The Helix/R coming soon to Cramerton has begun construction. The Helix/R Project is a privately funded partnership between Cramerton and the Carolina Thread Trail. The Helix was originally installed in Charlotte in 1983. It was donated to Cramerton in 2018. Its installation began this past week in Riverside Park and Greenway near the bridge. Riverside Park and Greenway is a part of the Carolina Thread Trail; connecting people to nature and the surrounding environment.
After we moved into our new place Coleman insisted, we needed a bird feeder. He watches the bird feeder every day to see if any birds come to eat from it. It was slow in the beginning, but after the birds investigated the feeder and spread the word, we have had plenty of activity on the feeder. However, the majority of activity seems to occur in the mornings after Coleman goes to school. He is delighted when he can see birds enjoying the feeder.
This week has been a week for Christmas Parades in our area. Have you been to a Christmas Parade yet this year? Coleman and I have actually been to two different Christmas Parades this week. One was in the neighbouring town of Belmont and the other one was in our Town of Cramerton.
To our amazement, one of the first people was saw as we approached the Parade site yesterday was Mr. Grinch all decked out for the Christmas Parade.
Who do you think kicked off the Parade? Well, what’d you know, it was Mr. Grinch himself. Mr. Grinch made his appearance throughout the Parade in one manner or another. We never knew when or how he would appear. It didn’t matter how or when, people enjoyed seeing Mr. Grinch and the entire Parade. You may click on each photo for enlarged viewing.
Christmas Music is in the Air at our home. The record player is out and ready to play. I have some very old 45’s that once belonged to my dad. Last week we listened to David Seville’s “Witch Doctor”. This week we have begun listening to Christmas music on newly acquired vinyl records. Coleman didn’t care for his mom and I listening to the Beach Boys singing Christmas Carols. We enjoyed it though. Coleman much prefers listening to Disney’s Mickey Mouse and other favorites singing Christmas songs from “his records.”
Has anyone else started listening to Christmas music? Is it too early for you? For us, the beginning of and all throughout December is the perfect time to listen the wonderful soundtracks of Christmas music. We especially enjoy listening to the classic Christmas songs on our vinyl records via my Crosley record player.
For larger enhanced viewing, please click on each individual photo. Sometimes the Sky seems like God painted a beautiful picture just for us to enjoy and be amazed at His Majestic Creation.,
Confluence, what is it you might ask? Coleman and I came across this place called Confluence when we walking around downtown Cramerton. We didn’t know what type of a place it was; curiosity took the better of us and we proceeded inside to check it out.
Confluence by definition is the convergence of two rivers, especially rivers of approximately equal width; an act or process of merging. In our area it is the Confluence of the Catawba River and the South Fork River converging into one.
Confluence, the place, is a place for the community where music, art, and recreation come together along the banks of the South Fork, the largest tributary of the Catawba River, in Cramerton, NC. Confluence is operated by Catawba Riverkeeper. Catawba Riverkeeper is the local nonprofit dedicated to preserving and protecting local waterways.
Children’s Play Area
Goat at Entrance to Confluence
On the Back Hallway Walls Catawba RiverKeepers
Confluence is about supporting the health of the river. Art is the convergence where inspiration, creativity, and talent combine to give life to beauty. It has the power to create social and cultural bonds within communities. Their goal is to support the lives of those who use their proximity to the Catawba River as their inspiration for the creation of art pieces, as well as enrich the lives of those living along the river by providing them access to affordable, local artwork.
Coleman & I enjoyed putting a puzzle together.
Confluence is about supporting lives along the river. Music is the ultimate confluence where a plethora of notes come together to create magic. It is the soul of a place, bringing people together to experience joy or sadness, to toe-tap together in sync to a blazing beat, or lean shoulder to shoulder and sing along to a melody from a bygone era. Their goal is to support and showcase local musicians while giving the community a central gathering spot to grab a drink, make new friends, and listen to good music.
Confluence is about supporting Fun at the River. Life on the river is about more than just watersports. It’s about movement, about getting your heart to pump a little bit faster, about acknowledging the air filling your lungs. It’s appreciating being surrounded by nature and feeling connected to the earth beneath you and the water around you. Their goal is to help you bring movement and fun into your outdoor recreation journey. Even if that includes a fishing pole, a competitive game of disc golf, a lazy game of cornhole, or a kayak trip down the South Fork.
Coleman and I met the ladies running Confluence the day we stopped in. They informed us of all their facilities, their programs, their children’s area, the opportunities for families to come together for quality time and fun.
Coleman and I came back the following Saturday and spent time in the children’s area. The children’s area is filled with books, colouring books, crayons, puzzles, blocks, and all sorts of stuff to do individually or as a family. Coleman and I worked on putting a puzzle together. After completing what we could, we discovered it was missing three pieces. That didn’t really matter. What mattered was our spending time working on it together.
We recently moved and our new to us rental home has a swing on the front porch which Coleman claims is his swing. We haven’t had a swing on a porch since we lived with my uncle years ago. The beautiful views from our front porch are amazingly beautiful (even the view that is not of the sky).
Coleman has been fascinated with “Flychines” (better known as Airplanes) since he was about two (2) years old. He loves to watch “Flychines” fly through the skies. He enjoys watching them takeoff and land whenever possible. Yesterday he had a terrific view and ability to observe “Flychines” flying into Charlotte-Douglas International Airport while his mom was working at the airport.,
Airplanes ✈️ Flying into Charlotte-Douglas International Airport
The video was created through Google Photos Highlight Video creator. In watching this video you’ll be able to see what Coleman was seeing and possibly understand his fascination with “Flychines.” Be sure to look closely, if you do you might just notice the windows on the Airplanes.
Hurricane Storm damage is heard all over the news and online media. What you hear about are the most heavily affected areas communities and immediate surrounding areas. What you do not hear about is how the storms affected other areas within the outlying areas of the Hurricane’s path. Trails in the Piedmont region of the Carolinas are southeast of the majority of heavily damaged areas, but still affected at a lesser impact level.
The Trails still need maintenance and repairs even though they are not as horrific as those in Western North Carolina. South Carolina Trails still endure erosion and other damages caused by the strong winds and heavy rains that occurred during Hurricane Helene’s passing through the area. The photo above pictures just one of the hiking trails that suffered severe weather damage erosion in South Carolina not far from where I live.
This week Cee is allowing us to post any type of road, path, step, bridge or sign. I have chosen to post some paths, steps, dirt trails, and wooden paths and bridges along the Lake Nature Trail at Andrew Jackson State Park. I took these photos when was camping there the summer after my mom passed. It was a relaxing, peaceful, meditative experience of communing with nature.
Comparing the Doc Watson “Man of the People” Statue from 2016 to 2024. The first photo was taken when I was in Boone, North Carolina for a family reunion. [Arthel Lane “Doc” Watson is my fourth cousin].
The Statue was dedicated on June 24, 2011. It commemorates the Grammy Award-winning artist and Watauga County (Deep Gap) native Arthel Lane “Doc” Watson. The depiction of “Doc” Watson sitting on a bench playing a model of his favorite guitar, customized Gallagher was created Alexander M. Hallmark, a local Blowing Rock, NC, Sculptor. The inscription on the statue reads Doc Watson / “Just one of the People.”
The bronze statue of Doc Watson is located at the Northeast corner of North Depot and West King streets in downtown Boone, North Carolina.
In the Winter of December 1978/January 1979 my parents flew over to Germany to visit my brother & his family. [My brother was stationed there for a few years while serving in the United States Air Force.]
I previously posted their visit to Heidelberg Palace/Castle; you can view that post my clicking here and hereto view the statues on Heidelberg Castle.
Germany, Heidelberg, Neckar valley, view of the castleHeidelberg, GermanyThe Karl Theodor Bridge (Karl-Theodor-Brücke), commonly known as the Old Bridge (Alte Brücke) Old lock on the Neckar, Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, Europe
Thank you for visiting and sharing my parents memories with me. They enjoyed their time in Germany, however, I do not recall seeing their slide photos before I began digitizing my Dad’s slides.
Original AI Magic Editor Google Photos Magic EditorAbstract AI Magic Editor Google Photos Magic EditorHoliday Spirit effect with Sparkle1 Overlay Pic CollageMonochrome via PixlrHans effect PixlrSun effect Pixlr
Who begins counting down to Christmas in August? Amazingly some people do, even Google & Siri are already counting down to Christmas. It’s not even Halloween or Thanksgiving yet. Why Count down to Christmas so early? Some people use an Advent Calendar to count down to Christmas, but they only start the count down at the beginning of December.
Retailers begin selling Christmas decorations in August to spread out demand and avoid the last-minute shopping rush.
Thinking about Christmas in August helps people to avoid last-minute holiday travel expenses, as well as helps you to budget your finances. Spreading out the cost of the Holidays helps to reduce strain and stress on yourself and your budget.
Mentioning Stress, why stress yourself out over Christmas? Save early — Plan ahead — Shop early — Make gifts ahead of time or perhaps throughout the year. These ideas help to give yourself a peace of mind and you’ll be more likely to enjoy the Christmas holiday season with friends and family.
Christmas 1978
Speaking of family, these photos with Santa Claus were taken in Germany in December of 1978. The first photo shows Santa’s arrival. The next photo shows my niece, Jennifer, on Santa’s lap. The third photo is of my niece, Sherry, on Santa’s lap. And the fourth and last photo is of my brother with his daughters and other children (probably at a Church Christmas party). [My brother was stationed in Germany while in the U.S. Air Force.]
Merry Christmas! Well just relax — you’ve got plenty of time to get ready for Christmas ( that is if you start early).
The Apotheosis of Washington is located in the eye of the U.S. Capital Building’s Rotunda in Washington D.C.. It was painted by Constantino Brumidi in 1865. The painting depicts George Washington rising to the heavens in glory, flanked by female figures representing Liberty and Victory/Fame and surrounded by six groups of figures.
The Apotheosis of Washington was painted in the true fresco technique. Constantino Brumidi was born and trained in Rome; having already painted in the Vatican and Roman palaces prior to emigrating to the United States in 1852. He was a master of creating the illusion of three-dimensional forms and figures on flat walls. He painted frescoes and murals throughout the Capitol from 1855 until his death.
The Apotheosis of Washington, was painted in eleven (11) months at the end of the civil war. A rainbow arches at George Washington’s feet and thirteen maidens symbolizing the original states flank the three central figures.
George Washington, The United States of America’s first president, had a substantial impact on the nation. He never actually graced the halls of the United States Capital, however, his presence, influence, and his likeness is everywhere. There are approximately thirty-five (35) pieces of art which include Washington’s likeness in the U.S. Capitol.
I’m hoping to have some sunny sunshine anyways. We’ve been having a tremendous amount of rain and wind from the outskirts of Hurricane Debby/Tropical Storm Debby ( now Tropical Depression Debby). At least I can dream of sunshine even if we do not get it for several days yet.
On our visit to the San Diego Wild Animal Park (Currently referred to as San Diego Zoo Safari Park) in May 1978; we saw some amazingly talented and delightful entertainers which included talented musicians and dancers from Africa. They were extraordinarily awesome-inspiring and spectacular performers to watch. They captivated and thrilled audiences throughout the day. Click on each photo for larger viewing.
San Diego Wild Animal Park’s Delightfully Amazing Entertainment
Location: San Diego Wild Animal Park; San Diego, California, USA
God Bless. Thank you for visiting and watching the dancers performance with us. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with us. Have a delightfully amazing weekend. I appreciate y’all very much.
A walk back in time to visit a place my mom and dad visited with friends, remembering the love they shared. I believe this was a day trip they took with friends from their Sunday school class.
On this day trip from San Diego, California, in 1979, they ventured to The Huntington Library, Art Museum and Botanical Gardens located in San Marino, California. The Botanical Gardens section of Huntington has approximately 120 acres of specialized botanical landscaped gardens, including the “Japanese Garden”, the “Desert Garden”, and the “Chinese Garden”.
Walking through a floral passageway with friends.
The Huntington’s Botanical Gardens showcase plants from around the world. Huntington worked diligently to make them thrive in the generous climate conditions of California. The gardens are divided into more than a dozen themes including the ones mentioned earlier.
Japanese Garden
The Japanese Garden creation began in 1911 with a donation from art dealer George Turner Marsh and was completed in 1912. However, it did not open to the public until 1928. In the Japanese Garden you can find three distinct gardens: the original stroll garden with koi-filled ponds and a drum or moon bridge, the raked-gravel dry garden which was added in 1968, and the traditionally landscaped tea garden.
Japanese Garden Bridge
An interesting side note: the gardens are frequently used as a filming location. Shits can be seen in the Carpenter’s music video, “Only Yesterday” (1975), in Star Trek the Next Generation’s episode Justice (1987), in CSI Miami’s episode of You May Now Kill the Bride (2008) and in many other productions.
The Huntington Botanical Gardens were honored on May 13, 2020 with a postal stamp as part of the American Gardens stamps. The Desert Garden was featured on the postal stamp.
Bugs Bunny & Wile E. Coyote at California’s Great America
Since the Opening of California’s Marriott’s Great America in 1976, the park featured appearances from Warner Bros. Looney Tunes characters. Some of the Looney Tunes characters included Bugs Bunny, Wile E. Coyote, Porky Pig, Elmer Fudd, Daffy Duck, Tweety, and Yosemite Sam. The Looney Tunes characters would roam around the park greeting visitors as well as putting on a fun entertaining show.
Leanne’s Monochrome Madness is a non-themed week; my own theme this week is surrounded by photos I’ve recently digitized about Heritage USA. To make viewing easier, I have made a slideshow of the monochrome photos in the beginning and ending with the original photos from my dad’s slides.
Heritage USA was a Christian -themed amusement park opened in 1978 by televangelists Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, founders of The PTL Club. At its peak, it was the third-largest park in the USA behind Disney World and Disney Land, with almost 6 million visitors annually.
In the late 1980’s, Heritage USA was rocked by two debilitating scandals all while they were in the middle of a massive expansion. The organization had its tax-exempt status revoked after Jim Bakker was indicted on various federal fraud charges. Later he was accused of sexual improprieties with an encounter with a church secretary.
To add to the problems Heritage USA was experiencing, the park was heavily damaged by Hurricane Hugo in 1989, it shut down for good shortly after.
In this present day and age, only a few remnants of the park are still visible. The abandoned 21-story Heritage USA Hotel stands as an eerie and empty shell looming over the suburban landscape. The Upper Room Chapel was purchased sometime after the park’s closing and is maintained as a prayer room for a local ministry. The Heritage Grand Hotel is now the Heritage International Ministries Conference Center.
Pixlr is a photo editing app available for smartphones and PC’s. It has several different editing apps available including background removal, a great number of filters and effects to try to enhance your creativity. What you see here is just my playing around with the Pixlr camera and a few effects. I was not doing anything except discovering what the effects might look like and exploring their effect on my photo of Coleman. I am not sure that I would use all of these effects, but I might try some more at a later time.
This long straight hilly 15-mile stretch of US 21 is the road that leads us to Great Falls, South Carolina coming out of Georgia. We would travel this road every three (3) to five (5) years to visit my dad’s parents and his brother and sister’s families. My dad grew up in Great Falls, but left when he joined the US Navy. It was only on these long summer trips that I was able to spend time with my dad’s family. Often when we came back to visit we would all go visit an attraction together on one of the days we were here.
As I continue to look back on time through the digitization process of my dad’s old slides I am reminded and am amazed by the wonderful world we live in and the freedom we have to create/recreate and share our experiences, our memories with others.
The slideshow is a digital representation of our adventures visiting Stone Mountain Park in Georgia. We, my family and extended family all came together to share togetherness while enjoying ourselves at Stone Mountain. My immediate family drove out from California, my paternal grandfather, from South Carolina, joined my dad’s sister and her family from North Carolina to visit the most popular attraction in Georgia, Stone Mountain Park.
We rode the Skyride to the top of Stone Mountain and the views were amazing. We could see the surrounding landscape, the parking lot, the other attractions in the park, blue waters of the lake & the pond, and the blue skies above. The most amazing part is that we were able to see the wondrous views together as a family.
Come on and climb in the “boat” with us. We can make room for one or two more. It’s gonna be a fun ride, just you wait and see.
We’re moving forward, our turns coming up.
The ride lets boats go first from one side and then the other side. Our turn is next. Get ready. It’s our turn.
Moving forward along the ride we are going up, up, up …
And Splash … we zoom down almost to the end of our log ride. Did you feel the water 💦 splashing us? Oh right, you were in the back so you didn’t get oat all.
St. Simons Lighthouse is one of only five remaining Georgia lighthouse towers. The Lighthouse and keeper’s Dwelling were built in 1872. The original Lighthouse which this Lighthouse replaced was built in 1810 by James Gould of Massachusetts, the first lighthouse keeper. The original Lighthouse was destroyed by Confederate forces in 1861 in order to prevent the beacon’s use by Federal troops during the Civil War.
St. Simons Island Lighthouse
The Lighthouse still serves as an active aid to navigation for ships entering St. Simons Sound, casting its beam as far as 23 miles to sea. The Lighthouse is located near the pier on the southern tip of St. Simons Island, Georgia, United States of America. Its purpose is to guide ships into St. Simons Sound and warns them of the many sandbars in the area.
Inside St. Simons Island Lighthouse Museum
In 1972, the lightkeepers’ cottage was leased to Glynn County. The Coastal Georgia Historical Society spent three years restoring the two-story Victorian light keepers’ cottage at the base of the lighthouse, which was then converted into a museum.
St. Simons Island Lighthouse Museum
Currently, the public can tour the museum and climb the 129 steps to the top of the Lighthouse for a view of St. Simons Sound and the surrounding area. The admission cost to tour the Lighthouse Museum and climb the 129 steps is $12 for adults; $6 for ages 6-12; $2 Military discount is offered with Valid Military ID. Children under 6 are free.
St. Simons Island Lighthouse and View from the Top
Some of the spectacular, panoramic views of the coast including Jekyll Island, the mainland (Brunswick), and the south end of St. Simons Island can be seen from the top of the Lighthouse.
The Keeper’s Dwelling is a two-story Victorian structure which was the home of the lighthouse keepers from 1872 up until the 1959’s. It currently houses the Lighthouse Museum and includes interactive exhibits, rare artifacts, and period rooms that reveal the history of St. Simons Island and the life of a lighthouse keeper.
My Daughter, Trisha, climbed the 129 Steps to the Top of the Lighthouse so I could see the View.
Opening Day for the Schroering Forest Playground was on March 30th. The Playground is a new addition for Anne Springs Close Greenway. Being its opening day list of families came to visit the Greenway the check out the new Playground. Children young and old alike investigated and explored the many different features and structures within the playground.
The number of people on the climbing structure varied throughout the day with the greatest impact of visitors being early in the morning and dwindling later on in the afternoon.
When Coleman and I first walked around the playground and the Climbing Structure it was intimidating with so many people in and on the various structures. Overwhelming especially for Coleman, so we chose to hike around the lake and come back later hoping for fewer children to be in the playground.
Coleman slowly getting the courage to try climbing on the Climbing Structure.
After climbing a short distance, Coleman sits down and looks around unsure of what to do next.
He eventually decides he was to get down, but was uncertain about how to go about climbing down. After watching for a little bit I realized he wanted help getting down. So we went hiking back up towards the car visiting the historic cabins, cows, and horses along the way.
I never thought about squirrels leaping or jumping from the ground to high branches in trees before. Normally, I see squirrels clambering up trees or from tree to tree. This week we literally saw a squirrel leap (or jump) from the ground to a branch high up in a tree in one swift effortless movement.
Squirrel 🐿️ Action
Evidently, high enough is however high a squirrel wants to leap to reach its destination.
Camera: Canon EOS Rebel T3i with Canon EF-S55-250mm lens.
Location: The Farm; The Schiele Museum of Natural History; Gastonia, North Carolina, USA
God Bless. Rainy Day here. Hope you have sunshine ☀️ and are able to enjoy the outdoors. Have a wonderful blessed weekend. Thank you for sharing your time and thoughts with me. I appreciate y’all very much.
Gfpacificbee’s Insights & photography 