Scattered Thoughts . . .

I've really been slacking on sharing photos from the lake. I'm even further behind in editing and sharing video but that is a whole other story. Since I have hundreds of photos from this year alone, there are always new lake photos to share. Recently, I pulled out a few interesting photos. In this first shot, this loon was way out there on the lake. The lake is almost a half mile across to the opposite shore and this loon was much closer to the other side of the lake than our side of the lake.  I was on our dock at the shore... it was early morning and the bugs were feasting on me... you can faintly see the remnants of morning fog closer to the shore across the lake. The lake was flat, calm and quiet... I steadied myself against a post like a village drunkard leaning on a lamp post... slowed my breathing, focused... then I saw this distant scene more clearly in my viewfinder.  A boat had just passed this loon and the wake created by the boat was reflecting the

When I was a child and teenager, I loved fishing. I loved being out on the water... whether it be a lake, the ocean or a bay... and applying my fishing skills to bring home an assortment of fish for dinner. My experiences proved that autumn was always best for a large assortment of fish in one outing. After I'd do my homework, I would sometimes spend the night getting my fishing gear ready... spooling new line... cleaning and rewinding fishing pole guides... organizing my tackle box... and even studying characteristics of all the types of fish I might encounter in future fishing excursions. I really enjoyed fishing. Getting up early in the morning to catch fish was never a problem for me... fishing at dusk was my favorite but also a bit of a frustration because not only were the hungry fish biting but so were the insatiable mosquitoes. I liked fishing any time but I knew that fishing in midday was typically a big waste of time and energy. I saved midday for sports and especiall

I'm not quite sure why but I've been consumed with thoughts of the lake house lately... when I'm awake and even when I'm asleep and dreaming... all the time. Perhaps it is because my health has been mostly on the poor side since being at the lake earlier in the summer. Lately, my health has been exceptionally poor especially when it is warm or hot outside. I'm overwhelmingly exhausted on most days and can barely keep my eyes open nevermind find some energy to accomplish something small. I'm so exhausted that I find it impossible to stay focused on any task or to even think clearly. I don't know... maybe I simply want to go back to the lake house and do things. Don't get me wrong. I occasionally have a pretty good day. On these rare days, I find that I am using up this rare fairly good health on everyday chores like cutting the lawn, laundry, straightening the house or even showering. It doesn't take much to wear me down to the point of uselessnes

A month or so ago, I wrote about seeing loons sporting different colored plumage. I saw loons with a band of deep green on their necks... I saw loons with a band of deep blue on their necks... I saw loons with a black band on their necks. That left me wondering and searching for a reason. I was initially wondering if this was a sign of maturity... adolescence... breeding... or nesting. It turns out it was none of the above. I've found that the appearance of green or blue or purplish bands on some loons is simply due variables such as the angle of the light, wet or dry feathers, and the color temperature of the light. For example, near dusk or near sunrise, the color temperature is a very warm orange or yellow yet the color temperature at high noon is a much colder blue. When you combine these varying lighting scenarios with the angle to wet feathers, you can see different colors.   Even when you hold a clean, fresh bird feather in your hand, you can oftentimes see a changing

While I wait for some paint to dry so I can apply another coat of paint, I thought I would write a little bit about some photos I shot recently. I was out on our dock one morning and I noticed this tiny wake about one hundred yards away... I grabbed the camera that had the longest lens mounted on it...  zoomed... I quickly confirmed it was a beaver. I was hoping to get a tail slap and a big splash but that never came. He just swam around for a little while and then quietly slipped underwater. I just wish he was a little closer to the house so I could have gotten a slightly better shot.... It was early one morning... one of those rare mornings at the lake with no fog and no clouds... over in a darkened corner to the left of our house, about one hundred yards away, I noticed a loon. He was alone and just paddling around in the dark shadows of early morning. I kept my camera focused on him... it was too dark for a shot though... a black and white loon in black shadows would have ma

Although these two photos look like things may have gotten a bit out of hand and some anger prevailed, that wasn't the case.  In the splashing photo, the kids were playing and laughing... I really have no idea what Kenzie was thinking when she had that scowl on her face in the other photo though. I don't remember anything of significance happening... regardless, in these two photos, Kenzie appears to have a bit of an attitude...

I'm always looking at the light and hoping to find interesting light as it contrasts with shadow, texture, and patterns. I constantly see the scenes in front of me framed as a photo composition in my head. I don't put the camera to my eye until I see a composition in my head which I find interesting. One evening, a pair of loons visited while the sun was setting. The sun was a bright orange and it was behind this pair of loons. The scene was actually quite blinding but I was able to see something interesting... I was just barely able to see the silhouette of one of the loons... just enough to be able to focus on the loon... all around this loon, the water was shimmering and reflecting the warm orange glow of the setting sun...  The moment I depressed the shutter release, I knew that this would be an interesting photograph... a different photograph... I like it!

Starting with last night's sunset... still a rather uneventful and boring sunset compared to past years but this is how we closed out our day yesterday followed by a nice braised pork dinner with noodles and fresh green beans...  oh... then we had some crappy Cheesecake Factory cheesecake (perhaps the worst cheesecake I've ever eaten)...  This morning was a bit unusual... the lake stayed this placid until 10am! The kids didn't mind watching these fish from the safety of shore but, once they were in the water with these perch (and a small family of Blue Gill Sunfish), they were terrified of them! When I sat on the rocks on the shore with them and we named each fish names from the movie "Finding Nemo" they seemed a little more at ease but the kids were still as skittish as the fish when they were in the water.

Yesterday, for the most part, was a rainy day for catching up on sleep and for resting our sore, tired bodies. I think both of us slept away most of the day. We just napped in front of a fire all day. It was a much needed break from all of the activity lately. This morning the overcast skies are gone and the sun is shining. The lake is calm so we will head out on the kayaks this morning for a longer trip than we have done all year.   I have some rigging to replace on the sailboat before I can go out sailing again. I replaced some rigging before we arrived at the lake but some of the stuff that I did not replace is now only holding on by one single strand! It needs to be replaced now, for sure, so I'll attempt that sometime today too. I'm hoping the wind will pick up again at some point so I can do some more sailing but that rigging needs to be fixed first. In the meantime, here are a couple of photos from this morning...

We had another beautiful day yesterday (today too, but I may write something about that tomorrow). Liza and John visited in the evening to have dinner with us and spend the night.  Dinner was delicious... Kansas City style ribs (two full racks), corn on the cob and homemade fries. We've been eating well at the lake house! The weather was great so we spent much of the day in the water. We had some thunderstorms through the night but the weather was hot and humid yesterday during the day... Another day of teaching Lukey how to sail...

I got up out of bed at 6:30am this morning so we could all go kayaking as the fog rose off the flat, silent lake... it is now after 8:00am and everyone else is still asleep in their beds!  I guess there will be no early morning kayaking today... maybe I'll get to eat a quiet breakfast on my own. In the meantime while I am waiting for everyone, I sorted through the hundreds of photos I shot yesterday. It was a really nice Father's Day here and here are a few photos from all of our activities yesterday... We thought that this might have been an eagle or perhaps a hawk... it was the usual ugly-duckling... the Vermont Turkey Vulture. I suspect many people THINK they see a Bald Eagle but it is really one of these ugly scavengers. Deep water training... Deep water training... Lukey and Papa sailing... Lukey and Papa sailing... Lukey and Papa sailing...  Kenzie has not gotten up the nerve to get in the sailboat yet. Luk