Good Morning

I'm up super early, as in a little before 5:00. Of course, that can happen if you go to bed at 9:00, right?

Forgive me for backing up but we've got some catching up to do. It's the time of the year when it seems my brain is on overdrive thinking of things to photograph, either in a new light, or entirely new. Plus, there are the markets which provide an endless variety of subject matter. For the most part, all of the photos of the folks visiting the market are candid, however, on occasion I see something that is so perfect, particularly where children are concerned, that I ask permission. In this case, the little girl posed for me with her mother looking on with a big smile on her face.

According to her Mom, she wanted to bring the little basket to the market for shopping. She should be the poster child for the market with her sweet smile!! I was chatting with someone when I saw her, excused myself quickly, and got the shot. Seriously sweet.

Another woman I've become friends with is from an old Winter Garden citrus family. Their oranges, from both Winter Garden and near Vero Beach, are mostly sold for juice to a brand located in Lake Wales called Florida's Natural. Closer to home, as on her property, they grow pomelos, a citrus fruit for SE Asia. I finally tried one on Saturday and they are good. Big too.

As in, nearly twice the size of a grapefruit, which from what I've heard, is a descendant of the pomelo. (The link will be blank today as Wikipedia has gone black to protest legislation before Congress. I left it because I thought perhaps you might want to see the protest.)  I thought the contrasts of colors, not to mention textures, made this an awesome photo on the fly.

Friday was a busy day around here, with my prints finally ready. Oh my, there are a bunch. In the last two weeks I've sold 47 prints, so although this looks and sounds like too many, these should last me for a month at that rate.

Maureen graciously offered to help me--I'm no fool, come on over!! And she did, putting the stickers on all 100 of them. This may not sound like much, but believe me, with two stickers on the back of each print, it's an enormous help. Now, if only I can get them all signed.....

After the delicious meal at Armando's, I was anxious for Bruce to try the place. I'm not sure if I can write this properly but I'm going to try because it was such a crazy experience. I mentioned the service was abysmal on our previous visit. Well, this time as we entered the crazy busy space, a hostess came right up to us saying the only seats were at the bar. Before we had time to agree to that, a server came up to Bruce, saying with a very straight face, "You're not welcome here." As you can imagine Bruce was flabbergasted to say the least. In fact, he was tongue tied! Immediately, after gauging his reaction, the server said, "That man over there said so." Good one Steve Vaughn! A friend of ours pulled a pretty impressive practical joke on the fly wouldn't you say? After visiting with Steve, Kirsten and her sister Bee (remember them from the after Christmas party?), we made our way to the bar with Kimberly as our server. She was a delight, the food was delicious; what can I say, aside from the joke, it was perfect. Of course without the joke the story wouldn't be half as good. This was the first that we'd seen a person with a light attached to their glasses to read the menu.

You see the guy in the red shirt? Very interesting. The standing server in the white shirt was the deliverer of the joke. Further, the man seated to my right at the bar lives in David's condo complex and knows the twins quite well. A very small world we live in.

You saw the tree yesterday, as well as some leaves on the ground, but what you haven't seen is them in water with rain drops.

We had a super windy day recently which blew the leaves from the far side yard to the front side yard, landing in the birdbath. Speaking of which, I'm sad to say, rarely has the bath seen action. But when it does, I sure hope I can get a photo of the occasion!

I also took Baxter back to the park the other day for an afternoon walk. He goes pretty nuts when we pull up, whimpering to get out of the car. Spanish moss, remember how we talked about it spreading? The cypress trees near the lake are filled with it!

Pretty dramatic huh? Made even more so after the needles have fallen. The roses were looking spectacular in the mild weather.

The lake in the background was sparkling in the mid-day sun as if it were full of diamonds. Lovely.

Returning home I made some afternoon tea. Not just any tea mind you, but tea straight from London via Tom. Of course I couldn't just drink it, I tried out different still lifes using the clear cup Matt gave me a few years ago for my birthday.

Recognize the fabric? Liberty. Look closely and you may notice the individual tea leaves. You can't do that with most of the tea I buy. Pulverized tea leaves mostly. Bruce, staying within our Christmas budget, also bought me tea from Teavana called Golden Monkey. Despite the name Golden, it is a black tea with a very mild taste. The boys are spoiling me!

Not to leave the Sunday market out of the blog, it was chilly and sunny and crowded! There were the usual abundance of dogs, including this one my friend Kathy is admiring. Too funny that they match! What, pray tell, is the owner thinking putting a tutu on a dog? Make them stop!!!

Always willing to keep an eye on my booth when I take a bathroom run, my days at the market would not be nearly as nice without Kathy as my neighbor. Plus, they sell fantastic plants. A week ago she mentioned one of her Golden Retrievers was very sick, and in fact, she had to be put down last Monday. Kathy loves the dogs at the market like I love all the little children. It was not a good week for my friend. Nugget was her name.

Daylight is approaching which will allow me to work on the project I'll reveal tomorrow. Food, paint--right on.

Always busy,
Gail

Yard Finds

Back to your regularly scheduled blogging friends. Mr. Bruce is at the airport as I type awaiting a flight to the cold country. It's been somewhat chilly here the last few days, however, it's much, much colder there. Brrrrrr........

Friday morning, while it was still a bit cloudy I was out back hanging clothes on the line and cleaning the pool. I glanced over and thought how pretty and colorful the tree was along with the bougainvillea; I knew it was an Olympus moment. Pool cleaning had to wait a bit.

What I've been doing of late is keeping the 20mm lens on the Olympus and the 55-200 on the Nikon so I can shoot the birds through the windows. It's working quite well. Before I got the 20mm lens I read great reviews with most of the folks saying that once they had it they kept it on their cameras, shunning the kit lens. I now know why. Although the body of my camera is Olympus, the lens of which I speak is made by Panasonic, a brand you know I'm partial to because that's how I got my start as an art photographer. I still miss my baby camera--what a shame I lost it. The weird thing is I've rarely lost anything that I can recall, however, I do recall I lost my starter camera. Boohoo!

Anyway, with the Olympus in hand I decided to challenge myself in my own yard using the Black and White Film Grain setting on the camera. It's no wonder that people think b&w pictures are dramatic as I hope to show you with these simple images.

This one is of the little gnome we brought home from Bruce's Mom's house.

His little face is showing wear now that we've had him out in the sun protecting our new tree. Actually this little guy, who is actually a sprinkler, was a gift from us to her long ago. You might note that finally the stakes are gone keeping the tree in place for which I'm exceptionally grateful. It took a lot of whining to convince Bruce that after eight months the tree was established. I hope he does not have the chance to say "I told you so!"

Still in the side yard,  Pat and Ruth gave us a lovely iron heart for Christmas which looks especially interesting amongst the fallen leaves.

I've placed it under the bird feeder near the flowers in my garden. I'm thinking it will work well in the warmer weather for the butterflies who like to light upon hard objects to gather warmth. While on the subject of gardens, I'm so happy with this sign I purchased at the Geffrye Museum while visiting Matt in London this summer. I only wish they'd had a larger one!

On the other side of that fence is our back yard which closes using this:

Keeping in mind I'm wandering around the yard looking for stuff, I came across this pile of logs from our fallen tree which Bruce stacked like this to discourage nest building by pesky rodents.

The stump to the right is another leftover from the big tree. Not to get too far off topic, but there are those who might be saddened to see this horrible story about the Big Tree which burned yesterday. 3,500 years old and now gone???

Of late we've been spared the presence of rats, however, the squirrels still wreak havoc any chance they get. Bruce managed to fix most of the kayak, however, he still sees small areas of chewing which is pretty discouraging. He know has no idea where to store the boat to keep them at bay. Thus, it's still on the deck adjacent to the pool.

It's a testament to photography that even a hose can look good.

The foliage intermixed is the brown bud alamanda we planted when we did the remodel. It seems to be a mistake as the branches go hither and yon at will. That said, the yellow flowers are nice and as Bruce keeps reminding me, a tropical yard should be a bit wild.

Moving into the front yard, here's the plant shelf on the porch,

with the trailing golden pathos which is also known to spread far and wide. Then there is the sign on the street side of what we fondly call the jungle.

That's our gigantic oak tree on the right without many leaves remaining. It is so weird how the leaves have fallen this year. This tree is always first, followed by our neighbor on the pool sides huge oaks which really dump in our back yard. To date, they are still on his tree. Perhaps I'm confused. Maybe they don't fall until March? In any case, it's made my pool cleaning duties easier for the moment.

Had enough black and white? Well, me too. The leaves on the Chinese Tallow tree in our yard have been just as beautiful as the neighbor's tree I showed you a few days ago. Here's the reason I even went and got my camera.

I'm often asked about black and whites, whether I have any or not. There are very few in my baskets. Responding to the question, I tell folks that I took black and white images for 35 years and that was mostly enough for me. On the other hand, every now and again it's kind of fun to experiment. Never fear, I won't be devoting a whole post to this topic any time soon. Color is my middle name.

This post has been on my mind since I shot the photos on Friday, however, things have gotten in the way of blogging. This week should be different--don't be surprised if I write every day because I've got lots to say. Hopefully you'll want to read it.

Colorfully yours,
Gail

Mama Cardinal

It's cold outside. It's market day. What am I going to wear to stay comfortable throughout the long day outside? Mmm.....

Rather than decide just yet I just had to show you a few more cardinal pictures. I'm sure you're sick of them no doubt, nevertheless, indulge me if you will.

I was freaking out when I saw this on the camera.

Now, if only it were perfect. Normally our cardinals eat in the morning or evening, thus, rarely am I able to photograph them in bright sunlight. I'm thinking they are eating more now because they are building a nest at a location yet to be determined. Mama, in particular, will stay put for some time, whereas Papa is always an eat and run kinda guy.

The Nuttery is now in a perfect location for me to not only see, but hear our little bird family. In the sunlight she looks beautiful don't you think?

What is so cool about the previous photo to me is how red her feathers are that we normally don't see. She's hiding her good looks most of the time. What is also so cool is how agile these birds are, twisting and contorting to get at the food.

Fantastic, huh?

Now that I've gotten that out of the way it's time to get this show on the road. When I open my closet after showering, some outfit will speak to me. We'll talk more tomorrow.

Wish me luck!
Gail

Better Late Than Never

They got me this time. Just because they let me off in November from jury duty apparently did not mean they were through with me. Not a month later I received another jury summons which I attached to my bulletin board. Because we all know how forgetful I am I also had my phone remind me not once, but two times.

And so it was, that after calling the phone number on the card to see if my juror's number was selected, I made my way to the courthouse early yesterday morning. How early? Well, the card stated 8:00, however I didn't know if that meant on the property, or through the security line, thus I got there just as the sun was rising.

I was able to take this photograph from high up because they stressed that all jurors MUST park on the 7th or 8th floor of the adjacent garage. Round and round I went through the empty floors because I'm a rule follower. Those who don't follow rules really rile me up. Funny I should say that because had I been picked for a jury I suppose I'd be judging a non-rule follower! I was not chosen. As I exited the courthouse for lunch this scene made me think of only a few months back when the area was SWARMING with reporters for the trial of you know who.

The most exciting part of my day came while I was eating lunch in a diner behind the courthouse. Now, this isn't just any diner. Oh no my friends. I'd not been in the place in more than 34 years, ever since the night before we moved to California. There is a motel, now a Travelodge, next door where we stayed after our home was all packed up on a truck bound for Southern California. The following morning we would drive our little blue Toyota Corolla with a small Ford truck in tow. That was then.

In the here and now I walked over under gloomy skies, entering only to find one other patron. Mmmmm.....it was a tad early so perhaps that is why. Soon thereafter, some guys in Sheriff's vests came in talking on their updated versions of walkie-talkies. Taking a seat they seemed a tad agitated.

Naturally this is a phone photo which you sure can use surreptitiously! Anyway, they turned out to be SWAT team guys involved in a stake-out at the motel!! They talked about how they had already nabbed someone and were just waiting for another to arrive. Drama at the Diner!!

As I walked back around the other side of the building I came across a war memorial I had no idea existed. Soldier's names from as far back as the Second Seminole War are inscribed. The back side of this shows those Central Florida soldiers who lost their lives in the World Wars, as well as the Korean War. Built in the late 90's I can't believe I never knew it was there.

One of the instructions for jurors was to dress appropriately. Apparently few people read the instructions. I don't know why it surprised me that so many of the 200+ people were in jeans and shorts, but it did. I told you I was a rule follower. For the first hour or so I visited with two very sweet young ladies. Both of them are students, one for Radiologic Technology, if you can imagine, and the other Electrical Engineering. The EE major kept saying how much she loves math! Yikes! Unfortunately they were both called early on so I spent the rest of the hours reading some of the Carol Shields short stories, a Time magazine article about Hillary Clinton, an Asheville, North Carolina arts magazine, the crossword puzzle from Tuesday's paper and finally the Good Housekeeping Corrine gave me two weeks ago. Around 2:30 they dismissed the uncalled, thank goodness; we could have had to stay until 5:00.

So, the GH inspired me to do a little organizing, after all, it is that time of the year right? I stopped by Ross on my way home, looking for a few containers to complete my project. The other night I made some mashed potato cakes and while they were frying I dug around in my tool drawer for a certain kind of spatula only to give up because of the jumble. That, at least for the near future, is now a struggle I'm putting behind me because.......TA DA..take a look at this!

If I weren't so lazy I would have re-shot the after photo taken when it was getting gloomier still. The messy drawer was a lot more colorful wasn't it? From there I went to our bathroom which I know is making Nancy smile as she's reading this. During her summer visit she urged me to work on the drawers however I put it off until yesterday afternoon. What you see below is the sum total of my makeup which to some might seem like a lot, others think not so much.

The little white basket is for everyday use. Now all I need to do is get in the habit of using it every day! I highly recommend the activity for a gloomy afternoon.

While Jonathan and Alissa were here for their Christmas visit I told them one of their gifts was incomplete. I did show it to them with the caveat that I would mail it as soon as I was done. Way back in October I got the notion to make them a lap quilt with some fabric I'd had for quite some time. As in maybe 10 years? Can't really remember but rummaging through my fabric box from under the bed I thought--Gail, this fabric bears a small resemblance to the Texas Longhorn colors. Why not? I used a few blocks I'd made whenever that long ago time was, adding new ones to complete a nine patch pattern. Nine patches, each consisting of nine patches or squares in everyday lingo. Baxter was checking out the quilt top on October 24th.

I pieced two stripes on the back side, sandwiched the batting in the middle and began hand quilting. The quilt went with me to the markets, rolled up and stitched while I was waiting on folks to come to my booth. Then along came Christmas prep and my time quilting diminished. I showed them how far I'd come and kept at it once they left. Tuesday afternoon I was finally done and ready to put on the outer binding.

Now you can see the back as well as some of the quilting. I'm very impressed with some of the machine quilting I've seen others do, however, my skills in that area are not so great. Thus, needle and thread for me. I probably should have waited until it was washed to photograph it but I didn't. Washing really amps up the look, giving it lots of good pucker.

Another TA DA! Two in one day no less. It's all washed now, rolled up on the counter awaiting a trip to the post office. According to Jonathan a lap quilt for the couch will be most welcome because, unlike here, it is cold in Austin. Except that apparently we are heading into a little cold snap tonight. Yesterday, despite an 80% prediction for rain, we got just enough to dampen the ground. Thus, I'll believe it's getting cold when I feel it.

Having Bruce in Orlando is a good thing.  I CANNOT remember the last time he was in town for the whole week. Plus, he's been going to the office which I've highly encouraged. He swears he gets more done working here, however, I think an office is where you work, and a home is where you live. We've agreed to disagree on this one. Cooking has once again slipped into my repertoire with some very tasty meals eaten if I do say so myself.

Every time the boys come home--boys? What boys? They are men now. Okay, the men come home, they always leave me with new music to enjoy and this year was no exception. I'm hearing for the first time the Foals, Fleet Foxes, Friendly Fire (lots of F's there), Rumer, Laura Marling, Cee Lo Green, Big Deal and Cut Copy, along with some new music by some of my favorite bands, Elbow, The National, Death Cab for Cutie, and Tift Merritt. There are others whom I've forgotten but the one thing I can say for sure is that it has been wonderful listening to it all on both my Shuffle around the house and on my phone in the car. Good stuff.

Speaking of new music, Betty Wright has been around a long time, and she too has a new album. I heard the linked interview today on "Here and Now" and what a voice! I think I'm inspired to look for either her CD, or learn to buy music from iTunes. Another day, another learning experience.

The kitchen is calling my name,
Gail

Is This All the Same Artist?

Why yes, it is. Continuing the conversation, the woman said to me, "usually there is a theme, but you've got all kinds of things here. Why yes, I do. Can't help it folks. I just love taking photographs of just about anything. As if my regular readers needed reminding! If you're just stumbling across this blog you'll discover for yourself just what I'm writing about.

Friday night didn't go quite like we imagined when we left the house. Because the hour was getting late for the sleepy heads, we decided to go to a local Italian restaurant in a strip center. Perhaps I've mentioned Amalfi in the past. I won't be mentioning it in the future I can tell you that right now. Sadly, after trying to order pizza and being told they were out of dough on a Friday night, we knew something had changed. On any prior visit the food was quite tasty. These were two pretty miserable glasses of wine:

I think the glass she gave Bruce held about 3 ounces! Eventually the server returned saying they had only 10 inch dough prepped, as in most likely unfrozen? Turns out the chef retired, as did all the staff. I'm saddened that what was once a nice little local restaurant will be closing soon unless they get their act together very soon.

Winter Garden was slow for me however I managed a few sales and enjoyed myself nonetheless because the weather was SO nice after the initial chill wore off. On my way I had to stop and take a photo of Lake Gem Mary. I do so hope you can see what I saw.

The fog above the lake like that in a little line was a very fine sight indeed. On my way home I had to photograph this because two of my boys, not to mention my niece and her husband have all lived in Chicago at one time or another.

People always ask me if I carry my camera everywhere. I do. I'm still experimenting with phonography but I'm not there yet.

Saturday night I watched a little HGTV with Bruce, something I rarely do. He, on the other hand, loves that channel, leaving it on all day above his desk while he's working from home. I am now officially inspired to work some magic on my office. If only we could decide what to do with the floors in the bedrooms! The carpet, although not that old, has somehow become more stained than I'm happy with. New carpet? Wood? Decisions, decisions.

The opening lines came during the Lake Eola market which was jam packed with people, most of whom did not buy a thing from your favorite blogger. And then they did. The final hour was busier than the entire previous six. All in all, I sold 21 things making me very happy. A new buyer bought nine 8x10 prints!!! I think she kinda liked my stuff and I won't be surprised if I see her again. Nice.

I am super excited to show off the next photograph which if it hadn't been so darn foggy this morning I think could have been better. That said, how about seeing through the wings on Mr. Cardinal enjoying his breakfast at the Nuttery?

Before he flew up there he was hanging for a moment on what was supposed to be a baffler; in bird jargon, that means something slippery so you know who can't get to the feeder.

Since I mixed the two seeds, those pesky squirrels have given up on the Nuttery, leaving all the good stuff for our feathered friends.

As you're well aware, the winter so far has pretty much been a no-show, with only two cold days in the books to date. The flowers and birds are all mixed up. This morning while out watering I discovered the azaleas are already blooming.

I thought the sunlight and shadows on the front porch was so pretty I had to photograph it as well.

Mr. Baxter and I took a walk to see what we could see. The Chinese tallow trees, normally bare by now, are just changing and dropping their leaves.

Very pretty aren't they? The neighbor's tree has such interesting branches, all twisty like.

The day began foggy, the sky turned the gorgeous shade of blue seen above and now it's overcast.  I see here that the week should be nice with a little rain (we need it) and some chilly nights for the weekend. Is it any wonder Florida is now the 4th most populous state in the nation?

Spanish moss. Let's talk about how prevalent it is. There's a few globs in the above tree, but nothing like down at the other end of the street. You'd think I'd changed this to sepia but I didn't. Sunset is coming.

According to this, the moss migrated from South Carolina to Georgia to Florida, thriving in warm humid climates. We've got that in spades for most of the year! All the trees at the end of the street have tons of it, probably migrating from tree to tree.

Before I go for the day, let's talk a minute about the veggies from Jonathan and Amy at Lake Eola. Their big farm is in Belle Glade, but now they have a five acre plot to tend in Winter Garden as well. Don't ask me how a couple with seven, yes seven, children can do what they do, but there you go. They do it. The onions below are from their place, called Strawberry Onions because they are planted between rows of strawberries in organic farming.

Very cool, and according to Amy, they are sweeter than Vidalia onions but don't tell the folks from Georgia that. These tomatoes are enough to make anyone's mouth water.

Beautiful aren't they? There is another couple who sell hydroponic tomatoes they grow, which are lovely as well.

Certain times of the year they also have heirloom tomatoes in several different colors. Finally, Joseph Martens, our terrific entertainer, plays musical chairs with the children. The prize? A bag of freshly popped kettle korn from Larry and Dina. Normally I don't get to watch it but I was making a quick run around to get some photos as they were just getting set up.

Sleeveless and shorts in January folks. That's Florida for you.

p.s. One of my visitors yesterday was a photographer and his wife. Very nice folks who I met a few years ago when the city of Orlando wanted me in the annual calendar. He mentioned this blog, saying he could not believe how long I've been writing. My response was, well, unlike a sales venue, or a contest, no one judges me here. I can write and show whatever I like without repercussions.

Thanks so much for being a part of it with me,
Gail

You Saw This Coming

If you've been a reader of Camera Crazy for any of the past year, you know I've been sad about my sales. You also know how I mourned the rain out at Winter Park and with good reason! Yesterday and today I've been working on getting all the expenses together for our income tax filing.

One thing about being a small business owner is that there is much more to it than one would think. Prior to opening Out & About Photography I threw everything away. Bills, once paid were history. Now I've had to retrain myself to file everything away. I don't like filing everything away. But, I do it nonetheless, albeit in a haphazard fashion. This year I'm thinking I'll use our Orlando Sentinel bill somehow...

So, the good news is I did not lose any money if you don't count my time as worth anything. The so-so news is that this year I HAVE to do better. My car is in the driveway all packed for Winter Garden in the morning. Let's hope I can muster more sales at that location! Starting tomorrow!

This morning I was feeling the bug of creativity. Typically, January has been a good month for me to shoot something that is a winner. Looking at my still very nice roses on the kitchen table I kept thinking there must be something I could do with them. The pool--always the pool.

I'm still not sure about this one but I thought you might think it was fun. The colors are oh so beautiful. I took others, maybe nothing of interest, but I did have fun and taking photographs is supposed to be FUN! This was in between laundry and some very minimal cleaning. Minimal cleaning is my middle name.

Bruce has finally gone to his office today. Imagine that. It's been weeks since last he graced the Darden headquarters. I told him this morning as he left that the girls would all be happy to see his handsome face. He did look cute.

So, I'm waiting on him as I type and it's nearly 7:00. He promised to call before arriving so I'd know when he would be home. Oops--he just walked in. We're having a date tonight. Don't know where just yet--perhaps that great place I went to with Ha and our Austin family.

Another idea occurred to me--after all this time I know that people purchase photography mostly because of nostalgia. Good or bad, that's what they do. Pocket watches! We have two old pocket watches here. Excellent photographic material. Plus I spent some time reading about them. Here's an amazing article about timepieces from Harper's Weekly, written in 1869, you will discover if you read it that things have not changed very much. We think computers are great, smart phones, and the like but arguably, reliable timepieces are one of the greatest inventions of all time.

You'll find out more about this watch after I've had a chance to discuss it with Bruce. What I learned from that site is the age of the watch which I gathered from this:

See those numbers on the bottom left? That tells me that the watch was made in 1917! Imagine that? The glass is missing from that one but not from this one which is much newer:

That is if you count 1924 much newer! I'll have to redo these when I'm not wearing a bright coral top!! See reflections.

I could go on and on but Mr. Bruce is waiting in the wings......

Good night,
Gail