Behind the scenes of The Churches of Nanticoke

Fifty-two weeks ago today it was a bright, clear, and cold Saturday morning, and I was all dressed up with nowhere to go.

I had had somewhere to go, but a last-minute schedule change suddenly pushed that appointment off by a week. I had gotten up extra-early, showered, dressed, eaten, and was literally on my way out the door when the call came through not to bother coming.

I was annoyed. What to do? I was up. I was primed. I didn't feel much like getting undressed and going back to bed. The sun was rising on what promised to be a beautiful Autumn day, and I didn't want to waste it.

Fine. Photographs. I would go out to take photos.

Two problems presented themselves. As I approached my car I saw the sunlight burning the frost off of the Obama '08 sign on our side yard. I pulled out my camera to take a picture, and watched the batteries die as the last of their charge gave out. Like an idiot, I didn't have spares with me, so I had to go back in the house to get them. Well, at least it didn't happen while I was in the field.

I came back out and got a picture, sort of, but by then much of the cool stuff going on in the image had gone away. I walked the rest of the way to my car and noticed that the right front tire was flat.

Well, not flat exactly, more sort of flat-ish. Still, it needed air. So I pulled the compressor out of my trunk (doesn't everybody have one?) and filled it to its recommended pressure. I checked the other tires and topped them off, too.

By then I had lost the first light of sunrise, and had to content myself with the glow of early morning light. Fine. I would still follow through on my plan: to go to the highest point in Nanticoke and photograph St. Mary's church. And then, if the light held, I would start to make my way through the rest of the churches of Nanticoke.

I didn't expect to hit them all in a single day. But that's just what I did.

You can relive those thrilling days of yesteryear through these posts:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

For all parts of this tour, go here.