Posting daily at 1pm central about all kinds of things. One day it's dating, the next it's TV commercials. I hope you're entertained. Professional photos on SmugMug – https://benwilder.smugmug.com
I rarely take photos of myself. I’ve always loved being BEHIND a camera, sure… but not in front of it. When I’m in videos on YouTube something, I have to fight from becoming “Speechless.” It’s embarrassing. Even with photos, only once in a blue moon will I take pics of myself. Then this happened.
I was camping at a state park in the Florida panhandle when I snapped that shot, good enough for a “Yearbook,” don’t you think? OK, maybe not. But then why take only one when you can take a gazillion? Here are the few from that silly self portrait session that turned out not totally “Weird.”
Anyways, I went back to the forest much later that night to take some astrophotography images. It was dark, quiet, and, hey I’m just a “man from Milwaukee” Florida, so it was scary, too. I’m almost sure I heard a bear whispering, “I Will Come To You” as it crunched the leaves and sticks under it’s big paws. If I heard a growl or a howl, I would’ve “Runaway Run” as fast as I could. I could only think of one thing that would “Save Me,” so I started singing.
“MMMbop beep bop, bop doo wop, bitty bah bop!”
Here I was in the “Middle of Nowhere” singing Hanson’s beloved song from the 90s to keep predators from mauling me. I was thinking that if the sound of my voice didn’t scare them off, the quality of my singing definitely would! I’m pretty bad, but hey, “Where’s the Love?” Any encouraging words can be left in the comments below.
Meanwhile, I think these night photos are good enough to be in a “Yearbook.” Check them out.
“You Never Know” when one of your favorite bands might end up saving your life one day. It was late one night taking star photos for me “This Time Around.” Meanwhile, there’s a bear or a raccoon or a coyote, thinking I’ll be “With You In Your Dreams.” Yikes! Thank you for the music that night Hanson!
KIA’s marketing department knows you can’t go wrong with a cute dog. Even if that dog runs on batteries just like the car in one of their recent ads. Check it out…
KIA might have a design flaw or two in their new logo (more on that here), but this ad is a big win. The dog is just adorable!
The Music. Backing this electric slide of an ad is Bonnie Tyler’s “Total Eclipse of the Heart.” Here’s the full track…
The Actor. The actor who is adopted by the e-dog is Sam Page. He’s a veteran in the acting world, appearing shows like House of Cards, Mad Men, and The Bold Type. Check out a lot more of his resumé on IMDB and be sure to be a follower on his Instagram @SamPage.
What are your favorite things about this KIA commercial, as well as your least favorite? Drop your comments below and thanks for dropping in…
Salesforce has a commercial that’s out of this world. Literally. But it’s also very much in the world. Or on earth? In orbit? I don’t know but here’s the ad. Scroll down for more info…
The Actor. The guy playing the astronaut is actor Matthew McConaughey. You may recognize him as the fan cheering from the sidelines at University of Texas football games and the spokesperson in Lincoln car commercials.
The Music. The soundtrack for this ad is “Bah Bah Conniff Sprach (Zarathustra)” by Ray Conniff & The Singers.
The song was released in 1973. It’s Ray Conniff’s jovial interpretation of the original, “Also Sprach Zarathustra” by Richard Strauss.
This song is also the show open Elvis Presley used in many of his concerts. Elvis was a singer-type person from the 50s-70s. Here he is with the musical intro…
Unnecessary promotion. The Salesforce commercial opens with a clip of the Milky Way. I’ve taken pictures of stars and space-type stuff. If you’re bored, check them out in this post and this one.
Do you think that actor, Mr. McConaughey, might have a future in show business? How about the Elvis music catching on and being relevant even 50 years later? What do you think about the commercial? Chime in below!
Hello everyone! Thanks for coming to Out of the Wilderness. I know you’re curious about St. Andrews State Park in the Panama City Beach area of Florida, and I was, too, just a few weeks ago. I’ve been camping around Florida since early January and writing about it, along with pictures from the parks where I camp. After checking out Juniper Springs (a mini tour with pictures) and Alexander Springs (my favorite photos), I was eager to book another stay at a park in the sunshine state.
A quick backstory is that St. Andrews State Park suffered quite a bit of damage from Hurricane Michael back in 2018. Now, though, what was damaged– trees that fell, docks and piers busted up– has been repaired and things are looking great. The transformation is kind of like the work on Michael Jackson’s face, except the opposite.
The campsites, specifically, are coming back strong. Click here to check out all the park has to offer visitors. Work is still being done to get more camping sites ready for us, and I was told it should be in the next few months that a whole bunch of new sites will be available for reservation.
The sites currently available are great. Even if you’re in the second row (where I was), St. Andrews Bay is just a short walk away. I should say this, too: there’s a back loop where sites are further off the ocean, but still not far.
Ok, now let’s get to what camper’s care about: level sites, privacy, convenience.
Level sites. I want to write a long statement but when all the sites are level, what else is there to say, you know? I didn’t inspect each one, of course, but I also didn’t see any leveling blocks at any site whatsoever. When I arrived to my spot, it was as easy as pulling in (I had a pull-through site so the back-in types will be a little more to manage), shifting to park, and boom I was done. Front to back was level once I adjusted the jack, and left to right was spot on. I was pretty amazed, actually, at how level it was. Like I said, I can’t confirm every site was like this, but as new as the campground area is, I’d bet money they’re all nearly perfect. Ok, this turned into a long statement, sorry! 🙂
Privacy. The sites are pretty spacious. I’d guess there’s around 100 feet between sites on the same side of the street, but there are folks just across the street so you’re not totally isolated. In the lower portion of the campground, there aren’t any trees between sites. I’m sure it’s because this whole area has just gotten that Hurricane Michael makeover. There seems to be a plan, though, because new shrubs have been planted along the roadway. The back loop is more of what you’d expect with a state park in regards to a forest-type experience. Lots more trees providing more privacy between sites.
Convenience. Each site has water, electric, and sewer. What more could you ask for in a state park? I was very happy to have these conveniences for the duration of my stay at St. Andrews. Along with those site-specific features, there are multiple bathhouses, all easy to get to from any of the sites. The restroom area (at least on the men’s side of one bathhouse) was tidy and clean. The showers were fantastic- hot water that stays on until you turn the knob off. I say that because when I camped at a couple of other state parks (Juniper Springs/Alexander Springs), it had that push-type knob for the shower where every 20 to 30 seconds you have to push it in again to keep the water going. Oh, that reminds me, those push knob showers didn’t have a way to adjust the water temperature. They were between warm and hot, but whatever it was, that’s what you get. The showers at St. Andrews can be adjusted to the level of heat you enjoy. Glory be!
If I had to include something not quite up to par yet, I’d say the roads need some attention. This is probably part of their long term plan. In fact, the road branching off towards the campground has been paved recently. But all the other roads include lots of potholes, bumps, and overall they’re just rough. Drive slowly in vehicles, ride carefully on bicycles, and any kind of skateboard or roller blades… don’t. Just don’t.
Final Thoughts. The park is incredible. Miles of road for biking or walking, easy access to the bay side of the ocean, as well as the gulf side, a beautiful pier (that doesn’t cost money to enjoy, once you’re in the park), and hundreds of yards of beautiful, soft sand make this park a beautiful and fun place to camp. This month (February) the wildlife was mostly birds and deer (as opposed to creatures you might see more often in the warmer months *ahem* alligators and *ahem* snakes). In fact, don’t be surprised to see an eagle flying over the campground, an osprey perched in a tree, pelicans gliding over the water, or a deer trotting down the road. I’ll leave you with a few more favorite photos from my camping experience at St. Andrews State Park…
great blue heron
jetty between bay and gulf
osprey scouting out its next meal
a gullable afternoon
Thanks for stopping by! Let me know in the comments if you’ve recently been to this state park and what your experience was.
I was walking early one morning when it was so dark I still needed a flashlight. Off in the distance I saw a pair of eyes shining back at me. It was a deer (I think? I hope?) but it scooted away before I got close. However, I was able to see the eyes shining back in a green color. This got me thinking about nature and creation and evolution and all that stuff, kind of deep for the wee hours of the morning!
This little moment reminds me there IS a creator. I just can’t believe in evolution and here’s a small example of why. Those deer eyes. They aren’t different (or at least not drastically different) than yours or mine. They’re probably very similar to my dogs’ eyes. Speaking of which, one has brown eyes and the other has blue eyes.
When I shine a light and my dogs look towards it, their eyes don’t light up with the same color as each other. All I can think is that if evolution was a real thing, why would there be diversity in any one species? I think nature, as a matter of science, would consolidate the features of all dogs and just make everything as uniform as possible. In fact, it would most likely keep things as simple as possible so those deer eyes would be just like the eyes of my dogs, and the bear, and an eagle, and a newborn baby.
Science might be able to explain how the light-reflecting colors are different, but it cannot explain why. Only a real and living creator would come up with something so seemingly minute, a detail that has a small role in the big picture, and choose to make it so.
This is just one little example that shows the complexity of all these creatures, including humans. Side note: This complexity in humans is part of why I’m pro-life. Just check out this post I wrote awhile back. Animals, mammals and nature itself is so complex that I HAVE to believe there’s a mad scientist behind it all. Well, “mad scientist” who can also be described as an unbelievable artist with an imagination that’s literally out of this world. I mean, just look at this photo from the gulf coast. There’s water and sand in the lower portion of the image, and then BAM the Milky Way, a few thousand stars, and beauty that cannot be matched.
So you have this breathtaking and gigantic galaxy, just a portion caught in a photograph, then something as tiny and seemingly simple as this.
To wrap up by going back to the eyes of the deer and the eyes of my dogs, wouldn’t nature just make all dogs (and even all animals) eyes the same when reflected in a light? That little detail is enough for me to, at the very least, wonder.
I go beyond wondering, though. More often than not, it turns into a situation where I’m noticing the creation and marveling at the creator.
Out of the Wilderness 