Month: March 2015

Ephemeral

~ Cave_Guy ~ 11 Comments

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/ephemeral/

venus-sunset-flatwp-(2)

June 5th 2012 – The transit of Venus that I failed to capture….another failure? At least I thought it was — but no!!!

Here I am with my camera and a few lenses from the wielding shop – dark enough so I can look into the sun and photograph this historical event.

I am with my wife and kids (who thought this might be fun) and off we go to make history.

Clouds – and more clouds —–I can’t get a clean shot of the sun!

I am sad.

So, since I am by the Hudson River anyway – I decide to put my new Nikon DSLR camera in manual mode and take a few shots.

I am really new at this and I barely know what I am doing.

I have taken a couple photography classes but I am in the bottom group of students.

Also – I am getting severely hooked on Photoshop – I love it but with little result – It takes and takes and takes while giving nothing in return.

But return, stubbornly I do —- to get kicked in the head again and again.

This is a sickness. I need help

And today I got it

This is the pay-off.

This is the first image I photographed and processed that was any good – in fact, I have been chasing this bad boy ever since.

This picture started me on a journey.

Because I knew if I could prove this was not a fluke – I could be happy with my photos and fill a void – achieving excellence is a rare and beautiful thing.

I have come close in the months since.

But not all the way here.

This is the reflected light of Venus transiting our sun – coming around again in 2117 (I may not make that one).

Ephemeral

Can we still be friends? Blogworld

~ Cave_Guy ~ 11 Comments

Can we still be friends?

wpworld

This post is about a failure – I cannot get this sketch to full color illustration (at least, not yet).

I can shelve it for now or throw it out to the world.

Wait!

Nobody is paying me here  – in fact, this blog thing is done mostly as a way for me to journal the progress of me, a regular guy, who likes music – and also takes some photos and draws a little.

Does that make me a music critic or photographer or artist? —-No! … It makes me a blogger in a sea of bloggers doing the same thing.

We are many and we are taking over the world.

This sketch was my attempt at figuring out this crazy world we bloggers operate in.

All these awards, likes, follows and prompts falling from the clouds of blogland.

Brand new bloggers with no clue in their tents writing one simple post and waiting for the magic to happen – here is a hint: It won’t happen by itself.

BUT – that brand new blogger that lights a little campfire by leaving some comments and spreading a little joy by throwing “like” buttons like candy from a parade float.

That guy has a chance.

Looking around this sketch – you might find my website in the neighborhood with the other friendly music bloggers (many thanks to them for letting me move in). 🙂

Here is another hint: If you make your blog about something—-anything—- and tag it as such—the other folks that do that same something/anything will try to help you if you let them.

Let them and visit them.

They will become your friendly “shire” in this crazy world – you will be like Winnie the Pooh having Tigger and Eeyore stop by——-you will move from your tent to a neighborhood on WordPress —NOW- you have a great chance at finding your voice and becoming a real blogger.

Whatever that means?

I think it means that you feel at home with your site and move forward with conviction and passion.

“It’s not much of a tail, but I’m sort of attached to it.” – The wisdom of Eeyore explains how most of us feel about our sites.

So whether you are: music, photo, flowers, conspiracy theory or erotica. Whatever you are – there is a place for you here.

AND – thank you my friends – I am not going to list you and leave people out because this post is about inclusion. But you know who you are!

This sketch will need a follow-up post.

Hopefully I can add some color.

Cheers from the cave!

Buddhism and accepting my Ox-ness

~ Cave_Guy ~ 7 Comments

wall-4

Chichén Itzá wall: photo credit Wayne at Cave of Fame

Road to to Chichén Itzá part 2:

“There are no accidents, there are doorways that will open to change your situation but there are no accidents”.

I am paraphrasing what the Chinese man said to me on a bus ride through the Mexican scrub-land. This is how he, as a Buddhist, approaches his day and his life.

This led to a brief discussion on the linear nature of Christianity and the circular nature of Buddhism with a heavy dose of Chinese Zodiac thrown in the mix.

My animal is a Spring Cow according to this deal.

I am destined as a hardworking-unappreciated-oxen with a life of struggle – strike one up for his religion … pretty much nailed my existence to this point—-“What about those doorways again?”

He was not looking to convert me and I was not looking to convert him – We are just two guys from different cultures having a discussion on a bus over a beer.

I found it fascinating down to my core.

No accidents

Not even one minor slip on the traction of fate?

No.

No accidents.

Weeks later that is still starting to sink in – concepts that hold deep validation tend to churn around in my brain over and over until they find a place to rest.

Less thinking and more doing is always the right path for me – my brain is going to spin endlessly with little result if I let it. Maybe I better get back out in that field and pull that plow? – That is where I am at my best — maybe the dude is right?

The bigger part of me says that all things work together for the good of those with faith.

I have been running on faith for a while now – I got to say that you find yourself in some amazing places when you do that.

Places like this.

When you meet up with other pilgrims on roads to discovery; clashes of thought leave deep impressions. Even different cultures and different beliefs become splashes in the same river of universal truth.

Good is good and bad is bad and we are better helping each other than hurting each other.

My Chinese friend said we get along in this life because we treated each other well in a previous life.

I am really glad I met him and made a new friend (my perspective), which is reacquainting with an old friend (his perspective).

Either way – it works

No accidents.

 

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/wall/

 

Road to Chichén Itzá

Image ~ ~ Cave_Guy ~ 17 Comments

el-castillo

“El Castillo” The temple of the winged serpent Kukulkan. He was a bit of a bass-ass and live-heart-ripping-out monster-god-dude.

temple-up

It is impressive to look up and think – “Glad I’m not being sacrificed today!” … but, you can imagine the scene.

temple-serpent-1

Kukulkan guards the steps to his Temple.

0288skull-corner

Here he is again on the “wall of skulls” where they use to place the heads of defeated warriors. No – these ancient Mayans were not easy going in any way. Small and very angry people by all accounts on the walls at this site.

mayan-pict-1

More graphics with common themes of heart-ripping by various animal type gods.

ball-pit-top

The ball game arena is impressive. This is detail of a high place for important people to sit. Kind of Mayan luxury boxes -This is where Mayan Chris Christie would hug Mayan Jerry Jones after the game.

the-snail-2

They call this “the snail” – believed to be an ancient observatory…you know, so the sacrifices lined up with the stars.

the-snail

Another view of “The Snail”

me-ruin

Here is “actual size” me in front of some ruins (I am not tall,…ok,…I may not even be average height, but here – I am good!).  This ancient world is a good fit, except for all the extreme violence and hardship of course.

bus-wheel

Shipping tourists to this site is big business – these buses are new, clean and plentiful. Here is a selfie of me and my son taken in the reflection of a shinny wheel.

This was a great trip — I need to say that all the violence and sacrifice came from the tour guides who would remind us of a chilling new way to be dispatched at each ruin we visited. This site was already abandoned a couple hundred years before the Spanish arrived – where we had another great round of blood-letting and savagery ensue.

I loved the food at the Mayan restaurant we visited after touring the site.

And I feel a connection and sadness for the Mayan people that still live in the area of their “lost’ civilization. It seems that they do not share in the fruits of this great peninsula  as much as those that came after them.

I was only here a week so I may not have an accurate grasp — they have been here for thousands of years — they have already seen their world completely destroyed at least twice over — and they still approach the day with a smile.

Cheers from the cave!