Quick act invisible!

Found these two doing the "If we hold real still maybe he'll think we are just bushes and grass" routine...

Dancing With A Prickly Pear

Capitol Visit

3

Sticky Situation

Pardons to the sculptress, but Dancing With a Prickly Pear was the first thing that came to mind as I walked up to this statue. That bronc and rider have got themselves in one heck of a fix! 

Tribute to Range Riders

Standing at the Capitol entrance is an intricately detailed bronze by Constance Whitney Warren. A sculptress of Paris,France and New York. A Tribute To The Romantic Riders of the Range. Dedicated in 1930.

1st Sculpture installed on Capitol grounds.

Spent some time studying this bronze and have to say the sculptress had a great eye for detail. A fitting tribute to all the men who drove Longhorns up the trails to the rail heads in Kansas from Texas and through Oklahoma!

Big Wave Wednesday III

This last trip to Maui was a weird one where the waves were concerned. We normally have surf that is one, maybe two feet tall in front of our condo but for about half of this trip we had waves that were reaching 6-8 feet. It was great for the surfers but made it hard to find clear water to snorkel in.

This first shot was taken in front of our condo with the Nikon P7700.

This was taken at Kalahu Point near Hana.

And this of course is what lurks below the waves.

As a side note, if you ever find yourself on Maui during a "big wave" day you might want to stay in your condo. The surf report (an app I have on my phone) was forecasting 30-50 foot waves on the windward side of the island one Wednesday. I was told by one of the local photographers that if the waves were breaking right the pro surfers would be out in force and it would be a great opportunity to get some good photos. I took that as a sign and loaded up the 600mm lens and headed to the other side of the island.

Little did I know that most of the people on the island had the very same idea. We got about half way to the windward side of the island when we hit the traffic. After that we were literally traveling two miles an hour and we had about six more miles to go. My Aloha spirit was really tested that day!

I did find a shortcut on our way back so next time I will know how to bypass the majority of the traffic. By the time we got back to our condo the news stations were calling it "Big Wave Wednesday". 

Of course after we got where we wanted to be it was apparent the waves weren't cooperating. They were definitely big but they were breaking too close to each other for it to be safe so the surfers just sat on the shore waiting to see if it would change.

Just another day in paradise!

Clouds on the water

Here are a couple of more shots from the water. The top photo was taken as I was walking into the water and the second one while bobbing in the ocean.

The Guardian

Capitol Visit

2

Keeping Watch

Topping out the Capitol buildings dome is a 22 foot bronze statue named "The Guardian". One of our native sons, Enoch Kelly Haney, was the sculptor.

"...I am the Guardian..."

E. Kelly Haney

Master Artist of The Five Civilized Tribes, Mr. Haney is an enrolled member of the Seminole Nation. He also has served as the Principal Chief of that Tribe and a four year term in the Oklahoma Legislature.

Lifted to it's permanent position on June 7, 2002, sculptor Enoch Kelly Haney gave voice to his creation. A small quote from his speech I give below;

"...I will stand guard here, over our great state, over our majestic land, over our values. My lance pierces my legging and is planted in the ground. I will not be moved from my duty, from my love of Oklahoma and all of its people...I will stand my ground, and I will not be moved..From this day on, I will stand guard. I will stand strong and be proud of Oklahoma, our home." 

Starry, Starry Night

All three of these shots were taken from the top of Haleakala, the dormant volcano on Maui. I was standing at an elevation of 10,023 feet when I took the first two photos.

This first shot was taken with a fisheye lens just for fun. The lights that you see in the bottom right hand corner are from the island of Oahu about 100 miles away.

This is a shot of the Milky Way. I was just curious what the shot would look like. Next year Aaron and I plan on hiking into the crater of the volcano and getting some star photos with some landscape in them.

I took this photo about at about 9000 feet elevation looking down at the town of Kahului. You can see the light cloud cover hanging over the lights of the city.

A light dusting of snow...

As if by magic the rich green forest and blue waters of Quatse Lake are painted black and white by Mother Nature. Amazing how a light dusting of snow is able to give a whole different mood to familiar surroundings.

Chinese Lantern Festival In Dallas.

Post #1

Capitol Visit

State Capitol Building of Oklahoma

Had the occasion to be over in Oklahoma City last week and while there paid the Capitol a visit. My next few posts will show a few pics both outside and inside the building. 

Neo-Classical Style

Completed in 1917, the elements of a combination of Greek and Roman features can be seen. Originally the blueprints called for a dome, but it was only added in 2002. Government sometimes moves slow it seems.

  

Black Gold!

If my facts are right, Oklahoma is the only Capitol with working oil rigs on it's grounds. Petunia #1 was named for the petunia field it was drilled on.

Capitol Visit

one 

Twilight Swim

Just another evening on the beach in Hawaii. 

This is much better than the ice covered pond in front of my house!

Falling Water

These were taken along the road to Hana this last trip.

Did I tell you lately...

...how much I dislike the rain!

Shadow Dancing

We went to another luau this trip because we had people with us that had never been to one. During the show my wife pointed out the shadows that were showing up on the back drop of the stage and they made for an interesting subject to photograph. For some reason I didn't notice the shadows. 

Daydreaming

It's foggy and rainy here today so I'm doing a little daydreaming. 

Big Wave Wednesday II

This is what it looks like just before you get tossed around like a rag doll.

One of these days!

I don't think he had a clue what was going on just over that wave.

Winter morning in Coal Harbour

By chance I was able to capture a large fishing vessel as well as a float plane just as they were entering Coal Harbour. Originally I had only intended to get a picture of the fresh snow on the mountain in the background and the sullen winter sky hanging over it, the fishing boat and airplane were a bonus!

Back to Reality

Here is a little something to cool you off after being stuck on a miserable 85° island! This was taken the other morning when Ron and I went out to take eagle photos. I think this was the only good shot I got that whole morning and it was in front of Ron's house. 

Tiki Time

Enjoying a cocktail on the beach as the sun goes down.

More from under the sea

These were all taken at Honolua Beach on Maui.

The under sea world of...

...me!

These are called weke 'ula (way-kay-oou-la) or, the yellowfin goat fish. The don't really look like goats to me so I'm not sure how they got their name. Probably from somebody who had one too many mai tais!

A couple of recent bird pictures...

Found this young Eagle and his Mom on the beach a few days ago. Started taking pictures from quite a ways back and then moved in a little closer and kept taking pictures. Mom flew away before long but junior just sat there... Long story short, by the last few shots I was within about 15 feet of the young bird before he decided to fly away.