Ten years ago—April 6, 2006—I bought little green Nyokki for my daughter during a trip to the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Molly and I had seen it on a Japanese website weeks earlier; we […]
Category: Living
My Crushing Coachella Concession
This afternoon I sold my Coachella 2016 Weekend 1 Pass to a young woman from Texas who relocated to San Diego about a year ago. Earlier in the day, she spontaneously decided to attend the music festival, responding to my Craigslist post about 10 minutes after I placed it. Disappointment goes with the pass, which I purchased during presales last June. The photo is the only shot of the kit—to accompany the ad.
The Weekend Oner was an unexpected extra. During presales, I bought a pair of Weekend Two passes for my daughter and companion, after being informed the other likely wouldn’t be available. While purchasing, I left the other browser tab open and unexpectedly got pushed through to sales with a single option: Weekend 1 with Shuttle Pass. I grabbed it, thinking to go myself.
He’s So Big
A rare close-up of Neko. Shot with iPhone 5s on Dec. 6, 2013. Vitals: f/2,2, ISO 400, 1/15 sec, 4.12mm.
Bubba’s Buddy
Four days after I buried poor little Bubba baby bunny in our backyard, another appeared. The rabbit would be the second sighted and photographed in June 2006—this one on the 8th and the other the 25th; perhaps they were one and the same.
There was something poignant about the bunny’s appearance, and, coincidentally or not, he cross the grass across Bubba’s grave. Last month, I discovered the portrait, one of a half-dozen, stored on a decade-old DVD backup. I captured the moment using Nikon D200. Vitals: f/5.6, ISO 400, 1/40 sec, 200mm.
Goodbye, Copper
Recently, I made walking a daily habit. My wife Anne and I often go together, here in the neighborhood, as we did this afternoon. Our family moved to San Diego’s University Heights area in October 2007, to be close to her dad, who at 94 lives on the next street. On the adjacent block there are several cats we often visit, but one I hadn’t seen for several months. The lady who cared for the kitty was outside today, and Annie asked about scruffy Copper. Where is she?
Last year, animal rescue euthanized the feline following a vicious dog attack; in the cactus and bushes where she often safely stayed. The injuries were too severe for recovery. 🙁 Copper came to the apartment building that became home as a stray. Her caretaker-benefactor tried taking the cat inside, but Copper refused confinement. That’s not to say she strayed far from her adopted outdoor home.
Backyard Bunny, Too
This past week I made a discovery while checking decade-old back-up DVDs: Not all the 2005-06 wild bunny photos shot in my Kensington, Md. backyard are lost. It’s an incomplete set, and the best images are still missing; presumed gone forever.
On the afternoon of June 10, 2005, I stepped out onto the deck overlooking the backyard and spotted a young rabbit in the grass. I fetched the Nikon D70 mounted with Nikkor 70mm-300mm lens and started shooting. I worked my way down the stairs onto the grass and slowly approached the rabbit, closing quite the distance before it cautiously moved away.
Thank-you, Google Photos!
Last night, while looking for one thing I found another: Four snapshots of Cali taken when she approached me on the street, June 4, 2014. This one is best of them. Strange, I hunted for […]
Here Kitty, Kitty
I spotted three cats on North Ave. here in University Heights on the same block in two different yards. None was friendly, and one hissed when I approached but held its ground. The featured image is the twain that I disturbed. As I walked down the sidewalk, the one in the foreground caught my eye. I captured a couple shots and moved in closer for better composition. That startled the other out of the bushes to the left; I hadn’t seen it.
Last night, I snapped some street shots at dusk, and used the Fuji X-T1’s dedicated light Sensitivity dial to switch down from auto-ISO 6400 to 200. It’s a dual dial: Sensitivity top and Drive below. In near darkness, while moving one I nudged the other—from single-frame (S) to low-speed burst (CL). That setting error let me capture a sequence as the other cat exited. Lucky.
The Apple Event to Sleep For
Editor’s Note: I wrote this for Frak That!, where nothing should be taken seriously.
“The snoring was so loud, I couldn’t get any work done”, Maybell Lindsey says about the March 21st Apple Event that introduced nothing. She is among a handful of litigants planning to sue the company for failing to fulfill its longstanding obligation to wow watchers with exciting new products—or, in the parlance of deceased cofounder Steve Jobs, present “one more thing”. “One less thing, actually and a lot of `em”, Lindsey heckles.
Litigants largely fall into two categories: 1) Those suffering emotional trauma for being denied the “got to have it now” exhilaration that makes the product launches must-see events. 2) Those tormented by snoring coworkers lulled to lala land by the oppressive focus on energy efficiency and recycled product packaging rather than earth-shaking new tech.
Bubba’s Gallery
Ten weeks ago I revisted the sad story of Bubba—baby bunny who died less than 24 hours in our care. He came to us on June 3, 2006, quite unexpectedly. A cat brought the furball home to his owners, who sought someone to take over responsibility. My daughter, wife, and I did but too briefly. Infection from bite or scratch doomed the little duffer. For years, I had but the two photos of Bubba that accompanied the original post. Today I discovered the others.
Earlier this month, I bought a LaCie Rugged Mini 4TB external drive. While I often store valuables in the cloud, I have nearly 20 years of photos and other files spread out on smaller discs and dozens of DVDs going back to 2000; all will consolidate on the large-capacity drive. I spent today searching the old discs, where I found some gems, including the Bubba NEF RAW originals shot with the Nikon D200.
If They Aren’t Twins, They Should Be
The tortoise theme continues for a second day, but with an oldie. I don’t recall shooting the photo (but surely did) on June 27, 1999. I have absolutely no idea what early digital compact I […]
The Lawn Mower
A few blocks down the street from the “Butterfly House” is a University Heights resident whose origins I know nothing about. But she is a fixture for anyone riding, running, or walking by. The tortoise makes old-timer Fess the cat look like a kitten. A dino-era relic doesn’t get this big without a whole lot of years behind it.
Unsurprisingly, the big fellow follows the sun throughout the day and keeps the owner’s lawn nice and trim. I am surprised by the creature’s speed—not stereotypically slow but surprisingly spry. Hehe, which is why I shot a short video of tortoise eating grass in slow motion. It makes me laugh. And you?