Lunch Break

As some of you may know...I have been thrust back into the world of 8-5 m-f +2 glorious weeks of vacation.

I am working at a place that recycles..well...poop. And at said place, I get to make maps and do ALL kinds of other stuff that is currently making my head spin and by the time I get home from work the LAST thing I want to do is spend time on my super shiny Mac Book Pro. I also have not been taking many pictures either. I am hoping now that I am beginning to recover from the shock of working all day and am settling into a nice routine.

So, I thought I would share with you my lunch spot, and things I saw today while eating my lunch...I really do love working where I do...especially since 60 minutes of my day can be spent here:



Looking up at this:



And looking down for these:






Trilliums are my all time favorite wildflower here, after the rare Pink Lady Slipper. It means spring is really, really here.

That is what I got to see today...and now I believe I have had enough of computers.

seriously?

THIS just walked through my front yard, grabbed my suet feeder and ran.

BREAKING NEWS

spring is here.

The crocus that got chomped by some animal still perseveres...



The Hyacinth is spreading its leaves...



Ok, so, the Pileated Woodpecker and the Dove are not really spring birds, but they were at the feeder...

The Good Cancer

There is no such thing as good cancer you say???? I used to wonder why the people at the thyroid cancer forum I used to visit would get SO MAD when somebody would say "Thyroid cancer is a 'good cancer'". Seriously, with a cure rate hovering around 95% yeah, I would consider it "good". Cancer in and of it self sucks. And it is scary. Yes, it is serious. And then there are stories like Lisa's, over at Clusterfook, and it makes me feel like I was a HUGE whiner when it came to being diagnosed with "the good cancer". Because you know what? Thyroid cancer is NOTHING compared to what she has gone through, twice and is now going through a third time. I am asking anyone who visits here to head on over to Clusterfook, read her story and give her some kind words. What she has gone through and is about to go through no human being and their family should have to go through. So, yeah, I had cancer. Big flipping deal. I was lucky. Then, I want you to go over and visit Miss Ann and see what she and the rest of a pretty awesome blogging community is trying to do for Lisa and help.

Knock...Knock...Hello???

Hello??? Anybody home???
Oh, wait, I am knocking on my own door....Yes! I AM home. For now.
Seems as though I may have gotten myself a place back into the real world...the real 8-5 m-f world. Guess I have been busy polishing up the resume, writing cover letters and licking envelopes....and it WORKED!!! Even with a 2.5 year "real world" and I don't mean MTV Real World, gap...I am excited.

Other than that, the deer ate my crocus. The ones that had just come up out of the ice. The ones that were JUST about to bloom. Yeah. Those. I am so bitter I am not taking a picture. The only reason I am not sitting outside with Duane's shotgun is the deer are starving and it is not deer season. Oh, and yeah, I have no idea how to load, let alone shoot a gun. So, they are safe. But I DO Have my secret weapon....

Sanibel Stuff

We had a great trip to Sanibel, albeit a pretty cold (relatively cold for all you New Englanders) and windy trip for the most part. Not 85 and sunny...that is for sure. But the storm that blew into Florida the day we showed up made for some great shelling at some of the best shelling beaches in the world. I could stand at the big shell pile and hunt for the best shells all day long.

Anyways, here are some of my favorite images from the trip:

This is what they call "The Sanibel Stoop" red tourists all hunched over searching for shells...



Can you blame them???







This heron stood and posed for at least the 2 hours we were at this beach. I think the island of Sanibel pays him.



A brown pelican, these guys look like 767's when they fly. I can't believe they can even get airborne!!!



This little guy just hanging out on a post. Again, paid to stand for the paparazzi...



SPEAKING of paparazzi...can I just say two words??? LENS ENVY!!!!!!! Yeah, the photographer had to take photographs of the photographers...



Speaking of lenses, I used my new fisheye lens to take this picture of the Collier House Inn on Useppa Island. Not bad for a cheapo lens!



And finally...by popular demand (Hello Anonymous):

Lunch!

Old Time Photo Restoration

I am back from vacation, and will be posting some images later....but first, I wanted to show you an old time photo of me and my parents from way, way back. I think I was about 5 or 6 maybe...not too sure. Anyways, I have this old picture of us from this studio at the Casino in Hampton Beach, where you get to dress up in old time clothing and then pose for pictures. I am not sure what the place was called, or if it was even legal for me to scan it in and try and restore it...but the image had faded over time and had some scratches and dust. To try and save it I used a few simple photoshop tricks, mainly Dust and Scratches, plus some levels and curves and a little bit of sharpening.

Here is the original:



Here is the result: