Photo

somewhere in oil land

somewhere in oil land

Longing for summer on Flickr.

A quaint historical museum in Pin Point, Georgia, that is set to open this fall has become the target of an exhaustive ethics examination by the New York Times. Why would the Times devote almost 3,000 words to a community heritage museum? Pin Point, as it turns out, is also the birthplace of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, and it was Thomas who introduced Pin Point residents to his friend Harlan Crow, a Dallas real-estate tycoon and major conservative donor, who would ultimately fund the museum. According to some legal analysts, Thomas’s role in Crow’s decision to donate may have troubling ethical implications.

Pin Point lies along the Gullah/Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor designated by Congress, a passage of coastal fishing towns settled by the descendants of slaves. Algernon Varn, whose father ran the fishing cannery there, long hoped to save the site from development, but it wasn’t until he bumped into Thomas, who was in town promoting his memoir, that the project began to move forward. Thomas introduced Varn to Crow, a longtime friend. Through an exhaustive paper trail review, the Times confirmed that Crow is the anonymous donor behind the $1.3 million restoration of the property and forthcoming museum project. Varn was told to keep Crow’s identity anonymous.

The question of ethics violations comes down to whether Thomas misused “the prestige of office” to persuade Crow to take on the project, said Raymond J. McKoski, a retired state judge in Illinois. (Supreme Court justices are not explicitly bound to the complex code of conduct for federal judges because it is enforced by lower ranking judges. That’s right, they are literally above the law — though the Times points to several justices who said they adhere to it regardless.) “Some of it depends on the conversations that took place,” McKoski told the Times of the ethical quandary. “Who brought up the idea? How willing was Mr. Crow to do it? What exact questions were asked by Justice Thomas?”

This isn’t the first time Crow has donated to projects directly or indirectly honoring Thomas. (According to the federal ethics code, judges are not supposed to know who makes a donation in their honor.) The Times gathers an exhaustive list of shady gifts and donations, including Mr. Crow’s financing of a Savannah library dedicated to Justice Thomas and his gift of a bible that once belonged to Frederick Douglass. Thomas also received a $15,000 bust of Abraham Lincoln from a group affiliated with Crow.

So, after all this commotion, what will the museum actually look like? The modest, almost astonishingly unglamorous-sounding Pin Point Heritage Museum will be housed in the A.S. Varn & Son Factory, a former seafood cannery that was the economic backbone of Pin Point — and where Thomas’s mother worked as a crab picker — until it closed in 1985.

Each structure on the property — including the oyster factory, can storage building, and marshfront dock — will be stabilized and restored. A patio area will host live demonstrations of crabbing, canning, and shrimp net making. Inside, 3,000 square feet of exhibition space — modest by museum standards — will house educational exhibits, live demonstrations, interactive displays, and a 30-minute documentary film, all devoted to the generations of residents in Pin Point.

Okay, it’s a hotel, but it looks pretty.

DEM LIGHTS.

Oh right, Savannah’s supposed to be haunted.

HOORAY, GHOST TOURS!

Longing for summer on Flickr.

Photo

We were on our way to a drag show…

_MG_4415_Banks Lake by D. Alberto on Flickr.

_MG_4464_Scooters in Downtown Valdosta by D. Alberto on Flickr.

Illegal Immigrant Youth 'Come Out' for Reform

Barry Estabrook - 'Tomatoland' - How Industrial Farming 'Destroyed' The Tasty Tomato : NPR:

Lucky for us, we’re enjoying fresh Georgia tomatoes at the moment. But this story on commercially grown tomatoes from Florida explains why so many of the tomatoes we get in grocery stores lack flavor:

If you bite into a tomato between the months of October and June, chances are that tomato came from Florida. The Sunshine State accounts for one-third of all fresh tomatoes produced in the United States — and virtually all of the tomatoes raised during the fall and winter seasons. But the tomatoes grown in Florida differ dramatically from the red garden varieties you might grow in your backyard. They’re bred to be perfectly formed — so that they can make their way across the U.S. and onto your dinner table without cracking or breaking.

From June 1: Colonel Koba Bochoroshvili of the Georgian Border Police in a convoy, somewhere over Kakheti, on the way back from bringing troops to border posts along Chechnya and Dagestan

I submitted some photos to CNN yesterday for an iReport and when I got home from work, I received an email from the Assistant Producer of CNN International asking if they could use my photos for a future gallery on Georgia! They really liked my photos and want to use them! I am so excited to be recognized as a serious photographer with talent and to be included on such an important news site! But more importantly, I’m excited to have such a good industry contact! Perhaps this will lead to bigger and better things! It’s a great day to be me!

See the photos see the photos they will be using here! 

This is Pearl the Pelican. I met her while I was on vacation in St. Simons Island, GA.

SONG Virginia SOMOS Georgia Solidarity EventRepublican mayor in the South becomes unlikely advocate for immigrants - CNN.com:

Excellent story by Catherine Shoichet of CNN:

[Conservative Republican Paul] Bridges [mayor of Uvalda, Georgia] is one of more than a dozen plaintiffs suing Georgia and its governor, trying to stop the state’s new immigration law. They won a reprieve Monday when a federal judge temporarily blocked parts of the law scheduled to go into effect July 1.

More from June 1: commuters and border patrol, hitching a ride down the mountains, somewhere over Kakheti, Georgia. With the roads closed for winter, the border police helicopters are the only way for villagers in the high Caucasus to get medical help and more.

Illegal Immigrant Youth 'Come Out' for Reform:

What these students are doing is really, really brave and great. 

BUT WHY WOULD THE ASSOCIATED PRESS (WHICH IS SUPPOSED TO BE NEUTRAL) ADD THAT COMMENT ON HOW IF THE STUDENTS STAY IN AMERICA THEY WILL BE TAKING AWAY JOBS?????

ARGH. This is supposed to be a story on how these students are speaking up for themselves and you have to go and add that? It’s disgusting. They are standing right in front of you and you still refuse to see the issue with a human aspect.  

At the dock on Flickr.

* red indian head dress

* hunter wellies

* nose re-pierced

essential for leeds fest.

GeorgiaHorsley1Jooonnnnes Sandwich! The best kind of sandwich! Even better than ham and egg! X http://yfrog.com/kg4w9ypj

At the dock on Flickr.

NEWS FLASH: Federal judge blocks controversial Georgia law cracking down on illegal immigrants from...

Started volunteering in for Obama re-election campaign in GA. Knocking on doors and calling people is a given and has to get down, but on top of that I’d like to try something new.

Art is a medium that everyone can appreciate. I would like to incorporate some kind of artistic aspect when communicating with others as a neutral thing. thatblckgrl used the “Genuine” when wanting to hear something from politicians. I can understand that. The “hope” piece of Obama in 2008 campaign became the visual slogan. But I’d like to make multiple pieces vs 1 trademark piece.

What kind of art do you like? What communicates to you? Would it matter where the art is?

photography, painting, sketches, abstract, cartoon, graphic design, video games, or other?

Mike recording at Rising Tide Studios, Athens, GA.

Brian recording at Rising Tide Studios, Athens, GA.

There’s an online vote for Georgia’s new standard plate. This is generally a cool idea, but what’s not cool is the fact that several of the designs feature the words “In God We Trust”. That’s nice. Because as a non-believer, that’s exactly what I want on my license plate (unless I spring for a specialty one - which I shouldn’t have to). The text seems to be covering the spot where the county name goes, but quite frankly I’m not taking the chance.

Let’s vote for this one! Simple, bold, and resembling a horse’s bum.

NEWS FLASH: Federal judge blocks controversial Georgia law cracking down on illegal immigrants from taking effect http://t.co/acPhF42

Need To Breathe, Atlanta, Georgia.

Judge blocks parts of Ga. immigration law  | ajc.com

Need To Breathe, Atlanta, Georgia.

Need To Breathe, Atlanta, Georgia.

Kelvin Court Brixham Ltd Branding - Georgia Roussos

http://englishrussia.com/2007/04/03/abandoned-abkhazia/

Kelvin Court Brixham Ltd Branding - Georgia Roussos

Photo

It’s been stormy every day this week so I have been frustrated every time I do not have my camera near to catch a storm.  I left the camera running almost the entire time for this storm and made very few edits.  iMovie kind of destroyed the original quality so I will re-edit this one once I get Final Cut.  For now, for your viewing pleasure, here it today’s storm.

Everything is better than Savannah

Kazbegi, Georgia

The Georgia State Capital Building, Atlanta, Georgia

By Robert Rainbow Photos

My Gid Tanner T-shirt; Art work by banjo player Frank Lee.

Gid wasn’t the best fiddler to come out of northern Georgia during the 1920s, but he was a colorful character and the charismatic leader of the seminal old-time string band The Skillet Lickers.

I’ve been thinking about it long and hard and I finally decided on what I want my Cartel tattoo to be. I was listening to one of my favorite songs by them, Georgia and it just hit me. So…drum roll please, here it is…

“What good does us reason if we fail to see? What good does us freedom is we fail to be free?”

Basically, I cannot wait!

Savannah, GA

Home…

I love living in the country…I feel very fortunate that my entire family lives in the state of Georgia and literally occupies every corner of it…

It gives me a chance to burn Georgia asphalt every which way…

Today on my way back from Athens I just couldn’t help but feel lucky to be able to drive through country farm land in my cute little farm girl dress…even when my older sister made fun of me for wearing it…

I’m embracing country life style and relishing every moment of it…

I think you’re a little late, guys.

Tybee Island, Georgia

and i’m so scared.
it’s been really hot and humid
perfect tornado weather.

but at least we’ll get rain..

Free Moral Agents @The Drunken Unicorn
April 2011

I just returned from what may be my 12th or so time in Savannah, so I figured I would take a moment to find out about the history of my favorite town as well as let the world know why that place is so awesome.

I discovered Savannah when I was a sophomore in college. There is an annual sport management conference held by Georgia Southern University (actually located in Statesboro, GA). Since then, I go any chance I am in the GA/SC/FL vicinity (Savannah is 2.5 hours from Augusta; 4 hours from Orlando; and 8 looong hours from Norfolk).

General History

Established in 1733 by General James Oglethorpe, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia.  In 1751, Savannah and the rest of Georgia became a Royal Colony and Savannah was made the colonial capital. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important Atlantic seaport. It is Georgia’s fourth-largest city and third-largest metropolitan area.

Upon settling, Oglethorpe became friends with the local Yamacraw Indian chief, Tomochichi. Oglethorpe and Tomochichi pledged mutual goodwill and the Yamacraw chief granted the new arrivals permission to settle Savannah on the bluff. As a result, the town flourished without warfare and accompanying hardship that burdened many of America’s early colonies.

Oglethorpe laid the city out in a series of grids that allowed for wide open streets intertwined with shady public squares and parks that served as town meeting places and centers of business. Savannah had 24 original squares; 22 squares are still in existence today.

Wars and Slavery

During the American Revolution, the British took Savannah in 1778 and held it into 1782. A land-sea force of French and Americans tried to retake the city in 1779, first by siege and then by direct assault, but failed.

After independence was secured, Savannah flourished. Soon, farmers discovered that the soil was rich and the climate favorable for cultivation of cotton and rice. Plantations and slavery became highly profitable systems for whites in the neighboring “Lowcountry” of South Carolina. So Georgia, the free colony, legalized slavery. The trans-Atlantic slave trade brought many African-Americans through the port of Savannah. Many who stayed in the area formed the unique Gullah culture of the coastal communities in Georgia and South Carolina.

During the Civil War, the city suffered from sea blockades so strict that the economy crumbled. “Impregnable” Fort Pulaski at the mouth of the Savannah River was captured by Union soldiers in 1862. The city itself did not fall until Union General William T. Sherman entered in mid-December after burning the city of Atlanta and everything else in his path on his “March to the Sea.” Upon entering Savannah, Sherman was said to be so impressed by its beauty that he could not destroy it. On December 22, 1864, he sent a famous telegram to President Abraham Lincoln, offering the city as a Christmas present.

After the end of the Civil War, the Reconstruction period began in Savannah. Food was scarce in and the economy was in ruins. Despite these hardships and the added burdens of prejudice, the freed slaves who remained in Savannah built a thriving community, with its own churches, schools and economic strength. Savannah became one of the most historically significant African-American cities in the nation.

Significant buildings that were saved and restored throughout the years include:

• The Pirates’ House (1754), an inn mentioned in Robert Louis Stevenson’s book “Treasure Island”; the Herb House (1734), oldest building in Georgia; and the The Olde Pink House (1789), site of Georgia’s first bank.
• The birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low (completed in 1821), now owned and operated by the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A. as a memorial to their founder.
• The Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences, built in 1812 as a mansion, was one of the South’s first public museums.
• Restored churches include: The Lutheran Church of the Ascension (1741); Independent Presbyterian Church (1890) and the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist (1876), one of the largest Roman Catholic churches in the South. 
• The First African Baptist Church was established in 1788.
• Savannah’s Temple Mickeve Israel is the third oldest synagogue in America.

Savannah’s downtown area, which includes the Savannah Historic District (the only place I stay when in town), the Savannah Victorian Historic District and 22 parklike squares, is one of the largest National Historic Landmark Districts in the United States (designated by the U.S. government in 1966).

Each year, the city of Savannah throws a major St Patrick’s Day party. The actual parade route changes from year to year but usually travels through Savannah’s Historic Park District. The Savannah Waterfront Association has an annual celebration on Historic River Street can be compared to Mardi Gras in New Orleans.

The founder of the Girl Scouts of America was from Savannah (Juliette Gordon Low). Paula Deen and her husband call Savannah their home (hey ya’ll!). Big Boi (Outkast) and DJ Lord (Public Enemy) are also from Savannah.

Savannah was also the site for portions of the following movies: Forrest Gump (the bench that Forrest sits on throughout the entire movie), Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (entire movie was shot there), Forces of Nature (last 15-20 minutes), and The Last Song and The Conspirator were both filmed entirely in Savannah, just to name a few. 

Things that I personally love about Savannah-

• The abundance of squares and benches to enjoy
• Open container law (legally drinking in the street is always a win in my book)
• River Street
• The Pirate House
• The roof top bar at the Bohemian Hotel
• SCADdies (Savannah College for Art & Design kids that are so damn trendy and cute)
• The Five Guys Burgers and Fries in Historic Savannah that stays open until 3am on the weekends (its the little things in life, people)
• Shopping the consignment stores
• Huey’s restaurant (and the only place I order steamed oysters because I get to shuck them myself)
• Forsyth Park
• Cathedral of St. Johns the Baptist
• All the creepy, old cemeteries

Source: Savannah CVB, wikipedia.com

Have you ever been to Savannah? What are your favorite things to do there?

Vines on Iron. Savannah, Georgia. Winter 2010.

Look what we stumbled upon ;D

Vines on Iron. Savannah, Georgia. Winter 2010.

Borjomi with a view on Flickr.

clear to drift

Georgia Aquarium Beluga Whales

Photo taken by A. P. Gilgenast

© A. P. Gilgenast

June 25, 2011

 

Georgia Aquarium Beluga Whales

Photo taken by A. P. Gilgenast

© A. P. Gilgenast

June 25, 2011

 

Georgia Aquarium Beluga Whales

Photo taken by A. P. Gilgenast

© A. P. Gilgenast

June 25, 2011

 

_DSC0298 on Flickr.

_DSC0828 on Flickr.

_DSC0785 on Flickr.

Borjomi with a view on Flickr.