Reflections

Silent Tears

A thunderous silence
breaks through my thoughts.
What was once many great ideas
is now a triumph, lost.

Baffling words tumble through my mind.
Reflections of darkness hover.
A disturbing peacefulness beckons to me,
and inside myself, I take cover.

What would it be like to stay there forever?
To be lost in all my cares?
From the inside, looking out -
I cry silent tears.

By Heather Loughton

Painful Lesson

A lesson to be realized is that sometimes there are no questions to answers...

Friday Cat Blogging

This has me amused. Go look here.

Relief

For me relief is in the form of warmer weather. Finally it has warmed up bit where I live and it has gone from the single digits to the upper 30's and 40's. I cannot even begin to state how happy this has made me.

About a decade ago I was in a car accident. I broke three bones in this car accident. Some say that the most painful thing someone can experience is a broken bone. I cannot verify if this statement is true, since I would have to experience other painful conditions, but I can certainly say that it is a very painful experience. Since it was three bones, I would have to say that it was pain multiplied by a factor of 3.

Now, the bad thing about this is that this injury comes back to haunt me from time to time. This is compounded by the fact that I used to be a runner and I have some various old injuries as well. This comes back to haunt me as well when the weather is cold. Single digit temperatures cause enough pain and stiffness in the morning that I spend my first waking hour hobbling around the house attempting work out the pain and stiffness and resume a semblance of a normal gait before getting into the lab.

It would seem that every injury I have ever sustained mocks me when it gets down into the single digits.

This week, for the first time in weeks, I have woken up without pain, without stiffness, and without hobbling around the house looking like a drunk.

Sometimes, the smallest of things can make me happy...

Friday Cat Blogging

Ah, it is great to be able to combine my love of Star Trek and my love of cats.
So, with that in mind, look here.

Parking Woes

There is a saying that every so often I am reminded of. The saying is that things could always be worse. So true.

When I first started in my current lab, I had to park in a lot that was right across from the Coroner's office and it would take me 20 minutes to walk from my car to my building in a not so good neighborhood. Because of the neighborhood, and various inclement weather conditions, I would often take the shuttle bus that was provided to the parking recipients. However, I often would grumble about this because there were times I would have to wait as long as 20-30 minutes for a shuttle bus during non peak hours. There were even a few times I had to wait 45-60 minutes for a shuttle bus. Most of the time I only had to wait 10-15 minutes, but longer would make my blood boil. But this was paradise compared to my current conditions.

A few months back I was moved to another parking lot. This parking lot is located pretty much in the downtown area of my city and is a 15 minute drive from my building. This is during good weather and driving conditions. On a good day, I can count on driving to my parking lot, parking my car, waiting 15 minutes for the shuttle bus to arrive, having a 15 minute drive on the shuttle bus to the hospital drop off point, and walking another 15 minutes through the hospital to my lab. This is an extra 45 minutes to my already normal 30 minute communte from home. Of course, the same thing only reverse on the way home.

Now factor in bad weather. This means a longer wait time for the shuttle bus and longer transit time on the shuttle bus. To compound matters, it has been frigid here. Waiting in a shuttle bus stop is not fun.

But the worse part is the fact that the parking lot is located just off of our lake. Imagine the cold air blasting off the lake. I feel like I am more in the artic tundra rather than the midwest. For those who complain how cold it has been here cannot even imagine what it is like being in the "lake breeze" in the morning.

I have to confess that I did not realize how good I had it when I was parking in my previous lot. The saying of things could be worse came all too true. I am not sure now how much worse things could be at this point, but I suppose I could get an email any day now stating that my new parking assignement will be on the lake ice...

Someting fun

I am in the mood for something fun for a blog post and thought I would take this little quiz. I guess according to these results, I should be making my blue eyes brown...

Your Eyes Should Be Brown

Your eyes reflect: Depth and wisdom What's hidden behind your eyes: A tender heart

What Color Should Your Eyes Be?

Friday Cat Blogging

I found this site of perhaps the best and funniest cat photos. Awesome.

Fuzzy Wuzzy

(Please click on for a close-up)

Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear.

Fuzzy Wuzzy was a Wooley Bear!!!

This is a Wooley Bear Catepiller. These are popular and beloved in the region where I live. This picture was taken this past fall at Blue Heron Reserve here in Ohio.

Subject Matter

Myself as an photography subject.

This picture was taken a few months back with my telephoto lens. It was an impromptu shot taken by my photography mentor who was trying out my telephoto lens on my camera. I was sitting at the lab computer analyzing data when I looked up to see my tele lens aimed at me. I kept the picture because it was somewhat abstract looking. So, I decided to play with it some more with turning up the brightness and converting it to sepia on the digital picture and making it even more abstract. My aim was to make it very abstract. Now, I cannot wait until someday soon I get Photoshop and have the chance to really play with my photos.

So, there you have it. Katie as an abstract photography subject. What do you think?

Friday Cat Blogging

Ah, it is Friday, which means it is time for Friday Cat Blogging!

Here is a link to an awesome picture from a fotocommunity that I like.

This picture makes me long even more for a nice wide angle lens. Perhaps as a graduation present to myself when I finally graduate?