Category: Knoxville

Three photos from my morning walks:

And one from the evening, shortly before sunset.  The play of evening light on the clouds has been beautiful this week, but capturing it is beyond my abilities.  Perhaps another learning project awaits.

Tikka and I walk toward the house with this lovely willow every day, and it always makes me smile, even though I can't really capture its magic with a. photograph.

Dawn was beautiful this morning.

In fact the skies were beautiful long before dawn, and I had gone out without my camera, so I hurried Tikka the last tenth of a mile home in order to fetch the camera.

All to the good, it seems, because I don't know enough about taking photos in low light to have expected success, especially with a small dog constantly pulling on her leash in excitement.

I do want to learn more, but sometimes, just remembering to take the camera off automatic is a bit of a challenge.

This photo makes me smile however.  The tree, almost shockingly bright in the light of the flash perfectly captures how I felt earlier this morning when my internal alarm clock misfired and my body decided that I needed to leap out of bed at 3:45 AM.

It has been more of a traditional New York November than a Tennessee November.

Of course New York has not had a traditional November either, and I will admit I prefer this version.  Even though it has gotten down in the teens, I have not really minded the cold so much, but that is mostly because I have warm coats and sweaters, and I relish the opportunity to wear wools and cashmeres.  I've lived further north long enough that I don't consider anything in double digits and up dreadfully cold.  But I also understand and am grateful for the fact that I still have clothing suitable for this weather and so therefore I am not, for the most part cold.  In fact, I prefer the dry cold of teens and twenties, even with snow, to the chilling dampness of a rainy day in the upper 30s.

The plan this morning was for an early morning walk.  I still plan to walk, but it is not yet safe:

My neighborhood is fairly quiet and there is not much traffic, but there are no sidewalks.  Here at the top of the hill, visibility is perhaps 200 feet, but the hollow, dense with fog, is less than a quarter mile's walk and the fog is growing more dense as I write. 

Truth be told, I miss snow.  I still love snow.

Although it is possible that my Tennessee neighbors may not agree with me. Snow is not typical here and it has been many years since Knoxville has seen this much snow.

Snow makes winter beautiful and lifts the soul, relieving the eye of dull brown and lifeless grey.  The pure enchantment of new snow is a welcome balm, even if only for a brief time, before modern life with all its ugliness interferes.  And where snow is concerned, when mixed with cities and towns, roads and automobiles, snow turns ugly very quickly.

I am hoping that it is warm enough in the daytime here that the snow will be vanquished back into mud, rather than the greyish brown piles of ice and slush that were common in New York. Neither is lovely, but sidewalks and parking lots filled with brown ice seem an affront to my eyes, necessary, but too harsh of a reminder of the ugly underbelly of modernity. 

My neighborhood has been plowed, although the neighborhood between me and the next major street has not, and my driveway is clear.  I am ready for the melting, the overnight freeze, and the rain that is anticipated for tomorrow.

** Both photos were taken a few moments before sunrise, when it was still cold and a light snow was still falling.  

These photos are actually from a few weeks ago, back when I was thinking about photos and carrying my camera around all the time.  Somehow all of that slipped my mind lately, but I still wanted to post the pictures.

Most of these pictures are of from Knoxville, even though I spent most of the week in Texas.  Flowers were very much on my mind that week and I was fortunate enough to be in Dallas in time for the bluebonnets, as seen in the lower left photo.

There was no plan to my photographic choices, just whatever would capture my imagination at any given moment, but obviously I was focused on spring.  Focusing on spring is always good.