Savanna Park

On a summer trip we stopped in Savanna for a day and enjoyed a evening walk around the cemetery and haunted houses of Savanna. At one stop I spotted a fellow relaxing on a park bench, I liked his relaxed smile so I captured it and him.

The guy was likely half lite but seemed to enjoy life, what more can you ask for. He seemed to be stress free and not wanting for anything. People might think of him as a bum, it is all in what people seek out in life and what makes you happy. Some people need a lot more things and or attention than other people. Some are happy to enjoy a day in the park sitting on a bench.

The Last of The Kennedy Dynasty

As soon as cancer was found, I noticed the immediate attempt at canonization of old Teddy by the main stream media.. They are saying what a "great American" he is. I say, let's get a couple things clear & not twist the facts to change the real history.

1. He was caught cheating at Harvard when he attended it. He was expelled twice, once for cheating on a test, and once for paying a classmate to cheat for him.

2. While expelled, Kennedy enlisted in the Army, but mistakenly signed up for four years instead of two. Oops, the man can't count to four. His father, Joseph P. Kennedy, former U.S. Ambassador to England (a step up from bootlegging liquor into the US from Canada during prohibition), pulled the necessary strings to have his enlistment shortened to two years, and to ensure that he served in Europe, not Korea, where a war was raging. No preferential treatment for him like "he" charged President Bush received.

3. Kennedy was assigned to Paris, never advanced beyond the rank of Private, and returned to Harvard upon being discharged. Imagine a person of his "education" NEVER advancing past the rank of Private.

4. While attending law school at the University of Virginia, he was cited for reckless driving four times, including once when he was clocked driving 90 miles per hour in a residential neighborhood with his headlights off after dark. Yet his Virginia driver's license was never revoked. Coincidentally, he passed the bar exam in 1959, amazing!!!

5. In 1964, he was seriously injured in a plane crash, and hospitalized for several months. Test results done by the hospital at the time he was admitted had shown he was legally intoxicated. The results of those tests remained a "state secret" until in the 1980's when the report was unsealed. Didn't hear about that from the unbiased media, did we.

6. On July 19, 1969, Kennedy attended a party on Chappaquiddick Island in Massachusetts. At about 11:00 PM, he borrowed his chauffeur's keys to his Oldsmobile limousine, and offered to give a ride home to Mary Jo Kopechne, a campaign worker. Leaving the island via an unlit bridge with no guard rail, Kennedy steered the car off the bridge, flipped, and into Poucha Pond.

7. He swam to shore and walked back to the party, after passing several houses and a fire station. Then two friends returned with him to the scene of the accident. According to their later testimony, they told him what he already knew, that he was required by law to immediately report the accident to the authorities. Instead Kennedy made his way to his hotel, called his lawyer, and went to sleep. Kennedy called the police the next morning and by then the wreck had already been discovered. Before dying, Kopechne had scratched at the upholstered floor above her head in the upside-down car. The Ken nedy family began "calling in favors", ensuring that any inquiry would be contained. Her corpse was whisked out-of-state to her family, before an autopsy could be conducted. Further details are uncertain, but after the accident Kennedy says he repeatedly dove under the water trying to rescue Kopechne, and he didn't call police because he was in a state of shock. It is widely assumed Kennedy was drunk, and he held off calling police in hopes that his family could fix the problem overnight. Since the accident, Kennedy's "political enemies" have referred to him as the distinguished Senator from Chappaquiddick. He pled guilty to leaving the scene of an accident, and was given a SUSPENDED SENTENCE OF TWO MONTHS. Kopechne's family received a small pay out from the Kennedy's insurance policy, and never sued. There was later an effort to have her body exhumed and autopsied, but her family successfully fought against this in court, and Kennedy's family paid their attorney's bills... a "token of friendship"?

8. Kennedy has held his Senate seat for more than forty years, but considering his longevity, his accomplishments seem scant. He authored or argued for legislation that ensured a variety of civil rights, increased the minimum wage in 1981, made access to health care easier for the indigent, and funded Meals on Wheels for fixed-income seniors and is widely held as the "standard-bearer for liberalism". In his very first Senate roll, he was the floor manager for the bill that turned U.S. immigration policy upside down and opened the floodgate for immigrants from third world countries.

9. Since that time, he has been the prime instigator and author of every expansion of and increase in immigration, up to and including the latest atte mpt to grant amnesty to illegal aliens. Not to mention the Pious grilling he gave the last two Supreme Court Nominees, as if he were the standard bearer for the nation in matters of right. What a pompous ass.

10. He is known around Washington as a public drunk, loud, boisterous and very disrespectful to ladies. JERK is a better description than "great American".

Let's not allow the spin doctors make this jerk a hero -- how quickly the American public forgets what his real legacy is ... just saying.

Bug Eyes Alone

This is another picture taken on the same day as the photo Bug Eyes that Jim Hartley Smith was kind enough to show me what a picture can look like with a edited sky. This picture was taken at a different exposure leaving some of the sky, not blown out like the first few shots. Using a Coolpix 4500 with a very low angle allowed me to get the better sky and same view as the edited version. Thanks to Jim, his hangs in my hallway. You meet some nice photographers along the way and years on some websites. Sadly you meet some not so nice people as well, some of them have issues. But to the many nice people who know themselves, are self assured and feel secure in themselves to help people like me, thanks. To the others, oh well, pound your salt.

Mo

Nose knows, dogs see things that way. They scope out rooms and areas with the nose more than the eye. Pays to watch discovery channel for trivia. Mo always knew when Min was cooking her specialty, special shells, his favorite plate to lick. Mo was a good dog and we miss him. We buried him in the back yard. The last warm weather day of that winter. A gut wrenching emotional experience for the family. The kids came home from school to find he had pass away. He died January 8th 2006,

Winding Foggy Paths

It was foggy yesterday afternoon and I wanted to get over to Rowe Woods but I was cleaning the shrine and bed room and wanted to get it all done. Plus it was kind of cold and I was just not motivated to go out and capture the moment. So here is a couple from the archive I found last night. Taken winter last year in about the same conditions.

I was able to get out and get the new phones we needed as well as get a little shopping done. Today is grocery day and it is my turn. Min and I switch off week ends and it is my turn. I plan on loading up since we have a grocery war going on and food prices have dropped. Need to fill the clean pantry. Might just take the D70 with the 1.8F 50mm lens with me. One reason I like the camera, light and easy to carry. It seems Swanson is sending his cold air down here next week. By this time next week end they are talking single digits. It has been cold here but not much snow, it is all about 80 miles north of us.

Twisting the Night Away

Well it looks like we may be vacationing in California this June. Bill & Martha are thinking about a trip to San Fransisco and the surrounding areas with a final trip to Yosemite and the lodge in the park. It is still up in the air whether it will be to California or a Cruise in the Mediterranean. All depends on who is going and if we can get all families together for the trip. It looks like the end of June is the target date for either trip. What good news to start out the new year. It would be nice either place we choose to go. We got word something was up when we saw them at Christmas but did not get final word till after they got back off their cruise to Costa Rica. Till we find out where we are headed we will be twisting in the wind or water till final plans are made.

Cleaning Out

We did a lot of cleaning over the past couple weeks, all kinds of cleaning. My lab ceiling needed a lot of dust and cob web removed and the up stairs laundry room and pantry needed cleaning. I also did some website cleaning and updating. Yearly updates and copyright crap and etc needed changes.

Still more to do but we have all week end, the hall closet will be 1 hour at least. I cleaned up some old photos and found this film shot off the deck of our old house on Collins. I use to love that river view. Val Lemming hauled it all away ... so much for Cincinnati, Ohio zoning regulations.

Holiday in Bob's Botanical Garden

We spent some time with b. schlake at his beautiful garden paradise. We got there to late to see it but it was nice to walk through. We went over to play some card and talk while enjoying some adult beverages. b. schlake wife prepared some nice snacks and was fun to get together for awhile and talk. Min and I always enjoy a visit with the schlake family. Even when one cheats at spades and still loses.

Christmas with Grand Ma

We spent Christmas eve afternoon with Grand Ma in the nursing home. She wanted Chinese for dinner so Min brought dinner and we gathered with Jim and part of his family. To say it was enjoyable is a double edge sword, in ways it is since we spend time with Grand Ma. But in some ways it is not, since nursing homes are depressing places and there is not much we can do other than talk while Grand Ma enjoys dinner. We have a few laughs and exchange gifts with her and talk about what the we all hope Christmas will bring. I feel for Min as she gets a bit depressed seeing her mom this way and there is nothing she can do to change how life is for Grand Ma. So goes Christmas Eve 2008 with Grand Ma. Merry Christmas ...

Traditions

With the year end coming quickly it makes me think back on the year as well as the years. The boys were learning how to fish off the Lakeside Ohio dock from their mother who was taught by Grand Mother Kelso. Passing down traditions from generations to generations if one way we live on eternal. My Father once told me long after he is gone I will be walking around and he hoped so would his grand kids and some day great grand kids. He said it was one of the ways people live on and make a mark. Dad passed on in 2000 and mom in 2002 but I still think of them every day and look at my sons as what they also left behind. Time passes to quick and not often appreciated as much as it should be, once gone we can never travel back. Well not yet.