George Hatcher finished restoring the mural

St Charles Borromeo Church. Rosebud Reservation. Saint Francis, South Dakota

Cat in a sink

What did you expect?

Human Nature

While I was out getting photos of nature the other day, it was hard to avoid the obvious photos of what people have done to the landscape. This is just one of three trailers burned down that has just sat on its lot for years.
I was on a scenic road and saw a little turnoff to the river bank. I figured in my head that is would be a nice little clearing for picnics and whatnot, but instead it was just piles of trash, old mattresses and broken bottles. What a waste of such a beautiful view of the river.
I was told that originally these old cars were piled next to the river to stop erosion. I can't help but wonder what the rust an chemicals have done to the water that they seeped into.

Mother nature

I was supposed to take a few photos around the reservation for the St. Francis Mission Web site. I drove down around Spring Creek and came back with these.

Wild plum bushes, according to Dave Halmi, but I didn't see any plums. Either way, they smell wonderful. Sniffing flowers, listening to bees flying around the buds and hearing the creek moving and shaking. As Paul Simon would say, "I'm feelin' groovy."
Sand dunes West of Spring Creek. What is so odd, Spring Creek may be the worst off of all the communities up here, but it is surrounded by the most beautiful country I've seen on the reservation so far. I only took a few of the sand dunes because I kept thinking I saw a snake... I'm a baby when it comes to snakes, just like Indiana Jones.
The river. I drove along it for miles until I could find a curve I loved. This one was may favorite. I've been taking photos all week, but the clouds were the best that day. Fo' sho'.

Storm's a-brewin'

We've had some good rain up here for the past few days. Since you can see in every direction for miles, it's fun to see the storms rolling in.

This was taken from the bell tower of the church. I could see the rain start to come down way across the field when i was making dinner, so I hurried over to the church to see if I could get a better view.
That's the water tower next to my house. Creepy.

The many sides of Gizmo

The cat's growing on me. Besides, she's the only subject I got to take photos of on a regular basis, besides my roommate. She still makes me sneeze, though.

Help me name my new machine!

This is my new favorite thing. She's an old Singer sewing machine. I found her in the storage room of the mission. Fr. Hatcher told me if I could get her working, I could keep her. So after $10 in repairs and $24 in parts, she is in tip top. Note her new belt.

So I'm trying to think up names for this beautiful new machine. All I know is that she was made in the early '60s, and she's good for a strait stitch, and that's about it. I am taking suggestions as of now.