More change than I realized

April 14, 2018, 7:27 am

It's been a while since I was quite as shocked as I was yesterday. After approaching the loop at Edgewater beach from the opposite of my normal direction so I could set up a time lapse, I left the way I normally enter so I wouldn't appear in it. A lot of work is being done down there to move the ferry terminal, but I had no idea that one of my favorite buildings in the region was coming down.

It makes total sense, though. If that building had remained, the road to the new ferry terminal would wrap around it. Now the road can go behind whatever new stuff they build. Here's how it looked back in August.

Usually at some point after a walk, I transfer all the photos over to flickr, including the Instagram crops. I didn't think to do that before buying a new phone yesterday, so I only have the originals from my SD card. One exception, though. My original version of this was rotated, but I realized this flip would be so much better so I did it in the evening.

I wish there was an easy way with a phone camera to approximate the eye's focus. The driftwood was framed so perfectly by the vines when I looked at it, but I couldn't really show what I saw.

It was a lovely morning for a time lapse, for sure.

Suddenly I like scenic self portraits taken using a voice command.

I thought I saw a large seal, but it turned out it was a dog swimming much further out than I've ever seen before. Dog owners constantly surprise me.

The original plan was to walk up via the gulch's interpretive trail so I could approach the time lapse camera from behind, but I was just a bit from the top when I encountered a trail that was muddy enough to make me turn back. It was still nice to be in the woods. I also couldn't follow the railroad tracks up because a railroad employee was sitting nearby in a truck.

I really wish my mom would have lived to see Everett and Mukilteo. Weeping willows were here favorite tree (which is why I have a tattoo of one) and there are some really stunning ones here.

It's always nice when the flowers start appearing.

It's so fun when things like trains show up in time lapses. I think I need to use this spot frequently.

https://instagram.com/p/BhhAOT1gOVF

Speaking of flowers, there were lots of nice ones Thursday at the marina.

Steve says hi.

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Working back

April 19, 2018, 4:42 pm

≫ Next: SchadenFriday

≪ Previous: More change than I realized

I've got a few walks to talk about, and I've decided to go backward through time to make it easier. And because I really like the final photo from today and think it should go above the cut.

I was bummed when I realized partway through the drive out this morning that I forgot the time lapse camera, but then I saw thick fog just a few blocks away and knew I'd be in it the whole walk. Fine with me!

I had to stop on the drive in because the fog floating in looked so cool.

Back at home, the vertical garden is doing so well that we have a vine that's almost halfway around one of the skylights. Recently I've gotten a couple of air plant clusters, and I want them to thrive, so they're hanging there, too.

Some pretty squares from Tuesday at the marina.

I love this shiny boat that was there.

https://instagram.com/p/Bhq8RbmAzLY

Defiant.

Lovely first light. I didn't bring the time lapse camera and was sad about that.

Sunday at Langus I decided to do the paved loop and the island for the first time in ages.

I can't remember ever being able to see all this stuff on the other side of the river. I think the property owners must have done a lot of clearing. I'll have to check my older pictures.

I also had a couple of nice swims this week. It's always great to get back in the pool once a tattoo heals up.

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SchadenFriday

April 20, 2018, 8:53 am

≫ Next: CATURDAY

≪ Previous: Working back

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CATURDAY

April 21, 2018, 6:45 am

≫ Next: Snatched

≪ Previous: SchadenFriday

BONUS Saturdogs

Many thanks to:
Animals Being Dicks
Señor Gif
k00l 4 k@+z
Almost Famous Cats
Cats, Beavers & Ducks
Derpy Cats
FAT CATS
FUCKYEAHFELINES!
CHEEZburger
Every Day is Caturday
Cats and Dogs
And everyone else who happened to put a cat or dog where I ended up seeing it this week!

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Snatched

April 21, 2018, 6:40 pm

≫ Next: Funday

≪ Previous: CATURDAY

The marina's so lovely lately, I had another go at it yesterday. Turned out to be a very expensive walk.

I almost always start at the South end but this time I was in the mood to set up a time lapse at middle, so that's where I parked. Found a neat spot pointing at the building in the photo above that was pretty well hidden behind a sign. Well, not hidden, but placed behind it so it wasn't so visible. Wasn't expecting much, but the sky was pretty spectacular.

There's a nice new fence at The Equator now. If you'd like to know more about it, Richard at the blog has a nice post about it this week.

We need to go more this year.

It's hard to face swap with small stuff, and the results are always terrifying.

The marina's always good for squares.

I'm sad to say that even though there were barely any people at the marina and my camera was hidden pretty well, it was gone when I came back for it. I don't think it was a port employee picking it up, either, because my phone number's on it inside the case like they suggested and I haven't gotten any calls. But that's the risk I take. I can't get the videos I want if I don't leave it behind. I suppose I could have walked a big U-shape around that park to keep an eye on it while not getting in the shot, and may do that next time I try to use that spot.

Speaking of the next time, I'm already ready. And I upgraded! The Brinno Pro was available for same-day delivery so I went ahead and ordered it. And then I went to the movies to see Super Troopers 2. Got this time lapse with the Podo from the steering wheel while I was in there.

https://instagram.com/p/Bh0A-j2gHL7

Funnily enough, I checked the angle before walking away and decided to change it, and realized I almost left my lights on. Not only is that movie theater one of the places I've previously killed my battery leaving my lights on, but I then ran into my tattoo artist Jimmy, who once gave me a jump when I left my lights on during a tattoo session. He was there giving his son a jump. So many coincidences all at once!

The Brinno Pro may be much more Pro than I need, we'll see. One surprise is that you can change the lens on it, and it comes with a wide-angle one. I've been enjoying the non-wide-angle lens on the now-stolen Brinno, so hopefully I can find a replacement lens that's the same size and shape so it'll fit in the weatherproof case.

Here's the first video I made with it.

https://instagram.com/p/Bh2SwoAAZNM

For some reason the file stopped a little while before I went out to bring the camera in, but that worked out perfect because I liked the second file all on its own.

https://instagram.com/p/Bh2Ttt6Akeb

The real test will be tomorrow morning. Can't wait to see what it does.

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Funday

April 23, 2018, 7:23 pm

≫ Next: Twofers

≪ Previous: Snatched

Yesterday was nice. I set up the Podo by the river on my way into the park and the new Brinno at one of my normal spots. Neither was stolen! And as of today, they both have my new favorite tripod.

I was so delighted by this double twisty cloud, I had to play with it in Layout.

https://instagram.com/p/Bh4bMSsAw4q

https://instagram.com/p/Bh4ZAzGAk1d

Garrett's parents came over to eat and we had a nice couple of rounds of Skip-Bo afterward. It was interesting how different it was to play it sitting in a different order and not at a round table.

https://instagram.com/p/Bh5EJrZAXsa

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Twofers

April 24, 2018, 2:32 pm

≫ Next: All clear

≪ Previous: Funday

I think it's great news that flickr is being acquired by SmugMug because at least SmugMug cares about photos. Of course, I'm a bit concerned. Not about the future of my photos on flickr, I have complete faith that they'll always be there during any site transition. Hopefully they don't change all the URLs, though. I don't care if a day comes when all my new photos have a SmugMug URL, but it'd be a huge bummer if every photo I ever embedded here over the last dozen or so years turned into a big red X.

But I'm not concerned enough about that to do anything about it until it happens. And there's no way I'll go back and update over 13,000 journal entries. So I'll just cross my fingers and hope for the best.

And in the meantime, there's always more pretty pictures and time lapses to share. I brought both of those cameras today even though the sky looked pretty clear, and was glad I did.

This thing looks a lot like the FB "wow" react, but the closest emoji I could find was this home-alone style thing.

I feel bad for whoever dropped their ice cream, but it's pretty.

That dog that swims really far out has a friend who doesn't seem to like to join in the fun.

I used to have some really cool spots with ferry views that are lost now due to construction for its new terminal, but today I decided to find another one for the Podo.

https://instagram.com/p/Bh9ZfgWgKHa

And the Brinno was over by the tracks. I like this spot as it's a very good "hiding in plain sight" one. Of course, I've thought that before...

https://instagram.com/p/Bh9ZuM6g60u

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All clear

April 26, 2018, 5:19 pm

≫ Next: SchadenFriday

≪ Previous: Twofers

We currently have the kind of weather people here get really excited or worried about. The silly sun worshipers who should probably move away get very excited, and the rest of us are consumed with dread. I hate heat wherever I find it, unless there's a pool, air conditioning, and cocktails. I make an exception for saunas because you can step out and cool off or take a dip. Hot weather is just everywhere, for days and weeks at a time.

Heat aside, the clear skies make for a less interesting morning photographically speaking. Yesterday I left the nicer Brinno in the car rather than hide it facing the water since there wasn't a single could in the sky to the West. There was a little activity to the East, so I put the Podo in a cool new spot I found where cameras should be somehwat safe while still having a good view. But all I got out of it was a glow that didn't look like much, so I didn't bother saving the footage.

Regular photos can be hard when it's bright, too. Maybe I'm just so used to overcast skies and haven't learned what I need to for getting nice photos in light I find too bright. There are occasional opportunities, though.

The boat launch was certainly hopping yesterday.

There's a beach at the northernmost end of the marina that I usually don't walk all the way to, but I was in the mood yesterday. Good day for it. The tide was low and even though this all looked quite muddy, I was able to walk across the wet sand without sinking in.

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SchadenFriday

April 27, 2018, 4:39 am

≫ Next: CATURDAY

≪ Previous: All clear

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CATURDAY

April 28, 2018, 12:01 pm

≫ Next: Visit, revisit

≪ Previous: SchadenFriday

BONUS Saturdogs

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Visit, revisit

April 29, 2018, 3:40 pm

≫ Next: Almost back

≪ Previous: CATURDAY

This weekend was originally supposed to be some sort of beach road trip with Garrett's parents, but those plans fizzled out pretty quickly. I kept the 4-day weekend on the calendar at work, though, and the time off ended up being well-timed. We threw a party Friday that I'll talk about eventually, and it was nice having the day off to get everything ready for it. Don't worry, it wasn't a disaster or anything. Quite successful, in fact! But we filmed it for Live in Everett TV and it won't air for over a week due to something else that already scheduled, and I may as well wait to post about it until I can share the video.

Friday was mostly devoted to party prep and the party itself, but I made sure to head out for a walk at Langus.

I had some fun with this picture.

The fog was excellent.

Brought the Podo and the Brinno along. The Podo was on the overpass near the park entrance.

https://instagram.com/p/BiFOsUjgV4r

I left the Brinno at a spot I've thought about using ever since the first time I did a time lapse at this park. Worked out pretty great!

https://instagram.com/p/BiFQGbUgeFP

This is completely unrelated, but one of my stops for party supplies brought me to Lowell and this very nice scene where I parked. The Lowell Riverfront Trail is below.

Surprise, surprise! I went back to Langus again today. I might have done Japanese Gulch instead, but it rained a lot yesterday.

Here's how I showed that last pano on Instagram. I should get one of the apps that slices them up into multi-picture posts.

More of moi.

Since I'm thinking of a real hike tomorrow, I decided I didn't want to wash my gear or get my shoes wet today, so I went on the paved path I don't use as often these days.

Yesterday I decided to point the Brinno at a block of leftover party ice all afternoon. It didn't melt fast enough for the video to be any good, which is a shame, because I didn't check that until today, and because it was still on the Brinno's SD card, it filled up very quickly after I started today's lapse at the park. It wouldn't have been an issue a few weeks ago with the older Brinno and its 32GB SD card, but the one I found laying around the house only holds 8GB. Oh well. A new 32GB one will arrive Tuesday.

I left the Podo behind on the way to the park on a bridge leading to a new business park on the other side of the river from the park. There might be lots of new places to use around there, I need to explore it more. Wish there was more train activity.

https://instagram.com/p/BiKXtbFgdOF

After I got back, we had a very nice brunch at the bar at Anthony's. What a nice view. The last time I sat at this spot was with our late friend Barbara the day of Garrett's parents' 50th anniversary party.

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Almost back

April 30, 2018, 4:31 pm

≫ Next: Theme day

≪ Previous: Visit, revisit

I return to work tomorrow and decided to make today a real vacation day. First thing I did when I got up was make and pack a bagel sandwich and put it and a banana in my hydration pack. After I had my morning coffee, I headed out to Granite Falls for a return visit to Lime Kiln Trail.

Rather than tell the story of my trip, I'll let my Snapchat story do it. It starts with dessert last night.

Once I was home and showered, I went to a Korean spa for the first time. I've been hearing about them for years and am surprised it took me this long. They happened to have an opening for a body scrub and massage shortly after I arrived, and that was wonderful. I'd hoped to eat lunch in their cafe in my spa uniform, but they don't open it on Mondays, so I went back for some more soaking and steam before leaving. I originally thought about seeing a movie after, but it was late enough that I didn't want to deal with the traffic. Instead, I went to Trader Joe's and my local Asian market, so we're stocked up on nice dinner stuff for the week.

I'm really tired now, but it's a good tired.

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Theme day

May 3, 2018, 11:11 am

≫ Next: SchadenFriday

≪ Previous: Almost back

I didn't only take pictures of them, but circles certainly caught my eye yesterday.

I can't believe how close I got to this heron! They're very skittish.

One of the issues that needs to be addressed in the ferry terminal construction is creating a better sidewalk on the road leading down to the waterfront. On both sides, it's a very narrow walkway that you have to step way up onto. Not safe for a wheelchair at all. It's on the map as one of the improvements and I'm sure it'll happen eventually, but maybe a recent accident will push it up the list a bit.

It was a completely clear day, so I chose this spot on purpose since there are ferries to watch no matter what the weather is. And I discovered that the Podo is very hard to spot when I put it under the handrail on the fishing pier!

https://instagram.com/p/BiR8vwPAQ0E

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SchadenFriday

May 4, 2018, 9:27 am

≫ Next: CATURDAY

≪ Previous: Theme day

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CATURDAY

May 5, 2018, 5:46 am

≫ Next: Jackpot

≪ Previous: SchadenFriday

BONUS Saturdogs

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Jackpot

May 5, 2018, 4:18 pm

≫ Next: Hazy Sunday

≪ Previous: CATURDAY

After a lot of clear skies, I was thrilled to see huge, strange cloud formations stretching across the sky when I got to the marina yesterday. I knew it would make for great time lapses so I set both cameras up.

I like both of these a lot, but I think the second one is one of the best I've done so far.

https://instagram.com/p/BiXITazAvYb

https://instagram.com/p/BiXIgv2ggn6

I started doing time lapses just over a year ago and it's been fun to see my earliest ones pop up in TimeHop.

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Hazy Sunday

May 7, 2018, 5:13 am

≫ Next: Banh Meetup

≪ Previous: Jackpot

That's a bit of an overstatement, but there was enough fog in one area of the park yesterday that I took the time to zoom in it and slow it down for a third video. Gorgeous morning.

https://instagram.com/p/Biccn0VgetL

https://instagram.com/p/Bicc0WeAy6m

https://instagram.com/p/BicdJtJAnnG

Garrett's birthday is today, but I gave him his presents yesterday. But whenever there's this much cardboard, it's Steve and Sam who celebrate.

https://instagram.com/p/BidQnBDgSpe

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Banh Meetup

May 8, 2018, 10:19 am

≫ Next: SchadenFriday

≪ Previous: Hazy Sunday

I mentioned we recently had a party but didn't want to talk much about it because it was for Live in Everett. The video came out yesterday, so here it is!

The date was pushed back a couple of times, so I had a lot of time to prepare. That left lots of time to worry about it, too. It was so great when the doorbell started ringing and the party began. Everyone had an awesome time and I've found a new enthusiasm for over-the-top theme parties.

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SchadenFriday

May 11, 2018, 4:21 am

≫ Next: Water, water

≪ Previous: Banh Meetup

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Water, water

May 11, 2018, 9:00 am

≫ Next: CATURDAY

≪ Previous: SchadenFriday

No walk or swim today due to calls, though I missed most of the first one because the Windows 10 update that was supposed to take 90 minutes took three hours instead. Oops. But this week I've been to the pool for the morning session and the noon session once each, and walked the marina and the beach.

This isn't a huge dumpster, it's a small chair.

https://instagram.com/p/Bij_PIvA2Fl

https://instagram.com/p/Bij_e7ngHYl

https://instagram.com/p/Bimg9ADAMcG

https://instagram.com/p/BimhGguABnq

I haven't done a lot of hyperlapses lately, but the clouds were so cool yesterday as I drove South that I had to pull into a parking lot and set it up. They look best on long, straight roads.

https://instagram.com/p/BinakXQAfMl

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