When she was in her glory, the Grand Old Lady watched over four children- two smaller barns, a shed of some sort and a farmhouse. The farmhouse, made of chiseled field stone is still in good shape in spite of the vines which have started clinging to its sides. The shed's roof caved in from Hurricane Irene who blew through our area last summer. But the two smaller barns are truly the first casualties of her forced retirement. The roofs leak, the sides are bowing and if you're brave enough to risk entering them, you run the risk of putting a foot through the floor. The first one is situated across from the old shed and slightly before the Grand Lady herself. It's the structure that is most visible from the road. If the large barn is a grand old lady, this fellow was a rambunctious, young boy. He probably housed tractors and tillers and a thousand other handy gadgets for running the farm. He's empty now and his windows are missing glass like a little boy misses his teeth when he tries to whistle. And like a brother who plasters his door with a sign that reads "NO GIRLS ALLOWED" to keep out unwanted female siblings, "Buster" (as I have named him) boasts a bale of hay to warn potential visitors that he might not welcome their intrusion. Looking at him and wondering what kind of activities went on there reminds me of the bee hive of activity that was once my own family. Having raised two boys, I'm quite familiar with the sounds of roaring motors, screeching tires, and the grunt and grind of tools at work. One year, when we were really into Legos, our entire kitchen floor was home to a massive Lego village and I spent many a day preparing dinner to the sounds of car crashes and police chases. Boys! Buster was all boy at some point, but unlike my boys who grew up to be handsome young men with families of their own, Buster was deprived of growing into a useful old barn. Instead he became an empty old building with a bale of hay for an "unwelcome" mat.
Perfect description for this photo, Ann! You've told a grand story to go with the Grand Old Lady. I love the pov on this photo, the peeling paint textures, and the light from the window in back.
The picture and the story go together perfectly. What I find funny is that when we ran away from Irene (mandatory evacuation) I took a picture of a derelict house from the motel in a last ditch light is fading - get a shot attempt. It goes perfectly with your shed. I have a t shirt - "I survived Isabel. I ran away from Irene."
Sorry I have got behind with following and missed this series of yours. This is such an interesting series, I love the textures most of all but the lighting and composition are wonderful too, really well done!
I love the photo...and your tale to go with it! I would love to explore old places and peek in the doors...I do when I can, but not alot to see around here or fences up around it. The cabinet in the back makes me wonder.... Think of all the life that used to revolve around Buster.
I love it.. the story the photo all.. in here barns are not shaped as they are in your country.. when I will go to the countryside I will take special pictures for 365.. this one is very interesting.. with a cabinet inside..
Love your series and the above story would make a for a great children's book. You are quite the imaginative storyteller as well as an excellent photographer.
@aspada Thank you so much Amy! @louisefrance Thank you Louise- please don't feel bad. I feel like I fall behind at least once a week now! @nicolecampbell Thank you Nicole! @la_photographic Thank you Laura! @espyetta Thank you MaryBeth! Sometimes times a fence blocking the view makes us even more curious about what's behind it! @inertie Thank you Inertia! I'm looking forward to seeing those pictures! Isn't it wonderful how photography can open windows to the world. @cimes1 Thank you Carole. Yes, I do like to tell a story! @woot Thanks Davide- take note of the hinges. One of them became the U in my alphabet series. @alia_801 Thank you Alia! It was my own personal challenge to be creative in the way I presented them. I wanted to make the comments more lively than just, "this is one of the smaller barns". But I've been in a pensive mood lately anyway! @michaelelliott Thank you Michael!
Thank you all! Your comments mean a great deal to me.
I enjoy reading your stories to go with your pictures. you put a lot of great info and comparisons into them. keep them coming. grand picture of the old barn.
@adobewaters Thank you so much Adobe. I always loved my 35mm and missed it in many ways when I started my first year on 365. I'm glad this challenge came up and I think I will from time to time go back and use film during the rest of this year. Two more shots from this series and then a little bit of a break from all these challenges!!
@allie912 Thanks Allison! @potsbypam Thanks Pam! It's unlikely it will be refurbished or restored. It sits on National Park property now, so I don't think it can be developed.
i love this boy buster. why, my friend, you have written a novella about this barn. if you were to really sit down, you probably could write a whole novel, with this structure at the focal point of your plot. i really enjoyed reading your stories and essays. made me turn of the internet last night and write. crappy stories but writing nonetheless. wouldn't it be nice when our books shall be published, we only have to leafed through our photo files for the perfect cover?
@summerfield Thank you Vikki. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with this but I am going to put it together somehow and pitch it somewhere. A magazine maybe? I'll probably end up at the public library thumbing through the latest edition of The Writer's Market someday soon. Thank you for your encouragement. I've only written about the film shots so far, but the digital shots have the farmhouse and Buster's "sister". Plus I also have shots from last April that include the shed and some beautiful flowering trees.
ooops! bad grammar there for me. i meant "we only have to leaf through..." i should be whipped with a wet noodle until i cry.
you can write a nice article about that particular barn based on what you already had. pitch it to an outdoor magazine or start with your local/community newspaper.
February 23rd, 2012
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@kimmistephens Thanks Kimmi!
@karenann Thanks Karenann!
@dmariewms Thank you Marie!
@sarasdadandmom Thank you Terry!
@digitalrn Thanks Rick!
@mrssmith Thanks Carla!
@httpgeffed Thank you Colleen!
@peterdegraaff Thank you Peter!
Thank you one and all. Wow- I am so glad you are all enjoying these!
@louisefrance Thank you Louise- please don't feel bad. I feel like I fall behind at least once a week now!
@nicolecampbell Thank you Nicole!
@la_photographic Thank you Laura!
@espyetta Thank you MaryBeth! Sometimes times a fence blocking the view makes us even more curious about what's behind it!
@inertie Thank you Inertia! I'm looking forward to seeing those pictures! Isn't it wonderful how photography can open windows to the world.
@cimes1 Thank you Carole. Yes, I do like to tell a story!
@woot Thanks Davide- take note of the hinges. One of them became the U in my alphabet series.
@alia_801 Thank you Alia! It was my own personal challenge to be creative in the way I presented them. I wanted to make the comments more lively than just, "this is one of the smaller barns". But I've been in a pensive mood lately anyway!
@michaelelliott Thank you Michael!
Thank you all! Your comments mean a great deal to me.
@bruni Thanks Bruni! I'm enjoying this series. Two more to go.
@potsbypam Thanks Pam! It's unlikely it will be refurbished or restored. It sits on National Park property now, so I don't think it can be developed.
and this is a wonderful shot.
you can write a nice article about that particular barn based on what you already had. pitch it to an outdoor magazine or start with your local/community newspaper.