Cabin Fever

<p>It's still below zero here, so I've resorted to taking photos around the house. Two silk flowers in our sun room seemed to be having a dialog today. If it were a cartoon with two frames, I'd put talk bubbles in with this: 1st frame, flower on right: "Should we go for it?" 2nd frame, flower on left: "Nah, don't think so."</p>

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<p>I too am mostly frozen indoors, although I did get out the gym this morning. I am reduced to "spotting" some of the thousands of rescans of my Kodachrome slides -- here is a 100% crop showing the 'before'.</p><div></div>

<p>BTW, I went to the gym this morning, too. Cheers, to good health!</p>

<p>JDM, that looks like a flea---you'd best get tested for the plague!</p>

<p>Although it certainly does look like a flea, it's much too small to actually be one. :)</p>

<p>On the other hand, I did have both cats and dogs for a long time. :(</p>

<p>WE WENT TO THE STORE SATURDAY<br>

ITSNOWS HER A LITTLE MOST EVERY DAY.<br>

WE USED MY SON'S 1987 TRUCK WITH 5 SPEED AND 4WD.<br>

WE HAD HALD OF TON OF COAL ( WHAT REMAINED) AS BALLAST.<br>

WE MOSTLY USED THIRD GEAR<br>

THE ROAD WAS WHITE<br>

WINCHIELD FROSTED<br>

AND FEW SIGNS OF CLEAN ROAD<br>

IT IS 3 DEG F NOW<br>

AND DROPPING A FEW MORE DEGREES.<br>

MY SON JUST ADDE3D TWO BUCKETS OF COAL TO THE hARMAN STOVE.<br>

WE ARE TRYING TO CONSERVE OIL<br>

SPRING IS COMING BUT WHEN.</p>

<p>SAD TOPO SAY AFTER 20 YEARS HERE WE ARE GETTING USEDTO IT.</p>

<p>SUCH IS LIFE IN THE TMERATE ZONE. EITHER TOO HOT OR TWO COLD.</p>

<p>That could be a poem, Walter.</p>

<p>Ditto, here. A rare blast of actual winter weather in Texas, so I'm trying infrared again now that my orchid is blooming. I accidentally broke off its bloom stalk a few weeks ago and it retaliated by sprouting a sideways bloom stalk.<br>

<img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17973707-md.jpg" alt="Infrared orchid bloom buds" width="680" height="425" border="0" /><br>

Infrared orchid bloom buds.</p>

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<p><img src="http://d6d2h4gfvy8t8.cloudfront.net/17973710-md.jpg" alt="Untitled" width="680" height="450" border="0" /><br>

Infrared Valentine's Day carnations.</p>

<p>We have had negative degree weather here for the last week or so. I too get bored so I normally shoot out my back door in an attempt to capture some of the local (boring) wild life. This shot I took last Friday of a hawk guarding my back yard from little critters.</p>

<p>https://onedrive.live.com/redir?resid=CF08B648AD3A1E46!88888&authkey=!AMWQVtv9FQwpvn0&v=3&ithint=photo%2cjpg</p>

<p>I shot this on 01/01/2015. The ambient temperature probably was in the upper 70s. Those of us in south Florida may get cabin fever, if at all, in the summer when the heat and humidity make venturing away from air conditioning an uncomfortable task.</p><div></div>

<p>It's been wickedly cold and snowy and all that stuff. It feels as if February has been two months long. Anyway, my photographic cabin fever has been fooling with macros and chasing bugs, mostly ladybugs. In the alternative forum, I introduced a macro rig made out of typesetting lenses in a microscope adapter, which turns out to be very portable and relatively easy to focus freehand. Today, I tried a different tack, adapting an old Miranda bellows to Nikon with half a T-mount and a Miranda 135 mm. lens. It's much lighter than the cumbersome old Nikon F bellows. Still a challenge to focus handheld, but it sort of works. Ladybugs are about the only thing alive even indoors at the moment except for the people.</p><div></div>

<p>Regardless of the weather, my dog is used to a short hike every morning. This gets me out of the house, even when I would rather sleep in.</p><div></div>