Black Friday

In honor of Black Friday, the biggest shopping day of the year, I post this picture of a guy I met at the Worldwide Photo Walk a couple of months ago. Let's analyze: both a D300 and D200 around his neck, 2 expensive lenses, 2 memory card holders, mongo tripod on strap peeking out behind his left hand, plus the giant backpack you can't see with additional lenses, a second small tripod, and other gadgets galore. There's maybe 7 or 8 grand hanging from him. Walking around downtown Albany at dusk.

To my wife I reiterate I'm not as bad about this camera stuff as you think. Be watching for my Christmas list. Happy shopping, everyone.

Into the Wild [Peachy-Lilac] Yonder

Nice colors and a increasingly familiar silhouette through the window at Baltimore airport last Friday.

Another Cherry Tree Falls; Geo. Washington Unavailable for Comment

This is a cherry tree stump on the perimeter of the FDR Memorial in Washington. I wouldn't have thought to take this without seeing another photographer (Lyndi) setting up here. This was taken basically in the dark, so I let the camera absorb light for 30 seconds.

Tripods — separating the men from the boys since 1827.

Lucky No. 7

Driving on Freeman's Bridge Road the other day, I looked over my shoulder and did a double-take. They're building a new Lowe's (there goes the neighborhood) and they had scraped the land clean ... except for this one house. There's something you don't see every day.

Alternate caption: City of Enoch minus one.

Cake 1

Malcolm's family party was tonight before his first Young Men's activity night — volleyball practice. Cake 1 is homemade chocolate with homemade frosting. We call this "mother-in-law cake." Dang good stuff.

Carter was as excited as Malcolm was about the presents. When Malcolm was opening a clothing present towards the beginning, Carter yelled, "Is this one the video game???!!!" Oops.

Malcolm Turns 12

Today is Malcolm's 12th birthday. It's a pretty momentous occasion, for him and for me. He's now officially in "Young Men" at church — sort of like an adult, only shorter. And he'll be in my class. He's turning out to be a great kid.

He's already got two different cake requests in for his family and friend parties this week; add pumpkin pie to the line-up and he'll be pretty much in heaven.

[Found numbers from the streets of DC.]

Transparent

This building stopped me as I was walking home after work to my hotel along Eye (that's what they call "I") Street in DC. I think this is Ernst & Young. I was checking out a group meeting in a conference room ... you can see a couple of them on the fourth floor on the far right side. Great building for people watching. I just noticed the sun shades on the top floors of the west side. Anyway, it was a nice building.

FDR Part 2

My favorite part of the FDR Memorial is a wall and series of columns featuring artwork in relief that is meant to be touched. Roosevelt was wheelchair-bound in later years, and the creators of the memorial planned this part in recognition of those with disabilities. You have to be taller than me to reach some of the Braille inscriptions, and there's an interesting history of criticism of the memorial.

FDR Memorial

My friend Dennis' wife Lyndi is into photography, so he invited me to go shooting with them next time I was in DC. Last night he took us and our tripods to the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial, someplace I've never even heard of. Where other Washington memorials are massive and commanding, the FDR is rambling and peaceful. Amongst the waterfalls and cherry trees, you walk through scenes symbolic of FDR's times during the Great Depression.

It's always a bonus to watch how another photographer works a scene. I got some new ideas about shooting things that are around the monuments, plus some advice on shooting in Raw format, which I tried. Thanks for a great evening out, Dennis and Lyndi!

End of the Line

What mysterious secrets does our protagonist carry with him under that cool exterior?

This is how my six-block commute home from work ends each night this week. Self portrait shot blind in the elevator mirror.

Chinatown, DC

I had a late night at the office yesterday and walked to Chinatown for dinner as a treat. Except it was darn cold out.

City Silhouette

Here's something from my window seat this morning. These shots are from northern New Jersey airspace looking eastward into New York City. Lower Manhattan is the peninsula on the left, and the big buildings in the center of the photo are Jersey City.

At 3 o'clock on the far right is the Statue of Liberty, with Ellis Island just to the left of that. I'm shooting directly into the sun so the Hudson River is glowing and everything is backlit. Looking at a map I estimate the top photo shows just under five miles' distance from left to right.

I've never been to the Statue of Liberty, but I had an idea where it is. I took a shot of the blob I thought was it with a telephoto lens then zoomed in on the camera LCD to verify — I hit it. I can now say I've seen the Statue of Liberty.

Death of a Laptop

I called home during a meeting break in Orlando last week and Joanie said her old Mac laptop started making strange clunking noises. Oh no, I say, it sounds like the hard drive is dying. I tell her over the phone how to use a FireWire cable to easily connect it to our other Mac, restart it in Target Disk mode (child's play: hold down the letter T), and back up her files. She got everything important backed up successfully — and just in time, it was to be the last restart of that hard drive. If we were a PC family, networking would not have been that easy, and she probably would have lost everything.

So after 5+ years having a laptop Joanie really wanted another, but I was encouraging her to branch out to the larger screen and keyboard and faster speed of an iMac. We went to Apple Store, she looked at both and couldn't decide at first, but then something clicked and she took the plunge.

Now I can't get her off the big screen. She's holed away in her office glued to the computer all the time. She was so excited to show me today how she can look at two windows at the same time — she was thrilled by this. It's almost like ... she's turning into me.

If she starts getting excited about cameras we'll know something needs to be done.

Creepy Malcolm

Malcolm was a vampire for Halloween. After returning from trick or treating he lurked around the house peering at his mother through his eyebrows. Joanie told him a few times to stop creeping her out, and went upstairs. Malcolm and I put our heads together and concluded she would really appreciate his creepy picture as her Mac desktop, and we made it happen. Alas, the fright was more than her little laptop could handle, her computer soon went on to the great docking station in the sky.

First Rays

More early morning shots from out in the country in Burnt Hills, NY.

Outstanding In My Field

This is one of many pictures I took the morning Malcolm missed the bus a couple weeks ago. I have been debating since then which landscape I wanted to post of the sun's first rays crossing the frosty fields.

It took me that long to decide none of them, and instead go with my self-portrait.

This happens to me a lot — I'll be out taking a bunch of pictures, arguing with myself which will make the best composition, and the throwaway shot I didn't spend a lot of time on turns out to be the most interesting. Huh.

I Am Choose

Since she could move independently Claire has been pulling videos off the shelf to look at the covers and hand them to us. We find them all over the house, far as can be from the TV. Today I asked her what she was doing and she said, "I am choose."

Today she also chose some eggs out of the refrigerator and smeared them all over the kitchen floor and into the family room carpet. It's a good thing she's so cute.

Dishes Helper

Claire loves bubbles any way she can get them, even if they're not in the tub. At least I got the dishes mostly done before she found out what I was doing in the kitchen.

Graaar!

Claire in character.

Don't Drink, Don't Smoke; What Do You Do?

We have pie eating contests. This is from the church Fall Festival (schmancy name for our Halloween party). Jonathan Madsen on the far right was the winner, he used his hair to soak up most of the pudding pie.

Lego Nirvana

Legos were a huge part of my childhood; they're the toy of the century. I still have all my original bricks from childhood, including my first set, the 1975 Rescue Helicopter, and one of my all-time favorites, the Moon Landing set, complete with separating ascent stage. A few years ago when I learned they mashed up Star Wars with Legos I bought them all. I could have used a traffic light at that deadly intersection.

Tonight in Orlando I visited my first Lego store ever — I was floored. You can buy sets you've never seen anywhere, create your own people, or make your own mix of bricks bought by the cupful. Since my kids don't read this blog, it's safe to say I spent a wad tonight.

Daily Special

Seen at a BWI airport coffee shop.

Election Day

Four years ago I took Malcolm (then age 7) and Madeleine (age 9) with me to vote. As we got into the booth they were intrigued when I pulled the lever that closed the curtain behind us. I explained that that voting was your personal decision, and it was private, you didn't have to tell anyone who you were voting for. Short pause. Next thing out of Malcolm's mouth at 80 decibels, echoing across the fire station: HEY, DAD!!!! CAN I PUSH THIS BUTTON FOR YOU FOR GEORGE W. BUSH?????!!!!!!

End of the Season

Malcolm finished off soccer season with his last game Saturday. He's so much more confident about being part of the game this year. Some of the other parents on the sidelines were making comments about how well he runs and intercepts the ball to defend ... that's my boy! I can't wait to see what he'll do next year. Madeleine also finished field hockey last week with her last game. If you saw the World Series at Philadelphia last week you'll know it's getting a little chilly up here for outdoor sports.

Forgotten

Yesterday the bus was early and Malcolm missed his ride to school. After I dropped him off I drove around in the country around Burnt Hills to see what I could find with my camera. This looks like an old wagon frame to me. When I see this stuff I wonder what it used to look like when it was new and people were using it.