Then I tried various different settings on my camera to see what it could do. Here's the same shot with a different setting (can't remember the actual settings though)
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Fire and Coals
While camping, we all saw an interesting phenomenon, so I took the time to attempt to photograph it. Keeping in mind it was full dark in the National Forest. Meaning almost no ambient light on that moonless night. Here is what we caught with the flash on the camera:
Then I tried various different settings on my camera to see what it could do. Here's the same shot with a different setting (can't remember the actual settings though)
This, I think, was simply without a flash. I have no idea why it came out purple like that, since what we saw were the brilliant red-hot coals in the night!
Again, a different setting, took away the 'aura' that seemed to show up in the previous photo.
Then I tried another setting, which came out black-n-white. A neat effect.
Yet another setting, this shot finally showed a little of what we were seeing with the red of the coals, only in the dark that was ALL we could see! None of the rest of the fire. It was a fun experiment with night shooting!
Then I tried various different settings on my camera to see what it could do. Here's the same shot with a different setting (can't remember the actual settings though)
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Destiny or Fate
I am not a religious person. I don't believe in a higher being. I do, however, believe somewhat in fate or destiny. Not in so much as a sentient creature controlling my future, but more in that there is a certain order to the universe and if one chooses to pay attention, it can lead him/her down a path of self-contentment. Today I experienced this very phenomenon.
I had several choices available as to my week-end excursion. There were 2 poultry swaps and 2 rabbit shows. Each having a major and a minor. The major swap and minor show were about a 3 hour drive away, the minor swap 20 minutes (but I go every month), and the major show 2 hours away. I chose the major show. This was the first step on the path.
I went to the show with the thought of looking around to see if there would be any Hares present. Being a rare breed it's not often you see them at nearby shows. Especially with certain breeders no longer raising them. I poked around at the show and much to my delight, there was 1 exhibitor with Hares there and he had a nice big buck for sale! He was a little scruffy, but the body type was very nice. The price, however was a little steep. Too steep for me today, perhaps this isn't the path after all. I made a counter-offer (more of a suggestion) on the price, he declined. I figured he would. So with some regret, I put him back in the carrier and accepted the breeder's information so that I could contact him at a later time to purchase stock.
Fast forward a little to the raffle pull. I had put in tickets on 4 rabbits, 3 Mini-rex and a Thrianta. I'm not sure what I was really thinking at the time with regards to the Thrianta. Anyway, I won the nicest of the Mini-rex, a young blue buck with some potential. I figured now I needed a doe for him, so I went looking around the showroom for a decent broken to go with the little guy. I immediately went to a well-known breeder, but the one I wanted to choose was a little high on the price scale for what I was wanting (not that she wasn't worth every penny being asked!). So I kept looking around and finally thought I'd found what I needed. A broken lilac doe with nice color and an awesome looking coat for a great price! I found the breeder and asked to have a look. I flipped her to do a cursory DQ check and when I went to check the front nails, I was stopped dead. One of her feet had matted fur on the inside of the ankle, further checking revealed some mucous from the nostrils, but the one eye on the same side as the paw was also matted around and below. I held her up to my ear and detected a wheezing when she breathed. I was utterly devastated. The breeder standing beside me was equally surprised. While it could just as easily have been caused by dust and stress, I couldn't afford to take the chance. So I handed her back to him, borrowed his sanitizer, and thanked him for letting me look (he did pull her from his sales list, just in case). I didn't see any other available animals of real interest in the room.
Just as I had resigned myself to going ahead with the first ones I'd looked at, the breeder of the Hares came over to me. He apparently decided an empty cage was worth more to him than the difference between the price he'd set and the one I'd offered. I bought the Hare in that very instant (before he could change his mind).
So this is how this particular string of events occurred, and could occur in no other way: 1) we chose to attend that show instead of any of the other events. 2) There was an actual Hare breeder at the show who just happened to have an available animal. 3) Even though I won a MR, I couldn't locate a suitable female at the time. 4) The one MR I found that I liked turned out to have some kind of respiratory issue, eliminating it from my consideration. 5) The Hare breeder decided to sell his available rabbit to me at my lower asking price, making it affordable for me. If any of these things had changed, I wouldn't have the Hare! That rabbit is essential to my continued herd improvement.
See... fate.
I had several choices available as to my week-end excursion. There were 2 poultry swaps and 2 rabbit shows. Each having a major and a minor. The major swap and minor show were about a 3 hour drive away, the minor swap 20 minutes (but I go every month), and the major show 2 hours away. I chose the major show. This was the first step on the path.
I went to the show with the thought of looking around to see if there would be any Hares present. Being a rare breed it's not often you see them at nearby shows. Especially with certain breeders no longer raising them. I poked around at the show and much to my delight, there was 1 exhibitor with Hares there and he had a nice big buck for sale! He was a little scruffy, but the body type was very nice. The price, however was a little steep. Too steep for me today, perhaps this isn't the path after all. I made a counter-offer (more of a suggestion) on the price, he declined. I figured he would. So with some regret, I put him back in the carrier and accepted the breeder's information so that I could contact him at a later time to purchase stock.
Fast forward a little to the raffle pull. I had put in tickets on 4 rabbits, 3 Mini-rex and a Thrianta. I'm not sure what I was really thinking at the time with regards to the Thrianta. Anyway, I won the nicest of the Mini-rex, a young blue buck with some potential. I figured now I needed a doe for him, so I went looking around the showroom for a decent broken to go with the little guy. I immediately went to a well-known breeder, but the one I wanted to choose was a little high on the price scale for what I was wanting (not that she wasn't worth every penny being asked!). So I kept looking around and finally thought I'd found what I needed. A broken lilac doe with nice color and an awesome looking coat for a great price! I found the breeder and asked to have a look. I flipped her to do a cursory DQ check and when I went to check the front nails, I was stopped dead. One of her feet had matted fur on the inside of the ankle, further checking revealed some mucous from the nostrils, but the one eye on the same side as the paw was also matted around and below. I held her up to my ear and detected a wheezing when she breathed. I was utterly devastated. The breeder standing beside me was equally surprised. While it could just as easily have been caused by dust and stress, I couldn't afford to take the chance. So I handed her back to him, borrowed his sanitizer, and thanked him for letting me look (he did pull her from his sales list, just in case). I didn't see any other available animals of real interest in the room.
Just as I had resigned myself to going ahead with the first ones I'd looked at, the breeder of the Hares came over to me. He apparently decided an empty cage was worth more to him than the difference between the price he'd set and the one I'd offered. I bought the Hare in that very instant (before he could change his mind).
So this is how this particular string of events occurred, and could occur in no other way: 1) we chose to attend that show instead of any of the other events. 2) There was an actual Hare breeder at the show who just happened to have an available animal. 3) Even though I won a MR, I couldn't locate a suitable female at the time. 4) The one MR I found that I liked turned out to have some kind of respiratory issue, eliminating it from my consideration. 5) The Hare breeder decided to sell his available rabbit to me at my lower asking price, making it affordable for me. If any of these things had changed, I wouldn't have the Hare! That rabbit is essential to my continued herd improvement.
See... fate.
Saturday, September 15, 2012
Rabbit Show
Today A2 & I attended a rabbit show together. These days, costs being what they have become and age creeping up on me, I don't get to as many shows as I usually do. I do, however, make a strong effort to get to the ones that are the closest and biggest. This was just one such show. I'm very glad we went too. I had multiple objectives: find A2 a decent doe for her Dutch buck, move out the hairy abomination that's been parasitically living in the rabbitry for too long, find loving homes for the kittens, and look for Hares. This was A2's first official rabbit show.
We arrived in good spirits, unloaded the car and cheerfully walked the long distance back to the showroom and set everything up. I helped A2 clean up her boy (Boo Blue) and trim his nails. She then spent the better part of the show morning walking around with him cradled upside-down in her arms introducing him to everyone! Turns out he really is the PERFECT buck for her!! After maybe 15 or 20 minutes a group of youngsters came over and mentioned they had some Dutch rabbits available. A young man brought over a nice, semi-young (about a year) black doe who just happened to have been bred by the same person from whom A2 picked up the buck at the previous show of this venue. The price was right, the doe was a good match, and the original breeder agreed to forward the pedigree to A2 next week. So the exchange was conducted and "Angel" was added to the carrier.
Things went fairly smoothly for most of the morning, registering rabbits, tagging young Sugar (the jr cavy I was showing) and getting everything setup. I helped A2 make sure she got her rabbit onto the table... but so did about 3 or 4 other people too! It's always nicer when others help out. I learned a great deal about judging Dutch watching the 3 shows today. I hope A2 learned some as well. A2 walked away with 2 BOSV wins and 1 BOSB! A very good result for her first show. Interestingly a different rabbit won BOB in each show. I find that to be a very bad indicator because it means each judge felt that different aspects of the rabbits was more important. It makes it harder to learn what exactly to look for in the show animals when the judges wish-wash like that.
By the end of the show day, we had won 3 items from the raffle (a Comfrey plant for me and a blue Mini-rex jr buck, a pair of dream catchers for A2), found the doe for A2, each won in our show classes (I won BJOB in both cavy shows), I sold one of my hats, re-homed 2 of the kittens, put the fluffy abomination in the raffle, and found someone in the showroom with Hares! A good day in all... tiring, but fun.
We arrived in good spirits, unloaded the car and cheerfully walked the long distance back to the showroom and set everything up. I helped A2 clean up her boy (Boo Blue) and trim his nails. She then spent the better part of the show morning walking around with him cradled upside-down in her arms introducing him to everyone! Turns out he really is the PERFECT buck for her!! After maybe 15 or 20 minutes a group of youngsters came over and mentioned they had some Dutch rabbits available. A young man brought over a nice, semi-young (about a year) black doe who just happened to have been bred by the same person from whom A2 picked up the buck at the previous show of this venue. The price was right, the doe was a good match, and the original breeder agreed to forward the pedigree to A2 next week. So the exchange was conducted and "Angel" was added to the carrier.
Things went fairly smoothly for most of the morning, registering rabbits, tagging young Sugar (the jr cavy I was showing) and getting everything setup. I helped A2 make sure she got her rabbit onto the table... but so did about 3 or 4 other people too! It's always nicer when others help out. I learned a great deal about judging Dutch watching the 3 shows today. I hope A2 learned some as well. A2 walked away with 2 BOSV wins and 1 BOSB! A very good result for her first show. Interestingly a different rabbit won BOB in each show. I find that to be a very bad indicator because it means each judge felt that different aspects of the rabbits was more important. It makes it harder to learn what exactly to look for in the show animals when the judges wish-wash like that.
By the end of the show day, we had won 3 items from the raffle (a Comfrey plant for me and a blue Mini-rex jr buck, a pair of dream catchers for A2), found the doe for A2, each won in our show classes (I won BJOB in both cavy shows), I sold one of my hats, re-homed 2 of the kittens, put the fluffy abomination in the raffle, and found someone in the showroom with Hares! A good day in all... tiring, but fun.
Friday, August 31, 2012
Kindergarten
Yup! It's that time! A2 will officially start kindergarten on Tuesday. We went to meet her teacher yesterday afternoon and took most of her things in to her class so they'll be ready for her. She met and talked with her bus driver as well. I admit, it has been so long since I've had a kindergartner that I had forgotten what a regular PITA it is being a parent of one! Oh not her, she's fine and excited, but the amount of things they put on the parent is staggering! What, exactly, am I sending her to school for if every day she's going to come home and require more schooling from me?! Since when did kindergarten become an 8-10 hour-a-day intensive educational course? I do understand, kids today have a lot to learn in a short amount of time. Honestly, there's so much for them to learn that there really ought to be another required level of schooling: pre-K, which unfortunately, in this area, is only offered to "special needs" children. The rest of the normal kids are on their own to learn their letters, colors, numbers, shapes, and alphabet BEFORE they start kindergarten.
The teacher explained that the kids would be learning to read, rhyme (word groups), and write sentences. She explained that a mere 2 WEEKS would be spent learning colors. I don't even want to think about how they approach math. Should I be expecting her to come home one day with addition and subtraction worksheets?!?!?! Which I will then have to teach her how to complete? When I was in kindergarten (yes I can remember that far back. LOL) we spent quite a bit of time learning our letters. A2 has always had trouble with writing. Recognition: yes, writing: no. We were also informed the kids will have homework every day as well. Previously this didn't happen until around 2nd grade. I suppose the 'honeymoon' is over for kids at age 5! They start them right off these days!
To top it all off, they were supposed to test her before she started. I only just found that out yesterday as well. Another parent mentioned it in the room and I said something along the lines of, "oh, not all the kids are tested," which the teacher refuted, claiming that all the kids are tested. When I told her my daughter wasn't and that I never received a call for them to do so, she tried to argue with me. A short trip to the school office confirmed that I was in the right. I was never called. No one seemed to know why exactly. So now A2 will have to undergo a short test after the start of school. Just to check and make sure she's "ready" to start kindergarten. (insert another extreme eye roll here)
I'm really very glad I spent a good part of our time together last year studying pre-school subjects so she will hopefully be able to keep up with the advanced pace of the class. The teacher came across as nice, but seriously no-nonsense, which I'm hoping will be good for A2. She could use a good firm consistent hand. Being around other kids her age will help matters as well I think. Perhaps she'll finally realize the world doesn't actually revolve around her. With her gone in the mornings I'll also have the time to start Bubba on his pre-schooling. He really needs language development. It's been difficult for him, not being able to get a word in around A2!
The teacher explained that the kids would be learning to read, rhyme (word groups), and write sentences. She explained that a mere 2 WEEKS would be spent learning colors. I don't even want to think about how they approach math. Should I be expecting her to come home one day with addition and subtraction worksheets?!?!?! Which I will then have to teach her how to complete? When I was in kindergarten (yes I can remember that far back. LOL) we spent quite a bit of time learning our letters. A2 has always had trouble with writing. Recognition: yes, writing: no. We were also informed the kids will have homework every day as well. Previously this didn't happen until around 2nd grade. I suppose the 'honeymoon' is over for kids at age 5! They start them right off these days!
To top it all off, they were supposed to test her before she started. I only just found that out yesterday as well. Another parent mentioned it in the room and I said something along the lines of, "oh, not all the kids are tested," which the teacher refuted, claiming that all the kids are tested. When I told her my daughter wasn't and that I never received a call for them to do so, she tried to argue with me. A short trip to the school office confirmed that I was in the right. I was never called. No one seemed to know why exactly. So now A2 will have to undergo a short test after the start of school. Just to check and make sure she's "ready" to start kindergarten. (insert another extreme eye roll here)
I'm really very glad I spent a good part of our time together last year studying pre-school subjects so she will hopefully be able to keep up with the advanced pace of the class. The teacher came across as nice, but seriously no-nonsense, which I'm hoping will be good for A2. She could use a good firm consistent hand. Being around other kids her age will help matters as well I think. Perhaps she'll finally realize the world doesn't actually revolve around her. With her gone in the mornings I'll also have the time to start Bubba on his pre-schooling. He really needs language development. It's been difficult for him, not being able to get a word in around A2!
Chickens!!
Well, it's official. I am completely legal and licensed to own chickens. (insert extreme eye-rolling visage here) According to the new ordinance, I am not allowed to keep males, profit from my birds, keep more than half a dozen, allow them to free-range, or butcher them on my property. I must maintain them in a coop no larger than 10' x 12' and must have an enclosed space within the coop that is no less than 1.5 sq ft per bird. I am VERY glad that I took the time to build such an enclosure this year for the turkeys (mind you, the ordinance specifically refers to chickens... no mention of other fowl at all in it!). I will admit that I do NOT like the restrictions, especially the space limitations and the no-male aspect. I believe they are overly harsh, especially in light of my having owned chickens for nearly 2 decades in this exact locale. My neighbors are perfectly accustomed to my birds. However, I have taken the opportunity to collect some awesome birds. Marans and Welsummer and Araucanas.
Camping: Part II
Last week-end we took our second camping trip of the year. This time it was supposed to be family only, and it was, though we did have an 'extra' to come along. A girl of 17, K is my mother's spouse's daughter, and had never been camping. She also happens to be a very good friend of both my elder girls. Of course I had no issue with having her along. She's family, after all, and it would be fun! My mother came out, bringing K along with her and visited with D. A2 opted to stay home with my mother, rather than camp. She insisted regardless of how often I asked and never swayed in her choice. So we met them on the route to the campground and traded kids, then trucked on along to the camp.
We set everything up, you would have thought K was experienced the way she pitched right in with whatever needed to be done. Our usual first-night dinner fare of roasted weiners over the fire was prepared and we bedded down for the night. About halfway through the night, the rains began. On the tent roof the sound was amplified and woke me, which was a good thing since I had just enough time to move our things to where they wouldn't get wet. Unfortunately it rained and/or sprinkled throughout Saturday, it saturated the tent walls and dripped through in some places, but for the most part our things were dry. There was some skepticism by the kids though as I went to start a fire on Saturday night, but doubt not! I have long since mastered the fine art of building a fire in the rain and we did enjoy marshmallows on that stormy night.
J took the opportunity to fine-tune a summer project for her advanced English class. A video she needed to create based on a specific scene from To Kill a Mockingbird, which she had read over the summer. She wrote out a script and K and A1 had to memorize lines, since they were the primary characters in the scene (Gem & Scout). I operated the camera and was very briefly in one moment. J directed and played a character that attacks the 'kids' and falls on a knife when the kids' father, Atticus (me), pulls him off. It was very dark by the time we commenced videoing and I wound up using an electric spotlight/lantern I happened to have as well as operating the camera. It turned out very well! The venue couldn't have been more perfect, pitch black everywhere but where I had the light, the summer insects singing their nightly chorus. There were a few tiny pinpoints of light from the other (distant) campers, which added to the story line. J edited the final video and it turned out fantastic! The actors perhaps could have used a little more prep time, but considering everything it really came out well.
On Sunday our group split. I took A1 & Bubba to the lake to swim and J & K went hiking. Then we met my mother again and switched K for A2 and they headed home. We, on the other hand, stayed for another night's camping. Thankfully, the sun came out on Sunday and dried most everything out, so packing up Monday morning was quite easy. A short nap Monday afternoon and I was ready for work that night.
This was our longest single camping trip to date, and it was a great time! I'm hoping for one more trip this season before we pack everything away for the winter.
We set everything up, you would have thought K was experienced the way she pitched right in with whatever needed to be done. Our usual first-night dinner fare of roasted weiners over the fire was prepared and we bedded down for the night. About halfway through the night, the rains began. On the tent roof the sound was amplified and woke me, which was a good thing since I had just enough time to move our things to where they wouldn't get wet. Unfortunately it rained and/or sprinkled throughout Saturday, it saturated the tent walls and dripped through in some places, but for the most part our things were dry. There was some skepticism by the kids though as I went to start a fire on Saturday night, but doubt not! I have long since mastered the fine art of building a fire in the rain and we did enjoy marshmallows on that stormy night.
J took the opportunity to fine-tune a summer project for her advanced English class. A video she needed to create based on a specific scene from To Kill a Mockingbird, which she had read over the summer. She wrote out a script and K and A1 had to memorize lines, since they were the primary characters in the scene (Gem & Scout). I operated the camera and was very briefly in one moment. J directed and played a character that attacks the 'kids' and falls on a knife when the kids' father, Atticus (me), pulls him off. It was very dark by the time we commenced videoing and I wound up using an electric spotlight/lantern I happened to have as well as operating the camera. It turned out very well! The venue couldn't have been more perfect, pitch black everywhere but where I had the light, the summer insects singing their nightly chorus. There were a few tiny pinpoints of light from the other (distant) campers, which added to the story line. J edited the final video and it turned out fantastic! The actors perhaps could have used a little more prep time, but considering everything it really came out well.
On Sunday our group split. I took A1 & Bubba to the lake to swim and J & K went hiking. Then we met my mother again and switched K for A2 and they headed home. We, on the other hand, stayed for another night's camping. Thankfully, the sun came out on Sunday and dried most everything out, so packing up Monday morning was quite easy. A short nap Monday afternoon and I was ready for work that night.
This was our longest single camping trip to date, and it was a great time! I'm hoping for one more trip this season before we pack everything away for the winter.
Friday, August 3, 2012
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