#62 Creepy

Although a common motif in the West, some might consider an animal skull "creepy."

Part of the Old Trail Town, Cody, Wyoming collection.

Halfway

Halfway through the 2011 Elements Village Photo Challenge I take some time to reflect on this project. I am so I decided to participate! I started a similar project on Flickr in 2010 but was disappointed that only a few people commented and not very often. Then I was going to have to pay an annual fee for posting over 200 photos so I bailed. Then I found Elements Village.

I especially like the theme concept. This challenge makes me think of photo subject in many different ways. The "rules" are pretty loose. That takes the pressure off and allows a variety of interpretations. I notice that some of the blogs aren't following the themes. That's OK and I'm glad we don't "have to" go in order. Whew! I'm glad there are free themes. I'm glad "The Letter A" can be something that begins with the letter A or is an actual picture of the letter. I'm glad the blogs can be a year-long collection of children or animal photos, a travel log, a daily diary of ordinary happenings, only inanimate objects, only people objects, or whatever rocks your boat!

Your blogs have increased my knowledge of cameras and digital processing. My eight-year-old Canon PowerShot A510 is pretty good but has no bells and whistles. I confess I haven't tested the limits of my camera but am encouraged by your blogs to increase my skills.

Your photos also bring back dusty personal memories, pique my interest in a geographical place or historical happening, or bring a smile to my face. Can't have too many smiles. BTW, I occasionally steal one of your photos for my wallpaper. Beautiful!

I soooo appreciate the comments you leave, whether regarding the quality of the photo or how the photo subject connects to your life. The comments make me feel like I make a contribution to your day, at least occasionally. I consider you virtual friends and count you as another benefit of being a part of this challenge. Thank you.

#253 School

Old Trail Town is a collection of original cabins, buildings, relics, and people displayed on a site chosen by Buffalo Bill Cody for Cody City in 1895. Many of the buildings were completely taken apart and reassembled on this site. The collection now consists of 26 buildings, which date from 1879 to 1901, 100 horse drawn vehicles, an extensive collection of Wyoming frontier memorabilia, and authentic Indian artifacts.The interior of the Coffin School shows pictures of Presidents Washington and Lincoln. I especially like the thirty-three star flag and the old stove. There were about eight student desks and no room for more.

The school was originally built in 1884 at the W Bar Ranch on the Wood River. It got its name from the tragic death of Alfred Nower who died of gangrene in the cabin after he cut himself in the leg while hewing logs - one of the disadvantages of living far from town.

#75 Distant

In the foreground is the entrance to Old Trail Town on the outskirts of Cody, Wyoming. (More on this later this week.) Looking west and behind the Old Trail Town is the entrance to Shoshone Canyon. The Shoshone River flows east through this canyon. The highway takes you to the east entrance of Yellowstone National Park.

In the canyon is the BUFFALO BILL Dam, which causes the BUFFALO BILL Reservoir, which is surrounded by the BUFFALO BILL State Park. Are you seeing the pattern?

BUFFALO BILL himself, standing in front of the BUFFALO BILL Historical Center. Without this guy, the town probably wouldn't exist. Although he did his part to decimate the buffalo population in the Great Plains, it is claimed that he also participated in trying to re-populate the buffalo, or at least keep it from going extinct. Sorry, I didn't pay attention to all the details.

PS: I also wondered why the flags in town were at half mast. One of Wyoming's soldiers was killed in one of the mid-east wars. Do other states do this?

#117 Frilly

Certainly not frilly in the feminine sense, these men look warrior-like to me in their "fancy feathers" category costumes. Something about the man in black, red, and white that caught my attention. This costume has two bustles - neck and waist. It was an extraordinary display - even more powerful with the drumming and singing to keep everyone moving!

Plains Indian Museum 30th Annual Pow Wow, Cody, Wyoming. June 18, 2011.

#2 Action Shot

"Fancy Shawl" Junior Division. So elegant. So much fringe and beadwork. Wow.

Plains Indian Museum 30th Annual Pow Wow, Cody, Wyoming, June 18, 2011.

#60 Costume

One of the reasons for going to Cody, Wyoming last weekend was to attend the Plains Indian Museum 30th Annual Pow Wow - our first. What can I say - it was awesome. Overwhelming color and an inspiring introduction to intertribal culture they are working hard to preserve.This is during the Grand Entrance where the dancers are introduced in groups according to their dance division, gender, and age. I think these men were in the "fancy feathers" division. Eye candy. Lots of eye candy. I enjoyed the drums and dancing, too. What a weekend!

#326 The Letter Y

Old Faithful and buffalo are not the only good things in Yellowstone but they rank top of the list. We were lucky to be so close to the buffalo, always wary of getting too close since they can outrun me!

(This is my first attempt at using Picasa collage-maker. I don't want to be one of those old dogs that can't learn new tricks! Sorry it's so small.)

304 The Letter C

No candlelight dinner, no cards, just a great camping weekend in Cody, Wyoming to celebrate our 45th anniversary. I helped set up the tent, just taking a break to record the event in pixels. BTW, it was our first camping trip in over twenty-five years. I'll do almost anything to save money on motel.

Nice neighbors, no wind, down to 45 degrees, and it didn't rain hard until we were on the road back home. Wait til you see what fun things we got to see and do! Northwest Wyoming is gorgeous this time of year.

#294 Symbols

Petroglyphs by Carol Skvorak, another in the Art You Can Sit On collection in downtown Idaho Falls. Carved in Idaho sandstone, the Snake River petroglyphs are part of the extensive Native American heritage in the Snake River Plain.

Also comes under Raindrops Keep Falling as it was sprinkling a bit this late afternoon.

#147 Homemade

Strawberry jam - yummmmm.

#140 Hearts

The season for bleeding hearts is almost over. Aren't they pretty? I don't usually get such a clear close-up.

#252 Scattered

One of the things I like about evergreen trees besides the fact that they are EVERGREEN, are the cones. And you would think that since these are my favorite trees that I would know all about them. I think these are spruce cones but I could be wrong. I just like them, even, or especially when they are scattered all over the grass.

#197 Neglected

This neglected cabin brings so many questions to mind.

How old is it?

Did children live here?

What happened to the residents?

Who owns this property now?

How much longer will it stay standing?
Being a neatnik and liking things to be complete, if I had the funds I'd do something about this neglected edifice. -- Or maybe it's OK just like it is, as long as no one gets hurt.

#113 Four

The old Idaho State Penitentiary in Boise closed in the 70s after the new one was built. On a recent trip I toured the old facility and grieved at how people have to live when incarcerated. Yep - there are four beds in this cell. Not much personal space and no choice of roommates. It's easy to understand how the boredom and close quarters leads to trouble.

#356 Wet

Downtown Idaho Falls features a summer-long, open-air, every Wednesday "Live After Five" concert series. Last Wednesday was a rainy one and most folks assumed it would be canceled. The Idaho Falls Fire Department Pipe and Drum men showed up anyway and gave a great performance - without getting wet. The rain stopped just so I could enjoy the music. Love it!

They made quite an entrance marching down the street to the park playing patriotic music. (You can see puddles in the street. Yes, it was a bit chilly but I had my hooded sweatshirt.)

#350 Vivid

Dark purple lilacs are very vivid to me. Love 'em! This is the view from my kitchen window. I do a happy dance each time I see them, even while washing dishes. Wish they lasted all summer! (PS: the lilacs are a lot darker in person. The photo washes it out a bit.)

#248 Round

The Idaho Centennial Carousel in Porter Park, Rexburg, Idaho is, of course, round. It was built in 1926 and brought into Rexburg in 1952. By the late 70s the carousel had been damaged by vandalism and the 1976 Teton Flood. "Sherrell Anderson, a master carver, replaced more than fifty broken legs and ten tails for the carousel's horses, then created twelve new horses that match the originals in style but are festooned with symbols of Idaho." (Off the Beaten Path-Idaho by Julie Fanselow, p. 143.)

The enclosure protects the carousel from vandalism and the weather.

#68 Damaged

This mound of dirt in the middle of the Teton River Canyon (Idaho) is all that is left of the Teton Dam after it collapsed on June 5, 1976. The Teton Flood Museum in the basement of the Rexburg Tabernacle shows a great vintage video of the aftermath destruction and amazing cleanup efforts. Ten foot walls of water lifted houses off their foundations and swept them into other homes. Numbers vary but over 13,000 head of cattle were lost and the 1976 crop season came to an early end. Eleven people died as a result of the flood. Google "Teton Flood" for more information and photos.

There is discussion regarding rebuilding the dam - this time it will be done right. Hmmmm.

Looking downstream from the overlook, it's hard to believe this was full of water for eight hours, which is how long it took for the reservoir to empty.

#37 Car Parts

I let other people's clutter bother me. In my wandering through the country side the last few months, I have seen so many country properties with accumulations of abandoned cars, trucks, farm equipment, single-wides and other vehicles I can't see because of the tall grass. I suppose it's expensive to have them hauled to the junk yard but really. How can they stand it? This property has a vintage pre-WWII car in a "shed." I counted twelve more vehicles including a pickup truck and an orange VW bug scattered throughout a small field. It could have been worse. I wonder if they would sell any one of them for parts if someone asked.

#288 Strong

My two adopted grandsons pose at the Rocky Bilboa statue in front of the Philadelphia Art Museum. I recall a big hullabaloo both for and against a pop culture representation at a classic art museum. As you can see from the bottom photo, it's not very large, off to the side of the steep steps leading up to the entrance, and could be easy overlooked.

I'm not a boxing fan or a Stallone fan but running the steps and seeing the statue were on our must-see/do list. Just cuz.

#28 Bold

Carved by Peter Toth. For more information on this artist's carvings go to: http://www.dcschumaker.com/

#282 Spring

Now that it's almost summer, I can get a good shot of my pink/mauve tulips. Red and yellow species seem to be city favorites so I'm glad my backyard offers a variety of color with these pretty ladies.

#194 Nature

Baby ducks! Whoo hoo!

All mamas should be so diligent in protecting their young!

I wanted to get better acquainted but she didn't trust me. I probably looked funny.

Easier than herding cats! So cute!

#169 Letters in Nature

I see two letters in this tree trunk - a capital "Y" on the top and a capital "U" on the lower trunk.

Craters of the Moon National Monument, central Idaho.

#272 Small

These flowers/plants take root naturally although they appear to be planted by human gardeners. The pink is a nice change from all the neutral colors and barren rock in the Craters of the Moon National Monument. They aren't really all that tiny, just seem fragile in the moonscape.

#260 Shapes in Nature

These smooth, rope-shaped hardened lava rocks are called pahoehoe. This lava flows smoothly and is not as heavy as the 'a'a type lava.

Craters of the Moon, central Idaho

#72 Depth of Field

I used the branches of a limber pine and a lava boulder to frame a shot of some of the vegetation in Craters of the Moon National Monument. There is a bit of depth of field, isn't there?

#292 Surfaces

This is what I thought the whole monument looked like but not so. Several surfaces appear in this scene - the very rough lava field, the smoother spatter cones and the "normal" snowy mountains in the background. Storm is moving in, just a bit of sleet with lots of wind. I don't care for wind.This rough, rocky lava is called 'a'a. It's all about gas content and temperature. By the way, the last eruption of lava on The Great Rift (this area) was 2,000 years ago. Eruptions occur pretty regularly every 2,000 years. Guess what!

#15 Barren

Last week we took a day trip to Craters of the Moon National Monument in central Idaho. I knew this would by my source for the "Barren" theme as soon as I first read the list. This is a cinder cone, consisting of gravel-size lava rock. It looks groomed by humans but isn't. Although I define barren as not able to grow anything, as you will see in future posts this week, even in moon-like areas like this, there are plants suitable for this soil.The park is updating some of the viewpoints and pullouts with new sidewalks and asphalt parking lots. Most the concrete curbs and sign bases are made of black cement.

#258 Seven

Seven rifles honor those we remember with a twenty-one gun salute.

One of the veterans in the group goes to my church. He said this ceremony was his eighth and last one and hoped it didn't rain before we finished. It was a windy, overcast, and chilly day.