Snow hound!
Henry's first snow was a huge success. He freaked out... loved it. He is ready for the Iditarod... just ask him. When sufficient icicles and compacted snow were encasing his baby pink belly and fine silky fur, we would take him inside, thaw and blow dry him, and get him set for the next round of hopping through the deep snow like an arctic bunny.
We spent Christmas on the Corpus Christi Bay at my mothers. It began to snow on Christmas Eve and continued through the night. Various reports from 8 to 11 inches came in by the morning, but it was a miracle at any depth. I have only seen snow once in my life in Texas and it was a mere spattering that barely stuck. This was real snow. Real snow in south Texas on Christmas day... amazing. It was the most snowfall ever recorded in a 24 hour period in the region.
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We did the snowman thing and the snowball fight thing and the dogs ate the snow like it was some strange candy that they couldn't get enough of... it was a special touch for a special day. I find it quite ironic that I left my entire camera rig at home on this once-in-a-lifetime event occurance. These photos are from my mom's point and shoot... good enough for the memory. Henry was adorable. He couldn't get enough. We had to force him inside to warm so he wouldn't get sick. All said and done, it was a wonderful and relaxing Christmas. Now, back in the office, things are quiet and I feel the new year's tasks preparing their offensive. Until then, the crickets are chirping in the silent halls of my building. Holiday cheer still reigns...
twas the night before christmas,
he lived all alone,
in a one bedroom house made of
plaster and stone.
i had come down the chimney
with presents to give,
and to see just who
in this home did live.
i looked all about,
a strange sight i did see,
no tinsel, no presents,
not even a tree.
no stocking by mantle,
just boots filled with sand,
on the wall hung pictures
of far distant lands.
with medals and badges,
awards of all kinds,
a sober thought
came through my mind.
for this house was different,
it was dark and dreary,
i found the home of a soldier,
once i could see clearly.
the soldier lay sleeping,
silent, alone,
curled up on the floor
in this one bedroom home.
the face was so gentle,
the room in such disorder,
not how i pictured
a united states soldier.
was this the hero
of whom i'd just read?
curled up on a poncho,
the floor for a bed?
i realized the families
that i saw this night,
owed their lives to these soldiers
who were willing to fight.
soon round the world,
the children would play,
and grownups would celebrate
a bright christmas day.
they all enjoyed freedom
each month of the year,
because of the soldiers,
like the one lying here.
i couldn't help wonder
how many lay alone,
on a cold christmas eve
in a land far from home.
the very thought
brought a tear to my eye,
i dropped to my knees
and started to cry.
the soldier awakened
and i heard a rough voice,
"santa don't cry,
this life is my choice;
i fight for freedom,
i don't ask for more,
my life is my god,
my country, my corps."
the soldier rolled over
and drifted to sleep,
i couldn't control it,
i continued to weep.
i kept watch for hours,
so silent and still
and we both shivered
from the cold night's chill.
i didn't want to leave
on that cold, dark, night,
this guardian of honor
so willing to fight.
then the soldier rolled over,
with a voice soft and pure,
whispered, "carry on santa,
it's christmas day, all is secure."
one look at my watch,
and i knew he was right.
"merry christmas my friend,
and to all a good night."
O...... M....... G.......
Couterstrike: Source is un-real. UN-REAL!
I'm being woo'd by more than one company and it is making me uncomfortable. I am quite happy where I'm at (surprise) and don't want to jump ship jsut because something new comes along despite the way my employer has treated me over the last 3 or 4 years. I was hired in under my career level and haven't received a raise in 3 years with no promotion in site. Anyone is their right mind would consider their options given a track record like that... no? I really am curious about one opportunity that is slow moving and I haven't heard of any progress in that area... while another one is hot to trot, but it isn't my first choice. I get resume hits all the time with folks wanting me to do contract work here and there... the most recent one was a spot in MN. I am not interested in moving out of Houston unless it is to Colorado. I am not interested in contract or contract-to-hire. I am picky because I can at this point. I have some loyalty to my current gig, so I'm it really has to be something special to get me to budge. Blah blah blah.
Damnit.
Rolled to The Strip House after work. I love that joint. Went to see Cake. Didn't sleep well despite going to bed early. My eyes are burning. Mega-burger at Lankford's Grocery was lunch du jour. I can't drink coffee fast enough. I just want to sleep.
There is a big pat on the back style get together after work sponsored by my company for a recent project that was successful. I don't want to go, but it's one of those political things. I hate that shit.
I need a nap.
We just lost all kinds of power at work. Sweet.
I seem to degenerate into this lazy blob on the weekends. The only productive thing I set out and did between Friday afternoon and this morning was put another coat of rubberized roof sealant on the horizontal surface of a small window cove upstairs that collects water when it rains. Urs and I went out for a couple of pitchers at Molly's Friday night. EL and I enjoyed Saturday morning together. I wasn't able to sleep in either day because of Sir Henry the Peanut. He is quite demanding and when he decides it's time for the house to be awake to serve him, he lets it be known. Saturday afternoon, Barrett came by after spending the morning beating Halo 2. He and I mostly geeked out in The Cave. There is nothing like a little LAN action to time warp your hours away. We were both really tired though, so it made it hard to concentrate. By midnight, I was ready to retire. Sunday was filled with more of the same lazy schedule. I love it. The weather was nice enough that I could go out and shoot, but these days I want to spend time enjoying my home. Sometimes it feels like I never see it. The weekend passed with amazing speed. I can't believe that I am already driving back into the office. It just blows me away.
Crazy day yesterday. Too much tequila. Irma's downtown still has some great food, but their drinks are not on par. Greg and I had a great time, but our afternoon was cut short. I am sooooooooo glad it's Friday!
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I went to bed early last night. Earlier, that is, than most nights recently. I've continue to have problems sleeping through the night. I wake in the morning drained and exhausted. It often feels as though I hadn't slept at all, but I know better. EL made coffee this morning. I am pretty sure she makes it every morning, but I'm rarely late enough to enjoy it. I prepared myself for the day, grabbed the thermos style cup (already filled no less) she'd recently given me, and climbed into my new ride for the short jaunt to the park and ride. I slid in some White Pony and realized about half way there that today was not a day to go to work. If I had any speakable vacation time on the books in this last 3 weeks of the calendar year, I would go home and snuggle up with a Valium, bottle of wine, or similar sleepy friend and let the hands march around the face of the clock whilst I was none the wiser. I don't like being tired like this because my mind doesn't function properly. I have lists of things to do that seem to gallop around that corral rather than sit in their stalls waiting to be addressed. I never catch them. Today is going to be the southern equivalent of the 4 martini lunch.... read: involves tequila. Greg and I had planned over a month ago to whoop it up after work tonight... not drugs-and-strippers-whoop-it-up, but more like cigars-scotch-and-talk-about-life-the-universe-and-everything-whoop-it-up. It's what happens when you evolve into having to schedule social outings with your friends on a calendar that syncs to your enterprise appointments and wirelessly stays sync'd to your cell phone/PDA calendar. Life became too complicated some point. I'm more the espresso and croissant with friends on the bistro patio than the chain smoking meetings and corporate schmoozing guy. I'm not saying that un-interrupted connectivity to everyone and everything doesn't prove extremely useful and on the surface, seem to make life easier. It superficially does. I believe that the guy living in a small village nestled in the Alps that knows everyone in his town and lives life at a slower pace is probably ultimately happier having never been exposed to the rat race of multi-billion dollar deals and cities swarming with millions of people. Rape, murder, extortion, conspiracy... household words in America's top 5. Houston weighs in at number 4 behind Chicago, Los Angeles, and the big NY. I never intended to land here. Of course, I never intended to be married more than once, serve in the military, or make photography more than a hobby, but good things have come to me because of those unexpected decisions. Not to jump tracks, but as I posted the photograph this morning, I thought of censorship. I've never censored my blog much. I can't say that I haven't withheld certain words or opinions to protect the feelings of overtly sensitive friends that read beyond the intended message into absurd and drama inducing fiction. Other than that, I've always been a straight shooter with a potty mouth. I'm a usually dirty minded, foul mouthed, sarcastic buffoon. I shot about 500 or so images this weekend under several lighting setups with several models. The vast majority will likely be deleted, but certainly never exposed to the public eye because I am picky about small things that turn an otherwise good photo into a circular file candidate. So, to my point... some of the photographs I took are nudes. Some topless, fewer completely nude, but the bottom line is the lack of clothes. Nudity is a line never crossed in this blog's history to the best of my knowledge and it is one I am struggling with crossing now. It's not that I have a problem with the human for or it's exposure. I think there is nothing more beautiful on God's Earth than the naked human female form and all it's curves and intricacies. My hesitation stems from perception... or my supposition of what the perception will be. I haven't decided yet on whether to proceed. In any case, I'll have a separate online portfolio for glamour, fashion, and beauty work, so at a minimum, I'll post the link. Skippity-do-dah again and I'm trying to get a discount on my auto insurance with my safe driving certification I must maintain for work to had pool access to company vehicles. I need to find that damn certificate. My office looks like it was hit by a tornado. I hope the day passes quickly. My sanity needs this weekend and some serious vegetation. Rest and Relaxation with no mental stress. Breath in. Breath out.
This is the coolest thing I've seen in a long, long time... tiny wireless cameras attached to an eagle.
Straight
outta Compton out of the camera...
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Using a large aperture to narrow the depth of field surrounding the focal plane can be a great tool for dramatic isolation of features... like eyes... but in this particular case I wanted to get the necklace in the shot, so I shot Laura in this pose twice. The photograph above illustrates what I was saying (it was shot at f/1.8) about the DOF isolation. The other shot (still sitting undeveloped) was taken stopped down beyond f/5.6 (I don't remember just off hand) to encompass the jewelry. She was in what I like to call a "light chamber" when I took this shot. The room was completely dark, but through the use of white cards and reflectors, the main daylight balanced (to about 5000 degrees Kelvin or so, but close enough) fluorescents pumping lighting into the "chamber" allowed workable shutter speeds in the ambient conditions. I shot this at 6000 degrees Kelvin to warm her skin tones. Anyhoo, we went to happy hour last night at Blanco's Bar and Grill. I realized after two beers that I just wasn't in the mood, so my old standby came to my rescue. Crown on the rocks... a little slice of heaven. By the time EL showed up at 8:30 or so with some hot homemade tamales, we were knee deep in tequila shots, water moccasins, and martinis. You can image my utter lack of surprise when I came around the corner this morning and every door in my hallway that led to an office of a participant was still closed... and I was an hour late. LMAO. So, as I sit here and sip my coffee, I'm thinking that today may be a good day to coast. When is lunch going to get here?
