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Casualty of trimming the english ivy-
100 to 1 it's a White Wing Dove.
Rays from Heaven? From my backyard.
Thanks for all the comments on the jeep. It had a lot of the original equip with it. Canvas wrapped canteens, and other related Army items under the seats. It was in good condition and if I'd had the money I would have bought it from my brother 'n' law. I had a friend as a teenager that had a hand me down jeep and we spent many hours tooling around in the outskirts of Carlsbad, NM. Tough ride, they don't make em like that anymore.
Yellow Snow
Taken at the Durango, Co cemetery where we buried my father 1/7/2014. He loved this place because all the deer hang out there. They are everywhere for some reason. They are sleeping all over the graves in this cemetery. He/Roy/my father, actually drove me up there one day, thus the pictures I got, and told me this is where he wanted to be buried. Well he was, I have to keep promises, no matter the trouble. You feel me? I always got the finger wagging in my face saying "Don't you ever put us in an old folks home." I promised and am still upholding the FAMILY WISH. You only have family, and shoving them in the obscure care facility is disrespectful in my opinion. They wiped my bottom and guided me through life, so the least anyone could do is the same for end of life RESPECT. Right? Can your life be so busy as to not honor your family? I've said my peace and everyone may not agree, but think about it. THEY ARE YOUR LEGACY WHETHER YOU GOT ALONG OR NOT. I had my rough patches but in the end I love my parents. OTSB (Off The Soap Box)
Late 20's (44 years ago.) My how time flies by.
Long ago standing over a lamp. I was...well I really don't know how old I was in this.
Englewood, Co. Sometime in the late 70's or early 80's.
20110618
Shake Those Tail Feathers
First Hawk visit in many months.
040811
Pansies in all their glory.
Archived image.
I felt a little worn out this afternoon. My Aunt has been put on the Caveman Diet, for two weeks, for food allergy investigation. Since she doesn't cook much anymore I had her over today while I whipped up some of my chicken stir fry and home made chicken soup that she could take home. Stir Fry: Chicken, olive oil, red onion, red/yellow/orange peppers, garlic, white wine, cabbage, and green chili. She loved it.
040611
Fluff
Nothing like being squeaky clean.
I have a hard time with something turning out this good being hand held through a window. Makes you wonder how much a good lens matters although I know it definitely does. Wish I could manage these shots without the window to compare, they would have to be much better to share.
View at 2X
D300 w/Nikkor 200-400 f4 vr at 800 ISO, 1/50sec, and f5 with VR on.
040211
Roadrunner - Jr Badasstdmnmnew mexicostatebirdbirdswildlifenatureroadrunnercuckoogenus geococcyxcuculidae
033111
Adult Coopers Hawk contemplating a bath. Love that look of indifference. It's like I look when getting a haircut. ;~}
This was taken in summer of 2009 through my bedroom door, thus the look. Coopers Hawks don't spook easily as long as you move very slowly.
Of course....best viewed at the largest size.
032911
Another Robin perspective.
Best at 3X.
Nearly all the bird shots are through a dbl pane window.
Have not seen a Hawk for a couple weeks since the bird bath broke. Found another bath with a price I could swallow. Bigger than the last one by a bit. So heavy I had to use a dolly to get it around to the back porch. Too heavy for me to lift just yet, although I had to manage getting it out of the truck bed. Made me sore for a couple days.
Got released from therapy and Dr this week, thankfully. Just have to make sure I don't over do it for about 6 more weeks. Yay!
Not getting out much with the gas prices at $4.08 for diesel, and skyrocketing food prices, so just trying to get shots close to home.
032511
Another Albuquerque sunset.
Again 2X to appreciate.
Looking NW from the back yard, hence the neighbors vent pipe, which adds to the scene I think.
03-23-2011
The birds are a chirping and the boundaries are being set. Love those Robins.
Best at 3X.
The bird bath bowl was knocked of the pedestal again and this time broken. Can't see paying over $100 for another one. The hawks have tried to land on this plastic tray but keep knocking it off the pedestal and the epoxy would not stick to secure it. I guess the hawks are out of luck for a big enough bathing hole.
Rotator is slowly healing but this is not going as fast as I thought. Had to quit therapy for a while to allow for healing. They were rushing things and the pain was too much to put up with. Back to strength building with the bands now and the pain is at least bearable. Still have a few movements that light me up. I was planning on getting the left shoulder done after this but have since changed my mind and will just live with the discomfort rather than go through this again. {No way!!} Must be the age thing.
1-23-11
By the light of the silvery moon.
1-18-11 (Day late and a dollar short on the childhood challenge.)
I think this is around '55 or '56. Dig those yellow duds with matching boots. If my memory serves me I think I also had a beanie with a propeller on it that was multicolored and I usually wore it with this outfit. My house was behind me. We had a 1950 Hudson Commodore and a Henry J in the driveway. Our house was at the end of N. James St in Carlsbad, NM and butted up to a field that led to Tansil Dam and the power plant about 100 yds back.
I have many scary and pleasant memories there. Scary at night with weird noises coming from the river below. Scary when crossing the river right below the outflow tube and the water rising quickly and washing you down the river. I think the workers in the power plant used to watch and turn it on just to scare the crap out of us for a laugh, I swear it. Finding and bringing home baby rattlesnakes in a tin can and my mother going balistic, turtles, starfish, etc. Bull whip snakes running across the yard as though they were chasing you.
I used to wear out a deck of cards a week on my bicycle. Miss the hell out of kick the can and Olly olly aux in free. Enough already.
Sorry for turning in a late assignment, just didn't catch the notice.
1-18-11 (School Days 1957)
Another just for good measure to go with the bathing suit, boots, shot. I wasn't always dressed ridiculously. t weighted 87 lbs in the 11th grade and was a gymnast in school. Too small for anything else. Wish I could find that self leveling weight control again.
01-17-11
Coopers Hawk
My buddy has been visiting periodically. He showed up at 9:45am on Saturday in a half frozen bath. He left at 11:15am and most of the water had thawed. Don't have any idea how he stood that one leg in the cold water that long, but he did. I got many images as he wasn't bothered by my moving around in the window, banging the tripod against the wall, and pointing the cannon at him. A little more processing on this one rather than the usual minimal tweaking. Part HDR and some color correction, and Viveza.
Had a minor setback last week with a painful catch in the shoulder so knocked of exercises from Thursday until today with some anti-inflamitory cream and electrical stimulation. Guess I was pushing it too much and irritated an area due to unbalanced muscle toning. Back on track but taking it slower. Still a ways from being somewhat functional again.
I will be trying to post again, catch as catch can.
1-9-2011
Rt Rotator Cuff Repair- 22 days in.
At least I managed a smile at the peak of the stretch. (It's SP day right?)
Things are progressing well and the therapist said I have excellent movement for the length of time and amount of repair done. He said it was pretty extensive. He put me on the little rubber bands and 5 lb weights in addition to all the other stretching. Still no behind the back, supporting body weight, or lifting. Sling when going out or sleeping for another week. Guess I am on a 12 week program before I can start lifting. I have actually lost 10 lbs since the surgery due to no two fisted eating, or my lack of left handed dexterity with silverware. LOL I apologize for the apparel but easy up, easy down, easy off, easy on is the priority these days.
There have been some outstanding images posted the last few weeks, and I have been thumbing when not hurting. Nice to see the faces behind the camera of those that posted the SP!
12-12-2010
Winter Portrait.
Durango, Co.
A shot in my landscape gallery. Taken couple years ago during the holidays.
I've been having some rotten luck lately and have been out of pocket. Last Saturday I woke up and could not walk on my right foot. After many aggravating trips to X-ray lab and blood tests they have decided I didn't break my foot while sleeping (go figure), and the Dr's decided I have gout. Not conducive to getting ready for surgery on Tuesday. I have a prep appt on Monday and we will determine if I should go ahead with surgery. Being down and out with rt shoulder and rt ankle don't play well together for crutches. I have no idea how long gout flares last but its been 7 days with no improvement. Allopurinol and colchicine are making me ill also. I keep thinking that things happen in 3's and wonder whats next. Guess I need to get a better outlook but it's a little hard with all the pain. ;~/
This will be my last post for a while so have fun, I will be watching you. Thanks for the inquiries on how I am doing, I appreciate it. Some of you have asked but do not have email addresses listed, so I could not reply.
Have a Merry Christmas and NY!!!
11-27-10
It's Over
Woke up to a little dusting of white stuff Thanksgiving morning and every leaf had dropped.
My posting will be coming to an end December, and limited until then. I am having surgery for a fully ruptured rotator cuff in the right shoulder and will be incapacitated and busy with just trying to take care of myself for a while. I live alone and have many preparations, mostly cooking and food, to accomplish prior to the surgery so I can manage a one armed existence with minimal trouble. I don't type that well with two hands and suck with one finger, not to mention the camera will be on the shelf for a few months. I will keep tabs on the populars each day as I am able. I'm probably going to be a little on the irritable / frustrated side while I go through this, so wish the cat well.
I'll be back as soon as the pain eases and movement starts to come back. It's been fun and I will miss the dailies and the great people. Peace
11-25-10
Night Crossing
EDIT: This was taken on a dinner cruise on the Hornblower. Taken with an old Nikon Coolpix 950 (Original Digital CoolPix Noise) with a few too many drinks and a bouncy boat. I guess they canceled each other out because this was a miracle to be even close to sharp. This is the Oakland Bay Bridge in 2006.
archive
Happy Thanksgiving to all~
11-23-10
Just a little post wash air dry. (Same hawk just took it to the tree for some drying time.)
OK.... I think I'm done with the hawk until next visit. Thanks for putting up with the multiple images of him. I thought they were worth posting due to the unusual behavior. Thanks for the many comments again.
11-22-10
Look... I asked nicely for some privacy and you just couldn't resist peeking on me you pervert !!
I hope no one is offended by this interpretation of what the hawk is doing.
EDIT: To answer Donna L's question, the bird bath is 19" across and holds 2 gal of water.
No pp was done to enhance this gesture. It's 100% what the Coopers Hawk gave me.
11-20-10
Ahhh that feels good!! Oh yeah...rock dem waves.
Still have no idea what happened to the bird bath yesterday. Just glad it wasn't broken. They are expensive to replace.
Edit: Obviously this requires some attention, and frequent checking of the bath, or you miss the best moments.
Sometimes chicken, sometimes feathers. LOL
11-20-10
Are you kidding me??
7 pound bowl, holding the water 2 gal of water. This had to be at least 25lbs. How does this end up on the concrete without so much as a chip or anything? Came back from another 10am Dr appt and this is what i found. No high wind the night before so how did this happen?? Makes me wonder if a friend came by and did this, but I seriously doubt it. Their are locks on the back gate. Ghostly....maybe. I am really reeling from this mystery. It interrupts the flow of what I was going to post.
Edit:
I don't even think a neighborhood cat jumping on the edge would turn out this way but you never know. Even stranger is that I didn't hear it cause it would be pretty loud, unless it was when I was gone this morning, but then there would be water on the ground. Just too weird.
Thanks for all the comments yesterday and the ultimate honor of having the 1st place spot on the photo of the day with such a whimsical crop and comment. Just goes to show, you don't know what everyone is going to like. It may not be what you expect! Thanks for the feedback.
11-19-10
How about a little privacy.... please.
11-17-10
The "Studio"
I thought some of you might be interested in exactly how I was taking the hawk images through dbl pane glass.
This is the living room window I shoot through for the bird bath images using a D300, Super Gitzo 1327 Tripod, 200-400 f4 @200mm (most of the other hawk images recently were with the 70-200VR f2.8), and ISO 800. The image below is the same as what you see above and in the LCD on the camera, after PS white balance tweak, Define Noise Reduction, and very minor sharpening. This is also the same window the "Tungsten Sunset" was framed with, a few days back. This was taken on 11-16 during another young hawk visit, including a thorough bathing.
The full size images of this collage can be seen here: http://tdm.smugmug.com/Daily-Images/Daily-Images/9998215_UbiPP#1094896126_aE5d5-X2-LB, and here: http://tdm.smugmug.com/Daily-Images/Daily-Images/9998215_UbiPP#1094896066_yUxpt-X3-LB
Original from 11-17 collage.
11-15-10
Morning Drive
NM Rd 165 through the mountains east of Albuquerque, near the Sandiaman Cave.
Edit: #1: It was actually a little breezy down in this canyon as evidenced by the leaves on the upper left being blurry, but still a nice crisp area.
Edit #2: Posted at 1:08am MST. 2:00 mins later the image was gone and I passed out thinking about it. The image was no where to be found on the third refresh of smug for adding the first 50 this morning. I woke up at 9am this morning to page 7 or so. Something weird going on but definitely related to Smug not an individual. Just FYI.
Past Dailies: http://tdm.smugmug.com/Daily-Images/Daily-Images/9998215_UbiPP#1088106404_BdTFU
Full Service Hangout
11-14-10 (taken 11-11)
Came home from an MRI on Thursday morning and spotted this adult Coopers, or is it a Sharp Shinned, having a morning snack. I guess he likes my yard too. The hawk in the bird bath is a juvenile Coopers. The hawks in my neighborhood are many and they have a special preference to my yard. Must be the trees and the thousands of Dove.
The quality of this image is poor. Best I could do at 30 yds through a dbl pane window. Caused the weird lines in the bokeh and lots of distortion.Coopers Hawkhawkbird of preyraptordovewildlifeNMAlbuquerqueurbanurban raptors
Favorite Bird Bath
11-13-10
This was a few days before the moon and his second visit in a week. He's becoming a regular, at least until all the leaves are gone from the trees.
I really need to clean the window.
In answer to Chika's "He came back to your yard!" More to follow tomorrow and then a new subject.
A little under the weather today. :~(Coopers Hawkhawkraptorbirdwildlifebird bathautumnNMAlbuquerqueurbanurban raptor
Shoot the Moon
11-12-10
This fellow was in the birdbath again. Somehow, unlike before, he spotted me through the window and immediately flew up in the tree. I grabbed the camera, attached the 200-400 and snuck out the door. By the time I spotted him he had already spotted me and was leaning over for the takeoff. This is what I "ended" up with, so it's all I have to offer...a moon. It's a mighty fine moon though. (At least I didn't have a window between us.)
11-11-10
City Power Pole Repair
I wouldn't trust it. Bracing doesn't work if the bottom is rotten. I didn't even like driving by it. It's in the alley so out of sight, out of mind, until they lose power, or someone gets sued for negligence. Quality work at its finest.
