Genetically Modified

Recently I took a trip to Peru, IN.  It was an adventure that took me in a direction I hadn't been before.  An invitation was extended to me, by a new acquaintance I made, to attend the ACHA World Cup.  It sounded very sophisticated and well, different for me.  So I loaded up and headed north.  Little did I know that just across the road from the World Cup was one of the biggest X-Factor White Tail Deer Farms.  It's kind of a scary, sci-fi name for sweet little deer, but "little" is not the word that would come to mind when you see what is grown here.  These bucks are genetically engineered in such a way that the racks they sport sometimes need to be pruned.  Antlers grow so large that even the mighty neck of the X-Factor buck cannot hold them up.  A visual popped into my head when I heard this bit of info. I imagined deer moping around with the heads hung low dragging their 8 to 10 points racks along the ground.   Some of the antlers I saw laying about in boxes in the garage and workshop area of the employees are comparable to moose antlers.

The bucks aren't too easy to find but the of X Factor does are plentiful.  They are pretty normal too.  They look fragile, docile and of course, doe-eyed.  I was there on the day they were forcing the girls into heat.  This is a hard to explain, but if you are not agriculturally and husbandry educated, it is a typical procedure.

The kindness of the owner and employees of the farm carted me and my friend around to areas where we could get a glimpse of the big 'uns.  Hidden among the shadows of trees and deep in the under brush we could see the points.  We had to look very closely because the bucks are camouflaged so well.  Once they rise to check us out and before they bound away, we are given a breath stopping, heart pounding view of these animals so large they are just plain unnatural.  Prehistoric came to mind.  And once I started to pondering, I realized that all the fencing I had been wandering around that day was like Jurassic Park.  I was excited in a nervous kind of way.  I love the adrenaline and the weirdness and danger it provoked in me.  Now what these deer are worth for hunting is another story altogether.  Money is not as important as time and space, lets just say.

Up North

So I am deep into summer and must move this last post down the line.

I think I am at Hogwarts (photos to come).  Actually my room and board is at St. Thomas Seminary.  I feel at home with all the Catholic reading material and spartan dorm room.  That child in me is playing with fantasies of being a postulant.

I really do feel a peace.  The simplicity is calming.  Maybe it is going back to school I feel as if I have no responsibilities awaiting back at home, that mom and dad got that covered.  Let's see how I feel in about a day or two.

In the spirit of my humble abode I leave out with this image I shot in Pike County GA during my Slow Exposures AIR

The NRA in Nashville, USA

It was by happenstance I learned that the NRA was coming to Nashville.  And in two days middle america en masse were going to storm the floors of the Music City Center where guns, ammo and weaponry paraphernalia were going to be on displayed.
Amazingly it was tight in the cavernous Grand Ballroom.  I must have bumped, rubbed and dodged 50,000 of the expected 75,000 attendees.  My adrenaline was peaking right up till I had to leave at mid day on the first day and only day I could be there.  I saw things. I learned things.  As noted at nraam.org it was a weekend of fun and fellowship.  And there was something for everyone in the family.  Celebrities and politician, scantily clad girls and camouflage galore was mixed among the sea of people.  Tee shirts with messages that were lost on me.   They even had a "Defense Cafe" where one could "take cover."  I left thinking that the 2nd Amendment was in no threat.  "A lot of money in them there hills".

Neighbors

The profound exist right next door or down the street.  One tend to overlook what one see everyday.  Slowing down just long enough wonders are found right at hand.

Johnson City Skating Rink

On my way out of town on a cold dreary day I stopped by the JC skating rink.  I noticed a trickle of cars picking around for parking spaces in the lot and figured it'll be a place to lift my spirits before the long drive to Alabama.  

The night before was "All Night Skating" and the rink had over 300 skaters.  But this day the place seemed a bit hung over to me.  There was some stirring going on albeit in a subdued kind of way. And I puttered around looking for something maybe I left way back when in my childhood. 

I left feeling a little blue so I was hoping to find warmth on down south.  I promised myself a return to experience the whirl and whimsy of small town fun and even a trip or two around my memory.