Category Archives: photography

A Blast from the Past

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My son at age four and half at our riverfront property in Washington State that my grandfather bought for a few dollars during the Great Depression.

I am facing a chore I’ve put off for years. I have stacks of photo albums with many of the same photos and duplicates from my high school years through raising kids — before digital photos became a thing. We had a photo developer a few blocks from our house in Palm Springs called Double Photo. Yes, you got two photos for the price of one for every roll of film you brought in. I’d walk to the store, pushing a double stroller with kids plus rolls of film treating them like treasure. Hence my abundance of photos and closet full of photo albums. I’d mail the double photos to Mom, but after she passed, they were all returned to me.

I’m finally addressing the elephant in my closet by tackling one album a day. I take out the photos I want to keep and put them in a photo box. The album with remaining photos gets tossed.

Here are a few photos I found this week that bring back memories:

Here I am at our property with both kids, my daughter aged 18 months, throwing a punch?

My son before little sis was born, bathing in the kitchen sink.

Baby Kat at our park for the Fireman’s annual egg hunt.

My son eating steamer clams we dug together in Washington at my mom’s house. Funny, he’s allergic to all seafood now.

My husband and I took a rewards trip to Hong Kong thanks to the company he worked for. This is the parking lot of the Peninsula Hotel. I couldn’t believe their fleet of cars. Or the flowers for a wedding.

Wow! I’ve never seen a wedding with so many flowers before. I guess it goes along with the cars.

Then in typical China fashion, this was a side of pork at a local open air market. Such a contrast between the haves and have nots.

A picture of me in Hong Kong. We were all turned around time wise and I tripped on the curb outside our hotel — my first steps outside — and sprained my ankle. We have lots of photos of me sitting on that trip wearing an ace bandage. Kind of foreshadowed our trip to the lake in Eastern Arizona last month!

What do you do with photos from the past vs. digital photos?

Backyard critters

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Here are a few photos I took over the weekend of my favorite model Red, his wife Mrs. and a few other creatures.

I captured Mrs. in flight with Red in the background.

The chipmunks like to stand on their hind legs. What balance while he eats some birdseed.

A Curve-Billed Thrasher is one of the bully birds of the backyard. With his beak, other birds use caution.

Another lizard in the tree. This one was big and husky!

There can’t be too many photos of Red.

Or a baby quail with it’s mom.

Good news. I have two more weeks in the boot with the walker! Then I’m free as a bird!

What’s on the agenda this week?

Favorite Photos of the week — so far!

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Red has been hanging out on a consistent basis with Mrs. That’s a relief after he left our yard for the better part of a week. I’m still looking for little Reds, but so far we haven’t spotted any. I sit outside in the early morning cool weather and I think he likes to see me outside. I spent two full weeks without being able to venture outside. That’s when Red disappeared. My husband jumps in the pool in the evenings and said Red flys into a tree overhead and watches and sings.

I’m waiting for the day I get cleared to get in the pool!

Red is my favorite model to photograph, so I’m glad he’s back hanging out in our yard!

This photo of Red and a sparrow make me think of Bonnie Raitt’s song “Something to Talk About.”

Then there’s Mrs. full of spunk.

Here’s Red across the yard on the yellow planter.

This photo surprised me because I noticed the quail but not the lizard when I took it.

Here’s Bonnie Raitt’s song “Something to Talk About.” I’m laughing to myself remembering when she won her 2023 Grammy for “Just Like That” and a headline read: “Shock as Unknown Blues Singer Wins Song of the Year!”

No words!

What photos do you like best and why?

Little birds and a big bird

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Baby quail out my window.

Two babies!

I’m watching birds early in the morning while sitting outside writing my morning pages. Then I pick up my camera while sitting at a table inside. I’ve seen three separate families of quail. They are small families with the largest having four babies, then another with two and the final family has mom, dad and one baby.

House finch on a young saguaro.

A Harris Hawk stopped by and the little birds flew away.

Mrs. arrived for a snack. A House Finch tried to intimidate her, but she stood her ground.

I hope you enjoyed my photos that I took over the weekend. Happy Father’s Day to everyone and have a great week!

What do you have planned for this week?

Things that made me smile

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Two baby quail with poppa. They are the tiniest I’ve seen. I think they just broke out of their eggs!

I missed Red hanging out in our yard for three full days. I was so worried he’d abandoned us. Or, perhaps he thought I’d abandoned him. I honestly believe we had a bond, because when I’d go outside, he’d show up. I’d drive up our driveway and he’d sing to me from a nearby tree. I was inside for two full weeks, post surgery and Red disappeared. Fortunately, I had a Red sighting on Monday and heard him singing while I sat outside — now that I’m able.

Red taking off for who knows where! Below, I spotted Red near our feeder across the yard.

I caught a Gilded Flicker in flight. That made me smile.

Here’s a Gila Woodpecker and below is a Flicker.

Getting my Nikon out with my telephoto lens after more than two weeks of not using it — also made me smile. I used it for all the photos above, looking out my casita window. The photo below, I love for the morning light.

I’ll finish this post about what made me smile with a selfie I took with my iphone. It’s a goofy photo of my new look taken in the reflection of our sliding glass doors.

What makes you smile?

Sights from my backyard

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Friday I went to see my surgeon and she removed my cast! YAY! Then she put me in a heavy duty boot and told me to use my walker and walk around the house and outside with 50% weight on my right leg. The other thing she said was I could take a shower beginning Sunday with no huge plastic sleeve topped with saran wrap on my leg. WOOHOO!

It’s the little things like semi-walking and taking a shower that are making my days!

Part of my morning routine, after coffee and writing three pages, is to venture outside. I sit for about 45 minutes to an hour watching and listening to my birds. I also listen to the Hallow app on my phone. I’m listening to a podcast on it called “Bible in a Year.” I’m on day 180. I find this to be a peaceful and helpful way to approach my day. I was so over being laid up last Thursday that I didn’t want to do anything. Getting outside plus listening to this app and my birds has helped me over the hump.

Here are a few sights from my backyard:

Here’s a honeysuckle I took with my iphone while sitting outside.

Here’s a selfie of me in my sundress and boot with my walker.

Aloe in bloom next to honeysuckle.

One lone blossom on top of a saguaro.

What little things or moments in your day make it special?

Now for a little bit of Red

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I have been taking photos out my casita window with my iphone. I don’t feel up to using my Nikon with my heavy telephoto lens. So, the photos may not be as crisp and clear as they could be. But I’m happy to spot Red and take his photo any way I can.

Today, I have my first post op appointment with the orthopedic surgeon. There was a hint that at two weeks post surgery she would take off the cast and I’d be in a boot. I sure am hoping for that. I’m feeling confined and restricted in my cast. It itches under there! Plus, I am bound to a knee scooter and getting around is not that easy. I discovered something that I never noticed before. Every single doorway or sliding glass door we have, has a step or a barrier to entry to the outside world. With two good feet, I completely missed that. Now it’s quite a challenge, for example, to get to the car for a ride from hubby to a doctor’s appointment.

Red on a barrel cactus next to my pink flamingo.

I learned from new friends who live two doors away that our casita was an add on. They’ve lived here since our development was built close to 20 years ago. Our husbands were chatting at a neighborhood social night in our neighborhood park. They discovered they had a friend in common. The neighbor went to the Naval Academy and my husband’s best friend went there, too. The neighbor was friends with my husband’s best friend’s older brother — who also went to the Naval Academy. Isn’t that a small world?

I veered off track for a moment. Back to the casita — it was built for the prior owner’s mother, who must have been old and needed her space, but also something suitable for someone needing a secure and safe space. I’ve found it to be ideal for me while I’m recovering. For example, the shower is made for handicapped — which I am right now. It has a bench and bars strategically placed for me to hang onto for dear life.

I’m hoping for the best in my healing adventure. I’ll give an update next week after visiting the doctor this morning.

What are your plans for the weekend?