Introduction: Some of you have seen our “Oklahoma Blog” ring badge on the far right lower section of our front page. I search through the members at times to see what people in Oklahoma are doing. This was the way I found some photos by James Corbridge that made me reflect, appreciate times past, be sad for communities lost, and wonder what happened to some of them. Although James’ repertoire is extensive, I’m just publishing a few shots from a particular section of his Flickr account with his permission today. Thanks, James, for traveling around and bringing the images to us. ~ Editor, Red Dirt Chronicles
Of his time in Picher, OK James wrote: "I licked my lips. I should not have done that. From that point on, the taste in my mouth was like sucking on coins and everything smelled like a piggy bank. Perhaps it was the lack of sleep, but my head felt strange. The sun was blazing hot and my hair was soaked in sweat. I forgot all about all of these things when I saw the structures in the distance. Before I knew it, I was running across the toxic mounds of mining waste. I realized that I could not see the car or hear noises from the road. As much as I wanted to inspect the ruins, I stopped running and took a photo where I was. I turned and followed my footprints back. For a moment, I got lost. The footprints were not my own."
