PBW: Hercules and the Eagle.

Sometimes I get really bored. Any really fun break in my routine is great, though it's always depressing to come back down to reality afterwards. I wonder, “Is this all there is?” When I'm not at work or playing with one of my bands, I don't always know what to do with myself. Granted there's the internet and DVDs and video games and at least seven books on my “to read” pile, but there are days when that all bores me too. I took an arbitrary vacation day last Thursday for no reason other than I was caught up at work, had no meetings or deadlines that day, and decided to take a break. Even after going to the bank to renew a mature CD, and meeting my dad to buy my mom a new television set, I found I still had a few hours left of daylight. On occasions when I'm really bored and don't know what to do with myself, I grab my camera, hop in my car, and just drive. I pick a direction, generally East, and let the road take me. When that happens, low ratings be damned, I'm going to share my experience through a Photo Blog Wednesday.

While it was bright and sunny in the morning when I was running errands, clouds were rolling in by the afternoon. It was a gamble, but one that paid off. By the weekend it was raining consistently, in varying degrees of severity, and nearly a week later there's no end in sight. My aimless wandering soon led me to familiar signs of places I haven't visited in years, and once I was in the historic town of Stony Brook, I knew immediately what I would be photographing that day. First would be the Hercules Pavillion, where a ship's figurehead looms before an arctic whaleboat. If the menacing gang of geese gathering between the historic site and myself would allow me safe passage, I'd get some nice pictures that day...















After capturing the pavillion and the surrounding wildlife, I crossed the street, beckoned by chimes indicating I was too late to film another of Stony Brook's famous landmarks. Not only is it the home of Hercules, Stan Lee, and Kevin James, but its post office has a wooden eagle which flaps its wings every hour. Not uncharacteristically, I missed it by two minutes.





That would have been the end of my adventure, had I not pulled over to inspect a duck pond, wander over to a grist mill, and ultimately discover the entrance to a new, hidden artistic wonder that, alas, will have to wait until next week. I hope you'll join me for the best seven acres of that day, complete with video. And in two weeks, I hope to debut the first ever Photo Blog Wednesday contest....