Yours Truly

August 31, 2012

Today was a big day on Martha's Vineyard, at least for all of us.  Everyone was busy scurrying about trying to do something helpful as far as getting everything ready for the big day, Sunday.  I helped Ben with various projects and, in the process, got a chance to ride in both the ultra modern Morgan as well as the 1970's vintage Morgan.  They are to cars as my Leica is to cameras, and it was fun.  During dinner Sarah's nephew Jack asked to try out my camera and, in very low light, took today's photo.  Thanks, Jack!

Through the Doors

August 30, 2012

On Sunday Travis, the son of our friends Ben and Sarah, will marry Eliza.  The officiant will be Eliza's father, Sam, and the location will be a hilltop on Ben and Sarah's property on Martha's Vineyard.  At intervals on the path to that hilltop have been placed old Chinese doors salvaged from properties drowned by the Three Gorges dam.  On their way to their new life together, Travis and Eliza will pass through these doors.  Today's photo is a detail from one of the doors.

Action!

August 29, 2012

Two days ago, in the evening, I returned from sailing with David, and in a few minutes Chris will take me to the airport for a week on Martha's Vineyard.  Travis, the son of our friends Ben and Sarah, is getting married.  Nancy's been there for a week already, so today's babysitting was solo.  Today's photo gives a view of two beautiful, happy, very active, wonderful kids.

Abstraction

August 28, 2012

Today I tried something different, specifically some long exposure with motion shots.  I was quite pleased with the results.  I could have posted several but, having to choose but one, chose this.

Serenity

August 27, 2012

All good things must come to an end, and today was the end of our good thing.  We sailed, in 9 ½ hours, from Friday Harbor to Kingston, WA.  It was a very good day beginning with dead calm and cold, an intermediate period of lots of wind and chop and cold, and and ending of peace and quiet and warm.  It didn’t rain, thank goodness.  The best photos were at the very beginning.  We were up at 6:00 a.m. to be able to leave at 7:00 a.m. to catch the tide.  It was an utterly lovely departure.

Reflections

August 26, 2012

Today we went from Ganges, B.C. on Saltspring Island to Friday Harbor, WA on San Juan Island.  It was another day of, mostly, sailing with not many photo opportunities.  All through this adventure I’ve been taking photos of reflections in the water.  Before today I haven’t used any, but today is the day for one.  So, without further ado here’s one of the scene very close to our boat.  It was Sunday morning and very, very still.

Contrast

August 25, 2012

And on the seventh day, we rested — in Ganges.  It was a lovely, lovely day, cloudless and hot with lots and lots of tourists about.  David rode his bike, and I read The Giant-Slayer, a book written by Iain which he had given me when we visited him and Kristen the day before yesterday.  I loved the book so much I went to the bookstore and bought the only Iain Lawrence book they had, B is for Buster, a book set in the night bombing squadrons of Briton in World War II.  Now I’m half done with that and loving it as well.  It was a good day, but not for taking photos.  It was a good day for looking at photos.  Julia had suggested I see the exhibit at the community gallery.  I did and enjoyed it very much — such creativity!  I did take a few photos, of course.  I liked this juxtaposition of a very old way of getting around on the water with the very (relatively) new. 

Sail ho!

August 24, 2012

Today we sailed!  It was a glorious sail on a cloudless day, and when it was all over we came into the public dock in Ganges and nestled into a space no longer than our boat.  What fun!  In honor of the day here’s a photo of our sails pulling beautifully.  To my eye they look for all the world like the Calder in the sculpture park.  Maybe better.

Beach Walk

August 23, 2012

Today was another busy day.  We left Nanaimo in time to catch slack water as we went through the very narrow Dodd Narrows, on our way to Gabriola Island to visit David's sister Kristen and her partner Iain.  It was cool and windy but not, thank goodness, raining.  We arrived at Silva Bay, tied up, ate breakfast and waited for Iain and Kristen.  On our way to their home we stopped to see the boat David built, which they now own, and then to take a long walk on the beach.  Here Iain, who is a writer, is walking on the beach looking contemplative.

Looking for a handout

August 22, 2012

Today we again motored and motor sailed, this time to Nanaimo.  It was a cold and choppy passage.  In Nanaimo we did some shopping then picked up a mooring off Newcastle Island.  Before we left, I walked the dock enjoying the lightening day.  The gulls and crows love to perch on the fishing boats.  This one’s buddies left as I approached but he stayed on longer before deciding I was too scary to be tolerated.

The Watcher

August 21, 2012

At 8:30 this morning, after getting gas for the car and the boat, stopping at McDonald’s and returning the car, we left for points south.  Ten hours of motoring and motor sailing later we arrived at French Creek.  It was another long day.  The most exciting moment of the trip came just after we had left the dock as two orcas, beautiful and strong, swam past us no more than thirty yards away heading north.  I have no photo of them.   I did decide, however, on another animal photo, rejecting pictures of boats mirrored in water and endless sea reflecting endless mountains and sky.  Apparently there’s a woman who feeds the feral cats about the marina in Campbell River.  As we returned to the boat to head out we were greeted by several of those cats looking for a handout.  As we approached they all left and hid except for this one — curious and unafraid.

Reassurance

August 20, 2012

Today began an adventure with my friend, David.  Nancy dropped me off at his brother’s boatyard where I got David’s pickup truck.  Via the Edmonds - Kingston ferry I took the truck to David and Julia’s home in Kingston.  From there David and I drove to Port Angeles, took the Black Ball Line vessel “Coho” to Victoria and then drove to Campbell River, B.C. to sail his and Julia’s trimaran down to Friday Harbor.  I left home in the pickup truck at 11:00 a.m.  We arrived at the boat at 11:00 p.m.  This young lady was on the Coho with us, walking with her mother.  Her mom said that like all kids she usually doesn’t stay still for long, but for some reason she felt she should stand and contemplate me for a while as long as she held tight to her mommy’s hand.

Feeling Safe

August 19, 2012

Today my sister, Mary, was in Seattle for a triathlon, and her daughter, Megan, came with her.  The race was over early enough that Mary and Megan could meet Nancy and me at Chris and Jen's.  That was an unexpected treat.  In this photo, Evynne is sitting with Megan.  Evynne doesn't really know Megan, although she did see her in Oregon a few weeks ago, yet she was perfectly comfortable sitting with her to watch a little television, casually resting her arm on Megan.  She feels safe, which I see as a credit to her parents and perhaps, by extension, to their parents as well.

They don't build them like that anymore

August 18, 2012

Today we went boating with my step-brother, Roger, and his wife, Donna.  They had moved their boat to Fisherman's Terminal and our goal was boating on Lake Washington.  To get there we had to go under all the bridges spanning the Lake Washington Ship Canal, the easternmost of which is the Montlake Bridge.  It was completed in 1925 and was designed by Carl F. Gould, one of the original architects of the University of Washington. The bridge and its control towers were designed to harmonize with the university's Collegiate Gothic style, and while they are handsome when seen from street level they are even more so when viewed from the water.

Ole Blue Eyes

August 17, 2012

As a baby, our son Christian had the biggest, bluest eyes imaginable.  Looking at his son, Alec, is deja vu all over again.

Collaboration

August 16, 2012

Today was, like most Wednesdays and Thursdays, babysitting day.  Here Evynne is whipping up a little something in her tin can while Al, in my imagination anyway, chooses the wine.

High and Dry

August 15, 2012

Today I had the pleasure of having lunch with my good friend Peter Hallock.  His home and garden are filled with peace, beauty, and whimsy.  He's working on the garden, actually, and there is to be a new water feature.  Until the water actually appears, however, these convivial frogs are left high and dry.

Sculpture in the Park

August 14, 2012

Today I took a stroll through the sculpture park.  It's a jewel, really, and it was good to visit it again.  Today was another beautiful, hot, sunny day.  Perfect sculpture park weather.  This is a view of the Calder's "Eagle" with the sun just peeking around its edge.

Yams

August 13, 2012

Today, alas, I forgot about my need for a photo until I was well and truly engaged in cooking dinner on the grill.  I remembered as I was grilling the yams which, as I looked at them, appeared more and more photogenic.  We did a taste comparison between sweet potatoes and yams, wondering just what the difference between them was.  As it turns out, sweet potatoes are, well, sweet.

Who knew.

Flowers

August 12, 2012

Today was a difficult day for photos in that there wasn't time for anything special.  Church in the morning, a movie in the afternoon ("Hope Sprints" -- we liked it a lot), and Compline at night.  So, in desperation I photographed the beautiful dahlias Nancy had put on the table on the deck where we had dinner.  And it turned out pretty well.

Water Wonderland

August 11, 2012

Today Nancy and I went sailing with some folks from St. Mark's.  It was a glorious day -- perfect sailing weather.  I got the chance to helm the boat and, all in all, had an utterly wonderful time.  Like the little girl with a curl in the middle of her forehead, when sailing is good it's very, very good and when it's bad, it's awful.  But today it was very, very good.

Fountain of Joy

August 10, 2012

Tonight we went to the third of the four plays the resurrected Intiman Theater is presenting in repertory this summer.  We didn't particularly like the first we saw, "Hedda Gabler", but they've gotten progressively better.  Last night was a very energetic and moving "Romeo and Juliet".  Tonight was the hilariously funny "Miracle".  It's fun seeing the same cast in different (VERY different) roles.  After the play we walked toward the fountain.  I had brought my camera after being reminded, the night before, of how lovely Seattle Center is at night.  By happy coincidence the Fountain of Light series, in which video, accompanied by music, is projected on the fountain, was happening.  We saw the conclusion of "Galaxy Grrrls Defy Gravity". I didn't get any photos of the film, but did get one of the Seattle Center logo.

Tired Lady

August 9, 2012

Today I photographed at Fisherman's Terminal.  This is a detail from a very tired looking wooden fishing boat.  All in all, she looked a mess although the life raft appeared to be in good shape which I thought was probably a very good thing.

Tree

August 8, 2012

Today I walked along the ship canal looking for inspiration.  I got several good photos, actually, somewhat to my surprise.  Just for fun, I did this in B&W, emphasizing the patterns and increasing the drama.

Street Life

August 7, 2012

Tonight was the night for Neighborhood Watch block parties in which neighbors get a chance to get together and try to remember who everyone is.  In the ten years we've lived in Seattle our block has never had a party, but we're honorable members of the block of Conkling Pl. that butts up agains our property, and we often to to that one.  This year they had an inflatable fun house for the kids.  This little guy looks as though he's thinking it would be a lot more fun inside.

We actually got to go to two block parties this year -- this one and the one on the block where Chris and Jen live.  They were both a lot of fun with wonderful food and a lot of great people.

Solid Friendship

August 9, 2012

Today I didn't do anything that inspired a photograph and so, as evening was coming on and in some desperation, while sitting in front of the evening news I photographed the margarita to my left and the metal forms holding little bulbs on branches to my right.  I actually went back later in the evening and rephotographed the bulbs on branches, using a tripod and an lcd flashlight, having become more aware of the embracing forms holding them after looking at the original photos.  Of the two, the margarita and what looks to me like a solid friendship on a starry night, I picked the latter, combining the earlier photo of the bulbs with the later photo of the forms.

Sweet Nothing

August 5, 2012

A hummingbird isn't "nothing", of course, and they are not only not "sweet" but actually rather ornery, but they're as close to nothing as you can get in the bird world and like to eat what is sweet hence the title of this post.  We just put this hummingbird feeder up and haven't had much action so far, but this one showed up while we were dining on the deck this hot, hot day and let me get close enough to get its photo.

Happy Birthday, Nate

August 4, 2012

Today was middle son Nate's birthday, and he began the day by taking Evynne to the zoo.  Here she is, all dressed up with backpack and shades, giving Uncle Nate a birthday kiss before they go.

R.I.P. J.P.

August 3, 2012

On Sunday morning, July 22, 2012, Chris Wedes, Seattle's beloved clown better known as J. P. Patches, died at age 84.  His unrehearsed, wonderfully zany television program ran from 1958 to 1981, but he subsequently made innumerable public appearances until last year when his cancer made him too ill to carry on.  I didn't grow up in Seattle and so wasn't a Patches Pal, but I have the bobble head, the DVD, and the t-shirt and had the pleasure of seeing J.P. in his last appearance at the Fishermen's Fall Festival last September.  He was special and now he's gone.

Rest in Peace, J.P.

Babysitting

August 2, 2012

Again, like yesterday, I'm publishing today's post when it is, technically speaking, tomorrow.  It's because I'm gradually watching the opening ceremonies to the olympic games.  They are wonderful -- an orgy of light and sound, youth and creativity.  A joy, really.

Today, like all Wednesdays and Thursdays when we're in town, was a babysitting day.  My photo features the other of our two delightful grandchildren, Evynne.  Like Alec, she's a gift that keeps on giving.

So It Begins

August 1, 2012

A couple of weeks ago my photographer friend, Michael Good, and I decided we would, for the month of August at least, take a photograph each day.  Michael has also regularly encouraged me to write a blog.  I thought I might as well combine the two, so here we are.  I'm not terribly optimistic I can do a photo a day for a month, let alone longer.  I tried it before with Blipfoto and fell off the wagon.  But, here we go again.  If the trick to stopping smoking is to not quit quitting, then perhaps the trick to doing a blog of daily photos is to not stop starting.

Today's photo is of one of the grandchildren, Alec this time.  I expect there will many photos of grandchildren.  Here he's watching television.  We are grateful for television.