CDP THEME DAY: PHOTO OF THE YEAR

Where I Belong

Every first of the month, City Daily Photo bloggers around the world post one photo based on a single theme. Despite not posting to my blog on a "daily" basis as the name suggests, I have tried to post to all of the Theme Days. That said, there have been a few theme days in the past 20 months that I missed because I was traveling and could not access my blog. The theme from last March 2016, "Where I belong," is one of those. So I chose this for my end-of-the-year/Photo of the Year.

I have lived in the Walla Walla Valley since 1987 when I moved here with my husband and two young sons. It was a nostalgic return for my husband since his great grandparents homesteaded here in the mid 1800s, and he was born in Walla Walla in 1930. For me, it was moving to what I would soon refer to as a quintessential small town with good schools, a quaint downtown, and nice homes on tree-lined streets. In short, it was a good place to raise a family.

Nearly 30 years later, it is still a quintessential small town, although both the town and I have undergone significant changes. I divorced after 20 years of marriage, and my children have grown to be thirty-somethings now. As for the Walla Walla Valley, miles and miles of wheat fields interspersed with commercial pea, onion, and asparagus fields have given way to wheat fields and vineyards. . . lots of vineyards. With that change, old-time mom and pop stores in the downtown corridor went out of business and have been replaced with tasting rooms, upscale restaurants, and a variety of retail shops geared more for the new wine tourist than the local customer. But that's not all bad because overall the town and valley have been revitalized with an aesthetically pleasing, low impact wine industry while keeping the charm of a small rural town in Eastern Washington. 

The schools are still good, the downtown is quaint, and the streets remain tree-lined. 

So it's a win-win.

This photo epitomizes "where I belong" for a number of reasons. First, it's been my home for 30 years, longer than I lived in any one place including my childhood home in Birmingham, Michigan. However, it hasn't always been my favorite place. On my first visit to Walla Walla in 1977 while on my honeymoon, I wasn't so enamored. The drive here from Seattle through miles and miles of seemingly lifeless and dry high desert blinded me to the beauty of this tree-filled oasis nestled in the Blue Mountains. To me it was the armpit of the world. It took 10 years along with a new perspective on life as a parent with two school-aged children, that on a second visit to Walla Walla in 1987 I saw its charms. And they captivated me.

Second, it's an aesthetically beautiful setting. The Blue Mountains in the distance hold the valley in a cradle and change visually with the season, the light, and time of day. Likewise, the wheat fields that undulate north into the heart of the Palouse are ever-changing. The curves and folds of the hills are sensuous embodiments of Mother Earth herself--whether under plow, under snow, under combine, or under sunlight. I have had the pleasure of traveling to many beautiful places in this country and the world, but no single place is any more beautiful than the Walla Walla Valley.

And the open road is an important metaphor in my life. I bicycled up and down this very road for years when I was a passionate and younger road cyclist in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The ride toward the mountains reminded me that life is always going uphill even if it appears flat, so it's best to keep my head down and pedal, pedal, pedal. And while the trip away from the mountains was much easier, it was still best to keep pedaling to maintain my momentum. Then in the summer of 1998 this life lesson that I learned by riding on Walla Walla's roads was repeated for 47 days and 3,254 miles on my 1998 Big Ride Across America: 

Roads go up and roads go down, so it's best to just keep pedaling.

Finally, the open road symbolizes my love of traveling. I don't travel on the seat of a bike anymore after a stupid bike accident in 2010 left me with a shattered wrist and shattered confidence. So now I travel in the air, on the sea, in a bus, or on the back of a camel to see the world. But no matter how far I travel or what I see, I always love coming home to the Walla Walla Valley and to this sight. 

It is where I belong. 

To see the photos of other CDP bloggers, click HERE:

PEOPLE WATCHING

How Much is That Human in the Window?

HOLIDAY LIGHTS-Part 2

What a Difference the Snow Makes

HOLIDAY LIGHTS-Part 1

Veterans' Christmas Tree

A community supported tree to honor and thank 

the Military and Veterans of the Walla Walla Valley.

SUMMER IN A BUBBLE

Monday night's snow and subsequent temperatures in the teens 

have all but destroyed the red geranium blooms 

still hanging on from a milder-than-usual November.  

So I'm happy I saved this snow-dusted bloom in a photo 

and showcased it using the iPhone app, PIP. 

Besides, RED is my favorite color!

THE FIRST SNOW OF THE SEASON

Winter Rose

MOVIN' ON

Imagine That!

I was off to go shopping, and what did I see?

A big yellow house right in front of me.

I whipped out my camera,

my iPhone that is,

And took all these photos,

For my blog not to miss.

Imagine my surprise as I turned north onto Isaacs and drove a couple blocks only to be stopped by this sight at the bend in the road where Isaacs becomes Rose Street. Since there was no traffic, I stopped my car and snapped a picture before the house moved too far around the corner. Then I made a quick U Turn as there still was no traffic and drove around to the next block where I parked and ran to the corner, iPhone in hand, ready to capture this historic event in photos.

The funny thing is, I had previously read about this upcoming house move in the local paper last week, but I didn't really give it much thought until I happened upon it today. By the time I met up with it, it had already been moved several blocks from its original location on the corner of Linden and Otis on the Whitman College Campus.

This house was one of 12 houses offered for sale by Whitman College to make room for a new sophomore resident dorm and dining hall. The cost of each house was $1, with the new owner taking full responsibility for hiring a professional mover to relocate the structure.

In the photo above, the man in the bucket has just stopped the move and called for someone to raise a wire that was in the way.

At the ready was this worker who arrived with an expandable orange pole which he lengthened, and lengthened, and lengthened until he could lift the wire way overhead. Quite impressive!

A look underneath the trailer shows the massive steel beams on which the house sits along with the drive train and turning mechanism that allows the long trailer to make turns such as this.

The house appears to be in great condition and will make the new owner a nice home in its new location, somewhere up Mill Creek Road.

Having made the right turn onto Park street, the house on wheels heads for Highway 12.

This photo taken last spring by Greg Lehman for the Walla Walla Union Bulletin shows the house in its original location.

DECEMBER 2016 THEME DAY--TRANSITIONS

WWDP--On Location in the Panama Canal

The first day of the month is traditionally Theme Day at City Daily Photo. This month's theme is "transitions." Since I have been traveling for the last 30 days, I submit this photo which is clearly NOT of Walla Walla, but does fit the theme quite nicely as the Panama Canal literally allows the transition of ships from one great ocean to the other across the Isthmus of Panama. It also is one of man's engineering marvels of the 20th century and even of the 21st century as it continues to expand to accommodate larger cargo vessels. 

This photo illustrates a number of transitions as three separate ships go through the locks heading to the Atlantic Ocean. 

The Holland America cruise ship I am on is in the foreground. I am on the topmost deck looking down on a mid-level deck open to passengers only during specific sightseeing days like this. Our ship is in the first set of three locks having entered at the level of Gatun Lake and now waiting to be lowered to the next level. The tug boat accompanying us prevents our ship from drifting against the locks themselves.

The ship to the left in a parallel channel is in the second set of locks where it is being lowered to a mid level. The green and white ship in front of us (in the same channel) has exited the second set of locks and is now entering the third set where it will be lowered to sea level. Before our ship can enter the second set, the locks ahead must be closed and then the chamber must be refilled with water to match the level of our ship.  Once in the locks, the water will again be released to lower our ship down to the second level. Finally we'll enter the third set of locks where we will be lowered to the Atlantic Ocean and proceed on our way.

The entire transition from the Pacific Ocean through the Miraflores Locks, through Culebra Cut, across Gatun Lake, through the Gatun Locks to the Atlantic Ocean took us nearly 12 hours and raised and lowered our ship 85 feet two times. 

For a look at the "transitions" other CDP bloggers have posted, follow this link: http://cdpbthemeday.blogspot.com.au/