Yup, I've done it!! I've dropped my interstate speed to 58. My commute is about 50 miles each way. I've ended up saving enough in fuel to drive an extra day each week for free. I've also collected a group of "eco-minded" folks each day. We sort of make our own caravan - with "NO PASSING" being the rule!
6/30/08
One Day Free
6/29/08
Birthday Party
I made this up for my mother-in-laws party after the style of the new fruit bouquet shops popping up around the area. 
One of the nephews trying his hand at dinner during the birthday party.
6/28/08
Stately Pair
The Midwest needs more swans!! These reside in a lonely highway pond. The kind dug out to provide enough new dirt for the over passes.
6/27/08
Finally New Fronds
I have this odd little plant at the office that looks something like a small pineapple that grows long spiny fronds but is planted in a pot of rocks that are all glued solid. About once a year it starts to look sick and the three or four fronds dry up and turn yellow. I finally cut them off and wait for several weeks in worry. Finally (sigh) new growth begins.
6/26/08
6/25/08
Cooky Cutters
It not very common to see these type of homes in our area. All the same and every door matching.
6/24/08
Sticks and Stones
Spotted this wall made of small fist sized common stones. Itwas about 10 yards long.
6/23/08
Fawn
I love finding quiet places for reflection and meditation in the morning. Here is a colorful favorite spot. And yes, this is a green covered stream in Channahon, IL and it is a real fawn. I though it looked like a museum piece too, but it IS REAL!
6/22/08
6/21/08
Sun helps it grow
There are days when the weather is just right where you can almost hear the corn grow!
6/20/08
Watching abundance grow
I caught another shoot of the moon this cycle. This time she's looking over the abundance of packed barns.
6/19/08
6/18/08
BIG & little
The big boys are field corn, used in food production and feed. The little guys are sweet corn eaten on or off the cob.
6/17/08
Sun Rays
Remember when you were a kid and drew the sun with those rays shooting off around the edges? I guess it really does happen like that sometimes!
6/16/08
Couscous Salad
A great salad for a summery day, filling and delicious!!
5 oz. Couscous
3-4 Cups water, boiling
3/4 Cup Chickpeas (Garbanzo Beans)
1 Red Bell Pepper, roasted, peeled and chopped
1/3 Cup Black olives, pitted and cut in halve
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
3 Tablespoons fresh mint, chopped
Salt, to taste
Pepper, freshly ground to taste
5-6 Lettuce Leaves
Add the couscous to the boiling water. Cover and let stand off heat for 2 minutes. Drain the excess water off and place in a dish. Add chickpeas, bell pepper, olives, onions and mint. Toss the ingredients with the olive oil and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve on lettuce leaves with freshly toasted pita or tortilla. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Makes 4 servings.
6/15/08
Garden & Ecology
The raised beds help save water and help make it easy to move through the garden. Cedar mulch both reduces weeds and garden bugs (a very good thing). The straw beyond the fence is the melon patch and it also reduces water loss and weeds plus provides a nice soft dry spot for tender melons to grow. Beyond the hay field you will see the wind turbines. What a great way to harness power from without ripping up the earth and leaving behind toxic waste. Please note the storm fast approaching. I was about 10 minutes from a real whopper.
6/14/08
Summer Camp Badges
OK, I'll be out for a few weeks.. but thought you might like to see the badges I dreamed up for the summer camp project. Two months of photography fun!!
6/13/08
Stove Collector
This antique stove sits in the back room of my shop. It's not hooked up but instead serves as a storage area. It's a combination Moore Stove that can be run on wood or gas. One thing most people don't know about me is that I collect stoves. There are three more at home.
6/12/08
Mazon Watertower
This lovely old tower sits in Mazon,IL and looks just like the kind model builders put on Toy Train layouts.
6/11/08
Who Knew??
Remember the image I had last week of the truck cab For Sale along side the road? Well, it sat out in the ran all weekend and when I drove by this morning look what it had grown up into!! Not quiet so fuel efficient, but a pretty neat trick for sure! Who knew it was even possible?
6/10/08
Where the Angels Tipped their wings
"And the sunset paints the mountains....... Where the Angels Tipped their wings" This great wing-shaped cloud formation reminded me of these line from the cowboy poet Ron Brinegar
6/9/08
Storm Front
This huge storm front took almost 30 minutes to roll across the sky. It felt like a whale churning in and out of its self and I felt so small. You can see the rain falling out in the distance. The size and power of nature humbles me. I just stood here in complete awe and wonder. This is three images merged to capture its full size.
6/8/08
1882
The copula on the barn reads 1882. This building has sat on this hill for 125 summers and winters watching over the horizon line. Vines have crawled up it's side and it's watched the birth of nearly every tree in view. Paint and boards have come and gone, yet here she stands. Building things this well may be the may beat all other recycling efforts.
6/7/08
Sewing the Wild Oats
Roadsides in Central Illinois are a bit longer this year due to the cost of fuel and the State of Illinois' plan to reduce costs by limiting roadside mowing to twice during the season. I personally love the idea and have been enjoying the long waving grasses. They sort of give me the impression that I'm traveling by ship being passed along by a rolling sea of green.
Anyway, it's nice to see the large bends of Wild Oats getting a chance to build up their seed heads. If the price of fuel continues to rise, there will be plenty of roadside feed for those returning to horse and carriage too!!
6/6/08
For Sale
Spotted this great old truck cab sitting in a country lane marked "For Sale". I didn't get closer to check, but could image it might have read..... "Low Engine noise and Great Fuel economy with this one and four tires sold separately!!"
6/5/08
Purple Salvia
Huge plantings of this purple Meadow Sage are popping up around our area this week. It is a nice tall perennial plant that really comes into it's own when planted in mass.
6/4/08
Clouds in the Morning
It's nearly 7 a.m. and a storm front is moving away to the east as I drive in to the office. I've darkened the image a bit to show how striking the clouds were this morning.
6/3/08
A Good Man Knows........
Here is the new dishwasher and the new kitchen stove that my Lovey bought me. The dishwasher went down last week and one of the kids cracked the glass top on my stove around the holidays. The stove still worked, but the crack bothered him too much. My theory is, that a good man knows how to keep Momma happy!! 'Cause, If Momma isn't happy, ain't no one happy!!
6/2/08
Peony Petals
I snapped this image in a yard near to where I work. I played with the color in Lightroom until the details in the petals became more important than the rush of pink. I'm constantly amazed at all that is creation and nature.
6/1/08
From the Porch
I often get asked about country life. This is one of the best answers I have - My front porch. We added this wrap around porch several years ago and put a Gazebo type corner on it. I felt I needed an ideal place to shoot all the big moments in the kids life, like Prom Dances and such. This is one of the best reasons to work hard all weekend and end the evening here.
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