Guests

Hosting friends and family in my meager dwelling is always an adventure. I do love having family come to visit. I enjoy their company, sharing memories of days past and taking the opportunity to make a few new memories.

When my loving mother and wonderful sister were here to celebrate some birthdays and the Thanksgiving holiday, we had a great time. The day of their arrival, I cooked a 6 course meal, served with the help of my incredible girlfriend Anzhela over a period of several hours. We invited some of Anzhela's family, since we have no friends, and shared a grand feast:

First Course: spicy carrot salad, ikra (3 types), potato salad, and deli breads

Second Course: baby spinach salad, tossed with a hot EVOO and balsamic dressing, and baby mozzarella, grape tomatoes, julienned pears, and chopped pecans

Third Course: atlantic salmon fillets grilled with lemons, minced garlic, and shaved onions

Fourth Course: baked spicy barbecue chicken and roasted garlic skin-on mashed baby red potatoes

Fifth Course: USDA Choice rib eye, grilled to each guest's order

Sixth Course: Pecan or Pumpkin pie with freshly whipped cream

I also opened a couple bottles of tasteful wine to accompany the food, which seemed to be well received. The only hitch seemed to be our short supply of standing room with two tables setup and guests stretching from the couch, which backs up to the wall under the window between the kitchen and the living room, all the way out the living room French doors onto the small balcony.

We had a great time, and after a few short hours of scrubbing dishes and packing away leftovers, all was done. We relaxed and prepared for a hard earned slumber. It wasn't long after the lights went out that the first signs of trouble revealed themselves. Strange noises in the darkness, tiny bursts of flickering light, and the distinct aroma of someone enjoying themselves just a bit too much all purposed to rouse me from the inflatable mattress in the living room. Awakened by an uninvited guest, and delirious from the festivities, I wasn't sure if I was really seeing what my eyes saw.... so fumbling around in the darkness, I managed to grab my camera and snap the following images.

I make no judgement as what these images portray, I leave that to the reader. To protect the guilty, I have not posted all the images here, just those necessary to prove that I wasn't imagining it all.

Look deep into the crystal ball...

Cruelty to Animals

Dogue de Bordeaux (French Mastiff)

Big Horn Rain

These are the Big Horns. These are Grandpa's mountains. I couldn't cry for Grandma, but now that she's with Grandpa, her lost children and grandchildren, I don't have to. The Big Horns were crying for me. This gentle rain brought tears of joy, of life, of the end of pain, and the promise of forever. I love these mountains; they are my childhood, some of my fondest memories, and my saddest moments.

Fingers on Thumb Butte

Taken from Thumb Butte, near Prescott, Arizona. Granite Mountain in the background.

Moving on....

New job, old company. Old company, new people.

I've found myself as the newest employee in a company where almost everyone is new, either to the company, or to the business. I'm in a new position, too, which is being created just for me as we go along. This is not so different from the first time I was an employee of this company, (the first time, and the first employee) In assessing and progressing, I'm finding there's lots of learning to do, a huge backlog of things past-due, and great potential for me to get my hands in too many pots.

I'm trying to focus, trying to excel and make a mark.

So why am I the one telling everyone else what their job is?

It's everywhere now...

Printing, publishing, saying, or disseminating a number is still speech, and deserving of 1st Amendment protection, regardless of its purpose.







Ahhh... takes me back to the good 'ol DeCSS days.... What do you get when you enrage a bunch of geeks with chilling censorship and rigged court battles? A whole cottage industry, of course!

I don't expect anyone to understand this, but...

09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0


I think I'll have that printed on a bumper sticker, or perhaps a tattoo (it would be my first, and therefore always have special meaning.)

I'm no Anarchist, tho I do have Libertarian leanings. In today's day and age of the DMCA, the Patriot Act, and Gitmo, I do believe that Patrick Henry had it right... or maybe V said it better?

On a much more serious note... although the technology has changed, some things were said quite clearly, and repeatedly, so we would not forget them.

Fragrant Bouquet

Hanging on...

Dingle Berries?

Grumpy needs a nap

For Sale... Any takers?

Friendly

Do you remember when I had one of these?

Trachemys scripta elegans

I have always loved redheads...

Xylocopa violacea

BullS****

Pituophis catenifer deserticola

Cloudy evening in Phoenix

Cathartes aura

Trinkets

Special thanks to Oksana for use of the props.

Bull Pen

Public Exhibition

When you're walking alone in the park, and you stumble chance to encounter 2 lovers under a bush proudly and actively copulating, what should you do? What if they are naked, but obviously quite capable of killing you should you get too close? What if they saw you before you saw them, and even purposely got your attention as you approached? The only thing I could think to do... was to take pictures, of course!!!

Squatters

Sometimes we forget about the really important things in life. Some of those times are when we succumb to petty frustrations and allow ourselves to be enraged. I prefer to look on the bright side of life, and take each obstacle with a whistle and tune, much like my namesake Brian.

Unfortunately, I did not stay outside long enough to get pictures of the tow truck that came to remove this obstacle. I did go to Walgreen's and have this picture printed, so I could leave it on the windshield of the offender, with a cheery note to remind them to also look on the bright side :)

Teddy

Squeakers

Friends