PVIC beach

PVIC beach

Not far from the hydrant, the cone was having a party of it's own...For Martina

Box of rocks, MSD

There is an expression here in the US, and probably in other english speaking countries, "Dumber than a box of rocks." Howard Stern has a quiz show on his radio show where he questions stupid people about obvious well known facts and they giggle and answer wrong. Our late night talk/chat shows have a ball during election years asking the average man in the street important topical questions, which they invariably get wrong. I saw British shows do it before Brexit.

So, finding this box of rocks by the side of the road, I put the expression to the test. It got three out of ten topical questions right. So the expression is correct. I almost removed the three correct answers when the box revealed that it voted for Trump.

Now I am off to find a bag of hammers.

Two kids playing in a cold Atlantic, February 19, 2018 75F/23.0C

Hydrant, MSD, Holga

Huffy, Jax Beach

There is something in the way the cheap little plastic lens in the Holgas renders color that I just love. This is proof the you should always have your camera ready when you exit your car.

MSD, Holga,Golden light

Chair, hat and shadows, Roscoe

My favorite hat from Provence. It hangs on this chair when we're home so I will be reminded of Saignon when I go out or return.

Monsteras, Roscoe

My Monsteras took a bit of a hit from our three days of hard frosts. As usual, they are charging back.

Three from Nocatee.

 Nocatee is a giant mega-development near us. It covers hundreds of acres and is all brand new. I have been going there since it was roads through the woods. Because it is so new, it has developed very little personality or sense of place. When nobody has lived on a street for more than a year, there is no history. All the trees and bushes are small and all of the houses still wear their original paint. Places like this evolve as people personalize their landscaping, color scheme, even the buildings themselves. It will be fun to watch them change.

The shot above is the first of many that I took this day of the areas between houses. Some have well worn paths already, some are fenced over.

Pelicans, Roscoe

Cars, Jax Beach

First sour oranges, Roscoe

Garden, Roscoe

Monstera, Roscoe

Only lost a few young leaves to the frost.

Frost kill, Roscoe

This is the only Italian parsley that succumbed to the frosts we have had. Usually a very hardy herb.

Parking lines, Jax Beach

This is in a large shopping center. Since it was built, it has been expanded twice, disrupting parking and crosswalk patterns. Once a year, for aesthetic reasons, they paint the surface with a thin layer of black sealer, which fades very quickly, revealing the old markings. Thus, this.

Azaleas, Roscoe

The two hurricanes last Autumn stripped our azaleas of a lot of their leaves. They will be fine, but they look a bit naked. Interesting to see their skeleton.

Jax Beach

Jax Beach

Chairs, Jax Beach.

As you all know, I love the Holga lens. I recently got one for my Sony a6000. It works very well. But, I like to work in square format, and this lens does too. I guess all lenses work in an even circle, so a square will get the best part of the file. This lens barely covers the shorter dimension of the format and leaves large dark areas at either end. It is an interesting effect, but I prefer square and Sony, in their wisdom, will not let you shoot in a 1:1 ratio. Sigh.

From our dock.

Live oak, Jax Beach

We moved here 25 years ago and these were little trees then. They looked scrawny and not suited for the size of the parking lot. Now they add a lot to the feel of the center.

Hydrant and palms, Jax Beach

Even the hydrants get their own palm trees.