Thoughts from my Desk: 11/09/2007

My son has a messed up internal alarm clock this week. Normally I have to go in and poke on him to get him out of bed in time to get dressed, eat breakfast, and brush his teeth before we have to leave for school. Wednesday morning he awoke at 4:45 am, Thursday it was 4:46 am, and today it was 4:44 am. At least he's consistent.

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Did you know Wonder Pets like celery tacos? They do.

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Time for me to throw some love around. There is a new social networking site that is still in beta but will be going public soon. You may have seen the cre8Buzz ant on my blog with my ranking on it. I'm in 2nd place behind a well deserved front runner, Joeprah. That guy is hilarious. But it's not really a contest over at cre8Buzz, it's just a cool place for you to create a page, promote your blogs and sites, and discover other ones that you may have been missing in the vortex of the Web. The guys over at cre8Buzz started the site to bring writers, bloggers, cartoonists, hobbyists, photographers, and others together in a community. I still have invites to join if you don't want to wait until they open the doors to the general public. Leave a comment if interested in jumping in the Buzz.

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Canon is giving away a sweet gear package for their Photography in the Parks Photo Contest. A fellow forum member on a site I frequent these days is one of the finalists with this awesome photo of a salamander -

photo by Scott Hotaling

Stop on over to check out the other finalists and vote! The other photos are great, too, but that salamander rocks! Click that photo or the link above it to get there. You can also see more of Scott's awesome work by clicking on his name above.

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I'm going deer hunting for the first time today and tomorrow. My neighbor and I are heading out to the Hill Country to their family ranch. I should be able to get some clean shots in around sunset and sunrise - with my Nikon. I'm not much of gun hunter so I'll leave the killing to him and target shoot with my 18-200mm lens while enjoying some cold brews. I haven't had a night without the kids in a long time. Should be nice and quiet (between gunshots) out there!

Reunions, Brisket, and Longhorn Caverns

For the last 16 years we have had a family reunion at my Grandparents house in Marble Falls, TX, about an hour outside of Austin. Normally it is held the last weekend in June, but Marble Falls was under water that weekend. My Grandparents postponed it until last weekend so they could dry out, redo the back room from the flood damage, and so we could actually cross roads that were previously impassible to get to their house.

We missed a few family members but still had fun. My sister and her family came and our kids always have fun playing together. You could give them a pile of dirt and they would be happy. Luckily, Grandpa had one so all was good.



Here are a few shots from a huge sunflower patch in one of their fields. That little bug posed for several minutes while I snapped away.






Aside from devouring tasty brisket, chicken, and all the sides in various colors, we spent time visiting with some family that we only see once a year, watched our dogs play, and took the kids to Longhorn Caverns. These caverns are about 20 minutes away from my Grandparents house and it was my first time to go. I know! I can't believe it either! It's no Carlsbad but still an underground wonder with a great history of safe havens for bank robbers, Indians, and a speakeasy. I love caves, caverns, and even basements. I'm not sure why I like basements so much. Maybe because I like the private seclusion and quietness that comes with it.

Here are some of my favorite photos from Longhorn Caverns. I was unable to locate my battery charger before the trip so I burned through 18 AA batteries in about an hour and missed a few shots while changing out the pack. I was the caboose in the tour and the guide was very nice about letting me shoot while juggling batteries and holding up the others. There are still some photos I want to go back and get. The way the rocks formed in there are truly amazing.








These photos don't really show all of the visual beauty of Longhorn Caverns. You should go check them out for yourself. It has been years since I have visited any other caverns and I plan on making it back again to all of them around Central Texas very soon.

A Fellow Austin SAHD

Another at-home dad here in Austin has started a new project titled "A Year In Photos" where he will post a new picture he has taken every day for the next 365 days. He started on September 1st and all really great shots! I have yet to meet him but hope to do so one day soon. Check out his blog here,or click one of my favorites so far below titled

best shoes ever...

Photo by Bryan McNeal

Time to Share. Sharing is Caring

One of the fun things that gets passed around bloggers is the Blogger Interview. It is kind of like the meme's (still not sure what that means) but shorter and the questions are determined by the blogger who sends the interview to you. Mine was done by my cyber pal and also former bartender, Whit, over at The Honea Express.

The Rules of Engagement are posted at the end of this interview so if you want to particpate please leave a comment. Here is what Whit had for me:

Okay, you're on the hot seat!


1. Why would you root for the Dallas Cowboys when the Pittsburgh Steelers are obviously the better team? (come on, you knew this was coming)

Well, it all started one day in 1972 when I was born at Presbyterian Hospital in Dallas, Texas. I went to a few games with my Dad as a kid and was a fan from the start. Now, had I been born in Pittsburgh I would probably root for the Steelers even though everybody knows the Cowboys are really the better team.

2. Your blog is featured as part of the Austin American-Statesman. How did you score that gig?

One day I received a phone call from the editor at the Statesman and he asked if I would please be a part of the Reader Blogs since they were really hurting for funny and original content.

OK, not really. First, I registered online with the Statesman. Then I went to the "Start Your Own Blog" page, created my blogging name and title for my URL, uploaded a profile photo and information about myself, and started writing! They have posted my blog name in the newspaper with a little tidbit of info and the URL address. I haven't made it to the editorial page in the newspaper like another blogger there, but hope to one day write something they think is worth printing!

3. What is Quirkee Knowledge?

Quirkee Knowledge is a collection of funny or strange trivia and facts. It is part of the Quirkee.com site and we are currently creating a series of books that will one day soon grace the shelves at a bookstore near you!


4. If you were able to make obscene amounts of money doing just one of these, would you rather be a golfer, a photographer or a writer?

That's a tough question. Right off the bat I can narrow it down to golf or photography. Both of those gigs would keep me outside and allow me to see many parts of the world. The amount of money is probably more obscene playing golf with all of the endorsements I would get and the 1st place winnings piling up in my bank account.

I think if I had to choose one I would choose photography as a job and play golf for fun. I love being able to create photos and capture moments in time that are otherwise gone forever. I also wouldn't turn down a gig to be a sports photographer for Golf Digest, the PGA, or the Associated Press, but those are seriously hard jobs to land.


5. Do you still have the Rocky tuxedo pants, or should I say, do you wear them often?

Unfortunately, I outgrew those pants about 12 years ago. And when I say "outgrew" I mean not only did I not fit in them anymore but I was too old to pull off wearing them in public ever again. I kept them to wear around the house in the winter but after several years of my then girlfriend (now wife) making fun of me I gave them to Goodwill. I'm sure there is some other fortunate man out there who still fits in them and wears them with pride.

According to the rules, which Whit is a stickler for, I am to post this information:

Interview rules:
1. Leave me a comment saying “Interview me.”
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with a post containing your answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions

Thanks for the interview, Whit!

Rainy Days and Wild Ways

The rain just keeps on coming here in Central Texas. The plants, grass, and wildflowers sure do love it. We planted some wildflower seeds this year to attract butterflies and hummingbirds. Some we planted out front in that little strip of grass between the sidewalk and the street. Some we planted in pots in the backyard. The ones in pots didn't take off like the ones in the ground and I think a bird nibbled up some seeds from the pots then sat on our fence and pooped. This sunflower facing West has grown to about seven feet tall and looks like it might soon decide to walk on over to the back door and help itself to our refrigerator. When the clouds cleared today I went out and snapped this photo.

Macro Photography

Lately I have become very interested in macro photography after spending time reading through Daniel Sroka's website. He makes incredible art out of macro photography using things he finds outdoors on walks like seeds, leaves, acorns, tree bark, etc. He brings them home and discovers the unique character in each of them.

He creates all of this art without any Photoshop techniques, only what he see through the lens. His work is inspiring but I don't have the studio equipment or macro lens yet to create like he does. Since I like manipulating stuff in Photoshop anyway, I thought it would be a fun way to start playing around with macro for now. So I took this photo of a windchime outside our back door...





and cropped that photo into this. I adjusted the levels to hide some pixelation in the black area and lighten up the lighter areas to create more sunshine on the rope. Because of the huge crop factor, this photo probably won't print well above 5x7. With the right lens and lighting it would be printable at poster size or larger.




It's not a Daniel Sroka but it's a start!