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Category Archives: Photography

Out of My Element

This week is an exercise in stretching myself. My husband will be out of the office most of the week and I will be fielding most of his calls and handling whatever comes my way.

It’s exciting to try new things. Most days I see how he does his job but ultimately he does it without much advice from others. I watch and listen to how he evaluates vehicles, how he interacts with the customers, how he tries to put out fires without losing a customer when problems arise. Until you are actually in the position without someone else to consult you really don’t know difficult the job is on a daily basis.

He brings approximately 35 years of experience to his job in buying and selling vehicles as well as being a  mechanic which doesn’t hurt if you are going to sell cars. I’ve done bookkeeping for the business for many years and do the paperwork with the customers for buying and financing vehicles. It’s a whole different ballgame giving enough information to the customer and putting them at ease in the car buying experience. He is definitely better at his job than I am and I will be happy to have him back. I’ve got just enough information to be dangerous.

One of the most difficult areas is determining the trade-in value of a vehicle. If you give the customer too much for their trade in you may lose money on the car you are selling and not make any on the trade when you sell it depending on what work it may need to get it ready for the lot.

If you give the customer too little they may feel you are stealing their vehicle from them and are insulting them. The key is to have enough trustworthy evaluation information available to back your dollar amount for the trade. We always give the customer the option of trying to sell their own vehicle and buy our vehicle without a trade.

Most of what I planned to accomplish on my own to do list didn’t get done but phone calls were answered, appointments were made, warranty work was done, and cars were sold so I guess it was a good day.

Tomorrow is another day with the opportunity to grow and learn.

 
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Posted by on January 4, 2012 in Business Matters, Photography

 

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Not My Ordinary Day Off

Last week my husband and I took a rare day off. We traveled with eight others in our church van to the Science Museum of St Paul.

Our next door neighbors are retired missionaries from Peru. They donated their collection from Aguarana Indians  to the Science Museum and we were invited to go see the private collection.

When we arrived at the museum we spent some time individually to see the exhibits and had lunch at the museum.

At 1:00 we met as a group to go to the collections area of the museum. Our neighbor, Dennis, directed us to the part of the collections where his collection was cataloged and stored in special cabinets at the museum. I didn’t take any photos of the collection because that requires special permission.

I was impressed at the collections that are stored in the museum that will probably never see the light of day to the average person because of the lack of funds and time to display them in the museum.  They are hoping to  post the photographic images of the collections online so people can see what the museum has in its collections department. People are welcome to see the collections if they ask permission and have a guide to show them.

While we were waiting to meet someone for our tour at the museum I looked out the window to the south of the museum and saw this riverboat.

When I was processing this photo I enlarged the sign on the boat to find its name and was surprised to discover that it is a bed and breakfast named the Covington Inn. I think it would be a very interesting place to spend a night or two. I may have to investigate the possibilities.

Another view out the museum window was of these trees. I loved the way it depicted a cheerful winter day. The science museum is about 100 miles south of where I live and it is unusual for there to be snow there but not at home. Right now our yard is nothing but brown grass and barren trees except for the pines.

One of my favorite inside photos was of this sculpture. In the entry of the museum an entire wall is covered with these blue acrylic tiles that look like sails complete with rigging. I loved how the tiles changed colors as the sun hit them. I love sailing and I had no trouble picturing hundreds of tiny sailboats at sea when looking at the sculpture.A  lovely reminder of one of my favorite summer memories.

Our day off ended as many do combining business with pleasure. On our way home they dropped off my husband and I at a transportation lot to pick up two vehicles for our lot. It was not without a bit of trouble. One of the vehicles had a dead battery. We had sent the others on their way home before we discovered the dead battery so we needed to go buy a set of jumper cables to get it started before we could finish our trip home.

Perhaps last Thursday was a glimpse into our retirement years when we will ride in vans or busses in large numbers to a designated destination. We were the two youngest in the group. The oldest was an 80 something retired teacher. I hope that when I am her age I will be interested in going to new places and seeing new things.

Every day you learn something new is a good day!

 
11 Comments

Posted by on December 12, 2011 in Photography, Uncategorized, Vacations

 

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Ice Bubble Snowman

This afternoon I ventured out on the newly formed ice. While I was out walking I noticed ice bubbles had formed in the ice. This is the picture of some of the bubbles with the floor of the lake below. The  three bubbles are different layers.

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The second photo shows the bubbles at the different levels but still looks like a snowman to me.

The last photo shows the bubbles stacked above each other. As I look at all three photos they each are unique but all make me think of some far off galaxy. The first photo makes me want to get out a marker and draw the missing face and stick arms on the snowman in a folk art style.

So far no snow on the ground here which makes it seem like Christmas couldn’t possible be only two weeks away.  Snow is only forecast one day in the next week. Still hoping for a White Christmas. If I have to have the cold at least there should be some snow to decorate the brown earth for Christmas.

 
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Posted by on December 12, 2011 in Holidays, Nature, Photography

 

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Ballet Shoes

As a child I remember wanting to take dance lessons. My best friend had dance lessons every Saturday morning. Some Saturdays I would go with and watch while she and the other girls danced. I attended their recitals and watched as the danced in their pretty costumes to the music.

My parents bought a piano and I learned how to play it, not well but I can pick up a not too complicated piece of music and it will sound recognizable to the untrained ear. I find playing the piano relaxing at times when I need a break from bookkeeping or other mundane tasks. I think that my parents made the wiser choice given the fact that I have an overall dislike of physical exercise. Playing the piano is more of a life skill for me. One that I can put down and pick up over time.

This morning I took my camera down to the lake to capture a pink sunrise. The sky had a pink glow to it and I thought it might lend itself well to some interesting pictures.

Saturday evening the winds blew so strong out of the north that the windows were making noises and we could hear the tree branches all night long. When we woke up Sunday morning the ice that had starting forming around the edges of the lake were gone because of the strong winds.

This morning I found branches along the shore of the lake with icicles hanging from them but my favorite find was the above picture that looks like ballet shoes. I love how the icicles formed evenly to look like a pair of shoes hanging from ribbons.

Sometimes when you are searching for one thing, like a beautiful sunrise, you find something better.

It pays to look a little closer.

 
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Posted by on November 28, 2011 in Nature, Photography, Reflections

 

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Garden Party Hat on Black Friday

This morning before work I took a walk through my garden not expecting to find any color but surprised to find some blue. Even in the summer when I have a lot of flowers blooming I rarely have blue in the garden.

This photo is what is left of my Echinacea plants. The seeds have blown off the plant leaving only the stem and a few seeds. I love the beautiful blue color around the edges and the few seeds on top giving the look of a birthday party hat.

I love the texture where the seeds attached to the plant. It looks like a basket weave to me.

This morning I went out to take some pictures of an eagle perched in a tree down on our shore.Before I got to the lake the crows chased the eagle out of the tree. The eagle headed east back to the nest area from earlier this summer. It was fun to see the eagle still around the lake.

It was overcast but springlike weather this morning. I was hoping to maybe get a little flying time but the weather didn’t clear enough for safe VFR flying. I wasn’t tired this morning like so many others because I didn’t partake in the Black Friday madness. We came home yesterday after spending time with family on both sides of the family. Three out of four of our kids came back home last evening and spent the evening just visiting.

Much better than shopping any day of the week in my book.

 
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Posted by on November 25, 2011 in gardening, Nature, Photography

 

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Why I Don’t Deadhead

Yesterday morning everything was frosted in our yard. We got our first snow on Saturday. The morning was overcast and foggy, no sun peeking through.

I started my morning with sitting in my recliner reading some books before work watching the birds come and go from the feeder when I noticed even the birds were frosted. Now that is cold.

Later when I left for work I noticed that the Butterfly Weed plant was also frosted along with the remaining dead heads of my Echinacea plant. Each year I have great intentions of deadheading my plants in my garden but never quite get around to it. Perhaps the chance at another view of the same plant in a different way is what keeps me from deadheading. Nope, just lack of time or interest in doing it at the time I should.

The Echinacea has a different look to it with the snow in the background. It makes the Echinacea in the background look as though they are shadows of the ones in the foreground

I love that there are still a few petals from the flower clinging to the bottom of one of the Echinacea. When I first showed my husband the picture he thought is was a picture of bacteria or something like it.

This morning as I look out over the lake I noticed that it is almost covered in ice. I don’t think we will be walking on ice on Thanksgiving Day this year like we have in past years but it won’t be long.

 

 
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Posted by on November 22, 2011 in gardening, Nature, Photography

 

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A Single Drop

A single drop captivated my attention this week. As I walked out the door to go to work I noticed that it had sprinkled leaving everything damp. I went back inside and grabbed my camera for a few photos before work, well about 30 minutes worth to be honest. I went to work later than planned.

I walked out into the field just south of our home and saw drops of water hanging on a few branches. The morning was overcast from the rain but the sun kept trying to peek through the clouds never quite making a full appearance but creating some interesting views.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As I was heading back inside I loved the way the sun was hitting the butterfly plant pods. It is from the same family as the Milkweed plant. All the is left of it is the shell. All the seeds have flown away in the fall winds.

Have a great weekend!

 
24 Comments

Posted by on November 18, 2011 in Fall, Nature, Photography, Uncategorized

 

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Looking Back At St. Pete’s Beach

 

 

This evening after an afternoon working out in the cold winds finishing up a few fall projects my mind wandered back to last February and our trip to St. Pete’s Beach.

One afternoon while we were out walking around St. Pete’s Beach we wandered past this old car parked in a driveway. It looked like something off an old postcard advertising Florida, palm trees and all.

I was uploading some photos for my husband when I located my photos from our trip. I played with the photo in Photoshop and this was the final result. I was looking for a picture that had a vintage feel to it.

I think it would make an interesting canvas photo for framing or a jigsaw puzzle. Learning Photoshop in the past year has made photography more fun. I love taking pictures with my Nikon D3100 and all the possibilities with Photoshop.

This is the photograph that I took in St. Pete’s Beach before post-processing.

I love the original photograph just as it is but the post-processing makes it something fun and whimsical.

Enjoy your week.

 
30 Comments

Posted by on November 13, 2011 in Photography, Vacations

 

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A Little Frosted

This morning as I left for the work the sun was shining and the air was cool and crisp. It was the coldest night we’ve had so far this fall with temperatures dropping to 18 degrees but somehow it was okay with the sunshine.

With daylight savings time ending over the weekend in Minnesota we are now blessed with a little more light in the morning but less light in the evening.

I love how the frost coats everything on the cool fall mornings. The sun shining from the east makes everything sparkle as it’s rays hit the frost. Magical…

Even ordinary grasses in the field look elegant.

 
22 Comments

Posted by on November 9, 2011 in Fall, Nature, Photography, Uncategorized

 

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Clinging

It’s been a while since I’ve posted.I’ve enjoyed reading all my favorite blogs each day even though I haven’t had much time for commenting or new posts.

I’ve been busy with getting ready for winter in Minnesota. We’ve been raking leaves, putting away lawn furniture. taking out the boat and boat lift from the lake and winterizing all of our toys against the cold Minnesota winter.

Yesterday when I was mulching leaves with the lawnmower so I wouldn’t have to rake and pick up any more leaves I noticed this apple. It was the lone apple left on my tree. It was too high to pick from the ground, too high for the deer to munch from the ground and it had stubbornly clung to the branch on the tree after all the leaves had flown away in the cold winds.

I am very much like this apple in the fall. I try to hang on to anything and everything that reminds me of the summer and the fall that I love so much not wanting to give into winter. There is always the hope that there will be just one more nice day for a motorcycle ride or a ride in the car with the top down. The chances are not that great for most of my favorite activities. There is snow forecast for tomorrow evening in our area.

Today I filled my bird feeders with sunflower seeds not wanting my feathered friends to have to search beneath snow for their meals. They give so much entertainment during the long winters that I enjoy enticing them with the choicest seeds. Only their favorites.

The hardest part of this season for me is the darkness. I get up and go to work when it is dark and it is dark when I return to my home. My favorite part of my day is when I can take a long enough lunch time to drive the four miles home and see my surroundings while it is still light. I don’t think that I would mind the cold as much if only it weren’t so dark so much of the time.

Each winter I try to find some new interest to learn about or a new hobby to take up some of the long winter evenings instead of just watching television. I am open to any suggestions for favorite books others have read or new hobbies you are exploring. Last winter I spent learning about my new camera and the Photoshop program. The winter really did seem to go faster and I actually learned something worthwhile by the end of it.

I would love to know what some of you do to pass the winter days and evenings.

 

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