The Alphabet Challenge “N” Stories voting will close at noon on Sunday, August 16th. I mean, it sure sounds like you have a lot of time left to read for about 30 minutes, then ponder about which story merits your vote, and then vote . . . BUT! . . . we live in a time where our sense of time is distorted by extraordinary events. If you haven’t acted, and if you don’t act now, it’ll be Monday before you know it.

I mean, it’s Monday now . . . I mean next Monday.

Of course, you have no obligation to do anything . . . but it sure would be swell — if you’ve not already done so — if you would read the stories and cast your vote for your favorite of the three. Links to the stories and the poll for voting for “Alphabet Challenge N-Stories” are HERE.<<<Link

So, vultures . . . specifically, Black Vultures<<link (as opposed to Turkey Vultures<<link)  . . .

I plan a post specific to these vultures and the photo ops they gave me, but I thought I would preview a few of the photos.

The above is in B&W, but here’s the color version . . . except there isn’t much color.

It was a pretty drab day and I was shooting against the light and a bright gray sky.

I had to do a fair amount of post-processing to bring out details. Yes, I’m pleased with the results given what I started with:

These shots are from May, and perhaps they — the vultures — were trying to tell me something about both what was happening and what was coming up.

I processed the photos in color and in B&G&W, and I like both versions about the same . . . probably because there isn’t a whole lot of difference between them.

Given the subjects, some might even argue the B&G&W treatment is more apropos than the color version. 

Hmm . . . I think I will permanently switch to “monochrome” as opposed to the inaccurate B&W or the more accurate — but not standard — B&G&W (Black and Gray and White).

Anyway, if you can tear yourself away from grieving about Tick-Tock and WhatsChat (I’m reading people are literally crying at the prospect of losing access to the spyware), perhaps try and do some reading. Perhaps even the “N” stories offerings.

Side Note: Honestly, I read an article quoting adults (22-year-olds) saying they are in tears and wondering what they will do if they can’t use the two apps. And, that’s on top of all the teens who are absolutely distraught . . . despite the fact that you have to be over 18 to have an account on WhatsChat and you need parental approval to have an account on TickTock if you are under 18.   . . . I’m having a hard time imagining myself at 22 (or ever) crying because some program (they now call them apps) was going to be shut down. I fear for these kids and young adults, and hope they never have to face real hardship . . . because they definitively don’t seem prepared to handle anything more than . . . well, anything.

The new Gallery for the reminder photos is HERE<<<Link

I know some (mighty few) people miss my long posts . . . if you are one of the few, the brave, and you want to read one of my book reviews, THIS POST<<link from 2018 is for you. 

And, if that book review wasn’t enough, THIS POST<<link offers another.

That’s it. This post has ended . . . except for the stuff below.

<><><><><><><><o><><><><><><><><><o><><><><><><><>

Note: if you are not reading this blog post at DisperserTracks.com, know that it’s copied without permission, and likely is being used by someone with nefarious intentions, like attracting you to a malware-infested website. Could be they also torture small mammals.

<><><><><><><><o><><><><><><><><><o><><><><><><><>

If you’re new to this blog, it might be a good idea to read the FAQ page. If you’re considering subscribing to this blog, it’s definitively a good idea to read both the About page and the FAQ page.