Just Show Up!!!

I have received a number of compliments on my photography…and a heart felt thanks to all those people for those sentiments.  Recently Dave LaMora suggested that after people looked at the pictures of the spectacular beauty of the Mojave Desert, in a post I did below, that people should look at some previous pictures I have posted showing the  spectacular beauty we have right here in Cape Vincent. 

So  I’m going to post some more right here.

But before I do, do ya wanna know a little secret about photography???? 

A good part of capturing spectacular outdoor beauty…is just showing up!!!!  That is a big part.  Just show up and be a participant in the spectacular beauty all around us in this place or any other place. Either being lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time, OR make your own luck through experience and plan to be at the right place at the right time!  After that it is admittedly a  little more complicated.   But today’s photography experience  was rather easy to plan for.  A look at the Buffalo Nat. Weather Service website showed the sky would clear and the temps would cool as high pressure builds in. That would also probably mean some wind and waves  Good probability for large spectacular clouds at sunset.   The low water would create reflective pools on the shore, and the exposed rocks at low water would create lots of wave splashes where in other years I would have to be under water. But I still had to show up.  And I figured that showing up this time might have some interesting photographic results.  However,  at this sunset the camera could be pointed nearly anywhere and the pictures would almost shoot themselves.

Tonight clouds like this will dissipate leaving the sky with bright stars and there will be no moon according to my moon phase calendar I keep pinned on the wall above my desk.  And I plan to show up tonight too.

My neighbor, a very sweet lady, has a shirt I love.  It  says:

Forget the box…just think outside!!!   Right on!!!!!

Like the pictures you will see below.  I didn’t have to go far at all.  All these pictures  were taken in a space less than 50 feet on a side in front of my cottage.  Just imagine what else is out there in CV if you really want to look….just look.  Don’t just talk about our comp plan protecting scenic resources, go out and show up to really understand what we are protecting and why.

Sadly some people in CV have expressed the opinion that there isn’t anything beautiful  to see here, so what is all the hoopla about to protect our scenic resources and not industrialize CV with wind turbines.

I wonder what happened in the development of  their brains that would cause a person in the midst of so MUCH obvious spectacular beauty to simply fail to have the cognition to  recognize ANY of it.  Not only  to make such a statement in the midst of such beauty, but to actually stand up and say it as if we are going to believe it and suddenly agree to sacrifice our town to industrial wind development.  I guess for some people despite the more than painfully obvious solid and overwhelming evidence…the Earth will always be flat.

And these are the people who are trying to convince us that we should defer to their judgment on industrializing our community.  I wonder if they have figured out that maybe… just maybe, that when they make such completely absurd statements that there is such a thing as credibility if they want to have any shred of a chance to have a credible and legitimate conversation about the issue?????  Do they realize that when they say such things they become like cartoon characters, or comic relief.  We certainly can’t have an intelligent conversation when this is how the other side starts…and continues. Our community can’t be left to people who can’t even recognize the obvious and turn it into a comedy act.

The next time at sunset or on a beautiful day, or clear night, when  you are ready to sit down inside to have a glass of wine or  a bottle of beer (I like both) or to sit down to dinner or watch TV…do yourself a favor. Forget the box…just go outside…and experience. 

We  seem as a society to put a lot of value on being busy.  It seems the measure of our value  is the busier we are the more important and credible we are.  But sometimes it is  in our best interest to just stop, sit down and look…sit down and watch.  Watch as long as it takes to really understand.

 Right now our community and our entire region depends on it. It depends on you showing up … and standing to defend what we have!!!