3D Church

3D Church
Originally uploaded by HighPlainsDox.

Here's a little playing around I did today. Make this image fit on the screen if it doesn't. View large/original. Look cross-eyed at it, to the point that the two images line up in the center, tilting your head a little bit as necessary. Concentrate on the center image that forms as you do this. To make it easier, put your hands up in front of your face/eyes so that you can only see the left image with your right eye, and only the right image with your left eye. You will naturally bring the images together.

Do you see it? The church comes to life, and the clouds have some astounding depth.

USCG Band

USCG Band
Originally uploaded by HighPlainsDox.

I saw this band play the other night. It was the first time I've ever seen 'em, even though I am a Coast Guard veteran from the 'Nam era. This is also the first time they've ever played in Amarillo - ever.

It was an excellent performance.

Test Image

I'm just testing an image here. I took this through a stargazing telescope. This little guy was quite a ways away, and there was severe vignetting. That's why I cropped it round as I did.
I'm working on it. I got my exposure right, but I need work on my clarity. Maybe some higher ISO film and faster shutter speeds will do it.


oo00O00oo

Geocaching - solo.

While taking a little trip to Wally World to get my photo CDs, I hunted down a cache that was close by. This was my first solo find. Might be a good way to get some exercise - riding bikes to find caches.

The Lone Ranger's Creed

1. I believe that to have a friend, a man must be one.

2. That all men are created equal and that everyone has within himself the power to make this a better world.

3. That God put the firewood there, but that every man must gather and light it himself.

4. In being prepared physically, mentally, and morally to fight when necessary for that which is right.

5. That a man should make the most of what equipment he has.

6. That "this government, of the people, by the people, and for the people," shall live always.

7. That men should live by the rule of what is best for the greatest number.

8. That sooner or later... somewhere... somehow... we must settle with the world and make payment for what we have taken.

9. That all things change, but the truth, and the truth alone lives on forever.

10. I believe in my Creator, my country, my fellow man.

Geocaching

I've had my Magellan handheld GPS for a while now, but never really used it much. I'll take it with me when we go photo-op hunting, or on weekend trips, but that hasn't happened for a while. Too much going on.

Yesterday, I went with Shelley's brother (calls himself "Cash-n-Dash") on a geocache hunt. It's a growing phenomena that's kind of like a treasure hunt, but using a GPS unit to pinpoint its location. Not as easy as it sounds. Once you get to the location, you still have to find it. It could be as big as an ammo box, or as small as a quarter - camouflaged or otherwise hidden. There may be little things in it that you can "take one - leave one", log your name on a list, or any combination thereof. There are even caches that travel around the country/world.

After printing out the coordinates of where about half a dozen caches were, we headed out. I had to learn how to set up my unit, but I managed to find a couple of caches before he did. Some of them were really tough to find. I have since reconfigured my GPS's displays to give me more useful information and make hunting easier and quicker. Might try it out later today to see if it worked. :)

Might be able to mix geocaching with photography, too!

A Country Called Texas

I have a group in Flickr, called A Country Called Texas. It is a photo gallery that I invite Flickr photographers to share their "Texas" photography in one place. I was directed there today, pointing out that there are 455 members that do share their photographs - nearly 8,000 of them! They have done a fantastic job of showcasing our state - from the people, to the scenery, to the cities, to the weather.....and on and on.

I must ashamedly admit that I hadn't checked on my group for some time, and had no idea it had grown so much. Last I knew, there were a hundred or so that have shared a few hundred photos. Today, I posted a "thank you" to the members thereof, and spent some time looking at all of the photos that have been submitted.

I am truly amazed! One in particular that struck me was this one:

Not only does this one scream "Texas!" (and is an excellent composition), the story in the description makes it a perfect photo. Be sure to click on it and read Dusty's story.

Bald Eagle Webcam

For those interested, here is a webcam site for observing bald eagles on/at their nest. I try to watch it every year, as they hatch their eggs and raise their young.

Interloper

Interloper
Originally uploaded by HighPlainsDox.

While at work today, I found this little critter running around campus. He didn't seem too concerned about people, and even went over to the Child Development building and paced back and forth on top of the fence that encompasses their small playground. On my way back to main campus, I stopped and let them know that there was a fox there, and to watch out for it. Didn't want any kids to get bit or anything. Seemed kind of odd that a wild fox would hang out so close to people. They were already watching him through the windows. :)

Crafty Again

Over the last couple/three months, I've been working on a new project - a wall clock. It was a slow process. I bought the parts I needed at JoAnn Fabrics.

I started with a board (the edge already shaped) a little over 8 1/2" x 11", some boiled linseed oil, and a clock kit. I began by hand-rubbing the linseed oil into/onto the wood. I'd rub a bit, let it dry for several days, then rub again. This is what took the longest time, obviously. After I got the finish where I wanted it, I chose a photo of mine that I thought would look good on it. I chose one of Palo Duro Canyon. I printed it out on glossy 8" x 10" photo paper, drilled the hole in the wood for the clock hub, glued the photo to the board with "Mod Podge", a common scrap-booker's glue/sealer. Then I mounted the clock movement to the board, and installed the hands. I chose to only use 4 of the numbers, to prevent obscuring the photo excessively. This is the result:

You Know You're In Texas, When.....

1. You see more Texan flags than American flags.
2. You know someone who ate the 72 oz steak and got it for free.
3. You attend a formal event in your best clothes, your finest jewelry, and your Cowboy Boots.
4. You can write a check at Dairy Queen for 2 Hungr-Busters and fries.
5. You prefer Whataburger to McDonalds.
6. You dress up to go shopping at the mall.
7. You've hung ornaments and tinsel on a tumbleweed and used it as a Christmas tree.
8. You're disappointed when a food doesn't come in spicy flavor.
9. You know from experience that rattlesnake meat tastes like chicken.
10. You can tell a rock from an armadillo at 300 yards.
11. You know what a 'Cowboy Cadillac' is.
12. You have both a dog and a brother-in-law named Bud
13. Your local grocery store sells cactus in the Fresh Produce department
14. You watch the movie Urban Cowboy and laugh at the phony Texan accents
15. You choose a brand of Mexican salsa with the same care that another might use to select a bottle of fine wine
16. You think that the 4 basic food groups are nachos, bar-b-que, fajitas, and Copenhagen.
17. You refer to the Dallas Cowboys as "God's favorite football team"
18. You know whether another Texan is from South, West, East, North, or Central Texas as soon as they open their mouth.
19. You don't consider people from Austin to be real Texans.
20. Your Pastor wears boots.
21. There is no such thing as a "secret" sin.
22. The Blue Book value on your truck goes up and down depending on how much gas it has in it.
23. Armadillos sleep in the middle of the road with their feet in the air.
24. Roadrunners dont say Beep Beep
25. There are 5,000 types of snakes and 4,998 live in Texas.
26. There are 10,000 types of spiders. All 10,000 live in Texas, plus a couple no ones seen before.
27. Possums will eat anything.
28. Raccoons will test your crop of melons and let you know when they are ripe.
29. If it grows, it sticks. If it crawls, it bites.
30. Nothing will kill a mesquite tree.
31. There are valid reasons some people put concertina wire around their house.
32. You cannot find a country road without a curve from corner to corner.
33. A tractor is NOT an all-terrain vehicle, they do get stuck.
34. The wind blows at 90 MPH from Oct. 2 until June 25, then it stops totally until Oct 2.
35. Onced and Twiced are good words.
36. It is not a shopping cart it is a buggy.
37. Fire ants consider your flesh as a picnic.
38. Graduating 1st in your class means you left in the 8th grade.
39. Coldbeer actually is one word.
40. People really grow and eat okra.
41. Green grass DOES burn.
42. When you live in the country, you dont have to buy a dog. City people drop them off at your gate in the middle of the night.
43. When a buzzard sits on the fence and stares at you, its time to go to the doctor.
44. Fixinto is one word.
45. The word dinner is confusing. Theres only lunch and then theres supper.
46. Backards and forards means I know everything about you.
47. Jeeet? is actually a phrase meaning Did you eat?
48. You work until youre done or its too dark to see.
49. You measure distance in minutes.
50. Youve had to switch from heat to A/C in the same day.
51. Stores dont have bags; they have sacks.
52. You know what cow tipping and snipe hunting is.
53. You only own four spices: salt, pepper, ketchup, and Picante.
54. You think sexy lingerie is a tee shirt and boxer shorts.
55. You think that the first day of deer season is a national holiday.
56. You know which leaves make good toilet paper.
57. You know all four seasons: Almost summer, summer, Still summer, and Christmas.
58. There is a Dairy Queen in every town with a population over 1000.
59. Going to Walmart is a favorite past-time known as goin wal-martin or off to Wally World.
60. You describe the first cool snap (below 70 degrees) as good chili weather.
61. A carbonated soft drink isnt a soda, cola, or pop .. its a Coke, regardless of brand or flavor.
62. You no longer associate bridges (or rivers) with water...
63. You can say 110 degrees without fainting...
64. You eat hot chilies to cool your mouth off...
65. You can make instant sun tea...
66. You learn that a seat belt makes a pretty good branding iron...
67. The temperature drops below 95, you feel a bit chilly...
68. You discover that in July, it takes only 2 fingers to drive your car...
69. You discover that you can get a sunburn through your car window...
70. You notice the best parking place is determined by shade instead of distance...
71. Hot water now comes out of both taps...
72. It's noon in July, kids are on summer vacation, and not one person is out on the streets...
73. You actually burn your hand opening the car door...
74. You break a sweat the instant you step outside... at 7:30 a.m. before work...
75. No one would dream of putting vinyl upholstery in a car or not having air conditioning...
76. Your biggest bicycle wreck fear is, "What if I get knocked out and end up lying on the pavement and cook to death"?...
77. You realize that asphalt has a liquid state...
78. Its illegal to have a tattoo until youre 18, but children of all ages can play with guns
79. You dont think its weird to drink a beer at anytime of day, even the morning
80. You think its weird not to drink a beer
81. You can drive all day and not leave the state
82. The confederate flag is flown at your high school, the team is even named after it
83. You shop at HEB
84. The town you live in is bigger than Rhode island
85. You see more trucks on your daily commute than youll see in the state of New Jersey
86. Your high school football stadium is equal to, or better, than most professional stadiums
87. You know there are more longhorn, cattle and steer than there people in the state
88. We dont have an ocean; we have a gulf
89. You know someone who is named Pedro or Martin
90. Their last name is Gonzales, Martinez or Rodriguez
91. You eat tacos for breakfast
92. You think Dr. Pepper is the best damn coke in the world
93. The extensions of the index and pinky make for the best hand gesture in the world besides the shocker
94. The best parties are on at least two acres of land
95. You can go anywhere with a gun on your truck and no one thinks twice about it
96. You know someone with a gun related injury
97. Getting stuck in the mud is a challenge, not an avoidance
98. We panic when there is an inch of snow on the ground
99. Air conditioning is standard on every car sold here
100. You've said I've never met a Jewish person before
101. You design your Halloween costume to fit over Wranglers and cowboy boots.
102. The mosquitoes have landing lights.
103. You have more miles on your tractor than your car.
104. You have 10 favorite recipes for deer meat.
105. You've taken your kids trick-or-treating when it was 90 degrees outside.
106. The preacher says, "I'd like to ask Bubba to help take up the offering." and five guys stand up.
107. A member of the church requests to be buried in his 4-wheel-drive truck because "It ain't never been in a hole it couldn't get out of."
108. When it rains, everyone is smiling.
109. The choir group is known as the "OK Chorale."
110. Four generations of the same family sit together in worship.
111. There is no such thing as a "secret" sin.
112. Baptism is referred to as "branding."
113. Finding and returning lost sheep isn't just a parable.
114. High notes on the organ can set the dogs to howling.
115. People wonder, when Jesus fed 5,000, whether the two fish were bass or catfish.
116. The final words of the benediction are, "Ya'll come back now, ya hear?"
117. It's a common misconception that everything is twice as big in Texas, really, everything is 1.965 times bigger, but we round up.
118. It's a common misconception that the women have big hair. In fact this was outlawed in July 1977. There is a task force and they are doing their best to reach every last woman. Bear with us.
119. A visitor to Texas once asked, "Does it ever rain out here?" A rancher quickly answered "Yes, it does. Do you remember that part in the Bible where it rained for 40 days and 40 nights?"The visitor replied, "Yes, I'm familiar with Noah's flood." "Well," the rancher puffed up, we got 'bout two and a half inches of that."
120. A sad Texan once prayed, "I wish it would rain - not so much for me, cuz I've seen it - but for my 7-year-old."
121. Sunscreen is sold year round, kept at the front of the checkout counter . . .
122. A formula less than 30 SPF is a joke and you only wear that to go to the corner store . . .
123. You can properly pronounce Corsicana, Ennis, Waxahachie, Palestine, Decatur, Wichita Falls, San Antonio, Mexia, Waco, and Amarillo.
124. A tornado warning siren is your signal to go out in the yard and look for a funnel.
125. You think everyone from a bigger city has an accent.
126. You listen to the weather forecast before picking out an outfit.
127. Someone you know has used a football schedule to plan their wedding date.
128. You have known someone who has had one belt buckle bigger than your fist.
129. You arent surprised to find movie rental, ammunition, and bait all in the same store.
130. A Mercedes Benz is not a status symbol. A Chevy 3500 4Ã4 is.
131. You know everything goes better with Ranch.
132. You go to the river/lake because you think it is like going to the ocean.
133. You go to the gas station and there is a sign in the window that reads, No Shoes, No Shirt, No Service!
134. Your family pet is the stray dog with one leg that came limping up to your door.
135. Pull your droopy pants up. You look like an idiot.
136. Let's get this straight; it's called a "gravel road."
137. I drive a pickup truck because I want to.
138. No matter how slow you drive, you're going to get dust on your Lexus. Drive it or get out of the way.
139. 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.
140. So you have a $60,000 car. We're impressed. We have $250,000 cotton strippers that are driven only 3 weeks a year.
141. So every person in every pickup waves. It's called being friendly. Try to understand the concept.
142. 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.
143. Yeah, we eat catfish & crawfish. You really want sushi & caviar? It's available at the corner bait shop.
144. We open doors for women. That is applied to all women, regardless of age.
145. 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.
146. You bring "coke" into my house, it better be brown, wet, and served over ice.
147. You bring "Mary Jane" into my house, she better be cute, know how to shoot, drive a truck, and have long hair.
148. College and High School Football is as important here as the Lakers and the Knicks, and a dang site more fun to watch.
149. Yeah, we have golf courses. But don't hit the water hazards -- it spooks the fish.
150. Colleges? Try Texas Tech, Texas A&M, University of Texas or Texas State. Kids 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.
151. We have more folks in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines, than any other state
152. 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!"