Apple Season
Liberty, Michigan
rural life
At the Break Of Day
What I’ll miss about moving closer to the city? This.
It’s something I’ve learned while we’ve been out house hunting: I need trees, green space, a sense of privacy, nature, birds chirping, and clear seasonal changes.
I need to feel like the woods are only a short walk away. That there’ll be foggy fields on my way into work. That my home will be well shaded by trees.
I need light filtering through branches and boughs.
Goodbye Hedgerow
Goodbye Hedgerow – Pulaski, Michigan
A sad sight – lots of farms in south central Michigan are removing their hedgerows. The reason is probably straight economics, since the tree line limits a farm’s arable land.
But still: hedgerows are what makes my country road commute so lovely, each and every season. Now there are just flat fields from horizon to horizon.
Pumpkin Patching
Nothing like shopping for the perfect pumpkin at the local farm.
Autumn in Michigan is pretty great. And though my mood takes a turn for the worse because of the creeping darkness, I’m really trying to embrace this fall. It helps that the weather has been so great all October.
So let’s do it. Let’s do the Halloween thing and the pumpkins and the cider (lots of cider, what with six orchards within 20 minutes of my house). Let’s beat back the oncoming winter blues with some autumnal spirit.
It’s Harvest Time
Ah, late summer / early autumn in Michigan – when those roadside farm stands pop up.
I can’t resist. There’s something about a fresh-grown tomato or ear of corn I find irresistible. And with my commute through rural Michigan, I have lots of options.
Such good deals! I picked up a quart of cherry tomatoes for $1, perfect for snacking at work. And we eat a lot of corn on the cob during the summer and fall.
I usually tend my own garden, but this year it’s been tough going. So it’s nice to have a farm stand backup.
Wilcox Red Bard
Concord, Mich.
One of my favorite sites in the morning is this red barn. The way the sunrise hits it, and the shadows, the deep red – it’s lovely.
My work commute has kept me entertained for going on three years now.
Every day, the rural scenery is lovely – not matter what season it is. And I always pass things that I think to myself, “I’m going to pull over and grab a shot of that.”
Sometimes it takes months. Sometimes it takes a year or two. But eventually, I pull over and take the photo.
This barbed post, for instance, is something I’ve had my eye on since this summer. Now, with the autumn colors, I felt like it was the perfect time to capture it.
Patience. Weather. Observation. Scenery.