Spring Is Sprung!

 

Spring is sprung and the bluebirds have been busy!  

We have 2 bird-boxes in the backyard, I've been busy disrupting the House Sparrows from the "left" box for days, hoping they'll give up.  No luck on that, but it has freed the "right" box for the bluebirds.  I've seen them coming and going, but today was the first time in weeks that I opened it.  And we have eggs!

This'll be the 3rd year we've have bluebirds nesting in the yeard, they have been having 3-4 broods each year.  Always fun.

They'll probably lay 1 or 2 more, then start sitting.  Nothing fancy on the photo, I try to be quick and as non-intrusive as possible.  And this is straight from the phone, no crop or anything....

Stay tuned!

Old Shawneetown Photo Essay

 Been scarce on posting will try and do better.....

I did another Youtube video, after our March trip to Cave-In-Rock and surrounding area.  This is a shortie (1:47), from Old Shawneetown, IL  Check it out, let me know what you think!

Old Shawneetown

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I enjoy putting these together, and will continue as long as that's true.  Check out the channel!

What Holds - February Photos

 Another Youtube video posed yesterday.  I've really been enjoying making these, hope y'all enjoy watching them!  This is a summary of photos from February 2026, a quickie of 11 shots.  These will (probably) feed into the 2026 version of A Good Crop...

What Holds

I'd be thrilled if anybody wants to check out my Youtube channel.  I've posted 13 photo essays since July 2025, I hope to keep posting 1-2 per month.

What Remains

 On the last day of February, we did some wandering, and passed through Washington MO.  I happened to see this scene, and pulled to the side of the road, jumped out of the car, and grabbed a couple of quick phone photos.  Here's the best of the trio:

I'm not thrilled with the final result, didn't quite manage what I was thinking when I took the photo.  But it'll do!

Superior Light Beer

 Every once in a while, I find a photo that slipped through my cracks...   This was taken in mid December, 2025, but was just rediscovered this week.  So here ya go!

Places That Kept Going

 I've been having fun pulling together YouTube Photo Essays.  And also fun experimenting with my Chuzhao "toy" camera.  So naturally, a Chuzhao photo essay was needed.  So, going live at 7pm Central time Wednesday, Feb. 25.:

Places That Kept Going

This is a short one, 14 photos from the Chuzhao, from the past 10 weeks or so.  All the photos are all mine, but I did ask ChatGPT for help culling the herd down to 14, and for suggestions on ordering and formatting.  But I'm okmwith that, hope y'all are too.

The photo above is from my starting powerpoint, where I drop photos as they're taken/processed.  I opted to try a no-title slide for the final presentation, so we'll see how that worked.  Hope you check it out, and let me know your thoughts!

Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame?

 So...  the RRHOF announced its list of nominees for 2026 induction:

• The Black Crowes
• Jeff Buckley
• Mariah Carey
• Phil Collins
• Melissa Etheridge
• Lauryn Hill
• Billy Idol
• INXS
• Iron Maiden
• Joy Division/New Order
• New Edition
• Oasis
• P!NK
• Sade
• Shakira
• Luther Vandross
• Wu-Tang Clan.

Heavy sigh.  

Over these 17 artists/bands, I own exactly 1 album (Black Crowes - Shake Your Money Maker).  There's not a single one of these names that would come close to being deserving, in my (humble) opinion.  Maybe Phil Collins, as a very successful pop singer (with rock roots).

Oh well, I'm getting used to being disappointed, guess I'm getting old.

Meanwhile here's a few artists/bands that I think are deserving:

• Bue Oyster Cult
• Boston
• Emerson Lake and Palmer
• Jethro Tull
• Kansas
• The Monkees
• Stephen Stills (solo)

Now, get off my lawn!

A Good Start - January 2026

 As regular readers (hopefully) know, I've spent several years doing a "Good Crop" project; where I select 12 of my best/favorite photos from the previous year.  I've done this for a while, and there are several examples here.  A few months ago, I started doing photo-essays of those "Good Crops", check out the playlist on YouTube

So here's 10 photos culled from my January 2026 photos.  These will (most likely) go into the 1st cut for the 2026 "Good Crop", What're your favorites?

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Floored

Recently, we had to run to the local laundromat to wash some king-sized bed-pads.  Which meant hanging around for a while.  Which ended up with me taking photos or worn floor tiles.  Sometimes it  

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Ch Ch Ch Chuzhao

 Just a few more photos from the Chuzhao "toy" camera.  It is a fun aside from my other photos.  Just a point and click, no settings for aperture, shutter speed, ISO, anything,  No super sharpness, nothing fancy. I tend to be more observational in my photos with it...  at least I think so.

So what do you think?

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(Still) Waiting for Spring

A bit of a warm spell recently, 60 degrees today...  I managed a short walk before rain rolled in (and afternoon commitments).  These are all from Shon Park / Green Space North.  I especially like the first one.  What you y'all think?

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Shadows

 

From a few days ago, taken at Drost Park.  Shadow on the frozen lake.

Waiting for Spring, A Ways To Go...

 Wandering around Highland, IL, and decided to check out Lindendale Park.  Turns out there's not a lot there except for the county fairgrounds.  But I managed a about 1.25 miles, so that's something.  This area is actually camper parking, I presume for the fair.  But it was all deserted, and this mostly frozen creek.

I feel like this photo captures the mood of the day.

Meanwhile, there was this funky concrete something down along the creek (behind me in the above photo).  Probably 10 feet tall, with no discernable purpose.  Except to inspire a funky photo!

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Snow Day

 Another from the Chuzhao "toy" camera.  This ais actually from a couple of weeks ago, during our big snowstorm.  It took me a while to download, process (minimally) and post.

February Haiku

 I asked Chat GPT to create a Haiku based on my photo.  Here's my favorite from the suggestions.  I wish I was creative enough to write my own.  Anybody else want to take a crack, post in comments!

Peeling bark in light,

the tree loosens its old skin

without moving on

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More Chuzhao

 I took the "Toy" camera on my walk today, here's a few photos from Miner Park:

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The Blue Owl

 I posted yesterday about our recent trip to Kimmswick, MO, and mentioned a goal of the excursion was to eat at a restaurant we'd been recommended.  But I then redirected to photos from Kimmswick.

So, here's the restaurant:  The Blue Owl.

This was a great find.  Really good food, really nice people, excellent desserts!  Highly recommended, we'll need to go back!  I had the Smoked Turky Melt sandwich, wife had Quiche and their "famous" White Chili. 

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I had to sneak in an "artsy" photo...

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Desserts!

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Kimmswick, MO

 Our temperatures have finally gotten about freezing for a few days, and Friday actually made it into the 50s!  So we decided to take a short road trip to Kimmswick, MO, and have a late lunch at a restaurant we'd been recommended.  And snagged the first decent photos I've taken this February:

Looking down the Mississippi River from the landing at Kimmswick.  The river was pretty low, but I think it was pretty typical for this time of year.

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Star Anchor supporting one of the buildings, The Barber Haus, originally 1872.

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Just the kind of thing I notice...

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Train bridge over Rock Creek (still frozen).  With the Mississippi River just visable

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Keystone Bridge Company, from 1874. The oldest known wrought iron span in Missouri. Originally placed across the River des Peres at Ivory Avenue. It remained there until 1928 when it was replaced by a new bridge. The bridge was moved to Kimmswick and put in place in 1930. The bridge is only open to pedestrian traffic and is located at the intersection of Mill Street and Front Street.

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Eagle Watching, Sans Eagles

We go Eagle watching pretty much every year, at least.  Last Friday we went out for the first time this winter.  Just a quick run up the Great River Road from Alton to Grafton and Pere Marquette State Park.  Then back, with a lunch stop in Grafton, and a pass through Audubon Center at Riverlands.

We only saw 1 eagle, and not in a manner to grab a photo. But that's ok. Good company, nice meal at Grafton Winery & Brewhaus. And a few photos (but no Eagles).

Here's a few photos:

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Edges and Decisions - New video

 I've posted a new photo-essay video on Youtube, Edges and Decisions.  Check it out, leave a comment (here, or there!).

This is a follow-up to my "A Good Crop 2025", which was posted 1/1/26.  As I was struggling to cull my 2025 down to just 12 photos, I realized that there were 2 different 

From the video:  

"These photographs trace a quiet architecture of seeing. Each image offers a small negotiation with the world, transforming shifting scenes into something deliberate. 

Collected, they reveal a practice built on the belief that clarity is something made, not merely found."

You can check out all my videos at LSqrd1960.

Alton, IL

 A followup to the previous post on analog photos...

Here's "proof" that the drive through photo is from Alton IL:

My photo

And Streetview

Nailed it!  The wide angle street view spreads it all out, but you can see it is the same spot.