Christmas Day

Merry Christmas to all!

Back next week.

Christmas Eve

To us a child is born, to us a son is given... the Prince of Peace.

From Boe Memorial Chapel, St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN

A Sunday Bonus at Christmas

Tis the Sunday before Christmas. This is the Berea Moravian Church outside St. Charles, MN with its Moravian Star highlighted by the bunting and accenting the organ pipes.
Date: 1/1/2006

Christmas on the Tree

Simplicity can have its own special beauty. A little manipulating with Paint Shop Pro and a dull picture of the angel on our tree has a different look.
Date: 12/18/2005

Across the River at Night

The bridge across the Rio Guadalquivir in Seville lit up at night.
Date: 4/2/2002

Christmas Snow

The Christmas decorations take on a different perspective when the snow falls in downtown Chaska, MN.
Date: 12/9/04

Dolphins Jumping

Back To Florida for this one. Dolphins playing in the wake of our tour boat.
Date: 1/3/05

La Giralda

This is the tower next to/part of the cathedral in Seville. It was originally built by the Moors and then used by the Christians after the conquest. Later I will have some pictures from the top.
Date: 4/2/2002

A Dog- or a Lion?

Today I begin a regular series of pictures from Spain, from a trip we took in 2002. From Seville, I couldn't resist taking a picture of this wonderful looking dog. Or is it a small lion?
Date: 4/2/2002

Hiatus Not Due to Writer's Strike

No, I am just overwhelmed with moving so I have not had a chance to get pictures ready to post for a couple weeks. I promise to return with thrice-weekly pictures beginning December 3. See you then.

[Update: Didn't make the Dec. 3 deadline due to moving. Will be back on Dec. 10 with some pictures from Spain.]

After a Shower

Date: 7/31/2003

Veteran's Day

My father's grave, a veteran's grave, in Jersey Shore, PA, cemetery. He didn't die in WW II where he was a medical corpsman, but a piece of him did. War does awful things to everyone involved. Today let us give thanks for those who were willing to take all those risks and serve. May we always welcome them home with support and love.
Date: 10/31/2004

Sun and Water

I found this particular way of editing this picture kind of interesting. It was much more of a silhouette originally with the sunset in the distance there. But upping saturation and playing with other things added some interest.
Date of original: 1/03/2005

A Universe in a Danedelion

Date: 5/29/2003

Autumn Fuzz

What more can you say- autumn fuzz.
Date: 10/16/2004

Which is Which?

I love signs like this. Are the wheelchairs physically challenged- or are they for people who are? Well, you never know.
Date: 4/20/2006

Enameled Clearwater Beach

Playing with pictures and Paint Shop Pro can give some interesting results. This is a sunset at Clearwater Beach, FL, enameled and adjusted. I don't know- I like the effect. Maybe you can pretend it's a moonlit night- bright shining harvest moon - and we wait for the Halloween bewitching hour? Or maybe not.

Date of original: 1/3/2005

Minnesota River Autumn

This was taken on the bluff above the Minnesota River near Mankato a few years ago. While there's not a lot of wild and vivid colors, I was struck by the many different colors and lines and light. The river in the distance is over-exposed, which makes for an interesting contrast with the shrubs and leaves.
Date: 10/16/2004

Cosmo and Bug

Let's not forget summer yet. Bugs and flowers make such great subjects.
Date: 8/12/2003

Maple Red Autumn

This tree in our front yard adds so much to the Fall each year. Except this year. The extremely dry summer followed by a lot of wind and rain short-circuited the beauty in 2007. Maybe next year.

Date: 10/9/2004

Bluegrass Shadows

The Minnesota-based bluegrass band, Monroe Crossing performing. I liked the interplay of light and shadow. Maybe I should turn it into black and white and play around a little on Paint Shop Pro?
Date: 8/25/07

NFL History

Okay, I know it's not a great picture. I was way up in the stands and this is a zoom-in using Paint Shop Pro. But it is history. Brett Favre throwing TD pass number 421. And I was there. Neat.
Date: 9/30/07

Gulf Sunset

Still in Clearwater Beach, FL. A very photogenic place!
Date: 4/22/06

Lines in the Sea

Lines are everywhere- even in the Gulf of Mexico. Clearwater Beach, FL
Date: 1/2/05

Posing Nicely

This guy was really cooperative. Nice pose. Black Hills, SD
Date: 7/27/07

Relaxing Casting

What a way to fish. Sylvan Lake, Black Hills, SD.
Date: 7/24/07

A (Really) Way Back Machine

A mastodon skeleton- or at least the tusks of one- in the Black Hills of South Dakota. This is one of the most important such digs with more skeletons than can be counted at this point. Don't meet one in a dark alley.

Date: 7/27/07

When the Train Still Ran

In this scan from a slide, my 2 year old daughter watches a Conrail train head down the line in Pine Creek, PA. The tracks are now long gone and the rails turned into a trail which I hope to travel next summer.

Date: Summer, 1983

Watch Out for the Turkeys

Custer State Park, in the Black Hills of South Dakota

Date: 7/27/07

Connecting to the Past

Some places, especially simple yet interesting places, can make excellent pictures- as well as a place to go. This is Victor's 1959 Cafe, a Cuban restaurant in Minneapolis which is one of my favorite places. The mixture of colors, siding, signs, and lines all combine to make it an interesting picture. 1959 is right around the corner on Grand St. in Minneapolis.
Date: 9/21/07

Mushroom

This little guy reminded me of the marching mushrooms in Disney's Fantasia. What a remarkable little plant.
Date: 8/25/07

Blast From the Past

Sorry I missed a couple days last week. Things were busy and I haven't been doing picture management recently. Will try to get back on track this week, starting with a real blast from the past....

This scan of a slide goes back to say 1955 or '56 or so? My first (and only) dance recital as part of the Oly Waugh School of Dance. It didn't take me too long to discover that my sense of rhythm was in my head and not my feet. But it makes a great picture with me and my mother.

Summer Sunset

The late sunset back on the 4th of July gave a beautiful pre-fireworks presentation.

Date: July 4, 2007

And What Are YOU Looking At?

My daughter's cat (i.e. my grand-kitty.)
Date: 12/26/06

Getting Ready for 2008

Keystone, SD

Yes, this is a manure spreader.
Yes, this is a political comment.
I am already tired of the 2008 election campaign.
Date: July 26, 2007

(Blue) Angels and Devils (Tower)

Ninety-percent of good picture-taking is being in the right place at the right moment. Like being just southeast of Devils Tower in Wyoming when the Blue Angels went by on a training run.
Date: July 25, 2007

Heavy Dew?

How someone managed to get down next to these falls on the grounds of the Pipestone National Monument in Minnesota is beyond me. Why they would even bother just to place a Mt. Dew bottle there is even more beyond me. Tourists!
Date: July 29, 2007

Moonrise, Sunset

The last hint of the setting sun contrasts with the ghostly white of the risen moon at Mt. Rushmore.
Date: July 24, 2007

Silent Power

Bison, up close and personal. There's power in that eye!
Date: July 22, 2007

Tenacity

The tenacity of trees and plants when faced with seemingly impossible conditions. From Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
Date: July 23, 2007

Hangin' On

Walking the path around Devils Tower in Wyoming I buzzing, flying something went by me and landed on a branch. It took a few moments to find it- but there it was. A locust.
Date: July 25, 2007

Traffic Jam

The herd stops traffic in Custer State Park in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
Impressive animals!
Date: July 22, 2007

Kayaks on Back Bay Slough

I have always liked the pictures that show a canoe or kayak along with the water they are traveling over and the scenery they are floating through. So I took this one in the Apostle Islands a couple years ago.

Date: 8/5/2005

Harney Peak and Sylvan Lake, SD

Harney Peak is the place where Black Elk was taken in his vision. It's in the Black Hills of western South Dakota and is a sacred place. Sylvan Lake in the foreground gives a great contrast and color.
Date:July 24, 2007

The Badlands

There is not much to say to a picture like this- the Badlands of Suth Dakota. Three weeks ago today my wife and I started a trip out to the Black Hills and you can't miss the Badlands on your way. [Starting later today at my regular blog I will be recounting the trip on a daily basis along with more picture links.]
Date: July 21, 2007

Cattails in the Black Hills

Along Stockade Lake in Custer State Park in the Black Hills of South Dakota.

Date: July 22, 2007

Tiny But Filled with Beauty

Birdsfoot trefoil along the trail at the Apostle Islands, WI.

Date: Exactly two years ago today- 8/6/05

Jazz on the Beach

This one has been retouched with Paint Shop Pro. It was a jazz band performing a concert at sunset on the beach at Tarpon Springs, FL.

Date: April 20. 2006

On The Susquehanna

Here they are, together again. Sunset and water. I don't know what is so magical about it for me, but I am drawn to it. This is the Susquehanna River at Lock Haven, PA.

Date: June 10, 2006

Oldie, But Goodie

No, I didn't take this picture. My dad did. That's me in the middle between my mother and my younger (and only) brother. This is at Rockefeller Center in New York City and was taken in 1955 (I think.) I do know that there were only 48 stars on that flag in the background. I just like the way this picture looks and wanted to share it.

Scanned from slide.

Explosion of Colors

I have often been struck by the incredible color found in Native American art and dress. These vivid costumes were from the annual Pow Wow at the Shakopee, MN, Sioux community.
Date: 8/27/06