Blog Archives

this is how my tale begins

This is not the first time I’ve not broken any photographic ground by making a short depth-of-field photo of this same white picket fence.

And you know what? I bet the next time I visit, I’ll not-break that same ground. I can’t help myself.

National Ranching Heritage Center
Lubbock, Texas
photographed 3.8.2026

by a white-baked wall

This is the first historic building visitors to the National Ranching Heritage Center see; there are tons of pictures of the front of it.

So – you know how I am – I headed down the path and behind a berm to try to catch a different angle on a place that’s familiar to me.  The windmill that’s nearly obscured by the trees was a bonus.

National Ranching Heritage Center
Lubbock, Texas
photographed 3.8.2026

in this rosy light

An oil lamp. A cowboy hat. Rough stone walls. Unmatched chairs.

(A summation of the development of ranching in Texas.)

National Ranching Heritage Center
Lubbock, Texas
photographed 3.8.2026

look how far the light came

The exact light that landed on those beds was the exact light I needed. It was never precisely like this before and will never be this way again.

Or, as Bruce Cockburn says “Look how far the light came/to paint you this way.”

National Ranching Heritage Center
Lubbock, Texas
photographed 3.8.2026

the unfriendly playground

I suppose using leftover rebar and expanded metal and pipes is a cost-effective way to make playground equipment. And this is beside a small church, which was no doubt working on a budget that only had room for donated materials and volunteer labor.

There are a few safety concerns, though, with such unforgiving materials.

But, naturally, the main thing I thought about was how “Suffer the little children”* was taking on a whole new meaning.

Levelland, Texas
photographed 2.28.2026

*Matthew (19:14), Mark (10:14), and Luke (18:16) all reported it. John was silent on the matter.