The Day I Met Loretta Lynn

The recent passing of Nashville Country Music Star Loretta Lynn naturally reminded me of the day I met her and we chatted briefly.

It was some time during the 1990-93 first three years after my divorce and I had graduated from a student in the Divorce Recovery Class to the teacher of the new recovery group that included the bass player for Loretta’s Band. He asked me if I would like to watch the taping of a TV show from backstage and of course I said, “Yes!”

First he took me on one of their tour buses and I met band members and 3 of Loretta’s spoiled kids (as young adults at the time), then when we got backstage Loretta showed up and I was introduced to her and we had a very brief chat. It was like meeting family and she was so quiet yet very friendly and courteous to me. I later told my friend that she reminded me of my Mother (even though Mom did not sing). And if someone reminds me of my Mom, that is a compliment! 🙂

I have met several other “famous” people in my lifetime, but this brief encounter was one of the more special ones because she reminded me of my mother! 🙂

I had no camera with me at the time (before cellphones), so no photos of the encounter, but several years later in 2007 I visited Hurricane Mills where she and her family lived, so here’s three photos from Hurricane Mills, Tennessee:

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Caribe Flowers

I’m mesmerized by flowers everywhere I go in Costa Rica and the Caribe is no exception, though the hotels on the east coast aren’t as ambitious with their gardens as some other places I’ve visited that work hard to have a large variety of sometimes rare and even exotic (non-native) flowers. All of these are native to the best of my knowledge and at least half were growing “wild” along the beach or beach road. And I’ve decided this time to not try and identify them, since maybe half I can’t without research! 🙂 One photo for the email announcement and then a gallery of 14 flowers . . .

Beach Spider Lily (Hymenocallis littoralis), Hotel Banana Azul, Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, Limón, Costa Rica
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Sneaked People Photos

Its legal here to photograph people in public, but for some reason I never want them to know I’m photographing them and actually seldom do – BUT on a public beach it is just too inviting. My “People Shots” are now a gallery within my developing trip gallery (above link) with 3 sub-galleries, each linked from the title of its sample photo below . . .

Sunrise People Shots Gallery

Young love at a beach sunrise — Sample shot from gallery.

Day Beach People Shots Gallery

Games on the beach — Sample shot from the gallery.

Beach Road People Shots Gallery

Family walk down Beach Road — Sample shot from gallery.

Maybe in a few more days I’ll have the whole trip gallery finished. A lot of photos made this time! 🙂

¡Pura Vida!

“To escape and sit quietly on the beach – that’s my idea of paradise.”

 – Emilia Wickstead

The Allure of a Beach

With (1) the lesser popularity of the Caribbean side of Costa Rica from the Pacific side for both tourists and residents. (2) Lesser development on this side of the country (not a single chain hotel). (3) My chosen hotel being away from the other hotels and more popular white-sand beaches further south, and (4) therefore we who stay at Banana Azul Hotel often have the beach all to ourselves! And that’s nice for the tranquility and for the photos! 🙂

I no longer swim or surfboard in the ocean for many reasons, but I love to walk on beaches and also here I walk on a beach road with glimpses of the ocean through the trees. Plus my favorite beach photos here are my sunrise images which I shared daily each morning last week, so you’ve seen those. But here are a few others shot this year that I basically liked.

Tomorrow I will share a few “People Shots” that I sneaked of people on this beach and the beach road. “People watching” can be fun! 🙂 Here’s one beach shot for the email and 6 more to follow online below . . .

Looking North from Banana Azul. “Mi Playa Tranquila” – “My Quiet Beach”
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2 More As I Left . . .

Yesterday morning I did the sunrise shoot, showered, ate breakfast, packed and had maybe an hour before my transportation to the little Limón Aeropuerto, hoping I might find another new butterfly species. And I DID! Two in fact! Two totally new species of butterflies for my rapidly growing collection. Not spectacular or particularly beautiful, but exciting to me because they are new! 🙂

Sharp-banded Skipper, Autochton zarex, Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, Limón
Red-studded Skipper, Noctuana stator, Puerto Viejo de Talamanca, Limón

¡Pura Vida!

More of my growing Costa Rica butterfly collection in my photo galleries:

BUTTERFLIES and Moths of Costa Rica

Wet Birds at Gandoca-Manzanillo

This morning’s rain not only interfered with a beautiful sunrise but also dampened my birding expedition with a great guide this morning. I try not to give up too quickly on such efforts, but did cut our hike a little shorter after my camera fogged up on the inside. All 12 of the following birds were photographed in the rain even if not obvious! 🙂 And we saw more birds and other animals, even in the rain! 🙂 Just imagine what it would have been like with a clear morning!

Broad-winged Hawk, Gandoca-Manzanillo Refuge, Limón, Costa Rica
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