Toadstool

found this toadstool under one of our apple trees the other day. We usually have a few after it rains but this is the largest I have ever seen.

Christmas Cartoons

Moon Ring

There's a fantastic ring around the moon right now! Taken from my back yard at 10:30 p.m. on February 16, .

My favorite billboard

The devil sign is near Montgomery on I-65 north.

Just in case you didn't get the message:



Go to church or the Devil will get you!

We belong to anti-billboard Scenic Alabama, but I think this is one advertisement that everyone can appreciate.

The original sign was even more devilish. Satan was a more dynamic figure, hovering sinisterly, attached only by his scythe. Seemingly more prepared to leap and reap.

The earlier sign was damaged in a storm, I believe. You can see a picture of it here. There's also an audio story at that link -- Scott Simon speaking to the landowner, Mr. Newell, when he temporarily changed the sign during the last governor's race.

Death Valley :: Desert Flowers #3

First Backcountry Ski

On Sunday, Dan and I headed down to Mount Rainier with the goal of skiing the Pinnacle/Castle saddle area. I took a look at the initial slope and didn't like the thought of coming down it. So we drove up to Paradise and started skinning up to the Muir Snowfield. The snow was pretty scoured above Panorama Point, so we stopped there to go downhill. The snow was thick sticky mush. We decided to not do laps and to hit the Copper Creek for some burgers and shakes. At least the weather was nice.

Dan taking a rest from skinning. Note all the tracks.

The Tatoosh and Adams.

Dan boarding in the crud.

Me, pretending to ski. (photo by Dan Engel)

Crowbait

Here we are in the driveway. And ole' crowbait decided to let lose a big fart and scare himself so that he started crowhopping for a few seconds. I wasn't expecting that.

Mount Rushmore – And a New Camera!

Thursday, August 25th - - You can't go to the Badlands and Rapid City and not stop to see Mount Rushmore, can you? I had been there with my mother back in 1976. We happened to get there on the Fourth of July and since our country was in the midst of its Bicentennial year, there was a big celebration going on with fireworks and everything. It was awesome. From that visit I knew there were some places along the highway that The Presidents could be seen, besides I refused to pay $10 for parking! Call me cheap if you will....



























I had decided to spend another night at Custer State Park and went into Rapid City to take care of some business - I needed a new camera! The one I had was putting a rather large grayish spot in the upper center of some pictures. Not all of them, usually those with a pretty blue sky. If you noticed, many of the shots taken in the Badlands and within the past few weeks were cropped to cut out some of the sky – that's why. Camera going bad. Not good. It also makes a bit of a grinding noise when the lens is extended when turning the camera on. Probably dirt or dust in the mechanism.



I had been looking around for the last couple of weeks but there wasn't a “big box” electronics store in the small towns I'd been through. Wally World had several nice cameras (Canon SX30 IS and a Nikon) on display but they were out of stock everywhere I stopped, including Rapid City. I ended up getting what was in stock and what met most of my criteria:

• A viewfinder (a must under bright light conditions as I often found that I couldn't see what I was taking a picture of!)


• Uses AA batteries (I severely dislike brands that use proprietary batteries and I love the convenience of “regular” batteries, especially rechargeable ones).


• More megapixels and greater zoom capabilities than the current camera.

What it didn't have that I wanted was aposition-ableor adjustable viewing screen (the kind you can flip up or down). But I can live without that.



I played with the idea of getting a digital SLR but I really like the convenience of a smaller camera. I hauled around bunches of lenses and camera bodies when in the Navy and for years afterward. Just didn't want to do that again.



I purchased a Fujifilm Finepix S2940 with 14 megapixels and an 18x zoom. The current camera was 12 megapixels and 12x zoom. Also would have liked a little bit more zoom capability but the 18x zoom is a nice compromise. It is about the maximum that I can effectively hand-hold and not get fuzzy photos! Anything longer would require use of a tripod, at least for me.



The first three photos were taken with the “old” camera (Canon SX120 IS) in the morning and the last three with the new Fujifilm camera in the afternoon. The image of Washington was cropped from a landscape photo only so much as to eliminate traces of the other fellows. The Lincoln image is not cropped at all.



There seems to be a bit of a “lag time” before the next picture can be taken, but overall I'm happy with the new camera and I'm loving the viewfinder! It also has a panorama setting that is pretty slick.



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Update: After using it for five days, the Fujifilm camera went back to the store. The "lag time" between photos was unacceptable. It would take anywhere for 10 to 30 seconds between shooting one picture and being able to take the next one! If I'd had this camera in White River, I never would have been able to take those action photos of the rodeo. It didn't seem to matter whether the batteries were fully charged or partially used or nearly completely used. I really liked the camera but that "feature" made it difficult for me to continue to use it. The other thing that I didn't like was that it did not have an on/off button, rather it had a sliding switch that sometimes didn't turn the camera on when it was moved to the "on" position. I would NOT recommend this camera to anyone! So, I've reverted to using the "old" camera again for a while, until I can find what I want. I'm looking at the Canon SX30 IS and the Nikon P500. Although several "big box" stores have them on display they don't have them in stock, at least in the places I've stopped! Sigh....

Cycling and Self-Portraiture

I have long been interested in the connection between cycling and amateur self-portraiture. Anyone familiar with the world of bicyclists' image galleries is also familiar with the ubiquitous "panda shots," storefront reflections, snapshots of one's bike shadow. Taken quickly with tiny low-quality cameras, these provide spontaneous glimpses into how we move through the world, what we encounter along the way, and how we relate to our bicycles while doing so. Over the years it has become a distinct genre.




But why do it? Looking in from the outside, it is easy to interpret it as a contemporary obsession with documentation, a marking of territory, or in the case of "panda shots" (pictures of yourself taken while cycling) as a showing off of skill. And of course to some extent it is all that. But what makes it bike-specific? I have never encountered another group outside of the art world that is as prone to self-portraiture as cyclists. Joking around with bikeyface, we tried to start a trend for "walk pandas," but somehow pedestrian self-portraiture does not hold the same appeal.






Last year I wrote aboutbicycle blogs and exhibitionism - describing a culture among the blogs of beginner female cyclists where women communicate and encourage each other by showing pictures of themselves doing everyday bike-related activities. Outside of the intended audience (for example, when observed by experienced male cyclists), this is sometimes misinterpreted as exhibitionism. But for the intended audience it is in fact a "teaching by doing" sort of tool that can be more effective than any advocacy.




Still the trend for self-portraiture among cyclists is not limited to this alone. It is more widespread than that and encompasses a more diverse demographic. From racers to retrogrouches to randonneurs to pedaling fashionistas, cyclists just seem compelled to snap pictures of themselves on or next to their bikes.







It is possible that moving around by bicycle, particularly when we are new to it in adulthood, heightens our sense of self-awareness and it is this that inspires the self-portraiture. In a sense, the cyclist keeps a visual diary. And a true diary, be it written or visual, is more than just about what happens in one's environment; typically the diarist also focuses on themselves.




How well this works as an explanation, I don't know. But as a psychologist and a painter I am fascinated by the tradition of self-portraiture I've seen emerge as more and more cyclists share their images with the world. If you take pictures of yourself on or with your bike, why do you do it?