Botany Bay

There is a 4,687 acre wildlife preserve called the Botany Bay Plantation and this weekend we had a chance to hike parts of it.  An amazing place with history and the most beautiful views!

It's not Australia! It's South Carolina!

A 1800's ice house.  Ise was once a commodity sailing ships would bring down from the North and sell to Southern farmers which then stored the ice under saw dust in structures like this.  The foundation of this building is double wall concrete with sea shells as a fill material.  This was called "tabby" construction...

Miles of hiking trails cross equine trails and brackish marsh lands...

This was an unexpected discovery! 

Hidden on a poorly marked trail, we found this survey marker and these plaques that describe the historical need to measure accurately land formations, property lines, river inlets...

The bi-metal corrective technology allowed for some amazingly accurate measurements!

The marker below is one of only a handful left distributed along the East Coast of the US

Ta-da...

Egrets in flight in the park

This is a place where if you just sit still for a while, you will see many species of birds, alligators, deer, bear squirrels, and an assortment of other animals that wander around this 4687 acres!

Something you don't see everyday...

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HAPPY B-DAY NLO!!!

Wishing you the best birthday ever! 

 19 candles, how time flies...  Miss you, so much!

All My Love!

Dad

A French WW-II pilot by the name of Roland de la Poype

Designed this cool utility vehicle! 

Citroën Méhari

I had never seen one before last weekend and I happened upon this quite by accident.  A 2 cylinder plastic bodied utility vehicle just about perfect for living on a beach in the Southern part of the US.

The body panels are plastic.

 Admittedly, not very secure, but a good city car, and it looks fun to drive too!

The doors can be removed and the whole vehicle reminds me of the VW Thing

No worries about rust...

If it gets dirty, just turn the garden hose on it!

Although no longer in production, I wonder if the market would warm to an electric drive version of the Mehari these days? Simple, functional, what a delightful concept.

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What ever happened to the Daedalus?

Remember Daedalus?  A father tried to help a child who couldn't resist flying too high...  Icarus didn't fly in the middle, but flew high where the sun melted the wax in his wings.  Truly a myth as everybody knows higher up is colder... but I digress - the story is an allegory for many things including the consequences of not mitigating your actions.

But there was another Daedalus. The one from MIT.  Whatever happened to man powered flight and that crazy mylar skinned flying machine?  Well I know where it is!

I happened to look "up" the other day and there it was...

It's starting to show it's age a little.

Somewhere between Terminals A-B and C-D at Dulles Airport hangs the Daedalus.  Really a source of inspiration.  Sort of a giant kite with a human powered propeller.  So if you ever travel through IAD and you have a bit of a layover, I'd take the long walk to go check it out.

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The first roadside oddities of 2017...

Actually I've missed a half dozen or so really odd creations, but did manage to capture these two...

This has a story...

This has no explanation...

The crazy tree not to be confused with the "mystery tree," on the other side of the road, is known to keep updated on apparel although no one really seems to know who or how... or why...

The table and chair are just placed on the side of the road.  The odd thing is that the table is around two meters high, the chairs similarly scaled to fit your average giant.  

Happy trails everybody! 

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An update on Hazel..

Our new puppy is growing at a phenomenal rate... If she continues this rate of growth she will be the size of a small truck in around 10 months!  She's a very bitey English Setter who love's to learn  and play. 

Here's a clip from a couple of weeks ago, she has doubled her weight since then.

Bell is a patient big sister who is teaching her how to scent deer and howl at suspicions things like golf balls and furnace noises...

More than a handful, and a really pretty tri-colored Setter.

I've found a few more roadside oddities too!  I'll post them this weekend...

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Theophony and remembering...

I recently attended a Liturgy that made me reflect on something very important.  Most of us know love, have empathy and a whole range of emotions that make life rich.  Corinthians comes to mind.  For without love we are nothing.

On the morning walk, the birds are planning their day... notice the water is indeed a liquid.

The last time I participated in The Blessing of Waters it was pretty cold out!

I do remember that day.  Clearly.  Today St James (OCA) celebrated this event - although it was a bit warmer!

So today as I listened to wonderful voices of the faithful sing, I was reminded in a deep and moving way of St Paul's qualities of love.

So today is just a simple post about a memory of Theophany and some wonderful people and what love really is.  I hope all are well!

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