Exchange, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

Exchange building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Taken February , 2008 with the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT.

We are not far from Sydney, for example, about 1 hour 45 minutes but that is beyond me for a day trip. Even Newcastle, about an hours or so, is a bit far at the moment.

So this makes me change my mind about what I photograph (the photography must go on!). I like making photographs so much. I noticed, for example, when last loading pics from my camera to the computer, that I had taken 5,000 shots on my present digital camera in about 18 months. That is a lot! But it has been a lot of fun. I like the process so much.

I have always liked the scrappy bits of our towns. On a recent expedition to a corner of Toukley (we are on the Central Coast of NSW), I had fun poking around a short length of the main street, down near where the bridge goes over the water to Gorokan. I found a lot of interest in the old bits of buildings in odd lanes and back-blocks.

It's a subject I could get used to - "scraps of the town". I am certainly going to do it again. And soon!

Here's one of my shots from last time:

The Empress, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

After getting into Victoria and finding our downtown hotel we decided to walk down to the water (not far from where we were staying) to check out the sights. This is the famous Empress Hotel. We didn't do the high tea thing (we had Weston with us and even though he's cute and quite the little gentleman, we didn't think he'd be allowed), but we did get some great shots of it, both day and night. Very cool place.

(It's a small image but you may see the rear end of a guy kneeling at the corner of the property - I did not notice him while taking the shot. No idea what he is up to.)

Driven to desperation because I have no recent pictures, I sometimes drive down a street or along a road, photographing houses that look interesting.

Now, what with one thing and another (chronic fatigue!) I have not been out much recently, so one day I drove along one (quite short) street and took a picture of every house on the right-hand side (there is parkland on the left), snapping each house as I went. I drove quietly along - call it slowly, I don't want you to suspect any stealth in this activity - pulling into the left for a very brief stop and just snapping each house face on.

Not that the photographing of folks' houses did not worry me for a bit. Then I found out that you can more-or-less photograph what you want from any public area, as long as you do not intend to make money out of it. Knowing that made me more at ease. Although I skip houses where there is bunch of the family outside ... I can just imagine them phoning the police with my rego number, I can do without that sort of fuss, thanks very much.

[You really do have to be careful these days, especially, let's be clear, if you are an old guy like me. We were over in the Perth area in Western Australia over Christmas, paid a visit to Rockingham. A mother with two or three young girls were have a game of cricket on the foreshore and I thought that would look good with the Kwinana Power Station and heavy iondustry in the background. Of course I was prudent enough to ask the mother would she mind if I included their activities in the foreground. Well, as with hindsight you might expect, she was very suspiciuos, so I tried to explain but basically backed right off and left them to it. It would not have been surprising if she had phoned the police.]

Two things were coming together here - firstly, I like the banality of the houses in a country town - the older the better of course, don't let me near these McMansions or my blood-pressure will sky-rocket. Do you see what the develeopers and builders are advertising seemingly as "first homes"? Back to J.K.Galbraith's book about the creation of demand (The Affluent Society).

Anyway, to get to the point, here is a slideshow showing nearly all the houses in this short street in the town where we live - take time to savour the details of ordinary life (you've got to click the button that says "slideshow" at the top of the pictures).:

Parliament Building, originally uploaded by Tokenhippygirl.

Parliament Building, Victoria, B.C.

Taken with the Canon EOS Digital Rebel XT.

Our first stop: Marina South

I remembered going there to have bbq-steamboat sessions with my friends and stuff. most memorably before i enlisted. now it all lies faded and in preparation to be torn down.

(author's note: i missed a great shot just to the left of this >.<)

Next Stop: City Hall, Capitol Building

Capitol Building/Cinema was a landmark around the city hall area. it is scheduled to be sold at the end of this year. walking along the back alley and chancing upon a movie ticket booth. Happened that all 3 of us were shooting so thot it would make an interesting juxtaposition.

Last Stop: Lim Chu Kang, Sarimbun Jetty

Had a friend jump off the jetty for this shot (just kidding!)

an idle boat sits in the water. once again, its not a sight one sees often, if at all.

All photos taken by me!

Whenever I walk into an old church there's an instant connection deep within my soul. It sort of draws me in and envelopes my spirit -- it's hard to explain. I can feel it even when the building has been repurposed and is no longer being used for public worship. As mystical as this sounds, it's as if there are spiritual remnants left behind that begin to minister to me from the moment I walk into the space. This past weekend Jacque and I celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary at a bed & breakfast in Liberty MO -- a bed & breakfast that's in an old church.

From the moment we pulled up in front of the old building (the cornerstone says 1847) I knew it was going to be a special place. When we opened the heavy, solid-oak doors I could see through the foyer, down the center aisle to the front of what used to be the sanctuary of a neighborhood Catholic church. As we stepped across the threshold I turned to Jacque and we "wowed" in unison. I'll admit that part of that was due to the romanticized notion I've created in my mind, but most people would agree that there's just something about an old church. And there's something special about The Steeple Inn.

The two guys who own and operate this B&B have only been open for business for a few months but you can easily see their vision coming to life. The overall vibe of the place is serene and peaceful as you'd expect, the breakfast presentation matched the setting and was very tasty. In addition they offer massage services in the lower level of the old church. A great weekend that just fueled my desire to buy an old church. Who knows what might happen.

The Workshop - September 20, 2008  10 am - 4:30 pm

After an introduction to Venoge and Switzerland County history, the workshop will present these topics, most using the Venoge cottage as the example:

·     Dendrochronology as an aid in dating of historic structures using samples of work done at Venoge.

·     Using clues, remnants and ghost shapes to reconstruct original features of a structure.

·     Clay and brick making and the brick nogging at Venoge

·     Building a timberframe house, relating building techniques used at Venoge to those found at Vincennes

·     Demonstration of plastering on wood lath

Some hands on work by the registrants may be involved.  A discussion of  building details is anticipated.

If interested check out the workshop info on Ms. Weaver's site.

We helped to get the building under roof a few years back (a turkey tailfeather roof) and are happy to try to help a little more this fall.

A couple of years ago I thought this little log house, on a back road in Amherst County, was doomed to go the way of too many other old buildings. It was in such disrepair that I feared it would be torn down to make way for a more modern home, but alas, to my delight…someone saved it.

© 2008 D L Ennis, All rights reserved.

NOTE: Permission for the use of my images is granted for personal websites and blogs but is to include a link back to this site and proper credit given to me, D L Ennis. Link to be used...(Visual Thoughts http://dlennis.wordpress.com/)

NOTE: Commercial use, and the creation of prints, must be purchased! For more information you can contact me here.

Here is a typical study of a house at Wangi Wangi on Lake Macquarie:

The things I see happening in my pics are:

• more and more, a straight-on presentation
• keeping things simple
• catching someone in a bit of action
• a quietness and peace

So, when we had a trip this afternoon, I was pleased with this shot. Here's another one that I have not worked on yet.

I do not do much Photoshopping. I seldom crop much - usually all I do is crop to an aspect ration of 1.4:1. I tidy things up a a little. I often like the main point of interest to be on the right.

Bethel Methodist Church on the St. Paul's Main Road in St. Paul's St. George's was built in 1899.

The church was badly damaged by Hurricane Ivan. The structure itself remained sound, but the church's historic stained glass windows were smashed and the roof was torn off by the winds.

The community raised thousands of dollars to replace the roof. Photo from visit in May 2008.

There is a decent article in Wikipedia about the terrace houses whose design was imported from England - worth a read here.

When we got there, we sat out the back for the necessary coffee. It was a fine day, good weather we have been having recently. Nice and sunny and warm.

For ages, I had been looking forward to getting to the city as I needed a change of subject - a change from the coast and its beaches, the lakes amongst which we live and the small-farming country a little inland. Hard to imagine that you would want a change from that but it happens.

So there we were, me with camera in hand and shutter finger twitching. I was struck by the planes and shapes of the backs of the houses in the sun, also the colours. Here are a couple of shots.

Here's one in black and white that I like:

So much to see in cities! More to come ...

Indonesian proverb once says, “a good nation is a nation who respect their history”, and it is the first thought that came up on my mind when I arrived in Sydney. There are a lot of very old buildings in Sydney, and it lives side-by-side with the newer building built in the modern days of metropolitan Sydney. This is another face of Sydney that I would like to explore, a good old Sunday morning around the Rocks area, which is the first place that impressed me in Sydney, instead of the Harbor Bridge and Sydney Opera House, no offence to Sydneysiders. However, with the people more concerns with global warming and making Sydney a sustainable city, what would happen to these beautiful buildings?

This is a slideshow of old buildings in the Rocks area, where everything seems to stay the same since the first glass of beer brewed in this area. It should be the reminder of all the Sydney people, even though these building may not be pass the sustainability standard, it is still the part of Sydney city, another side of Sydney face that is beautiful. This is where the Australians should learn from the Indonesians, to respect one’s history is to be one good nation, and I believe Australia is a good nation.

This is one of my favorite shots.  I decided to see how it looked in black and white.  I like it, but I like the color version better - it has a nice glow on it from the setting sun, which is lost in the black and white.

Took a different route home from work last night and came across this old crib elevator right next to these new grain bins.  Loved the contrast of the old and new.  Too bad the sun wasn't shining, the grain bins would have been really shiny and the contrast would have been even greater.  The weather has been rather crappy and I'm ready for the nice stuff.

This was how happy I was after running 4 hours, 35 minutes and 25 seconds. :) Oh, and the massage helped too! But I pretty much had a silly grin on my face the entire weekend in Salt Lake. (yes, even during the marathon!) I had a wonderful time and was able to spend lots of quality time with loved ones!

I had been anticipating this trip for so many reasons and it really did work out better than I had expected. Between the worrying over how my training was going and the worry over the marathon getting rained or snowed out, I just needed to get it over with! I may get a little antsy that I will not be training as intensely as before, but I don't have any injuries so there is no reason for me to take a break from running. I am very pleased about this. After my marathon 3 years ago, I couldn't run over 2 miles without my knees killing me and that lasted almost two months. This time is completely different. But I'll get into those details in a minute. First I'll give you a quick overview of other things non-marathon related.

I arrived in Salt Lake late Wednesday, and was able to spend most of Thursday with my parents. My dad and I rarely get a chance to hang out and I was very pleased that he was willing to tag along to pick up my race packet and didn't complain when I proceeded to drag him and my mother all over the city. I have always loved downtown SL and I was able to walk around and see all of the changes going on in the city. A lot of buildings are being remodeled or have been torn down. Some areas look like a war zone.

I used to work in a building that used to be right where I was standing to get this picture, that now no longer exists. Very strange. So was that last sentence, but that's okay. Benihana used to be hidden behind a big building, but now...

...it's not! We ate lunch in the basement of the Benihana building at a restaurant called The Blue Iguana. If you are ever in Salt Lake, and like Mexican food, you should go there. Seriously. It's really good and very filling! I could only eat one of my two ahi tuna tacos and they were tasty!

After lunch we wandered through the Temple grounds and I took many, many shots of all of the beautiful flower beds and trees that were in bloom. You would think that I had never experienced spring in Utah before, but I really couldn't help myself. The beauty was overwhelming. Here are just a few of my favorite shots:

I had to add one of the pansies. I love their little 'lion' faces!

Friday consisted of my sister and I spending most of the day shopping for 2 baby gifts, 3 birthday presents and a new visor for my race. My family is so large that no matter when I visit there is at least one wedding, baby shower or birthday to attend. This visit I opted out of the baby shower for my niece, as it was scheduled to be the afternoon of marathon day, but 'K-sis' and I made this beautiful diaper cake to send to the party.

I was pleased with how it turned out. The star on top is a cute little baby rattle toy-thingy, and there is also a bib and a onesie tucked inside of the blankets with the diapers. These are really pretty easy to make and we got all of those cute brown and pink blankets and shoes from Target. (just fyi)

Friday night my whole family got together for dinner. We made something called "Spaghetti Bertucci". It involves a lot of chopping and about an hour of stirring, but it is SO worth it! I think it's a secret family recipe from my husband's grandma, but I'll post it anyways this week because I like all of you so much!

That's me "stuffing my fat gob" as Jspin would say. Carb-loading before a big race is a must! I was just doing my duty. And very happily if I say so myself.

My cousin was nice enough to let me crash at her house that night and I was very thankful. Her house was only 10 minutes from the starting line, and the extra 40 minutes of sleep that I got that night was much appreciated!

I knew that a storm was coming in, but at 6am it was already 60 degrees and I was very pleasantly surprised. I had packed a beanie, a fleece jacket and gloves just in case, but the only thing I ended up wearing were the gloves. Those and my long sleeved shirt were both ditched well before mile 5. It was warm and sunny but I struggled running head on into the wind. Luckily for me there is a lot of downhill in the first 12 miles and I think that helped me keep going. I really don't like to run in the wind, but I was determined to ignore it and keep my mind occupied with good things.

My father-in-law met up with me at the half-way point on his bike. It was so great to have someone there to encourage me and make sure that I was well fueled and hydrated. He met up with me every few miles after that and would call my family here in AZ to update them on my progress. It was right about this time when I felt a big blister on my right foot. I was bummed, but there is not much you can do about it in the middle of the race. It must have been all of that downhill!

The halfway point is also blocks away from my old neighborhood, so I had lots of familiar sights to keep my mind off of the foot pain. I was still feeling pretty strong and kept thinking how happy I was that I had my iPod shuffle. I can't believe that I ran a marathon without any music before! I couldn't have done it now. A couple of times during the race I would turn it off if there was a band, or if another runner wanted to chat for a minute, but my lungs were having a hard enough time with the altitude change, so I saved my breath and didn't talk too much.

By the time I got to mile 20 I really had to push myself to not stop and walk. I had to keep thinking "only ___ more miles, you do that easily every day k". That seemed to work until mile 24 when my legs were really starting to feel they were no longer in my control. They were only moving because that's all they had been doing for 4 hours. This is when I could hear all of my blogging friends cheering in my head, and it gave me that resolve to push a little harder.

I remember my last marathon when I hit a wall at the 20 mile mark and pretty much walked most of the last 6.2 miles. My knees had swelled up and stopping to stretch only made me go slower. The last few miles were where I could see that my training had indeed helped me. I don't think that anyone can go over 20 miles and not feel some amount of pain or fatigue, but this time I felt better when I kept moving (though it was hard to), and the only pain I felt was in my lower back and foot. I'm not sure if that was from leaning into the wind or not sleeping great, but my legs actually felt pretty good.

At the 25 mile mark was when I decided that I would NOT be running another marathon this summer with my friends. One every couple years is probably enough! My mom and father-in-law both ran/biked with me for the last half mile and I was grateful that they were giving me something to think about besides how much I wanted to stop! My sister and her family, my dad and my grandma were all near the end cheering me on. It was so nice to have family there to celebrate with me, and though it would have been nice to have my husband and kids there with me, this was one race that I had felt that I needed to do on my own.

As I was running down the cobblestone street to the finish I was all smiles even if the clock showed ten minutes later than what I had hoped for. I had accomplished what I had set out to do many months ago, and was finally able to see how my hard work payed off. I know I will think back to this trip and race for a long time to come, and have nothing but happy thoughts. And of course a really cool medal too!

The End.

I'm still playing with Photoshop, trying to get the sepia thing figured out.  I'm not sure I am.

I thought I'd post this photo again.  It was my very first post and I don't think very many people actually saw it, unless you spent some times going back through the archives.  I shot this on the way home from work one night when there was a beautiful sunset casting this really warm glow.  Another reason for posting...I overslept this morning and didn't have time to upload anything!!