CONTEMPORARY EXPLORER

It was there in the distance, Some abandoned gas station, On a road long forgotten. The mountains still with Spring snow Beyond, between me and Reno. Not all promises in the desert last. The tables green and numbered Waited for me in Reno, as I drove on. Not all promises in the desert last. RENO DRIVE from David Young on Vimeo .

Charlotte is a prosperous and growing city framed by new buildings, forests of modern apartments and sports stadiums. Gentrification, though, has not reached the Eastside. It remains a tangle of industry, art and wildness. Learning how to get around Charlotte can take some time. The city is laid out on a northeast grid versus the normal north/south grid. It has been described as a group of wagon wheel spokes. Never is this more true than on the Eastside. One the most interesting of it’s streets is The Plaza, which together with the Midwood Neighborhood, was once referred to as streetcar suburb of Charlotte. The streetcars are long gone, but the rich heritage of the street and it’s ethnic diversity are very apparent.  It stretches eleven miles from the tree lined streets on the doorstep of downtown out to where it meets I-485. Along the way you find enclaves of Asian, Muslim. Latino and Black communities. It is a melting pot of the influences of adjoining Eastside dis...

South Carolina Highway 903 is only 27 miles long running from Lancaster to Catarrh. While it will not be found on any guide to the South, It’s full of life and interesting finds along those short miles. It’s origin dates back to 1930. Connecting roads call out their tales: Old Dixie, Rocky River, Fork Hill, John Log, Mining, Timber Lane, Norseman, Duckwood and Bristle Creek. 903 passes many picturesque farms and ranches. There is The Hill Top Tradepost, the iconic fire tower and 40 Acre Rock along the way. The road turns lush as you past Midway and stays that way to where it meets Route 601, called The Gold Mine Road.  What I enjoyed the most were the small sights along the road, most linked with the past and rich with the patina of the road and it's color. You will find it a wonderful drive. David Young

Time stood still for a moment as Las Vegas lights shimmered on the window. I turned looking around my hotel room and the pile of case work on the table. Then I finally did it, reached for my phone and dialed. “Denio Bar,” a woman answered I could hear the bar chatter in the background over the phone.  “Is Ben there?” I asked, exacting a response of who.  She said to my amazement, “I’ll get him,” He must be 80 years old , I thought. Remembering that he looked old and cranky the summer I stayed there, twenty years ago. He owned the bar and ran it with a hard way. A rough whisky honed voice answered the phone, “This is Ben.” “You probably don’t remember me, I’m Tom Allen and I stayed in Denio one summer.” Ben paused then said, “Hell, I don’t even remember myself half the time.  Ah, wait a minute, I remember you. You were the fresh faced college kid who hooked up with my singer. You were in here every night for a while.” He paused again for mom...

Photographers always talk about the Golden Hours, near sunrise and setting, when the light blesses the earth with color and warmth. It quickly passes though. They shy away from midday shots when the sun is high in the sky yielding a harsh light that can dull images and creativity.  They also talk about the Fall and Winter when the sun is lower in the sky extending hours of softer light. Light that blends the best of the Golden Hours and the edgy harshness of mid day shots. As I have grown into the Fall, now the Winter of my life, the world has revealed more to me. Allowing me to savor more of the softer light and the texture of things. David Young

Small Dreams from David Young on Vimeo .

Part of the fun of travel is trying something new. Staying in the heart of a big city is exciting. The action and attractions are right outside your door. Prices though are getting high. A stay in a downtown New York City hotel often costs $300 or more. Not to mention the $75 cab ride each way and the $20 glasses of wine.  There are other ways to take a “slice of the Big Apple.” On a recent trip to New York, I flew into EWR Newark Liberty International Airport and stayed at the Hilton at Newark Penn Station. Newark is a short 21-minute commuter train ride to Midtown. There you can catch subways to almost any attraction in NYC, such as MOMA, The NY Public Library, 911 Memorial, and The Metropolitan Museum. Flights to EWR are low cost because it caters to cruise lines, offering volume discounts. The Hilton I stayed at was $118 a night. It is attached by a causeway to Newark Penn Station (the sister station to Penn Station NYC). Trains run every 9 minutes. Better yet, Hil...