The year is two-thirds over, and I am still here taking photos. My personal take on my photos is that this week was a bit weak. I really like the two shots I took at Marymoor on Friday—the ones of the kids getting ready for their final ride at bike camp and the parents all waiting with cameras and phones in hand. And I can tell you that yesterday’s bread tasted as good as it looked. Oh, and I got a pretty darned good sunrise last Monday morning. But my sentimental favorite has to be my two girls in our car that I took on our 26th wedding anniversary. Happy Labor Day.
Tonight, our “older” kids are coming over for dinner, and I plan to make an African meal. I’ve been putting this off since we got back because I was waiting a month for one of my ingredients to arrive. It finally did, so tonight’s the night. I don’t have a truly African starch to add, so I decided to make some sourdough bread. I started baking sourdough about two years before the pandemic, when everyone suddenly became obsessed with it. I don’t bake bread as often as I should because it doesn’t always turn out like this. This is one of my best loaves. I can’t wait to try it with some good Irish butter at dinner, along with the bobotie, Steelworks cocktail, and hearts of palm salad.
I was at the Saturday Market again this morning (it runs until the last Saturday of October), and they had a woodwind quintet performing. Now, I don’t think a French horn is a woodwind instrument, but according to the signs advertising this group, it is. I took photos of all of them, but this young woman with the French horn was my favorite.
I went to Bellevue today to get my weekly injection and had some time on my way home to stop by Marymoor Park and take some photos. I parked in one of their 10 lots, and luckily, I found the right one. There were all kinds of things to shoot. I took pics of a Microsoft team-building exercise, a mom taking pics of her toddler, or an architectural shot of the climbing structures, but in the end, I chose these two shots from the final day of Bike Camp. In the first photo, the little ones are all grouped together before they go on their final bike parade. For the second, I turned my camera to the parents waiting to cheer them on and take photos. I couldn’t decide which one I liked more, so you get both.
The weekly Keeley is earlier this week because I wanted to take a picture with my incredible wife. Today is our 26th wedding anniversary, and we are as happy as we could possibly be. Over the past year, Keeley has only added to our happiness.
Early this evening, we attended what Trilogy calls Canapé Collective. It’s a fun food class that our chef Andrew hosts once a month. Usually, he shows people how to make appetizers, which explains the Canapé in the title. We had never been before, but this month, we decided to give it a try because Andrew was doing a cocktail class. I took my camera along because I hadn’t taken a photo for today yet and got this shot of Andrew’s bar setup.
I’m not sure if I mentioned this before, but Trilogy (the 55+ community where I live) has a golf course running through it. In fact, the golf course is only within Trilogy, but fortunately, Trilogy neither owns nor operates it. That means we often see lots of carts crossing our streets and plenty of golfers around every corner. Today, I saw two guys, braving the heat, finishing up on a hole I pass at least three times a day. I thought it might make a nice photo.
It’s another hot day here in the paradise of Trilogy Redmond Ridge, so I decided to go out early and walk my six miles. I’m so glad I did because Mother Nature provided a GORGEOUS sunrise, giving me a chance to share this shot with you. I really love the power lines silhouetted against the sunrise; they give the photo a strong focal point.
Taking pictures is like tiptoeing into the kitchen late at night and stealing Oreo cookies. – Diane Arbus
Can you believe we are 237 days into 2025? Only 128 days until New Year’s Eve. 68 days to Halloween, 95 to Thanksgiving and 123 to Christmas. Now that I have ruined your day, here are this week’s photos. If I have to pick a sentimental fave, it has to be the kids and I at a Mariner’s game but the best photo may be the Bear Creek shot from Saturday morning.
Went to take out the trash this morning, and this was the sky at the end of our street. Ran back inside to get my camera. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I almost always do foreground silhouettes when I take sky photos in our neighborhood. That’s because we have short houses and tall trees. If I silhouette them, you never know there are houses there.
Visited old friends who are our forever neighbors in their new home on Camano Island, about a 90-minute drive north of here. On the way to their place, we pass by a place that sells giant chickens. On the way home today, I had to pull over and shoot some chickens, so to speak.
Looking for something to shoot this afternoon on what turned out to be a beautiful day, I headed down the hill to the Tolt River Valley where I saw this group of horses. It wasn’t the horses that drew me to the shot but more the entire scene. The pasture, the horses, the sky, the clouds…all combined to give me a photo I really like.
One blossom. In our backyard. On our trellis. Took this while making dinner.
A rare ussie. No big cameras allowed at T-Mobile Park, home of the Seattle Mariners, so I only had my phone when the A-Team (my daughter, her husband, and my grandkids whose last name starts with an A) took me out to the ballgame. This was my Father’s Day gift and a fantastic one. We got to see the Mariners win, enjoy a spectacular drone and fireworks show after the game, and just have a great time being together.
Went out for an early walk this morning to avoid the heat. It’s supposed to reach nearly 90 today. While I was walking, I passed the newly reconstructed area of Bear Creek. It looked so pretty that I had to snap a quick photo. Bear Creek winds through downtown Redmond, where I was walking today before heading to the Saturday Market for blueberries, raspberries, and tomatoes.
Your weekly Keeley is here. Over the past few weeks, we’ve been practicing with her to get her to stop at the end of the runner leading to our front door, sit there, and stay while I open the door. She does great when no one is around, but when the kids came on Friday, she went nuts… like usual. We will keep practicing.
“There are no bad photos; that’s just how your face looks sometimes.” – Abraham Lincoln
It was an okay week, featuring photos from Olympia with our grandkids and some nice moments at home. I really struggle to decide what I like best. I’d love to hear what you prefer in the comments. If I had to choose, I’d go with the blue heron in flight. I enjoy wildlife photos, especially action shots because they challenge me.
Don’t forget; if you click the first shot, you can scroll through with your arrow keys or by swiping.
I was out looking for something to photograph today, and lo and behold, a 1941 International Harvester panel van appeared. Who would have ever expected this to be parked in the lot at our Trilogy clubhouse? It’s gorgeous. I had to work to get some reflections off of it and shot it with a very low f/stop to make the background fade out and highlight the car in all its glory.
It’s Saturday, so that means I head to Saturday Market in Redmond for blueberries, tomatoes, and beets. This is our first week with beets, but the blueberries and tomatoes have been fantastic all summer. Besides fruits and vegetables, there are always plenty of people selling flowers. They were so colorful today, I couldn’t resist taking these photos. Enjoy.
I went into downtown Redmond today to pick up groceries and two picture frames for prints we had brought back from Africa. When I stopped in front of the craft store where I bought the frames, I saw a little boy mesmerized by the pinwheels outside. I wish I could find that kind of wonder in everyday life. Ah, to be young again.
On my way home from our August Travel Club meeting, I noticed a beautiful sunset. Since I am seldom out at sunset, I snapped a few shots. This one, where the houses and trees are silhouetted, is my favorite of the bunch. I do wish there had been a few more clouds to catch the colors.
Another day of waiting too long to take a photo. So I grabbed this metal model of a DC-3 we have in our living room. It’s small, but I made it appear larger with my macro lens. This plane is special to us because Kathleen used to fly in one of these when she was with the FAA back in the day.
If you asked us what the best part of our life is, we would say this photo. Our two grandkids and our Keeley. They make us happier than we have a right to be. Spending the last three days with them has been incredible. I will miss my camera-shooting buddies. But we handed them over to their Nanna this morning, and she will carry the torch until their parents are back from Costa Rica.
The kids took Keeley on a walk in downtown Olympia. Saw some really nice herons and the Rainbow Rails bridge. Made me happy to shoot with both of them. My favorite photographers.
I love photography. I love the imagery. I love what I do. —Don McCullin
Now that we are back, I am resuming my photo a day for the rest of the year. I didn’t post any weekly summaries while we were in Africa, because I figured you had seen all the pictures in my daily posts.
Sometimes, abstract photography can convey the feelings you have. Right now, I feel fed up with this 365 project. It is very hard to go back to shooting at home after three weeks in Africa. So, today, I feel disconnected.
I am still in an abstract, disconnected mood. Can’t say I want to go back to Africa, but I can say I need something better to shoot. Until I figure out what it is and why I am so melancholy and tired, this might be the kind of thing you get.
Two weeks ago, I was shooting the real thing. But this is as close as I can get today. At least we know it was hand-carved and hand-painted in a small village in Namibia that we visited while there. But I still think my actual giraffe photos are better.
A little owl activity tonight. We spotted a couple in our front yard. We think they’re cute. Again, nothing worth writing home to your Mom about.
Kathleen asked me to pick up books for her at the library today. When I got home, I told her I had taken pictures of the library as my photo of the day. She tried to act like it might be interesting, but then I showed her it wasn’t the library where her books came from; it was a tiny library about half a mile from our house. If you’re not familiar with the tiny library concept, it’s a small wooden structure where you can leave a book, take a book, or do both. We have a few around here, but this is the only one I know on Redmond Ridge.
Took the grandkids to the Thurston County Fair today. We are staying with them through Tuesday while their mom and dad head to Costa Rica to celebrate their 20th anniversary. Saw this rabbit and thought it would make a great subject.
Went to a car show with the grandkids today. Got some nice photos of a classic Chevy as well as the hula dancer dashboard ornament, an engine manifold??? and a car painted pink and black that my granddaughter loved.
My favorite this week is probably the plug from Monday. It was all about how disconnected I was from photography after the three weeks and 8,000 photos in Africa.
Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever… it remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything. —Aaron Siskind
I am thrilled to be able to tell you that our second flight (15 hours from Newark to Cape Town) was wonderful in comparison to our early morning flight from Seattle to Newark. As my brother Steve pointed out in the comments of my previous post, some airlines are subpar domestically but superb internationally. United seems to be one of those. Here are some iPhone pics of and from the plane. Don’t forget: if you click the first shot, you can scroll through it using your arrow keys or by swiping. Since I took these photos with my phone, feel free to view them on your phone.
Our 787 Dreamliner waiting at the gate in Newark.
Inside the cabin. The view forward from our seats.
Maybe the best Business Class seat I have ever flown in.
The entertainment system on this place worked great. Note the storage area just below the screen. Perfect for iPhones, Kindles, glasses.
Small cubby with bottled water, good headphones and a nice place to store the amenity kit.
Dinner, course one…served in a very classy fashion.
Sorry, I ate most of the pasta before I thought to take a photo. I would fly them again just to get this dish. One of the best tomato sauces ever.
Once we were aboard our 787 Dreamliner and seated in what turned out to be maybe the best business class seat we have flown in, we were welcomed by their purser, who was wonderful, as was her entire crew. They handled everyone beautifully and were very competent. One of the things I really wanted to make sure and snag was a mattress pad for both our seats. We had heard (and it proved true) that there were not enough mattress pads for every business class seat. When I asked our purser (also named Kathleen) if I could get two of them, she said, “They are right up there (in a compartment over the seat across from me), how good a thief are you?” So I got the two I wanted, and they eventually turned our lay-flat seats into two very comfortable beds.
Seeing we had been up since 2:30 am Pacific time, we really considered skipping dinner on the plane, especially with the quality of the food we had encountered on our SEA-EWR flight that morning. However, we knew we wouldn’t get another meal for a while, and by the time they could serve it (turbulence had kept them seated for about 90 minutes after takeoff), we were hungry. We had put in a preorder for the pasta dish. My dinner started with a small salad and smoked duck. Kathleen just had the salad. They were fine, but the pasta dish was so good, it passed the Steve Test. I would go someplace for the sauce on that pasta a whole bunch of times.
Editor’s note: For those unfamiliar with the Steve Test…
I call this the Steve Test because my brother Steve came up with it. I think it’s brilliant. If you eat at a restaurant while traveling and it’s near you once you get home, would you go there again? If it were in your hometown, would you eat there regularly?
Keep this test in mind as we proceed, because I use it to rate almost any restaurant we eat at while traveling. And this is probably the first time I’ve used it on a plane. I might also go back for their dessert specialty. In Polaris Business Class, they offer a special dessert: Tillamook Vanilla Ice Cream sundaes. They bring around a cart with a variety of toppings, letting you create your own however you want. I just told them to give me the works. They did, and it was a wonderful surprise to finish up a surprisingly excellent meal.
Then it was time for bed, and I actually had a bed that would fit me and was comfortable. Kathleen was already asleep when I put my mattress pad on and turned off my Kindle. I slept for about six hours and then dozed on and off for about two more. The best sleep I’ve ever had on a plane. We also had breakfast before we landed, but it wasn’t as good as dinner; however, it was still quite tasty.
United must have done a great job because Kathleen told me this morning that I could book them again for international flights. That says a lot because there are some airlines on our Never Again list (like Virgin Atlantic).
One more note about the seats. If you ever fly Polaris (Business) Class on UA and you are flying with a partner on a 787, you want the middle seats in any odd-number row. As you can see from my photo of my seat, Kathleen was right next to me. The row in front of us had seats that faced out, so you really couldn’t see the person next to you. That said, I would never want our seats next to someone I didn’t know. If I were alone, I would get a window seat in a minute. Our seats were 7D and 7F. See the chart at right. All seats had direct access to the aisles without stepping over anyone like some Delta planes we have been on.
One of the things we’ve been doing on our last couple of international flights is that I’ve been ordering a wheelchair for Kathleen. She can still walk, just not long distances. In fact, she can still walk long distances, but it kills her hips and knees so badly that she sometimes has to sit the next day to recover. Since all the airlines will provide free wheelchairs from the counter to the plane and back again, I order them in advance. This has been a real benefit for me as well, as we get met at the plane, she gets in, and we are off. I don’t have to figure out where to go. The person pushing her knows exactly where we need to be and by when.
When we landed in Cape Town, the plane had to park remotely, and everyone got off using stairs… except the people who required wheelchair assistance. A truck pulled up next to the plane, and an enclosed platform on the back of the truck rose to the opposite side door from where everyone else was disembarking. We then got onto the platform. They lowered us and drove us to where the buses with everyone else were going, just outside passport control.
Now comes the best part of using the wheelchair service. There was a line that looked like it was going to take about 45 minutes because it snaked about six to eight times across a very large room. But our wheelchair pusher (a wonderful and very friendly young lady) took us right to the front of the line, and we were out of there and into the airport within about five minutes. We were then taken to the luggage carousels and found our luggage.
I want to mention that I believe United has the best airline app I have used. Not only did it provide me with all the necessary information about the trip, both before and during, but it also allowed us to track our luggage in real-time, so we knew it was with us. That’s impressive.
As an exact opposite to the way we started the trip with Welcome Pickups, our driver had already texted me where to meet him in the Arrivals hall. Sure enough, as we were walking through, he was holding a screen with my name on it. He introduced himself, grabbed our luggage and led us out to his car. Our wonderful young lady with the wheelchair got Kathleen all the way to the car before sending us off with a big smile.
Another thing that we have learned in our now 20 hours in Cape Town—everyone we have met has been incredibly happy and incredibly helpful. I want to say that every one of them has been downright joyful. I can’t remember a place we’ve been where we’ve been treated so well and with so much common courtesy and happy smiles since we visited New Zealand about 15 years ago. In fact, they are even happier and friendlier than New Zealanders, and that’s saying a lot.
Our Welcome Pickups driver, Tom, was a great example. He gave us quite the tour on the way in from the airport. He is truly proud of his city, and it shows. He got us right to our hotel and then helped us in, making sure we were all taken care of. Exactly what we have experienced with Welcome Pickups, except for yesterday morning (see previous post).
A tale of two hotels
Some of you may have heard this story before, but others may not, so I will recount it here. We are doing most of this trip with AMAWaterways. They have us booked for the next three nights at a beautiful, luxury hotel—The Cape Grace. It is the Grand Dame of hotels in Cape Town. Since we had decided to fly the night before our AMA adventure started, we would need to book and pay for our own room for one night. Not really wanting to change hotels, I called the Cape Grace and asked if they could book us in for one additional night, and possibly keep the same room during our three-night stay that was part of our AMA tour. The very nice person I contacted said, “Yes, we would be happy to have you here. The cost for the room is $1275 US dollars.” I told her that no, we were only going to pay for the one night, and that the other three nights were part of our AMA tour. She said, “Yes, sir, that is just for one night.” After lifting my jaw off the floor, we decided to find somewhere else to sleep on our first night and then transfer to the Cape Grace.
Initially, we decided to book a room at a hotel near the Cape Town airport, as this would allow us to grab something to eat, rest, and then move to the Cape Grace in the morning. But then we met Dave and Janine (our new friends from Trilogy who live in Cape Town half the year), who told us that the area near the airport was not the nicest and that we really should consider staying somewhere near the waterfront, where the Cape Grace is. So thankfully we listened to them and I got us a reservation at the Radisson Red which is so close to the Cape Grace that I can look out our Cape Grace hotel room window (where I am typing this) I can see the Radisson. And it’s not far away. Since it was pouring rain this morning and we had luggage, we decided to take an Uber from there to here. I took the Uber XL to accommodate all our luggage, and the total amount (with tip) was less than $5 USD.
The Radisson Redis the exact opposite of the Cape Grace in terms of style and vibe. The Radisson checked us in with lots of loud and happy music playing, an offer of a complimentary gin and tonic, and some of the biggest smiles I have ever seen. The room was perfect, even though it was supposed to be a King-Size Bed and had two twin beds. We think that worked out better because we just wanted to crawl under the covers and sleep. Kathleen was out by 8:15, and I arrived at 8:30.
Speaking of the beds, they were very comfortable. The shower had an abundance of hot water and excellent water pressure. The breakfast in their restaurant was excellent. I even found two dishes I want to try making myself, and they were around $160 per night rather than $1,275. In fact, now that we have checked into the Cape Grace, I can see that the Red might be more my kind of hotel.
In the morning, after breakfast, I embarked on a quest to find Kathleen a hair-curling brush that she had found online and was supposed to be in stock at a drugstore less than 800 meters away from the hotel. I went there and sure enough, they had it. I got it, came right back, and tried to plug it in, but it didn’t fit any of the plugs in the room. It had an EU plug, and South Africa has its own three-prong plug. So back I went and returned it. They said that their other store nearby should have the one I needed, so I hiked a little further out to a very nice shopping area and found that they had it, but it still had a European plug. The manager said to grab an adapter and give it a try. He said that was what most people here did. We have tried hair dryers with our adapters before, with poor results. Hair dryers/stylers/etc. Draw so much power that they quickly heat up and then burn up adapters. However, the manager suggested that I give them a try, and if I have a problem, I should bring it back to them. I went back, tried it, and it worked.
We checked out of the Radisson at 11:30 and took that very short and cheap Uber ride to the Cape Grace, where we were checked in a very different way. Where the Radisson was all about happy-happy/joy-joy, the Cape Grace was all about being classy and sitting down to check in and whispering. The Radisson was more interested in getting us a drink, and the Cape Grace was more interested in taking care of us in an elegant way. I can take either one, but deep down, I have to say it was more fun checking into the Radisson Red.
Our room at the Cape Grace is GORGEOUS! I have lived in smaller apartments. Here are some pics that will show you what I am talking about.
The entry
The hallway 2
The Bathroom 3
The bathroom 2
The Bathroom
The hallway leading to the bathrooms
The Bedroom
The view outside where the storm rages.
Lastly–the weather is ghastly
So we are making the best of the beautiful Cape Town weather. Check out a few seconds of video I shot showing you the wonderful afternoon weather.
See what I mean. But as they say, tomorrow is another day. Let’s hope for a meteorological breakthrough.
The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page. —Saint Augustine
This will be my last weekly photo posting for a while, as I will be sharing photos from Africa most days, and the trip will be my primary focus for the next three weeks. This week started off a bit blah for me, with photos that I just thought were okay. However, Friday was the most fun I’ve had with my camera in a long time. When we return from Africa, I will have to start going out at least once a week and shooting somewhere besides up here on Redmond Ridge. My favorite this week would have to be almost anything I took on Friday in Kirkland and my Keeley shot (but that’s just because we love her so much).
It’s time for our weekly Keeley update. Today, we went out to see the F-1 movie with Brian and Michelle. Afterwards, we went out for pizza. So, we left her alone for about five hours. She is very good alone and usually just sits and does nothing. We know because we have cameras on her when we are away. But we always leave her with her ball. She loves her ball and enjoys chewing it repeatedly. The funny thing is that she never chews it until we get home. Then she won’t let us take the ball away. This is the look she gives when she doesn’t want us to take the ball from her.
More wildlife! While strollin’ through Trilogy today, this little lady stepped right in front of me, no more than 10 feet away. Then she slid back into that garden and kinda posed for me. I love the deer, but I reckon I love the whole setting just as much.
couple of kids in street photography.
couple of kids in street photography.
A Seattle landscape from the Kirkland waterfront.
A seaplane I caught in mid-flight (I hope this means I can get cheetahs in Africa).
Today, photography was fun. I had some free time, so I drove down to the Lake Washington shoreline in Kirkland. While I love Trilogy on Redmond Ridge where I live, it’s becoming really boring to photograph. It’s been so long since we traveled, I’m going photographically stir crazy. So being in Kirkland was fantastic. I took over 100 shots, and these are my five favorites. A little bit of everything. an old building with a dramatic sky…Enjoy.
Here’s a nice flower I took tonight. Sorry about the originality of the photos, my head is already in Africa. These were just outside our Trilogy clubhouse when we were there for our monthly Supper Club (which was outstanding—salmon and crab cakes).
Out for a walk in Trilogy and saw this wonderful bunch of green shades leading to the light at the end of the tunnel. Sent it to a friend and he told me to “Duck!” I liked that. I love light layered photos.
Once in a while, I enjoy taking photos of other people’s art. This is one of those moments. At home, we have a pretty extensive collection of ceramic plates we’ve gathered during our travels. I haven’t counted them recently, but I estimate there are about 40 plates. This one from Sicily is my favorite. The bright colors and the fact that it’s from Sicily, where my ancestors are from, really appeal to me.
Today’s photos are mainly for photographers. I got a new accessory for my Nikon. Kathleen took two pictures of me yesterday, holding the new accessory. The other two photos I took show what the accessory, a large rubber cone that fits on your lens, does. In the first photo, I shot from inside our house of our neighbor’s front door without the accessory, and you can see reflections of me and the light on the window I shot through.
The second photo shows no reflection. I simply put the new cone on, held it up to the window, and voilà—no reflections. Shooting through glass, especially on a sunny day, is always a gamble.
With this accessory (called an Easy Hood Lens Hood), I can shoot through windows without reflections. Since I’ll be shooting out of a helicopter over Victoria Falls and riding a cable car up Table Mountain in Cape Town in the next three weeks, I think this is the best accessory I’ve bought for only $15.99.
Photography is the simplest thing in the world, but it is incredibly complicated to make it really work. —Martin Parr
One more note about the seats. If you ever fly Polaris (Business) Class on UA and you are flying with a partner on a 787, you want the middle seats in any odd-number row. As you can see from my photo of my seat, Kathleen was right next to me. The row in front of us had seats that faced out, so you really couldn’t see the person next to you. That said, I would never want our seats next to someone I didn’t know. If I were alone, I would get a window seat in a minute. Our seats were 7D and 7F. See the chart at right. All seats had direct access to the aisles without stepping over anyone like some Delta planes we have been on.
