Grab a Shovel, It's Getting Deep in Here: Coffee, Lecture, And Exploring!

**Yet another great blog post first published in my Exploring Arizona ---picture filled blog page. Please check all the posts out!!
https://exarizonagobensonbobcats.blogspot.com/

I can not for the life of me recall what town this is in
But there are a lot of murals!

Well hello! We have been busy Exploring and getting new pictures up the Wazoo --but I have been greatly slacking on getting new posts on this page! In looking at my recent pictures I have noticed that several of my Exploring trips are quick -- around errands, just to get out and enjoy the sun---coffee and a hike with our youngest things like that. These produce pictures and are fun, but might not warrant a full Exploring blog posting on there own. Several of my last few trips were actually alternates after trying to visit the new museum in the area. If you are heading from St David to Benson, just before Benson you may pass a sign by the side of the road that simply says "museum open!" And it seems for two weeks straight now any time I see the sign I am to busy to stop. And on days like today, were I go to town specifically to stop --the sign is not up. Some day I will have a full picture filled report from here! But not today. Several of the recent trips have been very locally, to places I have already been---like just recently to Tombstone again for a quick, mostly to get out of the house trip. I did manage as always to get some new pictures things I have not shot before some how. The same with a recent trip to the Benson museum. A great trip--that I will be posting about soon, but I have been before. Although it was years ago, and they now charge to go roam about inside. I recently re posted an Exploring blog post from when we first moved to Benson in 2013. Kind of a first thoughts of the area post. It is very interesting to me to see how the area has changed ---how much our kiddos have grown---and how much at least my views have changed for this little town.

Tonight's post is from a few weeks back. I learned that the local sub station for the college was having a free lecture on better picture taking. Free coffee--free lecture about pictures, I was not missing this! And after I left our car in the parking lot and had a walk about. To practice what I had learned of course. I had been to this area before with the kiddos---with a storm coming so the sky was amazing in those pictures. I have them posted on this sight---if you care to look back in my posts. You know you do!

The Benson branch is kind of a substation.

With a few class rooms mainly for Internet classes.

It is a nice campus all be it small.

And this was the first of many free coffee lectures if anyone is interested.

Off the back patio.

You don't see these signs to much outside of the desert.

Local artist ---artwork on canvas he says he gets done at Costco but all the major retailers do such. It almost comes out in a 3 -D effect with picture all around. I had not ever thought of this idea before. I have pictures from all over the country. Pictures I used to think were much better, until I meet some real artists and saw there work. ;) I have some of my favorites blown up, and on our walls and of course many of them all over this sight and all of Facebook and had thought about doing postcards and greeting cards with my pictures on the front. But before had never thought about showcasing them this way. I will need to check into the costs of course.

All and all this was a good lecture---he teaches classes mainly for the Sierra Vista branch. And there was coffee and cookies! So it really could not get much better. After it was all on sunshine outside again and I decided to leave our car in the parking lot and take off with my camera. And use some of the advice he presented. Two of the things that really stood out is that he said a lot of great pictures really is just dumb luck. You are at the right place at the right time, and have a camera any camera or run and grab one. The one true benefit to cell phone cams----like it or not this is almost always with you. He said he recalls the old 35 millimeter camera's and before---waiting for film to develop---getting only like 12 shots with the film so missing a lot of good pictures to get those 12 glory shots. Etc and would never wish to go back to anything beyond digital again. And he mentioned how he has very nice cameras but is almost afraid to use them in the field or anywhere. So he gets way more pictures in volume with his every day camera's. I can relate. I borrowed a relatives super nice camera years ago. One with lenses that cost more than our vehicles. One that I could grab, take a shot, with the lens cap on, while I was running and still get an amazing shot. But I was afraid to use the camera let alone touch it.

Been housed inside this building since at least 2014 when I first saw it.

And this rock is about as tall as I.

With the gem show going on in Tucson I felt I should share this beauty.

Just up the road.

This is all college property whatever that means.

I have been here with the kiddos before years ago, but I do not recall it being fenced off at that time. And as I said there was a storm a brewing in the sky on that day, so the pictures had some force to them. You really should look them up on this very blog sight!!