Salmon - swim upstream to die?

In the past couple weeks, while driving downtown GR over the Grand River, I noticed a bunch of guys out there fishing. It is that time of year when the salmon are swimming upstream in an effort to lay their eggs (and I guess die?).

Anyway, I talked to one of the fishermen at the office to find out what time of day would be best to catch them fishing downtown. I was told that daybreak was the best time of day. So, this morning, I was up at 6 so I could get downtown by sunrise. Much to my surprise, there were already about 30 guys with their poles in the water hoping to reel in a big one. It was a beautiful fall morning and perfect for checking out the fishermen. There were a few guys reeling them in and a bunch of other guys hooking them, but losing them to the fast current.

I think the coolest thing for me was to see the fish flying out of the water in an effort to get over the wall and into the next level of the river. Unfortunately, I was unable to capture any of those shots. : (

However, I did get a few other shots that you may enjoy.

My question is this: If the fish are going upstream to lay eggs and die, is the meat bad or old? Not as flavorful? Why are so many guys in the river trying to reel them in if it is not edible? Who knows, perhaps it is just for the sport of it. It was a good way to start my day.
Check out a couple of the photos at Flickr

The stars are out tonight

One of the many things I like about living out in the "country" is being able to walk out into my yard at night and look up and see the stars. Not a bunch of city lights that block the bigger dipper and other constellations. I get to see the stars. : )

Tonight as I walked out to the mailbox and observed the stars, I was reminded of living in Raleigh, NC, after Hurricane Fran [9.6.96]. Although the hurricane had done some damage to the area and I had no power for 10+ days, my friends and I enjoyed hanging out under the stars in the middle of the city. It was a treat to see the stars in an area normally flooded by city lights. The nights after the storm were pretty peaceful, actually relaxing. The storm sure as hell wasn't. A storm like that changes your perspective on things. I know my view of hurricanes has changed and I really don't want to go thru another one. I guess it is OK living in Michigan.

Demo Scramble at Ionia

After last week's exciting bus races at Berlin, I decided to check out the Demo Scramble that my old boss was racing in. It was not his normal Figure 8 fare, but a "demo scramble" chock full of cars that had seen many races in days gone by. Well, Figure 8 (in his 2nd number 42 car for the season) was in the first heat. It seemed as though he was off to a good start, and then, something happened. He ended up a wallflower off to the side [not out of harm's way] wanting to take another turn. However, no such luck. I will have to check out his blog, or stop by and drop off the pics and find out what happened.
All in all, it was still more fun than the bus races at Berlin. Lots of cars bit the dust and ended up like an upside down bug needing attention to go any further. Hopefully Figure 8 will get one of the cars up for the last race of the season. Who knows.
At any rate, here are a couple of shots from the race. (in no particular order)

the man on the moon

is smiling cause he's in love with the girl on the world? [from a Harry Connick, Jr song] I can hear the tune, but was never good with all the lyrics of a song. Like the b-52s song love shack, I thought the one line was, Hen-ry, Bust-ed! [instead it is really Tin Roof, Rusted] Hmm, I think it is because of the video where someone walks into the house and then they say, ...Tin Roof, Rusted?
I am sure there are other songs that I have messed up the lyrics on, but I remember the melody.
Well, you can't see the man on the moon here, but that is what I think of when I see the full moon. This shot is from 9.26.04. Kathlee inspired me to go shoot another, but I didn't catch it at the right time. So, this will have to do. Love the full moon.

Bus Races at Berlin Raceway

Sam asked if I would like to go see the Bus Races at Berlin Speedway. So, having nothing scheduled for last night, I decided that it would be interesting to go out there and see the buses race. It was more of a car race with a Bus special event than a bus race but, it was interesting.

It provided a great opportunity to people watch. People that I do not see on a regular basis. There were a few women in evening gowns [seemed odd] but mostly people in jeans & t-shirts which was OK by me. I would be remiss if I failed to mention the giant foam Cowboy hats (which you could not see around if you had one in front of you) and the t-shirt of the day? F... Milk. Got Beer?

Sam and I ate before we went out there as I am not a big fan of overpriced, carni-style food. However, it was interesting to see what others were eating. Buckets of fries, and what I thought were batter dipped french fries [how much grease do you need in one fry?] but Sam insisted they were chicken strips. Hmmm. There were lots of cans of beer and wine-type coolers for sale, along with krispie creme donuts, ice cream, and cotton candy.

Back to the race, the stock cars went around in circles, some hitting the others but mostly trying to avoid hitting others or speeding out of control. Their cars cost a lot more [than fig. 8 cars] so they probably do not want to smash them up. The bus races were a little tense as they are SO BIG on that little track so that was fun.

I think the figure 8 races that I went to were a little more exciting because there was always some smashing going on. Junker cars roaming around on the track smashing into each other at the center of the 8. Perhaps it is because a friend of mine is just crazy enough to ride in the figure 8s that I enjoy those more. Who knows.

Cockscomb

Cockscomb. An odd name for the plant but I guess it does resemble a rooster's comb. It's pretty amazing since even as it dries it retains it's vibrant color. There are a ton of seeds (the size of poppy seeds), so perhaps I will give them a go next spring and see if I will have a nice new batch of cockscomb.

Below is the ornamental eggplant I bought at the farmers market last weekend. I thought they were pretty cool looking. Not at all like an eggplant, but...

Art or Body Debris?

You decide.
I went out with a man I met off the Internet. His name was Brian. 45, an artist, well-educated [4 MFA degrees]. The 4 MFA degrees scared me a little bit as I wonder: who really needs four MFA degrees? In 4 different areas from separate schools? I have 2 degrees. One BFA [in printmaking] and an MFA [in Photography] 2, for me, is enough. I thought about getting my PhD. But, I really needed to start working and pay off the MFA degree. No more school. Enough with teachers, etc.
Anyway, back to the brainiac. When he told me about his art, I found him a little odd.
What do you think? Is it art to cut off your finger nails [gotta be in one piece] and save all the nail clippings until there are thousands of them? (at which point you display them on a wall, in little baggies.) Could you stop cutting your nails after the piece is "complete"? No, apparently you need to keep cutting them and saving them because you have done it for so long it is now part of your life.
Another "piece of artwork" is one of pubic hair arranged on a grid and taped down. Some are curly, some straight, etc. (Oh, look at the pretty patterns...)

I'm sorry, NO WAY! I am an artist, and not all of my art is as conservative as what is on my blog, but fingernails and pubic hair do NOT make ART. They are body debris. Things to be thrown out or washed down the drain! No need to leave it on the soap, the counter, the toilet seat, the bed. Say good-bye to them. They are Pubic Hairs, NOT ART. The only pubic hair that is enjoyable, is that attached to the body. Call me crazy, but it ceases to be "ART" once it is shed from the body.

2 dates with this man were plenty (although the guys at the office wanted me to go out on another just to see what crazy sh-- he would come up with next.)

I could not do it. Let him be an artist. He is obviously too deep for me (and many of my artist friends). I will be a real person who makes art on occasion and who does not save finger nail clippings or pubic hair for public displays. I prefer "pretty" pictures that include the human body, flowers and landscapes; not body debris.

Men and their hair plugs

Ok, so, it is not a man. But last weekend as I walked down the beach of Lake Michigan, it reminded me of a man I know that decided he needed to cover up his balding head and had plugs of hair embedded. I think he was much sexier bald. The plugs looked totally fake; much like this rock covered in algae. My advice to balding men:
Don't put plugs in. Don't do the toupe. Please, please, please don't do the comb-over! You are not fooling anyone. Let it go! Shave it off. It is OK! Men look good without hair on their head.
I used to love the feeling of rubbing my hands on my boyfriend's shaved head. It felt great against my hands. Touch is a wonderful thing.

Ah, if only I had a good man in my life. I miss my pork tartare. : (

my left foot

and then my right foot. Not the movie, but my feet. : )
They felt soo good on the smooth, wet rock in Lake Michigan on Sunday. The water is still relatively warm thanks to the higher than normal temps this summer. Dad and I walked the beach one hour north of his house and back. We had a good talk.
It was a gorgeous day as the light is amazing at this time of year. Just what I needed.

Guardian Frog

Some people have guardian angels, I had a guardian frog this weekend.
I found it odd to see him affixed to the side of my house and then on the screen door. [I believe he is a tree frog due to the cool little suction cups on his "Feet".] However, froggy decided to stay close by my side this weekend. So, I decided to be the paparazzi and shoot him.

Ah, I remember the days when my little sister used to go down the road at the cottage to go froggin. She kissed a lot of frogs back then; even fed one to an unsuspecting horse. I am sure the horse was not very happy (about as unhappy as Keydiddle was when the horse ate the frog she was showing him). Oh well, something new for the horse that day.

Those were the days. Summers up north at the cottage. It was great fun.

Prickly One

The only thing soft on this, are the sprays of purple coming off the head of this beast. It is nothing but menacing.

If everything on God's green earth has a purpose, could someone tell me the purpose of the thistle? To be 6' tall and covered in needles? Yikes. While it is visually pleasing, I don't understand the value of thistle. (other than giving me the ability to understand why there are other plants/flowers I like much better.) Does any good come from such a prickly beast?

Canon EOS-10D, iso 1600, lens 105mm, shutter 1/125 sec, aperture f/4.5.

Bumble Bees

My sunflowers are all a buzz right now with Bumble Bees. I pull in nightly and stop to see how many of them are hanging out on the flowers. Tonight I decided I needed a few more photos. They are really quite amazing because they had no care in the world that I was even there. All they wanted was the pollen. I was nothing to them. That's OK since I am not into getting stung. But it was pretty cool to be so close and not be bothered by them.

Flow - RobertHackneyJr

My friend Sam gave me a CD for my birthday by Robert Hackney Jr. Robert was a good friend when I was living in Raleigh, NC. Anyway, I had not talked to him in a few years and did not know that he had ventured off into the musical world. I must say that I am MOST impressed with his first release, FLOW. Very soulful and eclectic. It is the best music that I have heard in quite awhile.
I let a couple friends listen to it and they were also impressed. My electrician even wanted to know how he could order a CD after listening to it while putting in some new lighting.
Roberto, your fans await you! I can't wait till you are playing in a place near me. Kisses...

seeing spots

This morning while getting dressed, I noticed spots in my mirror. When I turned around, I noticed two fawns and the mom munching in my yard. Since they are rather skiddish, I had to photograph thru the window/screen. Had I opened a door or window they would have been GONE. Oh well, they are still enjoyable to see. Only part of the wildlife found around Honey Creek.

Crop Circle

Having to mow approximately 1.5 acres of my 3 acre parcel, I must say, at times I get bored with it.

When I first bought the house and the new mower [3 years ago], I mowed on Turbo Speed thinking it would get done faster. I went thru 3 sets of blades in 3 mowings since I was not familiar with the terrain. My neighbors got a good laugh at me Galloping around the yard on my new Sears Craftsman tractor. I said, why would they put "Full Speed Ahead" on the mower if I was not allowed to use it? At any rate, I now mow at the fastest "safe mowing speed" and get it done in about 2.5 hours. No new blades now. : )
So, this year I decided to cut in a crop circle that planes could see from above. The area I cut the cirlce in is a field of goldenrod which means that in the coming weeks it will be filled with yellow tufts of pollen sure to please. I am thinking about getting a reddish mum plant to place smack dab in the middle of the spiral so it looks like a bullseye. Not that I really want planes shooting at my target in the front "40" [instead of back forty] but visually it would look cool. Now if I can just find a plane that can fly over so I can photograph it from the air. Surely there must be someone offering airplane rides in the greater Grand Rapids area.

Can you recommend a good lens for shooting? 300mm?

oh cana, you're so fine

Ah, my first cana lilly (from the death and dying rack at home depot). It was a good buy and is Oh, so beautiful.
There is just something about the red. Too bad they won't make it thru the Michigan winters.

A Perennial Cana Lilly would be great. : )

Mushroom from Hell?

Ok, last Sunday morning I woke up to see what I thought was a cat sitting in the backyard. That is not too odd as there are a number of cats that wander into my yard to eat the wildlife around the house. However, I noticed that this one was not moving, so I decided to go out and investigate. What I found was a GIANT mushroom that had formed over night. Check out the pics at flicker.

Aug 6 and the Coast Guard Festival

I started out my day with a stop to a friend's garage sale (where he is always selling something). I found a couple nice end tables and a cast iron frying pan. Then I was off to the Fulton Street Farmers Market and Meijer Gardens to photograph some flowers. After all that, I decided it was a perfect day to drive out to Grand Haven for the end of the Coast Guard Festival. I have a few photos from that event. It was fun to people watch. Vacation photos from Burke's Falls coming soon...

The power of wind

After a day at the office and an evening out, I returned home to find my favorite crab apple tree missing a major artery. How sad it was to pull in my driveway and see the crab apple tree with a limb lopped off from the wind just laying there in the island. We had a bit of heavy rain today, but I do not remember the wind or even lightning.

I do not think the weight of the bumper crop of crab apples took it down. However, it's down. So, I wonder if my friend Mark, who likes to operate my chain saw, would be willing to clean up my poor crab apple tree? Or, would it be a job for the professional tree guys?

On a minor note, my lovely welcome flag is now showing it's age after the storm today -- getting pierced by the same pole that supports it.

Poor old welcome flag...

Trip to the zoo

On Saturday, my friend Linda and her 18 mo. old daughter came over for a visit. It was the first time that I had met her daughter & I'm 18 mo. late with the gift. Since I had never been to the John Ball Park Zoo, I thought it would be fun to go to the zoo with Linda & Em.
Em found her shadow for the first time and we saw lots of animals.

It was a nice way to spend a HOT summer day.

The Jelly Fish were mesmerizing.
It would be great to have a tank of these to relax by... A giant rodent.
A Monkey.
two words for this pic. An Afterthought?