Tuesday, March 27, 2007

home coming

would you like something a bit less introspective?

I miss the old playground equipment that allowed play as exciting as a ride on the midway. Yes it was dangerous but today's playgrounds have no adventure. These photos are from the church's playground.

My favorite was this old merry-go-round. The design was such that big kids could push from the middle easily as a result the merry-go-round would go at tremendous speeds. Then all you had to do is jump on the bar for a ride.


The last time I saw this merry-go-round it was falling apart. Someone has fixed it!


Do you remember be dropped from the highest point of these old long tall see-saws?


I would guess this plank is the same one I used to stand on to pump up to the highest level of swinging this incredibly tall swingset would allow.


The tremendously scandalous statue that has lived for as long as I know outside the Mark V, the hotel we stayed at. Turns out it is an actual hand-carved replica of the orginal.


This is the limestone house. It seems that little is known about it - I've tried a bit of research and found nothing. But, everyone who has passed along the stretch of road where it stands knows it. It is a landmark of beauty and familiarity. Photos probably in the hundreds have been taken of it and paintings made. I've never been close to it. Now I have. I didn't walk into the pasture it stands in because of a huge sign that read "No Trespassing - Danger Falling Rock" but the fence of the adjacent pasture ran close to it so that is where I walked.


I lamented the wary nature of Western Meadowlarks while on my visit. They are flighty birds and won't sit around for you to walk up to them. I wished to take my own photograph of one sitting awkwardly on an osage orange fence-post head thrown back as he gave voice to his inverted trill of a song. As I walked the house I heard one quite close but never saw him; until I was working on my photos. There he sits a black speck on the top of the windmill.


I saw some dates and names that were from distant places and times. I didn't photograph those though.


I was surprised to discover how large and beautifully made the hosue was. From a distance it simply doesn't look that large. Close to the wreck one can see that at one time it was a gorgeous house with wonderful clean lines and detail.



I am afraid my attachment to tonal scale means that these aren't easy to see - but even the roof supports (the name escapes me) were beautiful.

5 comments:

  1. Yes, that merry go round does look a bit like a death trap, but it does look fun too. That was when older kids actually played on the playground...

    I am surprised you mentioned that you remembered that we had a birdhouse because I don't remember sharing it! But my brain is a bit fried this week.

    You have a gift--even your pictures of houses that are falling apart are beautiful...

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  2. I remember those merry-go-rounds so well. We used to go as fast as we could and literally hang on for dear life. The faster, the better. And the see-saws? I'm surprised we don't all have dislocated spines. Great childhood memories. I didn't know there were still any of these things in existence.

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  3. I have terrific memories of the merry-go-ride and the teeter totter. I agree, safety is a great concept, but now we've got all these fat, tv-addicted kids to deal with. How safe is that?

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  4. One Sunday evening, twenty years ago, we were at friends for coffee. I saw a photo cube on the book shelve and picked it up to look at the photos. Imagine my surprise to see a photo of the stone house. Imagine my friends suprise when I told him where he was when he took the photo.

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  5. I can throw up just looking at a merry-go-round.

    My youngest son used to call it a "Mary Goed Around".

    The name has stuck in our family.

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