An outstanding early Monday morning shot of the moon (Luna) and the planets Mars and Saturn at their closest "meeting" taken in the southern sky above my front yard.
Monday, April 25, 2016
Sunday, April 17, 2016
Night Sky Photography - 04-17-2016 - Luna & Jupiter
Managed to capture an amazing shot through the trees of the waxing gibbous moon with the planet Jupiter in the eastern sky.
Sunday, April 10, 2016
One Big Ass Peach!
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| The Peachoid (aka. "The Moon over Gaffney") as seen from Interstate 85 northbound in Gaffney, SC. |
On my way back from visiting the SC Comic Con last weekend, my brother Alex and I took Interstate 85 north as part of our route homeward.
On the way we stopped to snap a photo of one of Upstate South Carolina's most uniquely recognizable landmarks and an excellent example of novelty architecture - the Gaffney Peachoid.
Located in Cherokee County, in the town of Gaffney, South Carolina, between exits 90 and 92 near the Cherokee Foothills Scenic Highway (SC 11), the Peachoid is a 135 foot tall (41 meters) water tower usually referred to by local residents as "The Peach".
The Peachoid was built in 1981 and shaped like a peach to represent the fact that the local economy was once dependent on peach orchards. At one time, Cherokee County, South Carolina along produced more peaches per year than the entire State of Georgia (which is known as "The Peach State"). Peaches still play a big part in the economy and agricultural heritage of that part of South Carolina today.
The water tower itself holds a whopping one million gallons (3.8 million liters) of water. WOW!
Since its construction, the Gaffney Peachoid has introduced an element of tourism to the local economy. The Peachoid is highly visible and can be seen from several miles away when one travels southbound on I-85 from the South Carolina border, particularly in winter months when the trees are leafless.
Passing motorists lovingly refer to the Gaffney Peachoid as: "Mr. Peach" and "The Moon over Gaffney" - while others simply call it the "Big Orange Butt" because....well, for obvious reasons depending on what angle one views it.
This landmark serves not only as just another unique and artistic example of our shared Southern heritage and how we honor our past and traditions in various ways down here in the Carolinas, but also as a somewhat amusing example of Americana.
Every time I drive by it on a trip to that part of the State, I always smile whenever I see it; largely because my earliest memory of the Peachoid involved a family trip to North Carolina when I was about nine. My grandpa pointed it out to me and my sister, Olivia, (then seven) who laughed and said, "That's one big ass peach!"
Even though my sister got a swat on her own butt for using what was then a no-no word (not a bad swat, but she sold it like it was) I could not help but think then, as I do now, that she was right. It is indeed One Big Ass Peach!
Even though my sister got a swat on her own butt for using what was then a no-no word (not a bad swat, but she sold it like it was) I could not help but think then, as I do now, that she was right. It is indeed One Big Ass Peach!
South Carolina Comic Con 2016
On Saturday, April 2nd, I made a day trip to Greenville, South Carolina, along with my brother Alex. Our destination: the TD Convention Center in downtown Greenville and the 2016 South Carolina Comicon.
Comic Con's are always fun, especially for huge nerds like yours truly. They have everything from old comics to current graphic novels. Cosplayers in homemade outfits portraying everything from 80s Cartoon characters and current Cartoon characters, to Japanese Anime characters, superheroes and villains, and even video game characters. Also in attendance are celebrities like Stan "The Man" Lee and minor characters from hit sci-fi series and superhero action TV shows are there. Comic Conventions pretty much have everything under the sun that a serious geek can enjoy.
The geekdom and nostalgia were certianly strong that day. The following are photos me and Alex took that day.
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| Long lines await those who did not show up early. |
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| Mortal Kombat character Smoke and Marvel comic's Deadpool cosplayers. |
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| Full Metal Alchemist military officer cosplayer. |
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| A really good Green Arrow cosplayer. |
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| Even longer lines inside! |
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| WOW! Cobra Commander! Haven't seen that guy in ages! Also props on the cosplayer portraying Kiki from Studio Ghibli's classic film Kiki's Delivery Service. |
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| Marvel's Suicide Squad version of Harley Quinn and another Deadpool cosplayer. |
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| Emogi Guy? WTH?! |
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| Casey Jones from the classic 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TV Series. |
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| Ursula & Ariel with Flounder from Disney's The Little Mermaid. |
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| An amazing and beautiful Wonder Woman cosplayer. |
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| Don't worry, he won't bite....I think. |
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| Me (sporting a Mohawk) and the T-Rex meme guy. |
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| Mandalorians - I love these guys! |
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| Kylo Ren cosplayer. |
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| 501st Legion Star Wars cosplayers table. |
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| Another Harley Quinn with Mortal Kombat's Subzero cosplayer. |
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| Cosplayer portraying Rey from Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens. |
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| "Let it go, let it go..." Elsa cosplayer from Disney's Frozen. |
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| Well Thor, looks like I'm totally worthy! |
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| Magneto cosplayer from Marvel's X-Men. |
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| Three awesome Attack on Titan cosplayers. |
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| Steampunk cosplayers. |
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| An amazing Twi'lek Jedi cosplayer. |
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| The Original Batmobile from the 1960s Batman TV Series. |
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| Harry Potter Hogwarts Slytherin Quidditch Team cosplayer. |
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| Misty cosplayer from Pokemon. |
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| Halo cosplayer - one of my favorites! |
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| Finally, my two absolute favorite cosplay characters at the 2016 SC Comicon: Mabel and Dipper from Disney's Gravity Falls. |
Already looking forward to HeroesCon in Charlotte this June!
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