Camera fun.

Before heading on to our vacation to Southern California, I insisted that we get a new digital camera. I had intended to buy a digital Canon SLR camera because I like the versatility an SLR offers. However, when I started looking at cameras, I saw that Canon offered a pocket camera with a 7.1 mega-pixel resolution -- at an affordable price! While I knew that I would like the SLR, the point-and-shoot was going to be much more useful for the rest of the family.

While playing around with this new camera, I got this picture below which I rather like.


This is a picture of my reflection, taking a picture of my daughter, looking out the window of our car. The sun was setting as we were parked alongside the Pacific Coast Highway, watching for dolphins, and it (the sun) was at just the right angle so that I could see both reflection and interior image.

Snow in Southern California.

It has snowed, hailed, "slushed" and just about every other type of weather possible to come down from the sky while we are here visiting.

Here is a rare photo of snow in the mountains in Santa Barbara. I took this from my rental car. The snow was not there two hours later.

Kirby.

Okay, I'm not the biggest baseball fan in the world, but there have been a few years when I followed the Minnesota Twins faithfully. The first time was during the era of Harmon Killebrew and Tony Olivia, and then during the Kirby Puckett years.

Like so many others, I just plain liked Kirby. He always just seemed like a naturally nice person, along with being a pretty darned good baseball player.

He'd been out of baseball for awhile now, so it's not as if the baseball community is suddenly missing him, but with his death this week, I think the world is a just a little worse off without his enthusiasm and drive.

Thanks for the games, Kirby!

Busy and sleepless.

I've been busy as of late. I've been in discussions with the Great River Shakespeare Festival people about coming on board and doing some work with them. A big part of the hold up has been that I am not looking for full-time, long-term work. When they mentioned they were still looking for a stage manager I balked and said I really wasn't interested. Instead, it looks as though I will be acting as some sort of interim production manager for only a seven week period. Nothing is official yet, but as of our last phone conversation, that seems to be where things are headed.

Next week, Friday, the wife and kids and I head out to Southern California for a week+ vacation. I won't be blogging much at that time...I hope to not be near a computer for the entire week.

I've also recently been approached about potentially working on a Christmas project in Texas this coming holiday season. Christmas in Texas? I gave my standard reply of, "Of course I'm interested, and yes, I'm available at this time, let me know more when you know more."

In the meantime, I haven't been sleeping well lately. This is not usual for me. I love my sleep.

In part, it's because my youngest son has been waking up during the night and coming to me. I can get him back to sleep, but then either I am up for the rest of the night or sleeping fitfully. In fact, in the past five nights, I've had two "nightmares." Now, I don't usually remember my dreams at all, and can't tell you the last time I had a dream that I can recall, but suddenly, in less than a week, I've had two dreams which have left negative impressions on me. What's up?

Clean comedians.

When I was a kid, I remember spending HOURS listening to my parents' albums of comedy ... Bill Cosby, Allan Sherman, The Smothers Brothers, Tom Lehrer, Bob Newhart. To this day I can probably recite most of any of ten records to you.

As my children were watching a DVD of the old FAT ALBERT AND THE COSBY KIDS television show, I got to think about how much I enjoyed Cosby's albums, so I went to my local library and requested a CD of "The Best of Bill Cosby." My children have had a blast listening to some of Cos' sketches!

Now, way back when, I expect that even Cosby was a little on the risque side. On the CD we have been listening to, we hear him, as "Tonto," telling the Lone Ranger to "go to hell." It's funny, it's part of the joke, but it's a little 'heavy' for my kids. Still, I listened to it when I was about 8, so why not let my kids.

And it got me to thinking about today's comedians. Is there anyone out there that might be comparable to those I mentioned above ... and who's clean? Is there any comedian out there who is funny and who isn't using the "F" word?

I'd love to let my kids listen to something other than what I had 35 years ago, but I'm just not sure what's funny AND clean.