Only in Bucks County: Patterson Farm

   

There is a 230 acre farm here in Yardley that for lack of better words, is semi-abandoned. It is said that it boasts some of the best soil conditions not just in Bucks County, but in all of Pennsylvania. Currently, 180 acres are being used for farming. Otherwise, the barns and buildings have been sitting neglected since 2006! The combination of it being somewhat utilized, but in other respects abandoned, makes for a mysterious backdrop for a photo shoot. For me, there is something about an uninhabited building, especially these beautiful barns and farmhouses, that stirs my imagination and intrigues.

Each time I visit Patterson Farm I am drawn to its history and feel a connection to the people who lived there in an earlier time.

These are some shots I've taken at Patterson Farm over the past few months:

 

 

Satterthwaite Barn.

 

                           

                             

 

 

The original 2 Bedrooms of Satterthwaite House date back to at least 1759.

 

 

 

I'm not one to share my view often when it comes to politics or issues that are highly debatable, but I have chosen a stance on this one, and believe me, there was a lot of research and reading to do.

To me, it is a not only a shame, but also an embarrasment to the township that these well-built and very necessary barns and structures are being left to decay!

 

 

 

It's history and it's magical.

It's magical history.

SAVE PATTERSON FARM!

 

 

 

 

"The earth is given as a common stock for man to labor and live on."

~Thomas Jefferson

Only in Bucks County: Things I Find Around My House

I have a Twitter friend who blogs about Autism mostly, and the million other things that happen in her (Berkeley) life, or come into mind. She is observant and witty and has balls and tells like it is.
But even SHE recently admitted that she doesn't broach certain topics on her blog anymore, that she feels she's being scrutinized, that she now holds back at times... and that just sucks.
I mean, it's HER blog. She doesn't get paid to do it, she has no sponsored posts; her blog is an extension of who she is as a person and as a writer, and I hope she won't continue to censor herself.
Here's her post that I keep thinking about, it's called "Pardon Me."

AND I JUST REALIZED I've been doing the same thing. Even though I basically just post pretty photos of Bucks County, I've been holding back in a different way, thinking that my readers only want to see the most beautiful green landscapes, colorful red barns, and open blue sky that Bucks County has to offer. Winter hit and I didn't take any photos of green landscapes or blue sky. Most of the photos I've taken these past few months have been around my house or in our yard.
And so I just had my own epiphany thanks to Jill's epiphany: I haven't posted a thing in months for fear it isn't good enough. That it's not interesting enough. That it's too personal. That there's no rolling farmland.
But this is MY blog.
I've been experimenting a lot with texture, focus, and depth of field and I have some good stuff, even if it's of my dinner or of my dog.
A section of Jill's blog is called "Things I Find In My House."
Today's photos are of things I find around mine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And because she's awesome. show some Twitter love to @jillsmo or check out her blog,

"Yeah. Good Times."

 

Oh. And she draws:

 

 

Only in Bucks County: Thirty Day Drought

Where did March go? The whole month whizzed by and I didn't have a minute to post a blog. I also didn't have the time to take any pictures for pleasure. And I've realized I can't let that happen again.
Photography gives me joy. For the last thirty years photography has been a way to get creative, a way to see things differently, a way to connect with my subject, not to mention a huge stress reliever. 
So the other day, on my first day off all month, I just had to take some photos of something!
I was getting some after school snacks with my neighbors at Shady Brook Farm and decided to do a little photo shoot of early Spring flowers. The colors, the shapes... and the promise of warm weather makes me really happy. I hope you'll enjoy them too.

"Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still."

-Dorothea Lange

Get out there and take some photos!