Another Year Older

Yesterday I celebrated my birthday. Awesome weather for the middle of October.
Started the day with my daily chat. Then into town for coffee and computer stuff. Had my free birthday cinnamon roll at Panera Bread. John (KB0QKH) stopped by pre-work coffee. I did some updating on my web site.
Back home, nap, and preparations for a bike ride. When I headed to the Wabash Trace trail head, it was sunny, light breeze, and in the upper 60s. Didn't need my jacket. Rode the Gary Fisher Rail Super T road bike.
First stop was the Western Historic Trails Center. Stopped to sign the guest book, visit, and some liquids. On up the Iowa Riverfront Trail to the Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge (Bob Bridge) and over to Omaha. Took a few photos at Heartland of America Park. More liquids and a shot block and back over to the iowa side of the Missouri.
On the Bob Bridge I stopped and ask someone to take my picture on the bridge. From there, it was on to Big Lake Park. Where it was a break off the bike, liquids and granola bar.
Still had miles to pedal. Next destination was Xtreme Wheels. Visited with Zach, Blaine, and customers for a little. Zach had bought decorated cupcakes for my birthday cake. No small feat as he carried them to work of his bicycle (no basket or rack!). Thanks, Zach.

I was thinking of extending the ride on the way back - taking Indain Creek Trail back to Manawa. But, the wind had been picking up from the South (hear wind) and my legs were getting a little tired. Decided to just ride on (the normal-short) route back to the trail head.
Good ride. Just over 25 miles, out for over 3 hours. When I logged the ride, found that I have done 111 miles for the week. A successful week.
Had a big salad for my post-ride meal. My mom called me for my birthday. I crashed into bed.
This morning, my legs are a little sore. Plans are of ham radio breakfast. Photo shoot - Lewis & Clark Landing and Heartland of America Park. Time to shoot some HDR photos there. Now, do I drive and walk to the shoot or ride the hybrid over the Bob Bridge?

Soap meeting

I always have so much fun at our Alabama Soapmaker meetings, and this was our largest ever: 101 attendees. At least a third of them were from out of state this year. There were so many new people that I didn't get to meet them all.

To inspire creativity, we participate in swaps. This year I signed up for the lotion bar swap, figuring that it would force me to work on my formulating. (I've made them before, but hadn't really ever been happy with them.)
Mine was still a bit greasier than what I was aiming for, but it sure worked well on softening my rough elbows. So I called it "Elbow Grease". It still needs some tinkering.

After I see all the swap goodies, I usually end up wishing I'd entered two or three more. This year it was the Shampoo Bar swap that I was especially envious of. Dianne always has such adorable packaging, and her treatment of the swap items was no different.

Cute, huh?

Shopping is one of my favorite parts of the meeting, and this year we had more vendors than ever.

This is one of those times I wish for smell-o-vision.

We also have table space for members' garage-sale items. If you're lucky, you can pay for your meeting expenses this way.

We usually have a mixture of lectures and demonstrations. Carol demonstrated her company's cutter, and Darlene (who's really from Georgia, but we claim her as an honorary Alabamian) showed us how to make sugarcube scrubbies.

There's a camera showing the up-close action during demos. This is Alison's lotion-making class. (Click to enlarge.)

But sometimes you just have to get up close in person.

Theda showed us how to make liquid soap.

Tammy is the "Mud Queen" and sells all manner of Dead Sea salts and mud products. Here she is demonstrating the proper use of gloves and goggles.

That evening, she had a mud party in her room, and I was able to take many incriminating photographs.

I'm hoping my blackmail money will start arriving any minute now.

Spring has arrived!

Just over a week later and WOW how things have changed along the shoreline! A week ago I was photographing ice all along the shore, this week all of that ice is gone. Its been very warm the past week, much warmer than March usually is. As a result, all of the ice that covered the Lake Superior shore is now gone. Which means, I suppose, that I can get back to photographing the rocks along the shoreline :-) I love shooting ice, but the rocks are fun as well. I am always very "foreground conscious" when it comes to my images... that is to say, I'm always looking for something interesting to put in the foreground of my landscape images. While exploring the shoreline yesterday I found this seasonal stream that only runs in the spring, emptying into Lake Superior. I knew it would be a good location to shoot a sunrise, so I went back there this morning to do just that.

All that talk about strong foreground elements being said, sometimes I just can't resist a more "simplistic image", such as the one above.

After shooting the sunrise over Lake Superior, I headed up to Grand Portage State Park to see how High Falls was looking after all the recent warm temperatures. I wasn't sure if I would find the falls still frozen, or running freely. As it turns out (much to my delight), I found the latter. The falls certainly wasn't the fullest I have seen it, but it was running at a very nice level for photography. When you get too much water coming over the falls it certainly is fun to watch, but shooting becomes a hassle. Too much water means too much mist, which in turn means its hard to keep the water off the camera.

The water level on this morning was just about perfect for making images. There was some light mist which necessitated the occasional wipe-down of the camera, but it wasn't bad at all. Also, when the water level is like it was today, the falls is much prettier (in my opinion) than when it is really raging. When its really running strong you don't get as many little channels of water coming over the edge. Photographing High Falls is something I never tire of... and that's probably because it never looks the same. The lighting is always just a little bit different and the flow is always different. On this particular morning I was blessed with some very nice light and clouds to complement the seemingly "perfect" amount of water :-)

Central Texas News Roundup - Few Photos, Lots of Links

[Image from the Lower Colorado River Authority website showing the system of dams which made the Colorado River into a series of reservoirs called the Highland Lakes]
LOCAL NEWS[We're fine in my neighborhood - the flooding happened Northwest of here]
Maybe you've seen some of the stories or photos already? Over seventeen inches of rain fell within a few hours on Marble Falls, NW of Austin, with flood waters engulfing other Central Texas towns like Smithwick and Kingsland. Area map, with Austin in the lower right corner.
The flood-tumbled, mangled remains of a vehicle was found today, but the teenagers who were in it are still missing. Residents of that area have lost houses, property, cars and trucks, and one organic chicken farm has lost all their hens. People were rescued from rooftops and the municipal water system isn't working. The parts that need fixing are still under water, so the townfolk are doing the best they can with bottled water.
Mystery writer Susan Albert lives not too far away... she's okay and her house is on high ground, but she had a few adventures with livestock as the storm hit.
Fellow Austin Blogger Mrs Quad has some scary photos of what the water's done.
EXTREMELY LOCAL NEWS
In this little corner of Austin the only drama was recorded in this not-too-clear photo of a 3-inch slug, an unusual shape here. We get lots of those little roundish slugs that look like a kindergardener couldn't find a tissue and used a leaf instead. This particular speciment was heading toward a clematis but did not arrive at that destination. Some of the garden plants have been thrilled with a year's worth of water in just a few months, while others resent it. The peppers, sunflower and Tropical Milkweed/Asclepias curassavica are growing, but could use some sun. The tomatoes look terrible, and most of what fruit remains is fit only for a compost heap.

The City of Portland Cannas, on the other hand, surrounded below by Salvia guaranitica, are looking fine, without the usual crispy edges seen in drier years.

I've been growing the lime green and purple potato vines for a decade, valuing their cascading foliage in hanging baskets. In all that time none ever bloomed - but this purple one produced flowers! Is it a result of our eighties instead of nineties with everyday rain?

Here's the Clematis viticella, rescued from the awesome slug, making another flurry of buds and blooms. The pale blue flowers at its base are a Plumbago, a plant that throws lanky branches up to 4-feet high by mid-fall, and sometimes makes it through a NW Austin winter. This spring it was killed to a couple of inches in height, so it wasn't blooming when the clematis was scanned in April.
The big weedy looking leaves at the lower right belong to a big weedy Brugmansia AKA Angel's trumpet. It's supposed to be yellow and fragrant. It's never bloomed, in spite of water, fertilizer, great soil and what should be a perfect location with morning sun and protection from the hot afternoon sun.
The paint on the green loveseat from the previous post was fresh when the rain began so we put it in the shed to let it cure. Any guesses on when the new garden furniture gets into the garden? Storms are in the forecast through the 4th and the weather radio goes off a few times each day, warning us of flash flood danger.
ALAMO DRAFTHOUSE
One of the quirky Austin places we've loved is the downtown location of the Alamo Drafthouse, the original nucleus of the burgeoining Alamo Drafthouse group. Food and drink accompanied a movie- the movie could be something new and weird or old and cult-oriented, or even a silent movie. We've watched Buster Keaton in The General and Louise Brooks in Pandora's Box up the screen, while musicians Guy Forsyth and Graham Reynolds played music specially composed for the movie. We've been there quite often when the Austin Film Society screened Essential Cinema. On the Tuesday night just passed we went to the Alamo Downtown, watched a truly extraordinary British Science fiction movie from 1961, The Day The Earth Caught Fire, and drank a last toast to this particular Alamo. Wednesday night was the big final party before the Alamo moves to a new location on 6th Street. This wonderful place will be no longer be quite the same, but the concept and the proprietors will still be here, and the memories have been blogged for posterity.

Deep Quackers

Preview of Things to Come...
It's fur - fur now hehe - but feathers will fly soon...
And there sits "Feathers" right in front of the R-E-F who just might toss an orange flag on the play for intrusion of space.
Nope - no flag. Just a huge warning to a surprised Sierra Rose!
Ma - strange creature over there, but I did manage to capture this ducky duck.
Look what I found? I can get behind a duck like this!
Oh Sierra, you picked my favorite squeaky! Come chase me - maybe (yeah, sure!) you can get it back from me hehe!
What a valiant attempt!!!! At this point, just to tease (next time, ma, get the movie camera fixed so you can hear an ode to my brilliance here) and entice little Sierra Rose to madness, I rapidly shake my teeth against each other, making the duck quack incessantly and in quick succession. I swear that the ducks from our nearby Civic Center pond were making low passes to see if one of their own were crying for help.
Quackquackquack.... ad nauseam, but as long as it was still making her crazy, I kept it up.
"Wackaquackwackaquack... quackwack..."
Well the Ref finally stepped in, charging me with illegal bullying hissing: "Okay - time to close up shop - I'd like to hold onto my hearing for the duration of my lifetime - game over." (ya nutty blonds...)
Hey Sierra - next Tuesday at four?

Dreaming and Living

~If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours.~ Henry David ThoreauI believe in this philosophy of life with one addendum; in order to have the desires of our hearts, we have to delight ourselves in the Lord. Our dreams should be lined up with the will of the Father.
I can have all the dreams in the world, but if I'm not doing what God wants me to do, I'll just be frustrated all the time. Believe me, I know from experience.
I still dream big, but I pray about what I want to accomplish and make sure what I want is what God has revealed in his Word. Then I can go forward with confidence that it's the right thing for me.

More Pride & Prejudice and Other Assorted Interesting Stuff

I had the pleasure of visiting Chatsworth House, the seat of the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. We thoroughly enjoyed not only the house but the grounds as well. There were fields full of sheep and large trees, lovely gardens, and the cutest little hunting lodge. Of course one of my favorite rooms was the library. Chatsworth is famous for it. I had a jaw dropping moment when I saw a paperback copy of Georgiana by Amanda Foreman lying in front of ancient leatherbound books. The incongruity of it struck me as chuckle worthy.
Georgiana Cavendish was the 5th Duchess of Devonshire and quite a character. There's an excellent movie about her with Keira Knightley and Ralph Fiennes called Duchess. I've seen it about four times and would like to again.
The top photo is a painting of Georgiana as the Goddess Diana by an unknown artist. I believe it's on the ceiling going down a staircase in Chatsworth House. The small portrait of her at bottom is by Sir Joshua Reynolds.
You may remember in the P&P movie the long gallery at Pemberley (Chatsworth) where Elizabeth Bennett saw the bust of Mr. Darcy. After they were finished filming, they left the bust there. It looks very much like Matthew McFayden as Mr. Darcy. I couldn't quit looking at the girl behind the veil. How can cold marble be sculpted to look so warm and lifelike? Michelangelo did it. You just want to embrace his figures and sink into them. Not the David. I'm referring more to his pietas. Anyway, I digress.....
The final scene where Mr. & Mrs. Darcy are sitting beside a pool was taken here at this fountain. I believe there's a scene in the movie looking out this same window at the fountain and pool.
And one final comment on the photo of the bells; I can't remember where this was taken. It could have been Chatsworth but may have been taken at Burleigh House. Have you seen these down in the servants' hall while watching a movie or touring a house? You know what would happen. The servants, including the housekeeper and butler, have just sat down to their dinner when one of the bells rings. Every head turns in dread to see which room is requiring something. The butler sees that it's the drawing room needing attention. He sighs and says, "It's for me. Carry on with your meal."
If you click on the photo, you may be able to see the labels underneath the bells telling which
bell goes to which room.
I love touring the grand houses of Europe. I just wonder....if my ancestors had stayed in the old countries, would I now be living in a house like Chatsworth or Burleigh, or would I be a poor relation, having to accept whatever charity my rich relatives dish out? Unfortunately, I'll never know since the ancestors DID come to America leaving behind either grandeur or squalor.