Camp Liza, as my aunt called it, ended on Friday.

I spent the week finding fun things to do with a five year old boy and a seven year old girl, both of whom are incredibly energetic, inquisitive and all around delightful. We took trips to the library, the Udvar-Hazy Center of the National Air and Space Museum, the park by their school, another fun park a little further away that had mini-golfing, a train ride, a carousel, lots of trails, a playground and ice cream, and to a paint your own pottery place. On top of that, we played lots of Uno and Clue and plenty of Spider Solitare, and I was also resoundingly beaten in the numerous tic-tac-toe and Pokemon battles they conned me into. Really, they had incredible persuasive abilities, add that to being completely okay with making up their own rules and I had no hope at all. The kids seemed to make it through unscathed, but I was exhausted, in a very good way, by the end of it.

Luckily, I had a four hour car ride to get a bit of rest, before stopping by to see more family- this time my step-dad's parents and brother and his family. I always love visiting them (and I'm not even saying that 'cause they read this blog! :D) and this trip was no exception.

This time, however, there was something else besides visiting that I got to do, and that was to go meet a guy from craislist to pick up a camera and a couple of lenses.

Oh yes.

The camera is another Pentax SLR that I doubt I'll use, and the lenses were really what I was after. Since getting my camera in February (thank you again and again and again, Dan, Ellen, Q, Flo and Theresa!), I've just been using the kit manual focus 50mm lens. Now I have that, along with a 70-300mm and a 28-80mm. On top of that, I'd ordered a fish eye lens off of ebay earlier in the week, and opened that as soon as I jumped in the car on Saturday.

Oh yes.

I've been playing ever since.

This evening, I dragged my little brother off with me so I could do some night shooting (and be safe should we encounter questionable characters, he is a ninja afterall). Mainly I was just doing lens comparisons and figuring out what I wanted from each of them and getting a little more comfortable. That at least was the goal, and it was working out wonderfully until my batteries died. D'oh. (Note to self, never, ever, ever again go shooting without an extra set of batteries. That is dumb.) I got some fun shots in before that happened.

The World War II memorial, all lit up.
I went through and did this shot from the same position with all of my lenses, just for comparison.


Looking over the Severn River bridge, towards Annapolis. Taken with the fish-eye.

I've been down in Virginia since Sunday, helping watch two of my cousins so my uncle can make the world a better place.

Today, I took the youngsters to the park and enjoyed playing with them and watching them interact with the other kids. It got me thinking about how great these kids are, and what a wonderful job their parents have been doing raising them.

I like to think that my parents sent me out into the world filled with the right stuff to make it to the top in whatever I end up doing, kind of like that balloon (I'll admit, it's an incredibly cheesy analogy, but I wanted to link the picture in somehow). My hope is that should the time come when I am raising my own kids, I'll be able to provide them the experiences, skill sets and background to be honest, empathetic, happy, independent, intelligent, contributing members of society, and know that when I let go of them so they can float off on their own, I can do that with confidence in their ability to make good decisions in whatever it is they choose to do.

Heck, I'd settle with having half of those attributes myself.

Catchin' Up

The first full week I was back here in Maryland was my mom's family reunion. My grandmother had rented a few condos/apartments for the twenty-seven of us, and we spent the week enjoying each other's company, eating, laughing, splashing around, paddle-boating, boating and tubing. All in all, it was quite delightful. I hadn't seen a lot of the family for more than three years, and finally got to meet the three beautiful kids my aunt adopted.



I love my family, and spending time with them (especially in such a beaaaautiful place) is wonderful. I'd enjoy being able to see everyone, but it's a bit difficult, so we make the most of the reunions every other year.

Later this summer, I'll be heading out to Utah for a weekend to celebrate my paternal grandparent's 50th anniversary, and I'm quite excited about that one as well.

Happy Birthday, America

Some of the highlights of the day:

The local parade, which included the usual things as well as larger than life paper mache sharks,

drumming bananas,

silly handouts,

true, yet amusing, statements,

sparklers with the family,

watermelon, and

forgetting my tripod for the fireworks, and missing the whole show while talking to a friend I haven't seen in a couple of years.

I am so grateful to have the opportunity to live all over this great country and to enjoy the many freedoms provided. I appreciate more and more the freedom of speech we have, that we can speak out when we disagree, and that we have a culture that encourages that. I am so glad that I've have the chance to live elsewhere and to see the contrasts in all sorts of things, that help me see the positive and the not so positive in both.

It's a practice birthday!

Tonight I got to see Aretha Franklin, Barry Manilow, the Sesame Street characters, Natasha Bedingfield and the Jersey Boys perform on the Capitol lawn for the dress rehearsal of A Capitol Fourth concert. Our patch of grass was a little far and didn't give us the greatest view, but for free, how much can you complain?


And how adorable are my little sisters?

It's summertime!

You know how I know?
Rita's!

It's an essential part of every summer trip home. Today, I got a free mango gelato, thanks to my family's habit. (Newly acquired since I left, how unfair!)

I also know it's summer time because while I was waiting for my sister so we could take some pictures, I was viciously attacked by at least twenty mosquitoes, and ended up with more than a couple dime sized welts. That part isn't nearly as delightful as the Rita's though.

Sometimes I think that with all the progress we've supposedly made, we really haven't made much at all. Why should we use our electric dryers when there is sunshine and light breezes that can dry our clothes just as well?

I've said it before, and I'll say it a thousand more times, but I love rainstorms.

I love the feel of the rain pounding down, the smell in the air and the sound as it hits rooftops. I love dancing it it and I love standing still in it. I love that rain keeps this beautiful place as green as it is and so many more things. I've missed these Maryland storms that keep going and going and going.

It's nice to be back.