Extended Family

This weekend Mother and I plan to drive up to the Metroplex to make our appearance at the monthly Parker luncheon. While we both love living in Austin, I think both of us miss being able to see our extended family and friends in the Metroplex as often as we once did - I know I do!


This was taken in July of last year at Uncle Kenneth's birthday party in Grand Prairie. Jim, Uncle Kirksey, and Cathie (shown) are talking to Uncle Bob, Karen and Richard about Parker and Anglen genealogy. (You'll have to imagine them on the other side of the picnic table.)


This was taken in 2002 at Cynthia's ranch in Utopia. We wanted to document the fact that Uncle Kenneth and Aunt Lucille had both gotten over the cow stile and found their way to the Crooked Hole, from which the ranch derives its name.


This portrait of Uncle Bob was taken that same weekend in the living room of the ranch house.


This one, of Ron, was taken in Pattie's back yard in Dallas at her "Na Na Na Naaaa Na" party in August 2008.


At the same party, these pictures show Pattie and Aunt Margaret being entertained in the pool by Ashton (above), and Angela and Ashton being entertained by Uncle Bob (below).

Orange Oz

What would you do if you went to sleep in an oceanside suburb of Sydney, Australia, and woke up on. . . Mars?

I caught the end of the story on the late news the other night about a dust storm in Sydney. I hadn't heard anything about it previously but, since David and Amy live there, I checked the story out online, then fired off an e-mail to David and Amy to see what was going on Down Under. Amy sent the pictures below, the first bunch she had taken and the others she forwarded from her friend, Murray Fraser.


These two shots are from the kitchen area about sunrise looking southwest through the glass doors to the balcony: the first suggests a fire in the street below and the second, using the flash, suggests the problem is at least still outside the apartment.




This picture is taken from the balcony door looking south-southwest at the beach, just barely visible through the acrylic panels of the guardrail.


These two were taken from the other end of the apartment looking northeast. The first, over the top of the parking garage - or car park, I suppose - directly across the street and the second, down the street a little bit to the right.

*****

That's about enough to convince yourself that you and your world have somehow been transported during the night to Mars. But taking a breath on the balcony and tasting the grit would bring you back to Earth. I guess it would be kind of like a surprise snowfall - do I go to work or do I lay out? David and Amy both went to work but I guess Murray did what I would've done - he got his camera out and started shooting. . .

Amy said when she sent these that they were taken in Manly on the northern shore of Sydney Harbour.

The two pics below are on the promenade just above Manley beach.

*****

Following another flurry of e-mails last night, I learned that the orange cloud had blown out to sea and things were returning to normal. These two pictures, looking south-southwest and southwest respectively, show a more normal view from David and Amy's apartment.

I'm glad it's all back to normal for them but this got me thinking... how awesome would it be if Mack Brown could flip a switch down at the D K Royal Memorial Stadium and turn Austin's skies that color?

Hook 'Em, Horns!

Strange Behaviors. . .

Just what constitutes "strange" behaviors? Some behavior might be considered strange simply because you didn't expect it from a particular person. In other cases, you might be similarly surprised by anyone doing the same thing. Something might be considered strange because an easily explained or otherwise mundane action suggests something else which really would be strange. Or something might be straightforward enough but our perception of it might be somehow affected, rendering it strange. Let's review some examples. . .

Here we have Maureen and Cathie on the couch observing Lauren demonstrating a new skill she'd discovered. I think she correctly surmised that none of her aunts or uncles would be able to do it, making it special. What makes it "strange" to me is the "redeye" photo artifact that suggests that perhaps she's possessed. That would indeed be "strange".


This one surprised me because typically, I have to work for my pictures of Maureen who, over the years, has become increasingly adept at foiling my photographic efforts. In this case, however, she knew I had my camera and performed her magic trick anyway. So this qualifies - for Maureen - as "strange" behavior.


I asked Natalie to swim underwater for me on her back because I wanted a picture of her in her environment. The surface of the water renders variable optic effects that might be considered "strange". But let me tell you, this kid owns the pool! She swims for her club and for her high school team as well, like her brother before her. The extraordinary effort she puts into her swimming boggles my mind - and she's been doing it for years! That in itself makes it "strange" behavior in my book.


In this picture of Paul, taken Christmas morning several years ago, the pose he struck and his "headdress" immediately suggested to me a bemused young pharaoh, a budding King Tut. We don't often spend our Christmas mornings with Tutankhamun, so this can be considered "strange".


This picture of Mother and Karen in a canoe on Inks Lake didn't strike me as strange until I started wondering where Mother's life jacket was. Being a non-swimmer, the fact that she'd go out in a canoe with Karen - or anyone else - without a life jacket strikes me as exceedingly "strange". That she looks perfectly at ease in this picture is incredible to me!

Random Potraits

This is my youngest niece, Lauren. She's 11 now, so this picture's several years old. My camera's always loved her though, which I fully expect will continue. The Lauren paradox is that she always has so much energy, yet my favorite pictures of her are of the few moments when I've caught her at rest - wistful, serene, and contemplative.


Here's a pair I've missed since I moved to Austin: Sarah and her grandfather, my uncle Kirk. The picture was taken a few years ago at our family Christmas party at Bill and Cynthia's. I'm hoping to see uncle Kirk and Aunt Dorrace (and others) in October at a family luncheon in the Metroplex. If I remember, I'll find out what Sarah's up to. The last I heard, she was planning to go to New Zealand.


This is my cousin, Dean, one night at one of our family reunions at Cynthia's ranch in Utopia. Over the years I've posted several pictures from those reunions, but I don't think I've posted this one before. I think it's a great "character study" - Dean looking a lot like Willie Nelson to me.

Foolin' Around

These few pictures all suggest - to me at least - that if you enjoy what you're doing, and don't mind spending a lot of time experimenting, you can snatch something worthwhile from an otherwise so-so photo effort.

This is a picture of my brother-in-law, Stan, at home in San Antonio. I'd liked the composition of this portrait, but the photograph on its own just seemed like any other snapshot with nothing much to distinguish it. So I played around with it for a while and came up with this, emphasizing the composition and tonal balance.


This one was a demonstration I did for Gillian when I upgraded and gave her the superseded version of my editing software. The "herd of bunnies" are actually all the same rabbit, browsing for something to eat at the edge of my patio in Georgia. As I often did, I shot the pictures through my office window while sitting at my desk.

I don't think she uses the software much, if at all, but perhaps she will eventually.


When I was visiting Kip in Arizona last year we took in a Navajo powwow late one afternoon. What should have been an excellent photo opportunity turned out to be somewhat disappointing. The audience surrounded the dancers and other performers, which was fine; but the performers and speakers faced east to address the crowd. Shooting into the sun didn't produce any good pictures, and changing my vantage point gave me a great view of their backs. And, not having brought lawn chairs with us, I found my endurance lacking.

The dancers did turn around occasionally, so I came away with a few pictures - none of them of particular note. So again, I played around with what I did have for a while and came up with the study above, which I really like.

Cousins III

This picture was taken at Mother's house in Grand Prairie on Christmas morning, 2004. We had long since given up the mêlée, with the whole family gathered in one home and presents piled waist high at the tree and cascading outwards to the middle of the living room. It's just as well in our sleep-deprived society. And besides, it was almost impossible to make your way through the packages to plug in or unplug the Christmas tree lights. Paul, sitting on the floor, and David, in the chair, are showing admirable restraint, waiting for Paul's parents to join us to open presents.


This one, also taken at Mother's, is from Christmas morning 1983. It shows Andrew, looking spiffy in his blue faux 'gator skin cowboy boots, and Nicolette, in a flannel nightgown, checking out a space invaders arcade game.


The picture above was taken at Ellen and Stan's house in San Antonio. I'd have to check on the date to determine what the occasion was. It could have been mid-October for the Texas/OU game, later in the month for Mother's birthday, or late in December for a New Year's celebration. Drew has an armfull of cat - either Pom-Pom or Princess - and Allison is trying to tempt said cat with a smooch.

Random Portraits

Stephen was vacationing in Colorado this weekend when we opened the 2009 Longhorn football season successfully (59-20). Normally, his intense concentration on the game is quite an asset but we managed without him this time. He took his easel and enough art supplies to paint most of the Colorado Rockies, so I can't wait to see what pictures he brings back.


This is my cousin, Pat, at one of the family reunions in Utopia. Whenever I hear the old saw that "Still waters run deep," I think of Pat. Of course, I happened to see one evening a stack of books he'd been reading that were to be returned to the library the next day. First of all, it was five or six books. The amount of reading aside, the range was incredible! No murder mysteries here. As I recall it ran from quantum physics to philosophy.


I should apologize to Gillian for this picture - I suppose. She doesn't like it at all, but I love it so she's been trumped. She won't tell me what it is about the picture that bothers her. One of David's girlfriends dressed her in a cheerleader uniform and made up her face for halloween. Of course, when you think about it, that's an excellent disguise for Gillian, the cheerleader personna being about as far from her personality as possible.

Hook 'Em, HORNS!

Finally! The 2009 college football season is here at last. No big surprises in this blog about who we're for. The University of Texas Longhorns do a really good job of holding our interest. Is this going to be our year? We shall see. I, for one, am too excited to write any pithy comments about these pictures, so I'll let them speak for themselves.

If you feel the need, cross your fingers. Otherwise. . . Get Your HORNS UP!

Melissa

Paul and David

Danny, Blake, and Melissa

Andrew and Natalie

Natalie, Stephen, Melissa, Danny, and Lauren

Lauren and Natalie

Allison

Blake and Lauren

Lauren

Natalie

Ben, Paul, and Natalie - and Shadow showing his colors

Lauren, Natalie, Allison, and Andrew

Stephen and Andrew

Ben, Natalie, Bill, Allison, Lauren, and Andrew

Allison, Andrew, and Lauren

Blue Two

In 1983 the Air Force instituted the Blue Two program, named for the two-stripe maintainer, designed to give certain government contractors, particularly designers, an opportunity to gain some first-hand experience with supporting and maintaining weapon systems and equipment in the field. In September of 1986 Lockheed-Georgia was looking for a designer (read guinea pig) to participate in this seemingly worthwhile venture. I must've looked like I didn't have anything more pressing to do and was soon on Delta, bound for Oklahoma City and Tinker AFB.

At Tinker, I found myself milling about smartly with a couple dozen other contractors waiting to see what the Air Force had in store for us. We received a perfunctory brief describing a two-day field exercise, a debrief when we returned to Tinker, then two days at McClellan AFB in Sacramento followed by another debrief. Then it was off to the Air Force equivalent of a quartermaster for a gear issue. My first thought was, "What kind of gear are we going to need that we didn't bring with us?" Ah! Nuclear Biological Chemical (NBC) Warfare "moon suits". Think rubber suits, impermeable, Oklahoma, summer, walking sauna. Some boondoggles really aren't.

The officer on the left is working out the alignment for the antenna we are to erect based on our GPS coordinates. What size "moon suit"do you think I'd wear?

Have you ever passed one of those military convoys on the interstate, stretched out for 2 miles and cruising along at 40 miles an hour? That was us, headed for a pasture outside of Muskogee. I really should've walked out when they were assigning contractors to different units in the exercise and they asked me, "You're from Lockheed; what do you guys make for us?" When I told them, "Airplanes," they were stumped. You see, this Air Force exercise didn't really have anything to do with flying machines. But I was up for an adventure and they let me tag along with a communications outfit.


They should have had about two more guys my size for this antenna set up. But we did get it set up and established communications with our counterpart in Ardmore. (Note my helmet; I may not be in uniform, but this is a military exercise, Bubba.)

Let's see - 160 miles at 40 miles an hour - after four hours or so we parked out in the middle of nowhere (Muskogee) and started to set up our bivouac. It was hot. I helped my new communications buddies set up their satellite antenna (it was real hot) and run COMM checks with a similar unit that was in another field outside Ardmore, OK (it was probably hot there too). About half way through the COMM checks a siren sounded, indicating we were under a chemical attack and everyone raced to don their NBC gear. Did I mention how hot it was? I pulled my rubber coveralls, gloves, boots, and hood out of my bag - and couldn't believe my good fortune.


It's amazing how cool 100° is when you're wearing regular clothes and everyone else around you is wearing rubberized "moon suits."

All the gear I'd been issued was SMALL, with the exception of the hood. I figured I had two choices: I could steal a larger suit from somebody my size, in effect leaving them to die a horrible death, or I could gracefully accept the inevitability of my own demise and succumb to the chemical attack. Sydney Carton had nothing on me - I accepted my fate and hung a sign around my neck indicating that I was a fatality.

It didn't take any time at all for a very young, officious captain to accost me, with accusations that I wasn't "taking this seriously" and explaining that engineers needed to understand how hard it was to work in "these stupid suits." He was less than pleased when I told him that indeed I was taking it seriously and was upset that I had been "fatally neutralized" through the negligence of his quartermaster. I then stalked off mumbling under my breath and he couldn't tell whether I was really mad or pulling his chain.

I spent the rest of the time in the Muskogee pasture hanging out in the mobile air traffic control tower which I knew would be air-conditioned, if only to keep the radios cool enough to operate. Did I mention how cool air traffic control is? Serendipitous, no?

*****

The debrief back at Tinker turned out to be a critique of the exercise. My contribution was to suggest that in future they pick their contractors more carefully to make sure they have some professional interest in the type of unit they're teamed with. I remember going to McClellan for the next couple of days, but don't remember a thing we did there. And, by the way, the pictures are Official Air Force Photos provided me at the end of the visit.