L.O.T. [Lots Of Turkey]

I got extra lucky this Thanksgiving. I barely had to cook and, actually, the food came to my place. My parents came to Lubbock for Thanksgiving and, using their Texan ingenuity, simply thawed the turkey in a cooler in the back of their truck on the way up. It was almost ready for cooking when they got here the day before Thanksgiving. And after we no longer felt sedated from turkey [note: two days later] we visited the Silent Wings Museum. Above are some shots I took while there. The head gear was hanging from an aircraft frame equipped with the engine pictured, known as the “Shaky Jake.” Manufactured by the Jacobs Engine Company, it was, well… shaky. I have to hand it to the armed forces… they seem to have an endless ability to appropriately and cleverly name stuff. Branding, almost. My two favorites: “two bags” [given to a rookie who flew with a fighter pilot for the first time] and BFR [Big ------- Rock, as a reference point: “We’re 100 meters south of the BFR”] Aptly named. No clue how often the second one is actually used, but I’m sure there are others recognizable/understandable even to civilians. I think I’ll take note for the day it’s my job to name stuff, minus acronyms that make the letter F into a sandwich…don't think those will do me any good. Quite the opposite, actually. That would just make things TFE anyways. [If you get that, you're good at this acronym thing!]

Kristen and Absidy

Yesterday I met my friend Kristen and her daughter Absidy for a photo shoot at a nearby park. I feel like I worked out my thighs squatting down so many times to be on eye level with Absidy. Luckily for me, she isn’t camera shy. I kinda figured, seeing as how she blew me kisses within minutes of the first time we met. I did learn, however, photographing toddlers is even more difficult than I had anticipated... (getting a nice even light on her face, but with no squinting... and mostly, keeping up!) But, lots of fun. Oh, and Absidy loves picking leaves off of trees. Can't blame her, they're nice and crunchy this time of year...

Tech Bell Tower

Like a good little photographer, I'm in the habit of toting my camera along with me just in case. As for this shot... well, I see the Texas Tech bell tower almost daily, but when I was walking to a late night meeting on campus and saw they had just strung lights down it in preparation for Carol of the Lights, I was glad to have my camera on me. It's one of my favorite campus landmarks... and, funny story, I actually got to climb it a week later. (Access into the tower is restricted...) You can even see the rickety ladder you climb to reach the bell in this shot. I'll dedicate another post to the inside of the tower soon (it was awesome)! For now, I'll let you admire it from the outside.

To all our Wonderful Veterans:

I’m glad my first post is just in time for Veteran’s Day. To all the men and women who have served or are currently serving for our country, thank you. This includes my mom, who served in both the Army and the Air Force.

Thank you, Veterans!