Nico recently posted a couple of images from a long hike he did with Karuna and their dog Kubo.  I am unclear on all the details but I believe they covered 8 miles.

Even more painful than putting our piano up for sale was listing this 8″ jointer from my shop.  It has served me incredibly well over the years but must find a new home.  After an hour of cleaning it looks as new as the day I purchased it some 20 years ago.  Delta has since exited the jointer market so it may even have some incremental value for the right collector.

In 1995 we purchased a grand piano hoping it would encourage our children to play and as the centerpiece for a rather large living room.  All three kids took lessons and developed a reasonable degree of proficiency.  Nicolai went on to become very accomplished and now plays the keyboard for a jazz band in Colorado for fun. On visits back to Concord he will spend hours every day tickling the keys to the pleasure of anyone in the house. For that reason, it was with great regret that I listed it for sale today.  At nearly 7 feet in length, the piano effectively requires a room of its own which is incompatible with our future plans to downsize.

Jeanine enlisted my photographic services to shoot the image that will be used for their annual appeal marketing materials.  The concept (“Help Fill the Truck”) was developed by the Open Table team and my job was to execute it.  In the background is Open Table’s new refrigerated truck that is used to collect and transport food. In the foreground is one of Open Table’s youngest volunteers. This was my first time using such a large prop and young model.  I had to position the truck in the shade and at an angle to manage the reflections from the windshield and truck side. I lit our tiny model and the wagon full of food independently and shot from a very low angle to increase the relative size of the girl to the massive truck. Even though I can think of ten ways to have made this an even better image, I am pleased with the outcome given I had to work very quickly and was limited to roughly twenty exposures.

Jeanine believes it is her responsibility to ensure our local hummingbirds are properly nourished.  She makes her own hummingbird food recipe which they seem very fond of.  During the early morning and late afternoon hours, there is usually a parade of visitors with occasional jousting over who will visit the feeder first.

Nico flew out last week for his grandmother’s birthday/family reunion and returns to Colorado tomorrow.  He and Jeanine enjoyed doing some shopping together at REI.  They returned with a very nice backpack, padded gloves, and two pairs of boots (more accurately, 2 different left-footed boots, sold at a deep discount).  These were belated birthday presents. Nico turned 24 back on July 8 and this is the first time we have been together since then. New this year are glasses that seem fitting for someone pursuing a career as a professor.

I finally had a chance to upload the video I shot of my mother dancing at her birthday party last weekend.  How many 90-year-olds do you know who can do this? She is an inspiration to all who know her.

Over the weekend, I used my drone to capture images of famous Schenectady landmarks including Nott Memorial on the campus of Union College, the Saint John Evangelist Church, and City Hall. Schenectady fell on hard times when General Electric moved much of their operations out of the city decades ago. Now it feels like things are on the rebound with a new sense of vibrance at every turn.

Although his grandmother was the center of attention yesterday, Kyle was the star today. We celebrated his 26th birthday at a family reunion brunch this morning.  He will start his third week of work at Cengage tomorrow with a trip to Ohio and then on to New York City for a programming conference.  Last week he joined the Boston Sports Club where he works out every day before heading into the office. Below he takes my sister out for a spin at his grandmother’s party last night.

My mother celebrated her 90th birthday today (technically not till Aug 6).  Pictured here with her four children, their spouses, and her nine grandchildren, she chose to have the party at a dance studio.  Why? Because she loves ballroom dancing and can easily keep up with partners half her age.

Watching her grandchildren take to the floor demonstrating both interest and aptitude in ballroom dance was probably the most rewarding part of her evening. A full set of photos from the party and reunion weekend can be found here. I prepared a retrospective slide show dedicated to my mother which played on a TV in the studio. Those images can be found here.

Tomorrow members of my family and loved ones coming from far and wide will celebrate my mother’s 90th birthday.  This evening the first wave arrived and gathered to celebrate the birthday’s of my sister-in-law Marie, above with my sister Mayela and nephew Mario, and brother-in-law Stephen, below.

Niece Rose.

Daughter Maya.

Man seeking employment as a shopping mall Santa Claus?

Niece Sophia.

Sister Alissa and Jeanine.

Nephew Rory.

A member of the US Congress for 41 years, Ed Markey is the junior Senator from Massachusetts.  He is pictured here with Caleb Symons, Maya’s boyfriend, who is working over the summer as a Legislative Fellow for Markey. Caleb is a rising junior, studying Political Science and International Relations at Tufts University and is also a managing editor of the Tufts Daily. Because her flight from Indianapolis to Boston was delayed, Caleb was able to pick her up at the airport after work.  Maya is back for the weekend to attend the 90th birthday celebration for my mother being held in Schenectady, NY this weekend.

I would venture to say that this is a photographic perspective of Canadian Geese that has not been shot too often.  This gaggle was completely undisturbed by my drone flying not more than 5 feet overhead. I approached them gradually expecting them to fly away at any moment. These are obviously urban geese who have grown acclimated to the various and loud noises to be found in the city.

Every day I walk from work to Central Square and back twice; first for breakfast and again for lunch.  Over the past several weeks, I have been watching as a new high-rise building goes up. At the risk of posting more than my quota of construction cranes for the week, I decided to get an aerial photo of the project now that the central elevator shaft seems to have reached its final height.

One of my fondest memories of our early days in Boston was taking the family out on a Duck Boat tour.  The driver/captain was very funny and gave the kids a chance to drive once we were on the water.  At the time, I did not pay attention to where we entered or left the Charles River.  Today, on my early morning walk, I discovered the answer.

A major project to replace the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge is underway in Boston. This morning I walked over to the construction site and watched for a good 30 minutes. It was amazing. To facilitate the work, a large number of adjacent streets and bridges have been closed to the combined 56,000 daily car and train commuters. These closures have spawned dozens of sub projects designed to take advantage of the suspended traffic. After a few minutes of observation I was able to identify the small group of workers from the crew of 200 that were actually working on the bridge replacement. In the course of 20 minutes I watch three guys install a massive steel I-beam across the highway. One guy operated a 440 ton crane while the other two secured the 150 foot, 45 ton beam to the end of its hoist cable. They then moved the beam from the flat bed truck on which it arrived to its anchoring foundations with a level of speed and accuracy that I would not have thought possible. The project will use a total of 44 steel girders, 267 concrete deck panels and a fleet of 5 cranes to install them. The staging and choreography of equipment and materials is nothing short of incredible. After the Big Dig fiasco, I would not have thought it possible for Boston planners and worker to execute such a massive project so well.

While in New Hampshire yesterday, I had an opportunity to shoot more than just the ocean. After a nice bike ride with Jeanine this afternoon, to visit Maya’s tiny house, I had a chance to post process a couple of my favorites. 

When plans to go sailing with friends in Rhode Island were postponed due to the potential for bad weather, Jeanine and I decided to head north to the New Hampshire coast for an afternoon at the beach. We stopped at several beaches along the way before settling down on one just north of Concord Point in Rye.

Jeanine was attracted to the water with all the zeal of a small child. The result was predictable and she returned from her initial foray dripping wet.

Later we set out chairs and a blanket and relaxed until dinner time. Contrary to our normal practice, I selected the restaurant. Using my very sophisticated algorithm (number of cars in the parking lot divided by the number of available spaces times the square root of two) I selected Petey’s Summertime Seafood which proved to be an excellent choice.

This morning I decided to walk over to the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge where major construction started today on what is planned to be a two-week project to replace the bridge. I will post some photos once construction is midway. On the way back to Superpedestrian I decided to put my drone up for an aerial view of Magazine Beach Park. Construction of a new kayak launch can be seen in the foreground and I plan to be one of the first to use it once completed.

Groupings for the 2018 Amputee World Cup were live-streamed today on Facebook.  The top team in each group plus the next two highest finishing teams will advance to the round of 8.  The USA draw has it grouped with Turkey which placed third at the 2014 World Cup.  The good news is that Nicolai does not get along with Turkey’s star player (photo below from their 2014 World Cup encounter) and I am sure this will only serve to motivate him as he trains for the tournament which will take place late October and early November in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Rain every day this week has turned the far end of the field behind our house into a beautiful sea of flowers.  More rain and high humidity are forecasted for several more days.  On the bright side, this coincides with a very busy time at work so the reduced temptation to be outdoors is welcomed.

We finally found time to look at all the photos Kyle took during his recent visit to Europe. His adventure took him from Dublin to Galway, Ireland, and then to Paris and Marseille, France. This photo was taken a few blocks from Sacré-Cœur which was featured in a previous post including some of his other photos. I really liked this image because I felt transported back in time to my college term abroad in France. I very likely walked the very same street when I visited Sacré-Cœur some 40 years ago.

Slate rooves are attractive but they require regular maintenance to stay ahead of potential issues.  The unusually harsh winter and the fact that we skipped having any work done last year has left a fair bit of damage to be addressed.  Our regular slater quoted us a staggering figure based on replacing 50 tiles.  A thorough, close-up survey of the roof with my drone revealed a far smaller number of damaged tiles.  The pictures should prove a compelling resource when I discuss the job with our guy.

Several years ago I installed an automatic back-up generator for our homes electrical system.  It was a rather complicated project requiring gas line plumbing, partitioning of the wiring at the circuit breaker box into critical and non-critical circuits, and installation of an automatic transfer switch.  Recently I moved the 12V battery which starts the generator from within the outdoor generator housing to the interior of our house where it stays warm all winter.  During two prior power outages, the generator did not start automatically (first time due to high winds affecting the gas to air ratio, second time due to depleted battery from sub-zero temperature).  When the power in most of West Concord failed this afternoon, the generator kicked in and everything worked as planned.  The computers, phones, routers, and TV (all on battery backup) bridged the automated switch over without a glitch and essential functions of the house remained operational (full kitchen except for ovens, one zone of HVAC, garage door openers, family room and media center).  The outage only lasted for two hours but my satisfaction with the system finally working exactly as planned lasted all day.

Jeanine suggested a visit to the Revere Beach Sand Sculpting Festival this afternoon and it proved to be a great outing. The weather was perfect and the sand sculptures were truly amazing. We both agreed that it would be fun to return next year while the artists are still working on their creations. In addition to the works of art, we enjoyed live music by saxophonist Mike Rollins.

Today I rented a 3/4 ton pick-up truck with which to move Maya’s tiny house to a new location.  Kyle, back from his European adventure yesterday, was a huge help. We hitched the trailer and towed the house from Verrill Farm, where it has been since autumn, back to our house.  There we loaded it with all of the appliances and remaining building supplies that we have been storing in the third bay of our garage. Finally, we towed it to a new location on the property of a friend in nearby Sudbury.  Here the house will be guarded by two sheep that live in their own tiny house located only feet away.

Nothing better than a company barbecue after a long day at the office. Caterers set up their grill in our parking lot which we converted to an open air dining area / playground. Later we headed back in doors for karaoke. Those who know me well are aware I have no aptitude for singing whatsoever but I do appreciate that gift in others. The whole evening was a ton of fun.

I happened to be experimenting with some focus settings on my camera this evening and using Jeanine as a test subject. She is generally less than fond of such involvement with these experimental pursuits but flashed me a big smile which I was happy to record.

The Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Memorial Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge across the Charles River and is now considered a Boston icon. The bridge and connecting tunnel were built as part of the Big Dig, the largest highway construction project in the United States. Its full name commemorates Boston civic leader and civil rights activist Leonard P. Zakim who championed “building bridges between peoples”, and the “Battle of Bunker Hill.”  I stopped in the neighborhood of the bridge this morning after dropping Kris off at Logan Airport for an early flight home. I then walked along the river to where the USS Constitution and USS Cassin Young are docked while putting my drone to good use along the way.

Nicolai called us this evening from a pet store in Colorado Springs where he was picking out a gift with and for his girlfriend Karuna.  Shortly after our conversation, he texted us this image which seems to suggest that these dinosaurs are now part of their family.  Normally I think of Nicolai as a master of the grand romantic gesture.  I now find myself reconsidering that assessment.  These guys look like baby velociraptors that escaped from Jurassic Park. Not to worry, I am sure Kubo (their recently acquired dog) will kill them before they eat anyone.  Just ask the chickens at the Catamount Center for Environmental Science & Education where he recently dispatched one of the flock which, it should be noted, belonged to the Director of the program and Nicolai’s future boss when he begins working there next month.

Kris, Jeanine and I had breakfast out and then went for a walk at Heart Pond along the new rail trail. We then stocked up on groceries and snacks for our micro World Cup viewing party. You have to admire the Croatians for their work rate and “never say die” attitude but in the end, the French put the ball in the net more times. It has been a great World Cup tournament and I am now looking forward to the Amputee World Cup which will take place in Guadalajara, Mexico in late November