This evening we went to the Walburg Biergarten for dinner and drinks. Walburg is about a half hour drive from our house but the journey is worth it. Although there’s also a restaurant, we went straight to the biergarten right when it opened and ordered our food and pitchers of beer.
The food was ok, but the atmosphere was wonderful. Plenty of picnic tables and a band providing musical entertainment made for a nice evening. I heard that it can get pretty crowded, but tonight was not too busy. And the weather was perfect!
Someday I’d like to come back to try the restaurant, but I’m happy we got to spend the evening with good friends, laughing, eating, and drinking. Good times for sure!
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO200 “Evening Viewing” Cedar Park, 2018
こんばんは。
Today Koa is at an end-of-school-year party, and Mariko and Bay are seeing a movie, so I have a few hours of alone time Good chance to enjoy a beer and catch up on some tv shows! A nice Friday evening. 😄
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/210 sec, ISO200 “End is Near” Cedar Park, 2018
こんばんは。How’s it going?
Today’s photo is of Koa leaving the band hall. It’s the last time I will be picking him up from middle school so it was a little sad. He’ll be moving on to high school next year which means both our sons will be in high school, although they are going to different schools. (Bay’s IB Program is only offered at a different campus in our school district)
Koa’s middle school band career has been a huge part of his life, and one that we think made an incredibly positive impact. We’re so fortunate that the middle school has one of the best band programs (if not the best) in the state. They put in a ton of work and the fruits of their efforts are realized in amazing performances, recognition, and awards. It’s really kind of odd to think that a teacher and school program could change someone’s life, but I think it really has for Koa. I’m so happy and proud.
Enjoy one of the tunes from last night’s final performance (Koa is banging away on the djembe):
Tomorrow is the last day of school, but he’ll be going directly to an after-school party so today was the last time I will pick him up from middle school. Sad…
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO800 “Growing” Cedar Park, 2018
こんばんは。How’s it going? Have a nice Sunday?
Mine was pretty good. Relaxing but got a lot of stuff done.
The first was to go driving with Bay. He’s working towards his driver’s license and we still need a few more hours on the road. This morning we went on the freeway for a bit, then road driving. He’s getting comfortable driving, and I’m getting more comfortable sitting in the passenger seat! 😀
Back at home, I helped Bay cook a deluxe mac n cheese casserole, then I did some motorcycle maintenance.
I haven’t bled the brakes on my BMW F650 GS in a while, and the fluid was looking pretty dark and yucky. Years ago, I bought some “Speed bleeders” which replace the stock brake bleeding ports, and they turn a two-person job into an easy one-person job. Well worth the $20 or so I paid for them. Anyways, a bottle of DOT 4 brake fluid is only $7 so it’s a cheap and easy job that will save a ton of money vs taking it to the shop.
Next, it was on to some more domestic chores, including washing all the bedding, washing and folding two large loads of clothes, and then cleaning up the bedroom floor to make room for the robotic vacuum. I love that little robot! It’s amazing how much dust and pet hair it picks up. Stunning, and kind of gross to know how much is constantly produced. 😨
Now it’s time to read and relax in our fresh bed sheets. What a great feeling!
Today’s photo is one I took on our deck. There are some tiny sprouts that have come up in our basil pot. I think these are scotch bonnet sprouts that I had planted from seed that Mariko was unaware of when she planted her basil into the same pot. I wonder what I should do with these? Oh well, I’ll figure something out. 😄
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/100 sec, ISO6400 “On the Desk” Cedar Park, 2018
こんばんは。How’s it going?
Warning, this post is a bit of a rant… but here goes.
There’s a school of thought that says the surest way to lose passion in a hobby is to turn it into your job. There’s some truth to that sentiment, and I experienced it today. If you follow my blog or know me in person, you know that I love photography. However, I don’t like to take photos for my work and for a few years now, I’ve kind of handed that job off to others as much as possible. I don’t mind the occasional photoshoot when we’re in a bind, but I’d rather leave it to the professionals, or others who have interest in it.
So it was with serious reservation (and after kindly refusing once) that I agreed to do some headshots. Well, that seems to have turned into taking photos for several more small events. Ugh… Don’t get me wrong, I love taking photos, but the time spent culling and post-processing can be long, especially because I want to spend the proper amount of time to do a good job. (plus the common perception from non-photographers is that you just snap the photo and upload it)
This morning I took photos for a company event, and it was time-consuming. It was a one-hour event, and I ended up with 440 shots to go thru. After four passes of culling, I got it down to 19 images. From there, it was on to post-processing. And there goes 2+ hours of the day.
I enjoy processing photos in Lightroom, but not for work. I want to enjoy it purely for fun and relaxation at home, with photos I have interest in.
This afternoon I was supposed to take photos for another event, but after spending all that time in Lightroom, I was kind of burnt out, plus the event was outdoors and the lighting was contrasty and harsh. So I really wasn’t in the groove. I still got a few shots, but it was difficult and I deleted most of the photos because they weren’t good. 😫 Also, each click of the shutter adds a few minutes to the workday. It sucks to think that way, but that’s reality. Hey, time is money, and I’m not getting paid by the hour. 😆
Also, photography is its own totally different discipline so it’s hard to shift attention in the middle of other tasks. I don’t think people realize that. I mean, I know people realize that task-switching is inefficient, but they don’t realize that photography is a separate way of thinking from print design, ad design, etc. It’s all the same, isn’t it? (no)
Anyway, I usually carry my camera with me when I go out, but this evening, I didn’t even want to pick it up. 😓 That was kind of depressing. I like to keep my work and my home life separate, but these photo duties at work steal the enjoyment out of something I really like doing for fun on my own time.
So, today’s daily photo is just a simple still-life of some of my favorite things: watches, pens/pencils, and a coaster from a bar in Japan. Oh, and my passport since I need it for a visa application for a China trip.
I don’t know… maybe I’m just a bit burnt out because it was two photo shoots in one day? Or maybe it’s because I am kind of swamped with work and the photography is a significant time-sink? I’m hoping it’s one of those because I enjoy my work and I’d hate for photography to ruin the good thing I have going. Or maybe the solution is to not spend what I think is the proper amount of time on work-related photos, and just do a half-assed job? (I don’t know if I could do that, actually)
Sorry for today’s rant. I rarely vent, so today is an anomaly… I promise!
I’ll see you tomorrow.
またね～
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My camera & photos
I use a Fujifilm X-series camera for most of the photos on this site and my Instagram. Why not pick one up for yourself?
