Miscellaneous

Spring Snow

Photograph taken on Wednesday, March 21, 2018 by Henry
Spring Snow

Spring Snow

Snow in March isn’t that unusual here. Of course, if you listen to the radio this week you might not get that impression. I heard a report that breathlessly told us how long its been since we had a snow like this was forecast to be this late in the year. Well, that’s possible, I suppose. A couple problems. Most importantly, the actual snowfall didn’t live up to the hype. We got maybe four inches of very wet snow. I remember a snowfall on March 18 not that long ago that was two or three times worse. But it’s March 21, which is, as I’m sure you can figure out, later in the year than March 18. Not by a lot, though. Anyway, as usual, much ado about not much. Quite pretty, actually.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on Spring Snow

Fire

Photograph taken on Sunday, March 11, 2018 by Henry
Fire

Fire

After church today, Dorothy and her friends went downtown to visit another friend who is working on Capital Hill this semester and who also has a part time job at a book show near Eastern Market. They visited some other friends on the way home. I fixed a surf and turf for dinner—flank steak and salmon—and then started a fire going in our fire pit. Most of the kids stayed inside but Dorothy came out and chatted with me for a white. I had my camera and took quite a few pictures of the fire as we talked. I like the pale blue, plasma-like flames in this picture.

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

Matryoshka Doll Set

Photograph taken on Thursday, March 08, 2018 by Henry
Matryoshka Doll Set

Matryoshka Doll Set

This set of ten matryoshka dolls is another find from my mother-in-law’s house. Matryoshka dolls were first made in the late 19th century. This set is different in both shape and painted design from any set i’ve seen (although to be honest, I haven’t seen a huge number). Typically, except when depicting actually individuals, the outermost doll is female.

This set of ten nesting dolls range in size from about four inchest for the largest, outermost figure to about five-sixteenths of an inch for the smallest.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , , | Comments Off on Matryoshka Doll Set

Small Change

Photograph taken on Saturday, February 24, 2018 by Henry
Small Change

Small Change

As we’ve been going through things at Cathy’s parents’ house, there has been, as there would in any house lived in for 50 years, an accumulation of things that don’t need to be kept. Some of them are just trash that got mixed in with other things. Some are things that were once important but the importance has worn off or the timeliness has passed. There are, of course, things of value, either sentimental value or intrinsic monetary value. And, of course, there are curiosities. David found two little slide mount size holders with sets of miniature US coins. Shown here with a regular quarter and penny for scale are (clockwise from center top), Kennedy half dollar, Jefferson nickel, Roosevelt dime, Eisenhower dollar, Lincoln penny, and Washington quarter.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on Small Change

Azurite and Malachite

Photograph taken on Thursday, February 22, 2018 by Henry
Azurite and Malachite

Azurite and Malachite

The other day I posted a photo of a small souvenir from Republic, Michigan, where some of Cathy’s ancestors lived and at least one was involved in iron mining before moving to Alaska to mine gold. Well, my family has a little mining history, as well. My great grandfather came from England with his parents and at least some of his siblings. They lived in Canada for a while and he was in the military there during the United States Civil War. In the early 1970s he moved to Nevada where he mined for copper and silver. This is a piece of copper ore including both blue azurite (Cu3(CO3)2(OH)2) and green malachite (Cu2CO3(OH)2). It’s a small piece found in the area he lived and worked and I think it’s sort of pretty. This piece is wet, which contributes to its shininess.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Azurite and Malachite

Weights

Photograph taken on Monday, February 19, 2018 by Henry
Weights

Weights

I have an old balance that I’ve used through the years for two different things. Back in the days of film, I used to measure out chemicals for the darkroom on it. I also used it for measuring ingredients for ceramic glazes in my pottery days (or daze). I haven’t used it in a while but you never know. Along with the balance, I have a set of weights in various sizes. These range from 500 grams for the largest down to 2 grams for the little one in front. There are a few weights missing from the set, including the smallest (1 gram) weight. Because the balance has a built in rail, however, I can pretty much fill the gaps, weighing anything up to about 850 grams with a pretty high degree of accuracy.

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

Souvenir from Republic, Michigan

Photograph taken on Friday, February 16, 2018 by Henry
Souvenir from Republic, Michigan

Souvenir from Republic, Michigan

Cathy’s great grandfather (Grant) was born in eastern Pennsylvania during the Civil War. He grew up in the coal mining regions of Pennsylvania before moving to Republic, Michigan late in the 19th century. He and his wife and children lived there and he was employed in the iron mines. Shortly before the turn of the century, Grant left Michigan for Alaska, where he worked at the Alaska Mexican Mine in Treadwell. This was his third mining phase, having mined coal in Pennsylvania, iron in Michigan, and now gold in Alaska. This small pitcher is a souvenir from Republic, Michigan and was given to Cathy by her aunt.

Categories: Miscellaneous, Travel | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Souvenir from Republic, Michigan

Heart Shaped Burger

Photograph taken on Wednesday, February 14, 2018 by Henry
Heart Shaped Burger

Heart Shaped Burger

It’s Valentine’s Day today and you know what that means. Well, for us, it’s not something we spend a lot of effort on, in general. I bought us some new ice packs to celebrate and to sooth our aching selves. How’s that for romance? I made three heart shaped burgers for dinner this evening, along with fries and a chopped salad (which was put on the plate after this photo was taken. Margaret put cherry tomato halves on her burger and I added them to my salad. But this picture shows the heart shaped burger better then those taken after they were more fully condimentised (as it were). They turned out rather well, I thought.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , , | Comments Off on Heart Shaped Burger

Rainy, Foggy Morning

Photograph taken on Sunday, February 11, 2018 by Henry
Rainy, Foggy Morning

Rainy, Foggy Morning

It started raining yesterday morning and it’s been raining fairly steadily since. The forecast has that continuing another 24 hours or so before it clears up. It is, however, unseasonably warm. It was cool this morning but later in the day, even with the rain, it was up around 60°F (16°C). The cool morning, however, meant some beautiful fog. I love a foggy morning (or day, night, or evening, for that matter). I especially love being in the woods when it’s foggy. This morning, as usual for a Sunday, I was at church setting up and running the sound system. Nevertheless, I took a short break while the musicians were practicing to walk around outside and take a few pictures.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Rainy, Foggy Morning

Little Bird Statues

Photograph taken on Tuesday, February 06, 2018 by Henry
Little Bird Statues

Little Bird Statues

Cathy has a roll-top desk that we got from some friends who where ready to get rid of it. Along the top of the roll-top, which is never closed, there is a little ledge where the top doesn’t go all the way into the carcass. She has a few little things sitting on that ledge including a line of dice of various sizes and side-counts. In the middle is this line of little bird statues. I don’t rightly know where she got them (I suppose I could have asked) but there they are. They are quite colorful—as you can see—and they stand about an inch tall. This green on is one of my favorites, along with the dark blue peacock colored bird in the center of the photo.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on Little Bird Statues

Rockville Cemetery

Photograph taken on Monday, February 05, 2018 by Henry
Rockville Cemetery

Rockville Cemetery

I stopped briefly at Rockville Cemetery on the way home. It isn’t on my normal route home but it isn’t all that far out of my way, either. I had to run to the bank after work, so that put it more or less convenient. The sun was setting through the trees to the west and I got a few pictures of the grave stones lit by the nearly horizontal rays. Then I turned at the upper part of the cemetery and took this one looking into the sun. Actually, it’s an HDR photo, make from three images and then mostly desaturated to produce the nearly monochrome image.

Categories: Miscellaneous, Sunrise/Sunset/Sky | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Rockville Cemetery

A Few Science-Related Book

Photograph taken on Thursday, February 01, 2018 by Henry
A Few Science-Related Book

A Few Science-Related Book

I took some pictures in the basement today. Not surprisingly, where there are lots of things to photograph, few of them are really all that interesting. Recently I’ve gotten a few new (used, thanks, Iris) bookcases and I’ve been able to get books that have been doubled up on shelves or that have been stacked on their sides into those shelves. They are not, for the most part, in any order. There are seven shelves of science fiction, which are alphabetized by author. Most of my Kipling collection (18 books) is on one shelf (there are a few large books that are on another shelf). I’ve started the process of bringing the technical reference books together. Here we have, from left to right:

  • My dad’s copy of Elenents of the Differential and Integral Calculus (Revised Edition) by Granville, Smith, and Longley
  • My grandfather’s copy of Handbook of Mathematical Tables and Formulas, by Burington
  • Two editions (the 9th and 31st) of the CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics
  • Another Handbook of Chemistry (Eighth Edition), by Lange
  • The Merck Manual, (Fourteenth Edition)
  • Ribonucleases: Structures and Functions, Edited by D’ Alessio and Riordan. Dad wrote chapter two of this book, titled “Barnase and Barstar”
  • Methods in Enzymology, Volume 341, Ribonucleases, Part A, edited by Nicholson. Dad wrote chapter 38 in this book, on Barnase—Barstar Interaction
Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , , | Comments Off on A Few Science-Related Book

Reflections

Photograph taken on Wednesday, January 31, 2018 by Henry
Reflections

Reflections

I went over to the Rio today to have a cup of coffee with a friend. It’s often good to have an excuse to get away from the office for a little while and doing it with a good friend is even better. We chatted about this and that and then headed back to our respective work. As I was going back, I noticed the reflections in the Sodexo building. I turned around and parked the car along Washingtonian Blvd and then walked down the side of the building. This is a reflection of the BroadSoft building (and a tree).

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

Office Building Art

Photograph taken on Tuesday, January 30, 2018 by Henry
Office Building Art

Office Building Art

Cathy and I were in a local medical office building today and I, you’ll be surprised to learn, had my camera with me. I didn’t take pictures in the actual doctor’s office but in the lobby of the building was some art. The wall opposite the entrance was covered with these lined, glass panels, lit from behind. So, when it was time to leave, I took a few moments to get my camera out and take a few pictures. I don’t really have a lot to add. It is what it is. I wouldn’t call it high art, but decorative art seems appropriate. If nothing else it did add some color and interest to an otherwise nondescript office lobby.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , | Comments Off on Office Building Art

Carpet Pattern

Photograph taken on Sunday, January 28, 2018 by Henry
Carpet Pattern

Carpet Pattern

I was looking around for something to photograph today and took a few pictures of this carpet in Margaret’s room. It’s not a huge carpet but it’s certainly quite pretty. I love the colors and the fineness of the weave. We have a few carpets but that includes a few imitation Persians. When we got married, Karabet gave us some cash as a wedding present and we bought two relatively inexpensive carpets. They aren’t nearly as nice as this one, but then again, he gave us the gift out of his relatively modest means. We still have them and I still think of him when I consider them. That’s often where value lies (but I’m not saying it lies like a rug).

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , , , | Comments Off on Carpet Pattern

Burning More Papers

Photograph taken on Saturday, January 27, 2018 by Henry
Burning More Papers

Burning More Papers

It was another productive Saturday, getting a few things crossed off the top of my to do list. It was also, if you will, the opposite of productive (i.e. destructive). We burned another three boxes of “shred” papers. It doesn’t save a lot of time over shredding and in fact, if we took them to someone with an industrial shredder, it would much faster. Nevertheless, burning is relaxing. There’s something about flames. I won’t say they’re cool, but if I did, you’d probably know what I meant. The boxes today had, among other things, canceled checks from 1979. I think it’s safe to get rid of those now.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , | Comments Off on Burning More Papers

Stone Rings

Photograph taken on Wednesday, January 24, 2018 by Henry
Stone Rings

Stone Rings

Our Community Group (our church’s small groups) met this evening at Kofi and Danielle’s apartment building. It’s a newish building and a lot more swanky than anywhere we’ve lived. I’m not complaining, mind you. We’re pretty happy where we are. All of the apartments we’ve lived in had doors off of (mostly open) stair wells. The first place we lived, which was in Chevy Chase, had an enclosed stair but the others had open stairs. That’s not counting the Quonset Hut we lived in when we first moved to Juneau. After that we moved to an apartment that opened off a balcony across the bridge on Douglas Island. That and the apartment we moved into back in Maryland after our around-the-world trip in ’88 were both on the third floor of three story buildings.

Anyway, we met in one of the common rooms in the apartment building because there were about fifteen of us, which would have been a crowd in their one bedroom apartment. In addition to this stone sculpture on a table, there was a gas fire burning in a long, low fireplace. Needless to say, however, the real warmth came from the people we were with.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , | Comments Off on Stone Rings

Rusty Chain

Photograph taken on Tuesday, January 23, 2018 by Henry
Rusty Chain

Rusty Chain

Outside my office, between the parking lot and the woods, there are a half dozen wooden picnic tables, stacked one on top of the other. They are chained together, presumably to keep any of them from wondering off (as it were). The chain is a little the worse for being out in the weather all the time. I didn’t really test it of course, and for all I know it’s still strong enough to stand up to average abuse. Nevertheless, it looks a bit weakened and a strong piece of iron inserted between the sides of a link and twisted might snap the chain quite easily.

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

Rubber Stoppers

Photograph taken on Monday, January 22, 2018 by Henry
Rubber Stoppers

Rubber Stoppers

You can’t really call them corks when they aren’t made of cork. Note that box on the right, which says “Corks” on it actually contains real corks, made from the bark of the cork oak (which should be called Quercus corkus but is actually Quercus suber). These brown stoppers are made of gum rubber and are good for all sorts of stoppering needs. These are in a drawer in a small cabinet that has a fairly wide variety of things in it. As you can see, a few of them have holes cut through them. Dad used them in his home lab and I’ve found a few uses for them myself, over the years.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , | Comments Off on Rubber Stoppers

Ashes to Ashes

Photograph taken on Sunday, January 21, 2018 by Henry
Burning Card

Burning Card

We’ve got a bunch of boxes in the garage marked shred—old bills, checkbooks, business correspondence, that sort of thing—and we’ve been meaning to get rid of them for a while. There used to be an outfit that allowed individuals to drop off boxes of papers to be shredded for free (making their money from businesses) but they are no longer doing that. Well, what’s better than shredding? Burning. This little fellow didn’t suffer as he was consumed by the flames. Four boxes done. Six or eight more to go.

Categories: Miscellaneous | Tags: , , , , , | Comments Off on Ashes to Ashes