Daily Photos

< June 2021 >

June 1, 2021
Everything prohibited at other parks goes on freely here. Fortunately, I didn`t see anyone get hurt too badly. Protective equipment not required. Here`s where my ankles would`ve snapped. Getting air is easy. The hard part is landing on the board.

June 2, 2021
Rain can`t stop me from taking my daily photos. The only time I get near McDonald`s is to take pictures (see October 10, 2014). Orange is the official color of Dayton. The litter of springtime. Status update on the Dayton Arcade.

June 3, 2021
New advice: Please get vaccinated. Other people`s photo shoots. Talented youth, part 1. Talented youth, part 2. Talented youth, part 3.

June 4, 2021
No thanks, I live in a copy and paste digital world. 45402 in the 937. People with cameras creep me out. There`s a story here, but I don`t know what it is. After 11pm, just about anything looks like a good photo.

June 5, 2021
After a lengthy restoration, she`s looking good as new. I`d been away a long time, and was glad to go back. The Art Institute staff was glad to see visitors again. This was the only familiar face I saw today. Leo the Lion survived the Great Dayton Flood of 1913.

June 6, 2021
I used to play this game, but I got over it. I saw some aggressive play, and some people get hurt. Dayton ended up with a 2 - 2 tie with Columbus. Dayton would have won 3 - 2 if it weren`t for this save. Taking photos outdoors, Brood X became real to me.

June 7, 2021
After being turned off since 2019, the splash is back. A natural sense of suspicion helps keep animals alive. They`re even suspicious while they sleep. Only a small portion of the surfing experience is vertical. Can you canoe?

June 8, 2021
A cicada just out of the shower. It was a moist morning. Cicadas can barely fly, and they definitely can`t swim. Two frogs, and reflections of me in two bubbles. Let`s ignore their red eyes for a moment.

June 9, 2021
As phones get more advanced, I use the phone less. The only thing missing is you. `Are they building a house here?` `No, putting in a swimming pool, and a huge fence like a cemetery.` Cicada face. If it moves -- or even if doesn`t -- I`ll take a picture of it.

June 10, 2021
Eat, eat and eat! It takes energy to metamorphose. While I was getting chomped by mosquitos, this mosquito hawk was just sitting around doing nothing. The humble cabbage white, official butterfly of Ohio. A look of distrust. To bumblebee, or not to bumblebee, that is the question.

June 11, 2021
It`s Friday: getting ready for our weekend lockdown. I don`t know that alphabet. `As long as it isn`t raining, I`ll be out here painting.` No matter how big the task, you can do it. A bit past typical mallard breeding season, but welcome!

June 12, 2021
I think the sign gave away the surprise party. What this town needs right now is a little outdoor fun. Shamarr Allen and his band did the job. Imagine New Orleans jazz with a little rock and rap. The musicians had cicadas crawling on them. Welcome to Ohio!

June 13, 2021
As usual, others do hard things while I push a button. Emily says: We go down to rise up. Ja`Malh says: When you`re spinning, your face is the last thing to leave and the first to arrive. I learned a lot about dance just by watching. Adam says: Emily, this is your gift.

June 14, 2021
It`s Monday: time to set us free (see June 11 above). The squirrels are going after the walnuts way too early. Perfection is a temporary condition. This morning I was approached by a highly-agitated person who mistakenly though I had taken their picture, but I managed to walk away without getting shot. Happy Flag Day.

June 15, 2021
A proud, but suspicious, mother. Next stop: Hawaii. Work continues on the painting (see June 11 above). And as I stand and watch them here, it all comes back to me: the shady walks, the loving talks, in days that used to be. PAUL LAURENCE DUNBAR Gem has been vaccinated and doesn`t need a mask.

June 16, 2021
My car doesn`t bathe as often as I do. I had cake for lunch. And I had lunch for dinner. I`m putting away my Webcam. No more virtual meetings. Like the Blues Brothers` car that falls apart at the end of the movie, my mask frays at the end of the pandemic.

June 17, 2021
I went to the Levitt expecting to see Lao Tizer`s band. But as a bonus, I was surprised to see Eric Marienthal. After 2020, I have more appreciation for these concerts. I can walk to the Levitt for free show with a great band. I`m sure the musicians are also glad to perform again.

June 18, 2021
Sometimes the trick is to get lower than the flowers. The goldfinches were plentiful, but reluctant to sit still. Let`s all appreciate honeybees for a moment. Yes, robins do sing in the morning. This dragonfly was not at all reluctant to sit still.

June 19, 2021
I saw him painting as I walked past, but didn`t disturb him. He was still there hours later, so I disturbed him. Tank and the Bangas gave a Juneteenth show at Levitt. They perform a unique blend of music and poetic words. I`m happy to be able to go to live concerts again. Looking up to a role model.

June 20, 2021
On summer solstice eve, there was no shade to stand in. Are you allowed to do that? A save for Dayton! Are you allowed to do that? Lion on the attack.

June 21, 2021
On the first day of summer, it was dark and cold. Left to right: secular, sacred, secular. I`m a nature photographer amidst steel and concrete. I had to resort to a cold weather shot today. Life is sweet.

June 22, 2021
There were no humans in sight, and I didn`t miss them. Smaller than the fingernail on your pinky. Most of the birds had a half-eaten cicada in their beaks. Chipmunks were running around too, but a bunny`s cuter. A young bird trying to learn how to fly. It wasn`t pretty.

June 23, 2021
I need a new lens to capture the entire Arcade Rotunda. A lot of progress has been made (see May 11, 2019). Ordinary people doing ordinary things in an extraordinary location. The Contemporary`s OTHER door (see April 30, 2021). The massive tile floor is an engineering marvel in itself.

June 24, 2021
Vanessa Collier performed in Dayton on Thursday night, and then played a Friday night show 550 miles away. I take hundreds of photos and some of them are good. This is why I like to be close to the stage. I try to line up the musicians with a halo of glowing light behind them (see June 17 above). And then the saxophonist picked up a guitar.

June 25, 2021
My first monarch of the year. My first hummingbird of the year. Not my first robin. Note the second pair of antennae. This is as close I get to a landscape photo.

June 26, 2021
Tomorrow is the 149th anniversary of the birth of Paul Laurence Dunbar. I went to Wright-Dunbar Village for a celebration. There was a party full of art activities for kids. It took place at a park called Oak & Ivy, named for Paul`s first book of poetry. A new generation of Daytonians is being raised to know and appreciate the work of Paul Laurence Dunbar.

June 27, 2021
It`s Paul Laurence Dunbar`s 149th birthday! This morning, a flag from Dayton`s Dunbar High School was raised above Paul`s grave. A birthday celebration was held at the Dunbar House. Vocalists sang songs with lyrics written by Dunbar. An actor portrayed Paul and read some of his poems.

June 28, 2021
Monday was a sun day. I didn`t bring my watch, but the bells told me it was 9am. Yesterday during Dunbar`s birthday events, someone said his mother Matilda used to live in a tent city here. Summer reading. Every few years, this building gets repainted, but it has been vacant for at least 30 years.

June 29, 2021
Chipmunks eat cicadas too? Maybe I should try one. Where sweet corn comes from. Hanging around Smith Garden. Tradescantia: also known as spiderwort, spider-lily, cradle-lily, oyster-plant, or flowering inch plant. This is the closest I`ve ever been to a dragonfly.

June 30, 2021
Like a lot of modern art, I`m not sure I understand it. Did you see that movie `2001: A Space Odyssey`? A total turtle (see June 15 above). Every once in a while, a prehistoric mastodon is found. I went outside in between downpours.

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