Monday, December 13, 2010
Mey's-en-scène: Irreversible - Film Analysis
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
The Pond
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
My Teddy Bear
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Hey Thistles, Take a Number!
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Please Don't Slow Me Down
I believe this is Papilio glaucus Linnaeus, female, commonly known as Eastern Tiger Swallowtail. If I am wrong, feel free to correct me. :)
Friday, August 27, 2010
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Jillian
Insert Witty Title Here
Got WD40?
A Diamond in the Rust
Tin Roof Blues
:)
Friday, August 20, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Friday, August 6, 2010
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
Monday, August 2, 2010
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Friday, July 16, 2010
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
FUN
Starting from Rabbittown Rd
1 | Head west on Rabbittown Rd toward Lonesome Bend Rd - go 0.2 mi |
2 | Take the 1st left onto Lonesome Bend Rd - go 1.5 mi |
3 | Turn left at AL-1 S/US-431 S/Chastain Blvd W - go 20.9 mi Continue to follow AL-1 S/US-431 S |
4 | Slight right toward McClellan Blvd - go 0.2 mi |
5 | Continue straight onto McClellan Blvd - go 1.2 mi |
6 | Continue onto AL-21 S/S Quintard Ave - go 5.3 mi Continue to follow AL-21 S |
7 | Turn left at Elm St - go 0.2 mi |
8 | Continue onto Plaza Ln - go 0.2 mi |
9 | Turn right at Co Rd 106/Friendship Rd - go 0.6 mi |
10 | Take the 1st right onto Cheaha Dr - go 0.8 mi |
11 | Continue onto Gunnels Ln - go 1.7 mi |
12 | Turn right at McIntosh Rd - go 0.5 mi |
13 | Take the 3rd left onto Kentuck Rd - go 3.6 mi |
14 | Continue onto Duck Nest Mtwy - go 3.9 mi |
15 | Turn right at State Route 281 - go 0.7 mi |
16 | Continue onto Cheaha Rd - go 0.5 mi |
17 | Turn left at Lake Chinnabee Rd - go 1.5 mi |
Arriving at Lake Chinnabee Rd
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Monday, April 5, 2010
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Most People Go Their Entire Lives Without Being Locked Inside a National Park
By the time we got done with the hike there was a layer of snow on the jeep and icicles had formed on the back hatch. The nearby bridge hadn't even been driven across so I took a photo of it with the fresh snow. Then I did a slow-shutter water shot near the road. It was at this point that a passerby stopped his SUV and told me the gate at the end of the shortcut road to Wears Valley was down and locked. I thanked him for the info and loaded up. We needed to go to Wears Valley to our cabin so we just headed toward Townsend. While we were going that way we met the same guy coming from the direction of Townsend. He had stopped in the road to tell us the gate into the Townsend Road was locked, too. They did not have a cell signal and neither did we so the two vehicles headed off toward the Gatlinburg entrance of the park.
It was strange and eerie to be the only two cars driving Smoky Mountain roadways. It was also fun and exciting! Jeff mentioned that the other car was driving really fast and that he should slow down before he hit an icy spot. The snow had turned to sleet after we learned the Townsend gate was closed, and there were some slick spots on Little River Road. We lost sight of the other car, while Jeff drove very conservatively in his 4-wheel drive Jeep Patriot with off-road tires. Even with the 4WD and off-road tires, we did feel a few slippery spots. The guy in front of us was driving a SUV crossover with road tires. I'll call him "Crossover Guy" henceforward.
A few miles later, we noticed that Crossover Guy's tire tracks indicated he left the road momentarily. Fortunately he recovered nicely and we did not have to administer CPR to CG or MCG (Mrs. Crossover Guy.)
A brief break in cell signal purgatory opened up and I called the official GSMNP number, only to hear an endless series of pre-recorded messages with no option to talk to a real person.
A call to 411 got us the phone number for the Sevier County Sheriff's Department. The dispatch officer assured me that the gate at Sugarlands was open to people wanting to leave the park via Gatlinburg. We were relieved.
Then, we caught up with Crossover Guy only to see him pull over. Rolling windows down, we discovered they were wanting us to lead so they could drive in our tracks. Apparently Mrs. Crossover Guy had chewed out her husband about his rate of speed because after we took the lead, Crossover Guy religiously maintained an earth-scorching pace of 10 mph. Not wanting to leave them stranded, we also slowed down to about 15 mph and stopped periodically to wait. Jeff would have been happy to go 30 mph (except on the curves), as it felt safe with our setup.
So, we finally got to the gate (that we had been assured was open) only to find it locked. Thankfully, we did have a cell phone signal at this point and Jeff called 911, who, in turn, put us through to a real-life talking ranger.
Fifteen minutes later a ranger driving a snow plow pulled up to open the gate for us. We thanked him and drove off at about 30 mpg, leaving Mr. and Mrs. Crossover Guy to be a distant memory. The Good Lord knows I crave adventure so He obliges from time to time.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Inspirational Acronym of the Day
Cussing like I mean business. Sorry, that's the best I can do. ;)
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
It Finally Happened.........
Monday, January 11, 2010
Lost in Bankhead
- "Is that tire a good sign?"
- "How far could it be?"
- "When we get to the falls the way we were supposed to go, we’ll see a wedding party there. The Snack Bar might even be open."
- "Grabbing the dead tree for support, she fell to her death at the tender age of 45."
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Porta-Potties in the Bokeh
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Adventure at Salt Creek Falls
Now, I needed to add to my list of demands in order to stay in bed longer. So, I told Jeff I would not get up until I was served hot Australian tea in bed. Jeff played along and added that it must be served by a british butler with a lisp who was born on the fourth of July in 1954.
Seeing my negotiations were getting nowhere, I crawled out of bed muttering profanities under my breath. Fast forward one hour and we're climbing out of the jeep wondering which trail leads down the cliff to the base of Salt Creek Falls. We found the trail to the top of the falls first. Then found a trail off to the right that seemed to be the correct one.
It should be noted at this point that the word "trail" is an optimistic way to describe a challenging path of boulders and snow-covered ledges. Some thoughtful souls had reserved themselves a place in Heaven by securing a series of ropes and one fire hose to trees bordering the path. Without these ropes I certainly would not have made it down to the base of the falls, let alone back up!
I had been warned by a very sweet lady trained in search and rescue that this was a treacherous trip and that I should proceed at all times with caution. Her last words of advice to me were not to attempt this feat alone.
Finally down at the base of the waterfall we were not a little impressed by the size of the waterfall and the amount of flow. In addition to the voluminous flowing water, we saw icicles dotting the cliffs and even the waterfall itself. In the pool beneath the waterfall, large chunks of ice clung to the shore.
When we had left the jeep it was 14 degrees F., NOT accounting for wind chill. Here at the base of the icy falls it felt like about 10 below zero! I set up my tripod and took three long exposure shots before my fingers froze into a paralytic numbness. I decided not to take any more photos and save what was left of my hands for the climb back up.
The trip up the path/icy boulders was scary! I used the ropes to help as much as I could, but using ropes requires a certain amount of upper body strength, which I am sorely lacking. At one especially treacherous point, I actually had to sit down and gather up courage before attempting the scale. I even backed out a few times and just sat wondering if I would die there. Jeff climbed on up ahead of me to see if he could get in a position to help pull me up. Finally, I envisioned a way to side step the climb up two huge rocks. Whew! I've never been so proud as I was when I reached the top! When I climbed back breathless into the jeep I felt like I had just invented some life-saving serum or scaled Mt. Everest! It was a great sense of accomplishment. :) Thank you to Bill Wilson from Flickr and Terri from Get Lost! for helping us with directions and advice! :)