Spring Weekend

The routine continues.  The girls continue to spend most of their time out at the cottage, while I spend most of my time at work.  As has been the usual routine, I headed out to join them last weekend.  I left the city on Saturday morning and it was an uneventful drive out.  The melt is not quite as advanced out in the foothills as it is here in the City.  In Edmonton the snow is pretty much gone, even in most of the shady spots.  Out in the foothills, quite a bit of patchy snow remains, and the creeks and streams are all running vigorously.

On Saturday after I arrived, we went for a walk.  It was a beautiful day with sunny skies and the temperature up around 15.  After dinner Hailey and I watched a movie together.  On Sunday I assembled a work bench that I had brought along.  Then I made a trip to the dump to drop off a bunch of garbage.  Shortly after that I had to hit the road for the drive back home.  Saw a few deer along the way, but no other wildlife.  This time around I took a different route home and drove the Sunchild Road up to Drayton Valley, then across on Highway 39 to Sunnybrook, and the straight east on Glen Park Road.  I stopped at Brazeau Dam and took a couple of photos with the view camera, of the collapsed ice in the channel.  I saw a couple other spots along the way home that might be worth a stop next time.  The light had gone really flat by evening so I didn't both to stop this time.

More Game Camera Photos....

I pulled the card from the game camera last weekend and found these....  In the midst of that bitter cold snap back in January, the batteries in the camera died.  When I put in new batteries and restarted it, I forgot to update the date and time.  So, although the temperatures recorded with these images are correct, the dates and times are not.  These images were all captured through March and April of 2020.  Its nice to see that the doe that was sporting that vicious scar over the winter, probably as a result of a cougar attack, has survived and the wound has healed nicely.

It felt wonderful....

Margarit headed back out to the cottage on Friday... my birthday.  I celebrated by going to work.  In the evening I was too tired to drive, so I stayed home, and headed out to Nordegg on Saturday morning.  The spring thaw is well underway around Edmonton.  Most of the snow out in the open fields is gone, and the creeks are running and the sloughs are full.  The further west I got, the less advanced the spring conditions were.  Up on Saunders Ridge and at our place in Nordegg there was about four inches of fresh snow.  Hailey and her little sister had stayed out at the cottage through the week.  They were more or less snowed in for a couple of days as they got hit with a big dump of six or seven inches .  By my unofficial count I estimate that between 14 and 16 inches of snow fell in Nordegg since Good Friday...

I arrived out at the cottage around noon.  I was still really tired, so a laid down and promptly fell asleep.  I am not one to nap and can't remember the last time that I did.  But this time I slept for a couple of hours.  When I awoke it was mid-afternoon and was sunny and warm.  The temperature was up around +7 and the snow was beginning to melt.

Hailey and I jumped in the truck and headed west up to Abraham Lake. Most of the campsites and picnic areas were barricaded and closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  We made a stop at the Mt. Michener viewpoint and I dug out my camera and took a couple of photographs.  Later we headed further west and stopped along the highway at an undesignated spot.  We just wandered down to the lakeshore and explored for a little bit.  The big camera came out again and I took a couple more photographs.  It felt great to get out again with the camera as it has been many weeks since I have had a chance to do so.  Between working long hours and poor weather conditions I just haven't had much opportunity this year so far.

By this time it was early evening and Hailey and I packed up and headed back to the cottage.  We had dinner with the other girls.  After dinner, still feeling tired I laid down again and once again promptly fell asleep.  It was probably only about 8:30 when I crashed, and I slept right through to the next morning.

Needless to say I felt a lot more rested on Sunday.  It was beautiful day and the sun was shining.  The temperature got up to about +15 and the spring thaw finally got underway out at Nordegg as well.  We went for a walk around the subdivision and then later in the afternoon I had to make the solo drive back to the city.  The girls remained out at the cottage for another week of isolation, with the exception of middle daughter Annelise.  She had stayed back in the city, at home by herself.

I didn't really do any work to speak of this weekend... in between all my naps.  We set up a bed for Helena in the girls bedroom, and I shimmed the fir slab in the bay window.  Hung up some decorative "trees" that my Mom made for us.... that was about it.

This panoramic shot is a digital version of the first setup I did with the big camera.  Kind of hoping I get a decent negative out of this one as I have a spot picked out above our stairway that would be ideal for a long narrow panoramic image.  This is followed by a view of Coliseum Mountain, as seen from the shores of Abraham Lake.  The Nordegg subdivision is situated on the flanks of this mountain, at the lower right hand edge of this image.

This images is of Mount Michener as seen from the highway viewpoint along Abraham Lake.  Some locals refer to this mountain as Phoebe's Tit.  Apparently Phoebe was a bargirl at one of the taverns in Rocky Mountain House back in the day.  Her tit is obvious enough.  Her head is visible to the left, and her knee is further down the slope to the right.

This group of bighorn sheep, mostly young rams, was hanging around in the grass along the roadside, at the Michener viewpoint.  Following this... some tags.  The guardrail around the viewpoint has been tagged with grafitti dating back for some time.  Hailey  borrowed my sharpie and added a couple of her own... including a birthday wish to me.  Have to stop by again in a couple of years and see if it remains.

Further down the Highway to the west we stopped along the shores of Abraham Lake.  This shot of the aspen trunks beside the road was another image that I attempted to capture with my big view camera.  I think I nailed it when the sun popped out and all the trunks were nicely highlighted.  Then we wandered down to the beach and explored for a bit.  Did one more set up of with the big camera down there... similar to the snapshot taken through the aspen trunks.

When I got back home to the city  I found this chalk drawing scribbled onto the road beside the spot where I park my truck.  Kind of fitting given the times...!

Trunk and Plaster Wall

I've spent my evenings over the past couple of weeks going through my archive of over 8000 large format negatives.  I've been working on compiling some images for a publishing project that I may be able to be come involved in.  This particular image is a detail shot of Jackpine Trunk against an old plaster wall, at an abandoned Russian Monastery up in Smoky Lake County.  I shot this on Ilford Delta 100 4x5 film with my Ebony SV45TE view camera and a Schneider G-Claron 210mm lens.  It was processed in PMK developer.  It was taken in May of 2014.

Still waiting for Spring

I managed to extend the Easter long weekend by an extra day as the shop was closed for Easter Monday.  I was able to accomplish a few things out at the cottage over the holiday weekend but mostly it was just a lazy, relaxing weekend.  I returned to work on Tuesday and things have been really chaotic.  Despite the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted life for most people, the company has remained really busy, and the week following Easter has been no exception.  There have been a lot of inquiries for plastic sheet stock and protective shields.  We are very fortunate that we are able to keep busy.  One staff member was recently terminated, and one was laid off a few weeks ago.  But those that remain are able to maintain close to full time hours and it seems that, at least for the time being, the company will survive the pandemic.  This is great news for me as I attempt to work myself out of an active role, collect the remaining funds owing to me from the sale, and transition into retirement.  Mostly I have been working more hours than I did when I owned the place but I'm optimistic that the transition will begin in the coming weeks.

My oldest daughter Hailey, and my youngest daughter Helena, stayed out at Nordegg after the Easter weekend, while I returned to the city along with Margarit and middle daughter Anna.  As I previously reported, we got a pretty significant dump of snow over the Easter weekend.  After we left, the girls reported that they were dumped on even more.  I understand that there have been accumulations of up to a foot, of more snow.  Here in the city the snow is quickly disappearing, except in shaded and sheltered areas.  Out in the mountains, it seems that spring remains a distant dream.  Margarit and Anna plan to head back out on Thursday or Friday morning.  Once my work week wraps up I will head back out as well.  If I can wind things up early enough on Friday, I will head out that evening after work.  If not, the I will head out on Saturday morning.  I will have to return on Sunday to resume the work week on Monday.  The girls will continue to spend most of their time out at the cottage as it is a safe and comfortable place to isolate while this pandemic rages on.

My 57th birthday is coming up later this week.  I can remember a number of times over those years that we still had a little snow on the ground on my birthday.  Most years it was still just a little sloppy and unsettled.  A few times it has been really mild and warm.  This year is the exception.  It remains very cold and we have more than a little snow left here in the city.  Out at the cottage there are significant accumulations of snow remaining and it looks more like Christmas than Easter.  

Altar Highlights

Recent scan of an old negative....  I came across this one as I was sorting though all my old negatives for another project.  This one was taken in July of 2006.  I shot it with my old Sinar F1 monorail vew camera and a Nikkor 75mm lens.  It was taken on Fuji Neopan Acros film developed in D76.  This is the interior of the United Church, before it was restored.

Tricycle

Digging through my old negatives I found this one from 2004.  Wonder why I never got around to posting it previously... or printing it...?  Maybe I'll be able to take a shot at it soon....

Expired

Kodak High Speed Infrared, 4" x 5", 100 iso with #25 Red Filter.  Normal development in T-Max developer, 1:6, 6:45 minutes, Minimal agitation. 24C.  Taken July 2017.  Ebony SV45TU.  Rodenstock Grandagon N 90mm. 

Kodak discontinued this film back in the 1990's.  The last batches they made expired in 2000 and 2001.  Surprisingly I'm still shooting it 20 years later.  They used to ship the film to retailers in boxes with dry ice.  There were warnings about how susceptible it was to fogging.  I bought all I could get my hands on when they stopped making it.  Over the years a number of friends that have dropped film photography to jump on the digital bandwagon, gave me their remaining stock.  I still have quite a few boxes in my freezer.  I keep it frozen until I load it, but then sometimes it sits in holders for quite some time before I shoot it.  After exposure I unload and keep it in the fridge until I process it.  The image quality is certainly deteriorating, but as can be seen in this image, it still isn't too bad.  This particular sheet of film reached its best before date in October of 2001.  I loaded it into a film holder in April of 2017, and exposed it in July of that summer.  After exposure I kept it in my fridge until March of 2020 when I processed it.

Wagon Wheels and Old House, Lamont County, Alberta.

Spring???

Most years, when spring is in the air, I get a distinct mood of optimism.  The snow begins to melt and ponds form and the runoff is underway.  Normally docile prairie creeks become raging rivers of meltwater runoff for a few weeks.  The return of the migratory birds adds to the air of rebirth.  This year it doesn't feel quite the same... for two reasons.  The weather has been really crappy, and we have the Corona virus pandemic on our hands.

Last week, for a couple of days, the sun game out and the weather really warmed up.  On Thursday it was really nice, and I understand that out west in the foothills it got as high as +17C.  The spring thaw seemed to be getting underway.  As I drove out to the cottage on Good Friday I noticed the creeks starting to run, and saw a lot of birds.  I saw ducks, Canada Geese, swans, Red Tail Hawks, crows, and several flocks of starlings.  It was looking as though spring was about to finally arrive, although the mood was definitely tempered by all the issues with the Corona Virus Pandemic.  Then Friday evening it started to snow.  We got at least five inches of fresh snow overnight out at Nordegg and when I got up on Saturday morning, it looked more like Christmas than Easter.  So far it has continued to snow off and on through Saturday.

The girls spent the past week out at the cottage while I stayed home alone and went in to work.  It has become a very strange world.  Many businesses are closed and there is very little traffic on the roads.  The few people that are working are involved in businesses that are deemed essential I suppose.  Although there has been a real lack of information on the part of the government.  No one has approached my company and questioned anything, or provided any instruction as to whether or not we can continue to operate.  In a sense we are somewhat essential as we are providing protective screens for other businesses.  Plus, we only have nine employees in a big shop of 14,000 square feet so maintaining safe distances is relatively easy.

Most people are staying home and isolating.  I see lots of people going out for walks around the neighborhood.  It will definitely be quite some time before things begin to return to normal.  In the mean time, the ominous threat of the virus, and the winter like weather, have really destroyed the usually optimistic spring mood.
While I was out at Nordegg over the Easter weekend, I installed the upper cabinets in our kitchen, and put the fir slab into our bay window.  It was pretty laid back and that's all I seemed to accomplish over the whole weekend.  I was hoping to get out for a bit with my camera, but the weather was so crappy that I never got around to it.  Can hardly wait to return to the work week back at the shop...!
Easter was very different this year.  The girls still had an Easter egg hunt... but Easter dinner this year consisted of pizza.....

Another from the Gulf Islands

Being trapped at home so much lately has left lots of time of processing film and sorting through negatives.  Busy tidying up my darkroom and reloading a bunch of film holders.  Still waiting for spring to arrive in Alberta.  Lots of snow on the ground and very cold temperatures here in early April.  Sure anxious to get outside a little more with the cameras.  For now this shot from last fall out at Hornby Island will have to do....

Research Project

Recently I've been digging back into my archive of large format 4" x 5" negatives.  I've got over 8000, going back to 1996.  This is just the black and white ones.  I have some additional color negatives and transparencies, as well as some larger 8" x 10" stuff.  I'm working together with my friends Chris and Connie.  They are publishing a book later this year and I have an opportunity to possibly include some of my images.  I came across this one from about 20 years ago.  This industrial plant once manufactured fertilizer, but it no longer exists. 

December Calendar Image

This is the image I selected for the month of December in my recently printed 2020 calendar.  Until next year, this is the end of my calendar project.

Roots

Another recently processed image from last October on Vancouver Island.  This was taken in Cathedral Grove.  It rained a slow, steady, soaking rain all day long and we had no option but to head inland in an attempt to be at least partly sheltered.  The camera gear was thoroughly soaked by the time we finished shooting here for a couple of hours.  My note pad got so wet and soggy that I could no longer write on it, even with a pencil.  Later when the paper dried out my notes were more or less illegible.   Don't mind this image though... even if it brings back some chilled, wet, emotions...

November Calendar Image

Something a little more light-hearted after all the recent gloom and doom.  This is the image that I selected for the month of November.  This was included on the calendar that I printed at the beginning of the year.  I sent around about 30 copies to friends and family.  Just got word that the ones I sent over to relatives in Europe recently arrived.

Daily Struggle

I'm struggling these days... like just about everyone else.  This COVID-19 virus pandemic is making life very difficult, both emotionally and financially, for everyone.  My employer... the company that I used to own... has been doing alright, so far.  We got a lot of orders for protective plastic shields in late March.  We did better than survive in March, and the carryover into early April will make that month alright as well.  After that... who knows...?

I'm more than a little concerned for my daughter, and my elderly parents.  It would not be good if any of them got infected.  People in general seem to be respecting the requirement to distance themselves from each other, and stay home.  I suppose I am, to some degree, guilty of not doing that, as I go to work every day.  I justify it to myself by recognizing that we have a large workspace with minimal employees.  But, I do come into somewhat distanced contact with half a dozen to a dozen customers per day.  I further justify it by thinking the work we are doing to build shields and protective guards is for the better good of all, and outweighs the negatives.  But, I also think that it is only a matter of time before I too, in good conscience, will need to stay home.

I get up every morning, have a shower and head in to work.  I work through the day and generally head home by about 6:30 or so.  In the evening I have some dinner, watch the news, and by 8:30 or 9:00 I am drained and have no energy or ambition to do anything.  I have some chores and little projects that I could work on, if I had any motivation... but I have none.  The weather lately is making matters much worse.  We got 5 inches of snow the other day and the daytime high temperatures are only making it up to about -12 or so... and the forecast lows at night are expected to be -20 and lower.  Very cold for the end of March and beginning of April, even here in the great white north of Canada.  I suppose the hidden blessing is that it is keeping everyone indoors, and maybe the spread of the virus is being suppressed a little...?  Not trying to sound like a whiner as most of the world is in a similar situation and we all just need to bear down and push through.  But these are certainly very strange and difficult times.

The Girls Come Home...

I ended up working at the shop on Saturday March 28 and put in nearly a full day.  Several other staff were also there, as we tried to wrap up production on the current order for protective screens for grocery stores.  Most of this work is now complete, and we will wrap up the last remaining pieces on Monday, with a few carried over to Tuesday.  

Margarit and the girls decided to come home on Saturday evening.  They've been getting a little cooped up at the cottage.  Plus, they've run out of clean laundry, and are getting low on groceries.  They'll spend a couple of days here at home with me, and then later in the week head back out to Nordegg.  Margarit and I hit the grocery store today and stocked up on about 400 bucks worth of supplies.  Although some items were in short supply, we were able to buy pretty much everything we needed. We still need to be cautious and minimize the risk of exposure to the girls.  They'll head back out to the cottage... recharged and re-supplied... sometime in the next couple of days.  I'll stay home and keep heading in to work and try to keep the operation rolling along.
Here are some snapshots of some of the free-standing shields that we have been fabricating.  The small one still has the white polymasking on the plastic sheet stock but they are all made from clear acrylic plastic.