The most important part of any shoot is a good assistant. You might recognize this guy from my post about photographing the terrible twos….
I don’t know if photographing a newborn is any easier than a two year old, actually, but they are equally adorable.
Could he be any cuter?
November 2013, I went to Las Vegas with a friend for her 25th birthday. We rented a car for one of the days that we were there and drove out to the Hoover Dam. It was definitely worth the trip! The desert was beautiful and the weather was perfect. If you’ve got some extra time, you should make the drive!
You should also (carefully) try this…
It feels like you’re riding with the top down and going 70 MPH..
Anyway, hope everyone is having a good week!
It’s finished!! I already did the first post on the exterior, and now the interior is done. I’m so happy with it! This is how the inside started…
It was covered with several layers of awful greenish grey paper. Surprisingly, all it took to scrape that off was wetting it with a sponge and scraping. Lots of scraping..
I didn’t really have a plan for the interior. Well, actually I had several plans, but I wanted to wait and see what exactly I had to work with when I was done with the scraping. I toyed with the idea of modpodging an old map on the underside of the top, or using some of these sheets from Home Depot..
But the wood was looking pretty decent on it’s own..
Not too shabby! I thought I’d try a little stain and see how it turned out…
I always think that natural wood is prettier than any painting or paper. Also, the curvature of the inside of the top would make covering it with any paper or vinyl tiles very tricky (ain’t nobody got time for that). Natural wood it is! Lastly, I added the side bars back on, where they were previously, and made a box for the interior.
(I’ll do a separate tutorial on making the box, don’t want to cram too much in one post.)
…and the finished product…
A few side notes….
The wood in the top of the trunk was definitely different from what was used to make the rest of it. Before I stained the interior all the wood looked the same, but after the stain, the top turned a yellowish brown while the rest was reddish. So, if you look at the tray insert in comparison to the top, it won’t quite match, while it does still match the rest of the trunk.
It took three coats of two different stains to get the new wood on the tray and sidebars to match the trunk. There could have been a stain that matched it identically, but who wants to buy more cans of stain when I already have so many sitting in the garage? One coat of Sedona Red and too coats of English Chestnut, both by Minwax, and it matched almost perfectly. Close enough for me!
It looks fantastic in the office where it’s sitting. Once that room is complete, I’ll post pictures of it in all of it’s pirate-y glory.
You’re driving through the the Everglades and you see a sign that says, “Skunk Ape Research Facility.” Do you stop, or do you keep going thinking, “What kind of person goes there?” The answer to that question is, “I do!!!” You are missing out if you don’t. The research facility is on hwy 41 in the middle of the Everglades. If you’re road-tripping down to the Keys, it’s the perfect place to stop for some leg stretching.
For those that don’t know, which is most of us, the Skunk Ape is the Everglades version of Bigfoot. It’s a large primate type thing, that allegedly lives up in the trees, feasting on deer liver and beans. I can promise you that I’m not advising you to stop to see a bunch of hazy pictures of grown men running around in ape suits. What you will see, though, is a lot of really cool animals and exceptionally helpful staff.
That nice gentleman is the main caretaker for all of the animals. He will happily stand there and tell you about each individual creature’s personalities, quirks and preferences. He will also feed many of those large birds dozens of cashews right out of his mouth. His immune system must be impressive.
We went through the whole animal tour without even a slight mention of the Skunk Ape. That was until I walked outside and asked a group of locals, “So who knows about the Skunk Ape?” Apparently, the world’s leading skunk ape expert was one of the men standing there when I asked. I got the full skunk ape tour complete with YouTube video clips, a book, personal stories of encounters from the man himself and more information than I could have ever wanted about a creature that almost certainly doesn’t exist. It was an adventure. I would recommend the stop 100%. Admission is only $5 and it’s worth every penny!
The U.S. of A. is about to have another birthday which means family time, fireworks and BBQ. Here are a few events happening in the Bradenton/Sarasota/Beaches area that look like they would be pretty fun.
First there’s the Independence Day Celebration at McKechnie Field. Take in a baseball game complete with fan giveaways, fireworks and a post game concert by David Nail.
If baseball isn’t your thing, there are extravagant (and FREE) fireworks shows at Sarasota Bay, Siesta Key, Bradenton and Palmetto. There is plenty of seating in the nearby parks, but get there early because spaces fill up fast! Unless of course you want to take your boat, or a friend’s, and have a little viewing party from the water!
Anna Maria Island and Longboat Key really know how to throw a birthday party. First the city comes together to celebrate with a fantastic parade, followed by music, food and fireworks!
Take your pick and enjoy the holiday! Happy birthday ‘Merica!
DISCLAIMER! I do not allow the cat on the kitchen counter. Ever. The catnip made him lose his mind. I’m not sure why Kitten has recently developed an affinity for cooking surfaces either..
I was in my study writing a post about New York bagels and listening to iTunes and I kept hearing a plastic bag rustle, but I didn’t really pay any attention. After about 10 minutes it finally occurred to me. I ran to the kitchen and this is what I saw…
We were at the flea market earlier that day and we picked up some catnip along with a few other plants. I guess he smelled it from the floor, because the counters in the kitchen are 100% off-limits. He is never up there. Yes, it was bad that he was on surfaces where we prepare food, but I figured he’d already been there for a few minutes so taking a couple of pictures wouldn’t hurt anything…
Just… of all the places…
Really?
No Shame..
I’ve posted 3 or 4 posts that weren’t about my cat since my last Kitten post, so I’m allowed to post a new one right? I think so. I just don’t understand how or why cats do some of the things that they do. For example, walking along the top of a 6 ft. fence on that tiny little piece of wood that sticks out of the side. How wide could that be? an inch?
He was being The Great Protector and surveilling a neighborhood cat who was thinking of partaking in some of his kibbles. The nerve of some cats! In Kitten’s effort to protect his territory he was nimbly pacing up and down the whole fence line with no problem. Cats have amazing dexterity.
Then he would “rest” with all four paws piled on one tiny fence post. Silly cat…
Unfortunately, it’s not very easy for white cats to camouflage themselves, at least not in Florida. The morning is when Kitten is the craziest. All the unsuspecting leaves and dirt mounds have to really be on the lookout for an attack. Sometimes though, he gets too excited and he turns on his camouflage. This means anything from hiding inside an actual bush to crouching behind a single blade of tall grass. Then he makes this face…
This is what you see from afar…
“There’s no cat here.”
ATTACK!
Kitten always chooses the most inconvenient times to be ridiculously cute. For example, when I’m supposed to be studying for a Spanish exam… He makes this face…
then he attacks a helpless blanket…
That doesn’t satisfy his thirst for action, so he sneaks up on my unsuspecting elephant…
First came the exploratory pat..
Then the full on attack..
A good indicator of his current level of crazy is the claws. He may have sweet round “Puss in Boots” eyes, but he also has a Mufasa-like grip on the couch..
Two Thumbs 