The Abandoned: August 2015

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

A little Light on the Subject...

I found this wonderful light bulb in a pile of rubbish. There's something translucent and magical about it.

As you can see--it is quite large. I took it home with me...wondering what I will create with it. Any ideas?

Have a lovely week, Friends.

Saturday, August 1, 2015

Mystery in The Abandoned

My sister and I walked along the main road to the new entrance of what was once The Abandoned. Here is a roadside beauty I'd never seen before. Such a luscious color of yellow.

The air was quiet after a day of dust and noise. Since it was after hours, the equipment sat at attention along the new entrance and road.

I liked the texture of this machine's steel studded wheels.

Above you see a huge cake of dirt--just left in place for some undetermined purpose.

And the mystery of which I spoke? Here it is...that green gathering of light near one of the caterpillar machines. Is it one of the shadow people of The Abandoned? Or is it just a fluke of odd lighting in my camera. One might wonder.

Have a lovely day!

The Abandoned

Years ago, I dedicated this blog to The Abandoned, a huge complex of abandoned buildings in rural Oregon.

Surrounded by wetlands and old growth timber, The Callahan Center was built in the 1970's by the State of Oregon as a rehabilitation center for people recovering from injuries on the job.

In 1992, the property was bought by a mega church. However, the Living Enrichment Center closed in 2004, amidst financial scandal and the property was abandoned.

The buildings stood empty for many years. Over that span the property was vandalized and looted. Yet the beauty of its rare architecture shone through the shambles of abuse and disrepair.

In the summer of 2013, the complex was completely demolished. We were all sad to see the buildings go, but because of trespassers and vandals, it was necessary to take them down.

The area where The Abandoned once stood is filled with $500,000 mushroom houses (homes built so fast they pop up like mushrooms) built on postage stamp lots. There are sidewalks and tall lamps where I once watched the foxes of the field leaping above the grass, hunting rodents.

The surrounding woodlands still survive. It is my prayer the wetlands and forests with their pristine creeks, native trees and flowers, as well as the wildlife which shelter there, will be protected.