“Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” — Dorothea Lange

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Enjoy this week’s rambling mind of a mechanical engineer and photographer.

Sunday, 07/11/2021: Posted photo — Rough Hermit Beetle.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 200, f/5.6, 1/125 s, 135 mm.

The rough hermit beetle is a near threatened species with its population decreasing. The adult beetle lives two to three months. These beetles do not bite. They grow inside rotting, hollow trees. The larvae feed for three years on the wet, decaying wood. They are harmless and probably make great fish bait.

The beetle in my photo was at my in-law’s cottage. I did not see it at first and be wife pointed it out to me. I took out my Seek app to identify it.

I was going to post a photo of a hammock or a photo of water lilies before taking a photo of this beetle. Since I did not post these photos in my 365 project or on my website, I will post them here for you to enjoy as a bonus for reading my blog.

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Monday, 07/12/2021: Posted photo — Wachusett Mountain Ski Area.

Settings: Samsung SM-G930V (Galaxy S7), ISO 50, f/1.7, 1/171 s, 4 mm

Mountain Stats:

Summit Elevation: 2006 ft
Vertical Drop: 1000 ft
Trails: 27
Lifts: 8
Uphill Capacity: 9200 skiers per hour
Snowmaking: 100%
Grooming: 2x per day
Times I have skied on the mountain: 1 or 2 times in my life.

As you can tell, I do not ski. I would rather hike the mountain than to ski the mountain.

Today I hiked 4.6 miles on the mountain. It has been a week since I hike Mount Isolation and just took my time to relax and stretch out my legs. I hike with a group on Monday nights which is a great motivator. Tonight, we hiked in the rain and fog and being with a group made the hike easier. You could not see the mountain much due to cloud covering so my gear was damp at the end of the hike.

This is a photo of the fountain at the base of the mountain. This location is used for many events, such as weddings, reunions, and other celebrations. The Midstate trail goes past this location giving my fellow hikers a great view to refresh their mind during a long hike.

Tuesday, 07/13/2021: Posted photo — Unicorn.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 1600, f/5.6, 1/50 s, 135 mm.

A unicorn is a mythical, usually white animal generally depicted with the body and head of a horse with long flowing mane and tail and a single often spiraled horn in the middle of the forehead, or it is an animal mentioned in the Bible that is usually considered an aurochs, a one-horned rhinoceros, or an antelope.

Many people are into unicorns. My mother is one of those people. She is not a crazy unicorn woman by any means. She has a collection of unicorns in her China cabinet. This one is a Christmas unicorn as you can tell by the wreath around its neck.

Wednesday, 07/14/2021: Posted photo — Pillow Pattern.

Settings: Samsung SM-G930V (Galaxy S7), ISO 160, f/1.7, 1/30 s, 4 mm

Sitting at my mother’s house, I needed a photo (surprising is it not) and I saw these pillows. Pillows have some interesting pattern in them. I took this photo and did not think anything about it.

When I went to process it to post, the pattern looked to me to be either and alien spaceship, an alien, or one person doing a handstand on the hands of another person. Apophenia is a general term for interpreting patterns or meaning in meaningless data. This data may be meaningless, but the power of suggestion will make someone see something that is not there.

Thursday, 07/15/2021: Posted photo — Bench.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 1600, f/8, 1/200 s, 41 mm.

At the intersection of Bicentennial Trail and High Meadow Trail is a bench for people to rest. This bench looks over high meadow and faces to the due south and has great views of the surrounding hills.

I meet a hiker there that told me that a local college was doing a snake study in the high meadow. I checked out the study one day only to find a snakeskin. I was going to look for a snake tonight, but I did not want to walk in the high grass in the study area because I did not want to get any ticks on me. I had my camera ready to take the photo, and my son with me to lift the board so I could get a photo of any snake that was resting.

I thought I knew everything that goes on at the mountain, but I am learning new things. You can teach and old dog something new!

Friday, 07/16/2021: Post photo — Sunrise.

Settings: Canon EOS 60D, ISO 400, f/7.1, 1/500 s, 135 mm.

What a wonderful sunrise this morning. The hazy sky made the reds jump out at me.

As I was driving into work, I saw this wonderful sunrise over Round Meadow Pond. I drove around the area of the pond to find a good location for taking a photo of the sunrise. I could not find a good location off the main road, so I stopped in the breakdown lane to take this one. Good thing I live in a town where there is not much traffic, especially at 5:40 a.m. when I was on my way to work.

Saturday, 07/17/2021: Post photo — Mother’s Hand.

Settings: Samsung SM-G930V (Galaxy S7), ISO 50, f/1.7, 1/167 s, 4 mm

My hand in the hand of an angel.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

For more photo of other project I have work, visit my website: https://photobyjosephciras.weebly.com/ or visit me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/PhotobyJosephCiras/.

COVID is real! Be safe out there, keep your social distance, and remember to always wear your mask and wash your hands. Get your vaccine!