I remember my rockin’ horse and how I spent hours on it riding the “range” looking for the Lone Ranger. Okay, I may have just dated myself. The TV programs were reruns, folks.

Always when I get a new lens or camera, there is a learning curve. The first couple of shots are great and then something happens. Usually it is called “user error.” I’m trying to deal with learning how to use an ultra wide angle lens and the place I chose to give it a try was Tallulah Gorge. It makes no sense because as I have written before, there is really bright light at the rim of the gorge and very dark shadows at the bottom. But since I’m not claiming to be a professional photographer, I can do (and will continue to do) goofy things and get away with them.

Cocoa is silvering on the top of her head. I thought about dying her hair, but I know that would be a little messy. She will just have to be herself—no matter what stage of life she’s entering. Here’s a photo of her with Chip—the one who sticks “closer than a brother.”

Sometimes, it’s just plain fun to take a photo of simple things like this collection of gourds that serve pretty well as bird houses.

This has been a favorite destination of mine for years. I’ve watched this little store evolve being very rustic (it still is but that is part of its charm) to offering very high end merchandise. The Lick Log Mill Store is located just outside of Highlands, North Carolina and plenty of people stop to purchase items for their homes in the mountains.

The store has been featured in Southern Living magazine and has a super loyal following. But the owner told me this past weekend that she had decided that she would probably never have a computer. She accepts cash or a check but that’s it. She still hand writes out her invoices and wraps everything purchased in lovely tissue paper. So, you won’t find her or her store on the internet except when it has been mentioned by another loyal customer.

When I left, her husband was hard at work in the garden that runs alongside the old mill. The flowers were lovely thanks to the afternoon rains this area always seems to enjoy.

Vermilion is a really sweet coastal town. I’ve photographed its lighthouse in the dead of winter when it was mind-numbing cold. This time the temperatures were at the opposite extreme—the high 90′s. I discovered pretty fast that people who live up north usually don’t mix well with heat. Air conditioners were running with great fury or “full tilt” as my grandmother would have said. And no one was willing to tell me just how low the settings were. It was freezing in all the buildings and houses!

One afternoon, we ended up in this little coffee shop where all of us enjoyed the atmosphere, the conversation, and the espresso! I came a way with a half pound of Pirate’s Blend. Thus, continuing my “Pirate” theme, which I have no clue where it came from this summer.

And then there is this soda shop. Eating here and drinking a cherry coke is becoming a tradition.