Monthly Archives: November 2023

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November 26, 2023

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Photographic Thoughts — 11/19/2023 to 11/25/2023

“Once you learn to care, you can record images with your mind or on film. There is no difference between the two.” — Anonymous

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 11/19/2023: Posted photo — Moxie.

Distinctively Different since 1884. Moxie is the oldest continually produced soft drink in the United States. It is a New England tradition. Moxie was designated as the official soft drink of the State of Maine in 2005.

I like Moxie. Most of my friends and family do not like the taste. We had Moxie when I was younger since my father also liked it. “Live your Life with a little Moxie.”

Monday, 11/20/2023: Posted photo — Stars.

Today would have been my father’s 101 birthday. Miss you dad.

Nice hike tonight. The temperature was cool, and the air was brisk. Hiking keeps you warm and if you dress properly, you stay warm.

When the group was at the summit, I put my phone on a handrail and took a photo of the sky.

Tuesday, 11/21/2023: Posted photo — Compass.

During my map and compass course, I talked about the difference between a fixed declination compass and an adjustable declination compass. I have been putting together my slides for the advanced map and compass class and took a photo of the two of my compasses. The fixed declination compass (Suunto A-10) has the declination scale in the North while the adjustable declination compass (Suunto M-3) has the declination scale in the South.

I am also discussing the principle of back bearing. Back bearing is the way to backtrack to find your way back to your original location. The fixed declination compass is taking a back bearing without taking into account magnetic declination.

Wednesday, 11/22/2023: Posted photo — Flowers.

During my shopping trip, I took another photo of flowers. Always good to take photos of flowers when there is more darkness than light during the day.

Thursday, 11/23/2023: Posted photo — Desert.

Today is Thanksgiving Day. On this day we give thanks to what we have, have family gatherings, and large meals that include desert. This year we had a small dinner with my family my niece and here husband (one of my son’s friends). After dinner we invited the family over to our house for dessert.

Here are photos of a traditional apple pie, a wonderful chocolate and peanut butter pie, and the frosting on a pumpkin and chocolate chip cake. These desserts go well with ice cream and homemade whipped cream.

Friday, 11/24/2023: Post photo — Wood Delivery.

This morning we received the first of two wood deliveries. The normal length of wood we order was flooded out due to all the rain we had this summer, so we needed to purchase some wood that is longer than we do and some shorter. We received two cords of the longer pieces this morning and had them stacked in our woodshed by early afternoon. Firewood is sold by a measurement called a “cord.” A cord must equal 128 cubic feet.

In the next week or so, I will be ordering the three cords of shorter wood for us to stack in our woodshed. The woodshed can only handle four cords, so we will have to stack some outside the shed in our uncovered racks.

Saturday, 11/25/2023: Post photo — Book.

Was out blowing leaves today since the leaves were dry. Some of the leaves were, and still are, frozen to the ground. What does this have to do with the book photo? Well, I needed a photo for today and I am still putting together my advanced map reading course for the spring. This is one of the best books to get to learn navigation. I have been using it for many years now.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

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November 19, 2023

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Photographic Thoughts — 11/12/2023 to 11/18/2023

“There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer.” — Ansel Adams

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 11/12/2023: Posted photo — Training.

Today I taught 17 hikers how to use a map and compass. Some of the students were experienced hikers who needed a refresher and some never used a map and compass before today. The training was through the AMC and was held at Wachusett Mountain. This was the first of a two-part training. The second part will be in the spring when I plan to use an orienteering course to fine tune navigational skills.

During this training, the participants learned how to read a topographical map and how to determine a route on the map. Having a map and compass are part of the Ten HikeSafe Essentials. Knowing how to use a map and compass could be lifesaving. After the planning of the route, we went on the trail to enhance the training. It is one thing to just use a map and compass in a classroom setting, it is another to get out on the trail and use it. One situation that I gave them was, what if someone turned a trail junction sign to lead you in the wrong direction. Using your map and compass will guide you in the correct direction.

During the training, I discussed the differences between a reference mark, azimuth mark, magnetic station, and a benchmark. All these markers can be found on the mountain. It is surprising to me that hikers do not know the difference between a reference mark and a benchmark. I guess we all started out that way. It was a great training and there was positive feedback from the group.

Pointing out a reference mark
Gathering at the summit

Looking forward to the advanced training in the spring. I am considering doing an introductory training in the spring also since there was many people on my waiting list and others that wanted to sign up after registration was closed.

Monday, 11/13/2023: Posted photo — First Snow Hike in a While.

Tonight, it started to snow as I was driving to the trailhead for my Monday night hike. There were eight people that hiked tonight. Wachusett Mountain is not a tall mountain in most people’s minds. It is only 2006 feet tall. A far cry from its 23,000 feet height in its youth. The mountain does still affect the weather in the area.

As we started towards the summit, there was more snow on the trail. The hike was slow due to the snow and the snow-covered maple leaves on the trail. Wet leaves are dangerous. Wet leaves covered with snow with possible ice under them are more dangerous. The group took a “safe” trail to the summit.

On the decent, four of the eight took the trail down and the other four walked the roads. I was with the group that took the trails. I was very careful on the trails, not wanting to reinjure my ankle. The trail we took had a gentler slope than others on the mountain. As expected, we arrived at the trailhead before the road walkers, but only one to two minutes before them.

Tuesday, 11/14/2023: Posted photo — Morning Snow.

Drove by one of my favorite photos locations on my way to work this morning. The sun was just rising, and I was able to practice low light photography. I wanted to get a photo of this scene just in case the snow melted today. The temperature rose a little today melting all the snow. Later this week, rain is predicted.

Wednesday, 11/15/2023: Posted photo — USGS Control Points.

Benchmarks can be divided into two general groups: the “vertical control points” are points that mark a very precise elevation above the standard datum plane (usually referred to as elevation above sea level) and the “horizontal control points” are points with precisely established latitude and longitude. The National Geodetic Survey, not the U.S. Geological Survey, is the Maintainer of federal Vertical Control Marks.

Here are photos of the control points on Wachusett Mountain.

Triangulation Stations: are markers with positions determined by measuring distances and angles from other stations. The triangulation station on Wachusett is a pin in a stone.

Wachusett Mountain Triangulation Station

Reference marks: help keep triangulation stations from being lost with arrows on their disks pointing in the direction of their referenced triangulation station.

Reference mark RM8
Reference mark RM11

Azimuth marks: coupled with its triangulation station, provide a compass direction of the true north. The azimuth on Wachusett is RM13. The USGS webpage calls it an azimuth. I was wondering if they did since this mark is away from the RM11 and RM8.

RM13 an Azimuth mark

Magnetic Stations: are stamped with a six-pointed star in the center. The original purpose was to supply magnetic measurement information for the nautical charts, but later observations were extended into the interior to aid local surveyors. This is the magnetic station near the summit of Wachusett Mountain.

Wachusett Magnetic station

That was the educational portion of this week’s blog.

Thursday, 11/16/2023: Posted photo — Warmth.

The weather is cool in the morning, warm in the afternoon, and cool in the evening. Tonight, we had a fire in our woodstove to get the chill out of the house. It reminds me that I need to order the firewood that will take up through the winter. I think the way the light bounces off the phone lens give a nice feeling to this photo.

Friday, 11/17/2023: Post photo — Morning Glow.

I went to work a little earlier than I normally do on a Friday because I needed to get some work done before the Thanksgiving holiday week. Many of the workers in the shop will be on vacation next week and there was a project that needed to get done. When I arrived at work, I looked to the east and saw a glow in the sky. It was not sunrise yet. I waited a few minutes and then took this photo. Still not sunrise, but there was a nice glow in the sky.

Saturday, 11/17/2023: Posted Photo — Vermont Cubikon

Today in the small town of Bellows Falls, VT. There was a cube competition at the Moose Lodge.

The venue was small and cramped but the people did not mind. During lunch, two of the cubers took out their violins and played a few classical movements for the crowd. This was the first time I saw that happen at an event.

Here are a few more photos from the event.

That’s it for this week. Time to rest up for Thanksgiving.

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November 12, 2023

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Photographic Thoughts — 11/05/2023 to 11/11/2023

“Photography is truth.” — Jean-Luc Godard

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Many citations this week since I have a big audit at work and did not have much time to sit and write my regular blog.

Sunday, 11/05/2023: Posted photo — Forbes Library.

The library is located just of the campus of Smith College. Our son had a cubing competition at Smith. Smith College is a private liberal arts women’s college in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was chartered in 1871 by Sophia Smith and opened in 1875. It is the largest member of the historic Seven Sisters colleges, a group of women’s colleges in the Northeastern United States. The Seven Sisters are a group of seven liberal arts colleges in the Northeastern United States that are historically women’s colleges: Barnard College, Bryn Mawr College, Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, and Wellesley College are still women’s colleges. Vassar College is currently a coeducational college and Radcliffe College was absorbed in 1999 by Harvard College. One of my sisters-in-law is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College.

“Forbes Library, the public library for Northampton, Massachusetts, provides a wide range of information, materials and services to all of the people of Northampton and Massachusetts.  The library’s magnificent building offers a friendly, welcoming physical environment which encourages the civic, intellectual, and cultural pursuits of the public. Forbes serves as a community meeting place in which curiosity, free inquiry, and lifelong learning are supported and nurtured. The library is open 56 hours per week, and many resources are available online 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.” https://forbeslibrary.org/info/

Monday, 11/06/2023: Posted photo — Worcester at Night.

Worcester, MA, the second largest city in New England and my hometown, from the summit of Wachusett Mountain tonight. Since we had the time change this weekend, Monday night hikes will start in darkness giving an extra challenge to my hike. I enjoy hiking at night since it is so peaceful, and the sounds of nature are amplified.

Tuesday, 11/07/2023: Posted photo — Election Day.

Did my civil duty today and voted. Only one item on the ballet so turnout was low. My philosophy is that you should not complain about election results if you do not vote. In our town we have a town meeting and a special town meeting once a year. I also attend those meetings. Again, if you are not engaged in the town, city, state, or country politics, even doing the simple thing as voting, you should not complain or contest the outcome of elections.

Wednesday, 11/08/2023: Posted photo — David Hockney Look.

David Hockney was one of the big artists involved in the pop art movement in the 1960s. I saw a work of his a few years back in this style and wanted to do it myself. I created a script in Paint Shop Pro to make this effect for me.

Thursday, 11/09/2023: Posted photo — Saint Mary the Assumption.

“Like most other New England communities, Northampton was predominantly Protestant throughout its first few centuries, but this began to change after the Industrial Revolution, when the region saw large-scale immigration from Catholic countries. Here in Northampton, most of the early Catholics were French-Canadian, and began arriving by the mid-19th century. Within a few decades there were several Catholic parishes in Northampton, including Saint Mary of the Assumption, whose church building was built here on Elm Street in 1881.” https://lostnewengland.com/2018/07/st-marys-church-northampton-mass/

Friday, 11/10/2023: Post photo — Wood.

Just a photo of a pile of wood in our yard. This wood is some the wood from a tree that I fell that was leaning over our son’s batting cage.

Saturday, 11/11/2023: Post photo — Veteran’s Day.

This is a WWII photo of my father, a navy veteran.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.

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November 5, 2023

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Photographic Thoughts — 10/29/2023 to 11/04/2023

“Photography takes an instant out of time, altering life by holding it still.” — Dorothea Lange

Thank you for all the new views and likes from last week, it helps keep me inspired.

Sunday, 10/29/2023: Posted photo — Stained Glass Window.

Stained Glass windows two weeks in a row. This is the stained glass at a neighboring church. This is looking up into the choir loft. I just love older stained glass windows. The way the build churches now, there is not as may stained glass windows as in the past.

Stained glass windows in churches depict Biblical individuals, groups of people, stories, and/or moralizing images. Stained glass windows were once used to educate people who could not read. By looking at the painted scenes in the glass, people could learn about the stories of the Bible and religious teachings.

Monday, 10/30/2023: Posted photo — What is it?

Occasionally, I post a closeup of an item to see if anyone is reading my blog. Please identify the object in this photo.

I will respond later in the week to let you know if your answer is correct.

Tuesday, 10/31/2023: Posted photo — Colors.

I posted about the colors of flowers in my 10/15/2023 to 10/21/2023 blog. Tonight is my normal shopping night and I saw these bouquets of roses in one of the stores and wanted to show how the different colors interact, or complement, each other.

The weather is starting to cool around here. Tonight will be one of the first nights this season that the temperature will get close to the freezing point. Time to order wood for the winter. We do have wood left over from last season to take the chill out of the house.

Wednesday, 11/01/2023: Posted photo — Mass of Remembrance.

Today is the All Saints’ Day. The high school attended held a memorial mass for all alumni that passed during the year. St. John’s is a close-knit community with a very supportive alumni base. It was a moving mass in which they read the names of all the alumni, parents, and relatives of alumni that passed.

The entire school community attended, including the new junior high school (the junior high school started up recently) and all the high school students. It was great that the old-time teachers remember me and all my six brothers that have all attended the school.

Thursday, 11/02/2023: Posted photo — Oriental Bittersweet.

This is an invasive species of plant that is in our yard. It invades fields, field edges, and forests, forming dense mats that smother trees and shrubs. I keep cutting them back and trying to eradicate, but they still grow in our yard. I cut them off trees, pull them out of bushes and plants, and mow them over. Just one of the yard cleaning tasks of homeowners in this area.

Friday, 11/03/2023: Post photo — Quick Shot of the Moon.

Walking outside on this brisk fall day, I saw the moon. The moon caught my eye just above the brown of the foliage that have gone past peak and the blue sky. I did not take a photo of the entire tree so that I could get the moon in the photo.

Hope you like it. Not sure if this photo stirs the same emotions as seeing composition live.

Saturday, 11/04/2023: Post photo — Winter Hiking Workshop.

There was a winter hiking workshop today sponsored by the Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) Worcester Chapter. At this workshop, lessons were taught about what it needed to have a safe hike in the winter. The training was for beginner winter hikers and was a start of winter hiking series that will increase the difficulty of winter hikes. I attended as a hiking leader who wanted to brush up on my winter hiking skill and to understand what the chapter tells beginner hikers.

That is all for now. Until next week, be safe.