Chicago, IL - May, 2009

Click here to see a Picasa slide show link to the snapshots taken thus far.

April trip to Houston

I traveled to Houston on April 23 through May 2 recently for work - a very productive trip. In addition, I was able to visit family and friends while there - including one friend I haven't seen in 20 years!!! Here are a few snapshots from that trip -

Me & Brad Moore at his new Big Star Bar - I'm indicating to Martin where the photo button is on the camera, and nothing more -

Martin, me & Patrica. Martin looks this way because he's trying to hold the camera far enough away for a good portrait, after some failed attempts...this one he's got!

Me and my Sister From Another Mother - Patricia Hernandez

Friday Night at Poison Girl

Somehow, San Felipe is *still* under construction.

Kyle sleeping with Sienna

Aunt Kristi and Casey

Meanwhile, back home, the Lilacs have blooomed!!

New Website Launched!!!

After much work, WorldWideGlimpses the Website has been resurrected. WorldWideGlimpses the blog will continue as a basic communication site about what is going on at the website, or with me in general. Thanks for your continued readership, and please check out the new site!

Countdown to Weblaunch - April 15th! Tax Day!

COMING SOON!!! New Website!!

I have resurrected my www.worldwideglimpses.com website (vs. this blogsite). It is not yet active and will be a professional photography website featuring, of course, my photos. Much of this blog will be archived but it will remain active as a posting place for a number of whimsical things. Keep posted!

And Now, for Something Completely Different...

...a few snapshots of an Austin, TX sunset, thanks to Russel B...

The Recession is hitting Denver Pretty Hard....

....and apparently driving the McGoverns (Marty, Gabe, and Kendra) back into the 19th century!

No caption needed...

....and More Snow!!!!

I love it.......

Finally! Real SNOW!

Living this close to Canada, this is the kind of snow I expect in December. Better late than none...with more to come, yay!

Singapore Daydreaming

Got a nice card from my friends at Lanson Place, where I lived in Singapore. Gotta love Google Earth: here is an aerial image of the roooftop pool. It's over the bridge between two buildings, just above the caption...

Ice Storm.......woo hoo!

So, we've had a tiny recent ice storm. It was actually sleet, but on top of a thin layer of snow and ice. The problem was that the temp was 32, and the sleet had been coming down for hours. So, everything - I mean everything - was coated with ice. The hard part? 32 was to be the warmest temp for several days. It's Sunday, December 21st, the first official day of winter. Appropriately enough, the temp outside is 7, but with the wind - gusting up to 40 mph - the wind chill temp is between -15 and -20. But today, at least, it's half-assed sunny. The next time we move above the freezing point is Wednesday, on Christmas Eve, when we'll hit 40 -with rain. yay, wintertime in NW Ohio...

The hard part for some folks in town is tree deadfall and downed power lines. Fortunately I haven't experienced that yet - but as a backup plan, I can always walk to work a half mile away - and make coffee! Oh, and I'm all set with a ton of wood and a wood stove. At any rate, here are some photos of our ice, which is going to be around for a few more days -


For this one, I was outside, and though sheltered, still couldn't avoid the falling sleet.




Brrr!!!

My Animals are So Great.....

Of course, any animal parent would say the same, but mine really are. In case you've been wondering how Djiini & Kathman are doing, here are some updates!

Below, Kathman is on one of his favorite posts, on top of the wall unit...that angled thing behind him is actually the narrow stairway to the upstairs.


Djiini, who is notorious about avoiding a camera at all costs, must have let her guard down for me to capture this one. I love her death-ray aimed at Kathman, who was inadvertently walking by a hidden doggie bone.


And finally, Kathman has decided to learn to read. He loves to sit on the TV stand - in this case, he seems really interested in Humana's health benefits for AARP members.

Smart Squirrels!

I found this out in the front crabapple tree the other day - it's a small gourd that was part of my Halloween yard decorations. The squirrels (there are 2 that live in the back yard and play in the front) wedged it into the fork of two branches, resulting in a little gourd-ateria!

I couldn't help myself....mwa ha ha ha...

Halloween Decor

Punkin' Carving 2008

This was my first ever pumpkin carving event, at the age of 39. What a sheltered life I must be living! My friend and his children came over to show me how it's done. Amid pizza, root beer, and a break to warm up and watch the Simpsons, we ended up with some real show-stoppers, I think!!

The pumpkin guts were truly disgusting. I'd heard that they smelled bad, which I didn't really find to be true - but getting the stuff out of the pumpkin wasn't nearly as easy as I thought. I started with a big soup ladle, went to a serving spoon, and then a regular tablespoon - it's hard work. But at some point, it seems inevitable that you have to just roll up your sleeves, shove your hand in, and pull out the goop. Which made me feel a bit like doing what I intended for my pumpkin to do......

I can't take original credit for that - think it's a classic - but all those pumpkin guts, as we called them, came in handy for this guy.

Mwa ha ha ha haaaaaa!

The Evolution of a Bedroom

The Before...

And the After.....

I KNEW it!!!!!!

They ARE having an affair!

Photos from recent trips

Washington, D.C. Note the cool orange eclipse - my rental sportster - and the proximity of my streetside parking spot in front of the Capitol!

....and adjacent to the newest Smithsonian addition, the Museum of the Native American Indians. The architecture was breathtaking. Part of the landscape are some rows of corn, sheltering beans and gourds growing on the ground. The Capitol in the background provides an interesting juxtaposition.

From the interior; a kiva-inspired dome.



Lone tree, South Dakota

Gary's horses nuzzling.....


Badlands, South Dakota


Djiini is good about tolerating my occasional quick photo stops.....note chin resting on dashboard!


Djiini is confused - it's snowing, but I'm wearing my vacation lei! (note the snow flakes on her nose)

Later that day, at the river that runs through Gary's ranch....





Hiking in the Big Horns, Wyoming


Wild Horses (there were more but I could only get two in one frame because of their spread).
Christmas in September! In the Big Horns, we encountered a bit of snow one day.....followed by a day at lower elevation (and much hotter!).

So, I think I've found my first ever Christmas Card Photo in September......


On a recent trip to Wyoming and back, I took my dog Djiini. To make up for some doggie photos to come, I'm posting an image of Kathman here....kind of a cat and doggie karma.

South Dakota: sunflowers. Giant, big-as-your-head sunflowers.


Crazy Horse, South Dakota.
Seems to me it is taking an awfully long time to complete this sculpture. In fact, an Egyptian pyramid could have been built in the time it has taken this sculpture to reach its current state. Egyptian as in ancient & without tools. I think it's a shame that such a wonderful tribute and idea has been so long delayed.

Djiini at Gary's house, Hyattville, Wyoming.

Travel photos coming soon.....

So far in September this year, I've done a bit of travel - driving from NW Ohio to Wyoming and back, and then flying to Washington D.C. (and staying in Virginia). So, in less than 2 weeks, I've been to:
Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana (and back), Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia.

Unfortunately I haven't been super photography oriented during these trips, but there are some worthwhile images that will be posted here soon.

What's your Geography IQ?

Well, mine was 112...which I'm not sure is good. The only issue: If the map were larger, you could actually see specs on the map such as Easter Island or the Maldives. Good fun, though! Good luck -

Yellow......

The sunflowers are from the yard, and I hear that a squirt of lemon helps preserve them as cut flowers. Not sure if that's true or not, but I picked up a lemon yesterday. Oddly, Kathman is crazy about this lemon. He has 'kneaded' it several times, no doubt releasing some lemon oil essence. I couldn't help but snap a photo - the yellow of the hibiscus outside - the flowers - the lemon - and a little yellow glint in his eye just seemed to jump out at me.

Here Comes the Sun(flower)

Turns out the overspill from the bird feeder provides a delayed gift. Unfortunately, the squirrels like them...so the day after these photos were taken, all that was left of this sunflower was a bare stalk and some petal remains on the back deck. Which is where, I suppose, those buggers like to sit, relax, and dine.

Anita & Arve, Photo Gold!

Well, going through the 1000+ photos from Anita & Arve has been a thrill! Thank goodness for high speed wireless.... I think it's about time for another vacation visit...

You All Apparently Want Homemade Cherry Pie...or, Home-Made Cherry Pie, redux

In reviewing some site statistics, the most repeated google search landing visitors to the site are those searching for some alphabetical variation of home made cherry pie. Last year, I posted an entry about just such a thing when visiting friends in Wyoming. With a photo. Here is that photo, and just so that those searchers actually find what they're probably looking for - a recipe instead of a photo - I'm posting that here as well. Bon Appetit!

Homemade Cherry Pie Recipe
Stuff you’ll need:

• Pastry for Two-Crust Pie
• 4 cups of fresh de-stemmed and de-pitted cherries
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
• 2 tablespoons margarine or butter

Stuff you’ll need to Prepare:

• Preheat oven to 425F
• Prepare pastry for Two Crust Pie - 9 inch pans.
• Prepare pie pans (glass or metal: add a touch of oil, butter, Pam, etc - to extra-non-stick it).

Stuff you’ll need to Do:

1. Combine cherries, sugar and flour and blend lightly. Most recipes advise adding a splash of almond extract, but I'm not sure why.
2. Taste your cherries. Are they a touch too sweet? Add a splash of lemon juice. Too tart? Add a squirt of honey.
3. Spoon into pastry shell.
4. Apply a little butter/margerine here and there.
5. Add the second pastry shell to the top, or use it to make a lattice crust.
6. Fold edges of top pastry under bottom pastry.
7. Press together to seal and flute edges.
8. Cut slits in several place in top of pastry.
9. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until juice bubbles through the top crust.

Alternative / Options:
Create a show-stopping top crust by applying an egg wash and some raw sugar crystals!!

• To create an egg wash you’ll need an egg yolk and a splash of water, and a new ~2” paintbrush.
• Blend an egg yolk and a teaspoon of water. If the wash doesn’t appear to be easily spreadable with your brush, you may gradually add a little more water – but be careful of making the mixture too runny.
• Brush mixture on the top pastry of your pie – whether lattice or whole crust.
• This yeilds a shiny, golden-brown effect to the pie crust. Additionally, it allows things to stick – like a couple of sprinkles of raw sugar crystals. For the same effect, but with less shine, use the whole egg.
• For an additional neat presentation effect, use a decorative item to press into your pie shell fluting. Examples are something with grooves, lines, patterns, etc. If the texture is flexible, it can be wrapped around a pencil, using the pencil to press in the fluting
• Finally, add a sprig of spearmint (not catmint) to the top for presentation zing.

Norwegians Sweep America!!

I wonder how many erroneous futbol or rugby hits that title might gain.....

Well, my short trip with my Norwegian friends Anita & Arve is over, and they're on their way back to Norway today. Somehow, I didn't end up taking a lot of photos of Las Vegas. That truly is another planet.

The Norwegians Have Arrived!!

Anita & Arve (pronounced like Ave, kind of) arrived on Monday, June 2, and we quickly proceeded to the grocery store to load up on a few necessities. Like an extra "big ass" suitcase for their trip, in which they could pack their extra purchases. And of course, beer, wine, brats, and other bbq accouterments. The bbq went off without a hitch, with some new and old friends and co-workers enjoying a meal graciously cooked up by my friend Jim, who took on grilling duties.

Exploring Amish Country, and Colorado.....

Day 2 of our adventure began with our having a little time on our hands prior to our 7 pm flight out of Detroit. So, after a quick breakfast, we hopped on south a bit to explore an Amish area. I've gone out into Amish country before, but had not previously seen so many Amish people. You couldn't throw a rock without seeing an Amish person. And then we realized: Because of Anita's pregnancy, she's a good luck charm. Every time from this point on during our trip that Anita said, "I'd love to see _______!", it would literally appear around the next corner. This included marmot, buffalo, elk, a condor, Amish, snow-covered mountains, good weather ......you name it. There are too many examples to recall.

Despite arriving at our Denver hotel at 1 am due to storms in Chicago (long story), we were raring to go the next morning. I should mention that I am often cursed in rental car arrangements at Denver International. And it appears this is contagious. On one previous trip there to pick up a rental and explore Wyoming, I was 'upgraded' from a basic economy to....an electric-spandex-lame-ass-blue PT Cruiser. Good mileage and drive, but ugh, what an ugly freakin' car. Such was our luck - queer blue color and all - on this trip. Hopefully we won't also hit an elk.

At any rate, our Colorado venture was essentially a LONG day of driving across it on I-70. Wanting to break up the scenery a bit, we had time for one side trip, and that was to the top of Mt. Evans. This mountain, along with Pike's Peak, is one of two in the country that have a paved road to the surface and whose summits are over 14,000 feet (or over 4200 meters). The highest peak in Norway is 2,469 meters (8,100 feet). En route to the top, we encountered marmots, road mice, and even some scavaging mountain goats before they were able to see a span of the Rocky Mountains laid out before them. Below: road marmot - found an erosion-created pothole that he called home, which I'm sure was warm, but noisy as hell when cars rolled over. And not very life-preserving!

Now, we all know about not touching wildlife, but this miniscule little bugger was literally sunning himself in the middle of the (thin) blacktop roadway. We stopped and tried to wave him to the side of the road, but he went instead under the car. So, Arve picked him up and moved him to a nice, flat, warm rock on the side of the road, where he stayed - at least until we drove away.

Utah - Red Rock Country

After whizzing through Colorado, our next leg was to take us just into Utah on I-70 and then cutting south toward Moab, and along the east side of the state. We were in Moab at the onset of a gale force wind, announcing a fast-moving storm. It was fantastic! During our time in Utah, I kept mentioning I'd never seen it so pretty so late in the spring - there was much remaining green, and having actual cloud cover was fantastic. My last camping route through the area was in May, prior to Memorial Day a few years ago, and the heat (at 92 degrees) was unbearable - mostly due to the lack of any possibility of cloud cover. We had great weather for our trip, in fact keeping us quite cool until we reached Vegas (at 102). Some Utah pics:


This is probably my favorite: Fisher Towers on the left; Colorado River at the bottom; snow-capped La Sal mountains behind. yay!

A real-life tumbleweed on a fantastic reddy-purple sandstone background.

The electric-spandex-discotronic PT Cruiser. PS: Chrysler, I'd be glad to lease you a copy of this image...

Onset of storm. This literally blew in during the time it took us to fill up the tank on the car, and take a bathroom break. There were trashcans rolling down the street.

Heading south from Moab, adjacent to Canyonlands. Some real, and some ghost rain.


Mmmm.....red geology........




The goosenecks of the San Juan River.

Grand Canyon 08, with Norwegians

We made it to the Grand Canyon with plenty of daylight left to eat, shop, and do a little hiking before sunset. And, in keeping with our trip's trend, just as Anita was wishing to see elk, they seemed to stumble right across our pathway - nibbling on the grass in front of Bright Angel Lodge.







And Arve, the perennial quiet humorist, has a great sense of physical comedy!


Hufta!!

Watch out, Vegas.......

Anita & Arve arrive in the morning, and we'll launch into our whirlwind tour of the West - Denver to Vegas, via Moab, Canyonlands, Monument Valley, the Grand Canyon, and the Skywalk bridge. More to come soon!

Congratulations, Nepal! You new Republic, you.....

In another post of shameless self-promotion, I present to you another photo of mine published by a news service, regarding a topic especially close to my heart. Nepal! And its newborn freedom!

And here's a link to this story (my photo, ahem, at top right...).

Old Farm Accents

My friend Jim's family has an old farm nearby, and I visited recently to snap a few photos of what I call 'interestingness'. Enjoy.

Mmmmmmm.........Lilacs!!

39 and counting

Today, I turn 39. Call the senility hotline. For some reason, I put my entire roll of Reynold's Wrap aluminum in the dishwasher. Of course I only realized this when unloading the dishwasher. Off to a great start!

ps - the roll of foil is fine, if damp - but the entire outer box lost its color and design. In case you were wondering.

******************
I'm NOT senile after all! Turns out Jim put it in there, after being flustered while trying to find the real place for the foil - and in theory, I would have found it and chuckled. Oh, well!!

The great thaw of 2008

Spring has sprung, the birds are singing, and everything is greening up and blooming. My fave tree in the yard is this cherry willow. I took the shots of this tree on Friday, April 18th. At mid-day, many of the blossoms had just opened up - widely. The day before, they were all just buds.

Then, last night, we did a little cooking on the grill - outdoors - without coats - and burned some scrap wood in the firepit. It was a fantastic evening, and at one point, my friend Jim suggested taking night-photos of the cherry willow. I thought that was a good idea, but reminded him that my tripod got 'accidentally broken into pieces' during our Christmas hike up K2. So, sans tripod, and sans flash (I hate flash), here is my fave shot of the cherry willow at night:

...and this one is Jim's fave. The difference between them is the ground spotlight. In my photo, we have that light diffused (albeit through a dish towel). In Jim's preference, below, we see spotlight unabashed.
So, Happy Spring, y'all!

Whaa......Spring??

While I'm still hesitant to put the coats and jackets away, I have finally moved the snow shovel from the deck back into the garage. I was so eager for spring this year I started growing some things indoors. My favorite: the tulips!!


And, it seems this week everything in NW Ohio not only enjoyed good weather (one day getting up to 77!), but also began vigorously sprouting and blooming. Which means I am spending more time outdoors.....

This shot is of my tulip tree. It's like a naked magnolia, except the flowers are a little less sturdy than regular southern magnolias, and a little less fragrant, but not by much. There are a few trees like this in the neighborhood, and at first glance, I can't help but think that someone's tree has recently been tp'd. Albeit creatively.

I've got a scattering of daffodils in the front, back, and side yards...

And new this year, two forsythia bushes.

Animistic Fun!

I don't want to be one of those folks who sends 2 dozen photos of all their kids' or pets' antics to everyone in their email list (a few is fine, thanks friends!) - so instead, I'm going to load some recent pet photos here. I've mentioned before that Djiini (pron.: Genie) just hates to be photographed face-on. She's really camera shy - I've tried several times to get a good facial or close-up shot. I've been very unsuccessful. But, I was recently able to capture her in one of her more odd positions: sitting on the back deck, monitoring the yard for squirrels. (That's the old bbq in the background.)
And, on one other occasion, I was able to bribe her into a face shot with the carrot of "wanna go for a WALK?" Of course, this only worked once, and in a low-light situation, I wasn't able to get a crisp shot. So, this will have to do.

Now, with Kathman(du), I've got no problem getting portrait-style shots out of him. He looks directly at me, even in low light requiring long exposures (and by nature, stillness). He is a zen-cat. Here, he's peering down from his perch atop the bookcase:

...and, still on the bookcase, not at all perturbed by my many photo attempts, here he is at eye level: perched, but not really ready to pounce.

Where in the World is it the 21st,, the 22nd, and the 12th century - simultaneously? Why Nepal, of course!

Happy New Year, or Navavarsha, Nepal! Today, April 12, 2008, is the Nepali New Year: 2065, or 1129, 2140, or continuing 2008 - take your pick.

Not to be forgotten, the large number of Tibetan refugees in Nepal celebrated Tibetan New Year, or Losar, previously - on February 28th. By this Sherpa calendar, derived from Tibetan and Chinese calendars, February 28th turned the page into the year 2140.

On the Nepali Sambat calendar, today is the first day of 1127 for the Newar people of Nepal, who count the years since a prominent citizen paid off all outstanding debts to provide a new beginning for his countrymen.

The current government calendar, the Bikram Sambat, is a North Indian calendar adopted in Nepal in the early 1900s. By the Bikram Sambat calendar it is 2065. This according to multiple Nepali friends, who generously sent me well wishes for "2065 BS". However, Kantipor - Kathmandu's main newspaper, the last day of 2060 BS faded without much ceremony - yesterday.

These are of course in conjunction with the western Gregorian calendar, which is more predominantly used for commerce.

And all of this comes amidst a hive of other activity for the tiny country: Tibetan protests against the Chinese embassy, and the related crackdowns; and an election.

The election was for a constituent assembly, and occurred on April 10th, 2008, 2064 BS (or 2060 BS), 1126 NS, or 2140. This election will decide the fate of Nepal's future: federalism, or continuing the monarchy - a pivotal point in its history. This was no small feat for those who voted. You think things are hectic here with a mostly 2 party system - try choosing candidates from a choice of 55 parties!

P. S. - Additional April New Year Celebrations...

Well, seems I've inadvertently overlooked several other New Year's celebrations. Not to be dissed, Happy New Year to Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Tamil New Year (Sri Lanka, Singapore), and the Dai of Yunnan, China.