I got out a box of old slides over the weekend and had a good time looking at some photos I took with my first (cheap) 35 mm camera. The first picture was in a cave in southern Missouri on the first cave trip with my not yet steady girlfriend. We were coming out of the cave at sunset, and as we came to the entrance we witnessed this beautiful spectacle. Luckily, I still had film in my camera and was able to set up quickly for several exposures. This probably happens on just a few days per year in this cave, and you have to be there at the right time. Dumb Luck.
My roommates and I went on a canoe trip during spring break in 1973 on a river in east Tennessee which was beyond my skill level, but I did not know that when we put in. I figured it out pretty quickly, though. I was in the front end of a canoe going down the rapids which ends at the big rock pictured above. We capsized, and I floated down the rapids hanging onto my paddle. The river pushed me straight into the rock and pulled me down with astounding authority. My final mental picture of the upstream side of this rock is my hands going under, still holding my paddle. It was dark under that rock, but I could tell that I was moving, and I never panicked, although I was a bit concerned about my situation. I popped up on the downstream side, still holding my paddle. One of the other guys paddled up close to me and said, "Just hand me your paddle." He was afraid I would dump him if I touched his canoe. He towed me to shore, where I got my camera out of the ammo box and shot this fogged up picture. Dumb and Lucky.
This is the girl mentioned in the first paragraph. She sat down in front of me at a cave club meeting in late 1972. After the meeting she turned around and asked me if I could take her caving. I took this picture in the spring of 1973 while we were rappelling at Rocheport, Missouri. Her mother saw this photo for the first time yesterday when I was copying it from the slide. Now my mother-in law has a new reason to disapprove of me. Dumb Luck or Dumb and Lucky? I had a sweet great aunt who told me that I wasn't lucky; I was blessed. I think that is the right answer.
I got out a box of old slides over the weekend and had a good time looking at some photos I took with my first (cheap) 35 mm camera. The first picture was in a cave in southern Missouri on the first cave trip with my not yet steady girlfriend. We were coming out of the cave at sunset, and as we came to the entrance we witnessed this beautiful spectacle. Luckily, I still had film in my camera and was able to set up quickly for several exposures. This probably happens on just a few days per year in this cave, and you have to be there at the right time. Dumb Luck.
My roommates and I went on a canoe trip during spring break in 1973 on a river in east Tennessee which was beyond my skill level, but I did not know that when we put in. I figured it out pretty quickly, though. I was in the front end of a canoe going down the rapids which ends at the big rock pictured above. We capsized, and I floated down the rapids hanging onto my paddle. The river pushed me straight into the rock and pulled me down with astounding authority. My final mental picture of the upstream side of this rock is my hands going under, still holding my paddle. It was dark under that rock, but I could tell that I was moving, and I never panicked, although I was a bit concerned about my situation. I popped up on the downstream side, still holding my paddle. One of the other guys paddled up close to me and said, "Just hand me your paddle." He was afraid I would dump him if I touched his canoe. He towed me to shore, where I got my camera out of the ammo box and shot this fogged up picture. Dumb and Lucky.
This is the girl mentioned in the first paragraph. She sat down in front of me at a cave club meeting in late 1972. After the meeting she turned around and asked me if I could take her caving. I took this picture in the spring of 1973 while we were rappelling at Rocheport, Missouri. Her mother saw this photo for the first time yesterday when I was copying it from the slide. Now my mother-in law has a new reason to disapprove of me. Dumb Luck or Dumb and Lucky? I had a sweet great aunt who told me that I wasn't lucky; I was blessed. I think that is the right answer. 
2 comments:
That first photo is amazing, I've never seen anything like it! Well done... lucky or blessed works.
Thanks for the comment! I wish I could remember the location of this cave. True Blue
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