Three houses in Nebraska

We had just delivered a tower base in Medicine Bow, WY and while heading back to Iowa for another tower I had decided to take a short detour to return to a couple of houses that I had spotted a couple of houses in Nebraska.

soooooo glad that I did!!

House 1

This first house was just outside the small town of Gurley. It was a small 2 story farm house surrounded by a fence of evergreens and lacking both windows and doors. Extremely easy to get inside and to walk around. Inside I found a few rotting chairs, which are one of my favorite images to photograph, and plenty of colorful rooms!

I even managed to walk completely upstairs to the second level.. Normally i never go upstair since I do not trust the condition of the floor, but after my trips to Skillman I think I may have become a bit more brave in my adventure! :P:P

I didn't find anything too interesting upstairs. the rooms were empty, a few holes in the wall, some birds reacting to my presence by taking flight and many more birds in the attic creating a loud din with their movement..

The house must have been lovely and comfortable at one time.. there were some other buildings outside, but nothing interesting inside them. what was interesting was the shell of a rotting car. I don't know enough about cars to tell you what model it was or year... besides it being old.

I did wish that I still had the wide angle lens that I rented for Skillman! :( it would have made some of the shots stronger. I've been whining about this all week!!!

House 2

The second abandoned house would have escaped my knowledge and camera if it wasn't for the brief and lucky moment of me looking to the right when we came to the top of a nearby hill..

The house was isolated and existed behind some very active RR Tracks.. It was far enough from the road for me to be unsure on whether or not it was abandoned. At first I thought I would have to park 'Simone', my vehicle, on the side of the highway and run across the tracks and a field to explore the house.. Again luck was on my side and I found a dirt road that was accessible and led right to the front gate!! JOY!!!

At the front steps was a christmas tree tangled with another tree, still green and still boasting a red ribbon.. kinda sad :( It was a strong indicator that the house probably wasn't empty for all that long of a period.

Windows were broken and the front door was missing.. inside was a mess!!!! Walls were missing large gaps and showed some signed of a fire. I didn't see any real fire damage to the rest of the house, so I think the fire was controlled to the one wall and obviously set after the previous occupants had left.. Walls were either yellow or blue and the kitchen was destroyed! cabinets left open and an entire counter, containing the sink, was pushed over onto its front side.. behind it was another hole in the wall.. past the kitchen was a small room with a set of cement stairs leading to the basement.. I chose not to go down.. On the steps there was a rotting ball of fur with some bones sticking out and there was absolutely no light. I didn't think of bringing a light source with me, nor did I want to stumble around in the dark basement of a house that apparently become the resting place for dead animals.

outside was a couple of barn. I looked around them and found nothing too interesting except outside and behind the larger barn was a pile of odd objects and another rotting animal corpse... I found an old Polaroid camera, a Rambo thermos for a kids lunchbox, a classic 80's lunch box, not sure what the image was, and another thermos.. all left outside to the elements,,

Since everything was outside in a pile and seemed to be still in some decent condition I am assuming that it all was originally in the main house and some people recently came along and had a destructive party...

Very disrespectful!!!

House 3

After leaving the second house in Sidney, Nebraska I quickly got onto Interstate 80 and began heading east toward Iowa!!! it was a lovely day and I was looking forward to stopping at the end of the night so that I could upload and view my new photos! Gosh, I hope they came out great! ;P

Not too long after I hit the interstate that I found another house.. This one was located far to the right in the middle of a farm field. again it was far enough into the distance that I wasn't a hundred percent sure on whether or not it was abandoned, but I did notice what looked like a missing window.. I knew I had to get to the house and I knew that I needed to figure out how to do it!!

Almost instantly after seeing the house I saw an exit off the Interstate (don't remember the number) and before I knew it I was driving down a dirt road toward the house. . There was no driveway or path leading to the house! I parked Simone on the side and had to run across a farmer's field that was not yet plowed for the season, and then I was running across a field that was not only plowed but already bursting with green.. Finally I came up to the property of interest. The old farm house was surrounded by collapsing farm buildings, including an outhouse with a two seater!! along with buildings was an old green and rusting pickup truck from the fifties..

I was a bit timid in entering the house at first. while walking around the exterior I came across a porch, which I thought would be an easy entrance, but the wooden floor was extremely delicate to the lightest pressure of my foot... However when I found the front door was easy to open inside the house I went! :P

Inside I found some pretty darn cool stuff! lots of old shoes, a massive pile of working gloves, an old wood/coal burning stove and a strange object that has been a source of debate between my father and I.

I thought the item was an old baby chair, but the pops think it was an indoor toilet... I also found a table for folding laundry, several makeshift shelves hanging from the ceiling with wire, some cabinets and a few old items sitting on a self in the pantry room..

It was hard to tell when the last occupants left the house, but I am guessing some time in the 60's.. This is based on the condition of the building along with the items found..

I didn't go upstairs since they were mostly rotted out.. I was kinda curious to what was up there. with all the cool stuff downstairs I bet there had to be something really interesting upstairs!

Wyoming Morning....

I am soooo not a morning person, I won't even pretend to be.... But I do love and passionately enjoy the perks of being up bright and early, this morning sunrise being one of them. Mere minutes after this picture was taken the thick fog cloud commenced to break, expand and began blocking the brilliant apricot colors from my earthly view....

At least I will always have those few divine moments..

EUREKA!!!!

For the past three months I have tried onerously to find the name and some basic information of an abandoned town located near Brady, TX! Finally I have succeeded!

Camp San Saba!!!!

I saw a few buildings from the Highway and was tempted to hop the fence and explore what was left of the town, except that the Highway was a major highway that had many police patrolling by... The place looked really interesting and I decided it was best to find some information and try to get some legit permission to enter. If it was only a house or two then I would have flown caution to the wind, but from the fence it looked like a whole town existed among the texas shrubbery..

Sadly the information on the gate sign was useless and it wasn't until I found the website: http://www.texasescapes.com that I happened to come across the town's name and some history.

Now I work on gaining access!! ;P

working on some photos...

Spending the day photographing Skillman Hospital Village was an phenomenal experience. I am currently working on the photos and will hopefully post a portion of them later this week along with details of the day...

Finding Metropolis! - delayed post from March...

I woke up this morning bright and early, ready to throw some clothes on and quickly hit the road!

Today I was going to see Nevada for the very first time! And that my dear friends will make state number 47!! But when I looked out my hotel window, instead of being greeted by the expected morning sun, I was greeted by heavy grey clouds and thick sticking snow..... Ugh.. My heart dropped! The weather was so lovely when we came through the area a few days ago; now it almost seems like a cruel joke that when I have the time to explore a region that the sun would hide from me.. Still I am not faltering from my desire to have a Nevada adventure, and I left with hopes that I would be able to outrun the weather!

I had done my research the night before and found an old ghost town off of Interstate 80 to explore. The town was or is called Metropolis and was established around 1909 by a few business men looking for a investment. Basically people, mostly emigrants, were lured to the area under the false pretenses that there was high quality farm land… Now anyone who was visiting the area could have told you that the land was probably best for ranching instead of farming. Despite all the monetary investments, such as a magnificent hotel and several other town buildings, that went into the town; it didn't last too long. Farming didn't work since there was no access to a watercourse, a large jackrabbit population destroyed the dry farming crops because the settlers killed all the local coyotes, and around 1921 the town became bankrupt. Most people left by then. By the 1940's the post office closed and the town was officially declared a ghost town by 1950. All that is left now is the foundation of the Hotel, the arch door way and basement of the school and several odd pieces and items reminding those who walk the area that there was once a town there..

By the time I got to Metropolis I had manage to escape the snowstorm in Idaho, but the sky was still mostly white with small slivers of blue…Not exactly the sky I wanted in my photos, but better than solid angry snowy gray! I had taken a broken paved road from Wells, Nevada that eventually became an uneven dirt road to the "road" that would lead me to Metropolis. Along the way I stopped at a old house that caught my attention! The ground was covered in snow! LOL again my shoes are never the best for these kind of adventure! I kept losing them in the deep pocketed of snow thus causing my frozen foot to jam more snow into my shoe as I struggled to get them back without completely losing my balance! I couldn't get inside the building. The wooden floor was EXTREMELY fragile!! I didn't want to damage the building, nor did I want to fall through the floor into the basement below…

While walking back I came across what looked like the tracks of a large cat…. It then occurred that I was far away from people and there are mountain lions in the area… While I considered the issue of my safety I then came across a spot where the possible mountain lion chased and attacked its meal… well If the big kitty ate then I guess I am safe! :P So I hopped into Simone (my car) and continued on one of the crappiest roads I have ever driven for Metropolis!

The final couple miles wasn't even a road! it was a path completely covered in snow. I could see the tracks of a vehicle from several days ago, but that was about it.. I wasn't even sure If Simone could handle the rest of the way without getting wholly stuck… but I wasn't about to give up! I put the car in low gear and slowly moved along. reminding myself not to hit the gas pedal. (I hate going slow!)

Well, my patience paid off and I parked Simone at the four way of the "road" near the remains of the Hotel. At this moment I was overcome with excitement! I immediately broke into a giddy run and headed toward the arch of the old school entrance, stopping for a brief moment only to take a photo or two and giggling all the way!! I was completely alone in this little frosty and forgotten world. The ground was still covered evenly with crisp white snow and my footsteps looked to me like they were the first human steps in a new world, or in this case an old world. My voice was the only human voice that could be heard for miles and miles around! It was a remarkable experience that one does not often feel in this cluttered and crowded world. Strangely I didn't feel alone..

At first I wasn't sure if I could or really should go into the basement area of the old school. The snow made it extremely difficult to evaluate the best way to get inside. Plus I wasn't sure how safe the cement ceiling over the basement room was…. Of course I did find a way inside that I felt comfortable with and I figured that since others had obviously been there before me the chances of the cement rock above my head crushing me to death was fairly slim… So down the snow covered rubble I slid into the basement (on my butt cuz I am that cool to make THAT kind of entrance ;P). Inside I tenderly wandered about the place, careful to not "pull an Amber" by tripping on my own feet and falling face first into the column that was probably holding everything up.. That would have sucked! Inside was some graffiti, but not too much. some of it was thoughtful most of it was crude… Can't people think of better things to spray paint on stone walls besides lewd comments regarding the female body??

After exploring the school I wandered the surrounding area and looked around the hotel.. I didn't get inside the Hotel foundation, because I couldn't find a good entrance inside with all the snow… There was also plenty of other stuff to find in the area, but again the snow covered up all the cool items left behind by the town's previous denizens.

found out about the town via this site: http://www.ghosttowns.com/ if your going on a USA road trip and looking for places to visit this would be a good source..

Please remember to not take any souvenirs.. If everyone takes something from these old ghost towns then there will be nothing for future travelers to see.. every scrap of metal, nut, bolt and piece of wood left behind by the former occupants are often all that remain behind for us to find and explore…

On the way back to Wells, Nevada I thought about finding the local hot spring… however i wasn't sure which snowy trail was the right trail and I didn't trust Simone to get me up a snowy and muddy mountain trail without getting stuck… I plan to return to the area later when the season is drier… :P

A few words about Wells, Nevada..

Wells is a small town off of Interstate 80. The down town is a wreck!! Apparently in 2008 there was an earthquake in the area and cause some severe damage to the historic downtown buildings. only two business are even open. the rest of the buildings are closed and behind fences. The local people are determined to bring the downtown back, but lack the funds to make the needed repairs. I don't even remember hearing about the earthquake… Check it out if your in the area..

Now I am off to Utah… My 48th State!!! ;P

Joyful Me!

About a month ago a friend and I decided to explore what we later learned was an old Epileptic hospital/village that was abandoned in the mid 90's. During our short adventure we came across one of the local workers, Gary, who was kind enough to answer a few questions and even kinder to give me a contact number to call for more information!!

A week or so later I called the number and spoke to a woman by the name of Gail and inquired about gaining access to inside the buildings. She asked that I make a formal inquiry via email and that when received she will pass it along to the right people.

Well some time had past by and I had not heard anything from Gail. I was beginning to worry that maybe I sent my request was going to be denied or that I may have sent the email to the wrong address..

But then earlier today I had the chance to speak to Gail and she informed me that my request was GRANTED!

I won't have access to all the buildings, but I will be allowed to enter and photograph all the hospital building, the theatre and another building referred to as Maple. I will also have access to all of the outside grounds! In exchange for the access the Township would like to have a few of the photos for their collection.

I am pretty darn excited about this!!! I feel that this is a huge turning point in my career as an artist and will hopefully help me open doors to photograph other abandoned historic buildings!

Eat the Vegan!

I came cross this piece of graffiti in the bathroom of a coffee house in Philly! It cracked me up!

A house stands in Oregon

I have been making notes in a little black sketch book referencing the plethora of abandoned and decaying rural houses I pass across the country. I can't always just pull over and explore while I am working but these notes help me plan my return trips so I can hit up the places that caught my interest. I make note of where the building is located, what the landscape is like and its condition. I write the details that I had immediately noticed when passing the building. So far it has helped!

This house in Oregon is located along Interstate 80 and looks like it was once a beautiful and well loved farm house. There is a brand new truck stop across the street. I am guessing that the truck stop was once the farm.... Just a guess.

When I first saw the house the sun had already gone down, far too late for clear and decent photos. When I returned the sun was close to disappearing past the horizon, but there was still enough natural light to carefully explore the building and take a few decent photos. The interior, however, was still too dark.

It was easy to enter the house. All the windows were missing and the door was wide open. Inside was filled with debris. Some old, some new. I noticed several mateless shoes.. They were mostly in poor condition and it was difficult to tell if they were left behind by local kids or by the former occupants. I suspect local kids. Some graffiti was on the walls, but not as much as one would have expected to find considering the location and easy access of the building. Second floor was not easily approachable. Several steps were missing and the wood looks weak. I'm always too nervous to go upstairs.. Especially since I am alone and no one usually knows where I am...

What impressed me most about this particular house was its unique details. It was built into a slight hill and inside there still existed layers of wallpaper clinging to the aging walls. I couldn't decide if the wall paper was tacky or stunning. And if it was stunning was it always so or is it the age and filth that makes it so attractive??

Exploring old buildings with an Old Friend.

I haven't seen this old high school friend of mine in many years.. We lost contact after my ex and I had broken up, a long and disastrous story, and during the same time she was going through some tough times of her own. I had never wanted her to feel stuck in the middle of the break-up between my ex and I, nor at the time did I think I could handle being around anything or one that was so closely connected to him. Fortunately, through the wonders of Facebook, we reconnected and both find ourselves in a better place to pick up our friendship where it last was left. So off we go on a beautiful adventure!

My mother had told me of this old abandoned house close to the Princeton area that she had past by a week earlier with her friends. I had never personally seen it and of course I was immediately interested in exploring the place.

Though I must admit that this time I was feeling a bit nervous. Not of seeing and having an adventure with my old friend, but of being caught while exploring this house. It's not located in a rural setting like the other houses that I find. The road is busy with passing traffic and the locals are more likely to call the police if they saw us. The elements that I find personal security with when exploring other houses are non existent for this house. Plus the chances of coming across people squatting or partaking in illegal activities are, in my opinion, a bit higher in more crowded areas compared to the possibilities in the rural landscapes of the West.

Despite my anxieties I knew that I would completely regret not checking the place out and I am so happy that I decided to go! I picked Kara up around noon and off we went down 206!

Well actually we made a pit stop at Whole foods for the most delicious vegan brownie in the world, some fruit and Izzy's sparkling water. I was in the mood for a picnic too!! LOL :P:P

Kara and I found the place without much trouble and thought how lucky we were that the gate was wide open. It was like it was waiting for us! Of course we later learned that the gate was open because far in the back there were a few workers, but more on that later!

Discreetly we quickly pulled into a parking spot behind some shrubbery, out of sight from the main road and like jovial children we ran toward the house.

Immediately began taking photos and poking around the yard. The house was mostly boarded up and in very good condition, when compared to the rural houses I had surveyed in the West. The property was a bit overgrown, but not too bad. The house paint was mostly intact, but when standing on the porch and then later inside we could see thousands of cracks and paint chips collecting in the corners.

There was one window that wasn't boarded up and getting in was easy as pie! Most of the rooms were dark, but there was still plenty of light spilling in from the cracks. It was apparent that the place was not empty for very long, again it was still in very decent condition. The floors were strong and the walls were still intact. the only real damage was broken windows and paint peeling off the walls.

Each room had its own color and from our initial intake we guessed that the house was actually three separate apartments. Upstairs were two kitchens and in the main foyer was a fire alarm commonly seen in buildings where multiple families occupy. From some troll doll stickers that I saw in one room I guessed that the house was abandoned sometime during the early to mid 90's. Later on I found that my guess was fairly accurate!! GO ME!! :P

After we crawled out of the house we decided to walk further down the road toward what looked to be another possible building. the closer we got we realized that it wasn't just one other building but two and then we saw additional two more from there and more even further down. We kept asking ourselves, What kind of place was this??? I speculated that it was a private school of some sort, but then there was a hospital emblem on one of the buildings and what looked like a factory further down the road.

It was at the factory building that we saw all the workers, quietly we decided to turn around as if we were done exploring the grounds and continue back. along the way we planned our return to these buildings with flashlights and a recharged camera battery!

Until then we enjoyed our picnic while my camera battery recharged and had a coincidental meeting with Gary who gave us a sort of 'Okay' to stay on the grounds after everyone left as long as we didn't get into trouble... He also warned us of patrolling police along with some background info of the area..

Apparently we were on the grounds of what was once an Epilepsy village. The village was self sustaining and abandoned in the mid 90's, like I had guessed!!! The property had been bought by the town and is in a slow process of being renovated!

With what we felt was Gary's blessing to stay on the property we drove toward the back of the village and decided to photograph one more building. We had no intention of entering the building at first with out flashlights. But then we found an open door and neither of us could resist!

So in we go and wow what an impressionable space! Each room was painted in its own hideous color! More walls with peeling paint, large empty rooms, wide hallways, beautiful windows, narrow closets, doors removed and a room filled with psychological papers dating back to the 1960's! On the first floor, with a limited light source, there were vines growing into the rooms through the broken window panes.

The sun was going down and it was time to leave. I plan to return again, but with a tripod and some flashlights!

Later I did some research and found that there are several reports of ghosts and other paranormal activity! I can't say that I experienced anything out of the ordinary. I did feel that I was walking through the stale energy left behind old occupants, but I always feel that when I walk into an older space.

Marines come in all shapes and sizes..

"I would not ask our Marines to live with someone that's homosexual if we can possibly avoid it" - Gen. James Conway

So Mr. Conway is saying that our Marines don't want to live with other Marines??

Ummmm maybe they should also consider separating our Marines by the color of their skin and then even further by the religion they follow, or better yet by their favorite color.. Separating people based on their preference for colors would make a lot more sense. Lets go with that route!

Seriously it makes me sick to my stomach that there are so many people out there who care more about protecting their discriminating views of other people than real issues like the war. I would prefer to think that our top military officials would be more concerned with the safety our men and women fighting abroad than with condoning rampage homophobia of redneck enlistees!

From my own understanding when an individual enters a community, such as the Marines, they must learn to trust and rely on someone with a different background than his or her self. In the case of the Marines they would have to learn the importance of cultural acceptance in order to be efficient during their deployment abroad. The Marines, or any branch of the military, would not be an appropriate place to act on individual biases. I am willing to bet that there are plenty of people who would prefer to share a room with someone of the same faith or ethnicity; however, we as society generally frown upon these forms of bigotry. After several decades the majority of our culture will agree that it is unacceptable to discriminate against skin color and against certain religions (Some religions are still easy and constant targets, but that is another issue), but why do we then culturally accept other forms of brazen discrimination?

If the Military would prefer that homosexuals did not stand up with their heterosexual brothers and sisters in the defense of our country then by all means have a smaller surplus of bodies. Personally if I was a lesbian I think I would have a very difficult time fighting for a country that doesn't believe I deserve to have the same legal rights as everyone else in the country. But for those who do still join, they should receive a special medal of appreciation. It must be unimaginably oppressive to serve when bigotry is rewarded with special treatment. What do the top military officials think they are teaching those in lower ranks?? They are teaching that cultural intolerance is acceptable from those on top...

Sharing a room with someone with a different sexual preference would be an opportunity for someone to humanize another cultural group as well as maybe get over his or her own inner prejudice to become a better and stronger American citizen. Differences do not have to be as scary as some would like to present them.

The house with a surprise...

After my meeting with Martin and Marci I continued my journey toward Coleman, TX until I found this old farm house sitting far off in the distance from the main road. I drove down a narrow dirt road leading toward the abandon building. I carefully maneuvered myself through the rusty barb wire fence and ran toward the house. Stopping only to take a photo here and there.

Inside the house was a huge surprise! I have found some unpleasant things in houses before, but was in no way prepared for this find. Two young cows had at one point entered the house and died. From the looks of it they died together and their remains, which were nothing more than skin and dried bones, were there for a long long time.. Each cow was in a corner on either side of the window that I originally poked my head through. They were facing one another. It was heart breaking... I hope it was painless.

I do want to return the next time I am in the Coleman area. Looking at my photos now, I see new angles that I could have photographed the house from and I think I will make more of an effort to enter the house as I was, for reasons unknown, a bit hesitant. Plus I want to rephotograph the interior when the sunlight outside isn't so strong. The couple pics that I did get, and chose not to publish, were in my opinion mediocre and touristy. The strong light peering through the window bleached the most interesting details of the scene...

The Story of Martin and Marci

As many of you know I have this deep affection for old derelict and abandoned houses, especially those fading away in rural landscapes.. Most of the time I am left to my own bursting imagination at concluding the story behind the rubble, but on a rare occasion I have the pleasure of learning the truth..

I was driving back from San Antonio and heading toward Coleman, Tx via Hwy 87 North when I came across a couple of old wooden houses on the right side of the road.. Both were surrounded by Texas shrubbery and behind some frail fencing. The houses looked like they have been empty for many many years! It was noon and the sun was high in the sky without a single cloud. One of the houses was definitely in better condition than the other and there appeared to be a drive way still in use leading to a new and possibly occupied home in the background.

For a brief moment I thought about just making a quick note in my sketchbook about where the house was located and return later, but I knew that with my job a "later" may never actually materialize. So without too much more thought I did a U-ey and pulled right into the driveway.

I was right, the driveway did lead to an occupied house and standing in front was an older couple, both looking at me with quizzical expressions. Quickly I reached for my camera and a business card (good thing I got these printed out!) and walked up to them with my more sweetest of smiles!
The Couple were Martin and Marci. They owned one of the two houses, the other apparently belonged to someone else unknown and unmentioned.. Martin was born and raised in the older house. He and Marci both spent the first 15 years of their 45 year marriage in that home.

It was apparent that the building, though would have to someday come completely down, meant a lot to them, especially to Martin. They built the newer house about 30 years ago when their family began to grow larger.

When I met Martin and Marci, they were in the process of moving back to the house. They are getting older and realized that they wanted to return to the house they built thirty years ago. unfortunately in their absence the older home, the one I came to photograph, began to rapidly deteriorate. Martin's brother first came to remove some of the metal roofing and soon after him many others would trespass onto the property to scavenge reusable wood.. Over time the house began to collapse in on itself, leaving everything inside open to outside elements. All that is left now is two rooms, rotting furniture, some shoes, and random debris...

They kindly allowed me to photograph the house and I believe that I got a couple good ones before I had to leave.

Marci came over at some point, I suspect to check in on me, and pointed out the different objects left behind. Stuff that belonged to her children, mother in law and husband.. It was emotional to her and I hope that I was respectful enough while there. I must have been, she invited me to come back and suggested that I return when her son is around! Tempting! LOL! ;P

Like I stated before I don't usually get to hear the story behind my chosen subject matter. When I crawl around a place like this I am normally alone and I guess in some way detached from the reality. These ruins are no different to me than those in Rome. This experience, however, has given be a new perspective or direction with my photography.. I realized that I am capturing American Stories. Even when I don't know the story.

RIP Escher

I haven't posted anything in a long while.. I have been busy with work and then my Mac's hard drive suddenly crashed early last month. It was fixed and works good as new, but I still need to re-install all the programs. Including my camera programs.

I have plenty of stories to tell of my adventures outWest and I will do that in the next few posts, along with sorting new photographs. But for now I would like to pay respects to a dear beloved friend. My sweet Escher.

He passed away early this morning at the age of 9. According to the vet he was the oldest Bearded Dragon he has ever seen. Escher was well loved by the family and close friends. He will be greatly missed.

Escher was the size of my thumb when I first brought him home from the local pet store. He was such a handsome little guy perched on his branch and alert to everything around him. I immediately fell in love with him and named him after one of my favorite 20th century artists, M.C. Escher. It fit him.

He loved running through balloons, White doors, chasing crickets, peas, sunny days, wooden branches, his basking rocks, perching on my shoulder during our summer walks, Charity's room, and people. He was very social lizard. He did not like birds.

We buried him in the garden by the house. Surrounded by Spring flowers and loved ones. I love you Escher. Rest in Peace..