Little Si View

You can also see lots and lots of trees.

Little Si

Today we hiked "Little Si", the shorter, easier companion hike to Mt. Si (or Big Si) that we first hiked on the Fourth of July. This was a great hike. A fun trail, cool terrain, just the right amount of challenge. The payoff at the summit was not nearly as great as Big Si in terms of the view because it's not 360 degrees and you can't see Mt. Ranier. What you can see is this (above) view of Big Si. We hiked to that top point triangle, so you can see how much further and harder it appears. We had our traditional second breakfast at the summit - ham sandwiches, fruit, and chocolate.

Fish for Dinner

I decided that I was feeling adventurous this weekend so this morning when we were planning the meals for the week I actually requested fish for tonight. I never eat fish. I have never liked it. But, over the years I have expanded my palate quite a bit and acquired many new tastes so I am willing to be open to the possibility that a taste for seafood will need to be actively acquired.

We are starting off fairly easily, a very mild cod cooked with onions, tomatoes, capers, olives, lemon, and fresh herbs. I didn't like it's texture when it first came out of the oven. It was like eating raw chicken - kind of slippery?! So J pan finished it for me to a more flaky texture. It was so mild that it almost tasted like nothing at all. As long as I put a caper or olive in every bite I was able to eat the whole thing.

Harvest

The very very last of the snow peas. And my first "big" tomato. I have been looking forward to this tomato for weeks. On the plant, there were two growing side by side, nestled into a little crook of tomato branches so we affectionately called them "the bull's balls". Too bad it wasn't very yummy tasting. It had a mealy texture which is very unappetizing in tomatoes. Now I feel bad because I don't really want to keep watering and tending the plant to keep growing large, beautiful, undelicious tomatoes.

A Good Sign

This morning, before my clients arrived for their session, I saw a tiny hummingbird. I never have my camera when they suddenly appear but this time, I did. Obviously, not with a 300mm lens on it, but at least I did have it. I snapped this while he perched on the tallest flower. I always think hummingbirds are a very very good sign. At the very least, I find them cheerful.

Roses II

These are the same roses from the other day. This time in the last little possible hint of evening light. This is almost straight out of camera and it saw the whole world as being rose-colored at that moment so who am I to argue? Simply beautiful.

Scouting II

The scouting trip continued to an often-maligned town nearby in the burbs of Seattle that had a very lovely little park along the Sammamish River. They've moved several old historic buildings like a pioneer cabin, the first one-room schoolhouse, and a farmhouse to the park so there are lots of good photo opportunities. It turned out to be a great day out in the sunshine with lots of things going my way.

Seeing

On the way back up the trail, though I was keeping a good pace, I suddenly spotted these amazing mushrooms all covered in dew. They grabbed my eye because it's been very dry and nothing in the entire forest was wet, except suddenly for these few mushrooms. When I looked closer, I noticed the tiniest slug I've ever seen. Ever. He's about the size of one of my fingertips. I am sure that most people would have breezed right passed these mushrooms and the snail but I spotted it immediately and was drawn closer. I take this as a very good sign that my eye is still working, that it's still sharp, that my mind is really taking in all the details of the world and processing them. I was able to really appreciate this small moment out of my day today and that happens so rarely. I was alone, outside, in a forest, the sun was shining, I was breathing hard and using my muscles, and I had a few moments to appreciate some dew and a tiny slug.

Scouting

I had to go on a scouting trip today to look for new locations to do portrait sesssions. I usully hate doing this, dread it, and put it off until the last possible moment. Today, however, turned out amazing! I went to a State Park that I saw listed on the map but had never heard of or been to. When I arrived, I found that it had the biggest most awesome playground I have ever seen (I really would have loved to give it a go if it weren't so crowded), a lovely orchard, and miles of hiking trails. They appeared to lead down to the lake but I had no idea how long or difficult they would be and if the lake would have a suitable payoff. Only one way to find out! And that's how I found myself hiking alone at midday on a Monday! One of the perks of the job, I suppose. :) The trails lead through a deep ravine that felt very far way from the city. And at the bottom there was a nice lake view and all of these trees that had fallen into the water to make cute little private cove type beaches between them. It would be lovely to spend a day there.

Roses

I haven't photographed the roses as much this year as last year. I haven't cut as many and brought them into the house either. I guess it's just another example of how when you see beauty over and over again you become desensitized to it. That being said, I did go out in very early morning light to photograph these beauties so I guess I am still seeing it. I liked the way the tight bud looked against the full bloom in the background.

Kitty

When I came home from some errands I was lazy and just dropped my shopping bag and my hoodie on the kitchen counter. When I came back a few minutes later, someone had turned my hoodie into a bed for napping.

Cocktail at Ocho

We had a few drinks and tapas at the delicious Ocho where all the outdoor chairs are dangerously wobbly. But when it came time to really eat we headed across the street to La Isla for to-die-for Caribbean food.

Heidi

This is the first time I have ever met a long-time friend of Michelle, Heidi. She is up from L.A. visiting. She was kind enough to completely ignore me as I photographed her perusing the cocktail menu at Ocho. It was like I had been photographing her for years and she knew not to change what she was doing just because I brought up a camera a foot or so from her face across a very small table. I love the results and wish I could get everyone to be this comfortable in front of my camera.

Blue

Out with T&M and M's friend Heidi tonight. We wandered the neighborhood in search of drinks or food with less than a 2 hour wait. On the way, I made M stop in front of a newly painted cinder block wall to have her portrait taken. It came out just the way I saw it in my mind, except that I wish I had my stool to stand on so that I was just a bit taller.

Dishes for One

I always find the dishes extraordinarily beautiful when J is out of town and I photograph them very often. The look so clean, simple, uncluttered. It's how I wish my kitchen looked and felt every day. But, I'd rather have a messy kitchen and J home 99% of the time.

Lick

Technically, this photograph is terrible. But I couldn't resist it, can you? He's a good kitty.

Checkered

A classic red and white checkered tablecloth. Nothing says summer more than that! Eating outdoors two nights in a row is a record since we moved to Seattle. This was either my Grandmother's or my Great-Grandmother's tablecloth, either way making it really really old. This is the first time I've ever used it after bring it and a yellow one home from my mom's house in April. J and I had a date night tonight, eating outdoors, checkered tablecloth, a candle, some wine and no doubt some good food but I can't remember what it was. We actually talked, late into the evening, until the light began to fade. It was really wonderful but I can barely remember what we spoke about now. I should post these journal entries fresh when I can still remember things.  At least the pictures always evoke the feelings of a time and place, even if I can't recall the exact details.

An Evening

I loved all these photographs together so I thought they should be posted that way. Apparently I was seeing a lot of color this evening. There was definitely some magic light going on. Cocktails, steaks, magic light, eating outdoors...that's a pretty great evening. I loved how the still life of the cocktail ingredients had all the colors, red, yellow, blue, green and yellow. The steaks, well, they're filet mignon. Of course. We always have filet mignon at our dinners. Actually, they were mislabeled at the grocery store as cheap pork and we got a really good deal. The cashier noticed the error and honored the price anyways so it's not exactly like we stole them.  I still feel a little guilty about it though.  There's a bendy self-portrait in the door knob, and finally my chives in the garden. My herb garden is full of green.

Trivial Pursuit

We've only played the game once or twice since we came back from Hawaii and I found this version at the Value Village for $1.99 with all the pieces and even the instructions. I think, lifetime, this has to be my all-time favorite game. We used to play it even when I was a kid and couldn't hope to know very many of the answers. I can't remember if my parents had any "house rules" or not. We have one. You can get up to three questions asked on a turn if the question/answer combo is something so irrelevant now that no one under the age of 55 would know it. It's not for simple guessing questions like "How many wings does a fly have?" or anything like "Which countries were our allies during WWII?". It's for questions like, "Who is Howdy Doody's brother?" (it's Double Doody). Of course it's a bit subjective but when you turn the card over and it says something like "Mitchell Brown" (DUH) it's a safe bet that you weren't supposed to know it. We've been having fun playing, as long as we don't do it too often. The wine helps too. Tonight I won two games in a row. The first one was a record short 1 hour.

Tomatoes

Our first of the small "cherry" type tomatoes are ripening. I read somewhere that you should pick them a bit early and let them ripen all the way at room temperature indoors. This one though is bright bright red and was ready to be eaten, which it was, seconds after this photograph was taken. It was so delicious. It's been kind of hard to savor (or be impressed) by our home grown veggies this year when they come in one or two at a time. I mean, one strawberry just doesn't really satisfy a craving. So I am hoping that the tomatoes will eventually be ready to harvest a number of them at the same time and say, put them in a salad.

Bonus points if you can spot my scar, my favorite scar I should say.