Ben Keller

Ben Keller is a prominent Connecticut mural painter who came to Fort Myers to paint a mural on an American Legion building during yesterday's Next Level Street Art event.  The event was held in Bennett-Hart Park on Martin Luther King, Jr., Boulevard.  The Legion is across the street.

Ben started out painting graffiti.  He was caught and given a one month jail sentence.  By promising to paint some free murals, his sentence was reduced to one week.  Ben has been painting murals all over the country ever since.  He has also branched out into painting large scale portraits. 

Linked to Monday Murals.

Some Recent People

 

Great mustache, isn't it?  I didn't write his name down, so of course I forgot it.

Shari has a very expressive face.  Yesterday she ran a mural painting event at a park on Martin Luther King, Jr., Boulevard in Fort Myers.

My friend Carol is passionate about astronomy.  Every year she hosts a Star Party.  For last night's party. she dressed like Orion.  The big star on her right shoulder is Betelgeuse (or Beetlejuice).

Robert is Carol's husband.  He doesn't have to dress up like a constellation.

Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park

 Yesterday I took a tour of the largest state park in Florida, one that is home to a variety of plant and animal species that can be found nowhere else in the continental U.S. 

The Friends of Fakahatchee is a volunteer group that operates tram tours in the park.  Gordon led the tour.  He first came to Florida from Minnesota 30 years ago.  His wife and he have been full-time residents since the third year.  Gordon leads tours in Fakahatchee, Shark Valley and several other Everglades parks.

  

On yesterday's tour, we talked a lot about alligators and crocodiles (both of which are found in the park), but the only gator that was seen was this little one.  (I see much bigger gators in my own community just about every day!)

Gordon is especially interested in ferns.  He pointed out many different kinds of ferns.  This one is called a "hand fern."

Lichens play a big part in the ecology of Florida wilderness areas like Fakahatchee.

Just a few inches in elevation make big differences in whether an area is a grassland or a hummock for cypress trees.

Palms are Florida's state tree, though technically they are not trees.

Gordon talked about the devastation invasive Burmese pythons cause for small and medium-sized Everglades mammals like raccoons, rats, rabbits, etc.  This is the skin of a relatively small Burmese python.

It was an informative and enjoyable tour, though we saw very few birds and animals.  We are near the end of the long dry season -- which has been even drier than usual -- so many birds and mammals that rely on fish, mollusks and other food in the water have moved to locations with better water resources.

Three at the Museum

 I was at Baker Museum a few days ago.  Just had an iPhone, since they don't like big cameras.  I ran into three women who fit the environment nicely.  Each was OK with being photographed.

Jean has been an usher at Baker for only two months.  Like me, she grew up in eastern Massachusetts, and like me, she is a snowbird.  Jean was a special education teacher in elementary schools.  

Gail is from Cleveland.  She was a banker but retired early and now is an artist who works with beads, clay and other sculptural materials.  When I got home, I looked at her website and an interview with her and was blown away.  

 Andrea is the Baker's merchandising manager and runs the museum store.  She has worked for the Baker for three years.  Andrea grew up in western Massachusetts and graduated from Bentley.  The items she selected for the store are beautiful, but I didn't need any presents so I left empty-handed.

Veterinarian

 The Old 41 Animal Hospital.

Old Route 41, Bonita Springs, Florida.

Three Recent Favorites

 I spend a lot of time in my Florida community wandering with a camera and looking for wildlife.

Here are three favorite images from the last couple of days.

An osprey pair have a nest down the street from me.  The female was in the nest with its chick and the male was in a nearby tree.  I trained my camera on the male, hoping it would leave the tree and either go fishing or go to the nest.  It hopped from a higher branch to a lower one.  That was good enough.

This alligator was in a near part of the pond an hour earlier.  Boring posture, bad light.  I took a photo, but I expected to delete it.  After an hour of wandering in other places, I came back for another look before going home.  The gator had gone across the pond and staked out a spot in perfect light.  

In Southwest Florida, ibises are like squirrels are up north:  So common I rarely aim a camera at them.  But, it is now breeding season, so their bills and feet have changed from light pink to a rich red.  This ibis came in for a landing in a deep blue pond.  Too colorful to pass up.

Shangri-La Springs

 

Built in 1921, Shangri-La Springs is a historic hotel located on more than eight acres in the heart of Bonita Springs.  It offers a variety of services including an organic restaurant, full-service organic spa, organic garden and meeting and event spaces.

Fishing and Biking

 

There are some old-fashioned shops along Old Route 41 in Bonita Springs.

Barbecue

 Ace Hardware and Big Green Egg grills hosted a barbecue event at Bonita Springs' Riverside Park.

 I walked through the crowd looking for interesting people.

The Family

 

Mom had one of the kids.

Dad had the other.

Red Rooster

 When I was back in Connecticut a few weeks ago, I photographed Red Rooster Inn in Ridgefield.  It sits on a very busy street.  The owners have received permission to tear it down and replace it with a 21 unit residential complex.  I don't look forward to the extra traffic.

Bench

A good place to sit and think big thoughts.

 

Bromeliads

 

At the garden center.

Two Books

 

Back in December 2018 I visited Judy Blume's bookstore in Key West, Florida.  These two books were side by side.  What photographer could resist?   Just saying . . . 

Saint Patrick

Two Saint Patricks?  Hmmm.  One must have been an imposter.

I'm going with this one.  Saint Patrick wouldn't wave a water bottle, would he?

Saint Patrick's Day Parade

 The parade route was crowded.  It was hard to get clean shots.  Crowd shots worked better.