It's Theme Day Again!

Once again, the DP Family has chosen a theme - this month, it's a self-portrait in a favorite place. This isn't necessarily my favorite place, but when I saw this sculpture in Great Barrington, MA, I thought it would make for a fun self-portrait for our theme day. Another self-portrait in a much-beloved spot in Sharon is here!

To see what everyone else has chosen to do, follow the ring: 1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8 - 9 - 10 - 11 - 12 - 13 - 14 - 15 - 16 - 17 - 18 - 19 - 20 - 21 - 22 - 23 - 24 - 25 - 26 - 27

Butterflies, dragons and desert isles

What is it about face painting that children love it so much? I spent five hours volunteering at an event today and the children never stopped coming. I forgot my mirror so used the camera to show them how they looked - and conveniently got my blog post for the day. The event, by the way, was the Bike New York Harlem Valley Rail Ride - you could ride anywhere from 22 to 100 miles. It was 90 degrees and very humid today, but almost everyone arrived at the final event in good spirits. There were peole giving massages, serving pulled pork and corn on the cob and, of course, face painting!

Stone by stone

The stone wall - ancient as the first colonial settlers, modern as 2006 - every day for the last week I've driven by a solitary workman carefully building one of these stone walls, lining them up, shaving off a bit here or there, saving the flattest ones for the top. They are testament to the rocky soil our predecessors here worked with so much effort and hard labor. Now they are status symbols - "authentic" walls lend class and doubtless raise real estate values - they are much more expensive to install than those of manufacture stones, which are all of the same size.

Haying season

Starting about two weeks ago, all the hay was cut down and rolled into giant bales. I did a bit of reasearch on these bales and discovered a few interesting facts: Rolled hay bales are becoming more popular because they are less labor-intensive to make. But they are huge and heavy and don't stack well, so they are usually left out in the field til they're needed, and more hay gets wasted as a result -the outer layers deteriorate or the cows nibble away at them. Also they are dangerous - quite a few farmers have been crushed by falling round hay bales because they are so heavy!

Night Life?

Not in Sharon! To find people on the streets, cafés and bars, shops open past 6 (shops at all) a road trip is called for - like this one, to Great Barrington, MA, 40 minutes away.

Word verification

Sorry to have to add it - I hate it on other people's blogs. But I'm going to try it for a few days and see if it stops the flood of spam comments I've been getting!

Exhausted

Sometimes what's behind the scenes is more interesting than what's on the main stage - this was taken from the back of the shopping plaza a few evenings ago.

Miles of tails

It's hot and sticky and the flies are everywhere.

Roadsides in summer

This time of year, every roadside is blanketed in chicory flowers - if the weed whackers haven't gotten to it.

Blueberries and raspberries

Ellsworth Farm has a wonderful 'pick your own' operation in Sharon - they have strawberries in early summer, blueberries and raspberries now, and all kinds of apples throughout the fall. I went to pick some raspberries today, and the only other people there at 4:30 on a summer afternoon was this family. Remarkably, they were French - the mom kept saying things to the kids like "ne pas mange!" and "C'est superbe!" A few other pictures of my berry pleasant afternoon here. including a special one for Passante.

An artist's view of Sharon

My neighbor Colleen had an opening today of a show of her beautiful paintings of Sharon. (This photo does not do it justice!) She is inspired, as I am, by the landscape and the light. This picture of the shopping plaza shows the faint glow of the sunset behind, the loneliness of the few cars left at closing time, and the light beaming from inside the grocery store - ordinary, daily, beautiful sights. I took a similar picture back in May, but it didn't capture the simple loveliness that Colleens painting does so eloquently.

All wrapped up!

I don't think Christo and Jean-Claude have been here but I don't know what this means. It's not a new sign, and I notice thre's got some green goop or paint under the plastic. Perhaps one of my local readers can explain?

Waterlilies

Another evening at Mudge Pond. Another waterlily shot here.

Spirit of the Garden

These people had quite a lot of garden sculpture - representing a wide range of faiths and cultures!

Abandoned?

There are worse places to spend eternity!

By Frog's Early Light

After a week of posting landscapes - today I thought I'd share a more personal picture, taken on a family outing. I think this is a spring peeper but I didn't hear it peep - it's not the season. Just to give you an idea of how very tiny it is: the toenail that it's about the size of, belongs to a four-year-old. Here are some more photos from our Sunday at the beach.

In the Shadow of the Oak Tree

vI went back to Twin Oaks Field this morning, a little before 8am, to see if the light made for a very different shot than this post from a few days ago. It did, of course, and I put a shot here. But I liked this shot better, standing under the tree, in its shade, looking out over the valley below.

Oh, and I declare Passante the winner of yesterday's contest (which I cut a little short as I posted earlier than usual.) - it's mean but it's funny. I hope those poor ladies, who I'm sure are perfectly nice, never see this blog!

The Summer People

One of the most common subspecies of Berkshires residents is the Summer People. They can be spotted on the beaches and at shops during the day, and in the evening they come in flocks to cultural institutions such as this one, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, in Becket, MA. They can be identified by their pastel coloration, unusual purses and footwear. They have a distinctive call as well -- if you can get close enough to hear it you can always identify them by their conversations about real estate.

Anyone want to submit a caption?

Another View of Sharon

This is one of the most curious farms in Sharon - I always wonder who lives here when I drive by! Click to see the large version to really get the feel of it!

We interrupt this blog for this important message

I drove by this house at 50 miles an hour - screeched on the brakes, turned around and went back to shoot it.

And for Nowhere Man in Lisbon, do come visit, any time - some of the real estate is still quite affordable!

Indian Lake at dusk

Looking from the very edge of Sharon over Indian Lake into Millerton.

Twin Oaks

The most famous spot in Sharon, arguably, is the Twin Oaks Field. It was the subject of much controversy a few years ago when the owner made plans to develop it with houses - the town land conservancy quickly raised enough money to buy it and protect it forever.

I drive past it daily, and have photographed it many times, but have only posted one photo - from the main road the trees are too far away, and the photos end up grainy, hazy, and completly unsatisfactory. So today I decided to find the field and see the trees up close and personal. I drove around the back roads for a while, glimpsing the field from time to time, when suddenly I turned and there it was, with a convenient path mowed up the hill. I climbed up (about a five minute walk) and took some pictures, but the light was wrong - it was mid-day. I went back in the evening, but perhaps a bit too late -the sun had set behind the hill. I got a few nice silhouettes of the two trees - perhaps I'll go back again, at dawn, to see what they look like then!

Evening on Main Street

Back to our tour of Main Street - the girls were watching a squirrel climb the tree. It's usually very peaceful here - you see a few people out walking their dogs, or pushing a stroller.

Signs of the season

I track the seasons by what's in bloom, and right now we have daylillies, hydrangeas, blackberries and monarda (bee balm) all around us. It's been beautiful weather lately (finally!) and after all the rain we had before, everything is blooming lush and full.

100th Day

In one way, this photo has nothing to do with 100 days of Sharon, CT, but in another, it has everything to do with it, as it somehow epitomizes why I love living here. I spent about 12 hours today at work, as today was our fifth annual Family Arts Festival. A little organization like ours, and a small event like the Festival, can make a big difference in such a small town.

Each year, we bring artists - dancers, musicians, storytellers, theater groups - to perform at our center. This year we added street painting all day as well. Many more photos of the day here. We don't charge much - it's a $10 suggested donation for adults, free for kids. We want to give everyone in our community a chance to experience different cultures and art forms, and participate in them too. This photo shows a little boy, about four years old, who just couldn't help himself from trying what the dancer was doing. The dancer, by the way, is 17 years old, and has won many awards for her dancing. (She's also a national math champion, headed for MIT, one of the US' most elite universities, in the fall!)

At today's festival, we also had a Zydeco band (cajun music from Louisiana); Brazilian Samba, a native American storyteller, a women's folk trio who sang about the perils of motherhood, including the Bad Mother Blues (I can relate!), and a fantastic percussion and break dancing group, all children and teenagers, from one of the nearby big cities, Kingston, NY. The people who come seem to really appreciate and enjoy the day and I feel such satisfaction at having been a part of making it happen.

Three cheers for everyone, in all our communities, who brings people together, helps them find the things that unite us instead of divide us, and who gives people a chance to have fun, to dance, to laugh, together. (That means, in our DP family, three cheers for Eric, Denton, Ham, and all of the Daily and City photo bloggers who help us understand one another better - together we are creating the possibility of Peace on Earth!)

The challenges of being a photoblogger!

This is just one of the many dogs that bark at me as I make my rounds of the neighborhood. The day I took this, my mind was elsewhere as I strolled along Main Street - I nearly jumped out of my skin when the dog leaped at me and started barking hysterically. The owner was standing nearby and he just laughed, saying, "don't worry, that's as close as he'll come - there's an electric fence. Besides, he just wants to play!" It made me feel better - a little!

Tomorrow is Post Number 100 - can't wait!

Bicycle in the Weeds

Taken in Lambertville, PA, on a little weekend getaway.

100 minus three

I was invited on our local radio station, WQQQ-FM, a few days ago to talk about an event my organization is hosting, the Family Arts Festival. Joe, the host, is a great guy - easy to talk to and very welcoming to nonprofits like mine. Robin runs the Millerton Market and she comes on every week too - she brought all kinds of delicious food including a savory bread pudding with chili pepper - yum. I love radio - in another life I would have been a talk show host!

PS in three days it's my 100th posting - can't wait!

Mickey Mouse

Just for fun - what I saw in the clouds the other day.

Independence Day

 
This house, on Upper Main Street, has had their flag hanging for quite some time now. The Fourth of July is a time for fireworks, picnics, relaxation, and reflection on words like "freedom" and "independence" and what they say to us today.

Great Attic Classic

I spent some time this weekend at the Sharon Historical Society's annual fundraiser, the "Great Attic Classic Tag Sale." They do great work educating kids about Sharon history, and the tag sale was a lot of fun - people bought some great items at incredible prices.