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Tilt Shift Photography

Star (Shangri-la Therapeutic Academy of Riding) Lenoir City Christmas Parade 2007

I’ve been wanting to try out some tilt shift photography which is the art of using a tilted lens to blur the foreground and background giving the real picture the impression that it is actually a scale model. Unfortunately, building a tilted lens for Cathy’s camera is very low on my list of priorities. Luckily, I learned you can simulate the effect in photoshop! Pictured above is my first attempt. That’s Tommy on the STAR float in the Lenoir City Christmas parade.

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The Boy With No Brain Meets Mr Freeze

It’s cold outside. I mean I can see my breath! Since the Boy Scouts are preparing for a winter camp we are talking about frost bite, hypothermia, layering and so forth. This past Monday, one of the adults experienced in winter camping came out in full cold weather attire and explained the importance of clothing, and layering clothing,to the scouts.

I need to start waking Amy earlier. Her morning tantrums over the wrong clothing being out made us miss the bus for a week. I think she is enjoying the carpool lobby but she also enjoyed the bus. After taking her to school this morning, I return in time to see the high schoolers making their way to the bus stop each wearing a thin shirt and for show they have their inadequate windbreakers on but not zipped declaring they are tool cool for warmth. It bugs me but they are old enough to both know better and to suffer the consequences. Then I catch the middle schooler shortcutting between two houses with no jacket at all! He just had the course Monday night on the importance of proper winter attire! On shout later and he is bee lining it back to the house. I catch him at the house for half a Reflection (that’s Boy Scoutese for socratic questioning) and half a lecture (I’m not real good at socratic questions). Then send him, wearing coat, running to the bus stop. I bet the coat does not come home.