Imagine

It has become very obvious to me that our TV and other News Media intend to control our lives. I gave up reading my local newspaper because I became so tired of reading what ever slant "They" wanted to put on what they print. The TV News Media is just as bad. As I have posted earlier, they decided to put down Mr. Beck for a 'showman' , orating about returning to American values of faith and wholesomeness of family. While at the same time shining a light upon Al Sharpton for preaching racial prejudice of "They can't do that to US !!!"
Now the latest news about how wrong the Preacher from Florida is for planning to burn some Korans and attempting to establish a communication with the Imam that wants to put a Muslim Mosque within site of the Ground Zero Site. They mean to shame and belittle the American people by printing and broadcasting that the Koran burning would only incite Muslim's around the world to protest, bomb and kill Americans. Uhhhh..... HELLO !!! I believe the Muslim Religion had declared war (JIHAD) and death to ALL AMERICANS a long time ago. Does the American people think that burning a few editions of their "MY GOD IS BETTER THAN YOUR GOD SO THEREFORE I KILL YOU" Koran, will bring world peace ??? I think not.... And, to make things worse, our media wants us to crumble under the weight of 'Freedom of Religion'. What our country is based on, and blah blah blah..... I am NOT a religious man. But, I do believe in freedom of religion, and the right of every individual to worship in their own way. But, I don't believe that the News Media should build the "Trojan Horse" that allows a religion to continue to infringe on MY rights. A religion that has declared WAR and DEATH upon me and my fellow Americans. Are we supposed to welcome them with the open arms of love, only to let them blow our asses to Hell ????
I think we need to think about it.... REALLY. Does our News Media report the news, or do they control what we see and hear ???? Who are the Terrorists of the World ??? I feel we need to start inprisoning people who continue to be, in my mind, TREASONESS acts upon our country. But, alas.... That would take our government to commit an act of responsibility. But that is another story..........

Racism in America

I, like many others, have been wondering.... How is it that only White People are Racists ???? Some White Guy named Beck, just had a rally in Washington D.C. the other day. The News Media reports that Mr. Beck (can't remember his first name) who is some radio personality, was sponsored by or was representing the Tea Party Movement. I have been aware of this organization, but have payed about as much attention to it as I have of any other political movement that I have survived, in my lifetime. The 'Media' felt that they had to spend as much time reporting on Mr. Beck holding this rally on the same day as Martin Luther King's "I had a dream...." speech. Not only that, he would be standing within feet of where MLK stood when he gave the speech. The 'Media' then goes on with a synopsis of his speech, which was attempting to tell America that we need to basically get a hold of ourselves and be responsible for our own actions. To take pride in being an American and to return to the American Values of honesty, respect and to be law abiding citizens. He even talked about looking toward religion, getting on your knees and praying AND to let your children SEE YOU on your knees and praying. Personally, I am not a religious man, but, if that is what it takes to get people to return to American Values, then that is what we need to do. They report that Mr. Beck gave his speech like "the Showman that he is...."
Now, because the 'Media' does not want to appear to be Racist, they have to report that the Honorable Al Sharpton sponsored his own 'Rally'. They show him in his typical posture, ranting and raving on how "THEY CANNOT TAKE THIS DAY AWAY FROM US !!!!!", and "HOW DARE THEY BE SO DISRESPECTFUL" and on and on. Mr. Sharpton got equal, if not more time to spew his "DOWN WITH WHITEY" speech that he has been harping on for more years than I care to remember. The 'Media' gave Mr. Sharpton not such discriptors that they tagged Mr. Beck with. Am I really the only one that sees something wrong with this ????
I guess all White People are just so racist that we too 'Have a Dream'. To return to the American ways of honesty and respect. But alas.... Al Sharpton and people like him, would rather continue an atmosphere of racial tension. After all.... all you White People owe ALL the Black People.

I've been preoccupied lately. I just love the monopoly that the Utility Companies have in America. My Monroe County Water Authority decided to replace the water lines on my street.
I have been rudely awakened every morning for the last 3 weeks, at 6:30am by the sound of Bulldozers, Backhoes, and Dump Trucks. It's nice to know that they are punctual with the start of their day, but it's aggravating when they quit at 3pm after being my alarm clock.
They then decided to follow up their rudeness by ending with blowing up the line that supplies water to my house. They then tell me that they are going to connect to my house with a garden hose, and disappear like thieves. I am expecting them to return to correct the problem. But NOOOOOO !!!!! Two Days later I recieve a letter from them, telling me that it is "MY" responsiblity to repair the water line. So I call a Plumbing Contractor and am given an estimate for the repairs to be SEVEN THOUSAND DOLLARS !!!!!
I have been told by my contactor that they do this quite often, knowing full well that they are incurring a huge expense on the home owner. Personally, I would not be able to sleep at night knowing that I caused ANY finacial problems for another person. I will attempt to obtain an attorney and sue for my costs. More than likely, I will find that I don't have a leg to stand on. How nice, that our Utility Companies have so much power over us Little People. They must be very proud of themselves.

Dirt Track Stock Car Racing

The heart of Stock Car Racing in America, are the thousands of Dirt Racetracks that are throughout the country. Not far from the property that I hunt, in the Southern Tier of New York State, is a wonderful Racetrack. Woodhull Raceway. The scenery around the track is beautiful and the racing is as exciting as you will find. It's about the best entertainment you can find, on a Saturday night, with your cloths on. Lots of color, dust and noise. Bumpin', Bangin' and trading paint. You will see some cars with pretty cool paint jobs or hand painted with duct tape numbers, and don't let the appearence of the car fool you. Anybody can win.

If not for Ugliness there would be No Beauty

I have no idea what the biological name for these two weeds would be. I found them yesterday next to Henner Pond. I believe they are both weeds of some sort, and it is obvious that one is more appealing than the other, and it reminded me of a thought that I have had for most of my life. "If it were not for ugly, there would be no beauty." Like how beautiful and English Bulldog is, and how people would say that they have 'a face that only a Mother could love.' We should embrace the ugliness of the world with the same joy that we embrace beauty.

My gift.....
I apparently have this special gift of always choosing the wrong queue line. If I'm at the Super Market and there are 10 lines with 5 people in each, and one line with 2 people, I will choose the line with two people. Without fail, the person in fromt of me will have some sort of problem at the register. They don't have enough money, or they have to try 4 credit cards before they find on that works, or they have to write a check, or they need a price check, or they begin an arguement with the cashier about the price. It is always something. I have actually been directed by a store employee to another line that just opened up, to find that the new cashier cannot access their register. Meanwhile, every other line in the store has been checked out, and new lines have formed.
If I am on a toll road, I can unerringly pick the line that everyone in front of me needs to ask directions to and address that is 60 miles away. Again, all the other lines will empty out and 10 more cars have exited the toll booths before I am able to pass through.
I have arrived at a doctors office on the appointed time and sat there for an hour or more, while the entire waiting room has been taken care of, and not only that, people that come in behind me are taken care of before my name is called.
Am I the only one ??????????

Religion, Life and Death

Among the many ideas that I have, I look at Religion, Life and Death a bit differently than most people. I consider myself an Athiest. I do not believe in any God, or even a 'Life Force'. My Dad insisted that my brother and I discover religion on our own, and particularly disliked my Grandmother's (Mom's Mom) introducing Catholosism to us. Grandma was a very devout Catholic and practiced her religion until the day she died. She was one of the original 'modern women'. She tried to keep abreast of the latest fashion and design of the day. I remember she had a Packard Convertable, that my brother and I loved to ride around in, with the top down. Grandma divorced Grandpa when my Mom was 2 years old, and I never did meet the man, in my life. Because divorce was such a taboo in 1931, Grandma was 'Excommunicated' from the Catholic Church. I know that in the year 2010 it sounds kind of silly for an entire religion to condemn my Grandmother from practicing her religion, just because she divorced a man that was hard to live with. Even though, as I understand it, he was an alcoholic womanizer and petty criminal. According to the Pope and the Catholic Church, she was no longer recognized as a human being in the eyes of the church. Grandma spent the rest of her life moving around to find a Catholic Church she could worship in. Eventually they would discover that she was 'Excommunicated' and ask her to 'NOT' enter that church. She was uninvited to more Catholic Churchs than I can count, and this woman remained a devout Catholic. Apparantly their 'forgiving God' could not forgive the 'sin' of divorce. Am I the only one that sees the ignorance of treating my Grandmother so shabbily.
I became involved with the Protestant religion in order to play Basketball in a Church League. I attended church, every Sunday from about age 10 to 15. I enjoyed the sermons, singing in the choir and actually believed throughout this time. Every Sunday my Mom and Dad gave me 25 or 50 cents to put in the tray. Many times it was money that should have been used for household things that we would do without, to give to the Church. I began to realize that three or four times a year, the whole Sunday Sermon was about 'digging deeper' to give to the church because the church needed money. I had been to the ministers house and had helped one move out and another move in during this time. The minister and his family lived in one of the nicest and biggest homes in my village. He and his family always had new shoes and clothing etc. that most of the rest of us could never be able to afford, yet here is this minister telling us that we need to dig deeper and give. After a number of 'Dig Deeper' sermons, I realized that I did not have to pay someone to believe in God. I stopped attending church and have lived the rest of my life in a more devoutly religious manner than any so-called 'Religious God Fearing' person ever has. I lived by being an honest, responsible member of society.
It was much later in my life,that I realized that I do not like people who make a living by simply speaking. Ministers, Preachers and Priests. They make money by talking. By taking their Bibles and making you believe in a God that you have never seen or never heard. This all knowing and seeing being of pureness. And yet, for all of eternity there have been countless wars based on the premise that "My GOD is better than your god, so therefore I KILL YOU..."
I say, WHAT !!!??? What God, from any Bible, would allow War ?? What God would allow so much pain and suffering throughout the world ??
Life and Death are the only miracles in this world. I am born, and I am me. My world is my life, and when I die, that world ends. I have witnessed the death of many forms of life, including humans. I have looked into the eyes of death. Death is NEVER pretty. I see the struggle to live, and then it just stops. There is nothing after. There is no Heaven. Hell is what we live, and that's it. When we die, our world ENDS. Therefore, we ARE God. At that point, as far as I am concerned, you can take whatever is good... Burn the rest.... and throw it in the nearest garbage can. That is IT.

These are the two faces that I see the most. I spend WAY too much time alone. I have been dealing with depression for many years. With some counselling, medications and these two faces, I have been able to endure this life.

Tigger and Jezabelle are now 2 years old, and have lightened my life emensely. They have been great company and an endless form of entertainment. The truly unconditional love that I feel from them has been a new breath of life for me. I still need to attempt to connect with more humans but, I still find it hard to trust people. My life has been a long string of friends and lovers that have taken what they wanted and threw me aside. I know that the whole world is not like this, but the people of my past have left some pretty deep wounds. Did I tell you... I love my cats.......

Everybody wants to be me. But they don't want to bruise and they don't want to bleed..... -John Rich

It seems like everyone wants to be a Millionaire, and not only that but feel that they deserve to be a Millionaire. One of the many problems in this country is that nobody thinks they need to work for it. Through my 30 years at the Eastman Kodak Company, I came to the conclusion that there are two kinds of people that I have little tolerance for..... Those that CAN'T do their job and those that WON'T do their job. I had a friend that had a good example of the people who CAN'T do thier job. His job description was 'Machine Operator'. With this title, he knew that when he pushed a button, the machines job was to do A then B then C, etc. Meaning he knew not only what the machine does, but how it does it. There were others with the job title of 'Machine Operator' that would push the button, and if the machine didn't work, would throw their hands in the air and declare "I don't know what's wrong with this machine !!!", and then they would become the WON'T do their job people by leaving the machine for someone else to fix the machine. There are far too many people out there that have that 'someone else will do it' mentality, and too few 'people that will do it'.

I took this photograph while camping at Cedar Point SP between Clayton and Cape Vincent in October 2006. I have always been awed by the red sunrises or sunsets. They always appear to be such a spectacular event. The St. Lawrence River is a unique body of water, full of beauty and diversity. Cedar Point has a beach that is basically a large cove off of the river. The water that runs through it is always cold. The kind of cold that takes 5 or 10 minutes for your body to adjust to after you dive into it. I have gone swimming there when the water was so cold, your body doesn't adjust to the temprature, but would be quite refreshing on those hot humid days of July and August. I was able to spend alot of time there when I was a kid. I will never forget the cold water and the Bath House Concession Stand. All the macho teenage boys would be in there showing how manly they are by arm wrestling. Ahhh..... the good ole days.

Religion ???????

Henner Pond

The End of Lever Hill Rd.

The 'Henner Pond' photo was taken Opening Day of Archery Season for Whitetail Deer. I spent that morning and afternoon, sitting on the top of the hill, in the woods to the left. I watched the sunrise and the sunset. That day, from my blind, I managed to anger some red squirrels, see a flock of Wild Turkey forage past, watched many Does and a Spike Buck, graze across the field. Never knocked an arrow and never had a shot, but it's a day I will never forget.

The second photo was taken a couple weeks later at the other end of Lever Hill Rd. This is Fall in the Southern Tier of New York State. The Pennsylvania State Line is about 15 miles away. I believe that this is some of the most beautiful country around. My Friend owns property here. I get to spend time here, in solitude. I enjoy hunting and fishing. I am not a very successful hunter or fisherman, but I enjoy the experience.

I am lucky enough to have land to hunt on, in the Southern Tier and in Northern New York inside the Adirondak State Park. The cabin in the Adirondak Mountains is 10 miles off of the nearest Highway. We lease the land from a logging company which is part of 50,000 acres. If you want to be alone, THIS is the place to go. We call the cabin 'The Taj'. I try to get up there alone, but also enjoy when any of the other 5 members are there. It takes about 30 to 45 minutes to get to within 1/3 of a mile from the cabin. I don't have a 4WD or an ATV so when I go there alone, I have to pack in all my food, drink and gear. It's work that I enjoy. To be so far away from the nearest human being, and in a place where you may not be at the top of the food chain, is a feeling that is hard to discribe. The property in the Southern Tier is much more accessable and is less than 15 minutes from town but when you get back to the camp area, you can be in solitude.

In my life, and from my experiences, I find it hard to believe in a God. I do not have anything against anyone who believes there is a God. In fact, I think for some people it is a very good thing for them. Just don't try to push it on me. I have read about most of the major religions and the closest thing I have come to how I feel is what the Native American Indians believed. They basically believed in an 'Earth Mother'. She is not to be abused. Never take anything that you don't need or take more than you need. Always be thankful for what is given to you and give back to the earth. Before Europeans came here, they did not believe that ANYONE owned the land. If anything the land and the things on it, owned you. What the Europeans and thier Gods dubbed 'Savages' were a peacful people who lived the life of Mother Earth. Now after some several centuries of raping the planet, many are starting to believe that their idea may have been a good one.

As I stated above, I do not believe in a God. The closet thing that I have in my life that could be considered a religious experience is when I am sitting in the woods, or on the lake, with no one around. Eventually I get to a point where my mind stops thinking and the only thing that I am aware of is what I can see, feel, hear and smell. Now THAT is livin'......

Windows to the Soul......

They say that eyes are windows to the soul. Eyes are amazing organs of the human anatomy. The gift of sight is amazing enough. From spending much time, working in dark rooms of Kodak's Research Labs, I used to ponder the thought of being blind. I would be awed at what I could accomplish, without sight. Kodak taught me how to be blind. By working in total dark, with at most times, dangerous chemicals, you learn just what you can do without the luxury of 'seeing' what you are doing. My exposure to blindness was pretty much limited to seeing a few blind people on the street, with dogs or canes, or Jose Feliciano, Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder. With Jose, Ray and Stevie, I would often wonder why they seem to always be looking up to the ceiling when they were performing. I found that working my hands in total dark, after a short time, I would find myself looking up to the ceiling too. It was uncontrollable. The only thing I could figure was that it must be one of those human instincts that you are born with, as a way of somehow protecting your eyes from things that can fly into them. One of the wonders of life.

Hearts and Flowers Hex

I made this 'Hearts and Flowers Hex' a couple of years ago. Inspired by another Amish Hex Sign. Growing up in Northern NY Dairy country, I remember seeing these here and there, mostly on barns and farm houses, and I always liked the simplicity of the designs.

Road Rage vs. Road Royalty

Every once in a while, the news media will throw us a story of some idiot who actually kills someone in a fit of "Road Rage". I for one, am not immune to this syndrome, and at times would like to throttle some idiot that defies all the rules of being considerate of others. These people, I have dubbed to be "Road Royalty". They believe that the Streets, Roads and Highways are there for their personal use, and to Hell with 'everyone else' that has the audacity to use them.
Have you ever been on a divided highway and you come upon a long line of cars, backed up in the left lane ("The Passing Lane") because there is a car in each lane, driving at less than the speed limit, and one would not pass the other ??? The perfect example of Road Royalty. These people would not pull over if there was a near death patient in an Ambulance behind them. They don't have to.... They have a destination that over rides any other objective of others on their highway. Road Royalty don't seem to realize that those two or three mirrors in front of and to the sides, are to make you aware of what is behind you. If another vehicle should pull up behind you, it's not because they want to get a better look at your ride, it is because they would like to drive a little faster than you, and it would be nice if you would just pull into the right lane, and let them be on their way. It's not your responsiblity to assure that everyone should drive under the speed limit. When you find yourself looking down a completely open highway, with a view for as far as your eyes can see, you may want to take a peek in one of your mirrors and notice that long line of cars and trucks behind you, pull over and set them free. What harm could that do ???
After the media advertised that SUV's are safer to drive than lower riding cars, SUV and large truck sales went through the roof. First of all, have you ever noticed that the bigger the truck or SUV, the smaller the driver. It a power symbol for these people. They drive around in their living rooms, playing with their "control panel", driving down the middle of two lanes, because they can't stay in one lane, and could care less about exhibiting common courtesy to anyone. If you attempt to pass them, they speed up so they can be in front. I believe that if they could, these people would drive sideways and take over three lanes of highway, not just two.
AND OMG !!!! The worse thing that could come along is Cell Phones, followed by Texting. Now they can drive around in their living rooms, talking and texting to all their BFF's. They already are unable to do ONE THING at a time (like driving a car) now they have yet another toy to distract them. One more reason to be oblivious to what is going on around them. One time, I had a lady, driving 40mph, come off an entrance ramp and cross three lanes of 55mph traffic and didn't even bother to use her directional lights. After I dodged a few cars that were slamming on their brakes and taking evasive actions, I see as I pass her that she had a cell phone in one hand, and a cup of coffee in the other and I could see smoke coming up from the cigarette that she had in the ashtray. No hands on the steering wheel. I was so thankful that she had applied her makeup before she got on the expressway.

Completed 25-July-2010
I call this design 'Life Hex'. It is imspired by the Amish Hex Sign of Life. The 12 spokes represent the months in the year and the blue wave border represents the endless waves of eternity and long life.

The Good Ole Days in Sackets Harbor, New York

I grew up in Sackets Harbor, a small town in Northern New York State. I photographed this pamorama of the harbor in June. Except for a short period of time, at the start of my Senior Year, when I lived near Buffalo, NY, I went to school in the same building from Kindergarden to Graduation. My class had 38 kids. Although I didn't realize it so much then, it was a great place to grow up. Nobody locked their cars or homes. Everybody knew everybody, and usually everybodys business. If they didn't know, they would make up something. I believe the population at the time was about 1000 people. The village is near the mouth of Black River Bay, just South of the St. Lawrence River. We lived with four very distinct seasons. The Fall foliage was usually spectacular. The Winter had lots of snow. Springtime was always a renewel of everything, and Summers were alot of fun. Swimming and fishing in Lake Ontario. As kids, we all pretty much had the whole world to run around in. At least it seemed that way, for a time. We were generally poor to middle class people. Unlike it is now. There appears to be plenty of money in Sackets these days. It seems like it is the place to be, in the Summertime. Definately alot more activity than when I grew up. Our Protestant Church had a bell tower that tolled the hour and half hour time. I lived less than a block from it, and you pretty much knew what time it was, 24 hours a day. There was a run down building on Main St. (that is now a Comedy Club) and there was a red box attached to the wall with a button inside that the town cop would push and sound a very loud siren, everyday at noon and 8pm (a curfew for kids under 16 to GET HOME). I really do miss "The Good Ole Days".

Less than 1%

I took my Mom to the hospital today, to attempt corrective surgury for an abdominal aortic aneorism. This was a scheduled surgury that has been in the planning for about a month. She had to see her PCP, cardiologist and a vascular surgeon and everyone OK'd her for the surgury. At 80 years old, any surgury is major. Everyone gave her the green light, but everyone wanted to list all the 'bad' things that 'could' happen. Now, I know, that they have to do this to cover their butts from a malpractice law suit. This list had many possibilities of things that could go wrong, and I could see that it definately got my Mom's mind spinning and upset her. The doctors and I had explained to her that the corrective surgury was much more desireable to what could happen if it burst, and she would be in an emergency situation that almost certainly end in a bad outcome.
Now, this morning, just before she was going into surgury, the doctor again retold her of the bad things. And, again I could see that it upset her. His major statement, in an attempt to ease her fears is that "there is less than a 1% chance of having a heart attack and possibly death." At that moment it hit me. ANY percentage, above zero chance of Death, is not a good thing. A 1% chance of death makes the 99% chance of survival much less appealing than the number should imply.

I enjoy making Celtic Designs

I have a high school classmate that writes a blog, and she told me about blogging. Her blog is interesting and I access it quite often. Recently, I noticed some very good photography that had been posted on another classmates Facebook page. The Photographer ended up to be the author, Jon Katz. He has a blog site that I have been reading for the last couple months. He and his wife are VERY interesting people. I find myself visiting his blog everyday. He has inspired me to give this blogging thing a try. I think I have somethings to show and say, that just might be interesting to someone, other than me.....

My name is Harry. I am 58 years old. I worked for 30 years as a Research Technician for the Eastman Kodak Company. During this time, I was lucky enough to have met some very fine photographers who inspired me to delve into the world of photography. Through my job, I learned, what I like to call "the secret of film". Meaning I know how photographic film is made and how it works. I spent far too much time living and working in Dark Rooms. It was very interesting work and occupied my hands and mind, and provided a steady paycheck. But I digress.... More on that later. Anyway.... I have been an amatuer photographer for about 40 years and plan to post some of my photos here. I hope you enjoy them.

Since I was forced into an early retirement in 2000, I decided to take a night class in Making Stained Glass. I have since become a Starving Stained Glass Artist. In this time, of the 21st Century Depression, there isn't alot of spare money out there to buy art. So my sales are not enough to support me completely, but, I pay my bills and for now, that will have to do.

My life has been interesting, to say the least. I have been an observer of life and tend to view it a little differently than most people. I believe that there are two things that have enabled me to survive some very trying times. Music - has ALWAYS moved me. It has soothed my mind through times of insanity and pain. Humor - I figure, if you can't find the humor in life, it's time to check out. So, I laugh often and can find the humor in many corners of life.

I hope to reveal my life to you, and hope you can see yourself in some ways. I would be thrilled if I could inspire anyone to be the best that they can be. To live a good life. That is my personal goal, and I plan on chasing it down, one of these days.

Being my 1st entry, I am going to attempt to post a photo of my latest sunset, and my latest glass work.