Category: Living

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 27, 20161:52 pm

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.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 24, 20164:38 pm

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 […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 22, 20168:49 pm

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.

Apple by Joe WilcoxMar 21, 20163:20 pm

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.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 20, 201610:42 pm

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.

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 20, 201610:40 pm

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 […]

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 19, 20169:48 pm

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?

Photo by Joe WilcoxMar 18, 20169:45 am

Monarch Caterpillar

Down the backstreet (Maryland Ave.) in our neighborhood is a mini-wildlife refuge that I call the Butterfly House. Few front yards offer as much foliage, and variety of it, for bugs and birds. But mainstay […]

Critters by Joe WilcoxMar 17, 20163:48 pm

The Old-Timer

Among our neighborhood cats is Fess, who carries kind of an angry expression, although being quite friendly. He’s a slow, mature mover, and you don’t see many of them round here because of the double-C […]

Critters by Joe WilcoxMar 16, 20164:42 pm

Little Lulu

About a week ago, I moseyed into the Mission Valley PetSmart wanting some supplies and stopped to look at the cats up for adoption. We have two, Cali and Neko, and don’t need another; I meant to briefly window shop only. But the story of one beastie just ruptured my heart. According to her info card, she had been in a shelter for a year. A year! What could possibly be wrong with the little furball that no one would want her?

The woman tending the cats couldn’t answer. She fetched the kitty, which she named Lulu, from a Long Beach shelter, that could keep the kitty no longer. The adoption outfit working out of this PetSmart, and two others in the San Diego area, often rescues rescues (that’s not a type but verb and noun). Meaning: Adoptable animals that might otherwise be put down.

Living by Joe WilcoxMar 10, 20166:56 pm

This Is Me Then and Now IV

I am not quite as chubby in this fourth installment of my “then-and-now” series compared to the first, or second. Each shows me (to the right) today against a portrait nine or 10 years old. In the previous, posted August 2015, I weighed 59 kilos (131 pounds) clothed, same as the image above, despite appearing to be thinner seven months ago..

The Me to the left is a selfie shot with Nokia N95 cellphone on May 13, 2007. Anne, my wife, took the other using iPhone 6s on March 8, 2016. Different this time is what’s the same: the eyeglasses, which I pulled out of storage to wear again, to give more striking comparison with the Me today. I weighed nearly 98 kilos in the older pic (about 200 pounds). My pajama weight straight out of bed this morning: 58 kilos (128 pounds). The spectacles are quite the spectacle when closely examined—how much larger they look on my thinner face and how roomier the space along the temples.

Food by Joe WilcoxFeb 4, 201612:39 pm

Sad Banana

As seen in my kitchen. This is my first food shot posted in years. I don’t understand the fascination folks have with their meals, most of which I find photographically unappealing. If not for the […]