Betsi's step-brother, Tom, is a dive coach and it
shows. He taught the kids to jump off the 3 meter springboard
and Ryan even flipped off of it a few weeks ago.
Ainsley.
Ryan.
Zack.
Tom again.
September 2, Tuesday
Some new faces replace the advancing seventh graders this year at the
bus stop on the first day of school.
September 3, Wednesday
Ryan and Ainsley on the second day of school.
September 4, Thursday
Dreamworks logo.
A setting moon with the color balance shifted to 2000 Kelvin.
September 6, Saturday
The kids had fun running through the wind and the rain from the remnants
from tropical storm Hanna. See more
photos.
September 11, Thursday
Ryan's baseball team, the Defenders, played their second game of the
season and defeated the Bats 13-10. The camera told me it was much
darker on this field than any Orioles or Nationals games. The least
blurry photos were when everyone was standing still. Here's a secret. Many
of the photos were cropped to make the zoom lens look more powerful than
it really is. Shhh! Don't tell. See more
photos.
September 13, Saturday
Ryan's baseball team took to the field at 11:30am in hot, humid, sunburn
kind of weather you'd expect in mid August. The Defenders came
to life at the bottom of the sixth (last inning), but it wasn't enough
to close the scoring gap. Ryan couldn't get a good pitch to hit
(left) and ended up walking. He was able to steal second, third
and home (right) after some wild pitches that ended up behind the catcher. I
don't know everyone's name on the team, so I didn't add any comments
yet. Ryan is number five. See
more photos.
Betsi and Jeff stained the deck railing and finished at sunset. The
fans helped keep us cool in the shade on this miserably hot day.
The moon rises over one of our favorite, cheap Mexican restaurants. The
kids tried and liked Betsi's virgin pina colada. We encourage the
kids to try different things because there is more to life than their
favorites of pizza and chicken nuggets. Ryan is getting used to
salsa and Ainsley dipped her chip in the salsa to get a red dot on the
tip. When Betsi's drink arrived, Ainsley wasn't bashful in asking
to try it. We don't think it was too hard for her to ask since
it looked sweet. These were taken with the 35mm f/2 lens without
any cropping at 1/30s, f/2, ISO 800.
Ryan brought a few of his Lego figures to keep himself
entertained. Outside the restaurant, several
kinds of peppers are grown.
Betsi and Ainsley wait outside while Jeff teaches Ryan
how much to tip and how to pay the bill. We don't expect Ryan
to pick up the tab anytime soon, but he was curious about it. Paying
for dinner was different than buying a toy in a store.
September 14, Sunday
The thick haze created a glow around the moon as it rose over
the house during Shadow's walk.
The day was miserably hot and humid without a hint of a breeze. Perspiration
started beading on people's faces within minutes. A morning
run and mowing the lawn wasn't as much fun today.
Six days away: WE ARE... PENN STATE!
September 16, Tuesday
I like the colorful blue sky as it changes from gray to blue
to black.
I used the 35mm f/2 lens since it was a narrow lens that could
peek through the chain link fence. My other lenses were too
fat and included too much of the fence as shadows in the photos. This
was taken at 1/100s, f/3.2, ISO 800.
Ryan likes to have a turn at bat, but it's hard for
him to advance his batting skills. Several pitches are wild
throws that either cause him to step back or the ball ends up getting
past the catcher. I guess it's a part of baseball of not knowing
where the ball is going to go. Do you see the brown streak
of a baseball against the trees coming in as high as his head?
1/80s, f/3.2, ISO 800
Ryan steals home after a wild pitch makes it past the
catcher. This photo was cropped quite
a bit to make it appear the wide angle 35mm lens was more like a
telephoto 135mm lens.
Betsi's Dad stopped by to watch a few innings and to say, "Hi" to
the kids.
September 17, Wednesday
I took the camera with me as I walked Shadow around our neighborhood
pond at sunset.
Ainsley was eating a late dinner after soccer practice when I cut through
our back yard, stood on our deck, and took a picture through the bay
window.
September 18, Thursday
We used our coupons to get these $35 seats for $8 each. They
are the same seats we had on the August 27 game. Ryan
was given a baseball. These tickets are much cheaper than the
Penn State tickets below.
September 20, Saturday
We purchased four tickets from StubHub. It
was nerve racking to click on the "purchase" button when
we didn't know the weather conditions 10 days away. It was
about four hour drive to get there, some tailgating, the three hour game,
some more tailgating, and a four hour drive back; a full day for sure. You
can watch a game on TV or hear someone describe the game, but this
is something you just have to experience to fully appreciate it.
The seating is tight and there are tight restrictions on the size
of anything you can bring into the stadium. I settled on the 24-105mm
zoom and flash. I left the monster 100-400mm zoom at home. To
compensate, I severely cropped a few photos. There are usually
blurry and over exposed, but better than nothing. See more
photos. Hear the Blue
Band.
September 23, Tuesday
Jeff's Dad was in town for the evening and stopped
by for dinner and watched Ryan's baseball practice. It was
good to see him and the kids enjoy joking around with Grandpa.
September 27, Saturday
Here's something you don't see every day; an albino squirrel.
Ryan's baseball team, the Defenders, won against the Bats. See more
photos.
September 29, Monday
This group of colorful mushrooms appeared next to a neighborhood jogging
trail after 4 days of on again, off again rains. It's something I
don't see every day.
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