Dear Ashia,

Dear Ashia,

I want to share with you the pictures that I have taken over the past couple of weeks.  I hope that you have been doing well.  I want to thank you for bringing up the fact that you enjoy looking at my pictures that I post on my blog.  I have been really busy lately with work so it is hard for me to edit/upload pictures and then take time to blog about them without having to devote attention to work, eat, or sleep.  I wanted to give you a shoutout to say thank you.  Thanks for reminding me that I have not blogged in a while, but making me remember the reason why I blog...to give reason to the pictures that I post on Facebook.  I find it weird sometime that when I post many pictures that I feel that the reason behind a picture that I post gets lost.  For every 5 pictures that I post on Facebook, I have generally 150 other pictures that I took at the same time that I did not feel were "post-worthy".  I created the blog so that I could provide further explanation on my pictures.  Anyways, I hope that you will have the same opportunities to explore many of areas that I have had the fortune to check out.  Kentucky has many beautiful sites that can be seen differently from season-to-season and even from day-to-day.  Although we are not even in the same area code, it does not make me miss you all any less.  I often talk about how you, mom, and everyone else would enjoy the places that I have seen / been.  I like to post pictures to share with you all the places that I have been.  Below, are pictures from the Cumberland Gap, Weisenberger Mill, Pine Mountain, Midway, Cave Run Lake, and Newtown Pike (outside of Lexington).  Enjoy these pictures, but above all else...take advantage of indulging in God's beauty.  He is an awesome God...every day.  I miss you all greatly.

Love,

Your Brother

No More Lines!!!

Good evening to all.  I apologize for not blogging as much here lately, but I am going to try to do better from here on out.  Tonight,  I want to share a couple of pictures that I have already posted on facebook...well, the before and after shots.  In both of these pictures, I used photoshop to remove the electric lines in each of the pictures.  If you saw the finished picture on Facebook, you would not know that I edited the picture to take the lines out.  The edits of the second picture are not as clear as the first set of pictures.  Well...let me know your thoughts.   

Garage Sale Vol. 1

Every now and then sometimes we have to do a "Spring Cleaning" and have a garage sale.  Tonight, I have done that with some pictures that I have in my collection.  Initially, I felt that these pictures were not good or were simply average.  However, in looking back through them, I look at these pictures a little different.  I hope that you enjoy my Garage Sale.  :)

The first picture is of flowers sent to my mom on her birthday. 

The second picture is of a silhouette of a statue of Abraham Lincoln in downtown Hodgensville, KY.

The third picture is a sunset picture on July 1, 2011 in Bowling Green, KY before the fireworks display at the Corvette Museum.

The next picture was taken at my friend Sean's comedy show in Louisville, KY.  This is not him that is on stage though. 

The picture below was taken in Covington, KY looking over the Ohio River into Cincinnati.

The sixth picture in tonight's blog was taken in Larue County, KY at the Abraham Lincoln Park.  Behind me in this picture is a natural spring.  The bench to the bottom right allows for viewers to relax while feeling the cool breeze from the spring on a hot day.

The last picture was taken on Frankfort Ave. in Louisville KY.

Going Going Back Back 2 Cali Cali

I love song references...trust me, I feel that I could carry a conversation for an entire day of nothing but song lyrics.  Anyways, so why the Notorious BIG song reference?  Well...today, I had the opportunity to visit California...California, Kentucky that is.  California, KY is located in the Eastern portion of Campbell County along the Ohio River.  The town itself has a total population of 86 (as of 2000 census).  According to various sites, the history of the town was lost due to numerous floods of the Ohio River.  The town had its own post office by 1852.

Since I lived in Morehead, I have been fascinated that there is a California in Kentucky.  Today, I had a few minutes to spare and was able to take the opportunity to visit the city of California.  I will say that next to Augusta, KY, it was one of the more peaceful areas along the Ohio River.  Hopefully, one day I'll get to go back 2 CALI CALI!!!  Below are my pictures of California, KY...Enjoy!!!

Louisville Night Pictures Part Deux

Good evening to all.  I hope that everyone is staying cool during these warm summer days.  Tonight, I am sharing some night pictures that I took in Louisville recently.  I enjoyed taking these pictures as I was able to utilize my different lenses in taking pictures.  The first picture of the moon was the first time I have successfully captured a full moon that was not along the horizons.  I may have used the wrong settings as I still learning my camera, but the Low Key setting using my 55-300mm lens.

The second picture was taken using a 18-55mm kit lens.  I cut the picture to add more effect of a wide angle picture.  I wanted o capture the two bridges going into Indiana and the reflection of the lights on the water.

I have no clue about what this statue is or what it represents, but I took this as we were walking from the river toward downtown.  I used the 35mm lens to take this picture.  I had the aperture set at 1.8f on a Bulb setting using a remote.  The shutter time was around 4-5 seconds.  When I snapped it, I immediately felt that I captured a picture that I was not planning for.  The blue lights in the background were from an outdoor concert on along the river where Big Boi (from Outkast) was the headliner.

The next picture was taken looking onto Fifth Street in downtown Louisville.  I used a 35mm lens to take this picture and a slower shutter speed to capture more of an effect of the fountain in the foreground.  What I like about the picture is the effect of the lights in the picture. 

For this picture, I used a 18-55mm lens with a shutter time of about 30 seconds. 

The last picture may raise some eyebrows as to why I thought it was post worthy, but I just liked the clouds in the sky.  :)



Road Less Traveled

By now, everyone has heard of the horrible traffic that was of this past weekend on Interstate 71 near the Kentucky Speedway in Sparta, KY.  Tonight, I won't belabor you with my thoughts about the long wait in traffic and my opinions on how to make changes for next year because many articles and new stories have covered it already.  No, what I am going to talk about tonight is being a "shunpiker".  Merriam Webster Dictionary defines a shunpiker as someone who uses "a side road used to avoid the toll on or the speed and traffic of a superhighway."  It is convenient these days to use interstates and parkways for travel because it allows you to go faster to your desired location by using mostly straighter roads.  However, I love going on the old roads.  Growing up one of my dreams was to drive up and down 31W and 31E from Louisville to Nashville along much of what was the old Dixie Highway.

On last week, rather than sit in traffic for an estimated 3 and half hours in order to get from this point below to Cincinnati, OH, we exited at the Prestonville and English exit on Highway 389 to Highway 42.  Highway 42 used to be one of the primary routes from Louisville to Cincinnati before the completion of I-75.  It proved to be a saving grace as most people were trying to either reach the speedway or hang in there hoping that traffic would move along so that they could get to their desire location.  Although we did not stop along at any of these towns along the way, I would love to come back through one day to venture through these towns.  Below are some of the pictures that I took along the way as we drove to Cincinnati.  Oh and by the way, this was traffic backed for 14 miles from the exit to the Kentucky Speedway at Sparta.  So....YAY to shunpiking.  I would suggest that if you ever have the time, take the opportunity to travel some of these roads that at one point in time was the primary means of travel.  You may happen along some wonderful places, such as a Wigwam Village (Cave City), Covered Bridge (Fleming County), Loretta Lynn Homeplace (Van Lear), and Cumberland Falls (Whitley County)...just to name a few. 



Happy Fawfff!!!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful and safe Holiday weekend filled with laughter, love, and of course....Fireworks.  Below are some of the pictures that I took of the fireworks.  They are not the best shots in the world, but it was the first time I used my new camera to take pictures of fireworks.  Let me know your thoughts...

Why???

Tonight's blog is going to elaborate on some pictures that I have previously posted on Facebook.  I suspect that people think that I post too many pictures on facebook (and I do), but I am afraid that the "Why?" of the picture gets lost by seeing that I may have posted 18 pictures in a new album.  At the beginning of this year, my New Year's Resolution was to start a blog site to where I could discuss the meaning behind some of my pictures (through recounting certain adventures, providing background information into the picture, and researching history of the places that I am discussing at the time).  So, "Why???"

I took the first picture in Chicago.  We had passed this statue of Robert Morris, George Washington, and Haym Solomon a few times while in Chicago.  While on heading back to the hotel, I saw this homeless woman standing in front of the statue looking at the statue.  So, "Why???"  Here you have a person, who for whatever circumstance in their life, is homeless.  She is looking at a statue of the "Founding Fathers", that symbolizes the principles that this nation was founded upon: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  What happened to her American dream? Is she wondering the same thing as she looked at this statue? 

This second picture saddened me after I took it.  While walking the streets of Chicago, it was a common thing to have homeless people coming up to you asking for spare change for something to eat.  However, this woman captured my attention and my heart.  Her sign reads, "Salam Alakim, I have 4 children.  I lost my job.  Please Help.  God bless you."  So, what makes this different than other signs that homeless people had?  It is her position...as though she is broken down by the events of her life.  As we walked by, she maintained this position.  Other people probably walked by her and continued on with their life forgetting her within the matter of seconds.  For me, this image will remain for me a while.  So..."Why???"  What specifically happened in her life?  If she did not receive money that day, then what happened with her 4 children?  Were they able to eat that night?  Just questions that I have...

This picture was taken at a river park along the Ohio River in Louisville, KY.  What you don't see in the picture is someone taking their picture using a camera phone.  It appears that the man recently proposed to the woman and is excited about their future together.  He is very excited to show the world that he has found his soul mate and that she is magnificently beautiful.  So..."Why???"  What happens with their life following this picture?  Will they live happily ever after? 

The fourth picture was taken at a little park adjacent to White Hall in Madison County, KY.   So..."Why???"  Why this picture?  With this picture, I have a calm feeling as I am seeing a reflection of clouds on the lake.  Earlier in the day, it was cloudy, but at the time of capturing the picture the sun started coming out.  People were enjoying the beautiful evening at the lake walking on the trail alongside the lake and fishing, including this man who was fishing. 
  

The next picture was taken at the Chinatown Annual Festival.  The man below was writing customer's name on paper in Chinese for $10.  So..."Why???"  Why this picture?  I wonder the amount of years of experience it took for him to learn the stroke of each unique character.  I even wonder whose name he is writing and if they will truly appreciate this artwork.

While walking through Grant Park heading toward Millennium Park, we passed a fountain that people were sitting alongside enjoying the beautiful day.  So..."Why???"  I snapped this picture of a little girl who was reaching into the water picking up the flower.  I had planned to take the picture of the flower as I saw it from a distance when walking by.  However, she had walked over to the flower at that time to pick it up.  I do not know whether she picked up the flower or if she left it in the water.   When I snapped the picture, we continued walking into Millennium Park.  So, I captured the moment. 
 

Sorry for the rambling tonight.  I just wanted to give some meaning as to why I posted these pictures on facebook.  So..."Why???"...Well, "Whynot???"

Ghost Towns in Kentucky Vol. 1

Over the past couple of weeks, I have been increasingly interested in the subject of Ghost Towns in Kentucky.  It is weird to think that towns / communities that were once vibrant areas are no longer existent today.  According to Wikipedia, ghost towns are defined as "an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, or war. The term is sometimes used to refer to cities, towns, and neighborhoods which are still populated, but significantly less so than in years past."  One of the more famous ghost towns in the United States is Tombstone, AZ. 

In Kentucky, there are a handful of communities that meet this definition.  Since reading about the various ghost towns in Kentucky, I have been interested in visiting these once flourishing communities.  Wikipedia lists the following as ghost towns: Barthell, Blue Heron, Burgess Station, Creelsboro, Fudge, Golden Pond, Neal, Packard, Paradise, and Scuffletown.  Other towns from different sites include the communities of Lawton, Highland Park, Rocky Hill, and Columbus.  I would also throw into the mix the community of Birmingham and Neon (from what I have been told).  The history of these communities have fascinated me. What is even better...many of these communities are located within hours drive of most places in Kentucky.  :).  Tonight, I am sharing a few that I have came upon during my travels.  I am not going to dive into the history of each place, but hopefully my pictures will create an interest for you to look into ghost towns.

Barthell, located in McCreary County, was an old coal mining town.  There is a charge to take a tour of the area due to it being owned by a private family.

Blue Heron, located in McCreary County, was an old coal mining town.  Free public touring is available at this site.

Lawton, located in Carter County, rose to fame with the Mushroom Mines.

(Shakertown - Logan County)

(Pleasant Hill - Mercer County)