Celebrate

With a short workweek ahead for those of you working at the office, I know that you must be looking ahead to your Fourth of July celebration with family and friends.

Last weekend was such a non-summer-like weekend with fair weather during the day and cool temps in the evening hours. With such a beautiful weekend and knowing that a lot of “first Monday” activities would be underway I decided to get out and do a little road tripping. My thought was to head to Scottsboro, Al where during its hey day there was no better First Monday around the square. Unfortunately I arrived too late in the day or it is no longer the event it once was. All I found was a few vendors packing up and no visitors.

Not to be deterred, I headed out following the hood of my car and looking for things to photograph. For those that know the area it is blessed with multiple waterways, an abundance of farmland and the one thing that we all want in our backyard, a nuclear power plant. Bellafonte, which is owned by TVA, began construction in 1974 with an initial cost over $6 billion but has yet to produce a single kilowatt. It is a very impressive and very expensive photographic icon for the area.

After my photo stop for the plant I decided to head back to the water and photograph the water lilies that are in full bloom. Pulling off on the edge of HWY 72 is somewhat of a daring task as the semi-tractor trailer rigs speed by but I do believe my stop and the results were well worth the risk.

Water lilies are currently very plentiful in the areas around Scottsboro. It definitely makes for a very picturesque opportunity. I felt like a modern day – Claude Monet (http://en.wikipedia.org/wil/Water_Lilies)

Enjoy and have a very safe and enjoyable 4^th of July Celebration. Please give pause to pay tribute to those that have made it possible.