Birthday Wishes Posthumously

Happy 46th KP

18 years has passed already. There is not a day that goes by that I do not recall a memory of you. Tonight, I will light my annual candle in your memory and without doubt will shed a tear or two. You did everything right and you made me proud. 

(I long forgave you for being a Buckeye over a Wolverine. You see, your dream won out again.)

Continue to come and go as you will. For I still feel your presence when you visit. And, as I wrote to you in "I Must Release You", I had to release you to go and fulfill your better dreams for as any parent has dreams for their child, you had ones of your own that needed to materialize. I keep your letter from Put-In-Bay to remind me how awesome you were. Remember that day in October when I took you down onto the beach from the bluff above at Ogunquit to say good-bye to the ocean and a giant wave hit the rocks and drenched us both; Or the day at Belle Isle when were were standing on the arch bridge fishing and a alligator was inching toward us and we both began to inch out of there! And next to finally, when we were in the Blue Ridge mountains and Jim reminded you that if you got up in the morning before the rest of us did, you should not to go out on the deck. Quickly, I interjected that you should listen to Jim because the drop from the edge of the deck was a couple of hundred feet down the side of the mountain if you fell over. But Jim, quickly came back to his point, 'no, the deck if safe enough to keep him from falling, it's the couple of dozen of timber rattlers that curl up along side the house for warmth during the night". Finally, and I tell this story all the time at your expense. When driving home from Pawleys,  remember the license plate game we always played? But the one that really sticks was that day we were playing it and  you say," Dad, there sure is a lot of them Cuyahogas!."

So as you do come and go at times, for I know that you do, always know that I loved you so much.

Rest in Peace  

Happy Birthday, Dad.

Creative Hanging Worthy of a Mention

Sometimes, I find things that just blow me away. Usually, if I am going to have an old-of-focus image or some really bad creative imagery, it's going to be from one of these unexpected finds. While I have never liked doing work twice because it is interest paid twice, I will go back and re-shoot that image so that I can log as part of my portfolio. Case in point.
 
In this particular case, understanding how this find was done is making me curious. It will take some more investigating. Keeping sure footing was more important than any camera setting and one must remember that at this time of year, the snakes are beginning to crawl. But, there will be better times when it all comes together and I might even get a super shot out of this. If not, then, having seen it was enough. I'm pretty sure that most of my readers have never seen this. I will tell you that the height about the ground was at least 30 feet with another 20 feet to the top. Amazing at any height. Amazing for even finding it where it was.

A large wind chime hanging under a bridge overpass some 30 feet above the ground. The cable that bound it went upwards another 20 feet and came through crack in the roadway above.

This is difficult to explain who cavernous this really hangs over.

Sorry for the out of focus. I'm trying to keep myself from falling and watching for creepy crawlers and not worried about changing my usual settings.

A Surprise From the Sierra Navada

Fishing on the Rock again.

Ducking the main sail in low quarters!

Even since the Osprey flew the nest at the end of summer, I set out to find a new action web cam. There has been a previous post about this. Yes, one was found and it was mentioned "in part" in that same post.

Watching the daily dose of 2-mile-lone freight trains being pulled through town several times a day by Union Pacific locomotion has been a trill for a big kid. Me! On the other hand,  Amtrak is also amazing as their  daily consist has gone from the normal of 12-cars down to 11 after the holiday. Plus, three or four times, the old private cars are pulled from west to east or east back to the west. Either way, the freight trains are general freight and always one of straight containers. There has been some freights with as many as 8 engines. Some pulling. Some pushing. Yesterday, there was one that was made up of 10 locomotives. That is the most that I have ever seen in any trains consist. Ever! And I have watched trains ever since I was a kid walking home from school.

At the same while,  I have watched the weather systems move over the Sierra Nevada range and dip down arriving in North Texas a couple of days later, On Monday, it was raining with freezing rain on the web cam. The nights have been in the low 20s--even dipping to the upper teens a couple of time.

When I clicked on the cam this morning.....I gasp from the beauty of snow capped mountains that came over the night.  The gold of the Aspen trees leaves below the snow caps just sent chills of excitement and joy through my soul. I remember the old Lutheran and Methodist hymn: "For the Beauty of the Earth" by Conrad Kocher in 1838, and I give thanks.

Nature's Flying Stain Glass

Well, every year about this time, give or take a window's week, the Monarch butterfly reaches North Texas from its days of milkweed leaf chomping, it's lush silk-spun chrysalis they encased themselves into in Canada and the Great Lakes before they take flight to winter in Mexico.

I found one spot where there were as many as 7 Monarchs on one plant. The most that I have seen in one place outside of  hundreds in the air overhead.

Plant milkweed in your garden and start watching around Columbus Day for the arrival. First you will see one or two, then a dozen. Look up and you might catch a brief view of one of the waves.
These are the great-great grand children of last years arrivals.

Eureka and No Way!

Eureka. After looking for the spot where an old image was taken for more than a year, today was the day when the lost puzzle piece dropped on the table. That would be picture A. On the other hand, I did not go looking for this one and I didn't hang around long after snapping this shot. That would be picture B.

Picture A: Highway to Dallas

Picture B:  A reptile that  was soaking in the sun.

Lamborghini Anxiety

Ever get nervous that someone is going to scratch or dent your ride when it's parked in close quarters? Well, I have and the dang car wasn't even mine! Still, it was a nail biter for nearly 40-minutes.

Coming off that shoot, it was to a convention-of-sort- of several auto clubs in Dallas and their weekly show somewhere in the Metroplex. Now, these cars are old, generally, but have been tripped out by their owners and instantly become an item of pride. It's also like a mini BBQ cook off with each conclave of club members doing their own cooking and feeding their own families and crews. One member who goes by the name Tiny Loko,did offer me a bottle of water, which was very much appreciated. Although, it was declined because I carry my own water when out shooting, especially in hot or humid conditions, or both!

I have always loved car shows. My uncle was a 30-year union electrician at Cobo Hall in Detroit when it was built.  He gave  me and my dad a very interesting and in depth look at behind-the-scene at Cobo. We also got a chance to see the car show of all car shows in Detroit, when Detroit was at the peak of its glory. I will always remember that car show and the super tour of behind-the-scenes of the show and of Cobo itself.

Still, that Lamborghini had me on pins and needles. The sound of that engine was awesome. It's a 7-speed stick where shifting really is fun. The truck is for special shipments for protection and some privacy. For that reason, alone, I did try to respect that. However, it was being loaded on a public street and not on private property so, it was game for editorial use.

I'll do a seperate post of some of the cars at the Dallas Auto Clubs Show at Flap Pole Hill. 

The Prep. Tires are expensive, too!

15-minutes to get to here and the space gets closer.

There! Tie'er down securely. Note the plad pads on two of the GT to keep its rag top from hitting the roof for any reason. This is the way to ship your car. The truck is a registered user of the Secure Container Program at the Port of Oakland, Ca.

Fate Is Funny

 It's no secret that I love planes and I love trains. To me, not because they are both transportation related, trains and planes go hand-in-hand. And, it's no secret that I am or have been disappointed by Boeing for some time because they just don't have any interesting planes in design channels and are about to kill-off the best airplane that ever flew, the 747. But, somewhere down the line, they will get back on track after they stop playing with composit material and determine that they have the new space age material already.  Design is the next step to get back on track. There is more to it than it being that simple. It's just that I'm getting old and I want to see as much of the next generation aircraft that I can while I can still kick dust instead of pushing it up.

Somethings just are not meant to be. Fate is funny like that. You might as well laugh. No sense in being or getting in a dither over things. I could have seen the new 737-800 MAX that Boeing flew into Love Field yesterday. It had the Boeing paint and those magical word on its side: Experimental. It will have those words on its side, until the FAA certifies the air frame to be air worthy, which should be about this same time next year if some part doesn't fall off or something mechanical like that breaks. It was brought into Love to Southwest for them to gawk at since Southwest will be getting the first one. I've got pictures of the 787 Dream liner that came into DFW a while back. All my photo buddies were all lined up to get shots as it come into DFW on 18 L or 18 R. At the last minute ( like they didn't know ahead of time) the ACT switched it over a couple of miles to the east on 17L,or 17C, or 17R. I could not tell from that distance which one it was lined up with. American had the big show set up in the hangers on that side of the field rather than on the west side of the field at their other Maintenance hanger.

Southwest did the same, but trying to get a shot on those days when they plan on purpose to keep you at bay just isn't worth it to me at my age. Even when I have been a fan of Herb and Gary since Herb's napkins days,so I stayed home. I was going to go over to Love and watch it take off and get some good shots today. I missed the departure by 21 minutes. AARGH! When I checked the status the flight was already crossing the Oklahoma line on its way to Chicago.
 
Now, yesterday, I posted the post about the Amtrak trains and the Union Pacific freight trains that roll through this little California town nestled into the Sierra Nevada Mountains. What I didn't mention in that post is that I have been having a laugh fest about where the Amtrack train looses so much time in Nevada. There is a little town called Winnemucca, Nevada. I'm always kidding myself when the station boards clicks and says that the train will be late by so many minutes. And it hasn't even left the station in Winnemucca yet. I say  what when amucca in Winnemucca?  As it is, it seems that there are a lot of freight trains switching in that area and being in the mountains, pulling 100-110 car trains with eight locomotives is totall y because of the mountains. That's why the UP built the Big Boys in the 1930s. It takes power to come across the mountains. But, Winnemucca must be a good little town and I enjoy having a little fun  at their expense when it's not their fault.

So, today, while I am looking at the stats for N8704Q, the Boeing 737-800 Max that had just taken off from Love Field, I was looking at where the plane had been. It had come to Dallas from Denver.
Looking back farther, It has been hanging out at Pinal Air park (KMZJ) near Marana, Arizona and had gotten there from Boeing Field International, Seattle. But before going to  Denver, it had left Pinal Air park and had last been seen----get this----near Winnemucca, NV. of all places on the globe for that plane to run a flight test to and then back to Pinal, had me in tears, my stomach was hurting from laughing so hard that I just shut down the computer for a bit and sat here at the desk shaking my head. Fate had gotten the last laugh! And I knew it.

The activity log reads:

Unknown Pinal Air park (KMZJ) Near Winnemucca, NV 01:53PM MST Last seen 04:18PM MDT 1:25

You couldn't make this stuff up if you tried. I had said in a previous post that a mail truck was an equal opportunity pumper and what do I see but an actual fire pumper at the gas station getting gas a couple of days later ....not just any pump at the station, but the one right behind me. Two feet away.

Now, to get even with me for laughing and saying, "what went amucca in Winnemucca,?"  The closest airport to my house and one where I could have gotten the best shot departs ahead of time and had the activity log rubbing it into my face with the  word, Winnemucca!.  Don't tell me that Fate isn't also a practical joker. I've got the proof now!☺☺


If you would like to see the picture of the plane in the Boeing Experimental paint that was on the plane here at Southwest hangers at Love, the link is included here:

 http://flightaware.com/photos/aircraft/N8704Q

Natures Boquet on  a lake shoreline.