Miscellaneous

Steiff Baboon Coco

Photograph taken on Friday, June 22, 2018 by Henry
Steiff Baboon Coco

Steiff Baboon Coco

This little baboon is named Coco and he was made by Steiff. This is not to be confused with Koko, a current Steiff product. Koko with two Ks is a chimpanzee. Coco with two Cs is a baboon. This little fellow is a little the worse for wear, as he put up with quite a lot of play in his day. As you can see, he is vision impaired, with his left eye completely missing and his left literally hanging by a thread. His hand are also worn through in places. But he’s such a cute little fellow and I remember him well from the good old days.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on Steiff Baboon Coco

Top. Men.

Photograph taken on Monday, June 18, 2018 by Henry
Maggie and David in Basement Storeroom

Maggie and David in Basement Storeroom

You can easily collect a lot of things if you live in the same place for 50 years. If you also inherit things from your parents as well, it can really add up. Then, if you have enough space to store it all, its easy to leave it alone. But, as they say, nothing that cannot go on forever will. At some point, there is a reckoning. That day has arrived (that week, or month, or six-month, or year, actually). David and Maggie are here and David has been doing yeoman’s work on the store room in his parents’ house, pulling out bins, trunks, and barrels that have not seen the light of day for many a year. The contents of some were in good condition while others had been infiltrated by visitors and mostly or wholly destroyed.

The title of this post alludes to the final scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Top. Men.

A Fine Summer’s Day

Photograph taken on Thursday, June 14, 2018 by Henry
A Fine Summer's Day

A Fine Summer’s Day

I was across campus to have lunch with a few people today and then went for a short walk in the woods next to my office. I took some pictures of tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima) leaves and then crossed the creek and went up to the more open part of the property. There were some areas that were still quite wet from the recent rains we’ve had. The ground around here is predominately heavy clay and water doesn’t percolate very quickly into it, particularly once it is waterlogged. This is a drainage catch basin and later in the summer it will likely be completely dry. For now, though, it’s a haven for birds and dragonflies and a small oasis in an otherwise built-up (although suburban) area.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on A Fine Summer’s Day

Oenothera speciosa (Pink Evening Primrose)

Photograph taken on Wednesday, June 13, 2018 by Henry
Oenothera speciosa (Pink Evening Primrose)

Oenothera speciosa (Pink Evening Primrose)

The evening primroses (Oenothera speciosa) are in bloom and they are quite lovely. They have spread through the garden but I wouldn’t call them an aggressive species, we don’t mind. We can easily pull them up if they show up where they aren’t wanted and generally, our garden isn’t so well organized that it matters. They are native to the southern half of the contiguous United States. They make a nice addition to any garden, blooming in the evening, their airy, pink blossoms particularly lovely in the dusk.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , , , | Comments Off on Oenothera speciosa (Pink Evening Primrose)

Loyal Order of Moose

Photograph taken on Tuesday, June 12, 2018 by Henry
Loyal Order of Moose

Loyal Order of Moose

My great grandfather was a member of the Loyal Order of Moose, a fraternal order founded in 1888 and still in existence to this day. It’s not really my cup of tea but he was a politician and public figure and I suspect being a member of this sort of thing was a career move for him. This medal is from the 36th Annual Moose Convention, apparently held in New York from July 27 to 31, 1924, based on what it says on the medal itself. He died in 1925 so it’s likely this was the last big Moose event he attended. We have another medal that says “Past Dictator” on the top and on the back says he was in that position from 1913 to 1915, at Lodge Number 259 in Salt Lake City. He was not, to the best of our knowledge, a Mormon. In any case, his daughter married my grandfather (and coincidentally is my grandmother). I have some other memorabilia from my great grandfather (Albert) and perhaps I’ll share some of that in the future on a day like today when I didn’t get out to take any pictures.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Loyal Order of Moose

Asiatic Lily

Photograph taken on Monday, June 11, 2018 by Henry
Asiatic Lily

Asiatic Lily

The Asiatic lilies are in bloom around the yard. This one is in a container on the back patio but there are a bunch in the front garden, as well. We worry about them being eaten by rabbits or deer but this time of year, fortunately, there is a lot for them to eat and that means less chance of them finding these. We have a lot of rabbits this year. I’ve seen as many as four at once in our front or back yard. The seem to mostly be eating clover, though, and we have plenty of that to go around.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Asiatic Lily

Stained Glass

Photograph taken on Monday, June 04, 2018 by Henry
Stained Glass

Stained Glass

As mentioned in Saturday’s post (the Emergency and Trauma photo), mom was in the hospital for a few days. She was sent home on Monday evening and after doing a little shopping, I made dinner (shrimp and grits and if I say so myself, it was really good). Then, sitting in the living room, I enjoyed the light shining through two stained glass pieces, one flat hanging (shown here) and a reproduction of a Tiffany lamp with dragonflies.

I love the color of pretty much anything with sunlight shining through it. Stained glass is sort of a natural and I’m a big fan. I also like leaves and flowers backlit by sunlight. They are quite difficult to capture on “film”, partly because of the huge dynamic range required. The brightness of sunlight is just too much for film or digital sensor. If you adjust so that it isn’t washed out, then the shadows go too dark. Nevertheless, it’s worth trying and once in a while I get something worth using.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , | Comments Off on Stained Glass

Glass Duck

Photograph taken on Sunday, June 03, 2018 by Henry
Glass Duck

Glass Duck

As you may know, we’re going though things at Cathy’s mom’s house. There have been many “treasures” found and one of Cathy’s favorites was a box filled with little glass animals. They belonged to her dad and she had never seen them before. Presumably they were packed up when the family moved to Afghanistan long before Cathy was born. They must have stayed packed up when they returned and so they were a real surprise. Happily they were all in really good shape, that box never got crushed by other boxes, or anything. This little duck is one of them. I may post more pictures in the future, if I have a day when it’s getting late and I haven’t taken any photos yet.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Glass Duck

Emergency and Trauma

Photograph taken on Saturday, June 02, 2018 by Henry
Emergency and Trauma

Emergency and Trauma

I’m posting this six days late because it’s been that sort of week. This morning I helped someone move and then the day got a bit crazy. We took mom to the hospital and spent most of the day in the ER, waiting to find out what would happen. In the end they admitted her and (I can say now because it’s six days later) she stayed there until late Monday afternoon. At about 11:00 I realized that if I didn’t take any pictures at the hospital, I wouldn’t get any pictures today. That’s always a bit awkward, because who wants their picture taken at the hospital. I took a few of things in the ER room but then, when I was leaving, at five minutes before midnight, I took a few out front, including this one. I think Emergency and Trauma would be good names for a pair of dogs.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | 1 Comment

Reflections on Self-Storage

Photograph taken on Tuesday, May 22, 2018 by Henry
Reflections on Self-Storage

Reflections on Self-Storage

I’m not really going to reflect on self-storage but this picture is reflections and it was taken at the self-storage facility where we have a unit. I was in a meeting across campus today and when I was walking back to my building there was lightning flashing and booms of thunder all around. Most of them were about two miles away but nearing quickly. When I got to the door of my building there was a flash followed almost immediately by the thunder and before I was upstairs in my office, it was coming down in sheets. By the time I left work it had stopped raining but, as you can see in this picture, the water was still draining from the pavement outside our storage unit.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Reflections on Self-Storage

The Reporter

Photograph taken on Sunday, May 20, 2018 by Henry
Mom's Stairs

Mom’s Stairs

Back when I was very young my parents papered the wall on one side of the stair well in their house with covers from “The Reporter” magazine. It’s a very tricky thing to photograph because the stair well is pretty narrow and the wall covers a lot of space. From the top of the stairs I was able to get a few pictures that sort of do it justice. At least if you’ve seen it in person, perhaps this will remind you of it. There’s one cover that shows up four places. We’re pretty sure there is another duplicate but we couldn’t remember where and couldn’t find it. It’s faded considerably in over 55 years, especially towards the top where the afternoon sun shines on it. But it’s held up pretty well, all things considered.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on The Reporter

Self Storage

Photograph taken on Wednesday, May 16, 2018 by Henry
Self Storage

Self Storage

As I think I’ve mentioned, we’re going through my mother-in-law’s house and trying to get things out so we can get it ready to go on the market. We’ve gotten rid of things and we’ve brought a lot to our house (possibly too much for the short term) to go through a little more carefully. We’ve also decided that there are things that will take too long if we deal with them now so we’ve rented a storage unit for things we know we’re going to need to go through and which are going to take a while. The largest collection in this class are pictures. If you knew my father-in-law, you may have some inkling of how many pictures there are. Let’s just say, there are more than a few slide carousels. And that’s just the start. Anyway, this is the hall at the storage facility.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , | Comments Off on Self Storage

Cathy’s Doll House

Photograph taken on Thursday, May 03, 2018 by Henry
Cathy's Doll House

Cathy’s Doll House

We’ve been working on emptying out Cathy’s mom’s house and it’s a reasonably big job. They bought the house fifty years ago, so there are naturally a few things scattered about. The four ground floor bedrooms are mostly done (it’s a rambler but with a large basement). A few weeks ago we moved on to working on things in the basement. Between Cathy, our friend Julia, and me, we’ve made some good progress. Last night, two of Cathy’s nieces came and today they helped us make even more. Maggie and Laura are fun, of course, but this was no pleasure cruise. There were boxes to carry and papers to go through. And go through them we did. It was quite warm today, reaching nearly 90°F. Fortunately we were working mostly in the carport and there was a little breeze, so we weren’t too uncomfortable.

Cathy decided that her old doll house had served its purpose and it was time that it be recycled. It’s made entirely of cardboard, so that works out well. She wanted one last picture of it before it went into the van, though.

Categories: Miscellaneous, People | Tags: , , | Comments Off on Cathy’s Doll House

‘Dragonflies’ Quilt by Dot

Photograph taken on Monday, April 30, 2018 by Henry
'Dragonflies' Quilt by Dot

‘Dragonflies’ Quilt by Dot

We had dinner at mom’s this evening. My cousin Becky and her boyfriend were there, as well, having come up for Jason’s wedding on Saturday. I took a bunch of pictures in the yard. The camellias are finishing up and the azaleas are just starting. I also took some pictures of Kai. But the picture for today is this quilt that my mom just made. It’s a pretty elaborate thing, with each segment on each wing being a separate piece of fabric. I also think the fabric she chose for the background is terrific, really showing off the dragonflies to good effect.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | 1 Comment

Pukeberg Bookend Vase

Photograph taken on Tuesday, April 24, 2018 by Henry
Pukeberg Bookend Vase

Pukeberg Bookend Vase

This was, apparently, half of a pair of bookend vases, produced by Pukeberg, probably in the middle of the 20th century. Pukeberg was founded in 1871. In the 1930s, Pukeberg began producing decorative glass. We don’t really know a lot about it beyond that. We found a pair listed on eBay for $89, so they aren’t terribly valuable. I wanted to show off the various colors of the glass. In everyday room light it is basically amber colored. But I’ve shone a light through the glass and you can see reds at the bottom and greens towards the top. I think a more complicated light set up would do better but this was done with a flashlight sitting behind it and a flash bounced off the ceiling.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , , , | Comments Off on Pukeberg Bookend Vase

Lake Frank and Clouds

Photograph taken on Thursday, April 19, 2018 by Henry
Lake Frank and Clouds

Lake Frank and Clouds

I stopped at the Avery Road parking lot above Lake Frank on the way home today. It was a beautiful, cool afternoon with—as you can see—billowy white clouds. This was taken with the sun at my back, looking northeast over the lake. I took a few the other direction, as well. This would be a good spot for sunset pictures, although it’s not somewhere you can just drive up to. It’s a few minutes walk down from the parking area. Still, if I am on my way home and there’s a good sunset coming on, it might be worth a try to get here in time. Of course, sunsets around the time I’m coming home are mostly a winter thing.

Categories: Miscellaneous, Sunrise/Sunset/Sky | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on Lake Frank and Clouds

Rock Creek After a Rain

Photograph taken on Monday, April 16, 2018 by Henry
Rock Creek After a Rain

Rock Creek After a Rain

It rained quite hard over night and into this morning. When I got to work, the drainage pond next to my building was full to the overflow. It was a busy day, though, and I wasn’t able to get out and take any pictures. On the way home I stopped and walked a little by Rock Creek. It wasn’t as high as it would have been this morning but still quite swollen. Also, this is just downstream from Lakes Needwood and Frank, which act as a flow limiter to the stream below them. The stream, seen hear over a fallen tree, is usually about three feet lower than this, though, so it’s still quite high (for a little stream).

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on Rock Creek After a Rain

Another Daffodil

Photograph taken on Friday, April 13, 2018 by Henry
Another Daffodil

Another Daffodil

The is the other of my unknown daffodil varieties. Like the one pictured three days ago, these bulbs were given to me by a friend and I didn’t make note of the variety name. They were planted in the fall of 2006 and are doing quite well. This particular variety, unfortunately, has a bad habit of not always opening. Also, when they do, as they mostly did this year, if it rains the flowers are too heavy for the stalks and they all droop. But when they are open and upright, they are quite nice. I was happy we got to enjoy them at their best this year.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Another Daffodil

Pizors

Photograph taken on Wednesday, March 28, 2018 by Henry
Pizors

Pizors

These shoes are called pizors. Searching for pictures online, I found them spelled paizar, and since this is a transliteration, it’s not surprising that there would be some variation. In any case, I haven’t found any pictures online of any as nice as these. They are from Afghanistan in the 1950s, bought by Cathy’s parents in Kabul. As you can see, they are quite sturdy looking, made of very stiff leather and with nails in the soles so they are pretty tough. They happen to be way too small for my extra wide feet and I’m not sure they would be all that comfortable in any case. The flash used when taking this picture shows the sewn decoration quite well.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Pizors

Nursery Rhyme Sticker

Photograph taken on Thursday, March 22, 2018 by Henry
Nursery Rhyme Sticker

Nursery Rhyme Sticker

Going through more things from Cathy’s mom’s house, Cathy came across a bunch of old stickers illustrating various nursery rhymes. They were printed on foil, making them bright and shiny (and a little more difficult to photograph). Some of them had words printed on them, which made it that much easier to identify the associated rhyme. There was Jack and Jill, Little Jack Horner, and Jack be Nimble, among others (hmm, just notice those are all about Jacks). This one, though, I don’t recognize. It looks like it’s raining under this poor lad’s umbrella. He and his dog don’t seem particularly pleased. Do you know what rhyme this comes from? I’d love to know.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: | Comments Off on Nursery Rhyme Sticker