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I walked the back nine of the Druid Hills golf course early one January morning and got this picture of a pond on the fourteenth hole. I like the way the water in the pond reflected the trees and the morning sun. Such a sight made getting up early in the morning more than worth while.
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For several years after I retired Betsy and I would get up early in the morning to walk the back nine of the Druid Hills Golf Course here in the Glade. Walkers are allowed on the golf paths until the course opens for golfers. During winter months this meant it was often dark when we started on our daily walks. But being able to see the sunrise was an added bonus to our daily treks.
We can no longer take those walks as I need to use a walker most of the time and Betsy is not much better. But we do have photographic memories of when we could take those early morning walks. I got this photo on a January morning several years ago.
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For many years Betsy and I hav celebrated Christmas by attending Biltmore’s Candlelight Christmas. The decorations are always marvelous, and seem to be the perfect way to celebrate such a festive season. This year was no exception, and we very much enjoyed visiting the house and seeing all the decorations. This is a photo of the library — I think I could spend many happy hours there!
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Actually this picture was taken a couple of nights before Christmas, but our living room is ready for a visit from St. Nick. We have so many ornaments that hold special memories that we have two trees instead of only one.
Betsy has so man fireplace babies that I’m a little concerned that Santa won’t be able to get down the chimney and out of the fireplace, but I’m hopeful he’ll find a way around that problem.
From our house to your’s — Merry Christmas!
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In 1987 I was one of five professors from our college that spent a summer teaching English to the some of the faculty and staff of our sister college in Tianjin, China. One day our hosts took us and several of our students to see the Summer Palace in Beijing.
The Summer Palace was an imperial garden during the Qing dynasty, and is a vast collection off lakes, gardens, and palaces. The architecture was in a traditional Chinese style.
The ornamentation on the roofs of the palace was exquisite.
On of the features of the Summer Palace was the Long Corridor, a covered walkway that contained approximately 14,000 paintings, most of which were derived from classical Chinese literature.
Water makes up three-quarters of the grounds of the Summer Palace. Kunming Lake is the largest of the bodies of water and provides a beautiful and relaxing sight.
Another outstanding attraction of the palace is the Marble Boat. In reality it is a tea room, but it was built in the style of ships in the Chinese navy.
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Betsy and I enjoy going to Mt. Nebo State Park in Arkansas during February or March because we can enjoy watching the sunsets from the back porch of ‘our’ cabin on top of the mountain. I got this picture of the setting sun on March 17, 2025.
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For many years Betsy and I would make a two-day circle through the mountains of east Tennessee and western North Carolina to enjoy the autumn colors. We haven’t done that this year since we’ve both had some health issues and the autumn colors are pretty dull this year.
Fortunately we have many photographs to remind us of the glorious colors we did see in previous years. This picture was taken along the Foothills Parkway a few years ago.
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As yet we don’t have much autumn color here in the Glade, but once the leaves start changing the results can be beautiful. (This picture is from my archives.)
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I have only recently begun going through some of the pictures I took when Betsy and I visited the Grand Canyon in June, 2011. That was during our first trip out west, and the Grand Canyon was everything we were told it would be. I took many more pictures than I should have, but I must admit that pictures can’t really do the canyon justice. This picture was taken at Maricopa Point on the morning of June 15, 2011.
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Often there is something peaceful and serene about an evening sky. I got this photo of the sky above our house a few years ago.
Senior Moments 