A BIKE RIDE TO CHASE AWAY THE MONDAY BLUES

Needed a little wind between my ears this morning to chase away the Monday blues so spent a couple hours on the Motorcycle wandering the back roads of our rural countryside.  I consider myself very fortunate to have myself an option like that.  Before I took the bike out, Motor & I Jeeped ourselves up to Goderich for groceries.  Oh, & to split a Burrito at McDonalds too:))  By the way, I am still off peanut butter & holding tough!!

SPLISH SPLASH I WAS TAKING A BATH
Awhile back I had posted about how long it generally takes me to put my daily blog together.  The time varies but the photo below is an example of what can really suck up the time on me.  You may remember that I previously mentioned about the dust I have on the sensor of my Nikon D40 camera.  This dust is very noticeable on lighter backgrounds such as sky or water.  I generally use my D40 for telephoto shots & if I happen to take a bunch of photos with this camera I have to spend time retouching all the dust spots on each & every picture.  Dust on a lens or internal mirror is an easy fix but dust on a sensor is an expensive fix with the camera having to go back to Nikon for cleaning.  I did try to clean the sensor myself a couple years ago but only ended up making the problem a whole lot worse.  Maybe I shouldn't have tried that outside in the middle of an Arizona dust storm:((  


In the photo above, with the use of Picasa's 'Crop & 'Retouch' tools I was able to improve the photo a bit.  I added a hint of 'Color Temperature', increased the 'Contrast' a smidge & added a touch of 'Highlights'. I finished it with one hit of 'Graduated Tint' & a tiny bit of 'Sharpening.'  The original photo is nothing special to begin with but it does give you an idea of what you can do with your free Picasa photo editing program.

In Sunday's post I was talking about Google Earth & being able to type in wherever you want to go.  That is true but I should have added that not all destinations have been mapped yet.  Our Bayfield area is one of those & if you check out this area the terrain is very blurry with very little detail once you get below 800 feet whereas the Woodstock area to our southeast has been mapped more thoroughly.  Hopefully, the area you decide to fly to has already been clearly mapped.

A FLYING BLUR OF BLUE FEATHERS
The terrible Arizona fires continue out of control.  Whitney Malone who was in Kelly's Yoga Class a couple winters ago while we were ranch sitting in McNeil Arizona said today on Facebook..."Spent all weekend rescuing frantic horses, dogs, cats, birds, peacocks, pigs, chickens, you name it. Back today. There were so many people that waited til the last minute that rescue workers could no longer get in to save hundreds of animals.  $ donations are needed for food and medical attention for all these animals."

THIS IS THE NARROW SAN PEDRO RIVER EAST OF SIERRA VISTA...IF THE FIRE CONTINUES OUT OF CONTROL & BURNS EASTWARD, FIREFIGHTERS WILL MAKE A STAND AT THIS RIVER....MAX IS LOOKING IN THE DIRECTION OF SIERRA VISTA 
You can feel the anguish, the fear & sheer frustration of Debra Argosy as she helplessly watches her friends, her neighborhood & her world falling apart around her as the Monument fire edges closer & takes control of her life & environment.  You can read Debra's heartfelt post at, I HATE---SO WHAT. 

THE FIRE IS CONSUMING THE HUACHUCA MOUNTAINS STRAIGHT AHEAD & THE TOWN OF SIERRA VISTA IS JUST OUT OF THE FRAME TO THE RIGHT
Well, here in our southwestern Ontario time zone, Summer will officially arrive at 1:16 p.m. on Tuesday June 21rst.  With any kind of luck we will be somewhere in the West by the time we roll into our next official seasonal change in October:))
 
I HAVE MY FINGERS CROSSED THAT WE MAY FIND OURSELVES ONCE AGAIN IN COLORADO'S ROCKY MOUNTAINS THIS FALL
GROANER'S CORNER:((   Doctors were told to contribute to the construction
of a new wing at the hospital. So, what did they have to say & do about that?
--------------------------------------------------------------
-The allergists voted to scratch it.
-The dermatologists preferred no rash moves.
-The gastroenterologists had a gut feeling
about it.
-The neurologists thought the administration
had a lot of nerve.
-The obstetricians stated they were laboring
under a misconception.
-The ophthalmologists considered the idea
short-sighted.
-The orthopedists issued a joint resolution.
-The pathologists yelled, “over my dead body!”
-The pediatricians said, “grow up.”
-The proctologists said, “we are in arrears.”
-The psychiatrists thought it was madness.
-The surgeons decided to wash their hands
of the whole thing.
-The radiologists could see right through it.
-The internists thought it was a hard pill to
swallow.
-The plastic surgeons said, “this puts a whole
new face on the matter.”
-The podiatrists thought it was a big step forward.
-The urologists felt the scheme wouldn’t hold water.
-The cardiologists didn’t have the heart to say no. ---------------------------------------------------------------
EMAIL THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))
stargeezerguy@gmail.com
OUR PHOTO ALBUMS http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/
The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right
now...... AL.