Lunar Lunatic

My co-workers called me crazy, but after working 3pm-11pm I slept for a couple of hours then woke up to shoot the moon! Grabbed my tripod and went up on the roof to take my first try at lunar eclipse photography. Even though I didn't get back to bed until 5:30 am, it was worth it to capture a rare event. The fact that we didn't have stratus at night was rare enough...throw in the eclipse and it made for a special evening!

Baby Maddie...part 2

Just a few more fun facial shots of Maddie, plus one of me holding her - check out her long legs! The last picture poses an interesting question: I'm sure she was just pointing something out to me...not flipping me the bird, right? :)

Baby Madeleine

I finally got to visit my friends, Lina, Ryan & Makena to see their new family addition....little Miss Madeleine. Here are some of my favorite shots of her including shots with her family! You can see that Ryan has already learned how to multi-task as he discusses sports with his brother on the phone while cradling Maddie. Makena is a super-great big brother and Lina's so happy to be a mother of two (plus, she's excited that the score is now even with 2 guys and 2 gals in the house)!

Last day in Bisbee

On my second day in Bisbee, Doug gave me some water and we headed up a hill near their house. The rocky road up became very steep and the sun was beating down upon us. We finally made it to the top and the view was AWESOME! The little suburb of Bisbee called Warren looked spectacular with all the greenery from the recent rains. Even more exciting was looking south and seeing Mexico. I could see the Border road and a town called Naco, AZ and Naco, Mexico straddling the border. Unfortunately, I didn't have a camera with me, but the first picture shows the hill that we climbed to the right of their half-painted house. And speaking of their house....the second picture with the flower illustrates their new home color - a bright yellowish green that reminds me of a brand new tennis ball! Next, I have a shot of the inside of their living room with a tiki bar in the background. Later that night, we went out to the Bisbee Grand hotel for some drinks. Amy likes to dress up and pose for the camera....she delivered! I just went with polka-dots. It was a great visit!!!!

Down Under with the Mine Tour

Bisbee is home of the Queen Copper Mine and we (Markkanen, Amy, Doug, Jobi, and I) decided to check it out. First, we had to gear up with bright yellow slickers, hard hats and lamps. Then we had to get on this very narrow train thing where everyone straddled a long seat on each cart. As we headed into the mine, the guide stopped a little way in to check on all of us. The tunnel is very narrow and it can be a bit freaky, especially after hearing all the news about the Utah mine collapse. I was actually worried about my sister getting claustrophobic, but as it turned out, her boyfriend was the one who skee-daddled off the train back to the main office for a refund, then promptly hit the bar. The tour was good, but the guide was a bit long winded and my sister expressed her "enthusiasm" by a facial experssion I've never seen on her before. By the end of the tour....the rest of us needed a drink and joined Doug at the bar!

Heading down to Bisbee....

When Steve Markkanen and I drove to Bisbee, we made a quick stop in Tombstone, AZ. I got a shot of the OK Corral and a guy ready to give stagecoach rides to the tourons. When we arrived at my sister's place, I had to take some shots of her studio decor: ruby red slippers mixed with lime green and bright turquoise. Amy loves bright colors (in case you didn't notice!). Towards evening the clouds got darker. Finally, I got to see some lightning strikes and hear thunder, but the bulk of the rain was to the east of us. The last shot shows the stormy sky looming above us.

Traildust Town

A group of us Monterey Meteorologists met up in Tucson's Traildust Town for some grub and the ever popular Old Time Photo Shop. While walking down the streets of Traildust, I found a drinking trough for horses which had a scrub brush. I needed a bath because my luggage didn't arrive with me and I was still in the same clothes. Apparently, XpressJet thought it'd be more convenient if my suitcase stayed behind in Monterey for an extra 24 hours. (I exaggerate a bit. Markkanen let me borrow a t-shirt and I did some quick shopping at Target, but the sarcasm towards Xpressjet is not exaggerated!) Steve got in touch with his feminine side and posed as a lovely damsel. And last, but not least, the old time photo! I took a photo of the photo with my camera. Pictured with me are Markkanen, Steve & Suzanne, Jeff & Barb. Fun night!!!

Caught in the Cacti

Once again...I've jet-setted to a new exciting place. I am now in Tucson, AZ!!!! This blog has the obligatory cacti pix. First, we have the Devil Cactus. See how the blooms are up on top like a couple of horns - spooky, eh? Next, we have the happy-go-lucky Flower-Eyes Cactus. Then, an up-close, abstract shot of a saguaro with a far away shot of a saguaro. Finally, me getting pricked by a prickly pear.

Amy's Wedding in Olympia

So here are a few shots of my high school friend Amy on her big day! It was a lovely day for a lovely couple! When I wasn't taking photos...I did a little musical conducting on the side! (ok - so the musicians agreed to let me stand in front of them and pretend, but I'm sure I added inspiration to the music during that song!)

Olympia Wedding Rehearsal

Before my friend, Amy, got married, her mom showed us how to make corsages. There's a pic of me and my first corsage. Then I took a close-up shot of my corsage with the wedding rings. The wedding site was a beautiful place called Swantown Inn - a gorgeous historical building. The shot I took was a bit overexposed (was in a hurry), but you get the idea. At the rehearsal, I found a cute ol' garden gnome hiding in the grass and had to take his picture!

Not Sleepless in Seattle

I've been quite the jetsetter lately. Last weekend, I flew to Seattle to meet up with some high school friends of mine, Heatherly & Jennifer. Our eventual destination was Olympia for my friend Amy's wedding. But...similar to my NY wedding trip, once I arrived we decided to grab lunch in the city before heading to the wedding location. We went to Pike's Place where I kissed a pig and met a pet opossum. Seriously, some guy had rescued this opossum after being hit by a car and now carries the creature on his shoulder while explaining the joys of opossumhood. The guy was very nice and knowledgeable....but accessorizing with rodents enhances the hillbilly look.