Several weeks ago I ordered a newly announced 135mm f/1.8 lens for my Sony camera system. I had to wait around this morning for the signature required delivery. UPS now allows you to track the GPS location of your package and I met the driver at my door as he was getting ready to ring the doorbell. Conditions were not great for outdoor photography and the 135mm focal length is really something I like most for portraits but I was happy to photograph this swan to break in my new optic.

This bridge over the Sudbury River is constructed entirely of wood. As beautiful as it is to look at, especially when water levels are high, it is even more interesting to listen to. When cars cross it the entire structure shakes and the sound of tires rolling over the deck timbers elicits a rhythmically mesmerizing salute to times gone by. The tune changes constantly with the number, size, speed and direction of vehicles crossing this conduit between Lincoln and Sudbury.

While at a pledge dinner for our church several weeks ago, I entered my name in a drawing for two tickets to see the Red Sox play Tampa Bay. My name was drawn from the hat and this afternoon Jeanine and I took in the game. Regrettably, the Sox did not see fit to win for the benefit of our enjoyment, dropping the game 2 to 5. Still we thoroughly enjoyed attending and were very happy with our seats in the grandstand that sheltered us from the slight drizzle that began about half way through. Below Mookie Betts thinks about stealing home until the inning came to an end with him stranded on third.

The first Audi e-tron shipments have just started to arrive in the US. I test drove one today to confirm I want to keep my reservation and am leaning in that direction. My car is currently in production and should be delivered within a couple of months barring unforeseen delays. My order is for a Galaxy Blue version with turbine style wheels (as pictured below

Next week is Olin’s final for the spring semester. Maya has requested a care package to help her through the final days of her sophomore year. The package will be delivered by “carrier brother” in lieu of a carrier pigeon. My contribution will take the form of pictures I took of otters, Maya’s favorite animal. I hope these will bring her joy and help her to relax as she powers through the rest of the term.

Weeping willows are possibly my favorite tree, at the very least, a close second to the Japanese Lace Leaf Maple.  At this time of year, in my estimation, they are at their peak of beauty.  I would like to find an isolated tree with a more photogenic background and will update this photo if I am successful.

Frequent rain over the past few days have caused the Sudbury River to expand well beyond its banks.  This is most apparent from the air.  Normally, the river is rarely wider than 30 feet.  Now it has turned massive swatches of land into marshes.

My collection of photographs numbers roughly 101,000 at the moment. For the last several years I have tried to keep the number capped at 100,000 by routinely culling weaker or less memorable images from the archive. This evening I spent some time engaged in that exercise when I came across this flamingo. At the time I took this image, I don’t think I fully appreciated how good it was so thought I would post it again as a reminder to myself to get out and do more photography.

Three years ago on a trip to California, I took the photo above through the dirty window of the airplane I was flying in.  I remember thinking how much I would enjoy going back and photographing in this area.  Today, after reverse-engineering the flight path, I was able to locate this place using Google Maps (screen capture below).  At some point in the future, you can rest assured I will be featuring some drone photos taken of this area.

I travelled to Mansfield, MA this morning for my league soccer match.   The drive took 45 minutes and I was not all too happy when our opponents decided to throw in the towel shortly after the start of the second half.  We were leading by a score of 4-0 at the time and it was clear that our scoring would go higher.  The game was stopped when half of their players took a knee, signaling they did not want to continue (no mas).  90 minutes of driving for 30 minutes of playing time did not seem like a good ratio to me.  On the bright side, I was able to return home for a shower before heading out to an Easter brunch with the family and my sister Alissa and Maya’s Olin roommate, Lauren. The original plan had me driving directly to the restaurant from the game, a much smellier proposition.  Lauren was kind enough to take this family portrait with my camera before I captured additional shots of the kids.

I spent the better part of what proved to be a very rainy day indoors working on renovations to our downstairs powder room/bathroom.  I installed a new faucet set and drain in brushed nickel to replace the now tarnished gold set I previously installed some 14 years ago.  Connecting the drain inside the sinks support column proved to be a most frustrating exercise given almost zero space to operate.  Later, I added a new triple-sconce light fixture over the future location of an oval mirror that is next on my list to install.

When they were first announced more than 4 months ago, I immediately placed orders for two new cordless DeWalt tools. A router and barrel grip jig saw.  This week after numerous delays, they finally arrived.  If ever there was a tool that wanted to be cordless it is a trim router and I am surprised it has taken this long for DeWalt to introduce one.  Immediately after ordering the barrel grip jigsaw, I sold my “D” grip jigsaw on Craig’s list.  I prefer the handling of the former by far.  Now, if only DeWalt would offer a cordless biscuit joiner, I could replace my final corded tool with an untethered version.

We mourn with the French.  Kyle is in the foreground during our trip to France in 2000.

I was very busy at work today. Too much so to participate in a campus-wide Easter Egg Hunt. As I was leaving for the day, I ran into the CEO and his wife who were on their way to Hoppy Labs.
I had not planned to attend because a beer party (hoppy) is not really my thing. When I learned that the event would also feature baby bunnies (hoppy) and goats I had to stick around.  Next year I will invite Maya who would have surely smuggled out some furry friends.