Prescott, Arizona, USA

Where is this now-exposed pluton supposed to be? A mile or two beneath the surface, right where it formed. You are looking at an ancient pool of magma that cooled slowly allowing its chemical components to find each other and crystallize, forming granite. Then came uplift, erosion, and exposure to the atmosphere. Welcome to the Granite Dells! [2019]

Oldtown, Kentucky, USA

What grade would you give this landscape tableau? How about a B? Look closely and you will see why. In fact, about one out of every seven people buried in this churchyard bears the same B name as on this headstone. [2017]

Denton, Maryland, USA

Cemeteries are often adjacent to old churches. In fact, before the 1830s, people were buried in either churchyards or family plots near home. That kept the quick and the dead close to one another. Today? Cemeteries are located as far from our everyday lives as possible. Still, though, they are beautiful places to visit, especially in the spring. [2013]

Portland, Maine, USA

May the fourth be with you! You must use the fourth! Happy Star Wars Day. The original Star Wars came out 43 years ago this month. With nothing else to do, you might as well spend the day binge watching all nine episodes. Thanks, Taz. . . The force will be with you always. [2019]

Itasca, Texas, USA

The simplest of signs somehow captures the essence of small-town America: "At Mom and Dads' Be Right back." Her folks take precedence over the "Open" sign; everybody knows where everyone else lives; and no one cares if their cell phone number is out there. Polite? Yes: "Thx." Happy? Yes: 😃 But, today her smiley face would look like this: 😷 [2012]

Encinitas, California, USA

Is it a mirror or a mural? It might be the former since it reflects what is just a few blocks away at the very shoreline of the Pacific Ocean where gray whales ply their migratory paths annually. Do you think they love us enough to paint the human species onto their deep-water murals? [2020]

Amarillo, Texas, USA

Much of the world celebrates the first of May as Labour Day or Workers' Day. The United States does not, preferring instead the first Monday of September. In fact, even the idea of a day to celebrate labor, and the 8-hour work day, was a hard sell in the U.S., especially during an era when wealthy industrialists held almost total power. [2017]