Dragon's Tongue Beans

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Photograph of red striped beans from the Piedmont Triad Farmer's Market. I enjoy going by the market because I get to see produce that we don't tradionally grow here in North Carolina.

Farmhouse

(copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

An old farmhouse stands empty in Millboro, North Carolina in Randolph County, south of Greensboro.

Old Truck in the Woods

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

As a continuation of my rust series from a while back, I found this old Chevy truck sitting in the woods in New Hampshire.

Haircut Day

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Dropped by Professional Styling in Asheboro this morning to get a haircut from my barber Robert Johnson. Got there about 7:30; Robert starts pretty early. I was getting pretty woolly too, as you can see behind the camera.

Downtown Greensboro on a Saturday Night

My wife and I went out Saturday night with my son Tristan and his wife Christine to downtown Greensboro for a little pizza and a nice walk. It was a beautiful evening and we walked the whole of Elm Street. Times have really changed. Twenty years ago the downtown area of Greensboro on a weekend would have been a ghost town. Now, it has become a safe, vibrant place with busy shops and restaurants and people strolling. Quite enjoyable.





(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Casual Fashion for a Monday

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Men's casual fashion photograph from a recent catalog shoot near Greensboro, North Carolina.

Devin at Dartmouth

My posts this week have been from our trip up to New Hampshire to see my son Devin who is entering graduate school at Dartmouth College. Like most students in this day and time, he's having to figure out how to finance his education and live. So, for the time being, he's working at a food co-op in Hanover. He's enjoying his experience and he likes the people he works with. Just one ironic note. They've placed him in charge of the beer aisle, and unlike most college students, he doesn't drink.

Below, son and mom shopping on the street.

(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Union Station, Shapes and Details

We had a four hour layover in Washington, DC on our Amtrak train ride from Boston last week, so I had a chance to walk around Union Station at leisure. It's a beautiful old building and the architectural details are outstanding.


(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Woodstock, Vermont. Photographs of Americana

We took a day last week on our trip to Hanover, New Hampshire to head across the Connecticut River into Vermont and visit the little town of Woodstock (not the one in New York with the concert). It's a beautiful little town that simply reeks with Americana, and is filled with 19th century buildings that are well kept and gorgeous. We visited on a Wednesday and caught the weekly farmer's market going on in the town green.








(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Amtrak Crescent Train Journey

My wife and I traveled to New Hampshire last week. We decided to go by train, partly because of cost and partly because we thought it would be a change, an adventure, a journey. We found that travel by train isn't so bad. It's slower than flying but surely less hassle, takes about the same time as driving without the stress of actually operating a car for hours and it gave us a glimpse at how people used to travel. You can get up out of your seat and walk around, and there is a cafe car that serves reasonably priced, fairly good food (The days of fine china and linen are gone, but hey, you can't have everything.). We went from Greensboro to Boston and back in four legs. All four legs were comfortable, but our first, from Greensboro to New York was our favorite. We road the Amtrak Crescent which runs daily between New Orleans and New York, and is the modern version of the old Southern Crescent, a classic train from the 60's. For some reason, the cars on the Crescent are more comfortable, even in coach. The seats have foot rests and leg supports unlike the more airplane-like seats in the other trains, and it's easier to rest or sleep (sleep is important when your train leaves at 4AM). The Crescent also has a crew from New Orleans, and they are so, so nice. While we found all the Amtrak personnel to be amiable, the Crescent crew had a certain hospitality that you would expect from New Orleans. We'll probably travel by rail again and next time may try a sleeper. And yes, conductors still say "ALL ABOARD".






A great lady, Patriciana Bowman from New Orleans, LA.



One thing that becomes apparent when you travel by train is that you will see some areas of the country and details, especially in the cities, that you don't see from other forms of travel.





(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Shaker Furniture and Architecture

My wife and I were in New Hampshire last week visiting my son Devin at Dartmouth College in Hanover. We took a morning and drove over to nearby Enfield to visit the Enfield Shaker Settlement and museum. The settlement was started in the 1793 on the shore of Mascoma Lake and Shakers lived there until 1923 until they sold the property to the LaSalette order of the Catholic Church and moved to New York. In 1985 a private foundation purchased the property and began an ongoing project to acquire and restore the original Shaker buildings. The centerpiece of that ongoing restoration is the Great Stone Dwelling House, a six story stone dwelling built in 1841 that is the largest Shaker building ever built. Though it has been updated through the years, the Stone Dwelling still maintains architectural details and furnishings that demonstrate the Shaker ideals of simplicity, beauty and innovation.





The Stone Dwelling sits in the middle of a village complex that itself was the the center of almost 3000 acres the Shakers originally farmed.


(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Seagrove Hardware

I am a little late in posting today, but I just got home after a 20 hour train journey (I will post about that next week). Today's photographs are from a trip to Seagrove Hardware in Seagrove, North Carolina. It is a real small town local hardware with genuine stuff and genuine service. Where else can you still pick up canning supplies, seed, and a few horseshoes when you need them; and take them home in a paper bag.

(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Tomatoes

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

Tomatoes form a still life at a produce stand in Candor, North Carolina.

Working in the Yard

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

I was out on Saturday morning to help my cousin with his cows when I caught his mother Cathy working in her yard and taking a break from mowing at her home in Grays Chapel, North Carolina.

Figs

The figs are starting to ripen on the south side of one of our barns. Succulent golden fruits that make wonderful preserves but are even better eaten fresh from the tree (or bush as it were). I picked a bowl for my wife the other day, and as as oft happens on our farm, I had help, this time from one of our farm cats, Tiger.

(photographs copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

(Posted from Hanover, New Hampshire after a 20 hour train journey. More to come on that next week.)

Train Journey

(photograph copyright 2009 by Dan Routh)

My son Tristan is at home this week to take care of the animals, so my wife Dedra and I are off tomorrow morning to New Hampshire to visit our younger son Devin in Hanover. We catch the Amtrak train at 4:00 AM from Greensboro to Boston, about a 15 hour trip. Why the train? Why not? We've never done it before, so it's sort of an adventure, a real journey. A chance to see the whole East Coast from a different perspective. My blog posting may be a little sporadic this week, but I plan on trying to keep up. Hopefully I will come back with some interesting images. No, the guy in the photograph isn't me, and I do hope our train car is in a little better shape.