Peaceful Views: The Art Of D L Ennis

Important Information at bottom of post!

“The Irish forgive their great men when they are safely buried.”
~ Irish Proverb

“Only Irish coffee provides in a single glass all four essential food groups: alcohol, caffeine, sugar and fat”
~ Alex Levin

“We have always found the Irish a bit odd. They refuse to be English.”
~ Winston Churchill

Blogger, for some reason, will not display an image in the size that I want. For instance, the header above is not saved at blogger. It's sitting at another image site - a free one, of course! - that allows me to present the image to you in the proper size. I don't know why blogger does this, but I suspect that the "New" blogger has something to do with it.

But keeping images elsewhere is not always a workable solution. Some sites limit the display of your images to one or two months. After that, the pictures disappear. Forever! So while trying to figure out what a "post display" is supposed to do - the answer tells you nothing, here at Blogger Help! - I hit a link and found some other recommended image sites. The first one on the blogger list is Flickr. Owned now by Yahoo, you can open an account - a free one, of course! - with your Yahoo ID. Or open an account by starting a Yahoo account. Takes no time at all.

Now aside from uploading a thumbnail pic of myself, and an Avatar image, which Flickr calls a "Buddy Icon", I haven't done anything else. So right now I have no idea if this will let me display large header images on the blog or not. We'll see.

All that being said, the reason for this post is to expose you to the photography of D L Ennis, a Flickr member. Just a cursory glance at some of his work astounded me. His profile says he's a writer out of Yorktown, Virginia, and apparently works at the Blue Ridge Gazette.

Just to whet your appetite, I am posting two of his images. I don't have permission, so these will likely disappear shortly. But while you can see them, enjoy, visit Ennis' place at Flickr, and let him know what you think of his artistry.

The following images are of Virginia. Enjoy.



Country Mist by D L Ennis ©2007 All rights reserved.
This is just such a peaceful image. I can nearly smell the morning fragrances and hear the birds beginning their morning calls. Click on it to see it in a larger version.

Below is the photo that first caught my eye. Full of possibilities, isn't it? So much in the picture to make the imagination soar. Click on it, too, for a larger version.



Mountain Mist by D L Ennis ©2007 All rights reserved.

As I say, these may disappear, should Mr. Ennis object to my displaying them here. So enjoy them, then go visit his Flickr pages. You can purchase the images there. Considering the artistry he shows these are as good as, or better than, most "art" hanging on folks' walls these days. Don't know about you, but I'm floored!

Go visit!

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Important Information:
Also received in the mail was this, part of a newsletter I get from Dr. D.G.Williams. Those of us in Hurricane-prone, or Tornado-prone, areas can use this to good effect. If you live in an area that has the potential for a disaster, should read on. As always, the time to prepare is before a problem develops, before a disaster strikes, not after!

When I was a kid, “emergency preparedness” was knowing to stop, drop, and roll if my clothes caught fire—and to call the police, ambulance, or fire department should real disaster strike. But today, I don’t think a day goes by that we’re not reminded on TV or in the newspaper that we can’t just rely on the government.

One of the most recent examples was Katrina. When I saw the photos coming out of places like New Orleans, I couldn’t believe the destruction those people had to endure. That disaster hit home for a lot of us, making us realize just how quickly chaos and panic can disrupt our daily lives.

I don’t want to be a doomsayer in any sense of the word, but I’m a realist. And in this day and age I feel strongly that you need to be aware of steps you can take to make sure you and your family can survive a catastrophe—whether a power outage, natural disaster, or any other emergency.

The most important thing you can do is to create an emergency kit so all the essentials you need are in one place. I’ve put mine in a waterproof duffel so it’s dry and ready to use at home—and I can grab it and take it with me should I need to evacuate in a hurry.

Some of the essentials you want to include in your kit are:

Several boxes of new, clean, white trash bags and chlorine bleach (a quart in an unbreakable container). If you know in advance that a crisis is looming, you can place the trash bags in buckets or trash cans and fill them with water. With a water supply that is essentially clear, you can add regular chlorine bleach to disinfect it—one teaspoon will treat five gallons, or 16 drops for one gallon.


A stash of non-perishable food, such as sardines and nutrition bars.


A hand-cranked emergency radio—along with flashlights and rechargeable batteries, which can be used in the event of phone and/or power outages.


A standard first aid kit, with bandages, scissors, antiseptic wipes, et cetera.


A water-proof, wind-proof emergency blanket—preferably one that’s designed to help reflect your body heat back to you should the heat go out.
Plus, there are other survival secrets few people know about—but they could save you in an emergency. For burns, the pulp of the papaya fruit makes an excellent burn dressing. Just mash the pulp of the papaya and apply it directly to the burn.

Honey is also one of nature’s most miraculous dressings for open wounds and burns. Just apply approximately one ounce of honey on a 4-inch square dressing pad directly to the wound. Then, place a second, dry dressing on top of the first dressing and secure with adhesive tape.

To stop bleeding, even from a serious gash, there’s an excellent product called QR Powder, which is available at many mass-market retailers. (This is similar to a product I used to recommend called Bleed-X, but that company sells only to the military now.) Just sprinkle the contents of one packet (or more as needed) onto the injury and apply pressure.

I also recommend keeping a week’s worth of any essential medications and supplements on hand. Put all family documents—such as birth certificates and insurance information—in a portable waterproof container. And create a list of cell phone numbers and other contacts you would need in case of an emergency.

Many people believe a disaster could never happen to them—but it can. Think of all of the things I’ve mentioned in this dispatch as “cheap insurance.” I hope you’ll never have to use them, but if you do, they could literally save your life.

Keep in mind that much of these supplies, and some kits, can be found at your local Wal-Mart - I work in the Largo Wal-Mart, so I see these when they hit the shelves - and other stores. The prices are not prohibitive at all. And can you say you can't afford to protect yourself? Who ya gonna call? The government? Sheesh!