planetruth

Sunday Morning Walk

2012-02-12T15:52:00.000-08:00

Sometimes you don't have to explain a walk.

Truckin', Got My Chips Cashed In

2012-02-10T22:21:00.000-08:00

I took my camera out today.

but, I got stuck teaching for most of the day. Stupid kids, why can't they just suck up information without me shoving it down their throats?

Funny thing is I was showing a movie, "Modern Marvels" on gasoline. This morning, during first period, I had a girl come in late, but that wasn't a big deal. The movie had just started. I swear she sat there for a full five minutes while the narrator said the word "GASOLINE" about 32 times. Then she raised her hand. I walked over. She said, "Mr. H, what is this movie about?" It's times like those that you don't know whether to slap your own forehead or the kid. Obviously, there was no help for this child, and I wanted to let the office know we lost another to abject stupidity. We don't have a code for that yet, but I'm thinking we should get one.

Well, the day finally ended, and I think I impressed upon one or two of them that petroleum is very important to our daily lives and that the Straight of Hormuz is important for keeping us in oil, and should it ever close, fuel prices will rise accordingly.

So, I got off work, after some work at deciding what I would do on Monday. (You know, real teachers do this a bit ahead of time, I think) I had to get milk, since Chloe seems to be drinking us out of milk these days. As I drove to the store, I saw this military truck outside Lowes. I had the camera, and had yet to use it this week, so I pulled in and did a drive by. Here are a few edits. Nothing special, just a little fun with my computer program.

I think this last one looks like a picture from a 1980s Time magazine article...well, I think it should.

I picked up Chloe and she was in top form. We got home just after Cora pulled in and we had a good evening. At one point, just before bed, she got on her pajamas and THEN put on her COW costume. I had to take a picture. Especially when she said, "Cheese."

Our little girl is potty training herself now. I feel like I am along for the ride most days. Chloe is a soul with so much life, as if she got extra. I am forever amazed by this little girl. She practically glitters, you know, Vampire-like, but better. She crackles with energy. She is just SO CHLOE! I love this little girl. If you meet her you fall in love with her. It's inevitable, so you may as well not fight it.

Yeah, she's good.

Retread

2012-02-06T13:58:00.000-08:00

In the golden age, you could buy retreaded tires. Tires that had been used once and then their old worn tread replaced. These tires sometimes broke into pieces, but they were cheaper than new tires. I am retreading an older photo for Barn Charms. I altered diffusion and saturation to make this.

I have been chosen to teach a class until the end of the year. Lately, I have been proctoring tests, administering grades and in general busy. I WANT to get out and take photos, but time, she ain't on my side (Stupid Rolling Stones, they had it wrong).

So, for Barn Charms, I enter this specimen in the hopes that you find it enlightening and entertaining.

Oh, What A Week!

2012-02-04T21:35:00.000-08:00

I may have mentioned before about the dog door. I got home and it was broken, so I had to fix it. Here is the finished product. Before I cleaned it.

I also won a Florida grown, Ponderosa Lemon! Now, I thought it'd be a smallish lemon, but I was greatly surprised to find that I won two small yellow bowling balls! FIVE INCHES in DIAMETER! Today we cut up the first one! Cora had some baking planned, but I had a better way of liquidating it.

Lemon Drops!

The husk looked like this after we took its zest and juiced it.

Our one year home study was today. We had the social worker come and check in on us to make sure we are being good parents. I think we passed.

We also, FINALLY, got this little beauty! The canvas photo in the middle. It required us to rearrange the whole wall. I have to say, I like the picture we finally chose. We deliberated for a long time about what was best. We thought about a scenic picture of China...but that just seemed like something we wouldn't care about gathering dust in a disused room. Then we thought about a family photo, but we decided that might be too quickly outdated. Finally we decided on something that meant to something to us. This does. I took it next to the waterfall in the White Swan on Shaiman Island, in Guangzhou, China.

Chloe fastened herself to Cora's necklace shortly after we laid eyes on her. That was a common thing to see. That little hand was forever grabbing that chain and holding on to it as though it were her life-line to Cora. It never failed to moisten my eyes. Still does. I cannot imagine a better way to remember that time and to never forget how dear we are to each other. It reminds us that we won't let go. We are a family. Forever.

Blowing Off Man Steam

2012-02-03T06:01:00.000-08:00

Ahh, man-toys.

I got the chance to blow off some steam the other day. A friend of mine works at a local pawn shop and is something of a gun nut. I always enjoy shooting, so I jumped at the chance to see what he had. I took my meager collection and we met up and had a great time.

They had a stock called "Slidefire" on one AK and the AR-15. This stock uses recoil and the shooter to cause the gun to jerk back and forth firing itself in a manner consistent with full-auto. It was a kick in the ass! I haven't had so much fun for a long time! It was also an effective way to piss through loads of ammunition. I underestimated how much was needed, but the guys spotted me some and we had a lot of fun!

The clack-clack-clack of the AK-47, the tut-tut-tut of the AR-15, and the clang-clang-clang of the M-14 were nothing to the SONIC BOOM from the Mosin Nagant. Couple with the ball of fire that comes from that cannon you would be hard pressed to find a more impressive surplus firearm for under $200.

Here you can see my friends using Slidefire to great effect!

At one point the AK was so hot after having a few hundred rounds fired through it, that my friend simply threw it in the snow. A testament to the AK is it's toughness and ability to fire in horrible conditions...it survived.

I had always wanted an AK, assuming it was a sexier version of my beloved SKS. The SKS fires the same round and is a dream to shoot. The AK on the other hand is less refined and a little more violent in the shooter's hands. I think I'll save my money and stick with the SKS.

Happy Friday to you all, I have to proctor a math test and then give quizzes to my classes afterword. Ah, the joys of being a grown-up...or at least faking it.

Florida Has Been Holding Out On US!!

2012-02-01T20:51:00.000-08:00

When I entered to win "A Lemon" from Alyson and Ford at "Imagine, It's Easy If You Try." I THOUGHT it would be a lemon that we in the Northwest are familiar with, that is less than 2 inches in diameter. I entered since Chloe likes to eat lemons at the restaurants we sometimes go to, and I thought it would be fun. I never imagined the MONSTER that would show up in the mail!

I thought, "Eh, we might have a chance." I soon forgot when the drawing would be and was off visiting a friend when Cora text-messaged me. Then I was confused by Cora's text message that said I had "Won the Lemon." I was wracking my brain all the way home. Then Cora enlightened me. I thought "Cool!"

Today, after a long day ~~warping~~ shaping young minds, I got home only to find that our dog door had bitten the dust. Gypsy has steadily been widening in the beam and I think that combined with the extreme velocities they go through that door at, basically weakened it until it finally just broke away from the door in several small pieces. Leaving a sizable hole for our lovely Washington weather to creep in.

So, I went in to the local hardware store and purchased another. This is Dog Door #3. I even measured it. I brought it home and noted that it seemed slightly smaller than the old one. I decided to try to smoosh Gypsy through it first...she could get her head and shoulders through it, but not her legs. CRAP! I packaged everything up, including Chloe and headed back to the store, explaining to Cora that the size was right but the dog was not. I went to the store and returned the small one and then discovered the next size up was $20.00 more! Holy CRAP! That FAT DOG is getting expensive!

On the way home the second time I realized I had forgotten to stop for the mail today and so stopped. I left a million dollars in the car (I saw a commercial saying "You wouldn't leave a million dollars in your car, don't leave your children." I hate that commercial and I WOULD leave a million dollars in my car since the empty water bottles and other garbage would camouflage it quite nicely!).

I got to the box and there was a key, which meant there was something big that wouldn't fit our box! So I unlocked the large parcel box and discovered a little bit of happiness! By the weight of it, I thought for sure they had packed it with rocks. When I got it home and Cora and Chloe and I unwrapped it we were delighted to find not one tiny lemon, but TWO HUGE (as in 5X7 inch monsters!) PONDEROSA LEMONS!! Did I mention they were HUMONGOUS!!!? Ginormous! GIANT! GIGANTIC! GRANDE!

Cutest Kid on Earth?

2012-02-01T05:34:00.000-08:00

These are from the past couple weeks. I've been meaning to post them, but get so darned busy. At least I finally got my grades entered and uploaded so the kids can have report cards.

Chloe found her jewelry and of course, put it all on. I think the paring of jewelry and a diaper is really very cute.

When we got all the snow a week or so ago, I had to take a few pics of Chloe in it. She likes snow...what kid doesn't?

I don't know about you, but I know what I call this kid. Cute!

A Few Last Shots

2012-01-28T21:52:00.000-08:00

On a Walk through Guangzhou's famous market district, we saw a number of things for sale. From Tiger Claws to Dried Star Fish. From dried lizards to dried snakes.

or the ever-present giant dried fungus.

Still, the people were fascinating to see. I cannot stress enough how comfortable I felt walking the streets in China, yet in similar places here at home, I would definitely question walking around without a few friends.

Did I ever mention I think I ran into Picachu?

We became a family in Guangzhou. We all became much more comfortable with each other.

And we weren't the only family that thought so. I wish we'd take the camera to breakfast once, since many of the families there were in the same situation with a whole bunch of the same issues! We had Chloe, whom everyone thought was a sweet little girl. (Of course, Cora and I knew better from our experiences with Chloe at night)

Yet, during the day time, she seemed such a sweet little girl!

but when you asked her to go to bed she became a holy living terror...but after she gave up, she was a sweet little girl who was asleep.

And this is the bed we got down on our knees and worshiped. You have no idea how important a soft bed is until you sleep on something like we slept on in Changsha! It was like going from concrete beds to something with a mattress. Chloe felt the same since she slept peacefully in her crib. Oh, those were the days.

She was such an out-going little girl, who knew she would continue such expansions? She continues to be fearless and wonderful. Even now, when she can sometimes be a handful, I am proud to know that I am the one she calls "Daddy."

I'm a lucky man. I have a lovely wife and a wonderful daughter. Who could ask for anything more?

A Year Ago We Went For A Walk

2012-01-26T05:48:00.000-08:00

I actually miss Guangzhou. It was a lot of fun to walk around the island, but mainly it was just so different from home!

China, January 25, 2011

2012-01-25T05:50:00.000-08:00

The famous red velvet couch at the White Swan Hotel.

China, January 24, 2011

2012-01-24T05:49:00.000-08:00

On this day we visited a crafts/art center. It was interesting, but I am almost certain there were better things that our guide could have shown us in Guangzhou.

Intricate carvings...

This young lady is made out of ceramic.

Cora and Chloe are on the other side of the glass.

Another China Day

2012-01-23T04:54:00.000-08:00

January 22, 2011 revisited

2012-01-22T09:34:00.000-08:00

Finally a comfortable bed!

Below, we are probably headed for breakfast.

I have a belly button?

Canon!

A new game.

She deigned to allow me to hold her on occasion...IF she had to.

The hotel we stayed at was cool. It had a 5 foot diameter crystal chandelier and...

this is indoor outdoor thing that our balcony looked out on.

More China, Jan 19-20, 2011

2012-01-21T21:33:00.000-08:00

This reaction happened a couple times in the Walmart in Changsha. Cora and Chloe surrounded by young girls who seemed very curious about foreigners and Chinese babies.

Below at some school in Changsha...I'm certain it would have stuck better in my mind better had we a slightly less annoying guide.

Still, one of my favorite shots.

Here we are about to buy tickets for the bullet train to Guangzhou.

Cora giving me one of those more attractive looks...probably asking me why the heck I'm taking yet another picture.

AAAAAND the infamous "HAVE TO" get to McDonalds before the train leaves...only to finally get through security (a process that I thought would make us late for the train) and find a Mcdonalds waiting next to our train. Our guide was very demanding that we get Mcdonalds before we got on the train. When we found the Mcdonalds next to the train you can bet we all (All us Americans) exchanged glances that were heavy with annoyance and eye rolling.

A view through the train.

I would have loved to have taken a slower train through the country side, since it was laced with wonderful views.

Despite it's speed and awesomeness, we were all so tired that it showed. Chloe had not yet slept on her own yet.

Next stop Guangzhou.

Just off the train.

Under the station, trains above and people below. Quite a piece of workmanship!

The Last Week

2012-01-21T16:38:00.000-08:00

Well, I have not been completely absent this week, just mostly. I'm getting warmed up with my class and it looks like I will be there for the rest of the year which makes me happy! I am like a grown-up now, with a real job and everything!

Chloe has been with us for a year. That means the world to us. She is all kinds of spectacular. It has been a very long time since the camera has ventured near Chloe in the bath, and this is what it got! She absolutely loves a bath. She was splashing that day. A LOT!

Below you see what it looked like for me on my drive to work the other day. It got worse the next day.

Here you see Chloe wearing my shirt.

Below you see her in her cow suit.

She loves her Legos, too.

And the snow. She loves snow. She outlasted the other kids at day care the other day. Apparently she was the last to go in and Nana made it sound as though she'd willingly have stayed out longer.

We had an interesting experience the other day. Our stove decided to try to burn down the house. We were trying to bake something, but the broiler came on instead. And we had no way to turn it off! We hit the reset button. Nothing happened. We switched the breaker and that is what stopped it. I waited and thought that it would reset itself, but it did not. As soon as power was restored, it came back to life and tried to broil away. We decided to try and get a repairman out here. It was going to cost more than we wanted to spend, so we did some talking and bought a new one.

Here you can see Chloe watching the delivery guys!

And below you see our beautiful new family member! I stood in front of her earlier today and it wasn't too hard to imagine piloting a starship. OK, maybe I have watched too much Star Trek, but I swear I heard Captain Picard say, "Engage!"

Hunger Games

2012-01-19T06:25:00.000-08:00

My wife, whom I love and cherish, has a habit of introducing me to some good books. Once again, she has. Now it is a movie coming out in about two months...have a look!

One Year!

2012-01-17T06:18:00.000-08:00

During first few minutes that we met Chloe there was a whirlwind of things going on. I was trying to watch my wife and new daughter, take a picture once in awhile until I handed my camera over to wonderful Andrew and Angie, trying to ask questions that made us sound like we had our heads on straight, trying to remember the answers, and trying not to show the fear that was penetrating every inch of my being. There were faces and words, a few I still remember, but the main thought seemed to be how am I going to screw this up? Not IF. This fact is never shown in the photographs because I usually took them.

There is, also, that moment when I first saw her. I instantly wanted to please the person behind those eyes. She was so serious, and so beautiful. After a few minutes of trying to get all those details of her former life and where she was now, we seemed to fly out the door back to our own room in a blur. While I may forget some things...

I will, however, never forget her eyes.

And the next few days were a time when we got to know her and she decided she couldn't get rid of us. She slept ON Cora.

Bath time was one of the few things she seemed to enjoy with any guarantee.

Here we are...err...Cora and Chloe are in the main entry of the hotel. It was opulent and just a wee bit freezing. No heat on the ground floor...except in the restaurant.

and here is where we ate a five star breakfast each morning.

Here we are waiting to sign papers...err...Cora and Chloe...I have once again retreated behind the camera.

Then, after returning from signing and making it official, we(the men) dashed off to get lunch.

It was raining...which quickly turned to snow.

Oh, and lunch was chopped chicken...not exactly appetizing for us westerners.

So I ended up making a run to the corner store, where I took some quickly drawn signs and eventually showed them to an old lady who seemed, if not sorry for my plight, at least helpful.

We ended up with some dried soup (Chicken). We awaited breakfast, with its recognizable cornucopia of delicious food. There were, of course street venders, but I never saw what kind of meat they were selling and the toasted sweet potatoes while warm, did not tickle the tastebuds enough for me to try one.

Returning to the room and the new daughter! Bath time was easy and she seemed to look forward to it...to this day the girl loves to spend time in the bath, easily outlasting the heat in the water...

And this beautiful, if sometimes sad, face is what we fell in love with. It has been a year. If it makes sense, it seems longer, but at the same time shorter. It's weird how dichotomous thoughts become when you look at a life-changing person. She is our moon and stars...and our Jupiter.

Ahh, You Thought I'd Forgotten!

2012-01-14T22:20:00.000-08:00

Last year we toured the Forbidden City, which was about a mile away from our hotel. Still, we took a car to the North gate and walked through the city to the south gate where we crossed under something like 8 (or was it 18?) lanes of traffic and went to Tiananmen Square. I've posted several pictures of the Forbidden City, so here are some of the crossing and Tiananmen Square.

Chairman Mao gets a new portrait every year, even though he's dead.

Here are a few shots from underneath the road.

Not too long after this shot we came upon a security check-point and had our bags X-rayed, while armed guards looked on. Forgive this blurry shot, if memory serves, he was a friendly little guy.

And let me just say, "JEEZZZZ! It was COLD!!!!"

a snap shot of the apartments.

Ah, evidence that the USA still exists!

and AHH, sweet warm vehicle...well, that's all relative, since the vehicle could have been considerably warmer. Still, it was a Chinese made "Red Star."

Wait until the 17th and you might see a few photos we haven't shown yet. These all should be new, too.

2012-01-13T18:27:00.000-08:00

Below you see the bamboo that is not bamboo...according to our guide.

they baked sweet potatoes over an open fire and sold them to passers by like hot-dog salesmen in the US.

This, if I remember right, is the national theatre or something similar, and the entrance goes under the lake, so from the outside the building looks like a spaceship landed in a lake.

5top Tagen Hear

2012-01-13T18:20:00.000-08:00

I saw this today and took these photos. There is so much to say here. Please give me captions! I'm begging for it! Do it in the comments!

Snap shots of our first day!

2012-01-13T05:59:00.000-08:00

An Annual Review, One Year Ago!

2012-01-12T06:46:00.000-08:00

Cora in Tokyo's Narita Airport, awaiting our flight to Beijing.

The view from the Novotel...

On our way to see the Great Wall! These photos have not been seen before...well, I'm pretty sure I haven't shown them before.

You can look forward to some more tonight.

It is so hard to believe it has been a year!

What I should be doing

2012-01-11T05:57:00.000-08:00

I should be in the shower. I should be getting dressed.
I should be making a lunch and cleaning up all that's messed.
I should be getting ready for my workday that soon begins.
I should be getting ready to kick the children in their shins.
Instead, I'm here with my computer,
surfing blogs, shopping for a daughter-muter.
Looking for ways to improve my golf game,
searching for the meaning of my name.
Blogging and writing and tapping away,
when I really should just great the new day.

Thanks to the Bean for putting me in a rhyming mood.

Good weekend, Bad Weekend

2012-01-08T20:43:00.000-08:00

You know how TV shows show a good cop and a bad cop? We have had a good weekend and a bad weekend! Chloe was an angel yesterday and most of today, but night night time was hard tonight. She screamed like a banshee. Got herself all sweaty and everything. She didn't get much of a nap. She got up several times after we put her down the first time. We tried several different tactics to bring sleep without screaming. Finally, I offered her a book and she asked for the "Napping House." I gladly fulfilled the request and, for now, she is quiet.

We bought a bamboo steamer this weekend. Friday night, really. Last night we made dim sum...or some version. Cora made the dough. They were awesome. You can go to her blog to see more pictures.

Chloe loves to help, and for three days in a row demanded a tutu. This morning's request went un-fulfilled.

We started to go to Target, but ended up in the Tri-Cities, where we did some shopping akin to what we used to do PC (Pre-Chloe) and Chloe was a trooper! It was a good day. We met up with Cora's sister and had lunch and then we were off to home. I smoked some cheese tonight and I think it turned out ok!

Finally the Gremlin is in bed and at least quiet if not asleep. Hurray!

My first week teaching went well. I had butterflies the first morning, but fell into a routine and I feel the other teachers are going to take me under their wing if I need it. Good to know there is support. I've gotten some good advice and I have heard some fun things.

My old kids in the Science class miss me. The "New guy is too mean!" Maybe I was too nice...or had given up. When I walked in on Tuesday, I made them copy down my rules and then told them a little about me. Then we went on to have a mini-lesson. Since then we seem to have gotten off on the right foot and the haven't even tried getting the bad habits that my former class had.

I've given some lectures: Why are we studying missionaries in the Northwest anyway? And some advice of my own: "Don't make a girl mad. If you make a guy mad, he'll punch you in the shoulder. If you make a girl mad, she'll reach down into your soul and tear something out and you'll never be the same." And I have had my first parent come in to talk to the principal: I was discussing how language changes and use the King James Bible compared to bibles printed in modern language to illustrate, since we were discussing missionaries. Apparently one of the children deemed that I was disrespecting the King James Version. My fellow teachers laughed and said it was because I was new...No problem, nothing abnormal. GOOD!

It's nice to hear my old kids in the hall try to get my attention just so the can wave or say hi. My new kids don't seem to have had any trouble adjusting, so, as long as I keep my nose clean and stay on top of things, it should be fine!

Despite the Chloe-fits, it was an excellent weekend!

More Chloe-Crack

2012-01-05T21:56:00.000-08:00

Here's another Chloe fix...you guys are addicts.

We went to gym class tonight. Because my lower back was bothering me, Cora went out on the floor with her. She is awesome...well, both of them are. This is what Chloe wore...isn't she stinking adorable?

Good Golly!

2012-01-04T21:53:00.000-08:00

Some people have mentioned that I haven't been posting as many pictures of Chloe as they think I ought to. Yes, she is adorable. No, I don't want to share...just kidding. I am going to share, but you're going to get all the bad shots...who am I kidding? There are no bad shots.

Below she is still wearing some of dinner on parts of her face...we cleaned her up shortly after, but when I turned my camera sideways, she thought she ought to follow its lead!

On New Years Eve we made egg roles.

Chloe approved.

I hope the Chloe update has met with success!!

It's Over, Dang It!

2012-01-03T05:34:00.000-08:00

Break is over. Yeah, that blows. No more standing in the house in the morning and wondering what hurricane came through in the minutes between now and the time it was clean.

This barn is located just across the road from the Buena Airport. This side looks almost exactly like the other side of this barn. As you can see in the first picture there is a corral behind it. Now it is amongst apple, plum/prune, and pear orchards. I shot these last week just after sunrise. Go on over and see Tricia's Barn Charm. I'm late posting, but better late than never.

I begin a new position today, one that I hope to have last until the end of the school year. It is a Pacific Northwest History position at a local HS. This is what I'm certified for. I love history. But, I have not taught history for quite awhile. I always get stuck in elementary classrooms or for the past few months, Science. I'm more than a little nervous, but I will survive the day, hell, I shoot from the hip everyday and I'm comfortable with that, so going into my subject area SHOULD be a relaxing idea...ah, well.

Chloe has been growing and learning and just becoming a little girl. We have been having conversations as her language abilities shoot into fast forward. She isn't using a lot of words strung together, but she is improving! She reminds us to put our coats on before going outside. If someone sneezes of coughs, chances are, she will walk off to a box of Kleenex and bring you a tissue. She loves playing in her kitchen and at her princess vanity. She loves it when we get on the floor and play with her.

Last night I had her in stitches, laughing hard over the things I was trying to put in her shape box. You know where you match the square to go in the square hole and the circle for the...well, you get the idea. So does Chloe. Well, I had been trying to put them in the wrong holes and she was showing me the right ones, then I reached for one of her new rain boots and you would have thought that i was the height of comic humor when I tried to put the boot through the much to small holes. Her giggle is worth its weight in platinum. The kid is awesome!

Don't forget to go to Barn Charm!

Books

2012-01-01T15:53:00.000-08:00

Kindle. It's one of my favorite things. Who knew a little electronic device that does nothing more than show text would be one of my favorite things? I never imagined. When we got Cora one a little over a year ago, I thought it would be an interesting gadget, but nothing that would truly be useful. How wrong I was. She bought one for me for my birthday in March. I have read more in the past year because of that little device than I would have otherwise, and I LIKE reading.

It may be the ease of reading that it allows. Perhaps it is because we can both read the same book at the same time. Or, it could be that you can put more than one book on it and it is such a small package. I seem to recall paperbacks being harder to work with. If you finished one, you had to wait until the next time you visited the book store. We no longer have a decent books store in Yakima so I am glad I don't have to go visit one for my books. All I have to do is turn on my Kindle's wireless and buy a book. No trip to town, just instant gratification.

Cora started reading what is called Urban Fantasy. It is a genre very close to Sci-Fi and Fantasy, yet it grounds itself in the present and in seemingly recognizable places, then it adds a dark monster, like a werelion, a vampire, or a faery. All-in-all, I never imagined I'd enjoy reading them, since they seem to carry a feminine feel to them. Far from that, though, these are fun books to read. There's slicing and dicing and knocking down the back guys with shear might! There's villains with devious plans, only to be foiled by the hero/heroine. There's plenty of humor. They are just plain good books. They aren't Shakespeare, but honestly, I was never fond of him, nor much of the other "classics."

I still buy most of my history books in paper form (it just seems right), but for the day-to-day, get-myself-away-from-whatever-problem-I-have-at-the-moment, these books completely and totally rock.

The fact that we have been reading the same books, mostly concurrently, adds a lot to our relationship and our ability to communicate with each other since we share so much. We can make references to the stories we're reading and know what the other is talking about. It's that sharing that strengthens our relationship that much more. Usually one of us is ahead of the other, since it is hard to read at the exact same rate, so we are forever asking where the other is. It is natural for us to answer the other using a percentage, since that is the way our devices measure the books we read.

I can think of no better way to enter the new year but reading together, as we have so many years previous, except, now we are reading the same books and using Kindles. Does this sound like a sales pitch for Kindle? Probably, but, it's true. We both enjoy our Kindles far more than we imagined.

What have we been reading?

*Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews

*Dark Fever series by Karen Marie Moning

*Night Huntress series by Jeaniene Frost

*Jane Yellowrock series by Faith Hunter

Orion!

2011-12-28T22:09:00.000-08:00

I spent the morning getting some errands run, but I did stop and shoot a few pictures of a P-3 Orion that was making touch and goes. He's from Whidbey Island NAS, but no one there would tell me what squadron he was from...like it was national security or something. Honestly, all i wanted to be able to do was say, "Hey, guys from Squadron XX, way to go, you brought smiles to me and my daughter this morning!!" Oh, well. Can't say thanks, gotta just think it at them real hard and maybe they'll hear.

The Old Homestead

2011-12-27T07:21:00.000-08:00

About 25 miles to the East of my house is this homestead. I've watched it through the years. When I was still in high school it had a windmill for pumping water into a trough. That has long since fallen. There used to be a few more buildings, but all that's left now are two cars, two farm implements, and two buildings. I doubt if the one below quite counts as a barn, but it IS an out building and that's close, right?

I hope you'll click on over to Barn Charms and see some of the barns there. I've been out of the mix lately for a variety of reasons, many of which center around being a parent of a two year old.

Too Much Elmo?

2011-12-25T13:27:00.000-08:00

Christmas! Ho Ho Ho!!

2011-12-25T10:45:00.000-08:00

We spent Christmas Eve with Cora's family and had a great time! I managed to snag a GREAT camera bag!! Chloe managed to make a great haul, too! But most of all it was great seeing family. And, to me, that's the whole reason for the season! I love seeing family that I don't usually see!

Of course, this is Chloe's first Christmas! We are so beyond happy to celebrate it with her! She is a quick study and was ripping into the wrapping in no time!

She and her cousin managed to keep everyone busy. Here you see Leah with her baby and stroller! Both girls liked that. Something we did not foresee.

Merry Christmas to you all!!! We are relaxing as a family this morning. We'll see my parents soon and then have tomorrow to spend together as a family before Cora has to go back to work.

Merry Happy Good Tidings!

2011-12-24T09:08:00.000-08:00

I hope every person out there has a Happy Holiday! (If you're Jewish, enjoy that Hanukkah!) We are going to celebrate Christmas...and a couple birthdays. Cora's sisters were born today, so Happy Birthday to both of them! (If it were me I'd have sent Santa a note concerning his disappointing lack of taste and consideration, but Cora was a good sister.) If anyone is celebrating Kwanza, well, i don't know much about it, but I hope it's good! And Boxing Day is right around the corner, Cora got that off, thank goodness!

Chloe loves to read, that's the reason for the photo above. It's one of the shots I got of her this week. I thought it was sweet.

I took the picture below and I wanted to share what I'd done to it...Which do you like?

well, whatdya say? I know you've got an opinion. Everybody does, and they usually share it whether you ask or not, and I AM asking, so go for it! I was just having fun with it, so there's no skin off my nose!

Enjoy the holiday of your choosing!

The Pleasures of Sesame Street and Traditions!

2011-12-23T11:25:00.000-08:00

It's 7AM, what are you watching on TV? Here, at our house, it's Sesame Street. Ahh, the pleasures of toddler devoted programming. Today's show is about siblings. Hurrah.

Speaking of siblings, my sister discovered something in her closet yesterday. Click here and see the first picture, in that picture you will see the stuffed animals that my sister and I have been passing back and forth for over 20 years. That is what she found in the closet. We have been coming up with more and more devious ways of delivering the animals into each other's homes or arms. One time my sister gave the animals to us on an airplane. Another time I sent the animals to an aunt in Colorado, where she ambushed my sister with them as gift. When my sister held an open house shortly after buying her first house, the animals found their way into her basement. when we moved back from California, the animals came to help pack! Ah, I love tradition!

For the past week or so, I have been dropping hints, via texts, to see if she had located them. Each time I was somewhat dismayed that she had not located them yet. She had nearly caught me as I was arranging them in her youngest's bedroom. I had explained that Chloe needed to be changed. Thankfully, I had changed Chloe first, so had a diaper to offer my nosy sister when she came in and almost caught me! I quickly hid the bag in the closet when she left, hand full of diaper.

Christmas is coming fast. I think we are caught up on gifts. I'd love to get more for Cora, but more would mean time and money that we don't necessarily have.

I took this picture at a local church.

Ah, Solstice

2011-12-22T07:26:00.000-08:00

Chloe and I went to town yesterday. I took her to the doctor for a quick check, she was fine. Then we went for a short drive during which i took a few pictures. Which I brought home and put my own touch upon.

They were kind of boring shots before, but they are marginally more interesting now.

As you can see, Chloe decided to play for awhile.

I have a lot to do, but doing things with a two year old is, at best, a challenge. I don't know how single mothers do a thing! They have my eternal respect. I get a few things done during the day, but honestly, it's a small percentage of what I could do if not tripping over Legos, toys, and a toddler. Speaking of whom, have a look at this. Chloe disappeared down the hallway the other night. Since it was a bit too quiet, I went to investigate.This is what I found.

Should be a good day. I need to find out what I am expected to bring for Christmas...what kind of food, etc. should be enough time for me to do some shopping. I've been trying to make progress on the house, but yesterday, I was as tired as Chloe at nap time.

Napalm Poo

2011-12-20T21:43:00.000-08:00

I stayed home with Chloe again today. As a teacher whose Christmas break is current and on-going, I suppose that shouldn't be a surprise. We went to town and did some Christmas shopping, got some groceries, and hung around in stores doing daddy and daughter things, like I would sing to her while she was in the cart. At one point I was singing, "I Want to Hold Your Hand," by the Beatles to her, when she said, in increasing volume "NO Dad-deee!" Then she proceeded to tell me she wanted Down Baby...a song she has come to love. Some heads turned since I had NOT been singing loudly. Ah, the joys of a two-year-old.

We got home and I gave her lunch. She finished and I decided to give her some play time to wind down. I was sitting in my chair when I heard her grunt and strain. I knew it was a poopy diaper, and normally would have called, "NOT IT!" But Cora was at work, and the dogs do not do well at baby sitting. I've tried!

So, I gave her a couple minutes to be sure there would be no surprises when we got to the changing table. See!? Smart, huh!

When I grabbed her I noticed her sleeves were still wet from the soup she'd been playing in. Then, as we crossed the threshold of the hallway I became aware of a moistness at her lower back. "Huh," I thought to myself, "I didn't see her spill soup back there." Just then the air currents changed and I got a very heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach as I realized what I was probably feeling. Never being one to enjoy a good mystery, I turned the child over to investigate.

I instantly regretted my curiosity.

There was this...it was the color of...it looked to be the consisten- ...well, it was crap. It was a gooey form that had properties of watery refried beans. I assumed it was more pasty and would stick to wherever it was. That would have been a useful form for it to take. It did not however act that way.

I noted that what had come out was creeping out the back of her diaper, much like a tube of tooth paste, except you never want your tooth brush within a mile of this stuff. The smell was...overpowering.

I set her down on the changing table and began to take her clothes off only to find they were all contaminated. I started say "NO, no, no, nooooo," without realizing it. I used that horrified, semi-speechless, scared voice, you know, the one you keep hidden away, saving it for a Zombie Apocalypse? Yeah, that one.

Chloe began to move as she always does, but the tone of my voice must have meant something to her, it probably touched one of those primal parts of her brain, because she stopped. I grabbed a clean diaper and put it under her and began removing the old, and cleaning her bottom. I got her cleaned enough that I felt I could put her down.

Then I began to remove the diaper which was full and sodden. I expected the entire pile to remain stable, stuck to itself and the diaper, obeying known laws of physics. However, as I neared the diaper pail, some strange vagary of gravity, or perhaps it was an air current, slapped playfully at my hand and the entire affair shifted, at which point the pile disintegrated and flung itself in several directions at once.

I was staring in slow motion as the whole affair fissioned into a horrible mess. Splatters lit upon the comforter of the bed, the sheet, the diaper pail, the garbage can, the pair of pants I had removed a moment before and other less important, but equally revolting places. My hand was no longer safe, either. It was like napalm, it stuck to everything it touched. Yet, it seemed quite willing to travel! Oh, the humanity!!

Chloe remained at the epicenter of the odor extravaganza. She looked fairly calm, except for the fact that I knew what was on her back. I quickly ascertained there was no helping the bed, and returned to my daughter after depositing the vile Luv atop the diaper pale.

I examined her at arm's length and decided the bathtub was the safest bet and off we flew. I held the child held away from me, whilst muttering what I hoped were comforting words, but must surely have sounded like I didn't hold any hope for saving her.

Into the tub, I discovered that a shirt can be taken off the wrong way. This saved her from getting it near her head and after a quick bath, we returned to her room for pajamas and then I let her sit in the front room under a towel while I began to address the mess simmering in her room. Decontamination took awhile, but finally it was safe for human occupation and I sent her to nap while I tried to forget the horror I'd witnessed.

Cora and my sister tell me this is not uncommon for parents. I have never heard poop stories like this. Of course, I rarely used to pay any attention to parental stories since they obviously are boring compared to the world of history and aircraft. I now have a personal interest in these stories, since one day they may save my life, so if you have one, let me know!!!

A Day With Daddy

2011-12-20T06:58:00.000-08:00

She was trying to help me in the kitchen while I was doing dishes, but she inevitably wants to shut the dishwasher before i am ready, so I told her to go play with her computer...I even set it up for her...she seemed to like it.

Then we went for a walk and got the mail. We went to the park and played on the swings and went down the frosty slide. Then we came home and she made some fashion choices before watching Sesame Street.

She was totally engrossed in Sesame Street and if she noticed the flash going off, ignored it.

Then it was time to do an art project, which included paint, but I chose to leave the camera in a safe place while that was happening. It was safe when the crayons came out.

I think days with Daddy are ok by this girl's reckoning.

She loves Elmo, have you noticed?

Timeout!

2011-12-19T21:14:00.000-08:00

We don't throw things.

Busy Weekend, and Never Long Enough

2011-12-18T21:14:00.000-08:00

I saw someone post on Facebook a photo that had obviously been run through a program, but I liked it and sat there visualizing how they'd done it. Of course, iPhones do it automatically, but I had to do all the steps in the right order. I think I did ok, not quite and exact match, but close.

This weekend we tried to get some of the Seasonal stuff done. Cora managed to wrap packages, we got a chance to go shopping, and we took Chloe to see Santa. Check out Cora's blog for THAT photo! It was awesome how she walked up to the man in red and, while not entirely relaxed about it, nevertheless confident. Plus we were only a few feet away. She's been talking about Santa for the past couple weeks! Convinced that he'll be bringing candy...I'm sure he will.

We built a gingerbread house, and by built, I mean we purchased a pre-made one and all we did was ice it and decorate it.

Chloe helped herself to the candy decorations and by the end of the evening was bouncing, literally, off furniture. She also accompanied herself with a Ti-ti-ti-ti clockwork sound that seemed to have the tempo of her movements! We took her for a walk to try and burn off the energy from all that candy. I have never seen a kid get so wound up on sugar!

All-in-all, it was a good weekend. Cora and I got to eat lunch sans Chloe!

On the down side, Cora doesn't get to spend much time with us for the next couple weeks. Which is totally sucky. I think you ought to get two days for Christmas! At least! So, Chloe and I will be a Dangerous Duo this week!

Have a safe week!

It's a War!

2011-12-14T05:45:00.000-08:00

I own a Nikon. I have shot with a Canon. I like my Nikon, but I am fond of my Canon, too. Not everyone has similar sentiments. Lot's of people have STRONG opinions on which brand to buy, and which is better. People will write some interesting things concerning the other type. I prefer Nikon for my big cameras, and given our experience, Canon for point and shoot. I haven't had the chance to use a big Canon, so my preference is limited to experience. I found this video and thought anyone who sees it would get a big kick out of it, even without knowing about the fierce loyalties involved in camera brands.

Note the Canon people are the good guys...poor Nikon men. I hope it brought a smile to you, it did for me!

Someone's Turning SIX!

2011-12-11T21:04:00.000-08:00

Long ago, the Beatles, a group that most of my generation and the generation before are familiar with, took a misunderstanding and went with it. Paul McCartney was in an auto accident. The fans thought perhaps Paul had died and because the group was experiencing such success that they had taken a look-alike and dressed him up as the now deceased Paul. The Beatles took this odd hypothesis and they added to it by putting "hints" on their album covers and in their songs. To most people, the albums look like 1960s albums, but to a devout fan who was certain of a cover-up, they looked like hints of Paul's demise. Take, for instance the left handed guitar as a grave on the Sergeant Pepper Album. Or the lyrics of "Glass Onion!" Or the cover of "Magical Mystery Tour!" There are MANY instances that fans cite as being hints of the loss of Paul. I just thought that was an interesting fact...now, I'll go on to more interesting stuff!

The main point of this post, is: My oldest nephew Eli is turning six in a few days. He is an awesome little boy, whom I am quite fond of, and he is ALL boy! So, it should come as no surprise that the game my sister and brother-in-law chose for everyone to play was completely boy related. SHOOTING! It couldn't BE more boy! Boys LOVE shooting shit! That's the God's honest truth! I was a boy! I loved shooting things!

I shot probably 500 to 1000 birds around our house between the time that I was 8 and 15. I don't recall the exact year I received my first BB gun, but it was a wonderful toy and I spent many hours pushing .177 caliber BBs through its barrel. I probably put more than the company-specified number through it. It finally died. It may be somewhere in my stuff, but I think I finally got rid of it since it wouldn't shoot past fifteen feet by the time I was 22. I should have kept it. It was a Daisy.

I need to get one for Chloe.

So, we had marksmanship games. Involving BB guns, rubber band guns, and Sling shots. My team was the Green Team. We had my High School friend Brian, Myself, and his wife and one of the kids. Brian nominated me as the shooter for the BB gun round. I did my best. I decided quantity was more important than quality, and I was rewarded.

I was greatly disappointed when I found one of the targets for my rubber-band gun was taped down and would not fly away as expected. I know that my teammates added to our tally immeasurably, so I can't take credit for the final tally, as you can see, Brian ALSO got a bit of time in on the BB range. It was a great time! I enjoyed catching up with my old High School Friend and I couldn't help but notice that he would be a great parent!

But, I digress, it's nearly Christmas!! It even showed in my sister's bathroom!

The Birthday Cake was homemade and delicious! Look at the cookie snowman!

The birthday boy's youngest brother was cute as usual...

Grandpa even tried to help his Grandson during the shootout!

I can only assume it is difficult having so many birthdays near Christmas...I'll never know, of course.

Ahhh, back to the shooting!

Note how my father takes aim with his i-phone!

David, observing the fall of shot.

Uncle Brian making his best Davy Crocket impression! "Goodbye Santa Anna!"

Ahh, here is the Birthday boy!! SIX is such an IMPORTANT age!

I couldn't NOT shoot his sister, too! Isn't she becoming a grown up!

Now we see the birthday Boy opening gifts!

And what both Cora and I are foreseeing as a dastardly duo...two cousins, frightening close in age, it will likely be the case that we will all be looking for them in the future when someone sees smoke.

Ah! CAKE!

The SIX year old begins to wish! I know he will be an awesome kid! He already is!

Did I mention that the GREEN team won? Yeah, that would AT LEAST in part, be because of ME!!!!

Never bring a knife to a shooting match!

And never challenge me to a match of marksmanship!

2011-12-11T08:33:00.000-08:00

I took an hour and went out to take some pictures yesterday. It was refreshing. It was also colder than a well digger's destination, to quote my father. Many of his sayings don't quite add up, but we don't mention that to him, it hurts his feelings.

Speaking of family, I have a nephew who will be turning six in a few days! We will be celebrating his birthday a little early today. So, we'll be seeing the family later today!

In the meantime, enjoy these two photos I took yesterday.

A Few Photos from the Past Few Days

2011-12-10T08:41:00.002-08:00

A new game at night is "Night Night." Whereby Chloe grabs you from your chair and brings you down to her level. There she introduces you to a pillow, expecting fully for you to pretend to go to sleep, or, barring that at least keep your head on the pillow...if you don't she will tell you, "Lay DOWN." If you don't she will repeat the command and follow it with either a hand on your head or the word, "NOW!" at which point, I immediately put my head down. She joined me and we got to read books. Cora was kind enough to snap a few shots.

Yesterday, a close family friend texted me asking if we would like a "Princess Vanity." I said sure, unsure of what the heck she was talking about, but suspecting it would be something Chloe liked, whatever it was. I picked it up and was pleased to find something about Chloe's size and when she saw it, my suspicions were confirmed. She had hardly walked in the door and made a bee line for it...this morning she went straight to it, bypassing the "kitchen." I think she is smitten.

Of course, we had to watch Elmo, too. But only if Daddy piled pillows just right and covered her with a blanket. She also needed some "Hot Milk."

Friday Beckons

2011-12-09T06:16:00.001-08:00

I am SOO glad it's Friday! I am tired and ready for a couple days off. I have been grading projects the past day or so, and suspect I should bring them home to work on, but...nahhh, I am not doing that. I'll do it at work. The kids took all of five minutes on their work, why should I take part of my weekend for that? Well, some actually did some good work, and actually seem to have picked something up! Amazing!

There are a few things I need to do this weekend that I'd like to avoid, working around the house being one of them, and Christmas gift shopping...love that. Fortunately that last one lands soundly in Cora's court and often it is only my opinion that is needed!

Last night I put Chloe to bed, or tried, since she was loathe to fall asleep quickly. At one point I sung several songs to her. Mostly Beatles songs. It wasn't until I began singing "Hello,Goodbye" that she sung along with me...it was probably the best duet I'll ever take part in. Obviously she is the real talent. I'd start by singing, "You say yes-" then she'd say "Yesss." "I say no." She'd respond with "Nooo." "I say
hi,' you say 'helloooo.'" She's sing, "Heh-whoa." It was awesome!

I'm not certain how I'll take being a stay at home dad for two weeks, it should be ok, but we may be visiting Mom at work a few times. Maybe I'll get a chance to take some photos...I have done that much lately. Being a responsible adult and faking being a teacher really takes away from all that free-time I used to have.

A Call To Order

2011-12-06T06:30:00.000-08:00

"Now that I've got your attention, let me tell you why you're here..."

New Religious Van

2011-12-05T18:44:00.000-08:00

You hear people saying "Don't take the Christ out of Christmas," but do you ever hear them say, "Let's put Jesus on the road?" I think we might have a good notion there! May I present to you, the Jesus Windstar! Who knew Jesus made vans?

Big Decorator!

2011-12-05T06:16:00.000-08:00

We got a tree that seemed a bit on the large side, once we got it in the house. It looked smaller in the forest.

We got lights and some garland on it while Chloe was down for nap, but waited for her so we could all do decorations.

She took to it as she has everything else, with a willingness and a voracity of a hungry animal!

or...a gremlin. Our friends, with whom we traveled to China, characterized Chloe as a gremlin...We had fun with that!

Toby hates the decorating of the tree, because every year we make him put on these antlers. It's a tradition he'd like to do without.

the finished product!

The Great Christmas Tree Hunt of 2011

2011-12-04T08:26:00.000-08:00

We went up in the mountains yesterday to get a Christmas Tree. And this is what we found...a cool little gazebo next to a river, it was really neat, and quiet back in the woods.

Our first few attempts did not come up with success.

The snow was...deep. Which made pulling a sled and a tree more than a little work. Both Cora and I are sore this morning. The tree is in the back yard waiting for us to prepare the front room for a tree.

We are sore, but Chloe suffers no such problem...I can't imagine why.

Morning! Adventure Awaits!

2011-12-03T07:39:00.000-08:00

Just before dawn, on the way to work, I stopped for a few shots. I like this one.

We are going to try going up into the hills for a tree today! Wish us luck! We are far from ready!

Helper

2011-12-01T06:26:00.000-08:00

Chloe is a helper. When you go somewhere, like " 'opping," she wants to help push the cart, assuming she's on the ground and not IN the cart. Same with taking the stroller somewhere, she wants to help push if she isn't in it. If we sneeze, and she knows where the tissues are, she will retrieve one and offer it to you. When we decorated the house the other night, she was in the thick of it...ready to climb the ladder if you stepped away from it for...oh, a nanosecond! She is awesome! It promises to be a good Christmas this year! And Santa better watch out, he might have a volunteer helper!

Just, You Know, Stuff.

2011-11-30T06:03:00.000-08:00

I haven't taken many pictures lately. I haven't done much of anything it seems. I want to, but work and life seem to get in the way. We did decorate for Christmas, but I still need to get the Christmas boxes back out to the shed. I guess it's just the time of year that it seems like there's so much to do but so little sunlight. I automatically start to power down once the sun slips below the horizon and I want to go hibernate with a book and a blanket and a hot beverage.
\
Chloe does not get that same feeling from the sun going down, instead she just keeps going. She was up for who knows how long last night. I know Cora did not get much rest. Cora took the brunt of Chloe's Chloe-ness and let me sleep, but I don't feel very rested at all. I hope that Chloe decides to sleep tonight.

On the bright side, she went to her one month check up after the ear tube and passed with flying colors! The doctor was very pleased with how it looks. She, of course, caused every person in the waiting room to fall instantly in love with her. We are constantly followed by comments, sometimes said in hushed voices and sometimes not so hushed, of how cute she is. Sometimes I reply, "I know. We live with toxic levels of cute, one can only wonder what long term exposure will do to us...so far I feel normal, but I may grow a third arm...who knows."

I have to go deal with my vaguely human students today again. My last class yesterday simply trampled all over my patience and I finally assigned them an essay due at the beginning of class today. That was assigned about 4 minutes before the bell rang because they just would not shut up! I hadn't planned to make it due at the beginning of class, but one of the idiots asked if that were the case and it sounded like a slightly mean thing to do, so I said, "YES!"

Today I get to take the little fiends out in the halls and see what five billion years looks like in an attempt to model it in the physical world...so they can visualize it...yeah, we'll just see how that works...wish they'd issue a tazer...I bet I'd get more cooperation from them.

And that is it for now.

Make Shift Studio and a Holiday Weekend I Don't Want to End

2011-11-27T20:56:00.000-08:00

Cora and I set up what can best be described as a poor man's studio. It was an old projector screen with every movable light in the house in the area, plus an old white sheet. It left much to be desired. Still, we got a couple of impromptu photos that turned out. Chloe has had a few bad experiences with that darned screen, so she was reluctant to go near it...apparently she doesn't trust her dad when it comes to certain issues of safety. Still, it worked ok for being last minute.

We've done a little holiday shopping and during that time we have been trying to introduce Chloe to Santa. In Lowes ( a home improvement store) there was what can best be described as a 20 foot santa, blown up with fans and lit from within. Chloe was instantly enamored.

We happened to be in Walmart today and there was a Santa and they were giving out free pictures. Well, we dove right in...err, Chloe did. She was a little careful, but in the end decided that Santa was definitely OKAY! Especially after the man gave her a candy cane...She likes candy. I bet you're surprised about that!

So, we came home and decorated the house (outside). Cora and I strung up lights while Chloe took a nap. Cora'd promised her to go for a walk when she awoke, so she went quietly. After that I went back to Walmart for the free photo.

As you can see Chloe approved!

Her First Santa!

And, as promised, we all went for a walk. Chloe, at times riding, at others pushing.

I gave her a flashlight and made her night.

She got back in the stroller and then we went around a corner and she wanted out again...perhaps you can see why.

Look closer...yeah, it's SANTA! SANTA! SANTA!

We've created a monster! Happy Holidays!!

Cousins

2011-11-25T16:10:00.000-08:00

Cousins are fun.

Sleeper

2011-11-23T06:11:00.000-08:00

I am a father. Sometimes, I just have to repeat it to myself, because on occasions I just don't believe it. I also can't believe that someone decided that I could be trusted to help manage and care for such an obviously wonderful kid. We are so incredibly lucky to have Chloe.

This morning my alarm went off and I stirred, setting the snooze for just a few more minutes of sleep. My brain began to function, slowly revving up to speed. It was as I lay there with my eyes shut, slowly preparing for the day, that I sensed movement. Not Cora on the other side of the bed, but nearer, right at my shoulder. I knew and remembered clearly bringing Chloe to bed with us last night, so it wasn't a surprise. But, what really just melted my heart, was that she re-positioned herself off of the pillow beside me so she that lay her head on my shoulder, molding herself next to me. Then I didn't want to get up at all. That little bit of pre-morning cuddle was enough to make my day! I carefully re-positioned her so she could cuddle next to her mom and I could get up and begin my morning routine, but I did not want to.

We have so much for which to be thankful. Sometimes, I just forget to wonder at it all. Chloe makes me remember, though. I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving.

These were taken yesterday morning, but could be this morning, too. When no one is in the bed, she sleeps sideways. We are not sure why she sometimes wakes in the middle of the night crying, but sleeping between Mom and Dad helps, so we are not complaining.

Good Night Barn

2011-11-21T21:34:00.000-08:00

I gotta say I like the Good Night books. There is Good Night Gorilla and Good Night Moon, and I even read a Halloween one called Good Night Goon. I'm sure there are others since the ones I've seen seem pretty popular with the younger crowd. I figure there ought to be one call Good Night Barn.

Here are my submissions for Barn Charm. I wish this Monday thing would work out better more often than it does.

Today I discovered that a couple pieces of electronics in my room were stolen. That makes me unhappy, more so since I think they were probably gone on Friday, too. A student called my attention to it and then hinted that they had seen it on their bus. That would have been the day I left early to be with my Mom at the hospital. Apparently you cannot trust people to sub for you. I never thought I'd say that. But, I left the door locked, so all they had to do was shut it. I suspect, partly due to the statement of my student, that it was taken DURING class...HOW?!?! I hate that I cannot trust the students I teach.

I called the security officer and set him on the trail...Jeez! I hate this.

But, barns make me smile.

Oh, AAAAAANNNND I got to see the dentist. Well, I went to get my teeth cleaned. I like the people there, they're nice. However, why does every dental hygienist think that they have to talk so much when you cannot answer them? What kind of cruel person does that? Especially when I was trying to get back home in time for Gym Kids tonight...ARGH! OK, and you think that's bad enough? Try this: She knocked a piece of my filling free...it came out. So, it took another few minutes to get another filling put in, after he put a metal thing into my my tooth-YEEEOUCH!!...on the bright side, it was free.

Chloe made me smile with her antics at Gym Class! I'm relaxing now with a ~~bottle~~ glass of wine and my beautiful wife. All hail Tuesday!

A Little Bit Of Fun!

2011-11-20T17:26:00.000-08:00

I got a screen set up and decided that what I have is not a studio rig, but that can be fixed with a little investment.

Photography, and Experimentation

2011-11-20T09:34:00.000-08:00

Years ago, I used to do some photography. I got a Pentax P3N for graduation. It was an SLR(you could see through the lens). I used that camera to great advantage. It used film, which was really the only option at the time. Even by 1995, when the first digital cameras began to show on the market, film was by far a better option. The problem with film, of course, is it's expensive.

**Note: If you don't feel like reading a boring post, I understand if you just skip to the photos.**

Photography, like anything else is only mastered with practice, trial and error, and patience. The nice thing about film is you had a lot of detail that digital cameras could not match. That is, until the past few years. Once cameras began getting to 8 or so megapixels they began really catching up on film. Now there are cameras with more than 40 megapixels(those are medium format cameras, whereas professional 35mm type digital SLRs are getting 24 megapixels)...that's a lot of pixels. Now digital is as good or better than film. My own camera is fairly moderate in the megapixel department, only 12.3. That is 12.3 million pixels, or dots of color. That is plenty for a 16X20 inch enlargement.

With film, you could shoot black and white and develop it at home if you had the right chemicals and equipment. I still have most things necessary for a darkroom. On the other hand, you had to work a lot harder to do color photography or just use commercial printers. You had very little control over color film and printing, unless you were willing to spend lots of money...I've never been burdened with excess cash, so that was not an option. In fact, in the dark days of my college career and my "in-between college time" I found it easy to buy film, but harder to develop. So, since developing film cost so much, photography slowly inched its way out of my life, though I still longed to do it.

Enter the digital camera. I can take lots of pictures. I can screw up repeatedly and not have to pay one little bit for my mistakes, printing only the pictures I like. Also, now I have a darkroom in my living room, or any other room of the house I choose to sit in. I can choose black and white or color or tweak the colors to unimaginable heights and hues. I love digital, even though my old photography professor continues to swear by film.

I used to experiment quite a lot with my old P3N. I did light painting and photographed lightning and in general did a lot of fun things. I even bought a slave. NO, not a slave person, but an optical slave for a flash. This allowed me two flashes. One on the camera and one placed elsewhere with the slave. It would flash as soon as it sensed the flash from the one on my camera. It added some options for me.

I found the slave a few weeks ago. I had two flashes, but I thought both were dead...turns out only one was dead. I tossed the old Ansco and kept the one that had originally been on my P3N. Last night I put it all together and played. While Cora made some hair bows, I was doing some photography. I was attempting to synchronize the two flashes. The only way I could do it was by setting the flash to sync with the rear shutter. Oh, well. I DID use the flash for some fun shots with an extended shutter speed. Here are a few of the experimental shots, which are only for the technical aspects of the photo (syncing and making sure the other flash was indeed flashing at a time that it could be seen on the sensor). They aren't pretty, but they show what I was trying for.

A little fun with a flash. Below you see the extended shutter speeds I was dealing with. Cora was an unwilling model.

Below you see the old flash, and below that, attached to the tripod (the little square thing) is the optical slave.

Here it is so you an see the full flash effect. unfortunately, it does not work the way I had hoped, so it won't be used for much in the way of portraiture.

The flash color was a bit blue, so I changed the color in the computer.

Here is the final, retouched, and textured photo, and the only one that I would normally show, but I thought maybe those of you who think I am a good photographer might like to see some of the trial and error that I go through from time to time to get what DOES come out.

I hope you all have a great Sunday!

Snow Angel Part II

2011-11-19T14:19:00.000-08:00

This is Chloe checking out the snow. This morning it snowed. The weather predictors said it would be an "insignificant accumulation." I suspect they are from Alaska or something. This is significant, if only because i had to shovel it.

The weather was sufficient to shut down our plans of some outdoor family pictures. Still, I snapped a few of Chloe before we went to town. Cora is awesome and usually out of the photo, but she made sure the kid got dressed and prettified. I have an awesome wife!

Another Autumn Day

2011-11-19T07:57:00.000-08:00

Chloe loves Elmo. Here she is showing me she has Elmo on her shirt. She also likes her new boots, which her Mom bought last weekend, and which I think are probably the cutest boots I've seen in a long while.

Thursday, My mother was having heart problems. I decided I'd like to spend some time with the both of them should she spend time in the hospital. So at lunch I asked the ladies in the office if I could have sixth period to go see my mother. The two secretaries said they'd take care of it. The phone was ringing in my room before I got it unlocked. I answered and it was one of the secretaries. She said they had subs lined up for me for the rest of the day, I could leave at noon. I made it to the emergency room within minutes of my parents and was able to spend time with them for the rest of the afternoon. Those secretaries made it easier on my parents, whether they knew it or not.

My mother had a stint put in her heart a little over two weeks before. Yet, she thought she could do stuff like work around the house and stack wood after the first week. Her heart had objections, and we all had to discuss exactly what one does after a heart surgery. Her doctor, to my mom's credit, did not specify what constituted acceptable activity, so it wasn't all her fault. Still, she NOW knows she needs to take it easy! She is fine now and taking things slow.

Yesterday, on the way home from a long day at school, I took these shots of the weather.

I thought the clouds were beautiful.

The pictures below are a couple shots I took yesterday morning, also trying to showcase the clouds and light.

Both are HDR to make the most of the highlights and lowlights.

We have lots to do this weekend. We are finally feeling better! We may even get out of the house!!

Chloe seems to think 7am is as late as people should sleep on the weekend, so we are both up early.

A Girl In The Snow

2011-11-16T21:43:00.000-08:00

It snowed today. Chloe experienced it for the first time in her young memory. She got to see snow in China, but she did not get the opportunity to walk in it...especially since she wasn't walking at the time. Today she wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but she took the tentative steps anyway. She held some in her hand, dropping it when I showed her she could. It was actually fun to see her eyes recording everything around her.

It was a pretty good day. I'd like to have slept in, but what are you gonna do?

Editing

2011-11-16T06:26:00.000-08:00

I ~~like~~ love editing my photos. I find that I prefer new photos to old, but since I haven't had much in the way of opportunities to take new ones recently, I have had to make do with what I have. Which explains the following.

I liked this balloon photo, but I thought, what could I add that might make it just a little more interesting? I thought to add a texture. Then I decided it needed a "photo look," so I used the one photo look that I created and voila!

Nothing much to add today, but I am finally getting over this damned flu/cold thing! I feel invigorated compared to last week! I hope you are all having a good week.

Charmed, I'm Sure!

2011-11-14T20:42:00.000-08:00

I wasn't sure if I'd be able to participate today. I had a coughing attack shortly after I got home. Then with sore rib muscles, I took some cough meds, which, after dinner, saw to it that I was tired after dinner. So tired that Chloe and Cora went off to have a bath and I woke up in the middle somewhat confused about where everyone had gone, until I heard Chloe giggling. Now, darling Chloe is in bed, and I am feeling more awake. So, here it is! And skip on over to see Barn Charms! Tricia is awesome!

This might be a bit of a boring post, so you may just want to skip everything after the photos. It's OKAY, I understand!

I had a pretty good day! I got to work, figured out what I was doing for the day, and then got to doing it. The kids haven't had a lecture/discussion from me until today. The book we are using is very hands on and requires the kids be active learners, taking a part in their learning. Some of them are Active Non-Learners, which means giving them their own head, lets them wander on their own. The lecture/discussion I gave today, interrupted only a couple times by some readings, made them pay attention, because, for once, I demanded their attention and asked them questions and made them talk. I feel it was a neat change.

What were we talking about? Well, a number of things, but mostly, we were discussing evolution. I managed to bring into the discussion a little about the Missoula Floods. I taught them something that I knew at their age. I knew that the granite rocks in the valley are actually erratics brought in on ice bergs during the floods. If you're interested in learning about the flood, and you should be, all you have to do is Google it and you'll be an expert in no time. Suffice it to say, however, that these floods were a big thing around here. They were what was happening during the ice age.

I stuck around while several students came in after school to work. While they were doing that I wrote a few e-mails and then went to investigate the rest of my lesson. Learning, as I did, that it promises to be annoying and a great opportunity for my Active Non-Learners to avoid more work. Ah, well, it can't ALL be lecture.

I really want to get a new lens, but I can't figure out a way to make it seem right. You know? We have bills and a daughter, and what I want is a lens? That's not cool. BUT DAMN!! It's a macro! I REALLY want a macro lens!

It's Not Much

2011-11-13T14:29:00.000-08:00

So, I felt better today and we all needed to get out. So we stopped at a park with some swings. I took a few pictures. These are them. I applied a "photolook" to each and I am fairly happy with the results. They make me happy. I usually take every photo and apply separate things to each, some need more contrast, while others need more saturation. These I did not do as much with, but simply added the "photolook." I look at it as cheating in a way, since I like the personal touch, but I am learning that I don't have to do everything, but I know what to add and what to take away, so I guess that is something. And, on the brightside, sometimes my pictures look ok!

Let me say, once again, that my daughter is probably the cutest little girl in existence. She sings along with her CD in the car. She loves Elmo. She repeats many things we say. She has particular likes and dislikes. She got up at four in the morning and expected to go play in her kitchen. "Chichen, chichen..." It took awhile for me to understand what she was saying, at least until she walked strait to her kitchen and began picking up cups and plates. I also understood that 4AM is way too early for a little girl to get up on the weekend, so I whisked her off to bed.

Speaking of which, I slept in her room for awhile last night because we moved the vaporizer into her room and I wished to sleep a bit without coughing. She seems to be starting to cough, so we are moving to keep her from getting as sick as we did.

So, at 4AM I brought her to lie next to me in her room. She slept pretty well, too...on my arm. I didn't mind. There is just something about your daughter snoring at your shoulder that makes all the discomforts slide away. She is a pile of awesome. It was a good night, until she awoke at 6:30AM. Oh, well, sleep is overrated.

Daughters, however, are awesome, no matter what time of the day it is.

Climbing Out of a Hole

2011-11-13T08:51:00.000-08:00

I am feeling better. It is still a long road out of that hell that was a cold for a week. I haven't taken any new photos for a week and I haven't blogged much at all. To top it off, all last week I had red eyes because of the cold. All week long I had students coming in and asking me if I was High...WTH? "NO, I'M SICK!" was usually my response. My inner response was more vociferous and would have been wounding to their egos and self respect. If I had been armed with a pair of gauntlets, I would like to have soundly slapped each offending student with them, but sadly there were no gauntlets available.

I am now feeling fine during daylight hours, but much the opposite of a vampire, the moment the sun goes down I start feeling crappy. I start coughing and hacking and heaving. I don't like it.

All I have for you is this photo. Sorry.

Just Some Chloe

2011-11-10T06:29:00.001-08:00

Barn Business

2011-11-07T16:17:00.000-08:00

I've been sick. I'm finally beginning to feel like there is an end to it. I feel vaguely human this afternoon, but I'm still sick. I pulled these two barns out of the bin for you. I hope you approve.

Aches and Pains

2011-11-06T16:29:00.000-08:00

There is something about being sick that makes me wax poetic. I want to describe every ache and every pain and try to use words to make it possible for those not afflicted with my particular disease to understand exactly how I feel. I know that you probably don't care dear reader, and I can't say as I blame you, but it is a need I feel nevertheless.

I am stifling that need for your sake.

Suffice it to say I feel miserable in about 12 different ways and I wish a very painful death to every flu virus, ever.

Cora and Chloe went shopping. We needed to replenish some of our food stores and, well, I don't feel up to much past staggering down the hall. I have been running a fever, which, for some reason, I was unaware or had forgotten that whenever I have a fever, my skin feels particularly sensitive and I feel cold. This is not as pleasant as you might think.

I'll let you off easy. Here are some pictures.

Smashed

2011-11-05T12:04:00.000-07:00

I feel like a steam roller parallel parked on me. And, given the state of my body, it was a young, inexperienced driver, who had to make numerous corrections. I officially have Cora's cold/flu. Last night was a haze of wakeful sleeping. I took some cold meds and those kept me at or below consciousness most of the night. I know I was up a few times to help make a bottle or take more meds or just sit there dazed being miserable. I have a feel for what Cora experienced this last week. She has my deepest sympathy and commiseration. Jeez, this is not something you want to get!

On the other hand, while I was being miserable, I did turn to my computer. I edited some photos, simply because it didn't take much brain power and helped me ignore my misery...do I sound pathetic yet? Anyway, I worked on some photos, and here are a few of them. I wasn't doing anything in a particularly planned way, but I think these turned out ok.

I especially like this next one. It is a neat landscape I think.

And this one of Cora and Chloe at the beach, it makes me smile.

and then there is the one of me and Chloe...can I just say, I think my wife has a certain way with the camera, even though she says otherwise.

Well, I think I'll go back to watching Chloe play and being miserable next to my beautiful, if equally miserable, wife.

Revisiting Old Shots

2011-11-04T06:30:00.000-07:00

The task for Photo Art Friday this week was to try doing something out of your comfort zone. I'm paraphrasing. I don't generally go for more processing than is necessary to make the image stand up for itself. But this week, I tried to consciously overstep the bounds of my limiting self-censure. So, here are some of the shots I've been editing.

I've really enjoyed seeing some shots on-line that hearken back to the photos in my parents' photo albums when I was growing up. Those semi-focused, color-tinged, faded photos held a lot of character. Character I did not recognize until I thought to try to emulate them. So, here are a few of my attempts to stand up to the Photo Art Friday challenge. I know not everyone will find them...appealing, but then, that is what art is, different to everyone, right?

Since I did not take much in the way of photos this week, I had to look back through my files for something to edit. I chose a few of the less obvious examples simply so I could see if the editing could resurrect an otherwise dull image. If you think I succeeded or not, please let me know. Despite what some people might think, criticism is good. Especially when it is constructive.

So, if you have a suggestion please, don't hesitate to comment. I am not so understanding of people who would say, "I don't like it" and leave it at that. Say, "I don't like it because..." I want to know why, that way I might fix it the next time, of course, there is the distinct possibility I'll ignore you, too. Still, if you at least try constructive criticism I won't be irritated by you the way I was at a guy who commented on one of my photos on 500px.com. He said, concerning the photo at the top: "good scene but i don't like the composition (my opinion!)"

So, far from being the whiny jerk some people might think I am, I just want to know how the "scene" is different from the "composition?" Both being reliant on the subject matter and view point in my view. Was he perhaps not fond of my post-processing? If so, I can understand that. That is why I usually try to retain the majority of the original photo's characteristics, but again, I am trying to step out of my comfort zone. I deleted his comment because it did not make sense to me...perhaps someone has a better idea of what he meant.

Anyway, this is doubtlessly going to be a long-winded post, so you may just want to skip to the pictures and be done. I don't blame you, but I have been light on posting lately. So, I aim to type as much as I can while I am awake.

We've been sick lately, and by we I mean Cora. Who spent a couple days home, miserable as can be. I even went into town before work to get her some better meds the other day. She seems to be getting a little better. The doctor prescribed a medicine that seemed to be worse than the sickness! Seriously, it was bad enough that the cold/flu had her on her knees, but for the supposedly curing medicine to slap her while she was down was just a bit more than she needed. Fortunately she rectified that and seems to be getting better slowly.

As if that weren't enough, I am coming down with what she's got and I heard Chloe coughing this morning, so I am hoping she just needed to clear her throat and is not coming down with what we have.

Yesterday afternoon, I went into town to get Cora's new prescription. I went alone so she would not have to drag her tired butt into the car. Well, that back fired because I locked myself out of the car. So, she had to come in like the cavalry and save my bacon. I have an awesome wife. Not one little bit of irritation and nothing in the way of taunting. I would not have been so nice, but we all know who is the better person! She is!!

Change of subject...

I met with a parent the other day. Supposedly she was coming in to check on her child's work, but it became more of something out of a twelve step program than a check up on a student's progress. Seriously, there were times when I was irritated with my choice of a seat away from the door. The person was, for lack of a better phrase, bat shit crazy.

Putting her sentences together to be understood required severe focus, as her words wove in and out of coherence and sometimes her line of thought ended in strangled pretense. Other times they lingered on the edge of reason and logic. Let me try to reconstruct a few words for you: "you know how it is, and what not, while (the student's) father is not, I don't like to tell people, but you can contact my doctor, if you have something stronger than a coke I'd take it, and sometimes I just ask the doctor if he has any LSD because I'd volunteer for that, but really... " OK, you try to pick something concrete out of that jumble of words and you have an idea of what that hour of my life was like, particularly as I contemplated the consequences of me just leaving and what I'd rather be doing. It was more of a soliloquy than a conversation and I was an unwilling audience member.

Sometimes you know kids can't chose their family, but they sure seem to rise above them! Makes me want to award the kid some extra credit for being so even headed! On the other hand, I have a wonderful family, for whom I am very thankful for. My mother went in for a scope of her heart, since she's been having some troubles. They ended up putting a stint in, so she stayed overnight. It was something of a last minute thing, otherwise I would have taken the day off to be with them. But it was successful and my mom seems to be feeling better already. So that's good news.

Chloe and I went to see my parents at the hospital the other evening while Cora attempted to regain some health...and sleep. It was a good visit and my daughter continues to ensnare unsuspecting strangers into adoring her with just a glance...I think she's magical. The nurses recognized her on sight and seemed to become smitten instantly. My parents can't help bragging about their grand children, so I am sure the whole hospital had heard of her by the end of the day.

I'll leave you to contemplate my jumble of words and mixed reasoning later, but now you can look over this photo, which I have tried to update and process further. What do you think?

Thank goodness it is Friday! I need my days of rest now that I seem to be getting hit again by this God Forsaken Cold! I hope you all have a good Friday and enjoy your loved ones like I do!

Oh, and skip on over to Pixel Dust for some other cool Photo Art Friday shots!

Scary Barn and Some Chloe, Too!

2011-10-31T22:19:00.000-07:00

It's Barn Charm again!! Halloween style! I give you these with the idea of them being just a little dark...and perhaps...SCARY!

Wah ha ha ha!! Look at the threatening skies here!!! Aren't you scared yet?

Oh? Not scared yet? Well, have a look at THIS OLD HOUSE! IT is definitely scary!

OK, well, now that you've been scared, have a look at this wonderful family photo! We took this after we went trick-or-treating. Chloe likes. Yes, she likes it a lot. And candy. She likes candy, too.

We didn't go to too many houses, yet she came home with quite a haul! Look at the booty!

Watching Elmo after trick-or-treating!

She likes trick-or-treating. But she LOVES candy. Let me reiterate that. SHE LOVES CANDY. She hasn't had a lot of candy before this, but she loves it!

Watch out Mom! Those fingers are in danger!

Skip on over to Barn Charm and see the other barns!

Wild Weekend...Well...

2011-10-30T22:17:00.000-07:00

We printed some pictures this weekend. I printed my Dump Truck, and it looks GOOD! I'd like to get a larger frame for it. I think I could sell that little bugger! I'm really quite fond of it!

Cora made sure we carved the pumpkins. Cora carved the green one. I carved the other three...I like the skull best. I'm not fond of the witch, but it's a start.

I think we have a very scary front porch.

Chloe was eating dinner while watching Elmo this evening, and I thought I should get a shot of her focus.

we also got to spend some time with Cora's sisters and Leah! It was a really good weekend, if much, much too short!

Better Late

2011-10-29T08:44:00.000-07:00

I've been busy this week. I should be working harder, but I'll just admit it, I am lazy.

I got to partake in parent/teacher conferences this week. It was an interesting affair. Of my 120 or so students, I saw about a third of their parents. A few of them were students with less than perfect grades. Only one of the parents looked at me and wanted to know why I hadn't called her. Well, I had not exactly prepared for that, but I explained that while I'd love to call every parent with a student with low grades, I quite simply hadn't had time yet. She seemed somewhat mollified. Most of the time it was just a matter of showing the parent the grades and then asking the student to explain WHY they hadn't been working hard enough to do better. That was more than a little amusing.

Because I ended up going in at 7AM, teaching classes and then leaving at about 1PM after classes and then returning again just before 4PM for the conferences, then getting home after 7PM, I did not get many photos in this week. I took the camera, but nothing really cropped up in the dark.

I took the photo above last weekend, but just got around to processing it. I like the way it looks. I used a picture of an old piece of brass that I have as a layer. It framed Chloe's face just right.

The one below is my attempt to be a little more abstract with my photos. Abstract art is something I have always enjoyed looking at, but I just don't seem to come by it naturally like some people, so i don't generally try to create it. I decided I need to expand my repertoire and tried a few intentionally unframed shots, then I took the ones I liked and combined them. I was a little at a loss, it seemed it needed something else, so I added the tree in the middle, and it looks a lot better, though I saved the previous one as a layer for later photos.

This last photo is BY FAR my favorite photo from this past week. And the thing is, I didn't take it. Cora did. Sunday morning we drove up on the top of one of the nearby hills. Cora wasn't quite pleased with the idea as we drove by signs urging strangers away, but we never REALLY trespassed, so we were fine. When we arrived at the destination, she changed her mind a bit. The view was spectacular.

Chloe loves to be thrown up in the air. I always catch her, so that isn't an issue. Cora took Precious and started taking pictures as I threw Chloe. When we got home, I looked at the shots and decided something was missing. So I added some of the Chloes from other photos. Although it is a work of Paintshop, it has turned out to be my favorite shot of the week!

I am taking part in these two activites, I hope you will click on over to both and have a look at what others have been doing this week! Thanks to Photo Art Friday and Weekly Top Shot!

http://www.theviewfromrighthere.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Weekly-Top-Shot.jpg

WOW!

2011-10-27T06:40:00.000-07:00

I'm tired and yet another iteration of this cold I've been carrying around is trying to bash in my senses. Plus it's parent/teacher conferences. Which, I found out Wednesday morning, includes a split shift for me. Oh, and yesterday was the first day of said conferences. Way to get important information on time! Yea! And how did I get this info? I asked. I begged. I finally sent an e-mail asking ANYONE to answer. Finally the principal relented and sent a one word answer to my query. Nice. Jerk.

We only had three periods yesterday. I had two...until I walked in and they asked me to cover 2nd period for another teacher. I said yes before realizing I still had to print progress reports. Stupid, stupid, stupid!

Then we had a lab that included using rulers to measure in millimeters. I was astonished to learn that the kids were not sure what a millimeter was. Sure, a few knew, but apparently they guard such information like it were gold. The rest of the bozos just measured in whatever unit they wanted. Which, by the looks of it included centimeters and inches. Seriously! You should have seen the looks when I tried to explain that there were 10 millimeters in a centimeter. You would have thought I was suggesting that their toenails come to life as puppies after they clip them! Several gave me looks like, "So why should anyone know what a millimeter is?" I retreated to my desk to drink a Pepsi and hope that it was a bad dream.

I was not home until after 7pm. I came home in the middle and did some house work, but it made for a mixed up, messed up day. Boy was I happy to come home and see both of my girls waiting for me! I'd thought missing out on the afternoon stuff with Chloe might actually be ok, but I missed it! She was in a good mood when I got home! Cora had made a wonderful dinner that I could not eat enough of, and life was better!

Today we go at it again. More conferences. I got ten parents last night. I have around 130 kids. That's not a very credible showing. Oh, well. Friday is around the corner!

Happy Birthday Sister and Jack O Lanterns

2011-10-25T21:42:00.000-07:00

First, Happy Birthday to my sister! She is like 49 or something. She's awesome, although old. Happy Birthday Sis!!

We decided to carve pumpkins tonight. I was all for doing it another night, but Cora insisted. NAY! She demanded! And guess who does the carving! Yeah, Cora gutted them (So did Chloe- didn't she do an awesome job?), but as soon as that was done, she abandoned me to the carving.

Well, I showed her! I only carved ONE pumpkin tonight! And that would be the scary one below!

I know! I almost crapped my shorts, too! OK, that was just Chloe...

Speaking of whom, She REALLY got into the job at hand! She is an excellent pumpkin gutter!

Self Barn Portrait

2011-10-24T20:21:00.000-07:00

It's a Barn Charm Monday again! I have a few sitting in one of my files. This first is fairly recent...that is, last week. You can see my reflection here. I DID take the photo from inside the truck, and I think the self-portrait effect really sets it off. They were harvesting apples when I was driving by this and I did not want to stop traffic for a better shot. I figured it was either going to turn out or not. As it turns out, I managed to save it.

Chloe made it through her surgery with flying colors! It took forever, it seemed, to finally get her in, but when she did go in, it took hardly any time at all. She was done quickly and we were heading home. Chloe who cried a lot last time, but hardly cried, if at all, this time! She was in very good spirits and she had a really good day.

I hope you'll click on over to my photo site to see a recent photo of how many Chloes it SEEMS like we have!

Also, visit Barn Charms! The building below, I THINK, is an old packing house, but I don't know for sure.

I could use a few more days of weekend. This being "a parent" stuff isn't easy. Especially the part where Chloe goes at 100 mph for hours on end.

I go back to work tomorrow. I'll be picking up where the other sub left off. It may sound odd, but it seems like this is my class at times. After last week, it seemed like things were falling into place, we'll see if that remains the case. I have some grades to catch up on, since Thursday and Friday the kids were working to finish an essay. So I'll be setting in on grading those in the morning!

Patches

2011-10-22T21:29:00.000-07:00

We took Chloe to a pumpkin patch. After an aborted attempt at another pumpkin patch that wanted to charge each adult $9. HELLO! We only wanted to look for a pumpkin! Chloe's cousin Leah happened to be down today, so the grandparents, Aunt Molly, and Chloe and Leah all came along for the ride! We had quite a time! The view was awesome and the pumpkins you ACTUALLY took directly from the vine!!!!

Seriously! It was AWESOME!

Aunt Molly helped push the wagon while I took pictures!

Here are three generations! How often do you get a shot like this? This is a beautiful shot in many ways! Look at the subjects! I hope everyone else is having a great weekend!

And here we have Chloe with her catch for the day and days previous!

Who's Keeping Track?

2011-10-21T05:58:00.000-07:00

It's Friday! I am so pleased with that! However, there is so much to do it is ridiculous. Hopefully that will make the day go faster. Although, I fancy, that is making my life go faster and bringing me closer to the end of my life...ah...has anyone ever seen Red Dwarf? Or red the novel by the same name? Reminds me of Rimmer. It is a British TV Show, or was. You can learn more about it here.

Anyway, I am going to wear jeans and a T-shirt today. I may be the only Time Lord there, but I plan to enjoy Casual Friday to the extreme. They said you can where your school colors...I asked if I could wear my Dr. Who colors. They said sure. I think they know the principal doesn't visit me often...probably a waste of his time. But, it did sound like a couple of them had Dr. Who items they might wear, so if they do it will have the kids wondering what is up.

The kids are pretty smart, but they just seem not to have been exposed to as many things as I was at that age...and THAT was before the internet! But, then, my family visited museums, national parks, historic sites, etc. We also enjoyed documentaries, I don't think many kids willingly watch documentaries. Maybe I was weird.

Now, I have a lot to do, so help me try to stay on track!

Horse Dwarves

2011-10-20T20:18:00.000-07:00

Isn't that French for "little food?" Ah, well, if you wanted golden nuggets of wisdom you came to the wrong blog.

I've had a pretty good week. I think I may be getting into a rhythm with the kids. They are not working any harder, but they haven't been bad mouthing me anymore, and that is a good thing.

I have to go prepare some plans for Monday. I have a sub...pshaw! A sub for a sub! Chloe is getting a tube in her ear on Monday, so I'm taking the day off to do that, and be sure that Cora has someone to hold her hand. I don't imagine either of us is going to take her screams very well...good thing we're not violent people.

These are my entries for Photo Art Friday at Pixel Dust. I highly recommend having a look!

Half Way There

2011-10-19T05:52:00.000-07:00

It's that time of the year. It's harvest time. Apples are being picked, and have been picked for at least the last month. Pears before that, and then stone fruit. Apples are by far the most numerous, though. That shows in the number of fruit trucks, which slowly meander throughout the valley with no apparent objective in mind. They just wander all over the place. Some people might think they are headed to specific store houses, but you can see loaded truck after loaded truck pass each other going opposite directions. You would think they could go from point A to point B without having to wander around so much. Why do they simply seem to take up space on the road? There is no rhyme or reason to their chaotic shuffling from here to there to here again apart from getting in my way.

The thing that makes them far from innocuous, though, is that because they are loaded they are much slower than other traffic. So one loaded fruit truck can slow down an entire line of cars. Once in a blue moon you might see a fruit truck pull over to let traffic by, but that is such a rare occasion, you might be better off to buy a lotto tick and expect to win more often!

So, this is the scene you can see more often than not on my way too and from work.

On the bright side, I do eventually get home and then Chloe and I go get the "May-el." I can't complain about that. She is awesome.

Hazy Shades of Barns

2011-10-17T05:36:00.000-07:00

I went with some oldies but goodies today. I reworked both of these until they cried. The clouds made me happy in both, but especially so in the second. I hope you will click on over to Bluff Area Daily to see some other barns! I think it's a great thing to show some of the architecture from bygone eras, and it's a wonderful way for people to get their work noticed. Thanks to Tricia at Bluff Area Daily, we get to see barns from across the country. It's the kind of thing that can blunt the sharp pain that is Monday.

And so the week begins. My kids are going to make a presentation today on what it means to be human. Friday I discovered that the computer up front won't show on the screen like it did three weeks ago...now I have to figure out why the heck that's happening and then grade countless presentations. I can only hope I figure out why it isn't showing and that those kids who took the time to make powerpoints can present, otherwise we're going to have a crappy day, and by we I mean me.

Chloe got more sleep last night, but not nearly as much as she does when she isn't sick. Same goes for mom and dad...

The weather is finally beginning to turn. I don't think we've gotten a frost yet, though in years past we have had snow on Halloween...so, what's up with the weather this year? Let's just get this unpleasantness we call Fall and Winter over with so we can go back to the good seasons, shall we?

A Day of Rest

2011-10-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

This is Brie. She is my sister's Llama. I'm fond of her. She is good to make portraits of, don't you think?

Last night we got home after listening to The Cave, by Mumford and Sons, for the fifteenth time. Chloe eventually went to bed. It wasn't but a couple hours later that our little angel was awake again. She has caught the cold that Cora has had...and now it seems I may be coming down with the same thing. Since Cora had spent the previous night up with her, I figured it was my turn, We finally ended up next to each other on the twin bed in Chloe's room. Chloe rested on a pillow next to me, while I formed a barrier to keep her from rolling. I don't know how long we were resting like that. Cora came in and checked on us and found it was Chloe's snoring that she'd heard on the monitor, not mine.

Cora and I were up for a couple more hours since neither of us could sleep. Cora was still coughing. My back was sore from laying next to Chloe for so long. Chloe slept for a little while longer, but eventually we all awoke and started all over again with a not-feeling-well baby. Eventually I got a couple hours of sleep and I think Cora might have gotten a little bit, too, but I don't think any of us are up to doing much today.

Today, I think it will be Netflix streaming on the Wii and some soup and some relaxation. I might go out and do some work on the yard, and then the weekend will be over and we'll start the week all over again...I'd like a longer weekend. Anyone else?

This is my dad. He isn't fond of my taking his picture, but he's a good sport, so he let me.

I should have something a little more up beat to say, but I'm really sleepy and I think everyone else here is too. I'd like to get out and do something, but I just don't see it happening.

Someone's ONE!

2011-10-15T21:36:00.000-07:00

My youngest nephew celebrated his first birthday tonight. (My sister and brother-in-law were celebrating their's, too, but who are we kidding, they aren't as important as the youngest!) He got right into the unwrapping, although some of the gifts were bigger than he was!

The candle shown like a small sun! In an even smaller solar system that didn't really have planets, but rather people, who didn't orbit the small sun/candle but rather blew it (the small sun/candle) out. So, I guess it wasn't really like a sun, so you should really just ignore the comparison.

I took a few candid shots of my niece, and this is what she looked like when she caught me. I can't believe how much she has grown up!

On the way home, it was getting well past Chloe's bed time and she was letting us know about it. She let us know most of the way home. That is, until that magical wonder of modern technology that we call our Sirius Satellite Radio beeped and told us that a certain song was about to play. We were, by this time, running ragged with the crying in the back seat. So, we changed channels to this song, expecting to hear the crying accompanying the music, but then an awesome thing happened. She stopped crying. We looked at each other and noted that we each had raised eye brows. We knew it couldn't last but we were SO happy for the respite.

The song ended and there was STILL no crying in the back seat! We thought, "WOW! We broke the cycle!" Until the next song came on and she let us know she was unhappy. We shared a glance and then experimentally, not expecting a repeat performance, we pushed the button and skipped the music back to replay the magical song. The wailing in the back seat stopped. We didn't move for fear of breaking the spell.

We played the song all the way home. Over and over, and if we forgot to rewind it quickly enough, that small music critic in the back seat told us in ear piercing tones. So, what magic song does she love? This one:

Last Night

2011-10-14T16:23:00.000-07:00

After dark and the wife was in bed. I couldn't sleep. I read for awhile and then decided to listen to Pandora while I read. Then I saw a picture on my photo program that I'd been wanting to edit. Then I got an idea for how to fix it. I fiddled and I played and I tweaked and I adjusted and I just had a little fun. What do you think?

I could spend hours on the computer editing photos if only my schedule, my daughter, and my wife would allow it. Too bad all I get from it is some compliments. Maybe I should start offering to do portraits.

I am so glad it is Friday. I discovered, today, that I am supposed to keep check of the kids who are tardy. I did...or thought I did, by marking them tardy, but apparently, even though I mark them in the system, they don't go off to the same place absences do. So, I have to keep track and punish the kids for being tardy...they have been taking advantage of my misinformation. That angers me, even though it is to be expected. Well, I'll be taking care of that right now!

Still worse, one of my little offenders was caught going to the bathroom on the other side of the school...that makes me even more mad. The little shit obviously did wrong, but he didn't even have the intelligence NOT TO GET CAUGHT! Well, let's just say, bathroom breaks are being curtailed.

Let me change the subject. I don't know if I have bragged about Chloe enough lately. So here are a few shots of her from when we got home today!

I say the weekend can stay here all week and I won't complain!