Category: United States

Hard Truth

Posted on by Annie

On a hillside in Montgomery, Alabama, there stands a monument that exists to expose to the world the cruel and inhumane behavior that one group of people can perpetrate on another group. This is the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, which in the words of its founder is a “sacred space for truth-telling and reflection about racial terror in America and its legacy.” My own words cannot capture the context of this place as clearly as this text  from the entrance to the Memorial: Like the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the structure of the memorial itself is part of the…

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Sunday Serenity: Looking Closer

Posted on by Annie

One of my favorite things about hiking is the invitation to focus on individual elements of the environment around me. It’s easier, at least to me, to see the big picture: the sunset horizon, the canopy of trees overhead. I might lose myself in thought as I walk, barely noticing the rocks and roots my feet are stepping over. When I slow down and look-really look-around, I see small delights everywhere.  The forest is dense with life here in the South. From ivy climbing up trees to a flock of wild turkeys, there’s almost too much to see. I stopped…

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Gettysburg Redux

Posted on by Annie

My first time at Gettysburg was a quick day trip in 90 degrees of heat and humidity, left hand in a cast, on my way to somewhere else. I hadn’t really known what to expect of the place. I was pretty thin on the history of the Civil War and of this battle in particular. One of my nephews had been big on Civil War dioramas in his youth, and, honestly, that was my only reason for stopping by. I figured I’d snap a few pics to text to him, get a postcard or two. After two hours that day,…

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Update: Mar 27, 2019

Posted on by Annie

After a pretty slow February and March as far as traveling around goes, I’ve now picked up the pace, heading to a weekend retreat up in northern Virginia. Friday, I said goodbye to Birmingham, home of good food, an old friend and a new one, and photographic opportunities, and headed up the road a few hours to Huntsville. My Alabama explorations are almost done now. Huntsville has been on my radar since I started vagabonding, mainly because an old running buddy and his wife live there. I missed them last fall when I changed plans so we met up this…

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Southern Tour: Sloss Furnaces

Posted on by Annie

It’s hard to separate the terrible labor history of Sloss Furnaces from the sheer beauty of photographing old things, but that’s how I’m going to do it here. Today’s post is all about how old things have their own kind of beauty. As Neil Young said, rust never sleeps. These hot blast stoves, six in total at the installation, heated air before it went into the furnaces. This gear at the base of one of the hot blast stoves fascinated me, from the colors to the grit of the decaying metal. The base of the hot blast stoves, where the…

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