Night Writer ...
So you wait till dark and take your camera and tripod.
Oh, and carry two small flashlights.
Out to make a name for myself.
I quickly discovered it is darn near impossible to face the camera and "write"
kcuhC with a flashlight. Or with anything else.
My shooting partner Kevin suggested we could just "flip" the image in the computer.
That idea had me so excited I was
"beside myself with joy" as you can see above.
Later we realized that when the image was adjusted to make my name readable, it reversed the writing on my Marine Corps t-shirt.
Glad I didn't try to write
"Semper Fi."
(A security guard at nearby St. Francis hospital drove by a few times to see what all the lights were about by the split oak trees. Glad we stayed out of the Meditation Garden. Try doing long exposures at night. Thanks for stopping by.)
Labels: light writing, Marine Corps, night shooting, Semper Fi
Happy Birthday Marine....
Today is the 233rd birthday of the
United States Marine Corps.
I slipped on one of my many USMC t-shirts and headed out to shake the hand of a Marine.
I wanted to wish him - or her - a
Happy Birthday and say thanks..
Hunkered down in the middle of the Aviation Avenue/Remount Road interchange construction, there is a small facility with the familiar scarlet and gold signage:
Marine Corps Reserve.
I shook a young man's hand and asked about the Birthday Ball this evening.
"Sir," he replied, "we had the ball last Friday." I looked quizzical and he continued
"we had to, sir, it was a reserve training weekend."
The tradition at the Ball is to serve the first slice of cake to the oldest Marine present. I asked who ate cake first..when did he join up?
"Sir, the oldest Marine there joined in 1967."I have a good chance for first slice next year, at the 234th celebration.
I joined the Marines on June 17, 1957.
(The picture above shows me on field maneuvers in Vieques, off Puerto Rico, in 1959)
Labels: 233rd Birthday Ball, Aviation Avenue, highway interchange construction, Marine Corps, oldest Marine, Remount Road, USMC, Vieques
My Dad and This Car...
The photo is a reminder that I was an active photographer during my days at Bishop England High School.
Here the coach is making sure I am all set before he has his football players stop practice to gather on the bleachers for a team photo.
But, please notice my clunker car. THAT is what this is all about.
About a year later I was through boot camp at Parris Island and stationed up at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. Before this car finally died, I tried driving it back and forth when I had some time off and could come down to Charleston. It was an iffy driving situation at best.
Within a 3-week period I headed down to Charleston
twice and each time, the cursed car just stopped somewhere this side of Georgetown.
Twice my dad hopped into his trusty, dependable pickup truck, grabbed a tow rope and came to my rescue.
Both times we stopped for coffee and a slice of pie at the same roadside gas station and, the second time, my Dad proudly mentioned to the owner that I was his son, a Marine stationed at Lejeune.
The owner looked out at my car being towed behind the pickup and said
"Gonna let him try it by himself soon?"
Labels: Bishop England, cars, Marine Corps, photography
So you wait till dark and take your camera and tripod.
