Sunday Serenity: Looking Out

Posted on by Annie

(Note: You might need to read this post on something bigger than a phone screen to see the details of the photos.) I was walking on the beach, with a very cold wind out of the northwest, when I saw these plovers and stopped to watch them. As new birds joined the group, they tucked in at the back, farthest from the cold. Made sense, as they had been on their own and now the flock could help them warm up and rest for a bit. Every few minutes, the bird or two at the front scurried round to the back…

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Hiking Virginia Beach

Posted on by Annie

I spent most of this week at First Landing State Park in Virginia Beach, which had some beautiful subjects for my camera. Wednesday’s hike was an adventure in going the wrong direction and yet seeing so many beautiful reflections. Spring is just showing up here, as you can tell by the “spring greens” in this shot. That lumpy bit in the lower right corner is two turtles “sharing” a small bit of land amid the water, and they were both enjoying the warmer weather and sunshine. This is a bald cypress tree, surrounded by the “knees” it has sent up…

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Weekly Update: April 18, 2018

Posted on by Annie

This has been a windy Spring for me, and the past week has certainly not disappointed in that regard. From the cold northerly winds to the warmer southerlies, it seems wind is the one constant on the mid-Atlantic coast. It’s is one reason why the Wright Brothers picked Kitty Hawk as their base; they learned to pilot gliders well before trying powered aircraft. This was one of many things I learned at the Wright Brothers National Memorial last week. Friday and Saturday nights, I enjoyed the company of fellow Alto owners from Quebec, and we traded tips about trailers and camping…

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Sunday Serenity: Time

Posted on by Annie

About six months before I left the working full-time world, I was invited to a day-long seminar in presentation. Thinking I had pretty good skills in public speaking, I went anyways because a day away from the desk is sometimes a good thing. I actually learned a lot, and what surprised me the most was that the leaders noticed how much I rush around. Swoosh, into the room, swoosh, up at the whiteboard, swoosh, out to get some markers, etc. etc. etc. Couldn’t they see I was rushing to get things done? So much to do, so little time… And…

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Wright Brothers National Memorial

Posted on by Annie

The year is 1903 and the Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur, have been working for four years on how to fly a heavier-than-air craft moving under its own power, under control of a pilot, and without losing speed while underway. On December 17, they did it. Here’s the airfield where it all happened. The red circle shows the starting point of each flight, and the red rectangles show the ending points of each flight that day, with the first flight being the left-most white marker (and each flight was a bit longer in length, so the markers are in order…

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