Every day in the month of May, I’m going to go out and take a photo (or two, three….idk) of something that piques my interest, something that is within a 31 mile radius of my home. Like so many of you, I too am getting stir crazy with little to no social interaction. I’ll probably include a bit of text as well with each photo, thus allowing me to converse with each of you in some small way because I dearly miss the small, daily conversations I may have had while interacting with people prior to Covid-19.

So come along with me as I investigate what I can find within 31 miles of my home in rural New Hampshire!

Day 6 & 7

Well, yesterday (day 6) I rolled the dice and the total was 12. But I also had an errand to run to a local certified organic farm in Hopkinton, Work Song Farm. And it just so happens they are exactly 12 miles from me so I figured why not ask if I can take some photos while there. They were very welcoming and told me to go right ahead and take as many photos as I wanted. They are starting to gear up for the full growing season and I’m sure in a few weeks there will be more photo opportunities.

So why the delay in posting? Well, when I got home to process the images, I had computer issues…lots of them. I also had coffee before I went out that morning so I had a bit of shake in the photos that was obvious once I did get them to load. So I bagged it for the day and said to myself, try again tomorrow. I’m still having trouble with the software I use but I’m figuring a workaround for now, and no coffee and a tripod today.

May 5th

22 miles today and I have little to show for it. I debated on whether or not to even post cuz I’m not happy with what I got today – a couple things contributed to the quality, but overall I’m just not pleased and I’m hoping tomorrow goes better. Ultimately, I decided to make a post not because the photo is stellar but rather because what I saw today gave me pause and warmed my heart – and gave me hope that good will come out of this pandemic.

What did I see? I saw families in yards talking to each other, playing with their children. I saw couples, young and old alike, taking walks mid-day. I saw a picture of what it was like when I was young, before social media held each of us in it’s embrace, separating us from each other in a silent, cold light. Maybe this pandemic will bring us closer. We’ll once again learn what it means to communicate with words and body language, and what it means to truly listen when we hear someone speak. That gives this writer, this communicator of photos and words, hope. The kind of hope that when we look at something ugly, we can believe that there will be something beautiful to come from it.

May 4th

13 miles but I didn’t get that far…the wind started picking up and the clouds started to roll in. Hope you enjoy the colors of spring!

May 3rd

Roll of the dice…22 miles. I rolled again – I just didn’t feel like driving 22 miles today, shrug. 12 miles. Okay, I can do that. And that’s 12 miles in one direction. All told, I ended up driving 23.2 miles. Go figure

May 2nd

8.5 miles, same direction as yesterday. Why? Yesterday I brought only one lens with me and unfortunately, a place I thought would garner great photos did not have the desired results so I decided to return today. As much as yesterday’s painted rocks may lead us to the question of why are they there at the base of the tree, much can be asked about today’s photos. Primarily, is this art? For anyone who has driven north on Route 4 through Salisbury, I’m sure you have seen the garage and glass managerie on the lawn near the road. Some might drive by and think it disgraceful, ugly, a dump. I drove past and said, hmmmmm what is this? A glass lampshade garden? So I stopped, grabbed my camera and photographed and admired the artist’s work – because if you look closely at this garden, there is art hidden inside that yard. As I photographed from the side of the road, and the edge of their drive, I had to wonder if seen, would they have shooed me off thier property or been pleased that someone appreciated their artwork.

May 1, 2020

My first task of the day was to determine where to go. I had no clue and that was part of the fun. Usually I am going somewhere with an intended arrival time, and I have no time to stop; but not today! So, I decided to gather up some dice (5) and whatever the count when they landed, that was the radius I would look at on a map. 18 miles. Using freemaptools.com I was able to determine the radius and chose Wilmot as the furthest most point I would travel. I grabbed my camera and headed out.

At mile 9, I happened upon Salisbury’s green where a church, library and meeting hall were located. I pulled over and looked around, thinking I might take a photo of the historic scene in front of me. I didn’t like the light (facing the sun) so I walked around a bit, hoping to find an angle that would highlight the buildings. Then, I saw my subject.

Was this a fun art project for the children of Salisbury visiting the library one Saturday afternoon? Or does it have a different meaning, serve a different purpose? Or perhaps each stone tells it’s own story? I loved it!