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Treatment Ahead

Hi friends – 

Today the doctor told me to try and get through my hot sauce collection quickly, because I probably won’t be able to enjoy it after the radiation treatments begin. That gives me a few weeks to get through ~20 bottles. Not going to happen.

A few weeks ago, a persistent “thickness” in the throat and a visibly swollen tonsil led me to see the doctor, who felt suspicious and sent me to a specialist, who surprised me by doing a spontaneous biopsy on a lymph node in my neck and an order for a CT scan. A few days later, I got the call – I have Stage 2 Squamous cell carcinoma of the throat. It was the last thing any of us saw coming, and suddenly things are moving really fast. Yesterday I met with a surgeon who delivered a mix of good news and bad. 

The good news is that the marker I have — P-16+ — is the good kind, which responds very well to radiation and chemo, and which will allow me to avoid surgery which would probably have life-altering side effects on speech and swallowing. He gave me a 100% chance of survival (not 80-90%, as the first doctor had reported), which immediately lifted a huge stress load. 

Continue reading “Treatment Ahead”
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Honoring Martin Luther King

“If you can’t fly then run, if you can’t run then walk, if you can’t walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward.” -Martin Luther King

Martin Luther King
We had a choice between a woman of incredible intelligence, qualification, and character, or a twice-impeached convicted felon, rapist, pathological liar, and lifelong grifter. We chose the latter, and will pay the price together, as a nation. Today I am proud to honor the life of one of America’s great leaders, Doctor Martin Luther King. May he continue to inspire us to be better.

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Contradictions in Photography Advice

I’ve watched a lot of photography youtube and listened to a lot of photography podcasts and read a lot of photography articles, and one thing has jumped out at me: For every piece of loudly-spoken advice, there is a piece of equal and opposite counter-advice (The First Law of Photodynamics). I finally got around to gathering up as much of the conflicting advice as I could think of and putting it together in a single article – hope someone finds it useful.

Contradictions in Photography Advice, at Medium

Foggy fishing at Moss Landing
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Grateful for Billboard Bans

Vermont was the first of four states, along with Maine, Hawaii and Alaska to ban billboards – Vermont voters did not want to disrupt the natural view of their state, and I assume the other states had similar reasoning. We owe so much to people and politicians who put a stake in the ground to protect natual beauty when it was still possible, for the sake of future generations.

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Joshua Tree 2024

Amy and I spent the first days of April in Joshua Tree, and had an amazing time exploring the boulders and cactuses (monzogranite and cholla). 

The hikes there are mostly short – pull over, do a mile or two, get back in the car and find another. But some are longer, like the day we veered off the Split Rock trail to find the Miners’ Boulder Cabin, which gold rush miners created by finding a natural confluence of boulders and patching in smaller ones, sticks and boards, and making a hammered tin roof – some of their leftover gear is still present to this day.

On our very first hike, we were visited by a beautiful coyote, out looking for dinner. 

Setting out on the trail to Arch Rock, we spotted this leggy Kit Fox loping through the brush without a care in the world, a harbinger?

We had another amazing evening watching desert stars from “Star Box” – a property out in Wonder Valley that the owner granted access to for a small fee. We had some fun doing light painting while waiting for full darkness and the stars’ own light show. Such a peaceful, beautiful evening.

In Twentynine Palms, we visited the “outsider art” sculpture gallery “Glass Outhouse” and wandered through the array of odd things planted in the ground. 

We watched the sun go down from Cholla Cactus Garden and Keys View. 

In Wonder Valley, we happened upon the Plane With No Wings, and finally found The End of the World.

I’ve been through the desert on a plane with no wings

Just wanted to share some of the pics from the trip, here:

https://adobe.ly/3JoppiV

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Exploring Vintage lenses

My first vintage lens, recently arrived from Ukraine. This is a 1976 Helios 44mm f2 M-style screw mount (I recently overestimated its age, sorry). Verified not to be radioactive. Amazing how cheap these things are on eBay, but still perfectly serviceable with the right (cheap) adapter. Loving the slightly soft focus, if I can nail it. Some neighborhood shots of Magnolias in bloom.

Winter magnolias shot with 1976 Helios 44mm f2
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Arrow

Paddling near some broke-down pilings at Rodeo, I suddenly realized there was an arrow stuck into one of them, probably shot from shore who-knows-when. I turned around and there was not a soul on shore, so I was fine, but then imagined what would have happened if I’d been there at the right time, and this sucker had gone through me. And that reminded me of the lyrics to Wings’ “Arrow”: “Ooh, baby, you couldn’t have done a worse thing to me / If you’da taken an arrow and run it right through me. Oooh.” And I love that song, so everything was fine.

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Watercolor by Tom Vaughan

Well that was fun! A watercolor painter named Tom Vaughan on Mastodon contacted me a bit ago and asked whether it would be OK if he made a painting from one of my photographs (from Pierce Point Rd in Pt. Reyes with Paul Porter last November). I said yes, and this is what he posted in response today. He said in advance that he was an amateur and to not expect too much, but I think it’s lovely. He took some liberties, adding the tree and converting dusk to daylight, but that’s part of what makes it his own.

Watercolor version by Tom Vaughan
My original photograph from Pierce Point Rd.

This image at Flickr.