Saturday Morning in Kauai

While Karen is catching up on sleep, I'm catching up on sorting and editing and post processing pics and getting them uploaded.

We spent a couple of days and nights with Jason and Kollette.... and Izzie and Lucia and the new baby who doesn't quite yet have an official name but it is looking like he will be named "Asa".

The coffee and mac nut farm looks great. We were there 3 years ago when things were just getting started. A lot of work has been done. (for a link to all your Kona coffee and Mac nut needs... check in the column to the right)

Keep an eye out for a Discovery Channel special on midwives. I think it is scheduled to air this summer. Jason and Kollette were one of four couples featured and film crews and writers spent days with them filming and collecting their story. Funny thing happened though.... Kollette went into labor and progressed so fast the midwive didnt' have time to get there. Jason delivered the baby!

It will take hours and hours to get descriptions on pics for those who want to know. If you have any specific burning questions feel free to ask.

Have a great day.

Richard

We Made it to Kauai

We are exhausted so I'll make this very short. There are more pics posted. I've got a reliable and fast connection now so I'll get more done and start adding some test and descriptions to the pics. Hope all is well. I hear a lot of you are getting some cold icy weather.

Richard

Captain Cook, Hawaii

The picture was from yesterday morning taken from our balcony at Uncle Billy's in Hilo. The cruise ship was the Pride of America and was quite a sight to see it come and go in the small harbor.

Well here it is Thursday morning. We are off the grid with Jason and Kollette Stith on their coffee and Mac nut farm. All I can say is..... beee u tee ful! It still might be a couple of days before I get any serious picture posting done. They don't have much electricity much less high speed internet. What they do have is fruit of all kind falling off trees and a view of the Pacific from 1500 feet up and 5 miles away. When it is clear you can see the horizon that is probably another 10 miles.

Sometime Saturday we will be flying to Kauai and at that time I should have time and internet to catch up with pictures. I'm shooting about 250 to 300 a day and Karen has her camera. She is posting on Facebook. You can join facebook and look her up and request to be her friend... then you can see her pics. It is free and doesn't take that long. It will probably be Saturday by the time she gets on Facebook again.

Well, let me send this off for posting. Until next time... which might be Saturay night....

Richard

Tuesday Night in Hilo

Internet connections in Hawaii seem slow and not efficient. At least that is what I'm experiencing. I'm trying to get bunches of pics uploaded to Flickr and it is near impossible.

We had a nice day today just riding around and going to state parks. Each one gave us a different look at the ocean and plant life. We found one place that looked a bit dangerous for surfing, but there were two guys who seemed to know what they were doing. Had they gone off course they may have been thrashed and smashed into the rocks. Actually, the rocks aren't really rocks.... or maybe they are.. regardless, the lava stones... either way it would scrape skin and break bones.

We had dinner at Uncle Billies which is where we are staying. Turns out Billie is a local guy with Hawaiian roots and is locally famous. Tonight there were about 30 local folk, politicians and others who were having a meal and celebration of something. They all seemed to have a good time and sang some songs in Hawaiian we of course didn't understand. The food was much better than we expected from a motel restaurant and was probably as good as you could find for twice the price. Good thing we are doing a lot of walking.

Well, maybe tomorrow I can get pictures uploaded into outer space so they can filter on down through the wind and wires to your computer.

Mahalo,

Richard

Tuesday Morning in Hilo, Hawaii

We had a rough start this morning and couldn't get internet a the place we are staying in Hilo. That and the couple next door who were having an hour long knock down dragged out fight for over an hour.... sheesh....

So let's see.... we flew into the airport at Kona Sunday night. We spent the night and Monday morning made some plans. We decided to spend Monday and Tuesday night in Hilo (hmmm... could have flown into their airport..) Sometime Wednesday afternoon we will head back over the the west coast and spend Wed, Thur and Friday at Jason and Kollette's coffe and Mac nut farm... maybe do a little work!

After we get our internet needs met we will go out exploring for the day. Every site we see is new and exciting.

I'm going to start putting pics in catagories. I'll break them down into the Islands.... I've added a few to Oahu so after you look at them this time you won't be finding any new pics. Next catagory will be "The Big Island". I might later break that one down.

Hope all is well in your worlds.

Richard

(well... it looks like I can't upload a batch of pics I want to right now.... I'll try again tonight...hmmm around midnight your time on the East coast.)

Monday Morning in Kona

Here it is and it is already 1030. We are getting breakfast and trying to plan our day. I can't upload any new pictures right now as they are on the external hard drive and I can't plug that in here.

Hope all is well with everyone. I should be able to get back online by tonight.

Mahalo,

Richard and Karen

Leaving Waikiki

We've got about 45 minutes till we hop on the shuttle to go to the airport and get on a plane to fly to The Big Island.

We are calling our Waikiki, Oahu experience our "Urban" experience. We did a lot of walking and did not rent a car.

This is the slow time of year but the beaches and streets seemed packed. I'm looking forward to the Big Island and finding quiet spots to enjoy the natural beauty of Hawaii although there is plenty to be had on the beaches.

This morning we took a van ride to the stadium for the local swap meet/flea market. This is an experience that Karen will not miss regardless of where we go. She loves to shop for those special treasures that are found in "antique" stores, junk shops and flea markets. Today she found some kokeshi dolls from the 70's. She loves all things oriental so she was pleased. I was along for the walk and didn't see much that interested me.

Our last meal here was at the Rainbow Drivethrough about a 1/2 mile from the zoo. I had curried beef and Karen had some type of chili hot dog platter with rice. It fit right in with the urban experience as this was pure local and enough food to stuff a sumo wrestler for under 7 dollars.

It is possible I've lost my cell phone. I thought I left it in the room when we checked out but no one has turned it in. It's possible it is stuffed in the luggage somewhere. Don't try to call until you've heard it is found.

So off we go to the Big Island. We will spend the first night around Kona not far from the airport. Assuming we have internet there I'll get some more pictures posted tonight.

Mahalo

Richard

Time for Bed...

A long day with lots of walking. I'm getting new pics added to the slide show several times a day.

More in the morning.....

Aloha

Richard

Waikiki Saturday Morning.

Although this picture is not very good from a technical standpoint... I like it. I think it captures the spirit of this place. It was taken from the 20th floor of the Marriott here in Waikiki and the subject was easily 1/4 mile away.

Today we are making a trip to the zoo and in general wandering around.

There are not many places I'd consider moving to.. or running away to.... Hawaii is at the top of the list.

Much more to follow....

Richard

Star Tracks

I spent a little time tonight taking star pictures. This one captures Karen driving through the exposure.

Submarines

This morning when I stopped off at the 1st Island of the CBBT I had the opportunity to watch 3 different Coast Guard vessels and a Navy Sub. It was a bit chilly with winds gusting to over 30 and temps right around 29. I've added pics to the slideshow "CBBT" and the link is in the right hand column.

Richard

A Cloudy Monday

I'm getting ready to trek across the bay to work tonight. I think I've finally recovered from the last all nighter. I'll sleep some Tuesday morning. I'll sleep some more Tuesday night. Then on Wednesday I have to get ready for our trip on Friday as I'll be working on Thursday.

Over 30 years ago when I had a 35mm SLR my preparation would have been so simple. How many rolls of film could I afford...2... maybe 3 or 4 rolls of 36 exposure slide film. Developing costs would come later. Grab the camera and go.

Today I'm ready with a daily limit of 16 gigs of SDHC cards ready to be downloaded to an external hard drive of 250 gigs and uploaded after processing to Flickr. Shooting in RAW (no.. not naked... it's a format in the camera) takes up a lot of memory but 16 gigs should give me a limit of 1000 images a day. I can do 200 a day when there isn't anything to take pictures of!

So as we age our ability to remember declines along with the price of electronic memory.... I figure by the time I can't remember I should have everything properly backed up.

Richard

Hunting Pictures

To clarify the post.. I was out hunting for pictures with my camera.

It has been a cloudy day and although not ideal for a lot color in pictures there are plenty of opportunities. I drove over to Willis Wharf and walked around in the humid cold air and found a couple of Hooded Mergansers. There were a few snow flurries and it was windy. Typical hunting weather for the Eastern Shore.

Keep in mind the pictures here frequently do not fit full size. Click on the picture to see it in full. Go to the links if you want to see larger versions or more complete sets.

Richard

Sunday Morning

We have this flowering plant in the house. It might be an orchid. For over a week it has changed and is in full bloom with about 20 of these flowers. When I'm around and the sun is shining through the window just right I get another shot.

I'm trying to get my skills up for Hawaii. I've estimated I'll probably take about 500 shots a day and about 5 to 7 thousand images for the trip. I'm hoping out of all that I should have a couple good ones.

Masters of the Food Chain

The Pelican Has Landed

It's Friday afternoon and I've only had a couple of hours sleep since working last night. It was a crudy night as far as they go... not that any of them are "good".

The UPS man delivered a package that included my new lens. I've taken a few shots with it and all I can say is I hope I can live up to its potential. It is a Canon EF 100-400 IS USM.

On the way home this morning I stopped at the first island of the CBBT and got a series of shots of this pelican coming in for a landing. For the complete landing sequence you can see them in the slideshow by clicking on the link to the right for the Chesapeake Bay Bridge....

Richard

Morning Moon

On the way home this morning around 8 AM I stopped at the CBBT and was busy trying to get some good bird shots when I turned around and found a jet flying by under the morning moon.

BIF

A couple of posts ago I put up a picture of a "Hawk". Well, I'm learning. I believe it is an immature Bald Eagle. Today I spent some time watching this guy and taking a few pictures. After getting better looks and consulting a book I've concluded it is an eagle. I've got to rush now to make it to work by 4PM since I've been greatly distracted.

Richard

12 Days Till Hawaii

On the 23rd Karen and I are headed out to Hawaii. As usual, I haven't prepared one bit. All I know is that the first week we will be on the Big Island and the 2nd week Kauai. Is there really anything else I need to know?

The picture today is a cement statue who lives outside by our back deck. Today I named her Sunge Qui when I posted the pic on flicker. I have no idea what that might mean.

---This just in: Karen tells me her real name is Kwan Yin and she is the goddess of mercy and compassion.


Richard

BIF... Birds in Flight

This morning while trying to get my caffeine level up to normal I noticed some bird action from the kitchen. My first thought was, "just another buzzard". However, I soon noticed some un-buzzard like behavior.

I didn't have my camera in my hands as it was in the other room and besides, it didn't have my long lens on it. So I watched this hawk as it made three swoops down toward the ground targeting an area out of sight behind my boat. It then retreated and perched on a tree 125 yards from my view point. I went and got the camera and switched lenses to my 55-250 zoom. I waited.

It did not resume its mission as I had hoped but left its perch and went in search of food elsewhere. I got this one passable shot.

Later when I got dressed I went out in the yard to see what might have attracted it. In the general area was a "buck tail". A furry 6 inch piece of a deer tail from one of the deer I shot this year was laying in the grass. Emmitt probably carried it there and just left it.

I believe the hawk had spied it from above and decided to take the presumed prey but when it didn't run or move as it swooped down it didn't have the proper data to complete its mission. Interesting.

The picture is marginal. I need a better lens for BIF and other wildlife. I see a Canon EF 100-400 in my future.

Richard

The Christmas You Didn't See...

I'm just now catching up on Christmas pictures.... and no.. they aren't the pics from Christmas you would expect. The link to the slideshow is to the right.

New Slideshow: Look to the right for the link...

I've started a collection that is sure to grow (like the national debt?). I currently make about 10 to 12 trips a month to Norfolk and I'm in the habit of stopping for a look and a weather check when crossing the Chesapeake Bay.

Black and White Morning

Last night was a crazy busy night without any real badness and the ride home was gray and foggy. I've got to get some sleep but for now I'm posting one picture I took from the CBBT with more to follow sometime tonight when I'm awake again.

Early One Sunday Morning...

From an ER somewhere in some city where only the worried but not so sick are out and about...It is what we would call a slow night.

I figured I post a picture that is in the Warm Fuzzies slideshow just so you can see a new pic just about every day.

Yesterday was the last day of our deer season here in Virginia. It ended for me at 9AM on Saturday when I shot a 6 point buck. That was #6 for the year and a fine ending to the season. We will be eating a lot of venison this year.

Richard

No Stars Tonight

It has been a cloudy and sometimes rainy day. There are no stars out tonight. I did add a few pics to the Night Light Paintings folder that I gleened from last nights shoot.

After I get something to eat I might talk Karen into going out and seeing what Willis Wharf looks like at night.

Richard

More Night Painting

I've been out again tonight. I've added another couple of pictures to the slideshows.

2009

Happy New Year!!!!!

Richard