Barn Charm, Central Washington Style.

 I decided to test a hypothesis: There have to be roads less traveled that will let me see another side of things...I was right.  I traveled some local canal roads and found these.  I'm happy with the results.  There are better things around the corner, I am sure.
Those are hop fields in the background.

Week Old B-Reactor Pics

 Last weekend I, and a couple friends, went to a tour of the B-Reactor.  This was my fourth tour.  It was awesome going wiuth some friends who knew the significance of the building.  Not that everyone doesn't sense this, but these guys KNEW.  They were guys with whom I went to college with.  Historians.

 Every time I visit, I see things that I did not before.  Or, I appreciate a different facet.  For instance, this time I paid particular attention to the signs.

 and the labels.  These were hand painted.  Most of them were, some seventy years ago.

Here is a shot I got of Chloe last week.  She's a farmer in the making.

This was a good weekend, if short.  I finally got my smoker box.  This is the addition to my grill that will make it easier to smoke cheese and whatever else I can think of to smoke without adding too much heat to the mix...cheese has this horrible habit of melting if the temperature is too high.  I have to send out a big shout out to my lovely sister-in-law Em for picking it up for me.  It was the last one and she saved me a trip!  I thought I was going to miss out on it.

Tomorrow is my day off, but given that it will be spent with Chloe, it may not actually count as a day off since i will no doubt be running around after her!  Shoot, I don't work THAT much at work!  I have to say that I love that girl though!  She keeps coming up with words we just didn't know she'd heard!  She's awesome!

Hop Fest

 Chloe got to experience her first Hop Festival Parade.  I think she approved.  It took her a bit to make the decision.  The sirens from the police cars kind of scared her.  But she got over it.

 It was hot out and we were all sweating...err, perspiring.

 This is Chloe reflected in the side of the car.

 And this last one is one I wanted to be able to do on Father's Day, but it's taken me this long to figure out how to do this little piece of computer hocus pocus mumbo jumbo magic.

Another Morning

As seems to be becoming a habit, this is simply a few photos strung together with words...loosely, at that.

 I think the sun looks good in pictures.

 Chloe was in good spirits today, she got to spend the day with Grandma H and Grandpa H.

Here is a picture of mein front of the B reactor.  One of the Docents chuckled because most people have others take their picture.  I simply turned the camera around and clicked!

 Chloe seemed to enjoy walking the streets without being carried.

Odds and Ends Again

Last week I went to take a picture of a barn and ended up with this horse photo instead.

 These are some pictures from B-reactor.  I'd like to point out that most things were hand painted.

 This is a special typing machine that recorded the temperatures of the fuel tubes at the reactor.

 And, here is what you've probably been waiting for:

I urge you to check out yesterday's post since I shot a stunning sunrise.

Sunrise in Easy Valley

I've been looking at this set of sprinklers all summer.  I knew that a sunrise would make it POP!  Yet, I seemed never to have enough time.  I always felt like I was running late.  Today, however, I got away with a few minutes to spare, so I made use of them.  This photo is a composite, or HDR, as you'll no doubt hear me say on more than one occasion, and it, therefore, may feel like you are actually there.  To help with the illusion, just imagine the cool smell of morning dirt with a light chill on your skin and birds singing, the far off buzz of tractors and traffic, and somewhere someone is running a sprinkler.  Now you have a feel for what I saw and felt as I took the pictures.

The sun finally rose and shown upon the land.  The heat that would be hinted at by the sun's first kiss of daylight.  Still, beautiful to behold.

Chloe-Daddy Day

Except for last week, I have been taking Mondays off.  I work four tens, so I'm not missing work, and it keeps us in synchronization with the daycare.  The daycare is on vacation the past couple weeks, so we made some minor changes.  Today, I decided, since my truck needed fuel and we forgot formula yesterday, we'd go for a short drive...with the camera.  As if I'd let us get very far without it.  

I decided that since the local produce is starting to come off the vine, so to speak, I'd see what we could do for photos...well, with Chloe, it would be nice to have an entourage similar to what we saw in China for the magazine/catalog photographers...she is a bit of a handful...but I digress.  She was actually really good, though she let me know we'd been in the truck long enough at one point.  So, I plopped her down in a wheat field and took a few shots of her.  

We tried a corn field, but the water in the small canals would have made it too costly in time and mud, so we nixed that idea.  Then we found a wall.  A very nice wall in a local town.  It was across from the local Police Department, so I was careful not to throw her up in the air or anything.  :-)

Then, about a half a block from there I found a really cool alley...I was particularly glad that Cora was not along, since I am pretty sure she doesn't think alleys are good place places for photos...or for that matter, the kind of place she wants her daughter.  I made sure there were no bums or anybody else there, though.  I'm safety conscious, really, I am!

I was also on the lookout for a barn to shoot, since I've joined Barn Charm.  I was afraid I'd have to use one of the shots I've already taken.  I hate reusing old photos too much, so I was loathe to do it.  We were on our way back and I saw a barn that was perfect!!  I swerved off the road and snapped a few shots.  OK, it wasn't swerving so much as swiftly turning.  Chloe stayed in the truck while I looked for my angles...which were in short supply.  I DID note that this particular barn had been built in 1920, some kind soul had posted a sign that said as much.