Working out

Susan and I have been regularly working out at Planet Fitness twice per week. I'm getting in a lot better shape as a result of hitting the weights and running on the treadmills. I've also been gaining some weight because I've been building muscle.
   On the treadmill I've been doing thirteen minutes each time. That's been good for reducing my blood pressure so that it's in a more normal range. The machines have pulse meters built in but sometimes they can't seem to read my heart rate now. I have pulse watches on the way that should remedy that.
   Back in March I was diagnosed as prehypertensive. I've needed to begin doing some cardio as a result which is a lot cheaper than pills.

Tax and insurance

I seem to have gotten my new health insurance together. Yes, it was a bit of a pain but I'm in a new policy with Kaiser. Now it's a bit of a pain trying to set up a primary care physician as I can't seem to get through to a Kaisrr rep. I'm guessing Kaiser got a lot of new customers lately.
   Next, I'm doing the yearly taxes. What a joy! I don't just have a W2 to deal with. There's also book royaties to declare. Hopefully it won't take too long.

Rise and Fall of America's Middle Class by Jim Davis

Commonly, since I review books, an author will contact me through Facebook, or email, to have me read and review their newest release. Usually they'll want the review posted on Goodreads, Smashwords, or Amazon. This book I cannot do that as it is not listed on any of those sites. However, I can post a review here on my blog.
   The author is giving out free copies until the next election in PDF by his own admission. I personally recommended to him that he should make it available for sale. 
   Right now I've read about half of the book and I'm finding it very informative. It is well written, well edited, and seems to be very well researched. I'll note I do agree with most of the assertions made within the text. The book does challenge many common viewpoints though I think few will be able to argue against the assertions with the overwhelming evidence presented that supports the conclusions reached.
   I would give this book a 4.5* rating out of 5* based on what I've read so far. Now I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the book.

Merry Christmas

May your holiday be filled with cheer, good tidings, and a sense of wonder. While there is a negative news these days I recommend not focusing too much on it however. Most of us, including myself, have had many blessings during this year.

Yesterday, Susan and I, began giving each other a few of the gifts we'd gotten each other. Susan plays in a pool league and so one of the things I got her was a new pool cue bag. With one of her favorite colors being purple the color choice was obvious. Not so easy to find a purple cue bag however, but I managed to do so.

We went to the nursing home and gave Peggy, Susan's mother, a few gifts. As a joke I wrapped up some candy in one which is that little package on top. 

Here she is opening that little package which she opened first. When she got to the next couple of gifts she asked if they were filled with candy too which made us laugh. 

As I recall there was a shirt in this package. 

Something that can be used as a lap blanket is pretty much a natural gift for those staying in a nursing home. I got her one with puppies which she likes. 

Have a great day. A new year is just around the corner and is filled with many opportunities.

Merry Christmas

I've been very busy these days. I was helping Susan get everything ready for Christmas. Then she got sick and I've been having to try to help take care of her. At the same I've been having to get a new health insurance policy for myself. As a result I've only been doing a few shots with my phone instead of the Fuji and those were of the lights and decorations we put up. As I'm sure you've noticed I haven't written this blog either. Slowly, Susan seems to be improving a bit.
   One other thing I've been doing lately is a lot of pleasure reading. I've also been posting reviews once more of what I've read. My last was Dan Brown's, "Inferno," and presently I'm reading Stephen King's, "Bag of Bones." Those thankfully I can get in e-books from my local library and read them on my tablet which I can increase the font size easily. 
   Apparently my eyesight isn't as good as it used to be. Maybe that was due to squinting at manuscripts too long. It could be. On that note, I'm glad I no longer write. I don't really miss it honestly. Still, I'm glad I made the effort and tried it out, which I did for three years. I was never what you'd call a smashing success by any stretch but that's not the point. The point is I tried it. Most can't say that. So, try out something new this next year you've never tried before. The worst that can happen is that you don't become a smashing success.
   I'd like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Try to enjoy yourself and don't take any of the political BS you see on social media, or the news, too seriously. Most of it's not really that important and it won't affect your life in the least. What is important is that you touch the lives of others positively. That is what will be remembered. Just maybe, if we all do that, we'll make the world a better place. The coming year is a blank page. Make it the best you can. This season can be magical if we allow it to be so.

Sand Creek

If you're interested in history at all there was a massacre that happened on Sand Creek. It happened before the state became a state. At that time there wasn't a city. Where the creek is at now was open country.
The creek happens to flow through part of Colorado Springs. Many days I happen to drive by it on my way to work. My first frame wasn't all that interesting. Not bad, but not that interesting either.

Then I started noticing the rocks that have been inset and the water flows around them. Definitely a bit more interesting.

Still, it wasn't interesting enough. So, I got closer and began to study the water. The way it moved, the shadows, the ripples. Now, it was interesting. This is the image I uploaded to View Bug.

Garden of the Gods park 10/5

I finally got a set of filters for my Fuji and I've been steadily using them since. It's a really nice set with three neutral density filters, a circular polarizer, and a ultra violet. With the filters I'm able to expand the range the camera can do. 

   One place I've been wanting to visit again is Garden of the Gods Park since I haven't been there for several years. It's a rather large park on the west side of the city that has these fantastic rock outcroppings and can make for some interesting images. I probably would have shot more images but it was chilly. About 45F I think. Still, I can't wait to get some snow images which are coming up.

I've shot this particular scene a few before but was wanting to reshoot it with the Fuji. Each time I get the composition slightly different. 

This one was just an experiment. I was trying to get more used to working with the circular polarizer. It's nice how the circular polarizer pulls out the blue of the sky. Luckily I bracketed this image so I could layer one frame over the bottom one and get greater range in the resulting image.

This is the horseback trail on the west side of the park.

I should have bracketed two frames for this image so I could have pulled out the trees better.

This image I shot on the fourth and I think is the first image where I used all three ND's, the CPL, and the UV filters for one frame. I was very pleased with the results.