Sam on a higher plane of existence
Category: Pets
First Scout
In honor of my 500th picture posted to Flickr, this is the first picture I took of my beloved Scout after we adopted her. It was just a quick snapshot, and of course at the time I had no way of knowing that a remarkable bond would develop between us and she would be my constant companion for almost 12 years until spleen cancer would end her life far too soon.
Don’t I Deserve a Treat Just for Being Sweet Ol’ Ellie?
One of Ellie’s great joys in life is eating. She was a little overweight when we got her and while she has been at a good weight for many years now, we still keep her on her diet food as it lets her eat a larger volume of food. We have a variety of low-calorie treats to give her, they were useful on her walks in the early days as we trained her but now I dispense them liberally when she does the things she’s long since learned to do, just because it makes her so happy.
But I love, love, love how we’ll be sitting on the couch and she’ll start arching her eyebrows towards the closet with the treats, her subtle little way of asking for a treat.
Exterminate! Exterminate!
Doctor Who fans will understand the title, but our “Dalek” is a recently purchased portable air conditioner. Our long term goal is to have central air but in the meantime, with an unusual and extended heat wave gripping Portland, we picked up a portable unit so at least one of the rooms in the house would be tolerable. Especially so for the 4th of July, our least favorite day of the year, as we keep the windows closed even at night to minimize the noise from fireworks that freak out the pets. And especially so for our aging dog Ellie, who when the first hot days hit was panting just sitting still in my office and is tiring quickly on her walks.
My wife and I brought up our MacBooks and iPads into our little bedroom and all the pets have been hanging out with us, although the cats come and go. This is Sam enjoying the cool air, at first the cats weren’t too sure about the noise of the thing but they came to see it as more friend than foe.
Graybrows
Ellie’s gray eyebrows add such expression to her face. I took this picture a couple of years ago the day after my beloved Scout died. Ellie wasn’t really affected by Scout’s death but I don’t say that as criticism, the constant joy she brings was a welcome respite during a difficult time.
Trixie Beats the Heat
The window nook in the kitchen has become one of Trixie’s favorite hangouts, especially in the midst of an unusual heatwave where the cool kitchen counter provides some welcome relief. By the middle of next week we’re in for a brutal week of hot weather so I’ve ordered a portable air conditioner so we’ll have at least one comfortable room we can all hang out in.
At Least They’re Becoming Friends …
… so I can overlook the fact that there are two cats on the kitchen counter. This little window nook provides an excellent view of the squirrels that run up and down the fence to move between the front yard and back. Boo and Trixie are genuinely becoming friends, this morning as I was getting ready for work they were happily chasing each other from bedroom to bedroom.
Sam, on the other hand, is very much a work in progress.
Trixie Masters the Cat Bed
She’s a quick learner.
Trixie’s First Attempt at Using the Cat Bed
Don’t worry Trixie, Boo didn’t exactly get it right his first time either.
Eyes Wide Open
A picture from a couple of years ago of our cat Emma with eyes wide open, keeping an eye on young Boo who we had adopted three weeks prior. We were just starting to give him limited time into the house at large and Emma was not happy about it, following him around wherever he went. In a year and a half disease would steal Emma from us and we found ourselves introducing another young cat, Trixie, but this time it was Boo (and Sam) who were not happy about the new arrival and we were in for another slow introduction.
I had just gotten my Canon M, their little mirrorless camera, when we got Boo and was taking most of my pet pictures (then and now) with it. While it was a very flawed camera, I got it on a fire sale so there was little financial risk and I treated it as an experiment to see if I would like mirrorless cameras (I did) and with the hope that Canon would get more serious about mirrorless (they didn’t). I loved how I didn’t have to hold the camera to my eye, which not only let me get a lot of shots of the pets I wouldn’t have otherwise, but Emma was also a lot more tolerant of being photographed since she could still see my face.
I’ve been thinking for a while now about moving to a mirrorless system that would better fit my needs, or possibly going to a larger full-frame sensor, and this morning two pretty groundbreaking cameras got announced that would allow me to do both with one camera, and best of all each offers built-in image stabilization. I haven’t had much time to read up on them and, unlike my little M, either would require a massive investment in a camera I haven’t made since my first digital camera.
Right before I left for work Leica announced the Q, a gorgeous little fixed lens camera. I’ve never shot with anything as wide as its 28mm lens, nor anything as fast as it’s f/1.7 lens, but at first glance a lot of thought went into its design. I’ve always wanted to own a Leica but never have, much like in cars I’ve always wanted a Volvo, Mazda, or Alfa Romeo. This one has my interest, but on the other hand, I’m not sure I’d use it enough to justify its price tag.
While I was at work Sony announced their latest interchangeable lens full-frame camera, the A7R II. While it had been rumored for a while, they upgraded more from the original A7R than I was expecting (a camera that intrigued me but had too many foibles to seriously tempt me). This one seems to have fixed many of my issues with the previous model, and rather curiously, there are reports that Sony was demonstrating that with an adapter you could attach Canon lenses and still get autofocus. Not sure how well it would work, but if I could use my existing lenses with it …
Boolie 