Red Jacket Trail 1. I have always loved this bridge! The combination of the stone structured columns and the wooden timbers together create a feeling of “a step back in time.” The drive along Highway 66 is so calm and serene. It was always a favorite when the kids were young to meander our way back to St. James from a day in Mankato. On the hottest summer day, this drive would be at least 10 degrees cooler. I hadn’t traveled this way in years, since the construction of County Road 90. I recalled reading about the issues that occurred during this spring floods. It was reassuring to see that it hasn’t completely vanished. 2. I chose a vertical shot to place emphasis on the height of this amazing structure. The dark timbers with their deep shadowing in the foreground, balance the busy tree cluttered hillside that has similar coloring, not to mention the fabric from which the bracing was constructed! The dark tones highlight and contrast with the light color of the stone. I think it draws your eye through the photograph visually as well. The wooden system is imposing and yet seems rather inadequate in comparison with the massive stone that holds heavy steel. 3. Because of the colder temperature and time of daylight available, I chose to use my Program setting on my camera. I chose and ISO of 400 and an f-stop of 8.0. The shutter speed was 1/2500 because I chose continuous drive mode and I chose to let the camera evaluate the white balance of the shot. The shutter speed was chosen simply for the fact that, although it is a back road, it is highly traveled by vehicles that cruise at a speed greater than the suggested limit. Timing was everything so this was a “hurry up, get it done quick” shot…much to my dismay. My choice for the ISO was because of the bright but overcast sunlight. It was necessary in order to create the darker shadows in the foreground where the sunlight was not. Overall, I am pleased with the composition of the work. This photo, if cropped and enhanced might very well be perfect…but then it would lose its authenticity. I like what the camera captured.

The book is authored by Mongo Beti , who is from Cameroon. The story is centered on a university student called Jean-Marie Medza. Medza is returning home after failing university exams. He is so confused about how to break the news to his harsh father that he will not be bringing a degree back home. Fortunately he returns home to find the father has travelled on a business mission and will not be back soon. Meanwhile there is something urgent that can keep him busy in his rural village. His cousin's wife has run away once again after being battered. She has not returned back like the case in the past. Medza is dispatched to use his university wisdom, in a last ditch effort, to bring this wife back. Kala is the name of the village that Medza should go. On reaching Kala, the lady to convince, has not yet arrived. It is Medza's turn to wait for the lady, who is rumuored to have eloped with someone else. The extended stay in Kala proves to be the break Medza was looking for to keep his mind off the exam failure and the father's wrath that is surely coming. In Kala , Medza meets a couple of illiterate agemates who become very fond of this "university educated guy". The friends have funny names such as "Abraham the Boneless Wonder'--an expert in dancing music off the tape recorder.Others are Duckfoot Johnny, Petrus Son-Of-God and Zambo. They "flood" Medza with all manner of primitive entertainments. In the confusion Medza falls in love with the daughter of the chief of Kala. On learning Medza has been sleeping with the daughter, the chief "forces" Medza to marry the daughter on the spot and return back to his home immediately with her. It is with an illiterate wife and failed exam that Medza returns home to his father.Both "calamities" are just the opposite of what the father wanted of Medza. The book is hilarious from page one to the end.