Cold Spaghetti

This week’s Photohunt theme was FAVORITE.  Nothing came to mind, so I flipped through Aperture looking for something that said ‘favorite’ to me.  Bingo.

This is Will and one of his Special Friends, at a fall festival in October.

Do you want a Digital SLR camera?

I’ve got one, and I want to give it away.  With it’s lens.  To you, if you’re up for it.

Here’s the catch: my original DSLR, the 300D Rebel, died from secondary mirror failure a year and a half ago.  We did some mirror DIY stuff, problem solved, talked to Canon, and eventually just put it to the side.  It will cost $175-200 to repair and I kept thinking I would do this, or grow the confidence to take it all apart and try to fix it myself.  It’s not going to happen.  I don’t want to risk breaking it if someone else out there is interested in fixing it, particularly if it means they will then get to have a digital SLR.

DSLRs still start at over $300.  For used models.  $200 is a good price for a used 300D with lens.  This particular camera kit sells used for $350-500.  The lens sells for about $100; it is most common bought and sold as the “kit” lens for Rebels.  (Note that now they sell the “II” version of this lens, but it is essentially the same — see details about it here: http://photo.net/equipment/canon/efs18-55/ )

Or, maybe you’ve got a kid who is into taking apart electronics?  Mine aren’t old enough for this sort of experimentation, but if you’ve got one who is…?  I’m okay with that, too.

I’ve put it up on craigslist, listing it for sale because my experience in giving things away via craigslist and freecycle is that there are a ton of responses and very few follow-throughs.  So now I tie a price to the item — only serious people bother.  Although what typically happens is that when the person shows up for the item, we end up giving it to them when they turn out to be nice, regular folks.  Because it’s just the right thing to do.

http://neworleans.craigslist.org/pho/955269472.html

I’d like to give it to you, if you’d like it.  I’ll pay for any shipping costs.

Just leave me a comment.  No need for fancy writing or a ton of links or whatever.  This is just about trying to find a home for this camera… before it gets sent off for parts via craigslist.  If no one responds, I’ll stick with craigslist.  Otherwise, I’ll choose someone here.

—–

Okay, okay.  I admit it.  I am trying to find yet another way to say I’ve filched something from Magpie.  Technically, all sorts of people give away stuff on their blogs, too, but it was actually trying for one that made me feel like I should do it, too.  Plus, I just love that cleansing, complete, satisfying feel that the word filch leaves in my mouth.  Because there aren’t enough sentences in a day that need the word filch.

UPDATE:  A friend of a friend without a blog emailed me.  It’s gone to a good cause!

On one of those fantastically delicious hot and sticky summer days, like last week*, we took the kids waaaay out to the Louisiana countryside to feed wild geese.

Oh, okay.  We went to City Park.  That’s the New Orleans Museum of Art in the background.  FUN FACT: NOMA does not allow strollers.  So we’ve not been, kind of as a point.  But Will went on a field trip earlier this year.

We had about 4 bags of bread — collected from frozen ends of loafs and other assorted stale varieties that I stock pile in the freezer for days like this.

And the kids went at it.

So did the birds.  Will, who had recently discovered the delicacies of duck, suggested we bring one home for dinner.

Just kidding, buddy.

This was only a few months ago, but I can’t believe how much smaller they look, especially Kate.

Then, we realized that a new group was interested in sampling our wares.  Momma and her 5 babies.

Don’t these two look like they are playing “Cee Cee My Playmate?”

Fast moving, with sharp little teeth.  And very bold.

But cute.

Sort of like Kate.  Fast moving, sharp little teeth, and bold.  We were a little afraid that she would try some of her favorite playtime activities with The Cat, Scout.  Things like sitting on his back, pulling his tail, and zerbering his tummy.  He’s a pretty chill cat.

Paul is ready to scoop her up if needed.  Will, on the other hand, wanted to stick to the ducks.

When they had their fill, they climbed up on branches right over our heads…

… and went to sleep.

*Actually, it was in early August.

In the car Saturday morning, en route to the first Holiday Season parade in New Orleans in 15 years, seemed a good enough reason to start the discussion.

“Will, do you know why we celebrate Christmas?”

(not totally ready to be engaged in conversation) “No.”

“Well, there area lot of different reasons people celebrate this time of year.  Christmas is around the time as the Winter Solstice, which is the shortest day of the year and right before winter.  People used to share food and clothes and other important things to help each other survive the winter.  That is one of the reasons we still give each other presents this time of year.”

(processing)

“Some people believe that a man named Jesus Christ was born on Christmas and they celebrate the day in church.  We don’t do this, but we have respect for others who feel this way.”

(engines starting to fire)

(Paul chimes in) “We believe that the holidays are a celebration of the everything we do through the year.  For us, it’s about being with family and remembering each other.”

(said to no one in particular) “Didja know some people go to movies and sing longsongs calledNargalitciesthatlast forhourswhileotherpeopleeatcandyandchocolatethattheir mommiesmakeandthenthey…….”

(To Paul): “Well, I guess that went well, then?”

—

Waiting for the parade:

One of the fantastic school bands.  This one was playing “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” — which we felt, based on our conversation in the car that morning, to be perfectly suited for the season.

Here’s a little primer in how to handle a throw.  All that stuff you see on Cops about flashing for beads?  Let me set the record straight: THAT IS DONE BY TOURISTS FOR TOURISTS.  Further, it only happens in one place (Bourbon Street) which locals will tell you was built by the city to keep annoying frat boys (past and present) and their hanger-ons away from the rest of the city.  (I say that with fondness, as I think it’s fine that it’s there if you want it.  But know that it does not define the city, nor does it describe our celebrations.)

What happens is that a rider singles you out, gesturing that YOU are chosen for a certain item.  Below, this special chosen one was WILL, standing right beside me.  See the guy in the middle, pointing to Will holding at bag of fancy holiday beads?

He gets ready for the throw…

And Mommy has no more pictures because she dropped her camera around her neck to help The Little Man complete the deal.   Which goes like this: you indicate readiness, keep eye contact with the item, catch it, and then give the rider a “THANK YOU” or a thumbs up, or both.  It’s a polite, friendly interaction.  And it’s fun!

Paul helps Will put on an extra long set of beads.  (I think he’s teasing him here with ‘what’s that on your jacket?’)

So I’m still obsessed with paning and creative use of the shutter.  This got the effect I was looking for… blurry background paned on the moving object.  That’s the New Orleans Hornet, coming in for a high-five!

Here’s another… hey Mr. Hornet!

McD 35 puts on a show!!  EVERYONE dances through the whole parade.  I was trying to capture how they ALL are moving, without it looking like a bunch of blurry bodies.  The two carrying the sign — even they are dancing back and forth, bouncing the sign around to a choreographed routine.  No ordinary marching by a NOLA group!  Heaven help you if you can’t find the beat to one of these bands!

Kate, however, was very serious about the whole thing.  Although she did keep in time to the music by bouncing her hand on Paul’s head.

Cool winter sky.

My favorite, penguins.  Kate was into the action from a top my shoulders for this part of the parade.  I can hardly believe I’m in a picture…

Will took the high seat.

Will, post-parade, with his favorite throw: a paddle and ball set.

Happy Holidays from New Orleans!

Full grown female Looziana Alligator comin’ out to chop on a marshmallow breakfast.  A few hours past dawn, Bayou Segnette, Louisiana.

Motorcycles and mototaxis, Iquitos, Peru.  Taken late afternoon in the main square.

Both taken by the 10D with 1/20 shutter speed at f/4.  I wanted to get a slight blur with the taxis in the background, but didn’t have a tripod to risk slower than 1/20 and/or higher than f/4.

PhotoHunt

We don’t dress up for holiday dinners anymore, so there is no more of the tradition of ruining an outfit playing outside. It was just straight up, regular play.

Kate may have inherited my athletic prowess. Just check out how she throws the football…

(What is that football doing behind her in that picture below? Oops.)

The good news is that the fact she can’t keep pants on (note picture above) may be a sign that she somehow missed the voluptuous gene which has been passed down in my family from Mother to Daughter since time immortal.

Will got into the action, too. He even kicked the ball to me a few times.

There was plenty Daddy-tackling.

At some point, I proposed a walk to find pine cones. I figured we could find something crafty to do with them… somewhere in my head are memories of pine cone turkeys, pine cone people, pine cone bird feeders, pine cone holiday decorations, and more. All that thinking of crafty pine cone projects made me start to think all artsy, and I started to play around with the camera. Note Will, my unwilling muse, holding the pine cone… normal picture:

Then the ZOOOOM into the pinecone! I’m all about playing around with the shutter these days.

I also tried the technique with a Japanese maple in my parents’ front yard. The breeze meant that I needed help keeping the branch steady — so I didn’t get to play for all that long, but here’s a sample:

My contribution to my Mother’s usual spread of veggies, turkey breast, and stuffing was Mushroom Gravy. Randy made this for us one Thanksgiving in Blacksburg. The same Thanksgiving my future in-laws came to visit and I decided to make squash soup ahead of time… only to discover that my allergy to pumpkin innerds extended to squash. It was a brilliant plan, really, since everyone was very willing to help out to make the meal — no one wanted the woman with huge, swollen, hive-covered hands touching the food.

Randy’s gravy became the stuff of legend. The recipe, in nearly direct quotation from Randy, goes like this: “Put a LOT of onions, a LOT of mushrooms, and a LOT of oil into a pot. Add some liquid. Let it cook. Add something to thicken it.”

Which is pretty much what I did this year. It was really good, even if this picture makes it look a little funky?

Dissertating (a verb, meaning ‘the action of working on one’s dissertation’) is a lonely process that seems to have no end. Lately, though, I’ve found some new inspiration through the internet, specifically through blogs that have served as connecting points to fun ideas, talented writing, and exciting people.

So when I read about Alejna’s newest find, Photohunt, and saw that this week’s theme was “reflections,” I immediately thought of these photographs, taken at the giraffe exhibit at Audubon Zoo in April 2007:

When I saw how easy it was to participate, I was in. I’m officially giving PhotoHunt the old college try.

These photos were taken with a Canon Digital Rebel 300D (the first of the series)with a 50mm 1.8f lens (the one I used exclusively, no matter what the situation, at that time), with an ISO of 100 and shutter speed 1/400. I remember that this effect was short-lived, when the sun came back out from behind the clouds, the reflection was no longer as strong. I also remember that I wished I was able to get further to the left of Will to have more of his face in the frame and ended up taking these with my whole body smashed up against the glass. Luckily, we happened to be alone in this exhibit at the time.

Jen, Mad and Su have Just Posts up for October — these are social justice and activism oriented posts nominated by readers — and I am flattered to be among the offerings. I learned of these through the talented and mellifluous Alejna, who is fun to read not only because of ThThTh, but because she is an endless source of pants-related humor. (Become the mother of a toddler and pants become very funny. Really.) The Just Posts have been a big source of inspiration for me over the last few months and this month’s posts were no different. I loved Jen’s writing about the impact of the tropical storm-related flooding in Belize, which has devastated the rural community she and her husband bought property within and are moving to in January of the coming year. Magpie’s charge inspired me to donate $25 to charity. My own sister-in-law made a strong argument about how the legacy of slavery is still a very real presence to school children attending schools named after slave owners. These are just a few examples.

I enjoy reading the Just Posts because it helps me to connect to others who are aware of the world around us and look for ways to make a difference. A little happy place in the internet.

The beach is my other happy place. So, here are a few pictures from the beautiful Gulf Coast, featuring my favorite kids. Because there is where I want to be right now…

Question: What is with Kate’s funny, scrunched up smile for the camera?

Answer: I have no idea.

(That’s me and my Mom, Easter 1978 — I’m almost 2 1/2, it’s a few months before my brother was born.)