Random Connections

January 27, 2017

Breezy Winter Paddles on Lakes Robinson and Blalock

Been a rough couple of weeks. Once again I was in need of hydrotherapy. I did a 6.66 mile trip on Lake Robinson last Friday, and on Wednesday of this week Bennie and I had planned to make an early start for Lake Tugalo. Sadly, illness in Bennie’s family kept him at home, so I was on my own. I decided to paddle a bit closer to home. I made the drive up to Lake Blalock in Spartanburg County. Continue reading “Breezy Winter Paddles on Lakes Robinson and Blalock”

January 19, 2017January 19, 2017

Henry Mill Village Excursion

It has been tradition for Alan Russell and me to take a photo excursion on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. This time we decided to make the trek up to North Carolina and visit the Henry River Mill Village. This choice ticked lots of boxes – it’s a ghost town, and it served as the shooting location for “District 12” in the movie The Hunger Games. It turned out to be a day that went beyond expectations. Continue reading “Henry Mill Village Excursion”

January 17, 2017

2017 Swamp Stomp with Lowcountry Unfiltered

It has been our tradition to do a hike with our Lowcountry Unfiltered group on the first Second Saturday of the year. This year Second Saturday is a bit later in January as New Year’s was on a Sunday. I guess that’s as late in the month as it can get. This year we decided to return to the site of our first Swamp Stomp, Congaree National Park. Continue reading “2017 Swamp Stomp with Lowcountry Unfiltered”

January 15, 2017January 15, 2017

Friday the 13th on Lake Russell

So far my paddling trips to Lake Russell have been fraught with intrigue. Last time I dubbed the trip the “Paddle through Mordor” because of all of the smoke from forest fires in the Blue Ridge Mountains. This time Bennie Waddell and I would tempt fate by going kayaking on Friday the 13th. Continue reading “Friday the 13th on Lake Russell”

January 8, 2017

Snow Globes

Sometimes an idea comes together perfectly. Such was the case this past weekend, with the first snowfall of 2017. I had a brainstorm for an image, and the conditions were just right to make it happen. Continue reading “Snow Globes”

January 1, 2017

RandomConnections 2017 Calendar

It’s time once again for the RandomConnections Calendar. This is the tenth year that I’ve been creating calendars for friends and family using photos I’ve taken from the previous year (and beyond.) As usual, I like to recap the photos included on the calendar and give a bit of the background behind each one. Continue reading “RandomConnections 2017 Calendar”

December 31, 2016

2016 Paddling Year in Review

2016 was a really, really crappy year for a lot of reasons. However, one area where it wasn’t so crappy was for kayaking. I visited lots of venues and got in over 200 miles of paddling. Not too shabby, considering there was lots to conspire to keep me off the water this year. Continue reading “2016 Paddling Year in Review”

December 29, 2016

2016 Holiday Wrap-Up

The holidays are always a whirlwind, and this year was no different. As has been our custom for the last several years, we spent most of the time in Florida. Quite a bit has happened over the past couple of weeks, so I’ll just do a quick summary. Continue reading “2016 Holiday Wrap-Up”

December 19, 2016December 20, 2016

Lessons and Carols, Theme and Variations

One of my favorite services is the Festival of Lessons and Carols. To me it doesn’t seem like Christmas until I have attended at least one service. I have an academic fascination with carols, and I love traditional settings, as well as seeing the way composers and arrangers have brought new life to these ancient texts. This weekend I was privileged to participate in two services in two different settings. This time, though there were some fascinating twists to the traditional service. Continue reading “Lessons and Carols, Theme and Variations”

December 16, 2016December 16, 2016

Robot Uprising – Siri vs Alexa

Yesterday I completed one more trip around old Sol. Yep, it was my birthday. My gift this year was an Amazon Echo Dot, one of the new home A. I. units. I’d actually been playing with the system for a couple of weeks. I thought I’d take some time to share my thoughts on this, and its competitor (sort of), Siri. Continue reading “Robot Uprising – Siri vs Alexa”

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