So sorry to hear this. Words don't really seem to be sufficient. Please know we here are thinking of all of you and your families that are facing these losses. Stay strong, and stay safe.
Mary
Thank you Mary, we suffer losses but strong we will stay for each other.
Ballard wrote:
I have not been regularly reading this thread lately, so it was truly sad to return and read in the last few pages of multiple losses.
Peter, Andy, Rafael, to each of you condolences. Words seem so feebly inadequate at these times. Even the most deeply felt well-wishes can feel like empty platitudes in the face of profound grief. May each of you find strength and solace in the days ahead.
Numerous members of this thread expressed their concern after my parter died 2 years ago. I did not expect that; I was truly touched. I will not forget that kindness. ...Show more →
Thank you Ken, also thanks for the PM, we are all in the same journey and the primary purpose is to be here for each other - all of us.
the solitaire wrote:
Seems to be not the most merry of times to return to the fold, but I have been silently reading along with the happenings, while work kept me from photographing mostly.
I wish to express my sincere condolances to you, Rafael, for the loss of a brother, and Andy for the loss of an uncle and Peter, for a brother lost as well.
Over here, everyone is healthy. Anouk is such a creative and witty child. So on a somewhat lighter note, Kristina was making some fresh buns, and placed the on a tray on baking paper, to place them in the oven. Anouk was helping her, shape some dough to buns and placing them on the tray. She placed them pretty close together, and Kristna told her to leave some more space between the puffs of dough.
Anouk asked: "Why? Can the buns get Corona too?" She was just pulling Kristinas leg though, and we could not help but laugh out loud at her well placed pun.
It is a somewhat bizar connection, and shows how much this crisis is part of our lives on both conscious and unconscious levels. But it also shows that life goes on. Buns need to be baked (and eaten) and, for the moment, Kindergarten continues as well.
Kristina, Anouk and I helped a local artist create beautiful mosaic sculptures for the Kindergarten too. Once they are placed, I might be able to make some photos of them, using some manual focus Nikkor glass. As for the oment, all I have is a cellphone photo, showing Anouk and Kristina at work, filling in the mosaic.
Germany goes into a 2nd lockdown today. It actually came into effect 39 minutes ago, and will last until the 10th of January, unless the lockdown is extended. Since my work is considered vital for the global economy, I still go to work and commute across borders each day. ...Show more →
Very kind of you Buddy, the only good outcome of this pandemic may be an understanding that we really are in this together.
asiostygius wrote:
Just today I have been reading through the last pages. So sorry for all of you, Peter, Andy and Rafael, for the lost of loved ones. Hope they RIP.
Z7 + FTZ + Nikkor 300mm f/4.5K ai'd ED (non-IF) hand held, some 13m away; ISO 800, f/5.6 at 1/800s; ~13% cropped (6/45MP), no flash used.
These white woodpeckers are crazy enough to feed on wasp nests (larvae, pupae and a little of the nest material together), so this male is bringing some of this kind of food to the nestlings.
An experiment I did at 14-15 years of age in 1973 Bronica S Nikkor 75mm post processed twice using Kodalith developer and film (reduces the palette to 2 colors - black and white only). "Basket"
After everything that has happened this year it is difficult to get revved up for Xmas.
So, this is our 'Dalek' tree with a sticking out branch. [Reference to Dr. Who]
This it how it should be viewed during normal times but the second picture seems more like reality to me - trying to navigate a path through the current mess to get to something good again.
gbohannon wrote:
I love that shot! Can smell that bread now I like the looks of that grinder too.
I just got a batch of raw beans and will be roasting this week (have a break from work).
George
George, I was lucky on the grinder. Kristinas mother found it at a flea market, and bought it for around $15. It is an original Zassenhaus Model B, which was, determined by the inscriptions, logo and the shape of the metal dome, built between 1957 and 1965. I took it apart, cleaned the grinder, verified the ballbearing was ok, sanded the wooden parts and treated them with tung oil. Then I built everything back together and milled a pound of supermarket coffee beans to get rid of the taste of cleaning and polishing the millwork.
That is a lot of work for a grinder that, in good shape, can be bought for around $60 on the used market, but this really is a nice grinder, with a hardened steel millwork in it, If I take care of it, this grinder should last me a lifetime. And it certainly adds to the flavour of coffeemaking.
By now I found a few sources for good coffee. I try to ensure that the beans are obtained through fair-trade channels. That proved to be a bit difficult with beans from New Guinea, which have quite a characterful taste, but I found out that, rather then use underpaid personell, in New Guinea the coffee fields are generally tended by the families who sell the beans. It is a bit of a different market. As of now, I am still trying to obtain Goroka Highland blend, but I think that will only be a matter of time, because that blend is actually represented on social media.
gbohannon wrote:
Why did you show this?!! I haven't built a PC in years and don't want to fall down that rabbit hole again. (now googling watercooled motherboards)
I rabbithole I dropped into a few onths ago, when a friend donated me half a computer, and I built a scene from the Mad Max movies into the (working) computer. Glad I finished that project though, because that cost me some "lens money" I had saved up for a backup copy of the 55m f1,2
