A Traveller’s Eye, A Thinker’s Heart
I like to tell stories. I like to take photos.
And I like to share them. Enjoy.
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THE TOUGHEST JOB YOU’LL EVER LOVE
It was 35 years ago today that a bunch of recent college graduates in agriculture, forestry and environmental education and I landed in Central America to begin our two-year Peace Corps Costa Rica Volunteer assignments. We all got to know each other a few months earlier in Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia. The Peace Corps flew
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COME TO CORN ISLAND
My Nicaraguan counterpart, Juan José, and I were real amateurs at our jobs. The Institute of Tourism sent us on a mission to go to Corn Islands to bring back some great pics and promotional material. We were really out of our league. As I recall Juan José had a degree in commerce but he
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THE NANCE VENDOR
To most viewers, this image in Masaya would just be a simple snapshot of a typical Nicaraguan street scene. But I see a whole capsule of Nicaraguan history and culture. The vendor is selling nancite (or nance) fruit. This is a small, sweet and yellow fruit found in tropical America. This photo was taken in
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AWAITING IN MASAYA
The indigenous city of Masaya, 30 kilometres south of Managua, saw many skirmishes between the FSLN and Somoza’s National Guard during the civil war. When I visited five years later, the signs of the battles were widespread as walls were still pockmarked with bullet and mortar holes. I worked at nearby Masaya Volcano National Park
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VALE SIMBA (1995-2016)
It is a tradition in Australia to throw a party on your 21st birthday. So we thought it would only be appropriate that we throw a party in April when our cat, Simba, turns 21. We were going to invite the neighbours and friends who looked after him over the years and we’d wear silly
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AN EAGLE SCOUT
Day 7 of 7: Challenge on Nature Photography. Eagles, Amery, Wisconsin – 1973 For the past six days I have shared my appreciation of nature with you. For my final day in this nature photography challenge I’m going to share a personal story about how I developed that appreciation and my concerns that today’s generation
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LONG-TERM GAINS IN THE AMAZON
Reserva Nacional Pacaya-Samiria, Peruvian Amazon – 1989 ‘Destroying rainforest for economic gain is like burning a Renaissance painting to cook a meal.’ Edward O. Wilson Those of you in my generation growing up in America probably had the same Sunday evening pastime as my family: we would watch the National Geographic specials. I loved that
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RESERVES OF STRENGTH
‘Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature – the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.’ Rachel Carson, Silent Spring In the summer of 1978, I worked as
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CLIMB THAT GODDAMN MOUNTAIN
‘Because in the end, you won’t remember the time you spent working in the office or mowing your lawn. Climb that goddamn mountain.’ Jack Kerouac There’s one thing I learned early on while working in a mountainous national park in the Pacific Northwest: never let a little cloud cover deter you from climbing a mountain.
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