The American Barn

The cool, crisp morning air was silent, except for the rising songsters' melodies and one dog barking. Hardly any traffic at 6:00 on Saturday, mainly pickups and a tractor. A dead opposum was grinning at me when I got out of the car on Brandt Road. I'll spare you the picture!

The "No Trespassing" signs limited most shots to "this side of the fence," but I was able to get out in a field for the barn picture with the blue flowers in the foreground. And I had to mount my camera on a tripod and use the 10 second timer while raising it 8 feet over my head for the Locke Road shots with the vineyards surrounding the 'barn.' The result: A 20% success ratio. Pretty good, I thought, since this is the first time I've tried it.

San Joaquin county probably has thousands of old and new barns. They may change a bit in style over the years, but the theory stays the same. Cover your valuables from the elements --- hay, vehicles, livestock, tack and stuff that won't fit in that little house you built.

My sister says, "I never met a barn I didn't like." That about sums it up for me as well.