TRAILER PARK TRASHED

This was taken in a mobile home park that had existed for many years.

The mobile homes were old and the people living in them were mostly

poor. The land upon which the homes were located became more

valuable commercially, so the residents were told to vacate so the land

could be developed. Being poor, most of them had no means to pay to

relocate their mobile homes, many of which were fairly decrepit anyway.

So they stripped what they could as salvage, and moved to parts

unknown. This is what was left after the last resident left or was evicted.

It had been a sort of community with a couple of main streets and a

couple of branches. Two years later I passed by this location and it was

just bare clean dirt. Perhaps the recession put a dent in the development

plans.

Reminds me of a documentary I saw about the Salton Sea out in the California desert. When it first filled up, it was a resort area. But it was very strongly alkali, so eventually it killed whatever fish try to grow in it and became very foul smelling as everything in the lake died. The resorts were all abandoned and looked a lot like this. Gives a good feeling of the life that was there once, especially the old toys.

David.... your words do the picture justice. Mans greed is insatiable... so I hope the day of reckoning sorts the good from the bad.

Thanks for posting.

Regards

Grayham, and Ray, thank you both very much for your thoughts and taking the time to look at the image. Much appreciated.

A very nicely composed shot, David!

I viewed this before and meant to comment on it then but somehow it slipped my mind at the time and I went on to something else. Now with the events in northern Japan it seems far more poignant. It really is a strong picture, David, though sad in a way. Those toys once belonged to children who called this place home. Where are they now?

you chose a good perspective, Dave... the morning light revels all without being harsh (the light, not the scene)... the eloquence of the toys has already been referred to by Jack, but he didn't mention those empty letter boxes - particularly the ones still embedded in the wood with covers down... shells of discarded memories... 

Ruud, Jack and Rajat, thanks to all of you. Yes, the toys, the mailboxes and the shells of former abodes are poignant. I don't believe in real ghosts, but I do feel the presence of memories whenever I visit places such as this. To me they are palpable and humbling.

I had been meaning to come back to this one as well, as I felt that it contained an element of sadness as well... I counted more than 20 old empty mailboxes -- Yes, I wondered too where all these people are off to now... I appreciate the neutral & subdued colors. (& the 'blues appear blue' indeed...)