Miscellaneous

Tree and Crèche

After work today I did some shopping while Cathy went to her weekly Pilates class. Then I came back and picked her up and we went to her mom’s house to help get some Christmas decorations up. We had put up the tree earlier but didn’t have time to decorate it. I also got out the large crèche which was stored on the top shelf in the basement. Getting a picture with the lights on the tree showing and the rest of the image lit properly is a challenge but I’m pretty please with this one.

Ice on Colorado Spruce

Dorothy drove from school to Lancaster, Pennsylvania yesterday, getting most of the way home without having to deal with the winter weather that we had today. This morning it started sleeting about the time I got up and came down for a good three or four hours before petering out. There was a nice coating of ice on everything but it didn’t last, having warmed up into the 40s by the afternoon. Dorothy left Lancaster around 2:00 and with the exception of a little back road driving getting to interstate 83, she didn’t have any problem getting here. But for the little time it lasted, the ice was very pretty.

Ice Crystals

As I mentioned yesterday, it’s gotten cold. Today I wore a sweater and if you know me at all, you know that means it was below 20°F (about -7°C), which is when I usually will put a jacket on even if I won’t be outside long. Anyway, I also had a glove for my camera hand. That made my foray into the woods much more comfortable than yesterday’s. I walked through the woods and across the creek in the empty lot next to my building. Up on the higher ground across the creek there was a large, flat, open area with small puddles, all frozen. In what was formerly mud, there were these fingers of ice crystal that I thought were pretty awesome.

Christmas Presents

Cathy spent much of the evening today wrapping Christmas presents so we could get them in the mail in time for them to arrive before Christmas. Many years she’d be doing this next week, so it’s pretty great that she got them done. I’m not judging, mind you. I barely helped do it, although I did wrap one or two of the presents. I’m a terrible procrastinator. Anyway, she got four (I think) separate boxes packed and ready to mail. Happy Christmas, everyone!

Oil On Wet Pavement

I went over to one of the other buildings on campus early this afternoon for a meeting. As I sometimes (often) do, I brought my camera with me in case there were any opportunities for photographs. As I walked over, it was overcast and dreary, but that’s sometimes good photographically. By the time I left the meeting, only an hour later it was sunny and clear. The pavement was still wet from the rain overnight and there was a little oil or gasoline spilled on the pavement. That’s what this photograph is of.

Tea Set

I was looking around for things to photograph this evening. The first thing I photographed was soap bubbles in a roasting pan soaking in the sink. They turned out alright but they were not exactly riveting. Cathy had been washing this tea set that she’s had since she was a little girl. It was set out on a tea towel. I moved them to a cutting board and took a few pictures, of which this is one. It’s a dainty, little tea set with cups that are only about an inch across.

Santa On A Bike

I was coming home from our weekly men’s meeting this evening and saw that a significant number of houses have been decorated for Christmas. I drove through the neighborhood and took pictures of a bunch of the decorations. Some are simple, with all white lights, others have lights on forms in the shape of animals or people, including one lit up nativity scene. Still others have inflatable figures, such as this one of Santa driving away from the house on a motorcycle. As you can see, he’s left some presents under the tree and the family dog is faithfully standing guard (but knows that Santa is a welcome visitor). This is a nice counterpoint to last week’s Duck on a Bike.

Teabag Gown

Cathy and I drove down to Richmond this afternoon for our friend Emily’s photo exhibit in an art gallery there. Many of the galleries in Richmond have openings on the first Friday of each month so it’s a bit of a thing. It didn’t seem like there was as much action as there had been on previous First Fridays but that didn’t seem to hurt Emily too much. Her show was pretty well visited for the entire three hours of the official opening. Cathy and I really enjoyed seeing her work and of course also seeing her, her mom, and many of her friends.

We walked west on Broad Street as far as Boulevard, going into a few other galleries. The skirt of this gown is made from tea bags. It is one of two in a shop window and I couldn’t resist taking pictures. I took other pictures throughout the evening, of course, mostly of folks at Emily’s show. We drove back home again that evening so it was a long day, but well worth the drive.

Duck On A Bike

Back in the second year of my photo-a-day project I posted a picture of this duck on a bike. I’m not sure if it’s cheating to post an almost identical photo today but it was after 10:00 PM and I hadn’t taken any pictures today. I’m nearing the end of six years of taking at least one picture a day and I’d hate to drop the ball as I near that milestone. I reserve the right to stop at any time. A day may come when I don’t take a picture. But it is not this day.

This duck on a bike sits over our main computer in our family room. It’s missing one of the three rotor blades on its head and it has been stepped on at some point so it leans a bit. Because of those two factors, it doesn’t run very well, falling over quite easily. Still, it’s a happy thing to have. I mean, who doesn’t love a duck on a bike (even it it’s really a trike)?

Pastels

Dorothy came home for Thanksgiving, arriving at about 2:30 this morning. We only saw her for a moment before she and Abba, who came with her, went to bed. Today we spent much of the day at her grandma’s house (Cathy’s mom’s) but Dorothy, Cathy, and I went out to run a few errands in the afternoon. Among other things, we went to Plaza to buy Dorothy some art supplies. While she was shopping, I took a few pictures, mostly of colors. I got some of oil paints, colored paper, and color pencils, as well as a few of these shelves of pastel sticks.

Wedding Reminder

It’s funny, but when I’m going through pictures to post here, I have a fairly strong and only marginally conscious bias towards horizontally oriented photographs. I think (actually, I know) it’s because I feel like I have to fill this space next to the photo with text and a vertical photo takes considerably more work to fill. This photo is the third vertically oriented photo in a row, and the fourth out of the last five. So, what can I write?

This crock, or whatever you call it, was given to us as a wedding present. That’s me on the left and Cathy on the right. Since then, I’ve used it to hold mostly wooden spoons and a few other kitchen utensils. It generally sits back against the wall but I pulled it out for this photograph. Also, I clearly didn’t arrange the rest of the counter for this shot, as you can see a cup with plastic forks and spoons behind it to the right. On the left is the smaller of my two mortar and pestles (or is it mortars and pestles?). I use wooden spoons a lot when cooking. Also, the flat, wooden utensil and the orange silicone spatula get quite a bit of use.

Abacus Lamp

This is an abacus that has been made into a lamp and is in the living room at Cathy’s mom’s house. There isn’t a lot to say about this particular abacus, but as I was deciding which pictures to post for today, I remembered a short video I saw once about doing mental math by visualizing an abacus. I can’t find the video that I saw (I didn’t try all that hard) but basically, kids were shown a series of long numbers (6, 8, and 10 digits long) and they added them up in their heads. The numbers were flashed on a screen and it went so fast I barely had time to read the numbers and certainly not enough time to actually do anything with them. But these kids were able to add them up accurately in their heads. It was quite remarkable. Apparently, learning to do math with an abacus then allows you to do the same thing only without the actual abacus. Subtraction, multiplication, and division are also done on an abacus, both physically and mentally. I wonder if it’s too late for me to learn to do that.

Fall Color, From My Office Window

I hope you aren’t getting tired of fall color. It was slow to get started, as I suspect we think every year, meaning it was about normal. But we are in the midst of great beauty. This is the view from my office window. Actually, this was taken from the conference room next to my office, but it’s basically the same view. This isn’t the best example of autumnal glory to be found, but it’s what I have easily available. All too soon it will be gone and we’ll be left with skeletons.

Metal Parrot Figurine

Cathy and I were at her mom’s house and I was looking for things to photograph among her various objet d’art. I’ve always liked this little metal parrot figurine and thought it would make a nice picture. It was sitting in front of a light colored plate but I moved it to get a better background. Anyone who has spent more than a little time with parrots will recognize this stance and expression. They are often curious birds with a great deal of personality. Of course, Solomon is more timid than curious, but that may say as much about us as about him.

Ceramic Bear

I’m not really much of an artist. In particular, I’m not much of a sculptor. But back in the day (I don’t know for sure but certainly not later than the 1970s) I attempted a small figurine of a bear eating honey, a la Winnie The Pooh. It’s a bit crude and certainly won’t win any awards for life-likeness. On the other hand, I’m going to go out on a limb and say I bet you could tell what it was without being told. So, that’s something.

I’ve often admired sculptors and their ability to fashion clay, stone, or metal into such wonderful imitations of life. I think that’s one of the things I like best about Brookgreen Gardens in South Carolina. The fact that the sculpture is in such a beautiful setting makes a difference, too, of course. Could I do any better than this bear if I really tried? Possibly. But possibly we’ll never find out.

A Few Old Coins

I’m not what you’d generally describe as a coin collector. On the other hand, I have a collection of coins. It isn’t very extensive and it’s certainly not very valuable, but it’s made up of coins I’ve accumulated over the years. As kids we would go through mom and dad’s coins looking for any we didn’t already have. Back then, in the 1960s, finding pennies with what are known as wheat backs wasn’t a big deal (they went through 1958) but now, it’s a pretty rare occurrence. Even rarer these days is to come across a steel penny, made in 1943 because of wartime shortages of copper. Pictured here are also two nickels from 1939 and 1941 and a Liberty Head dime from 1942.

The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Building

A few of you know the circumstances that brought me to the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Building at Johns Hopkins Hospital this morning. I came to give some blood for testing. For those who don’t know what that’s about, I’ll just say that I’m fine and I’m here for someone else. This is a pretty amazing hospital in terms of activity. It’s like a hive. Of course it would be great if hospitals were not so busy but there you have it. For more information about the hospital and specifically about the Weinberg Building see this page: http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/kimmel_cancer_center/our_center/facilities/weinberg/.

Decorative Lights

I was in downtown Rockville again this evening, meeting a few other guys for dinner. I got there a bit early and took a few pictures but city scenes, even small-city scenes, are not really my thing. The plaza is undergoing it’s annual transformation from an open place where people mingle with a fountain where the kids play in the warmer months into its winter form. A skating rink is built in the plaza with a small pavilion at one end where skates are rented. This evening it was about a third the way through this transformation. On the lines of trees down each side of the plaza are lights, wrapped around the trunks and up into the branches. That’s what this picture features.

John William Benson, 1861 to 1947

It’s one thing to have an obscure reference or symbol on a grave marker. In fact, it’s fairly common and in consequence, many of the otherwise obscure symbols are documented. You can easily find references that will tell you about them. But what if you want a symbol that no one will understand and few will recognize? Put it in a book and then make sure to reference it. In this case, page 35 of “Principia of Universareology” and it further notes that copies may be found in various public libraries. I’ve checked the library catalog for our public library system and they don’t have a copy. In fact, searching on “Principia of Universareology” only uncovered two links on these entire interwebs. The first is to the Find-a-Grave page for this marker. The second is a PDF of Vol. 13, No. 3, Fall 2005 of the “Coalition Courier” newsletter, Published by the Coalition to Protect Maryland Burial Sites, Inc. On page two is the following paragraph (which is also quoted on the Find-a-Grave page):

In the Summer issue we included a picture of John William Benson’s grave marker and asked if anyone could shed light on the symbol. Eileen sent along copies of the pertinent pages of “Principia of Universareology” written by Mr. Benson of R[ockville]. The symbol is a concentric heart. The “heart” has 7 layers and a flame at the top and a circle at the bottom. The flame represents religion-theology. The chambers represent: govern-ment-politics; operatics-operation; body-physiology; animal-zoology; matter-chemistry; astronomical-astronomy; and universe. The bottom circle represents ‘entinal chaos of and before the dawn of the beginning’. So there you have it. Thanks again Eileen.

Colman’s Mustard

I know I shouldn’t do this two days in a row, but today I have another example of older packaging. Yesterday is was penetrating oil, today it’s Coleman’s Mustard. On the right is the old, metal container for this powdered mustard. On the left is a new container. In this case, the new container is also made of metal, except for the lid, which is plastic instead of the elliptical metal lid on the old tin. This is the back of the old tin. The front looks basically the same as the new one. On the new tin, the front and back are much more similar to each other, with the red lettering on both sides, although it still has the cow on the back.

Liquid Wrench

We’re in the days of plastic containers and I’m not sure it’s a good thing. It certainly is a less aesthetic time in our history. This is a metal can of Liquid Wrench^®, otherwise known as a brand of penetrating oil. This can came from my dad’s workshop and it’s possible that before that it came from my grandfather’s. This isn’t something you go through quickly but it’s a great thing to have around. I’ve ordered another 4 ounce bottle but of course it’s plastic and not nearly so attractive. It’s basically the same, though, although the new bottle says ‘improved formula’ and it doesn’t say deodorized. But, It Melts The Rust Away!

Bumble Bee and Obedient Plant

The obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana) is finally in bloom in our back yard. I feel like it’s bloomed a lot earlier in previous years but I don’t really know. This is mostly a new location for it, so maybe it will bloom earlier there once it is established. I went out to get some pictures of it late this afternoon, although the light wasn’t all that good. I managed to get this picture of a common eastern bumble bee (Bombus impatiens) on it, which I think is nice.

An Evening at the Rio

I’m posting two pictures from today. After I got that picture of the cricket in the grass, Cathy and I went to the Rio for a while. We walked twice around the lake, hoping to get a good sunset picture. The sky kept promising color in the clouds but it never really materialized. But the buildings and the reflection in the lake made a pretty nice picture, so I’m giving you that. This is an HDR image made from three individual exposures made right together, one under exposed (which supplies detail in the highlights), one properly exposed, and one over exposed (which supplies detail in the shadows). I think it turned out rather well.

Walter and Hazel Johnson

I’ve been meaning for some time to find the grave marker for Walter Johnson and today I actually stopped and found it. I’ve known for a while that he was buried in Rockville Cemetery and I’ve often thought of stopping as I drove by. Today I stopped. There are three markers, the large stone marked Johnson and the two headstones for Walter Johnson (November 6, 1887 – December 10, 1946) and Hazel Johnson, who was only 36 years old when she died of heatstroke on August 1st, 1930. The larger stone has baseballs and other baseball related items left on it, presumably by admirers.

Globe by Joe O’Connell and Blessing Hancock

I was heading home from downtown Rockville this evening and the only pictures I had taken were not worth much, so I thought I’d drive through and see if anything worth photographing was going on at the Town Square Plaza. There were quite a few people about but nothing obvious to photograph. Also, I didn’t find an easy parking space, so I kept going. I came back around and down Maryland Avenue and then turned left on E. Middle Lane, figuring I’d head home and find something else to photograph. While sitting at the light to cross Hungerford Drive I pulled out my camera and took a few pictures of this globe, a piece of public art, at the northwest corner of Hungerford and E. Middle. It is the work of Joe O’Connell and Blessing Hancock and was installed just over a year ago. My understanding is that there is a button you can push that will change the color of the light.

My New Computer

As I mentioned in the post from Thursday, my main workstation at home crashed. Parts of it are still usable and I may turn it into a Window-only scanning workstation. But for now, I need to get Linux up and running and restore the files on the drive that was lost (a 3TB drive with pictures up through 2011). This is the new computer, pre-assembly. In the past I’ve bought the smallest case that will hold everything I need. This time, I decided to take a different approach. The case is huge. But it made assembly so much easier. I got an AMD FX processor with 8 cores, 16GB of RAM (which may be upped to 32GB at some point), a 120GB SSD for the boot drive and two 5TB hard drives for data (I may need a third soon, but there’s plenty of room in this case). I also have a GeForce GTX 760 graphics card. It will be powered by a 600 watt power supply. An hour and a half later, all the parts were in the case and I was ready to start the process of installing CentOS 7, an upgrade from 6, which I’m sure will cause some pain along the way, but I do have some experience with 7 already, so I should survive.

1957 Chevrolet Bel Air

It was County Fair day for us today. I went from work and Cathy picked up Karlee and Dorothy and came a little later (actually, because of horrendous traffic, it was quite a bit later). Because I had some time on my own, I took a few pictures, including this one of a 1957 Chevy Bel Air parked outside the Arts, Crafts, and Photography building. It’s a beautiful car, wonderfully maintained and restored. Of course I also took pictures of people, animals, and even people with their animals. I also had a chance to visit with some friends who work the photography building and who showed me where my pictures were displayed. Later, when Cathy, Karlee, and Dorothy came, we got caught in the rain and had to wait it out before making our way back to our cars as it let up. Still, I nice evening and one to remember.