Scout – Page 3

We Meet Again, Little Beaver

I switched to a digital camera at the end of 2000 and I’m very glad I did, I enjoyed photography in the film days but with digital my love grew by leaps and bounds. However the primitive autofocus of that camera had no hope of keeping up with the two month old kitten we adopted in May of 2001, so I put Scout’s beaver toy on top of the scratching post and ran back and turned around and focused on it instead, hoping to get set up before she jumped onto the post. Part of me would love to go back in time with my current camera and experience to photograph my beloved Scout again, or even leave the camera behind and just spend a few minutes with her, but part of me is afraid she wouldn’t recognize me at 50 instead of 35 and I don’t think my heart could stand it.

It’s a Long Way Down

Scout at two months in 2001. Although the base of the scratching post is just out of frame, she was a fearless climber from the get go.

The Classics

In May of 2004 my new laptop arrived, a 15″ Apple Powerbook. It was a big step for me in two ways, I was not only switching full-time to the Mac but also to a laptop. Previously I had a smaller Apple laptop for the train and a Dell desktop for photo work, but my delight with a 12″ Apple Powerbook purchased months prior convinced me to go full-time with the bigger laptop. It was a good decision, that laptop remains one of my all-time favorites and I used it daily for years. All these years later and my current laptop is but a refinement of that classic design.

I’ve stayed a laptop-only user pretty much since then (I do have a Mac mini I use as a file server), but each time I’ve replaced a computer I’ve debated if I should go back to a split setup. I’m going through that again as it’s time to replace my aging laptop, although I’m leaning towards getting another 15″ one. The only reason I’d even consider a desktop is that lovely display on the iMac, but I’d have to go back to working at a desk at times instead of doing all my work on the couch covered in cats.

Speaking of cats, the lovely little creature who came out to inspect the new box was my beloved Scout, she and Templeton always liked to inspect new boxes.

Catnip Fiends

What I wouldn’t give to be able to spend just a few minutes again with these two.

Some Days You Just Can’t Face the World

Rolling in the Catnip

Scout picks up a belly full of dirt rolling in the catnip on our back porch. I dusted her off as best I could before she went back inside. I had given her a bath once before. Once.

Tucked In, Tuckered Out

A picture from 16 years ago of a young Scout sleeping in my window seat. In her early years she enjoyed being under the covers but as she grew older she’d only go under the covers when she was upset.

Every Day a Blessing

You never know how long the things you love will be a part of your life, so I try to count each day spent with them a blessing. I took this picture of Scout in September 2012 as she slept in front of the window of the guest bedroom, having no way of knowing that exactly five months later we’d spend the day, her last day, across the hall in the main bedroom as cancer took her from us. I’m close to all our pets but even so Scout and I had a special bond and she truly was a blessing for each day of the almost twelve years we shared together. Always loved and always missed.

Three Things

Back in 2000, Canon launched their first consumer digital SLR, the $3000 three megapixel D30. At the time I had a low-end film SLR and was looking to upgrade and was torn between getting the D30 or a much more advanced film SLR for a lot less money. While researching the D30 I found a website by an accomplished photographer named Michael Reichmann, Luminous Landscape, and his review nudged me to the D30.

While Michael and I photographed different types of things (and he was a vastly better photographer), I loved his approach to reviewing camera gear. He had a rare blend of talent, enthusiasm, experience, wisdom, helpfulness, generosity, charisma, and humility that made him my favorite reviewer. He evaluated gear based on how much enjoyed using it and how it helped (or hindered) his ability to get the shots that meant the most to him. He had an infectious love of photography and never lost sight of the big picture, that photography can be personal and meaningful and rewarding and emotional. And fun.

He died earlier this year from cancer and though I didn’t know him, I miss him.

I owe him a great deal for helping me settle on the D30. The camera had plenty of flaws but its strengths were even greater. I liked film, I loved digital. Less than half a year we adopted an adorable little kitten we named Scout. I’d give so much to be able to snuggle for even 15 minutes with Scout, who died a few years ago, and in a way the pictures help me do that. Here she’s a young kitten playing beside my wife. It’s funny that it’s almost hard for me to remember her being this young. On the one hand I remember clearly bringing her home for the first time, but it’s the adult Scout who always wanted to be curled up on or beside me that is so strongly imprinted on my memory.

Life is filled with ups and downs, something I’ve been reflecting on a lot tonight, so let me acknowledge some things that had such a positive impact on me in 2000 and 2001, and for years after. Michael, Scout, that first digital camera. Gone now, not forgotten, always loved.

(I do still have the D30 sitting around somewhere, but allow me the poetic license.)

What’s Old Is New Again

As the weather has gotten colder, Trixie has discovered the joys of this spot beneath the big picture window. Underneath the wooden grate is a heating vent, blowing warm air onto your belly as you sleep. When we moved to this house in 2002, our two cats were Templeton and Scout. Scout (the black-and-white cat) was the first to discover the vent, but Templeton (the gray tuxedo cat) soon discovered Scout’s secret and began sleeping here as well.

I’ve photographed most of the cats on this vent over the years, although it didn’t get as much use once we bought them heated beds. For some reason they haven’t used the beds as much since Scout died a few years ago (she adored hers and insisted it be kept beside me in my office), although they do sleep in Ellie’s beds quite frequently.