Conversations with the Kids II

Conversation with Rory...

Rory: Mama, come see this dead bird.

Amy: I don't want to see a dead bird.

Rory: No, just come see it. One little look. (tries to turn my head)

Amy: I don't want to see it. I don't like seeing dead animals.

Rory: It's stinct.

Amy: (thinking - I guess he means it's stinky) Oh, you mean extinct. Extinct means there are no more animals of that kind. Like dinosaurs. There are no more dinosaurs, so they're extinct. But if a dog or a bird dies that doesn't mean it's extinct.

Rory: Skunks are extinct.

Amy: No, they're stinky!

Conversation with Darby...

Darby: Rory said I am a butt.

Conner: Well, you're not a butt.

Darby: Rory, I am not a buuuutt.

Rory: You're lying! I didn't call you a butt!

Darby: Is I'm a lion??

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Learning Star Photography

So we went to stargaze in Slim Buttes, a category 1 dark site. Super dark. But I was pretty disappointed with the pictures I got. So I stayed up too late to learn more about it and play around at home. Looking forward to getting back out to the Buttes to make another stab at it. This is what I got here at home using the "500 rule." It has something to do with dividing the number 500 by your focal length. I was using a 50mm lens, so the exposure time was supposed to be 10 seconds. This rule ensures you get stars that look like actual pinpoints of light, and avoids the rotation of the earth issue. And this is what I learned how to do by stitching together multiple shots in Photoshop to show "star trails, the path of the stars across the sky due to the earth's rotation. So the opposite effect of the shot above. Looking forward to doing a lot more of these in the future with some cooler foreground options and less light pollution. I was pretty excited with what I go...

Puerto Rico

Engine Trouble

The Drive In the musical Calamity Jane, the titular character, played by Doris Day, is astonished to find not one but two men calling at her cabin outside of Deadwood, South Dakota. "Why I'm plumb flattered! What brings you out here?" she asks. Then, noticing one of her callers is none other than her frienemy Wild Bill Hickock, she inquires, "Injun' trouble?" We didn't run into any tribal skirmishes on our drive from South Florida to South Dakota, but we did have some engine trouble. Engine failure actually. After three days and approximately 1,000 miles of hard immigration--first leg from Ft. Lauderdale to Dothan, AL; second from Dothan to West Plains, MO; third from West Plains to Sioux Falls, SD--we made it about 5 miles before I said to Amy, "I'm going to have to pull over." Five hours later, we left Sioux Falls in a new used car. At least this one has snow tires and 4-wheel drive. If you've never driven I-90 across the state o...

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