Today’s the end of August. i was laid off the end of June. In two months, i’ve found i can only stand so much – i cleaned my den today. i feel Washington DC should be nuked, Utah may be scenic but it’s fast losing it’s appeal, and the world in general is going to hell in a handbasket.
i borrowed the in-laws lawnmower today, and as i finished, the neighbor kids kept riding their bikes in my driveway. One even got off and walked into my backyard as i finished cleaning up. i said “You’ll have to leave, i’m locking the gate” and the loud fat-assed neighbor from across the street said “How rude!”.
In my day, i would never consider trespassing a neighbors’ yard. Here, we have the local busy body defending the ankle biters right to traipse wherever their undisciplined will lead them. Forgive me, but the indecision to clock fat ass or cookie cruncher allowed the whelp to safely step into his yard. i’m not as willing to risk jail as i once was. Neighbors 1, homeowner 0.
Share on Facebook
This weekend we found ourselves in Park City, Utah. An excellent place to find yourself on just about any weekend, but this weekend, it was hosting the Food and Wine Classic 2011.
Saturday morning, we hiked amongst the deserted ski runs and skirted the town itself.
After our overland adventure, we checked into a local hotel and made our way over to the Canyons Ski Resort, where we stood in line waiting for Toast of Park City Grand Tasting.
We were serenaded and wooed by all the vendors with their wares.
All in all, a nice weekend at a nice place at a nice time of year. Needless to say, we had a nice time.
Share on Facebook
Some time back (a Christmas sale in 2003) we bought a Canon Digital Rebel. A true DSLR, we treated it a point and shoot, never leaving the green square even though we left home and brought the camera with us. As late as April of 2008 we took the camera that could to New York City and pointed it and shooted it at various landmarks in the City. What we did find out about that trip, was the weather is hit or miss at that time of the year (mostly miss, we got rained on) and we actually both liked taking pictures. So much so that shortly after, we became a two camera couple.
A couple of picture taking fools, i got the latest Rebel and gave the trusty 300D to my wife. Prior to our adventure to Gotham, we had bought a ‘zoom’ lens. So, equipped with one zoom lens (the EF-S 75-300) and two kit lenses, we kept exploring. Life was good taking pictures and stashing memories. Except it wasn’t enough, we took some classes and took a chance and found other settings on the dial. Settings with cryptic abbreviations like ‘TV’, ‘AV’, and “M”.
By the time we made landfall in the middle of the country (August 2009) we found our cameras did more than just point and shoot. They would actually capture what you saw and translate it into a more better memory.
So the moment in time and the place we were at became “desktop wallpaper”, because digital was here to stay. Everything from textures
to light
became fair game. We learned a little about capturing these things. With the dial firmly bumped off the green square, a whole new world
was still where we left it, both near and far, we just became a bit better at capturing it, sharing it, and saving it for days when the weather didn’t cooperate.
Share on Facebook
They finished off the season with a 107 – 102 win over the Nuggets. They didn’t make the playoffs, but they did prove that this core of young talent will be a force to reckon with. A rookie (Gordon Haywood, 9th pick in last years draft) dropped a game high 34 on hated Denver. To be fair the nuggets played without a point guard . . .
Thanks Jazz, you have been the lone warm spot in this long, cold miserable winter. And i mean literally – we’ve been to Florida, Las Vegas, and even Moab during the basketball season, and each of those places experienced either snow or record cold.
i’d like to thank Tania, who helped me set up and execute the above picture. i really think that flash photography is your niche, and can’t wait to see where you take it. <3
Share on Facebook
Spring in Utah. Here it is, the second week in April, and we are still dealing with snow.
spring snow
It makes for a profound sense of cabin fever, and the feeling that winter will never end. Most of our diversions are indoor, and it makes for an expensive stretch of time. We had recently gone to a photography lighting workshop, and the winter blues combined with our new found knowledge conspired to make us buy a flash for our cameras.
580 EXII
We have managed to get out of town a couple of times. Last weekend we went to Wendover to see Lewis Black.
Lewis Black
It was a great show, but still not warm – Wendover was windy and cold. This time of year, it seems the only green we see is the money flying out of our account, and the Masters Tournament being played in Georgia.
The 12th @ Augusta
Usually this tournament marks the beginning of golf weather here, but this year it hasn’t. It seems it’s green all over everywhere else, but all the white here has left me in a black mood.
Share on Facebook
As in days. i had another birthday last week, and i’m glad it’s over. It’s getting to the point where i have one once a year!
i got three new monitors, and to these old eyes, it makes a difference. The only thing wrong with them, is now i can’t see my desk!
We saw the Jazz take on the league’s best team, the San Antonio Spurs.
It was a good game, but the Jazz lost. i think now that the Jazz have played everyone in the league, they aren’t surprising anyone anymore. A recent injury to D. Williams has changed the look of the team on the floor, but the surprise of winning all the pre-season games and three out four regular season games is gone.
It’s still fun being a fan, and i’ve found the less i listen to the local sports talk radio the better off i am.
Share on Facebook
At the end of December we drove down to Las Vegas. Although we’ve been there before, it was the first time on New Year’s Eve. The drive was fairly eventful, with the last blizzard of the year slowing us down, and eventually getting us off the freeway near Springville.
The freeway had snow on it all the way to Nevada. we stopped at Mesquite for a bite to eat and our obligatory first donation to their economy. Sitting at a slot near the hotdog vendor, i somehow managed to win $200.
We wanted to make our hotel at a reasonable hour, and also not quite knowing how that machine payed off, we hightailed it for Sin City. It was just after dusk, and with our new-found windfall got the bright idea to see the Strip.
The Eiffel Tower at the Paris Casino sits near the middle of Las Vegas Blvd. As we wandered in the casino, there was a line of people buying tickets to ride to the top. Tania got in line and asked if there were any tickets available for New Year’s Eve. As luck would have it, there were- and for the cost of $200 we could spend the holiday almost 500 feet above 300,000 drunken revelers.
After successfully escaping Nevada on the 2nd, we had tickets to a Jazz game for the 3rd. Someone wasn’t particularly excited to go to the game, with it being the evening after going back to work and against the Detroit Pistons. Things changed around 3:30 when i got an e-mail saying we were going to give up our 2nd row, upper bowl tickets for 1st row, on-the-court upgrade.
The Pistons, despite a subpar record battled hard and even had a lead within a minute of the game ending. The Jazz snatched victory from the jaws of defeat with some fourth quarter defense and some timely offense. Sitting on the hardwood, close enough to hear the players was a rare and fun event.
Welcome, 2011, you*re off to a nice start . . .
Share on Facebook
Yay, short work week. We got back from the east coast yesterday, and slept. A lot. Back in September we decided to see a Raiders road football game, choosing Jacksonville this year. Going in, they were 6-6 and had a chance to make the play-offs. The Jaguars were 7-5, and anything could happen . . .
We flew in not on a red-eye, but the flight got us into Orlando about 11. We had planned to see Epcot on Friday, plus we lost two hours going east.
i enjoyed the Epcot Center, and if it came down to that or DisneyWorld, i’m glad we went there. i only took 200 or so pictures that day . . .
The next day found us having to make a choice, because we didn’t plan – do we go east to the Atlantic coast, or west to the Gulf coast? Despite the weather, we knew we wanted to see a beach. So we went west, and found ourselves in St. Petersburg
As the afternoon wore on and the clouds broke, we went to Treasure Island. Found a little place called Caddy’s, that had not only parking and food, but was right on the beach.
Watched the sun set from Sunset Beach, and headed back to Orlando.
The next day we got up early to head for Jacksonville. At the east end of Highway 4 we found a Waffle House
in Daytona Beach. We drove on the beach, and took some pictures. i only had 99 for the day . . . when we did make it to Jacksonville, i stowed my camera and we took Tania’s to the game. It was a fun game, but in the end the Jaguars won a slugfest 38-31. So we headed south down the coast, and Googled something for dinner. The internet suggested trying Harry’s bar and grill in St. Augustine, and whaddya know? It was pretty good . . .
Heading back to Orlando, we saw a line of cars still trying to get off the road and go to DisneyWorld. We made it to our hotel, packed for the flight home, and called the front desk for a wake up call.
The next morning, we got that wake up call and another one – it was 33 degrees outside and the weather promised to be warmer, when we landed back in Salt Lake. Still, i’m glad we got to see another corner of our country, for the hat trick – three of four within 12 months. i’ve a feeling we may go to New England in the not too distant future . . .
Share on Facebook
