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I love a good backyard lawn chair tour in the morning. It settles the mind and makes way for the day. Requisite tools: 80-200mm Canon lens mounted on my Canon 5D III, fuzzy slippers, the morning sun and a steaming mug of fresh #Chemex coffee. A nearby water fountain provides soothing effervescence, perennial flowers and bushes add vibrance and movement, and hungry birds take center stage. Sorry, no angry birds allowed... although blue jays do love to be bossy.

After more than 76 years, MIA World War II veteran Sgt. Howard F. Gotts, U.S. Army Air Force, is home at last.  Surrounded by Army National Guard Honor Guard officers, members of the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office, Patriot Guard New York, American Legion Post 256 Canandaigua, American Legion Post 34 Shortsville, the Marine Corps League, state and local officials and a host of extended family and friends, Stg. Gotts’ descendants finally received the closure they’d waited 76 years to experience. It was on the morning of Aug. 1, 1943, that Sgt. Gotts's plane was shot down over Romania in the final wave of Operation TIDAL WAVE, the first large-scale, low-altitude attack by U.S. heavy bomber aircraft upon a well-defended target. An estimated 225 servicemen perished in Operation TIDAL WAVE, but the Romanians could identify only 27 at the time. Through DNA analysis, the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Agency notified St. Gotts' family on June 24, 2019, that his remains had...

This is my favorite view off Turk Hill Road, relaxing next to my sweet grand-puppy German shepherd, Zara.  It's breezy, it's sunny, and Zara should be resting peacefully in the warm glow of my calming presence. But no. The queen would rather chase sticks and balls and chew bark and patrol her yard and keep track of her humans.  There will be no rest. Still, it's a beautiful view.  Canon 5D III Sigma 24-105mm F4 Art, 1/160 at f/22 ISO 250

How can two words bring back such a tidal wave of memories?  Church camp is where mom spent youthful summers in the cabin her daddy built.  It's where I, at age six and under my ultra-God-fearing grandma's watchful eye, awaited news of the birth of my baby sister. Where dining hall specials included mass quantities of sugar, starch, fat and laughter. Where a visit to the snack bar was your reward for sitting quietly for an hour and a half in the tabernacle — which included an altar call and at least 14 verses of "Just As I Am." And where, sooner or later, nearly everyone eventually "came to Jesus."

In spite of the beautiful night lights at Schoen Place in Pittsford, this is the image that speaks to me most. As I chatted dockside just before sunset with a couple chilling on their houseboat, this bumper caught my eye. Hanging off the starboard stern side It clearly bears the scars of exciting adventures, sunny days, stormy waters and challenging locks on the Erie Canal. It has protected the couple's lovely cruiser from disaster on many occasions, they said. This buoy wears its worth. And having seen my own share of rough waters, I think it's easily the most beautiful part of their journey. Safe travels, friends.