Many video(s).

Horses, buggies, cows, oceans, sunsets...

Take a look!

(This video has sound.)

Amish Buggy Passing 20230528 Sound 383A5451_1

It is hard to say the title in my head... toward the end it gets sung.

So this is a visual of that song.

world in hands copyHe has the whole world in his hands.

©David L Arment

arment ai

Look at the horse. He's got a few extra legs. The AI has a difficult time with horse's legs and people's fingers.

The revised version is below the odd version.

Revised horse with four legs and some changes to cows.

cowboy and cattle at night revised copy

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth, He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he years, and he will tell you what is yet to come.

So, what is yet to come? Is the Holy Spirit telling you what is coming next? When you see something "in the world" happening does that say something to you? Does something in you say, "oh, look, I know what that means"?

He tells us that the Holy Spirit will let us know in advance what is coming. He does. And the bible tells us about "wars and rumors of wars". Pestilence and turmoil. 

Are you ready? And what does "being ready" mean?

When winter comes, do you put away your summer clothes? Do you get out your winter clothes? Do you put the storm windows on the house? Do you prepare? Do you worry about it or fret? No you just do it because you know winter is coming.

Do you send your kids to school? Yep. Why? To prepare for the future.

Christians (and everyone else) spend a great deal of their day in preparation. They prepare meals, buy groceries, do all sorts of things in preparation.

Yet...

When it comes to the return of Christ in the rapture we don't prepare. We aren't ready.

Know one knows when he comes. Yet we feel his soon returning. How soon is soon? And how will the world continue to devolve beforehand.

girl w lamp john 16v13 copyJohn 16:13

So the Holy Spirit is a part of a Christians life. We (I) don't understand all He can do or does do. One of the things we miss is that the bible tells us that "he will tell you what is to come."
And he does...

computer generated
arment ai

I am persuaded that... nothing... will be able to separated us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

flower in the sky 20210713 _DSC3297 Romans 8-28-29 copyRomans 8:28-29

Yesterday we sat up rain barrels. The cold we get this time of year shouldn't affect them too much. It will help Pam water one of her gardens.
 

tomatoes vegs 20220903 _DSC3254 copyFrom the garden.

©David L Arment

A human mind would likely not come up with the concept muck less be able to execute the image.

So it's interesting and entertaining, but not something someone is going to buy and put on their wall... at least I don't think they will.

camping nightmare copyCamping nightmare.

Computer generated art comes for AI. You have to tell the AI what you want. If it doesn't know what you want it gives you what it can. So your instructions need to be clear and exact.
And this image is what happens when you want something bizarre. When you learn what it takes to completely fool the computer.

computer generated
arment ai

So this is my favorite Computer Generated Image so far.

I'm learning as I go. Everyone seems to be doing the same. Most are getting images that you can't tell from a photograph. Obviously I'm going the other direction. 

Tomorrow I will post an intriguing image that captures a lot of what is interesting about the AI generators that produce these.

See you tomorrow?

woman and moon 1 copyBasking in moonlight

computer generated art
arment ai

Amish farmer spring 2022 _DSC8752 copyAmish farmer preparing the ground for planting in early spring.

©David L Arment

It is times like this when you are awaken from a perfectly good sleep that it is hard to, "Love your neighbor as yourself".

As they now say... "Just being real".

Galatians 5:14

Amish Buggy early morning 202207 _DSC1207 gal 5-14 copyLove your neighbor as yourself

©David L Arment

May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you.

May the lord show you his favor and give you peace.

Numbers 6:24-26

amish buggy sunrise 20210822 _DSC3825 Numb 6_24-26 copyAmish Buggy at Sunrise and Numbers 6:24-26

©David L Arment

He knew it was coming (he is God after all), so "today" he had his "Last Supper" with his followers. The images we grew up with in the stained glass of a Jesus with a halo and groups of three disciples calmly discussing this... was that how it was? Or was there confusion, questioning, doubt, fear, curiosity, wonder. Each individual likely had their own different feelings and response.

In any event...

The image below is a composite of several computer generated images.

Of course there are the three crosses. And there is the empty tomb. But don't miss the veil... the curtains at the top that are torn by the light from the mountain.

He is risen.

Easter 2023 copyEaster 2023
Three crosses, the empty tomb, the veil (above the mountain) that was torn... all in one picture.

composite of several computer generated images.

Arment ai

The one below was a reject. It didn't fit into the companies view of the products they wanted to sell. That's okay. They accepted many more than they rejected.

But I like this one. It was one of my very favorites.

Oh well, you win some and you lose some.

caveman cartoon welcom 8x24 copy

We came home from springtime in the south to THIS.

I asked the computer to make me a picture of our little house on the frozen lake. This is what we have. And it looks exactly like our house! Except ours is two stories and not this natural wood color, and we have neighbors and we don't have those tall trees. And we have a road. Other than that.

When we returned the people here were very inconsiderate and had snow and cold weather for us.

Spring will be here soon. And we will see the flowers again and the butterflies will return. The birds will build their nests. Pam will be in her garden and the world will be as it should.

Have a nice weekend.

sm house on frozen lake 202303 copySmall house on frozen lake.

arment ai

paddel boards on beach 202207 _DSC1430 copyPaddle boards.

©David L Arment

We are home. Couldn't you have arranged better weather?

©David L Arment

This was a small bird. I looked it up to identify it correctly and I couldn't figure out what kind of Egret it is. I am thinking it is a juvenile whose legs have not darkened. And it was 12 - 28 inches tall.

The lens on the camera was 200 - 500 mm and so I could get on him pretty well as he was close to the shore. The point being the image appears a lot bigger than the bird actually was.

Eventually he walked away and then maybe he flew because I didn't see him after my attention turned to the sun coming up over the horizon.

egret sm 20230225 _DSC5469 copyEgret in the shallows. This was a really small bird. He was maybe 18 inches tall. The picture doesn't represent how small it was. I don't know if it was a juvenile, but that is my guess.

©David L Arment

Here the bouys fall from on top of crab traps to the ground.

bouys 20230224 383A4044 copyBouys and traps

©David L Arment

This was a narrow road that dissapeared in the distance with trees on both sides. Down a ways were goats on the side of the road outside the fence. We stopped and looked at the goats. Our stopping to take this picture and the looking at the goats got the farmer's attention because he began to call the animals and they all started running for the barn. Apparently he fed them and that call made them come

rural road FL 20230206 383A3616 copyRural Road, Florida.

©David L Arment

I took this picture this morning (Feb 25, 2023). It was difficult because a swarm of biting nats, found me. I wanted to leave but I wanted to stay.

Stay won.

I'm still itching.

still water at sunrise FL bay 20230225 _DSC6629 copyStill water daybreak over inlet bay near Cedar Key, Florida.

©David L Arment

The sound of the waterfall the dance of light on the bamboo makes for a place we could go and sit for a long time.

bamboo and waterfall 20230207Waterfall and bamboo

©David L Arment

Unlike this one we are not on a foreign planet.

We are in someone's back yard camping for a week. Normally we come to Florida and visit with my Aunt and her kids (my cousins). But my Aunt passed this summer. They are letting us "camp" in her back yard. We have her house for our showers and whatever we want. We have "full run" of the house... but all of our wonderful "stuff" is in the camper.

Anywho... it is different way of "camping".

travel trailer on mars 20230128Travel trailer on distant planet.

computer generated
arment ai

sunset gulf 20230118 383A2908 copySunset at the Gulf of Mexico

©David L Arment

One of my current, favorite, computer generated image.

We are still in Florida. We are no longer near the water. We are in a county park, specifically, Hart Springs, which is a Gilcrest county park. It is nice because the spaces between campers is big and they have "full hook ups".

And they have springs which come out of the ground. We go look at the springs and apparently other campers go there and swim. I say apparently because we have yet to see anyone swimming.

Today we went to a quilt museum which was very interesting because quilts are art. And the place had a lot of "character". There were lots of quirky things to see.

So our winter adventure continues.

How are you doing?

sea foam, sun, pam 20210120 _DSC4753 copysea foam at sunset at the Gulf of Mexico.

©David L Arment

Sea foam at sunset at the Gulf of Mexico, Florida.

Today it rained. All. Day. Long. But back in Indiana they have snow. So there's that (as they say).

sunset gulf dark sky 20230115 _DSC4223 copysunset at the gulf with dark skies and the sun on the horizon.

©David L Arment

And we are right next to a road that is fairly busy, so for two people who don't know how to handle road noise we will see how this goes.

Tonight the sky is amazing. It is on fire with the sun reflecting on the clouds! Our best view is over a travel trailer and pickup truck next door. So it goes.

sea oats sunrise 20230111 383A2148 copyVertical Image of sea oats by the ocean at sunset.

©David L Arment

Then we went to the grocery store. A lady was parked in the fire lane and threw open her door as if no one could possibly have been driving on the road. Somehow we missed her and her door.

So you have to watch out for the Floridians. No one has learned them how to drive.

The picture below is on thinking, thought and the brain... fitting for our Floridian brothers and sisters.

Have a great weekend.

abstract female mind 20230104 copyAbstract mind and attached neurons.

AI Generated

abstract watch 202212Abstract watch
Ink on paper, technical drawing.

AI generated

Pam and I are in Florida for a little while. I hope to get some good ocean pictures, but so far we have encountered rain and fog and rain and fog and rain. But there is always tomorrow!

It is almost here.

father time 202212 copyFather Time.

©David L Arment

Merry Christmas

The count down continues. Only a few more days until Christmas.

Merry Christmas!

christmas lights 20221201 383A1342 copyChristmas Lights reflected on icy pond.

©David L Arment

christmas lights 20211221 _DSC6870 copyChristmas lights reflected in water at night.

©David L Arment

This started out as a vacuum tube. I don't know what it is now.

I am old enough to remember vacuum tubes. We had televisions with them inside. They would glow. If you looked in the back of the TV it was like a wonderland of electrical glowing, tubes. Different sizes and shapes. Some with silver sides.

Once in a while the TV would stop working. I got to go with my dad to the hardware store where there was this funny console with holes that matched a certain, given vacuum tube. You would test your tube there. If it was faulty then you pulled a good tube out of the cabinet beneath the tester.

Once we didn't have TV for a while and I thought that would be okay. Then it was longer. Longer than okay. We discovered that the sound worked fine. So we would sit and listen to TV. And then we discovered that there were shadows and you could make out people on the TV and horses and houses... big things. I realized sitting in the dark so we could see those shadows that we were addicted to TV.

I took some real photographs today and I hope to get more in the camera tomorrow, so maybe in the next few days maybe we can get away from these strange abstract things. 

What do you think? Would that be good?

vaccum tube Arment nuclear 202212 copyVacuum Tube

AI Generated and some photoshop additions

He is intrepid. I'm not sure what intrepid means but I'm sure this cat is it. He is going where no cat has gone before. He is a deep sea diving cat.

See the post previous to this one or message me about AI generated art.

cat diver 202212 copyCat as deep sea diver.

AI generated.

We often see clothes hanging to dry outside in the snow. I wouldn't think they would dry well.

I know this family. They have a bunch of girls and one boy. That boy is the youngest. He has a lot of mothers.

amish dresses on laundry day 20180108 _DSC2262amish dresses on laundry day 20180108 _DSC2262

©David L Arment

Me and another fellow about my age were more or less "in charge" of this organized chaos.

We were very happy that the adults more or less took charge of vacation bible school. We had no idea how to keep those little hands and little minds busy.

We had the kids make fish from construction paper. Okay, so that part was planned. It went pretty well. Unfortunately making those fish only lasted about 15 minutes so we had about 3 hours to fill.

Oh let's go fishing! a spontaneous thought without regard for the consequences. Those (or that) being that none of the paper fish survived the fishing trip and could not go home as previously intended.

This is a scan of a 35mm slide. (an almost 50 year old picture)
 

fishing in mud puddleThis is from Vacation Bible School in West Virginia in 1973. I'd made enough money doing factory work for a few years to take a summer off from working to do this.

We had the kids make fish from construction paper. We then went out side and found branches and tied the fish to the branch. We had MUCH time left over and nothing for those little hands to do. So we went fishing.

I don't think the kids had fish to take home as the fish did not survive the fishing expedition.

This is a scan of a 35mm slide.

©David L Arment

You don't see Amish farmers harvesting soybeans very often. The harvester is obviously pulled by horses and it looks strange. (I have a picture of just the harvester... someplace).

Most, if not all their crops are consumed by the farm family or neighbors. Not much goes to market. So I'm guessing soybeans are good protein for livestock in winter.

In the fall and summer I ride my bike with a camera in the bag. I wonder if the bike ride is for exercise or a means to capture images. Which is the man purpose? I don't know and I don't care. (Which is the punch line for a joke... What is the difference between ignorance and apathy).

Leave me a comment if you have a second.

Thanks and have a great day.

amish farmer in soybean field copyAmish farmer picking soybeans.

©David L Arment

Where we live there is a bicycle trail called the Pumpkinvine Nature Trail. They are working hard to improve it and it gets better and better each year as they add a section to the trail.

For us "English" it is a great way to be outside and ride your bike in the sun and be "close to nature". For our Amish neighbors it is something else. Take for instance the fellow in this picture. He has a wagon that he is pulling full of goods. To him the Pumpkinvine is a way to travel. Many get to and from work on their bicycles on the Pumpkinvine.

Thank goodness for the Pumpkinvine.

amish man on bicy trail 20201024 _DSC1279Amish man on bicycle on Pumpkinvine Trail in autumn.

©David L Arment

When we went to the beach there were these clouds. Magnificent, glorious, biblical in nature, clouds. Everyday they were there. 

A couple of years later, same beach, no clouds. How could that be? I just expected the same cloud filled sky and it was not to be.

Our expectations get us in trouble or leave us disappointed. 

So now to the verse. When I put a verse on a picture I always give the reference. Well apparently not always because there is no reference on this image. Anyone have an idea where this might have come from (what Bible verse)?

Thanks,

sunset gulf 20170119 _DSC9832 relentless pursuitsunset gulf 20170119 _DSC9832 relentless pursuit

©David L Arment

God relentlessly pursues His Children.

two swans 2 john 1 5_7_DSC4261 copySwans on lake with impressionistic paint effects and 2John 1: 5-7

©David L Arment

Bonneyville Mills is a county park near Bristol, Indiana.

This is a fun and educational place to visit. Especially educational if you go when the mill is open, which is in the summer months.

On one of our visits this summer I asked about electrical power generation. They said that there was water sourced electrical power here decades ago. Enough to supply 20 or 30 households. 

This area has lots of water and evidence that in decades past it was used to generate electrical power. Lots of old power plants in the Goshen, Indiana area sit on old "races".

bonneyville mill early winter 2022 383A1303 copyBonneyville Mill is a Elkhart County Park near Bristol Indian which feature this old mill. A visit is fun, and educational. Especially educational if the mill is open and workers are inside who can tell you about the past operations of the mill.

Every week (mostly) I send out an email with a picture and a bible verse. If you want to receive this please email me at davidarment@protonmail.com

Regarding the picture below...

I love the desert. I like going out as the sun is going down and waiting until dark. It gets really quiet and the night animals start to scurry about. Normally we go tto either the Southeast or the Southwest in winter. We alternate. This year it is Florida. Next year it will be Arizona. I can't wait to see the desert again! Florida is great, but there are too many people. 

The picture below is one of my best sellers on one of the stock sites I use. It is in the top 5 at the moment. I think people like pictures where they can "see themselves" in the frame. In other words they can picture themselves on this path at sunset in the desert. The path being the key to the composition (or one of the keys).

Let me know about the weekly email and have a great day.

desert trail at sunset 202201 _DSC4977 copy

A few weeks later (last week) they cut it or part of it out and sent it off to the pathologist.

Anyway the news came back today that it was a benign lesion. So I'm okay. What a weird week to think you might have cancer. Pam and I had some interesting conversations and I came to appreciate her more than ever. She is so calm and without drama. You can talk anything over with her and she just "hangs in there".

So I did a lot of thinking about pain and death. (What an uplifting post!) and if you want to hear those thoughts email me or call me.

I had only a few people praying for me because I didn't want a bunch of drama and hoopla. 

The picture below is one of my favorites. It is a tree tunnel down by Topeka (Indiana). The verse is about hope.

Hope.

Romans 15:13

AB Tree Tunnel Horiz 20170219 _DSC2336 rom 15-13Amish buggy in tree tunnel with Romans 15 verse 13.

©David L Arment

A few days ago I posted the picture that was taken the same time this video was made. So this may look a little familiar.

It was made before dawn. Thee sun was just starting to put some light in the sky.

Pam makes Christmas trees. Or she used to make Christmas trees... she hasn't made one in a while. She takes vines from the forest and wraps them around a wooden frame. And obviously on this one she put Christmas lights.

Normally I attach these to the deck for her but she did it this year. We had a strong North wind the other day and the tree got pushed over. We went out and straightened it and rewired it to the deck. I think we are good.

I hope you enjoy the video. Please leave a comment and ask any questions you might have.

Thanks,

chirstmas tree on deck 1 202211

Today is December 4, so yes I know it is a long time until Christmas. However, today we went to church and sang Christmas songs, so it made me feel like Christmas is coming: thus this post.

As for the picture itself, it is Christmas lights out of focus I really like it. Not that what I like makes any difference in things, I suppose.

I have some other Christmas lights pictures that I just too. I'll process them and upload them in the next few days.

Please leave a comment if you wouldn't mind. It is encouraging to know that someone was here.

Thanks,

merry christmas abstract lights 20211223 _DSC6845 copyMerry Christmas and lights.

©David L Arment

As video because more and more appealing I felt I had to learn how to shoot video and thus the new camera. 

If you are a photographer then you know buying a new camera is the beginning of the expense because then you have to buy lenses. So that is in front of me perhaps... "Perhaps" is because I may have some expenses that were once unforeseen but are now seen so I have to wait.

Here is a video from the new camera and the "kit lens" that came with it.

I would love you comments.

Best regards and many thanks,

Amish Buggy Late Autumn 2022 A1182 4KVideo of Amish buggy passing. I was seated on the bank of the ditch so this is a low angle which is intentional.

©David L Arment

During this time I started "playing with" computer generated images. I'm going to post some of the better ones I created below.

Here is what I think I've learned.... "Think I've learned" means I may have it wrong and I want "wiggle room" to change my mind.

This first image is a composite. I took the dragon from one image and the knight from another and combine them together here. I won't go into the details of all the other changes or alterations because it is boring.

But the important thing is this. You ask the AI (Artificial Intelligence) to generate an image based upon its "learning" of what a dragon is, what a knight is, and the other parameters you give it. Then some images come up with watermarks on them or a indiscernible scribble in the lower right of an image. This tells me the AI is browsing data bases of images and presenting an image NOT creating an image.

My guess is that the image below was the painstaking creation of someone and the AI has altered it a good deal, but it is still someone's work. (I couldn't bring myself to put a © on it)

Having said that...
 

dragon slayer 1 copy 4Dragon Slayer
Computer Generated (AI) image from "Night Cafe".

See my blog post for more comments.

Here is another image. I asked the AI to create an image of multi colored cloth strips, close up. It took a few tries to get to this image. I think this image is likely "original", meaning the AI actually created it verses scraping an image out of a data base and altering it

cloth in layers copyAI generated image of cloth in layers.

©David L Arment

When I asked the AI to generate a horse and Amish buggy it didn't know what to do. The horses had between 3 and 5 legs. The buggies had unattached wheels and three of five of them. So it has yet to "learn" what an Amish Buggy is.

I will likely continue to play with this, but I don't expect it to go far for me at this time.

If and when I'm convinced the results crate original content then that might change.

Here are a couple more images for you that are either AI in part or whole.

abstract smoke 202211 copyAI generated "abstract smoke".

©David L Arment

AI Landscape 20221126 copyAI generated rural landscape.

©David L Arment

surreal walk country road copySurreal image of Amish family walking on a rural road.

Partial Computer generated. The Amish family is a photograph.

Pam made this tree from vines. I think. She / we have a few of these and some she made and some she did not. I think this is one of her's. 

This is on our front deck looking toward the lake before sunrise.

Pam likes Christmas lights and is an expert with timers. We have lights coming on before dawn and going off after dark. So these lights are on and the sun will follow shortly.

christmas tree on deck in snow 202211 383A1276 copyChristmas tree in the snow.
Pam made this tree from vines. I think. She / we have a few of these and some she made and some she did not. I think this is one of her's.
This is on our front deck looking toward the lake before sunrise.
©David L Arment

As you may recall, my Facebook account was hacked and then hijacked. Whatever you see on Facebook purporting to be me... isn't.

And I had a PayPal account linked so I could send money here or there. That money was stolen.

Over the weekend PayPal put it back because they determined it was a fraudulent withdrawal. Thank you PayPal.

Facebook still won't help me reclaim my page. So you should come here to find out what's up with Pam and me.

Thanks,

And the answer is "Yes, mostly". But I usually always have my camera(s) with me and I'm usually ready to get a picture if one falls in the pathway.

This picture however was taken on a bike ride. I have some bags on the back of the bike and they are big enough for a camera, so I often have one there.

I always like these pully systems that are used to hang clothes to dry. I didn't see them before moving to Indiana.

pants on the clothesline 202210 _83A0856 copyPants on the clothesline outside an Amish house in autumn.

©David L Arment

The corn was still standing in these fields although in a lot of other fields it had been picked. 

The wagon is full of Turkeys. This is a few days before Thanksgiving (I am writing to you on Thanksgiving day). This is not the best time of year to be a turkey.

Please leave a comment if you like the picture.

Thanks,

amish farmer and turkey wagon 20221110 383A1179 copyAmish farmer and turkey wagon. At the time of this shot it was two weeks before Thanksgiving. One of the Amish farms had a field that was covered in white, turkeys. (White not dark. White means their domestic and the dark ones are the ones in the forest).

©David L Arment

So I'm off Facebook / Instagram / Messenger.

And - oh yeah - my PayPal account was linked to Facebook. They wiped out the money I had in PayPal.

So this is now my Facebook. I will post pictures for sure and tell you about Pam and my travels around the countryside.

If you have any questions now or later my email is...

davidarment@protonemail.com

Best Regards,

I love these Amish work horses. They are so gentle (on that side of the fence) and curious. They want to know what's going on so they wander up to the fence to figure things out.

Let me know if you made it to the video and what you thought about it in the comments if you would please.

Thanks,

horses at fence 20221106 A1135 4KHorses at the fence in early morning.

4K Video

©David L Arment

owl statue 202205 _DSC0636 copyOwl statue at gate entrance.
The old entrance to Gene Stratton Porter historical site in Rome City, IN.

©David L Arment

These owls stand guard and intrigue me.

lady scare crow 202110_DSC6475 copyScare crow in garden in late summer.

©David L Arment

corn picker for sale _DSC5645 copyOne row corn picker for sale... just in time for harvest. Horse drawn, so you need a horse.

©David L Arment

Amish buggy morning w sunbeams 202109 _DSC5637 copy

Amish clothesline 20210828 _DSC4039 copyAmish clothesline in summer.

©David L Arment

horse and buggy sunrise _DSC3648 copy 2Amish horse and buggy at sunrise.

©David L Arment

I don't know if I have yet to develop "a look". It is a goal. To have someone look at an image and say... "That's a Dave Arment". Maybe. Someday.

If I were to pick a recent picture and say that's my look. This would be it.

Maybe I'm dreaming.

I'll just keep trying and what happens... happens.

horses and cows in pature 202108 _DSC4111 copyPeaceful, farm, landscape near Shipshewana, Indiana.

©David L Arment

We were occupying time (and having fun) by putting dish soap in paper cups and having the kids blow bubbles. Most of the kids understood and had great fun. A couple were too young and their only experiences with straws were where you inhaled. So they had soap bubbles coming out of their mouths and these sour looks on their faces... case in point below; although he has a nice bunch of bubbles in his cup.

It's funny how my memory has faded over the years, but I still remember this little guy and the bubbles coming out of his mouth.

boy and bubblesWe were in "Vacation Bible School" in West Virginia the summer of 1972 (or 3) and we were blowing bubbles. You could tell this little guy was not "getting it" when bubbles were coming out of his mouth. I don't think you can see it in the pictures.

This is a scan of a slide.

amish families walking to church 202108 _DSC3530 copyAmish families walking to church.

©David L Arment

An Amish buggy on a rural Indiana road in the summer of corn.

Amish buggy and tall corn 202107 _DSC3513 copyAmish Buggy and the corn of summer.

©David L Arment

This is a picture from out trip. The sunset on this particular day never happened. There is smoke in the upper atmosphere from forest fires in the west. This is how the sun looked late afternoon. As it got closer the the horizon it simply disappeared.

Strange skies in recent days.

Lake Michigan late afternoon.

late afternoon lake michigan, smoke from western forest fires 202107 _DSC3608Late afternoon sun over Lake Michigan. The sun is odd because there are fires in the Western United States that are putting smoke in the air at the time of this "capture".

©David L Arment

This is a photo from winter. There are no leaves on the trees and their is a Christmas decoration on the storm door. But the dresses make the picture colorful

clothes on the line in winter 20171203 _DSC8046clothes on the line in winter 20171203 _DSC8046

©David L Arment

Since she is Amish what do you suppose she is getting paid. I'm guessing "pay" is out of the question. She is doing her part for the family. What you don't see in the picture is two other teams of horses. One is also raking and another has the hay baler behind it (but it isn't baling yet). They are a family. A team. Working together to accomplish a task that needs done.

amish lady raking hay 20210706 _DSC3166 copyAmish lady raking hay.

©David L Arment

The thing that initially got my attention was the size of the pony. He is the size of a dog. Not a large dog... just a dog. It is hard to see from this picture how little he is.

amish boy on pony cart 20210704 _DSC3162 copyAmish boy and mom on pony cart.

©David L Arment

Two horses at an Amish farm look over the fence at me.

horses in field 20210606 _DSC3190Two horses pose at the fence on a rural Indiana farm.

©David L Arment

half dome _DSC7189Vertical image of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park.

©David L Arment

An organ became available and she had the operation that continued her life.

She reached out to the family of the organ donor. It was a family was Amish. Their nine year old daughter had passed. And Sarah had received her organ.

Sarah asked for a picture of the little girl. The Amish parents explained that they don't have pictures of themselves or their family members. It is not a part of what they do or who they are.

BUT

There is a picture that exists of their daughter because an "English" man travels the countryside taking pictures and there is one of their family on a hay wagon. Their daughter is on top of the hay. People have seen the picture in "The Blue Gate" restaurant gift shop area.

... but here is the rest of the story... as if there needed to be more.

I am the person who is credited with taking the picture. In fact my nephew was in the car and he had expressed interest in photography and I was trying to encourage him. So durning his and his wife's visit I gave him the camera as we drove around. He took this picture. His name is Pablo. I likely would never have taken this picture as I try to avoid capturing the faces of people and this one clearly has people's faces. Having said that I did post it on my web site and "The Blue Gare" ordered it as plaques for their wall.

It was first thought that the Amish family learned about this picture from folks seeing it at "The Blue Gate", but that isn't how it happened.

The company that makes the plaques is Amish. They saw the print come through their shop. As it happens from time to time a print gets damaged and a new one needs to be ordered. They had a damaged print that they cropped and secreted it into their neighbors' (the family that lost their daughter) house. They didn't just hand them the picture but left it in their house where it would be found.

It was. That is how they came to learn of the existence of a picture of their daughter who had passed.

Here is the picture...

amish family and hay 20150604 _DSC8216 no effects copy 2Photo by David Arment

Pam and I stopped the RV near this large field. At the edge of the field nearest the road were many totem poles. There was another RV'ish type vehicle there. This vehicle had maple leaves decorating it. As you got close to this van (let's call it a van) one could see that the maple leaves were made up of hundreds and hundreds of people's faces. It was really a nice graphic.

Outside the van were a small group of people who were being interviewed. There was a person with a nice video camera and a professional microphone. I didn't really listen in but it was obvious that some quasi-government official or tourism board or "some such" was interviewing the local elders on the history of the totem poles in this field.

As per usual, I got out and started taking pictures. And as per usual everyone ignored me. That is good, I wish to be ignored.

Pam listened to the questions and answers of the interveiws that were going on. On the fringe of the group was a lady whom Pam asked a question of. And then another question. And then another. And soon Pam had the "down low" on the totem poles.

When I'd finished getting what pictures I thought I wanted I motioned to Pam that I was ready. And she said to the lady that she had to go. The lady was very surprised because she thought Pam was a part of this quasi-governmental, official group interviewing the elders. It was a bit of a shock to her to realize that she had been talking to a "normie".

So these totem poles represent families of the area. The figures all represent some aspect of tribal life or of the lives of the people in the families who erected them. Some are leaning at haphazard angles and it is amazing they stand at all. The temptation is to go into photoshop and straighten them, but the reality is that they are leaning... more than a little.

You can see more totem poles in the gallery (folder) "smaller galleries" and then "Native American includes Totem Poles".

totem pole kitwanga bc 20170615 _DSC3991totem pole kitwanga bc 20170615 _DSC3991

©David L Arment

totem pole Kitwanga BC Canada 20170615 _DSC6908totem pole Kitwanga BC Canada 20170615 _DSC6908

©David L Arment

This sign is from an area near Kitwanga called Gitanyou. I have it here because it is good explanation of the totem poles found in the region.

sign about totem poles 20170615 _DSC6939

Pam wants to go to Alaska again. This would be our third trip. She wants to go the "Inside Passage". So the rough plan, so far, is to go in the pick up truck (the diesel). We would sleep in the truck sometimes and in hotels or "road houses" other times.

If any of you have experience in the ferry system or the inside passage I'd love to hear from you.

Now to the picture...

We met a guy in an RV park on our second trip to Alaska. We were on our way to Alaska. He asked what route we were taking. There are not many. So I told him how we would be going and he convinced me to take the southern route through BC. As it turns out I much prefer the Northern route. BUT there are a few gems in the southern route.

This image is one of them. It is St Pauls Church in Kitwanga BC. The bell tower is pretty tremendous if you ask me. I've never seen anything like it before (or since). I wonder how unusual it is, or if my experience is so limited that it just seems unusual to me.

Across the street a ways were totem poles and we had an interesting experience there. I'll save that for tomorrow!

Don't forget to let me know if you have info on the inside passage.

Thanks,

st pauls kitwanga bc canada 20170615 _DSC3981st pauls kitwanga bc canada 20170615 _DSC3981

©David L Arment

amish man work horses20200407 _DSC4901An Amish farmer walks his work horses to the barn.

amish couple walking to churcu 20210613 _DSC3065 copyAmish couple walking on rural Indiana road in early summer.

©David L Arment

This is a picture of an old steam engine. Some Amish collect these old engines. They do some restorations and take them to the little festivals we have in this area. At night they will shovel corn cob pellets - like you might burn in your stove in the winter to keep warm - into the fire box. Then they turn up the power and out of the stack comes these particles that are on fire. They are like fireworks... or at least to me they look like fireworks.

You can see the wheel in front. That is there to provide resistance to the engine and make it work harder. The sparks hit it and bounce off all different, crazy directions.

This is great fun to photograph and the photographs kinda track the trajectory of the sparks that you can't see with your eye while you are there.

Steam Engine Sparks at Reminiscence DaysPhoto by David Arment
©David L Arment
steam engine sparks 20160715 _DSC3033

Pam and I were in the Gulf region a few years ago. This is how the clouds looked the few days we were there. We've been back. On the return trip you expect the clouds to be the same... right? Well they were not. They were just the ordinary, run of the mill clouds. No Biblical references could be made to them.

I'm finding as we travel that you can find a magical place and it captivates you. You can't wait to go back. When you get back years or months later it is not the same. For whatever reason it just isn't.

But it sure was great to see these clouds night after night for a few days. Magical. Epic. Biblical.

sunset gulf 20170119 _DSC9832Epic or some would say Biblical - Clouds on the Gulf of Mexico at Sunset.

©David L Arment

This farmer usually works a white horse and a black horse. I don't know where the white horse is on this day.

Lots of hay going into barns this time of year.

raking hay 20210531 _DSC2931Amish farmer and team of work horses raking hay.

©David L Arment

I prefer the "in between" of springtime or fall, but if forced to choose between really hot and humid and cold... I'd rather be hot.

This picture shows laundry on the line to dry in winter. I guess the clothes get dryer, but I doubt they get dry. The Amish sell drying racks and I'm guessing they sit inside next to the stove with the laundry from the day getting the final dry.

We own a couple of these laundry racks and they are really handy.

And the other thing to note in this picture is the "cover crop" on the garden. We all plant cover crops on our gardens to have some organics to till back into the soil in the spring. The most popular cover crop for the Amish seems to be radishes (I think). Pam plants a grass of some kind for her "cover crop".

red barn and laundry 20161209 _DSC0717 copy 2red barn and laundry 20161209 _DSC0717

©David L Arment

Amish girls are entertaining themselves by driving the pony cart on the rural road near their house. A logging operation started near their house. It seemed to spring up overnight (which of course it did not). The girls are passing the log lot and it is pretty interesting.

Amish kids start young with ponies. You can see little ones and it is amazing how little they are when they start to deal with ponies and horses. 

And you wonder who has it better... the Amish kids out in the sunshine playing with horses and ponies and running in the sunshine and fresh air, or their English counterparts who are sitting inside in front of a video game? Maybe that's just me thinking like that.

amish girls in pony cart 202105 _DSC3116 copyAmish girls in pony cart.

©David L Arment

A new day in Amishville.

amish buggy parked 20210613_DSC3059 copyAn Amish buggy under a tree. It is parked on the circle drive where the sun is bouncing off the front windscreen.

©David L Arment

amish boy on hay wagon w team 202106 _DSC2944 copyAmish farmer with the work horses as they work in the hay.

©David L Arment

lone tree on dirt road 20210606 _DSC7992 copyLone tree on a dirt road in rural Indiana in the early morning.

©David L Arment

Welcome to summer.

amish buggy 202106 _DSC3013Amish Buggy on rural Indiana road in early summer.

©David L Arment

Amish Church 202105 _DSC2582 copyAmish Buggies at an Amish house for church on Sunday.

©David L Arment

amish girl on wheel 20170908 _DSC9762amish girl on wheel 20170908 _DSC9762

©David L Arment

Amish girl tries to see over the crowd by standing on a tractor tire.

amish girl on wheel 20170908 _DSC9762

©David L Arment

Amish girl tries to see over the crowd by standing on a tractor tire.

Buggy for SaleAmish Buggy for sale near Shipshewana Indiana and the wash on the line in the background.

©David L Arment
Photo by David Arment
Amish Buggy for sale and wash 20140808 _DSC9711

I didn't ride my bicycle to work today and I had some time so I drove a little while. I saw this buggy for sale, which has been on this farm for a while. What made it a picture today was the wash on the line in the background. Happy Friday to you!

Amish Boy Waiting with The Horses©David L Arment
Photo by David Arment
boy and two horses 20140717 _DSC8927

This boy was waiting with the horses in a picture taken earlier today (July 17, 2014). He was obviously just there to keep things under control. There is nothing hooked to his axle. It doesn't look like the grass is long enough to cut for hay, but it is that time of year, so I'm guessing they were going to take a hay wagon somewhere... but I'm not sure.

Normally, I see myself as the observer. I see things and take their pictures. Observe, click, and move on. Looking at and recording the landscape.

Yesterday I rode my bicycle to work. I’ve not done that in the past because there was nowhere to carry my camera, and when the need may arise my computer and “other stuff”. Pam bought me for my birthday (don’t panic, you still have time to buy me a birthday present as my birthday is not until August) a carrier like the Amish around here use to pull behind their bicycles to carry their things. Sometimes they carry their small children in these white, aluminum two wheeled carriers. They have “goosenecked” type attachment (the carrier has this not the Amish children) that connects the carrier to the bike under the bike’s seat.

So now I’m able to bike to work.

My bicycle was purchased when I lived in France and is pink and orange. I’m sure the bicycle dealer “saw me coming” and made a small fortune. They surely had an extra drink on their good fortune that night. They bicycle was reportedly made in Korea. I assume South Korea.

And yesterday, as every day, I wore my almost blue “Alaska” baseball hat. It was once blue, but has faded, mostly on top, with time and has areas where the combination of sweat and dirt has made it some muddy purple color.

So yesterday for the first time I biked to work. The Amish all looked twice; some had a wide grin because they recognized the Amish carrier and found it humorous that an English guy in a once blue baseball hat with a pink and orange bike was pulling it. The tourist sitting on the benches at the Blue Gate restaurant are all looking for and at the Amish buggies. They did not know what to think of the white haired guy with the pink and orange bike.

So now I’m not observing the landscape, I am the landscape.

Goshen Paint CompanyThe copyright notice does not appear on items you order.

©David L Arment
Goshen Paint Company _DSC0153

Working the HayPhoto by David Arment
©David L Arment
horses in hay _DSC8011 copy Amish woman turning the hay June 2014 near Shipshewana Indiana.

Amish woman walking on rural road near Shipshewana, IN, Orton type effects used. I think she has a shoe in her hand.