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Just a nice shot of our traveling hotel!
We'd been to St Lucia before so we headed out to a local craft market, the idea being that Niccy might find some nice fabric there. We found no fabric but we did see a lady who was doing some sewing so we asked if there was a fabric store nearby. She said "Wait here, don't leave" and took off into the bowels of the market. She came back a couple of minutes later and said "Michael will take you to the fabric store, you might get lost on your own. That's how we met Michael.
I'd say Michael is an "entrepreneur" who I'm pretty sure would do (or get) you anything for payment. He came out, said "I'll take you to the store" and took off out into the street with Niccy and I following behind.
It seems that EVERYONE knew who Michael was and greeted him as we made our way. He took us down some side streets (and a couple of dodgy alleys) and we wound up at the fabric store.
Niccy got here fabric, along with a little advice from one of the shop ladies, "Be careful with that man, he's trouble". Well, Michael wasn't any trouble (at least for us) and once Niccy had made her purchase he took us back to the pier after a stop at his "friends" bar for a nice cold local beer. I gave him a fiver for his service and he went off on his merry way.
Should we find ourselves back in St. Lucia again I'll certainly be asking around for Michael and his tour guide services. Now I'm sure that some would have a real issue taking off through the back streets in a new country with a guy that you've never met before but for us, that's part of the adventure of exploring. Had he abandoned us I had been keeping a close eye on landmarks and could have gotten us back with no issue. We weren't worried about anything bad happening since there were plenty of cops around and St. Lucia really doesn't want the publicity that would come from tourists getting mugged.
PS:
For those in the Show Your EXIF group you should note that the actual lens used is a Tamron AF 18-200mm F/3.5-6.3 Di-II VC All-in-One Zoom for Canon APS-C Digital SLR. For some crazy reason it always shows up as a Canon TS-E 90mm f/2.8, a lens I've never owned or used!
Among the evergreens....
My all time favorite version of this classic song:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_WSXXPQYeY
Up at Ft. Tuthill I found this honest to goodness Murder Shack! Solidly built building complete with bars on the windows (to prevent any unwanted escapes), new roof and a rock solid ventilation system to eliminate any potential smells.
This is an old Forest Service building that has been converted into a cell site that blends into it's surroundings. The nice solid tree you see in back is actually a nicely done cell tower, one of the few I've ever seen that didn't look completely faux. Not sure how it would be to climb though....
If you think about it this really is a murder shack since cell phones did sign the death warrant for landlines in America.
Home to the OK Corral, Boot Hill, and the World's Largest Rosebush!
One of the float entries was from the town of Tombstone which is about 1 3/4 hours Southeast of Tucson if you take the backroads, much better than the boring freeway route.
Tombstone has a pretty wild and wooly history and if you're interested you can read more about it here:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tombstone,_Arizona
The Tucson Rodeo Parade is believed to be the nation's longest non-motorized parade dating back to 1925. All the parade entries are horse pulled other than the street sweepers who always end the parade by cleaning up the landmines left by our equine friends.
Very common to find roadside shrines like this in the Southwest.
For more information:
patagoniaregionaltimes.org/glimpses-into-our-past-the-tel...
Niccy and I took a Sunday Drive on a Friday, something that the government is discouraging but we don't plan on stopping.
Anyhow, we were on State Highway 82 between Patagonia and Nogales when we saw this. I used to drive this road regularly when I was working but because I was working I wasn't able to stop and take a look. There are advantages to being retired!
Three miles south of Patagonia, on the east side of Highway 82, is a highway turnout with steps leading to a shrine in a natural niche in the rock cliff. The shrine, dedicated to the sacred heart of Jesus, was constructed in 1949 by Juan Telles for his wife Juana to fulfill a promise she made when her sons Ralph and Richard left to serve in World War II and the Korean War respectively. Juana had vowed “that, should [her sons] be returned safely, a perpetual shrine would be built to honor the power and glory of right. ‘It wasn’t for me alone,’ said Mrs. Telles in her age-old rock-walled home, ‘that I made the vow. It was for mothers, wives, and families of all men who serve in freedom’s name.’” [Arizona Republic, 11/30/1953]
We finally got out of the Panama Canal!
The RCL Adventure of the Seas was built in 2001 and is a part of the RCL Voyager class of ships. She has a capacity of 3114 guests and carries 1185 crew members. The ship features 13 restaurants, 13 bars, 7 shows, 52 activities, and 12 other features for guest enjoyment.
Once out of the Canal we steamed our way down to Aruba for some sun and fun. We've been there several times so our plan was to just walk off the ship and take a stroll through town since the majority of these Caribbean ports are a lot alike. Lot's of bars, restaurants, and places for tourists to get fleeced!
"The term Johatsu literally translates to “evaporation” in Japanese and is used to describe people who voluntarily disappear from society.
japandaily.jp/the-johatsu-japans-evaporated-people-who-va...
My first go at using Shutter Priority (Tv on the dial) on my camera. I was shooting handheld, guess I'm not as steady as I thought I was! This is my attempt to make lemonade out of the lemon of a shot I took. I did add some reverse vignette (thanks Jim Frazier) for the idea.
I recently watched a documentary on the people in Japan who voluntarily and willingly disappear themselves from family and friends. The Japanese call these folks Johatsu. They do so for a variety of reasons, including overwhelming financial debt, societal pressure, personal failures, or even to escape abusive relationships. There are also some on the legal fringe companies called known as yonige-ya” (夜逃げ屋) or “night-moving companies”. These services operate in the shadows, offering discreet assistance to those who wish to vanish, for a fee of course.
Japanese authorities typically do not intervene in Johatsu cases unless there is evidence of criminal activity. Since most disappearances are voluntary, they are treated as personal matters rather than criminal investigations. This hands-off approach reflects Japan’s broader cultural emphasis on privacy and individual autonomy.
Kind of crazy to think that this happens every day in Japan, people just evaporating. I really don't condone it, my thought is to be stand up and face your issues whatever they may be. But then again, I've never had any reason to ever think about "evaporating".
If you're represent Prince's Estate please don't sue me, I can't afford it!
Sometimes it pays to wait the storm out!
Once the storm from the previous shot had decided to blow over the light show started. Kind of surprising since the majority of the lightning I've seen has usually been at the leading edge of a storm, not in the middle of it. What happened is that two different cloud banks came together on the far side of town and I'm guessing they didn't like each other and started to rumble!
This was shot at my old stomping grounds, not far from the house. I've found a couple of other great spots but they were getting hammered with rain last night so I decided to stay close to home. Glad I did, the show was fantastic!
This was 30 seconds in BULB mode @ f/7.1 and ISO 100. I had a discussion with a friend about using a lightning trigger VS 30 seconds on Manual. I said that a lightning trigger felt like cheating to me, he said what about 30 seconds, isn't that cheating? I don't know, what do you think?
It's possible you'll find a hot pixel or two, I tried to get rid of most of them. Since the T7 isn't a high end camera I guess I've got to expect them, along with a bit of grain even at ISO 100.
For those who are curious the lights you're seeing are coming from the prison complexes we have south of town. The facilities contain the Arizona Department of Corrections facility, the Southern Arizona Law Enforcement Training Center, the Tucson Police Department Academy, the Police Academy Driving Course, the United States Penitentiary - Tucson, and the Federal Correctional Institution - Tucson (Women's Prison). Yep, we're neighbors with some bad MoFos!
I had a debate with myself over whether or not this needed "oldifying" (Thanks to Jim Frazier for a new word) or not. I came to the conclusion that bits are cheap so I've uploaded a sepia toned version as well as the original:
www.flickr.com/photos/nyalr/52685563833/in/dateposted-pub...
I personally like them both but I thought I would see what a jury of my peers had to say!
When the right dog comes along...
Yes, we've adopted a new dog. Please allow me to introduce you to Meisha!
As you may (or may not) know we had to remand Poppy, turns out she didn't like men at all:
www.flickr.com/photos/nyalr/53454097258/in/dateposted-pub...
After turning her back in I sent a text to my daughter (who lives in Washington State) to tell her what had happened and she texted back with "How about this dog" and sent a picture of Meisha.
My daughter was dogsitting for her neighbors who were fostering Meisha and were looking to find her a forever home. I texted back and said she would be great if she was in Arizona and we'd sure take her in. I then showed Meisha's picture to NIccy and said "How about this dog" and told Niccy her story, repeating that if she was down here in Arizona and not up in Washington...
Well, Niccy immediately jumped on the Internets and started looking at airline prices to get her shipped down to us. She found out that we could get it done but it was expensive and there was a lot of paperwork. That's when Divine Intervention stepped in and saved the day.
It seemed that my ex-wife who also lives in Washington was going to be coming down to Phoenix to visit with some of her relatives and she volunteered to bring Meisha down with her!
Just $125 for a seat ticket and a veterinarian's certificate of health later and Meisha was on her way to Arizona. I drove to Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix and picked her up last Thursday!
Meisha is a 10 year old Pomeranian mix and we're pretty sure she's mixed with Corgi. She has Pom features but her body is stout like a Corgi which means that we don't have to worry about the luxating patella problem that most Poms seem to get. She's probably 20 pounds in weight but she carries it well. Definitely a lovebug and will do almost anything for a scratch which there are plenty of here. She seems to have more of the Corgi temperament so we don't think she's got the Pom craziness that they all seem to have and she hasn't tried to chew my hand off yet so I think she's going to work out just fine!
UPDATE!
We've found out that this little girl does have some bad knees and hips unfortunately. Poms are known for luxating patellas and Corgis suffer with hip dysplasia so long walks for her are out of the question. Our plan is to get a pet pram so that she can still join in on our adventures.
Guess you should've gotten here earlier!
Once all the parking slots are sold it becomes a waiting game. What happens on parade day is we fill up early with people here to watch the parade. Once it's over we have a mass exodus which gives us spaces to sell to folks who don't really care about the parade but want to see the rodeo itself. On the other days once we fill up we're pretty much full till the rodeo is over, which means we don't have a lot to do. Sure, there's a few that leave during the day but for the most part they stay which means we get to sit around and wait!
:Lots of traffic and congestion, much like the streets of LA!
Niccy and I just got back from a cruise that took us to Puerto Vallarta Mexico, Huatulco Mexico, Puerto Chiapas Mexico, Puntarenas Costa Rica, Puerto Amador Panama, through the Panama Canal, on to Aruba and ending up in Fort Lauderdale.
As we were leaving I was lucky enough to get this shot of the port in action. It's a busy place with trucks coming and going.
I made this in B/W because it seemed fitting for the scene. It's not a beautiful place where tourists tend to hang out, it's commerce at it's finest.
Shopping for intimates in Macy's lingerie department. Full of panties, bras, girdles, waist cinchers, body briefers, and camisoles. A true dream shopping experience!
Just a fine example of Mother Nature doing what she does best!
This storm rolled in at around 10 PM last night, followed the pattern of the previous storms. Came in from the North and headed South, pretty much bypassing Tucson.
I was set up in the street to get this but it was safe. We live in a 55+ gated community with a 10 MPH speed limit. Couple that with the fact that it was 11:15 and most sane people were home asleep and you can understand! There is another spot just down the road that's outside the park that would give me a better view but I choose not to go down there. It's a dead end road with no lighting and I've seen more than 1 "transaction" take place and I'm not talking about buying Tupperware!
This is a single 30 second BULB shot @ f/4.0 with ISO 100 and 32mm of zoom on the lens. I probably could've closed the shutter earlier since this all came at the same time but I didn't want to take a chance of missing something even better!
PS:
For those in the Show Your EXIF group you should note that the actual lens used is a Tamron AF 18-200mm F/3.5-6.3 Di-II VC All-in-One Zoom for Canon APS-C Digital SLR. For some crazy reason it always shows up as a Canon TS-E 90mm f/2.8, a lens I've never owned or used!
Plenty of rain this winter so the flowers are out in full force!
Niccy and I just got back from a week long cruise down Mexico way that left out of San Diego. We drove over a day ahead of time and along the way we were treated to lots and lots of wild flowers blooming!
Sorry I don't know what the different kinds are but I think the orange ones are California Poppies. The yellow ones are probably some kind of weed and no idea about the purple/blue ones dotted about.
Evidently I had the focus set for the tall orange plant instead of using all the focus points.
I feel bad for those folks who live under the landing path!
If you've ever flown into San Diego then this sight is nothing new. San Diego International’s steep approach path that brings pilots over the city and strong tailwinds in the area create an even bigger landing challenge.” Yep, they come in for landing right over the city. Supposedly it's one of the most difficult airports for pilots in the USA.
This was my attempt at catching a moving plane with my camera hand held in Manual. They seem to land pretty regularly so I had lots of opportunities, this one was probably the clearest one of all I took.
It's got a motor so it's not a horse!
It's that time again, time for the 98th annual Tucson Rodeo Parade!
Our lodge is directly across from the rodeo grounds which means the parade passes right down the street in front of the building!
The Tucson Rodeo Parade is believed to be the nation's longest non-motorized parade dating back to 1925. All the parade entries are horse pulled other than the marching bands and the street sweepers who always end the parade by cleaning up the landmines left by our equine friends.
Now I'm not against progress by any means but if everyone in the parade is either riding horseback or riding in a wagon that's pulled by horses it seems that the PD should go along and have their folks horse mounted as well. As I said in the beginning it's got a motor so it's not a horse, no matter how you try to phrase it!
I will likely never get this shot again as long as I live. I was shooting seagulls in the early night sky, handheld but braced against a railing, full 20x telephoto on my Olympus (540mm equiv.). I took about ten shots before I got this one. Lucky. I converted this to black and white and lowered the exposure slightly to combat the noise in the original. That said, this was taken well after the sun went down.
As a kid I had a skateboard called "The Sidewalk Surfboard" but I'm pretty sure it couldn't do this.
Niccy and I took another long weekend over to the Point Loma Annex where I was lucky enough to get this shot!
Had to GTS to figure out what this is called. It's a Hydrofoil Surfboard and uses an underwater wing to provide the lift, much like an airplane does. For a somewhat technical explanation you can read more here:
www.surfertoday.com/surfing/how-does-a-hydrofoil-surfboar...
Looked like the guy was enjoying himself and there was plenty of staring and pointing as he zipped by!
PS:
For those in the Show Your EXIF group you should note that the actual lens used is a Tamron AF 18-200mm F/3.5-6.3 Di-II VC All-in-One Zoom for Canon APS-C Digital SLR. For some crazy reason it always shows up as a Canon TS-E 90mm f/2.8, a lens I've never owned or used!
One of the many ships and boats we saw in Spain.
EMERALD BAISHA is a Bulk carrier with IMO number 9726530 and MMSI number 477548500. It was built in 2015 and has a deadweight tonnage of 81651 metric tons. This vessel was constructed at the ZHEJIANG OUHUA SHIPBUILDING - ZHOUSHAN, CHINA shipyard..
This was shot in (M)anual with a small crop to remove some bits and bobs that just distracted from her beauty!
This is a real photograph taken with a real camera, and not created by AI.
.
We finally bought our RV, thank you to the greedy RV manufacturers, Kung Flu and the Covidiots!
Niccy and I packed up the family (Tater Tot and Mushi-Mushi) and headed out on our first adventure!
We took the RV on a short shakedown cruise over to San Diego, specifically Point Loma Naval Base.
There's a nice camping spot on the base, right on the water. No electric, no water, but since we're self contained it wasn't a problem We spent a couple of days doing absolutely nothing except watching the world pass us by. Exactly the kind of experience we were looking for.
Pinnacle Grill is the ultimate steakhouse at sea
Holland America is well known for the Pinnacle Grill, a specialty restaurant aboard some of their ships. From the HAL website:
Pinnacle Grill is the ultimate steakhouse at sea, where an exceptional menu and impeccable service make for one of finest meals you’ll ever have. The refined menu features a selection of 28-day wet-aged USDA Prime steaks — meticulously chosen to guarantee the finest quality — as well as classic steakhouse dishes and innovative recipes from James Beard Award-winning chef and Culinary Council® member, David Burke. Every dish is exquisitely prepared, beautifully plated and complemented by a vast collection of award-winning wines. Here, your meal is an event unto itself, a celebration of fine dining and a triumph of flavor.
They can say it much better than I can! You can see their menu here:
www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/dining/pinnacle-grill.html
One of the things we've always enjoyed when dining on Holland America is their holding on to some of the old traditions of cruising. Little things like tablecloths, a full set of cutlery, cloth serviets, and after dinner mints. For a redneck like me they were a new experience, for Niccy they are how dinner should be served. She's a bit classier than me!
You should note that this is not the Main Dining Room, the Pinnacle Grill is an upcharge restaurant on board but if you're one that enjoys fine dining with impeccable service you should make a reservation. Not to say that the Main Dining Room food and service is any less because it's certainly not.
BTW, I got this shot before the place was open, didn't want to interfere with someone's meal!
I'm here, my toy is here.....you know what to do!
Miss Casey (who had decided all on her own to change her name to Tater Tot (still she/her)) patiently waiting for me to do what I'm supposed to do.
Tater Tot has gotten quite comfortable with us since we first brought her home. She started out pretty reserved, trying to figure out her place in the pack I suppose. Now that she knows she's got a forever home she's started showing us her playful side.
Still not quite sure what her heritage is though. We can see a little Chihuahua but she's also showing us some sort of wiry Terrier, especially in her coat. She's quite the lovebug and always wants to be where people are, doesn't like being alone at all. Pretty quiet unless Tiffany gets her started then she's got a really rough and raspy bark
All in all she's a great little girl and I think we got real lucky with her.
Awful grainy shot, I think the camera might have been in the "P" mode when I got this. As has been pointed out to me before my camera does have a noisy sensor, something I just have to live with. The light was also fairly low hence the reason for the High ISO and the grain! Not too bad if you view it small, if you're a pixel peeper though.....
A series of shots I got during our passage through The Big Ditch!
ALASKABORG is a General cargo vessel built in 2012 by HUDONG ZHONGHUA SHIPBUILDING GROUP - SHANGHAI, CHINA. Currently sailing under the flag of Netherlands. It's gross tonnage is 11885 tons.
Going through the complete Panama Canal was definitely a bucket list item for me. I spent the entire day (8 hours) outside on the deck along with a bunch of other folks, my shutter happily clicking away!
We had a Canal Guide onboard who pointed out all the interesting locations, couldn't tell you one thing he said because I wasn't listening I was too busy shooting!
Have to commend Princess Cruises, they were really nice to us outside in that they had stewards coming aro
The community in the foreground is where I live!
The storm that blew in last night came from the Southeast and was a real slow mover. Moving slow is a benefit for me since it gives me time to figure out where the next strike might be but it's bad for the folks who are underneath it and getting all the downpour.
I was watching the progress and noticed that it was hitting in the same general area so I took a chance with a little bit of zoom, trying to get a little closer to the action. What I should have done was check my camera settings before I started firing away. Had I done that I would have noticed that my ISO was set to AUTO instead of the 100 I've been using. I really love this little camera but the sensor leaves something to be desired, especially in a dark situation. The AUTO decided that 800 was the appropriate setting so I wound up with a very noisy shot! I tried a little denoise in post but if you push it to far things start to look pretty fake and this bolt wasn't fake!
This was shot towards the Southeast, the community in the foreground is where I live. I would like to have included more but had I dropped the camera down I would have had lights from the cars going by and I wanted to avoid that.
This was shot @ f/13 with 26 seconds, Auto ISO and 32mm zoom. Yeah, I just turned the Auto off and set the ISO manually. Not planning on making that mistake again!
A small series of photos that I took while driving down the road in Mexico.
Now I'm not a gearhead but I'm pretty sure that CHEVROLET never called any of their cars a CHEVY. For some reason CHEVY and CHEVROLET is ingrained into the Hispanic culture much like COCA COLA is. I have to attribute this to a brilliant marketing campaign. Good on this Genius for keeping up the tradition while driving something that is most likely a foreign import.
In Puerto Chiapas Mexico we signed up to take a tour outside of the port area. We went to a place called Miguel Aleman
GOOGLE MAP COORDINATES:
14.558926371866079, -92.21688314383077
right down on the border of Mexico and Guatemala. Miguel Aleman is a company town but the people who live there own the company. Their main revenue stream comes from growing and packaging bananas for export.
Well, when we went to get on the tour van the driver stopped me and told me to stand back. I wasn't sure why at the time but I'm glad he did. Once everyone was in the van he opened up the passenger side and asked me to sit there. He gave me a front row seat and I let him know I appreciated it.
The next few photos are all taken as we drove to Miguel Aleman. They may be a little blurry because I was shooting through the windshield. There might also be some blur on the bottom of the photo because he had his dash full of papers and I was getting a bit of a reflection off them. I didn't want to move them, might have messed up his filing system!
A series of shots I got during our passage through The Big Ditch!
The vessel RIO INDIO is a Tug ship sailing under the flag of Panama. Her IMO number is 9363601 and MMSI number is 356497000. Main ship particulars are length of 27 m and beam of 12 m. One of the many, many tugs I saw during this passage.
Going through the complete Panama Canal was definitely a bucket list item for me. I spent the entire day (8 hours) outside on the deck along with a bunch of other folks, my shutter happily clicking away!
We had a Canal Guide onboard who pointed out all the interesting locations, couldn't tell you one thing he said because I wasn't listening I was too busy shooting!
Have to commend Princess Cruises, they were really nice to us outside in that they had stewards coming around regularly offering up cool drinks, sandwiches, and such.
Badges? We don't need no stinking badges!
From what I can tell the parade marshal's main job is to keep things moving along the parade route. As you can see there were no floats on the street so it looks like he was doing his job!
The Tucson Rodeo Parade is believed to be the nation's longest non-motorized parade dating back to 1925. All the parade entries are horse pulled other than the marching bands and the street sweepers who always end the parade by cleaning up the landmines left by our equine friends.
BTW the "stinking badges" line originally came from the 1948 film The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. I probably saw that movie as a kid since all the kids loved westerns when I was young but I don't remember it. I knew the paraphrase of the line from the 1974 Mel Brooks classic "Blazing Saddles".
$53.70 per person for 3 Hours on a Sunday cruise featuring our new Surf & Turf Duet, taxes and gratuities extra!
At 158 feet in length the California Spirit is the perfect venue for any occasion that requires space for hosting large numbers of guests in a welcoming setting. Popular for large events and special celebrations, this expansive vessel accommodates up to 600 guests and seats up to 300 diners.
www.flagshipsd.com/flagship-fleet/california-spirit
I had no idea what she was when I shot her, all I saw was a nice looking yacht. They say they can seat 300 for dinner but to me it looked like it might be a bit of a squeeze.
Looking lean, mean, and ready for action.
The Denebola (PI-1134) is an Interceptor patrol boat belonging to the Guardia Costa which I believe is Mexico's answer to our Coast Guard.
The Denebola a class of fast military assault craft used by several countries after being originally developed for the Swedish Navy by Dockstavarvet. Its name means Combat Boat 90 Half; the 90 refers to the year of acceptance (1990) and Half refers to the fact that it can carry and deploy a half platoon of amphibious infantry (18 men). These are the same craft we here in the US would call a Riverine Command Boat.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CB90-class_fast_assault_craft
Saw her docked in Huatulco Mexico and had to get a shot. Of course, Niccy was worried that I was going to get shot for taking a picture of her.
Her fear comes from a little incident we had in Calais France at the ferry terminal a few years ago. To be honest, I really don't think he was planning to shoot me, just scare me a bit.
It's me but it's not me.
While NIccy was busy throwing together our picnic lunch outside the Mission San José de Tumacácori I was wandering, looking for the perfect shot. Well, I couldn't find it so I settled on this one!
The car window was giving me a real nice reflection, other than the sun spots, streaks, and bit of bug goo on the right so I decided to take it.
Maybe this is a metaphor for my life, it's not perfect in any way but it's pretty danged good and I wouldn't change it, bug goo and all.
This shot isn't in any groups, not sure that any would take it other than "MYSELFIESHOTSLOOKATME!!!!"
For US Navy Ships that is!
On January 12, General Dynamics NASSCO launched the future USNS John Lewis (T-AO 205), the first of six vessels in the John Lewis-class fleet oiler program designed to support the U.S. Navy.
Construction of the USNS John Lewis (T-AO 205) began in the fall of 2018 and utilized more than 18, 575 tons of steel to complete. The 742- foot long vessel is designed to transfer fuel to U.S. Navy carrier strike group ships operating at sea, the oilers will feature the capacity to carry 157,000 barrels of oil, a significant dry cargo capacity, aviation capability and up to a speed of 20 knots.
From their website:
nassco.com/press-releases/general-dynamics-nassco-launche...
I can remember watching us take on fuel while at sea. Our guys (Navy) would be holding the lines as we took on fuel, the USNS guy on the other ship was sitting in a lawn chair operating a winch that controlled the fuel hose. I really wanted to be that guy!
She does look pretty sleek though the bright orange lifeboats really clash with the haze grey, You would think that someone would've seen that and provided a cover of some sort.
They're not for navigation, just decoration!
We were getting ready to leave San Diego when I happened to see these guys pulling down the decorative flags they had put up earlier in the day.
In port they put the flags up to add to the festive atmosphere but once they're ready to set sail they come down. No sense flying them out to sea since nobody would see them!
When you take a cruise holiday your every need is catered to and you've got nothing to worry about.
Sometimes it's easy to forget that there are a LOT of people both in the front and back of the house that make things happen for your dream vacation. Folks that aren't on holiday, they're working at their jobs to provide for their families back home.
If you should ever go on a cruise I hope that you won't forget these folks and will let them know that you appreciate the hard work they put in to make things easy for you. They bust their butts so that you don't have to.
Sometimes it pays to wait the storm out!
Once the storm from the previous shot had decided to blow over the light show started. Kind of surprising since the majority of the lightning I've seen has usually been at the leading edge of a storm, not in the middle of it. What happened is that two different cloud banks came together on the far side of town and I'm guessing they didn't like each other and started to rumble!
This was shot at my old stomping grounds, not far from the house. I've found a couple of other great spots but they were getting hammered with rain last night so I decided to stay close to home. Glad I did, the show was fantastic!
This was 36 seconds in BULB mode @ f/20 and ISO 100. It's possible you'll find a hot pixel or two, I tried to get rid of most of them. Since the T7 isn't a high end camera I guess I've got to expect them, along with a bit of grain even at ISO 100.
For those who are curious the lights you're seeing are coming from the prison complexes we have south of town. The facilities contain the Arizona Department of Corrections facility, the Southern Arizona Law Enforcement Training Center, the Tucson Police Department Academy, the Police Academy Driving Course, the United States Penitentiary - Tucson, and the Federal Correctional Institution - Tucson (Women's Prison). Yep, we're neighbors with some bad MoFos!
Sissy Jon all doubled up and shiny in her Bali Double Double Support All-In-Ones and L'eggs Double Control Top Pantyhose!
Everywhere a line,
Blockin' out the scenery, breakin' my mind,
Do this, don't do that, can't you see the lines?
With apologies to the Five Man Electrical Band:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oeT5otk2R1g
Niccy and I packed up the family (Tater Tot and Mushi-Mushi) and headed out on our first adventure! This was a part of our view across the bay.
At first I was bugged by all the lines and masts, thought they were blocking the scenery. Took a second look and started noticing all the verticals, not just the masts but the buildings behind, the stanchions on the pier, etc, and decided to take a shot of them. This is the cropped (a bit) end result.
We took the RV on a short shakedown cruise over to San Diego, specifically Point Loma Naval Base.
There's a nice camping spot on the base, right on the water. No electric, no water, but since we're self contained it wasn't a problem We spent a couple of days doing absolutely nothing except watching the world pass us by. Exactly the kind of experience we were looking for.
To the west of the Taj is the Mosque,made up of Red sand stone.
It faces the direction of the holy city of Mecca
Adorned with pietra dura on the outside, the mosque
boasts of 4 octagonal towers and 3 elegant domes.
The sparkling floor is made up of a material that appears to be velvet
red in shade and is
laid out with the outlines of 569 prayer rugs in black marbles.
The interiors of the mosque are inscribed with delicate calligraphy
citing the name Allah and quotations from scriptures.
The mosque has a basic tripartite design:a long hall surmounted by three domes.
The mosque has one of the finest architectecture in terms of design,detailing,symmetry and beauty that i have seen.........
Explored Nov 18 #4
thanks to all :)
Apologies to Moe, Larry, and Curly.....
Had a storm blow through yesterday evening but it stayed well to the South and was headed West. There was nothing going on here at the ranch but I headed up to my shooting spot just in case something strayed our way.
Well, true to form the storm stayed South and headed West, put on a pretty good show that I was able to catch a little of. Very weird set of clouds, they were real flat and real spread out.
This is a combo of 3 shots with a combined total of 95 seconds on the clock, f/7.1, ISO 100 and 200mm worth of zoom! I had my Tamron 18-200mm glass on and had it sticking out as far as it would go. Rough measurements in Google Maps say these bolts were about 10 miles away (as the crow flies) so I'm pretty happy with the results!
A series of shots I got during our passage through The Big Ditch!
I personally like this shot because it shows that no matter who you are, where you are, or what you look like a wave and a smile always translates to good times for all. I also get the feeling that our cruise was a bit more fun than the one they were on.
Going through the complete Panama Canal was definitely a bucket list item for me. I spent the entire day (8 hours) outside on the deck along with a bunch of other folks, my shutter happily clicking away!
We had a Canal Guide onboard who pointed out all the interesting locations, couldn't tell you one thing he said because I wasn't listening I was too busy shooting!
Have to commend Princess Cruises, they were really nice to us outside in that they had stewards coming around with sandwiches and cool drinks for everyone.
I've heard of Gen X, Y, and Z but I think they should all be called Gen ME, ME, ME!
A random shot from down on the waterfront in San Diego.
The way folks are today you could probably fill up your camera card with shots like this. The younger generation seems to think that everyone wants to see them and live their lives vicariously through them.
Back in the days we had things like Polio, Tuberculosis, Chicken Pox, and the Mumps. Today's youth seem to be afflicted by a disorder called Narcissistic Personality Disorder.
Narcissistic personality disorder is a mental health condition in which people have an unreasonably high sense of their own importance and need and seek too much attention and admiration from others. They may lack the ability to understand or care about the feelings of others.
Niccy tells me I'm an old curmudgeon. I tell her I just call things as I see them. You decide for yourself. Oh, by the way I have donuts and I'm willing to share!
This is MY story and MY story all alone!
I got this shot during the Discount Margarita hour they were having on the back deck. I'm not sure what was going on but it was easy to put a story to the picture!
Employee:
Hey boss, the mangoes smell like they've gone off.
Boss:
Let me give them the smell test.
Sniff, sniff, sniff.
They smell like strawberries to me, go ahead and use them.
Employee:
Ok, you're the boss!
Maybe that's why the margaritas were discounted?
Now, I'm just telling you the story I made up in my head, there's no truth to it at all. Holland America is well known in the cruising community as having some of the best food and drinks on the ocean and they would never put out any dish or drink that isn't top shelf. I also should add that this shot is embellished with a replacement sky. The original sky is is totally blank and totally boring!
When you take a cruise holiday your every need is catered to and you've got nothing to worry about.
Sometimes it's easy to forget that there are a LOT of people both in the front and back of the house that make things happen for your dream vacation. Folks that aren't on holiday, they're working at their jobs to provide for their families back home.
If you should ever go on a cruise I hope that you won't forget these folks and will let them know that you appreciate the hard work they put in to make things easy for you. They bust their butts so that you don't have to.
One thing you can say is that Masons don't discriminate!
It's that time again, time for the 98th annual Tucson Rodeo Parade!
Our lodge is directly across from the rodeo grounds which means the parade passes right down the street in front of the building!
Every year we've seen people riding their horses down the street in back of the lodge, I would imagine to get them ready for the parade. We always offer to park them, they always politely refuse. Getting to be somewhat of a tradition!
The Tucson Rodeo Parade is believed to be the nation's longest non-motorized parade dating back to 1925. All the parade entries are horse pulled other than the marching bands and the street sweepers who always end the parade by cleaning up the landmines left by our equine friends.
I risked the possibility of a long jail sentence just to bring you this shot!
When I was in the Navy I was told something that has stuck with me in all my years of travel (except for that one time in France when I almost got shot). We were in Hong Kong and our division chief had us gathered up for a little talk before we hit the beach and from that talk I took the following part:
"Remember guys, this is NOT the United States, our laws mean nothing here. It's their country and you need to play by their rules". Oh, how right he was.
Mexico is a funny place, what's OK in some parts of the country will get you arrested in other parts. Most of the tourist places we've been the cops were pretty friendly and didn't mind you catching a shot or two of them, sometimes they'll even pose for you. A couple of spots though the cops were pretty adamant that photography of them and their vehicles was not something they appreciated and they certainly let me know about their feelings!
We were in Puerto Vallarta, walking down the Malecon when I saw this. Since the cops were no where to be seen I took a chance and took the shot!
This one is for Alex's Time Flying By, I know you\'re a fan of the coppers!
Don't push don't shove there's enough to go around for every house to have their own!
The rains passed through quickly but the lightning persisted. I'm used to seeing it out in front and leading the storm, not following behind like this set.Little did I know there was something much bigger going on!
According to the National Weather Service we had a small tornado (F1) touch down to the North of the house, about a mile away. It supposedly traveled several Easterly before dissipating.
www.msn.com/en-us/weather/topstories/national-weather-ser...
Now I know that those of you who live in Tornado Alley are thinking "F1? We don't even bother to use the sirens for an F1!..." but for us this is a pretty big deal since these things don't happen here and we're glad of it. Guess it's got to be part of that "Global Climate Change" thing people talk about. Personally, I get the feeling that it's just Mother Nature doing a little house cleaning, something that we all do every so often.
BTW, this IS a blurry shot and I know it. Unfortunately my camera doesn't have an infinity focus and it's really not the best when it comes to finding focus at night.
PS:
For those in the Show Your EXIF group you should note that the actual lens used is a Tamron AF 18-200mm F/3.5-6.3 Di-II VC All-in-One Zoom for Canon APS-C Digital SLR. For some crazy reason it always shows up as a Canon TS-E 90mm f/2.8, a lens I've never owned or used!