Buddy is my sweet boy and he loves to get attention from me and generally sticks close to my side, but when I bring out the camera he gets shy. Getting him to look at the camera can be a challenge, so when I get a couple of good shots of him, I’ve got to share.
We’ve had some very strange weather lately. Humidity in the 40 percent range, and now, rain. Go figure. Not complaining, really. We need the precipitation and if we can’t get it in the winter, I’ll take it now.
I woke up at 3:30 in the morning to the sounds of a huge downpour, so after I got up for good I stepped out into the backyard to see if I could find any remnants of the moisture. While the grass was a bit damp, no evidence of the early morning storm was to be seen.
Still, the hibiscus was blooming . . .
and the grapes were starting to ripen.
Buddy napped one minute . . .
. . . and hoped to see a rabbit the next.
And while I was processing these photos, rain!
I just needed one day without any drama. Can’t say I quite had that, but it was close. Laundry, the Olympics and sleepy kitties.
I’m home again. Nina is sticking close…
ISO 400, f/1.8,1/50s, 50mm
I shot this today before spending the day on the phone with doctors, before spending the day at the skilled nursing center, before arranging for Dad to get transported to the ER, before waiting in the ER, before waiting for another doctor to admit Dad to the hospital, and before finally going home to dinner and before fighting with my brother about health care in the U.S.
My dad is fortunate. He has good coverage. We may be frustrated by the requirements and phone calls and authorizations, but at the end of the day, the family doesn’t have to worry about losing everything because of his medical bills. What is wrong with wanting that for everyone who lives in my country?
This is not the way I wanted to end the day.
Given the news I got tonight about my father, Maya’s pose pretty much expresses how I’m feeling. All I can do right now is wait.
On the good side, the Olympics are fun to watch. On the bad side, Dad is back in the hospital and what’s going on is pretty scary. I don’t know if I’ll be hopping a plane soon or not.
Anyway, I played with my new toy in the backyard this morning using the silver reflector and diffuser panel to provide fill light against some pretty bright backgrounds. I used my flash to fill in what otherwise would have been dark shadows cast by the morning sun.
Sweetie left his work gloves in the wheelbarrow and a windstorm blew them out into the yard. We think Nina did this.
Grape leaves against the sky. I love that I didn’t blow out the sky and that the grape leaves in the shade were perfectly exposed.
Buddy is a bit camera-shy sometimes. He’ll sit still, but he doesn’t like to look at me when I’m holding the camera to my face.
Nina amidst the other critters.
Carissa Snedeker Photography 