A collection of photography and exploration focusing on Upstate South Carolina and beyond.
After 40 years of teaching at Furman, Laura has retired. She is now professor emeritus of chemistry. Laura came to Furman in 1983 after doing a post-doctoral position at the University of Colorado. She answered an ad in the back of a journal and was attracted by the statement “…and our students are a delight … Read More “Retirement Reflections” »
Wednesday’s Child Wednesday was my birthday. Coincidentally, I was born on a Wednesday. Contrary to the poem, I haven’t been full of woe. Quite the opposite. I feel that I have lived an exceedingly charmed life so far, and I try to stay mindful of just how lucky I’ve been. My birthday week started with … Read More “One Step Closer” »
This past week we received word that Tony Arrington passed away on Sunday. He had been in declining health for the past several years and dementia had robbed him of his once great intellect. Tony was 82. Tony was one of Laura’s colleagues in the Chemistry Department at Furman University. He was also an alumnus … Read More “Remembering Tony” »
Due to a weird quirk of my family I have a somewhat skewed sense of history. I am one of the younger siblings of seven. My mother was the youngest of nine and my father was the second youngest of seven. We come from big families. My Grandfather Taylor was born in 1880, and for … Read More “Ancestral Ages” »
This past week my brother-in-law, Jennings Putnam, passed away from complications of COVID-19. His passing on August 31 was sudden, and left our family with a profound sense of loss. Jennings was a native of the Warrior Creek area near Gray Court and attended high school at Gray Court-Owings while my father was principal. There … Read More “Goodbye, Jennings” »
Several weeks ago Laura and her sister Amy drove across country to the house they inherited on Samish Island, Washington. They spent some sister time together and were able to do some final steps to close out their parents’ estate. Earlier this week Amy and I traded places. I flew out on Monday and will drive back across with Laura in a couple of weeks. In the meantime we’ll be getting back together with friends and visiting places we came to love during our year out here.
Both my late father and Laura’s father served in the US Navy in WWII. Dad talked a little about doing MP patrols in Paris and being stationed in Guam, but really didn’t talk about the war. Mr. Wright was also reticent to talk about the way. I guess some experiences are just too hard to discuss. Now they are both gone, and those stories with them. However, there is one story from Mr. Wright that was told to Laura, not about WWII, but his later service in the Korean War. It was the story about how his ship, the USS Walke, was torpedoed in the Sea of Japan.
I’m still trying to catch up after a whirlwind holiday travel season. Given our upcoming activities, I’ll probably be trying to catch up for the next month or so. Regardless, while we are in Florida we like to get out into nature as much as we can. This holiday season we were able to visit Kissimmee Prairie, the Stick Marsh at the Sebastian River Preserve, and several beaches.
The Christmas Dinosaurs have been put away and the trees taken down. We’ve been catching our breath before ramping up for the next round of madness. The past couple of weeks have been a whirlwind. There were paddle trips, swamp outings, drum circles, and we even celebrate a major milestone. All of this, while wrapping up 2018 and seeing in 2019 in grand fashion. Over the next several posts I’m going to try to summarize the Winter Holiday happenings.