Vignetting

Trying my hand out at some photoshop techniques, this one is called a vignette. I've also included some updated pics of the other dogs so they won't feel left out. Pictured are Lola and Molly (napping) and of course Jack with Danielle in the vignette. And not to be forgotten, Bunny in the Bluebonnets!

Beauty in the Bluebonnets

I took Danielle out on a mini photo shoot Monday to capture some bluebonnet pics. These are a few of my favorites.

Moola is a grandma

The barrel racing picture is Danielle competing on Moola and the two in the stall of are of Coach, Husker's son and Moola's grandson. Husker was born on Cinco De Mayo and will be 4 this May. Coach was born at 5:00a.m. Sunday the 22nd of March. Coach is a Dash for Perks and Buggs Alive in 75 colt.

Springtime Colts are sprouting up everywhere

We have been waiting and they are finally here!

Denton Courthouse at night

I'd been wanting to take photos of the Courthouse for awhile now and last night was the perfect night to go down to the square and take some shots.

4 more days 'till Spring

I'm told that this is a White Crowned Sparrow; my first real attempt at "shooting" birds!

Decatur Church Rodeo

FIRE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay, so it wasn't really a fire; but Danielle's Chemistry class did set off fire alarms and have the Denton Fire Dept respond to a 911 call. In a case of experiment gone wrong, in this case adding two tablespoons instead of two teaspoons caused a huge puff of smoke that just happened to be right under the fire alarm. After evacutaing the church and waiting for the fire dept to give the all clear classes were allowed back in to resume science class. We have all been warned to watch out for those "mad scientists" in Chemistry class!

This picture was actually taken in the summer of "05" when a grass fire started on the side of the road, probably from a cigarette thrown from a car "Shame on you, you smokers"

Rural Texas

We stumbled across this very cool barn and windmill traveling the backroads in Krum, Texas. I haven't edited the picture with PS yet, but would like to lighten the shadows to bring out the John Deer tractor parked in the front. Love the Phillips 66 painted on the backside of the barn. Danielle was driving "Larry" and was just sure we were going to be shot for trespassing on these peoples property, but I had a plan! If an outraged farmer came out with his sawed off shotgun, I would politely explain that I was a photography student and our homework for the week was to photograph old barns. I would explain that his barn was "by far" the most interesting barn I had come across and that with his permission to use the photo I would be sure to get an A on my assignment! If that didn't work, we would turn on "Crazy Larry" and drive like Hell!! Luckily, nobody was home!

Texans that were Presidents and Vice Presidents

First let me say that I did not write this myself; it was written by Janna Lewis a staff reporter for the Fort Hood Sentinel. That being said, I think it is definitely blogworthy.

Texans who were presidents, vice-presidents
Upon the inauguration of our 44th president, I’ve been thinking about the roles Texans have played in the government of our nation. The Georges Bush are not the only Texans to have been involved in U.S. government.The "Presidents George Bush" are East Coast by birth and Texans by grace. Being born in Texas is required to be considered a "native" Texan. W was born in New Haven, Conn., while HW was born in Milton, Mass. and grew up in Connecticut. Of course, W grew up here, so he’s a "naturalized" Texan. Laura Bush and daughters, Jenna and Barbara, are native Texans. But the "native versus natural" debate is a whole different column for another time.One of the most notable Texans in history was Lyndon Baines Johnson. He became our 36th president due to a series of unfortunate circumstances about which many Texans find way too painful to talk. So painful, in fact, that if you don’t know how he became president in 1963, I’d just rather you go look it up.Johnson was born near Stonewall, which is somewhere by the Pedernales River. He graduated from Southwest Texas State Teachers’ College, which is now Texas State University-San Marcos, and was a Texas school teacher for awhile. His subject was public speaking and debate, and folks, he was the grand master of persuasion.Johnson joined the Navy reserves after December 1941 and while he was still in Congress. He asked for a combat post, but got sent to inspect shipyards instead. I imagine this ticked him off a whole heck of a lot, too. Texans such as Johnson love a good fight and I’m guessing he was not thrilled with the prospect of poking around docks in Texas and the West Coast, which is where he ended up before a short, albeit exciting, tour of the South Pacific.Johnson was an intelligence-gatherer, a talker and a showman of epic proportions. He had a persuasive style people called "the treatment" which he used depending on his target’s weaknesses, convictions and desires. According to those who knew Johnson, mimicry, humor and the genius of analogy made "the treatment" an almost hypnotic experience and rendered the target stunned and helpless. Some historians called Johnson the most effective Senate majority leader in the history of the United States.He’s also remembered for picking up his beagle, Him, by his ears. Johnson caught a lot of heat for that from the public, but the dog seemed to have forgiven him.Johnson has been remembered for a lot of things, among them that he was the president who signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Higher Education Act of 1965.He credited his years as a public school teacher for his decision to sign these acts."I shall never forget the faces of the boys and the girls in that little Welhausen Mexican School, and I remember even yet the pain of realizing and knowing then that college was closed to practically every one of those children because they were too poor," Johnson said in his address to students at Southwest Texas State after having signed the Higher Education Act. "And I think it was then that I made up my mind that this nation could never rest while the door to knowledge remained closed to any American."I’m rather proud of the fact that it was a Texan who helped open the doors of education to all Americans.A little personal sidebar about Johnson: when he came to Southwest Texas State University for that address, my father presented the president with a photograph of the school’s Old Main building at night with a full moon over it. Daddy took that photo. A copy of it hung over our fireplace until a fire at my parents’ home destroyed it in 2000.I could spend a lot of newspaper space on Johnson, but there is another Texas politician you might not know about and he deserves a little spotlight, too.John Nance Garner, who was the 44th Speaker of the House of U.S. Representatives and the 32nd Vice President of the United States, was born in Detroit, which is in Red River County. He began his career as a lawyer. He had a habit of calling some journalists rather unflattering and profane names that usually were euphemisms for "coward."I don’t know a whole lot about the guy, but I like him already.While a member of the Texas State House of Representatives, Garner supported the prickly pear cactus as the plant to represent Texas. The bluebonnet won out instead, but he earned the nickname "Cactus Jack" as a result. Considering his gift for handing out terse and unflattering monikers to others and his blunt personal style, I think it was appropriate.Garner was elected to the United States House of Representatives in 1902 from a newly created congressional district covering tens of thousands of square miles of rural South Texas. He was elected from the district fourteen subsequent times, serving until 1933.Of the things for which he is remembered, if just barely, is that he supported term limits for presidents and opposed executive intervention in the internal business of Congress. He’s also remembered for being somewhat of a burr under Franklin Roosevelt’s presidential saddle. While the two were in office, they clashed over a whole bunch of issues. Roosevelt ran for a third term; Garner said "Enough!" and went home to Uvalde in 1941.Garner spent 46 years in American politics. He died 15 days short of what was to have been his 99th birthday making him the longest-living Vice-President in U.S. history and, at this writing, still holds that record.There are many more Texans who have influenced the way this nation runs, but I can’t fit ‘em all into this column. They’re all colorful characters, whether they mean to be or not. That’s kind of a Texas thing, whether "native" or "natural." I think we’d all be a little disappointed if Texans were anything less that that.

2009

Well, were 5 days into 2009 and it is frigid! Amazingly enough, just 2 days ago we were in the 80's. Never in my life have I lived anywhere where the temps can vary 40 degrees or more in a matter of hours. Like they say, if you don't like the weather in Texas, wait awhile, it'll change!

I guess since it is a new year, I should be thinking about my New Year's Resolutions! I'm thinking that this year I will call them my "Goals for '09' instead of resolutions, I never did well with those anyway! My "goals" will include most of my past years resolutions; but this time I will also have a plan on how to achieve these "goals". So here it is, my list of "Goals for o9"

1. Start back on the South Beach Diet Plan and include 30 minutes of exercise everyday. I will also tune into Oprah as she and I are kinda in the same boat this year! As she said and I agree for myself " I can't believe I'm still talking about weight! And that everything else that you do great in your life dosen't matter if you can't control your being! All your achievements don't matter if you can't fit in your clothes.

2. Attend as many photo meet-ups as possible (I have a better chance this year since I will be carpooling witha friend)

3. Organize my scrapbooking room!

4. Attend more scrapbooking meet-ups!

5. Make an honest effort to put money aside in a savings account for a "Rainy Day"

6. And this should have been 2nd on the list; lower my cholesterol, get my boobs squished and go in for a pap!

This is my "short list" of goals for 2009. I'm sure there will be many more "goals" along the way.

Things I Learnt living in Texas

1. A possum is a flat animal that sleeps in the middle of the road. 2. There are 5,000 types of snakes and 4,998 of them live in Texas. 3. There are 10,000 types of spiders. All 10,000 of them live in Texas, plus a couple no one's seen before. 4. If it grows, it'll stick ya. If it crawls, it'll bite cha. 5. 'Onced' and 'Twiced' are words. 6. It is not a shopping cart, it is abuggy! 7. 'Jaw-P?' means 'Did ya'll go to the bathroom?' 8. People actually grow and eat okra. 9. 'Fixinto' is one word. 10. There is no such thing as 'lunch'. There is only dinner and then there is supper. 11. Iced tea is appropriate for all meals and you start drinking it when you're two. We do like a little tea with our sugar. 12. Backwards and forwards means 'I know everything about you.' 13. The word 'jeet' is actually a phrase meaning 'Did you eat?' 14. You don't have to wear a watch, because it doesn't matter what time it is, you work until you're done or it's too dark to see. 15. You don't PUSH buttons, you MASHEM. 16. 'No. Jew?' is a common response to the question 'Did you bring any beer?' 17. You measure distance in minutes. 18. You switch from heat to A/C in the same day. 19. All the festivals across the state are named after a fruit, vegetable, grain, insect or animal. 20. You know what a 'DAWG' is. 21. You carry jumper cables in your car --- for your OWN car. 22. You only own five spices: salt, pepper, Tony's, Tabasco and Ketchup. 23. The local papers cover national and international news on one page, but require 6 pages for local high school sports and motor sports, andgossip. 24. You think that the first day of deer season is a national holiday. 25. You find 100 degrees Fahrenheit 'a bit warm'. 26. You know all four seasons: Almost summer, summer, still summer, and Christmas. 27. Going to Wal-Mart is a favorite past time know as 'goin' Wal-Martin' or 'off to Wally World'. 28. You describe the first cool snap (below 70 degrees) as good chicken stew weather. 29. Fried catfish is the other white meat. 30. We don't need no dang driver's Ed. If our mama says we can drive, we can drive dag-nabbit. 31. You understand these jokes and forward them to your Texas friends and those who just wish they were from Texas.

Texas Rules

Rules of Texas :> 1. Pull your droopy pants up. You look like an idiot.> > 2. Let's get this straight; it's called a> 'gravel road.' I> drive a> pickup truck because I want to. No matter how slow you> drive, you're> going to get dust on your Lexus. Drive it or get out of the> way.> > 3. They are cattle & oil wells. That's what they> smell like to you.> They> smell like money to us. Get over it. Don't like it?> I-20 and I-10 go> east and west, I-35 goes north and south. Pick one.> > 4.. So you have a $60,000 car. We're impressed. We have> $250,000 cotton> strippers that are driven only 3 weeks a year.> > 5. So every person in every pickup waves. It's called> being friendly.> Try to understand the concept.> > 6. If that cell phone rings while a bunch of doves are> coming in, we> WILL shoot it out of your hand. You better hope you> don't have it up to> your ear at the time.> > 7. Yeah, we eat catfish & crawfish. You really want> sushi & caviar?> It's> available at the corner bait shop.> > 8. The 'Opener' refers to the first day of deer> season. It's a> religious> holiday held the closest Saturday to the first of November.> > 9. We open doors for women. That is applied to all women,> regardless of> age.> > 10. No, there's no 'vegetarian special' on the> menu. Order steak.> Or you> can order the Chef's Salad and pick off the 2 pounds of> ham & turkey.> > 11. When we fill out a table, there are three main dishes:> meats,> vegetables, and breads. We use three spices: salt, pepper,> and Picante> Sauce!! Oh, yeah....We don't care what you folks in> Cincinnati call that> stuff you eat...IT AIN'T REAL CHILI!! Chili was born> and bred in San> Antonio ....and real chili never met a bean!> > 12. You bring 'coke' into my house, it better be> brown, wet, and served> over ice. You bring 'Mary Jane' into my house, she> better be cute, know> how to shoot, and drive a truck.> > 13. College and High School Football is as important here> as the Lakers> and the Knicks, and a dang site more fun to watch.> > 14. Yeah, we have golf courses. But don't hit the water> hazards -- it> spooks the fish.> > 15. Colleges? Try Texas Tech, Texas A&M or University> of Texas . They> come outta there with an education plus a love for God and> country, and> they still wave at passing pickups when they come for the> holidays.> > 16. We have more folks in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and> Marines, than> any other state, so 'Don't Mess with Texas ,'> If you do, you will> get> whupped by the best.> > 17. Always remember what our great governor Sam Houston> once said:> ' Texas can make it without the United States , but the> United States> can't make it without Texas !'> > Texas is the greatest state ever!! If you are from Texas> you are one bad> hombre!!! If you do not share this with someone in the next> 10 min. you> are not a true Texan!!!!!!