Farmer's Market. One farmer. October 1993. Clarksville, Tenn.

Pentax K-1000, f/8, 1/125 second, Ilford Pan F (50 speed) film.

This was my first decent camera. No, the Pentax isn't a great camera -- that's why I said "decent." But it is a good student camera, and it served me well during the eight years I used it.

Over that time I put approximately 1000 rolls of film through it while going through college, working at a camera shop for a year, then writing and shooting for a small-town newspaper (my first real job) for two years. Unfortunately for Rudy the Pentax, my sole transportation at the newspaper job in middle Tennessee was a motorcycle. When I had my first -- and, so far, only -- major motorcycle wreck, the camera was crushed under my shoulder, which was at the time attempting to drive itself into the blacktop.

And now, back to the photo:

This small farmer's market was set up at the old train station in Clarksville, Tennessee, where I went to college during my junior and senior years. There was never much of a crowd there; come to think of it, the only time I ever bought produce at the market was from the woman pictured -- two sweet potatoes for baking with butter.

Of course I never think of this train station without singing the Monkees' "Last Train to Clarksville" to myself, which makes me wonder whether I am technically sane at that moment. I hate it when I annoy myself with my own singing.

For the record, my roommate (Wesley Jarrett) was with me when I took this shot.

If you see this -- Hello, Wesley!