Tuesday, November 30, 2010

game nights






Some Wednesday or Thursday nights, I go to game night.
We eat chips, drink pop, order pizza, and play boardgames.
They are nights of rules and objectives friends and learning.
I have strengthened my creativity, prediction, logic and tactics.
These nights are a welcome respite from modern entertainment.

Saturday, November 27, 2010

Bald Eagle



There is a bald eagle out my window right now.
2 bald eagles, actually - I can hear them chortle.
I saw them each land atop my favorite tree.
How wonderful is it to live downtown.
And see bald eagles out the window.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

camera FYI



FYI, my only camera is quite used.
It is dented, scratched, and the screen is broken.
This is awesome, though; because it truly liberates my photographs.

I never 'check to see if its a good shot' - because I can't.
Nor do I 'care very much about it getting scratched' - because it is.
I am enabled, worry free, to take pictures while rock climbing.
Or whilst performing dirty, oily, mechanical work on my jeep.

There isn't even a view finder.
So, I don't worry about composition beyond a general sense.
This often makes for intriguing shots, because they are never perfect.

The camera has held up to my use and abuse for years.
And it still performs flawlessly.
However, a puff of smoke is emitted every time I use the flash.
This is quite comical.

It did take a while to decipher the menus without a screen.
Unfortunately, I can't take macro shots any longer.
I have managed to figure out how to turn the flash on or off.
That has been enough for me, though.

Today, cameras like mine are a dime a dozen.
Just as common are high end DSLRs.
It makes me feel good when people ask me what camera I use.
This query underscores that a camera doesn't make a photographer.
The photos make the photographer.

All of these things make a hybrid photographer of me.
And that is exactly the type I'd like to be.
  • Old (wait for development to view, aka, download from card)
  • New (take a million pictures because they are free)

Kyles Imaginary Billboard

A few weeks ago, my highschool art buddy Kyle posted an interesting article.



Click HERE to read the article.

It describes a piece of art near the US/Canada border.
The art has been installed at the crossing I most often use!
I happened to be heading to Seattle the day after I read the article.

The timing and mixture of these great things excited me.
An old friend, a creative piece of art, and synchronicity.

The proximity to the border puts this art in a high security area.
It is not possible to stop anywhere near the art at all.
That fact coupled with the darkness meant I only got one good shot.
The US border agents were quite serious and alarmed.
They wouldn't let me exit the vehicle for a photo.



I totally forgot about the art piece when returning to Canada.
It was early in the morning and I was concentrating on getting to work.
There was instant significance and impact for me as I glimpsed the art.
It forced me into a reaction of dedication and focus to get a better picture.
I approached the Canadian border at a suspiciously slow speed.
Construction workers on the US Border Facility heightened the interest dramatically.

This is truly a remarkable piece of art.
It should be a monument for its human affect.
It invokes curious thought and powerful language.

Framing a living background, the art changes as your own perspective shifts.
I contrasted the art to our society's lust for consumerism shouted by billboards.
Imagine how much more wondrous a drive from place to place would be without ads.
Our travels would imprint meaningful memories upon us about the geography.
We would notice architecture, landscape, colors, and crops.
Seasons, scents, and scenery would all be more vivid.


Indeed, this was one fine billboard, the greatest I have ever seen.
Natural beauty is infinite and always in motion.










Thanks for the inspiration to seek and document his experience, Kyle!

Monday, November 22, 2010

4.0 Header Installation

________________________________
_____________________________
______________________


remove Airbox
cover Throttle Body
remove Electric Fan
reduce tension and remove Serpentine Belt
remove Power Steering Pump
disconnect Fuel Line at Fuel Rail
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Swivels and Extensions required for Manifold Bolts
many hard to reach Manifold Bolts
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Exhaust Manifold (Header)
Header cracked almost entirely around one tube at the Collector
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Header removed
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Injector Wiring and Sensors labeled for ease of re-assembly
Intake ports [] and Exhaust ports () in Cylinder Head
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Gasket surfaces prepped through scraping, sanding, conservative use of solvent
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

spray new Gasket with Copper High Temp Adhesive Sealant
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Cylinder Head prepped
Copper sprayed Gasket resting on alignment pins
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

APN Header
new Brass Hardware
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Installed
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Swivel Head Gear Wrench required
apply Dielectric Grease to all electrical connections on re-assembly
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________

Get Grease on Shutter so remaining photos are ruined
________________________________
_____________________________
______________________