I haven't taken many photographs lately which is probably just as well since most of my pictures suck. I'm being hard on myself -- I am just a novice, after all, with everything left to learn -- but I cannot help but feel that the quality of my shots is rather poor.

Nevertheless, over the past few months I've accumulated a handful of pictures that I'm willing to share for various reasons. Click on any thumbnail to open a window with a larger full-sized image. (The thumbnails are merely details of the larger photos.)

On March 31st, Kris and I joined Mac and Pam for a trip to Seattle to see the last game of spring training. In this photograph, rookie phenom Kazuhisa Ishii is pitching to Mariners second-baseman Bret Boone. I love this picture, though it's not especially well-composed. If it were taken with a large-format camera, revealing more detail, I'd have it framed. I love Ishii holding his release point, Boone with his front leg lifted as he prepares to swing, the men on first and second ready to run, the Dodgers' second-baseman already beginning to move, the flag blowing in the wind, and --especially -- the wide angle of the shot. It's not a great shot, as I say, but it's one that strikes my fancy.

 

Walking back to the car after the game, we passed some railroad tracks. Kris and Mac thought the "No Humping" sign in the window of one of the cars was "hilar", so we took this photo.

Driving home from McMinnville (after helping Laura and Michael work on their new house), I passed a bright yellow field of wild mustard. It was mid-April and blustery, but the sun had momentarily cast aside the clouds. I stopped the car and grabbed the digital camera. Though I took about twenty shots, none were especially pleasing: a perfect example of having a static subject before me but not understanding how to frame it, how to shoot it in order to produce an effective photo. The following detail is the best I could find, with the contrasts between the white and blue of the sky and the yellow and green of the field.

  

After my bike's chain broke during a ride with Paul in early May, I walked the blasted contraption toward Canby while Paul went for his van. The day was grey and stormy; it rained. This shot, across a fallow field toward a stand of trees around a creek, appeals to me.

The picture of the pink tulip was one of a series in which I was attempting to get my camera to focus on close subject. The camera does not have macro capabilities (and I lack the skill for such shots), but it was fun to try anyhow.

The weather was fantastic for the MNF group's Bend trip at the end of April. One morning a herd of deer passed by the back deck. They were bold and not easily spooked. This one allowed me to get fairly close before bolting.

    

Last Thursday I joined Mac for a ballgame at the high school. The game was a pre-playoff tuneup so nobody was running the scoreboard. Mac volunteered to do it. We scampered up into the hot box above the concessions stand where Mac puzzled out the controls to the scoreboard and I fussed with my digital camera.

  

Toto and Satchel continue to catch birds at the feeder. We've witnessed several attempts now and no longer doubt the cats' abilities to snag the birds while they're munching on tasty seeds. When Toto fixes on a target she becomes a mass of potential energy, energy that explodes in a blur of motion and a fantastic leap and a fluttering of wings. Though Toto and Satchel are not friendly inside, they're partners in crime out-of-doors.

 

Satchel has been in a good mood today since before we got out of bed. He's been trilling and playing and dashing about. This afternoon he helped me mow the lawn. Later he decided to climb the ornamental cherry tree in the back yard. It was easier to climb than to descend, however, especially since Toto was at the base of the tree, mocking him.

  

Our strawberries are going to yield a bumper crop. The volunteers on the north side of the house have no fruit yet, but they've produced an ocean of blooms. The small patch on the south side, in the driveway, has many berries that are nearly ripe. In fact, at dusk tonight I found two that were ready to pick.

On this day at foldedspace.org

2005 — Getting Things Done   I spent the weekend implementing the system found in David Allen's Getting Things Done.

2004 — Einstein's Dreams   Kris and I went antique shopping on Saturday. I found a great book -- Collier's Wonder Book -- which contained a bit about Einstein written in 1920. This reminded me of the wonderfully strange book, Einstein's Dreams.

2003 — Cryocuff   We didn't pay much attention to the cryocuff for the first 24 hours I was home; we discovered it this afternoon, and it makes a significant difference in how I feel.

2001 — Fairy Tales and Fantasies   We just saw Shrek, which isn't bad, at a Regal Cinemas theater, which IS bad. Also, Pam made an interesting point about the nature of science fiction last week, and I've been thinking about it quite a bit.