Weekly Photo Challenge

 

This weeks Challenge suggested by:
Gitarezan

“Seeing Sights”
Display photos of what somebody else would want to see
if visiting the area you live in.

 

 

Anything you enjoy doing is found somewhere in the United States.  If you narrow the geographic area, selecting a state to visit, you limit your options, and tying yourself to a town means less is available.  A small town like Loveland is nearly rural.  That is not to say there is nothing worth seeing or doing in Loveland.  Loveland has valleys, hills, ponds and creeks and a river runs through it.  You can discover parks, farms, and small business areas.  There are no oceans or mountains but many beautiful sunsets have shown their face and when the weather is right, seasonal changes can be breath taking.  Within a radius of a 100 miles, anything you may want to do can be discovered .  There are shops for any pocketbook, air shows, amusement parks, arboretums, archery, aquariums, fine dining, golf, gun range; movies, museums, skeet, zoos and even ski slopes. The only exclusion I can think of, might be deep sea diving.

 

For some history, see:  Loveland, Ohio – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For some of my views see:  Weekly Photo Challenge, “Where I Live, Loveland, Ohio USA”  For my photos for this challenge, keep on scrolling and reading.

 

Loveland does have a history.  I know this because,

 

 

we have a Loveland Historical Museum.  I also know Loveland was a bustling little town, as there is

 

a station where trains were caught, for a daily commute.  I have lived here for 40 years, and I have never known anyone to catch a train here.  I do hear the train morning and evening making its way to its business destination.

 

 

 

The train would wind its way across this trestle, headed South towards Cincinnati.

 

 

 

The tracks at the left travel past the Hamilton County Park we frequent and think you would enjoy visiting. John is picking up so you don’t have to see the mess left by someone who cares a little less than we do.  They left their glass beer container in the grass so we could slash our tires with broken glass, after running over it, and no, it’s not our bottle.  We don’t have a taste for brews, only cola’s, and glass containers in a park is a NO-NO.

 

 

 

After passing the park, the train would have made its way; rain, sleet or snow, thru villages further south,  passing the long gone Crosley Field, a now much less busy Cincinnati Enquirer and finally into the Cincinnati terminal, which is now a Natural History Museum.  Times have changed drastically in the larger city of Cincinnati so it is to be expected the little town of Loveland has suffered its own losses.  The theatre was closed long ago finally to be taken over by the Loveland Stage Company, an excellent trade, but the building was gutted in a fire only a few weeks ago.  We have no fine restaurants nor any of the better expensive shops.  What we do have is schools, churches, parks and playfields and necessity shops such as grocery and car repair and stations to fill-er-up and a United Dairy Farmer where you can get a good ice cream soda AND Castle Skateland, roller skating rink.  This is AN ADD IN:  I forgot to say, we have a summer stage for concerts in the park.

 

 

 

We have a terrific bicycle trail ,AND it winds its way for quite a few miles.  The trail can be seen from this, a CASTLE, unique for this country (Wikipedia lists 53 known total in the U.S.).  It’s small but as it was built by one man with the help of his boy scout troop, I would call it a fete, and it’s fun to visit to take pictures.  We also have some beautiful sunsets though I have to go to the top of the hill above our house, to see them.  I’ll mention I get bird’s eye views of the moon.  So,

 

 

 

 

I continue to come home to Loveland and it may be because it is the quiet, less than bustling town that it is.  Considering its disposition, you might enjoy a visit.

 

 

Have a super week and thanks always for your comments.

 

Weekly Photo Challenge

the subject from, WakeUpLaughing is:

“Shadows”

I should concentrate on seeing shadow more than I do.  I think the big problem is I haven’t seen a lot of them worthy of notice for photos.  Going through my files, I did find some, interesting enough to post.

My Photos 

1- This Sycamore tree is a big part of my history.  It grows in the small park (four houses away) down the hill from the house I grew up in.  A small swimming pool was this side of the tree with a house to the right side of it.  The house and the pool are gone but I can picture myself at play, at the picnic tables, under the tree.  I spent many growing up days, in the summer, at this little park in the shade/”Shadows” of this tree.  SO, HOW BIG IS IT? CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT.

 

2- These long shadows are in another park in Ashland, Kentucky, October of 2005.  John and our good Xanga friend Wordwarrior39 are discussing our coarse of action for the day, where to go and what to see.  Between the history of the town, the Ohio River views, the barges, floodwalls and paintings and the nearness to a really nice state park, Jim kept us busy viewing “shadows” and more.

 

3- This bridge is the crossing from Ohio to Kentucky, in Ashland.  We had good weather for our visit.  I was happy about that, then and NOW.  Without the sunshine providing some good bridge ”Shadows”, I could barely have managed any variety for this challenge.  Ashland has an interesting history, READ IT HERE.

 

4- My husband took this photo.  The image is the main street of Delaware, a small Ohio Wesleyan University town, Ohio, USA.  The town dates back to 1808 and is picturesque with turn of the century, and older, homes lining the streets.  I picked this photo because the direction of the sun and the height of the buildings, “shadows” one whole side of the street.  Though, I find the shadow to be interesting, a case for good light for photos can be made with the contrast seen in this one photo.  See more images and read the town’s history, HERE.

 

5- I have a love affair with pumpkins I can’t explain.  I love the color and the fun shapes, and carving them.  Pumpkin Pies! Goodness, a really good pumpkin pie, made with real cream, the thought alone, makes my mouth water.  These pumpkins, with their falling ”shadows” are displayed for pumpkin lovers at Kleather’s Pumpkin Patch in Springboro, Ohio.  I took the photo in the fall of 2004 so I know the pumpkins are long past doing their pumpkin duties and have gone where good pumpkins go.  My photo is a monument to them and how beautiful I thought they were, at the time I wandered the rows.   

 

6- Where do “Shadows” end and reflections begin?  I think they are relatives, one to the other and though I have few photos of shadows, I have many of, reflections.  This image is toward the end of a beautiful day at Spring Grove Cemetery, the “shadows” / reflections falling across the water are making a gift, of the moment.  Spring Grove is one of Ohio’s truly beautiful spots.  It is a favorite spot of ours and provides constant photo opportunities from dawn to dusk, rain or shine, sunshine or “shadows”.   

Have a great week, thanks always for your comments.

Weekly Photo Challenge

the subject from, me, PhotoGraphics is:

“Your Favorite Challenge”
from the list of past challenges

I have more than a single favorite but I really like taking photos of,

 … “ Fences ” …

The original challenge for fences was posted 9/28/2007
 by OK123Letsgo who has since changed her name to WakeUpLaughing. 

My entry for her original challenge can be found HERE. 

Anything, which can be used as a barrier, to keep things in or out, could be called fence.  Fence is used for windbreakers, child and pet safety, as retainer for falling rock from mountain sides (very unsightly this use), retaining corn in the silo and chickens in pens, marking boundaries for property, decorative uses and??  Fence is made of live evergreen tree plantings for windbreaks and of thorny Hedge Apple to keep lifestock in the field.  There are fence of logs, split rail, wire (thick, thin, some electric or barbed), wroght decorative metals, plastic tubing, rock wall, and some African tribes use thorny Acacia thickets to keep cattle in and lions out, at night.  There is even a musical fence, purported to be the longest fence in the world, READ HERE as it’s interesting.  If you would like a DVD of the music played on the fences, GET IT HERE, amazing!

 

My Photos for this week

This highway image shows fence used as a barrier hoping it will help keep people on the road.  It has reflectors on it for night driving.  After some thinking about it I would say there is a ton of fencing put up in this world and though it may not rival money spent on computers, I would bet someone is very rich from the miles and miles of fencing used for homes, business, highways and ??

 

The idea, to fence things in, is probably as old as man who would have used protective barriers from intruders.  This wire barrier image is a view from an older farm in Indiana.  The photo includes four different fences which made it interesting, to me.  The corncrib behind the small outbuilding is vertically rail fenced and the neighbor has some decorative painted fence plus the log rail fence and iron fence and gate, in the foreground.

 

This chain link fence is a barrier for the railroad tracks and the agricultural silos and conveyer beside it.  Similar is situated near most farming communities, here in the United States.

 

This galvanized fence/handrail crosses a small bridge over a local waterway.  This image was taken after a Winter thaw and the rail and water are darn cold.

 

This older home is just off the bike trail that runs from Loveland to Milford, Ohio.  Its a beautiful old home and its surrounded with its rail fence.

 

Some fences serve the useful purpose of giving plants something to lean on or be tied to.  Chain link works great for this and plants are always appreciative of the support.

Have a great week,