An April Fool's Day Photo for You

I stood on my head to take this picture, so you will have to stand on your head to see it as I took it.

I was taking photos at Southern Connection in Crisfield when they were working the oysters, and saw several ducks hanging around. The ducks are friends with the owner, and he feeds them several times a day.

The ducks come round where they hear the machines and stand outside the door and pick up little bits of oyster goodies. I caught this one as he was walking up for his treats.


From Wikipedia:

The origin of April Fools' Day is obscure. One likely theory is that the modern holiday was first celebrated soon after the adoption of the Gregorian Calendar; the term referred to someone still adhering to the Julian Calendar, which it replaced.

In many pre-Christian cultures May Day (May 1) was celebrated as the first day of summer, and signaled the start of the spring planting season. An April Fool was someone who did this prematurely.

Another origin is that April 1, was counted the first day of the year in France. When King Charles IX changed that to January 1, some people stayed with April 1. Those who did were called "April Fools" and were taunted by their neighbors.

In the eighteenth century the festival was often posited as going back to the times of Noah. An English newspaper article published on April 13th, 1789 said that the day had its origins when he sent the raven off too early, before the waters had receded. He did this on the first day of the Hebrew month that corresponds with April.

A possible reference to April Fools' Day can be seen in the Canterbury Tales (ca 1400) in the Nun's Priest's tale, a tale of two fools: Chanticleer and the fox, which took place on March 32nd.

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* You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm. - Colette (1873 - 1954), in New York World-Telegram and Sun, 1961

* Mix a little foolishness with your prudence: It's good to be silly at the right moment. - Horace (65 BC - 8 BC)

Happy April Fool's Day, all Ya'll.

Have a Nice Day

I thought this was worthy of a late night post.

I was going to an assignment this evening and got into trouble with that radar gun the officer is holding.

I was well out of Crisfield, but still in the county, and was near my destination when this officer stepped out into the road and waved me off to one side. I had really hoped it was a routine check. It wasn't.

It seems that I had been speeding. Oh, and I forgot to put my seat belt back on after I got gas a few miles back. I mean, I was almost at my destination.

The reason that I am posting this is that I think the world of these people. They do not get the respect they deserve. All of our city and county law officials, our firemen, and our EMS workers, rank right up there with our soldiers in the "my heroes" category. They are the constant defenders of our safety, and to stop me for speeding...well, it's their job.

We just don't think about these people until we need them. Your yard man may not show up, your kids may disappoint you, your electrician may be a day late, your contractor may get sick, and your date may stand you up. But you know what? These people will be there for you when you need them, and they would put their lives on the line if necessary to save you from harm.

It is not the people in the White House or in Congress or the Senate who keep this country running. It is people like this guy. They are our government.

Now about the picture. I could have taken his picture without asking, or he could have waved me off when he saw the camera, but he didn't. In fact, when I framed the photo, I asked him to bring his radar gun up a little so I could get it in the photo.
I thought that was pretty cool of him.

Next time you get stopped for speeding, think about the man or woman who stops you. Think about life without them.

Have a nice day.

Photos for Tuesday

Here are some photos of Crisfield for your Tuesday viewing. No words today. Just pretty pictures. Enjoy them and let the stress just melt away. Ah, the good life.










I have to put a note on the above photo. The bell has some history and now sits at the corner of Sea Mark Marine in Crisfield.

Saturday Doggie Walk

I jumped out of the car to take this photo of a lady walking her dog. Sorry about the telephone poll growing out of the top of the dog's head, but I was on my way to an assignment and I was in a big hurry.

The fence to the right is part of Eddie Heath's Crab Pots & Supply Co. He is the number one maker and distributor of crab pots in Crisfield. With crab season coming up, the place has been bustling. He makes crab pots in all kinds of colors, and they make wonderful decorations for yards. If your yard leans towards the nautical, give Eddie a call at: 410.968.1292, and add a little bit of Crisfield to your yard.

Ready for Spring - and Summer!

Looks like spring has finally arrived in Crisfield, so I thought, after yesterday's shoot out, I would post some happy photos.

BTW: Everyone did a great job with their cemetery photos. If you are not a participant of our weekly shoot outs (if we still have any after Butler and Bagman get us all killed searching for lions and tigers next week - inside joke for participants), we hope we will have more people join us in our town shoot outs. It is a great way to go round the world with the click of a mouse and see what other towns and cities across the globe have to offer. Of course, in Crisfield, we think we are #1!

So here are some random shots to make you smile:

Our daffodils are finally blooming. I took these in front of our post office yesterday



Here is our post office




Here is the nice guy who did not run over me while I was taking the picture of the post office. Try to stand in front of your post office and see how many honks or mean looks you get. I didn't even see him until I turned around to go back to my car. He was just sitting there patiently, not even wanting to ride in front of the camera and mess up my photo. How great is that?



This may seem like work to you but to Mr. Sterling, who has been raking the pine needles from the same yard for about 40 years, says it is something he looks forward to. I told you the people of Crisfield are hardworking people. It's in their blood.

This is the time of year that everyone in Crisfield begins the rites of spring by raking pine needles and leaves, and planting their flower and vegetable gardens.



Nothing says spring like driving around and seeing all the crabbing gear coming out of storage. Crab season opens in Maryland on April 1. The crabbers are cleaning boats, readying gear, and preparing for a new season. If crabs be ye thing, matey, bring ye boat, car, or plane to Crisfield for some good grub. Argghh!


Moving on to summer, here are some photos to get your mind in vacation mode. While you are planning that much needed vacation, check out our Chamber site on the side bar, or visit our events site for upcoming events.











Crisfield is a great place to live and play!

And remember, no will run over you if you stand in the middle of the street to take a picture, and if someone honks they will be waving, "Howdy."

I was going to close with that, but let me tell you a quick story. I took a feature shot for my newspaper the other day (I can't post features here)and the woman who was in the photo was from Woodstock, NY. She had never been to Crisfield before.

She had come down here to place 3 abandoned chickens and a rooster with a good home. She was waiting on the mail boat to take her to Smith Island. She had some time to spare and got to meet a few people, or they got to meet her. She said she had never seen so many friendly people in one place. That sums up Crisfield pretty well.

My Town "Cemetery Day" Shoot Out

First a note: Since we are never sure who will join us in our Friday photo shoot outs, I will not be posting direct links. Some people can not post on Fridays due to time zones and those little last minute things that come up. Some people also like to join in at the last minute.

Those who are participating, please leave a link back to your site so that others can enjoy our weekly town shoot outs.

Butler and Bagman, you get to pick next week's assignment.

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"A cemetery is a history of people - a perpetual record of yesterday and sanctuary of peace and quiet today. A cemetery exists because every life is worth loving and remembering - always." - Author Unknown

Crisfield was founded in 1666. By 1904, Crisfield was the second largest city in the state of Maryland. That changed over the years, and now we have around 2,800 people in the city limits. I'm good with that.

Since the early days, Crisfielders have been hardworking people living uncomplicated lives. That kind of stuck.

For that reason, we don't have a lot of upscale cemeteries or decorative grave markers in Crisfield. There are no towering angels; no massive statues, unless you count our Dough Boy. We do have some fancy grave markers, but giving our history, I went with a simplistic photo shoot; more of a snap shot tour instead of an artsy photographic study.

This is our main cemetery where the Dough Boy stands guard.









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You can ride around Crisfield and see grave markers in many yards. Sometimes you will see one out in a open field. Sometimes you'll catch a glimpse of one peeking out from behind vines and overgrown brush in the woods.





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These graves are surrounded by an iron fence where they sit all alone on a well cared for lot. I did not have time to gather any history on this site, so not sure if a church or home once sat here.




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This is a shot taken at the Asbury United Methodist Church around the corner from me. I love those beautiful purple flowers.


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St. Peters Methodist Church was founded in 1782. It is known as the spiritual birthplace of Joshua Thomas who preached his first sermon at the church in 1807. Thomas, who is famous for getting into a log canoe and traveling many miles to preach on islands like Deal Island and Smith Island, was known as the “Parson of the Islands”. 500 yards to the north of the sign is where he launched his first log canoe, “The Methodist”.





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This cemetery is a short drive out of of Crisfield, but I thought I would include it because it fascinates me.

Coventry Parish Church was erected in 1784 -1792, and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. Thanks to the Rehobeth Ruritan Club, the Maryland Historical Trust, and Somerset County Historical Trust the ruins were stabilized.






"The Christian cemetery is a memorial and a record. It is not a mere field in which the dead are stowed away unknown; it is a touching and beautiful history, written in family burial plots, in mounded graves, in sculptured and inscribed monuments. It tells the story of the past, not of its institutions, or its wars, or its ideas, but of its individual lives,--of its men and women and children, and of its household. It is silent, but eloquent; it is common, but it is unique. We find no such history elsewhere; there are no records in all the wide world in which we can discover so much that is suggestive, so much that is pathetic and impressive." - Joesph Anderson, American clergyman (1836 -1916)