Another view of the satellite dishes in front of the Tellus Museum. Looking at these reminds me of the movie “Contact”. I could see them piping radio waves from far distant galaxies into banks of computers just waiting for some recognizable pattern. One can still dream like a child, right? It’s good that there is a museum like Tellus to help keep those dreams alive.
This last summer, I took the family to visit the Booth Western Museum. One of the galleries is dedicated to the Civil War. The gallery is laid out so that the paintings are chronological as you walk around the gallery with several statues in the middle. We went the wrong way as we entered the gallery, so we went backwards through the images. It did not take too long to figure out what we had done. This shot is from the entrance to the gallery.
Probably my third favorite plane at the Udvar Hazy building was the Enola Gay. This is one of the planes that helped end World War 2 in the Pacific Theater. Unfortunately, this plane carried more destruction in its belly than most other war planes carry in their entire existence. Knowing what it did just makes being in its shadow that much more awe inspiring.
This past Friday evening was Family Science Night at the Tellus Museum. It was tons of fun, but the best part is that I got to run around for a few minutes afterward taking some shots of the satellite dishes. Okay, that was not the most fun part, watching the kids build stuff and play on the heavy machinery was better. Back to the satellite dishes. As we pulled into the parking lot, I noticed that they were lit up nice and bright and I set about trying to get a good angle. When I shot this one, I was not expecting to get a small meteor, but if you look just above the museum, it is there. If I could figure out how to read the Fireball Camera information, I might be able to find it’s track through NASA.
What kid does not like dinosaurs? For that matter, what adult does not? I guess that is why there are so many museums around that have a dinosaur exhibit. The Tellus Museum in North Georgia is no exception. They have everything from a Saber tooth tiger to a Tyrannosaurus Rex. They even have a giant sea turtle. This is a shot of its massive head and one flipper. I can’t imagine that this would be much more dangerous that a modern sea turtle, but I would not want to take the chance.
My kids have spent the last several years watching a television show called The Magic School Bus. There was nothing magical about this rusted old school bus near the back of Old Car City. That is unless you used a little imagination and a lot of creativity. When I saw this, I decided that I wanted to bring it back to life. Maybe like a cat with nine lives. Surely around number eight or nine, it has to be looking kinda ragged. I wanted to capture that, but also that maybe there is still some life left in it.
Setting yourself goals and then striving to reach them can be a matter of personal pride. However, when the goal is much greater than one person, it has the potential of becoming a national goal. That is what happened during the space race… land a person on the moon. In 1969, after many failures and successes, the United States accomplished this goal. It was only through the hard work and ingenuity of those people who would dream that it happened. However, it was not without extreme danger which is evident on the Apollo 16 capsule that sits in the US Space and Rocket Center in Alabama.
Sitting outside the Booth Western Museum in Cartersville are several artistic pieces. This one is prominently placed just outside the entrance and creates an imposing view. The sculpture was made by Austin Barton and is titled Attitude Adjustment. It is great for setting the wild west mood before walking through a museum dedicated to the Western America.
Okay, it’s still not too late to join the project 52. This weeks theme it “Frame It”. Don’t worry, I still haven’t taken mine yet. I do have some ideas. I’m thinking I might be able to complete it tonight.
I am not afraid of many things and watching horror movies does not bother me. Well, with the exception of one, The Shining with Jack Nicholson. When I saw this truck with the tricycle sitting on it, all I could do was think of the Shining and Danny riding his tricycle through the halls. I had to look over my shoulder a couple times to make sure no one was creeping up on me.
I grew up in North Georgia and remember well stopping at the gas station and getting a cold coke from the cooler. There were no twist off plastic caps, it was just a piece of metal crimped to the top. It took a bottle opener to get to the cold refreshment. Occasionally, I run across an old country store like those I grew up with. It is rare to find a coke in a glass bottle anymore, but sometimes I still do. This one was fresh out.
