A collection of photography and exploration focusing on Upstate South Carolina and beyond.
My apologies, especially to everyone who has left feedback on our contact form. Apparently the notifications haven’t been forwarded to my e-mail, so I’ve missed most of them. I’m going to try to respond over the next couple of days, and I’ll be more diligent about checking that contact form.
As we were driving out to Samish Island back last August we passed through a couple of old towns. Especially in Montana as we passed ranches and old abandoned farmsteads I had flashes of the Old West. The first line of a set of lyrics popped into my head. When we got to the island … Read More “Jeremiah Jones” »
Homecoming at Furman has always been a special time for us. It was when Laura and I first met and we’ve always treated it like a second anniversary. This one was doubly special. It was my 40 year reunion and it was Laura’s big retirement celebration. When planning for Laura’s retirement things got a bit…confused. … Read More “Furman Homecoming 2023 and Laura’s Retirement Bash” »
Even though I’ve not been singing in the Greenville Chorale, some of my close friends are still participating. A couple of weeks ago I got a disturbing text message. Bing Vick was not at rehearsal because he had to take his wife, Judy, to the ER. There was no more information. However, the next day … Read More “Goodbye, Judy” »
One of the orphaned graveyards on my list belonged to the South Saluda Baptist Church in northern Greenville County. The church was located in what is now the Tall Pines Heritage Preserve. I visited this site two years ago, in February of 2019. At that time we found the graveyard in terrible disarray, with several … Read More “Orphaned Graveyard – South Saluda Baptist” »
Winter solstice 2020 The longest night of the darkest year… I paddle out to greet the returning sun,Leaving in my wake The grief of lost loved ones,The uncertainty of unrest,And the fear of isolation, Heading toward a time when the days are not just longer,But brighter.Days of anticipation And hope,When we can once againGather closely inLove and … Read More “Winter Solstice 2020” »
I can’t believe I haven’t posted anything here since Halloween. November was a blur, and December was upon us before I knew it. We have now entered the most chaotic time for professional musicians. This past week alone I’ve had either a rehearsal, a performance, or a group jam session every day. Since stores have … Read More “A Christmas Carol, Revisited” »
had my list of regional Irish pubs and I had my list of criteria. It was now time to visit some pubs. Some of the pubs I’d already visited, so I’d just rely on impressions I got from those visits. Others would be new to me. Some I’d visited, but it had been awhile, so I went back. There were fifteen pubs on my list and I managed to visit a little over half, eight in all. That was enough to come to some conclusions.
When you’ve lived in an area as long as I have you can’t help but find yourself exploring places that you’ve been previously. Expect the term “Revisited” to start popping up more frequently in blog post titles. This was the case for a recent photo trek with fellow explorer Mark Elbrecht as we wandered over lower Laurens County. We both wanted to see what was left, if anything, of the old ghost town of Renno.
I decided it’s time to do a bit of housekeeping around here. I haven’t changed the theme or appearance of the blog (that may come later), but I have been working on links, static info, and some behind-the-scenes stuff that I hope will make life easier for this old blogger.