The Last Day of July!

Fireworks, fireflies, blueberry pies, a fresh fruit salad, barbecues, a cold brew, ice cream cones, lemonade, graduation parties, or Christmas in July, whatever images or memories the month of July conjures up, I hope you had a good one this year!
These fireworks are some of my memories!

Sunflowers

I can't believe that July is almost over. It seems like time is speeding up! Anyway, I'm pondering what kind of flowers are growing at this time of the year and thought about sunflowers. These have got to be some of the coolest flowers, they are so tall and seem to almost have a 'personality'. Well of course I have several of these in my archives. This is one that I liked a lot and have revisited and added some texture to it.

Art and Accounting....what's this?

Today's What The Duck Comic Strip.
Anyone who is an Artist will appreciate this one! If you aren't viewing this on the original post date go back to archives and look for #527 for July 24, 2008.
Art and Accounting are like Oil and Vinegar, they don't mix!
Besides, it is more fun creating art than crunching numbers.
Here is a shot I took at Lorain County Metroparks, Sandy Ridge Reservation, shortly before sunset. I got frustrated working on my bookkeeping, so I went out and took pictures instead...LOL! Yes, that is the moon rising. I seem to be lucky and capture a lot of moonrises. I have to make up for not getting any sunrises. What's a sunrise?.....another LOL!

Moonrise at Monument Valley, Arizona

There are some places on this planet that no matter how they are described by words or pictures, their true essence can not truly be known unless you experience them directly in person. Monument Valley is one of those places, especially at moonrise. With that being said, I am still going to try to find some words that will at least come close. Sublime, timeless, eternal, grand, magnificent, wow! You just have to be there and absorb it all. If you have an opportunity to visit, I would highly recommend along with several other places in the great state of Arizona, like The Grand Canyon and Sedona.

Buds and Bloom

Beautiful, pink, lovely, sublime! No matter what words you choose to describe it, a rose is a 'poem' of nature that speaks to the soul!

Great Blue Heron

The Great Blue Heron is one of my favorite birds. They are so majestic and really neat to watch. This one was taken at Put in Bay while we were waiting for the boat to take us over to Gibralter Island. It was sitting on the dock and I was able to get within six feet of him. He wasn't afraid and sat there and posed for me. It was awesome because I've been waiting to get a picture like this for over 30 years. I got several good ones. It was hard to choose.

Another Cleveland Photo

"West Bank at Dusk" - The Flats, Cleveland, Ohio. I had to capture this magnificent sky at sunset and the reflections in the river!

Wall-E and Bobby

Ever Since I saw a movie trailer about 4 months ago about a really cute looking junkyard robot, I've been wanting to see Wall-E.
I immediately knew that it would be a great movie to see with my soon to be 8 years old, grandson. We went to see it on July 2nd downtown at the theater in Tower City since I had to drop off some of my greeting cards at Lake Erie Artists' Gallery. It is an animated sci-fi that takes place 700 years into the future. It has all the elements of a great flick, great visual effects, good sound track, humor and it is very thought provoking. And of course Wall-e is a hero and helps save the planet by compacting junk and finding love along the way.
After the movie we walked around and experienced the hustle and bustle of the pre holiday festivities that were underway. I had to get my camera out of my car and while we were walking back up to Tower City Centre, I was taking pictures of Bobby, who is one of my ongoing favorite subjects to photograph. These were taken in the parking garage, which I am discovering is a really cool place to take pictures. I would describe it as a subterranean odyssey of concrete and metal. Kind of a continuation of Wall-E's environment.

Watch Wall-E Trailer

Today is a good day to celebrate our freedom and also to give THANKS to all our troops who are sacrificing for us, and not forget the ones who gave their lives for us!