more hilton head pics

Here we go with the cemetery pics. I don't know what it is about old cemeteries that fascinates me so much, but I could have spent hours there. Except that the sun was high, and i wanted to get back to the condo to lay out by the pool. :) Here's a few:

I like the way the light filtered down through the trees on this one.

These two below are of the grave and memorial of James Johnston, the first newspaper publisher in Georgia, so I had to get a couple shots. As someone who valued the printed word, truth, and people having more information rather than less, I'm sure he'd be proud of how teachers in Georgia are still having to fight in order to teach evolution.




In this cemetery, they also have a number of tombstones strapped to the back wall with wire. I'm assuming they were stones that were knocked over, or moved, and therefore are on the wall in order to preserve some memory of the person, even though they don't really know anymore where the mortal remains are.




And a few more. As I mentioned in an earlier post, it's not the big mausoleums of famous people that fascinate me most of all; it's these tiny stones that are so weather-beaten you can't even read them anymore that draw my interest. There are all sorts of little pockets and strange corners in the cemetery that house presumably the oldest graves there, and also perhaps the most humble and forgotten people. And while it's an admittedly morbid fascination, this preoccupation with death, and the physical remnants of the living corpus that are no doubt moldering worm food by now, it does have to make you wonder: how will I be remembered? What happens in the world after I'm gone? Anyhow:





I have a few more of us out along the riverwalk, and a couple of other random ones that I will post soon. Hope you enjoyed. :)

hilton head trip pics

Hey there.

I am currently as sick as I have ever been in my life, swear to god. I've been sleeping upwards of 15 hours a day, and I'm constantly either sweating or shivering or both, and I can feel my ribs on the verge of cracking from coughing so much. So I'm having some trouble motivating to write or post entries here. Forgiveness, please.

On the other hand, before this vile virus descended upon my humble head, I managed to figure out how to dump pictures off my new phone onto my computer (with Erica's help--thanks!)

So here's some of the pics from my trip last week to South Carolina with my sis, bro, sis-in-law and nephew.

Here's Jill on the beach, the first day we went down there. It was kinda windy that day, but fun nevertheless. You can see Eric and Val in the background on the right, I think looking for their son. :)

dude, where's the sun?

And here's Val and Eric, up close, and a pic of John Alex far far away. He was hilarious: like a seagull, he would pitter-patter away from the water as the waves rolled in, afraid to get his feet wet in the ocean. Now, in the pool he's a regular dolphin, but something about the ocean...



One day we went down to the lighthouse that is perched on the end of the island, and of course we picked the windiest day ever. It was still cool, though. There are these tiny, narrow stairs that flip back on themselves over and over as you walk up to the top. People back then must have been tiny; having dozens of super-sized modern Americans passing each other on the narrow stairs made for a tight squeeze. Also, I suppose they only had like, one guy going up and down, back when it was a working lighthouse.

I managed to stay out on the walkway outside the top just long enough to snap a couple of pics.



Now this, to me, is the shit. We went down to Savannah one day, and walked around seeing all the modern bars, lol, as well as the ancient cobblestone streets, and cool little squares that are built into the city's layout. Here's the pics I took of the 'Factor's Walk' that runs behind the businesses that line the river.

I was so excited by the old cobblestone street i ran up ahead and onto one of the bridges. :)

A couple more:



More to come...

savannah

We went down to Savannah yesterday, and it reminded me of why I miss the South. Yes, there are terrible things wrong with the South. Yes, there are still horrible educational, racial, and general social justice problems there. And, yes, there are NASCAR fans.

However, there are also beautiful people, very friendly and welcoming people, and a human warmth that you just won’t find anywhere else.




So, Savannah. It’s all cobblestone roads, these incredible old buildings, and beautiful little pocket parks, not to mention the riverwalk area of shops and restaurants and bars. Oh, and did I mention you can drink outside? Walk around with a to-go cup of beer?



JUST LIKE NEW ORLEANS!!!

O how I miss that place. I need to go back for a visit sometime soon, I think.

At any rate, we had a lot of fun, did some (more) shopping (jesus christ, ladies) and hung out pretty much all day. There’s nothing more civilized than being able to drink a freakin’ beer outside on a nice sunny day. :)

A slightly more sedate and reverential part of Savannah is the cemetery--and really the entire old town part in general. I love ancient places (in America, New Orleans, Savannah and Williamsburg, VA are pretty much as ancient it gets) and Savannah is a place that is redolent with ghosts and history, again like New Orleans.



None of these are my pictures by the way, although i did take a bunch at the cemetery where these were taken. I love seeing those old graves of people who died in the early 1800s, trying to imagine what life must have been like for people who settled on these strange shores. I am especially drawn to the tiny, worn graves, virtually no more than a crooked rock barely propped up over someone's final resting place. Who were these people, these nobodies, not the rich or the famous, just the regular laborers? Does anyone remember them? Do they care? Did they die in pain, or alone? Was there justice for them, in their lives and in their deaths?


I don't know why, but I'm fascinated with these questions about the past. I guess I'm just a morbid fucker. :)


When I get home I'll upload the pics I took.