time at Waterloo Gin, just east of Taylor.   Co-owners David Woollett and Clement Strmiska are staying very busy this summer.  Something I’d forgotten was just how dusty cotton gins can be. My allergy and sinus issues were  quick to remind me, but I still enjoyed  watching this team in action. Clement’s daughter Holly is there to help, too.  These photographs were taken on three recent visits.  One evening I rode along with Clement while he retrieved 19,000-20,000 cotton modules from the fields.   The gin has nine trucks, but not all are running all the time.  Sometimes the state power grid lets the guys know it’s time to call it a day a little early, but mostly they work past sunset, usually six days a week.  Cotton gins are atmospheric reminders of our state’s heritage.   Even in tougher years, Texas remains the top cotton producer in the United States.

It’s been a few years since I last photographed St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church in Richland, Texas, actually Pflugerville now.   I was shocked to see the area in front of the church taken over by development.   I gave it a pass, but managed a sunset photo before moving along to New Sweden Evangelical Lutheran Church, just a short distance away.   Tonight’s full moon, a Harvest Moon,  is from New Sweden.   I try to refrain from returning to the same place too much, but the church in New Sweden continues to inspire.

From right here in Taylor, Texas tonight, a Waxing Gibbous moon, at 98.3% visibility, shines over Williamson County Grain.   The birds are egrets en route to the rookery.