This is my nephew Hayden. He flew in from Oregon with my sister Gina yesterday. We probably spent two hours brushing and combing the horses today. But we were so busy with other things we never got to ride them. In the morning we'll be riding though. Me and him are a regular pair of cowboys down here in Florida. Like Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kidd -- tending to the horses, playing cards (Uno) at sunset, and sometimes disagreeing with our mothers.
I went with my niece Becky and her husband Bill after my terrible karaoke hangover today. They are looking to trade their car in on a mini van. They just want more family-type room. While they went test-driving I watched their kid and my great-niece, Reba. I designated an island in the car lot as our play area. I chased her around. She chased me around. Then we all ate steak.
Never Keep a Gift Horse in Your House
This is my sister Patti putting one of her horses away. I forget what this ones name is. She gives things crazy names. Her beagle's name is Casper Addison. What kind of name is that for a dog? It looks like this horse is afraid of the camera, trying to hide behind Patti. I was thinking earlier about that phrase, "Never look a gift horse in the mouth." I was thinking that maybe it would bite at you or something. But when I really thought about it I figured it meant if someone gives you a horse don't look at it's teeth to see how old it is (because you tell the age of a horse by the wear of its teeth). Just take the thing, free horse. Be grateful, not critical of a gift. And sometimes Wee People hide in the mouths of gift horses to poke at your eyes.
Finally made it to see The Passion of the Christ. I went to see it with my sister Patti, my younger niece Carol, and here boyfriend Kevin. There were people crying in the theater after the lights came on. It was an emotional movie but seeing those people cry bothered me as much as an uncomfortable public display of affection. Kind of like when people are standing in front of you kissing and you're trying to look beyond them. In other news I sang Karaoke for the first time in my life at a little place in the swamp called Big Daddy's. My niece Taira and her boyfriend Johnny are there every Monday and Tuesday night. Aside from having a band Johnny has a Karaoke business. Singing in this picture is local hip-hop karaoke legend Booker. God bless Japan.
I will go just about anywhere with my family. Today I landed in Orlando after a very short flight from D.C. Little did I know only hours later I would be taking in a cultural piece of Americana that I am usually terrified of. My neice's boyfriend is a singer and gutarist in a counrty band called Ambush. Tonight me and My sister Patti went with Taira, my niece, to see Ambush play at the County Line Bar in Weirsdale. They were great musicians which always makes the experience more enjoyable. I had to drink rum and cokes though, the only kind of beer they sell down here is watered-down for the cowboys. Aaahhh, Central Florida, the Redneck State.
This is Will, Shauna, and Solomon just before they started mingling at the final Corcoran fine arts photography show of the year. I used my off-camera flash to illuminate the subjects and I hoped I would still capture the golden light of the sun. I love using my off camera flash. Nice sneakers Shauna.
I took this shot of my friend Lars with off-camera flash, using a flash cord I received in the mail today. I think it looks a little biblical. Well it looks about as biblical as the paintings Lars is doing for a Christian art show. He showed me a painting of a half-nude woman eating breakfast in bed. "If you read into it, it could be Christian," Lars said. I was surprised to hear him tell me he was entering paintings in a Christian art show. He's just not a real religious person, more spiritual ... you know what I mean. It's just that we hang out around the White House neighborhood and Christians have been getting a bad name around here from that George "W" guy. "I just want to get one of those under my belt," he said. "One of what," I asked. He was talking about the art show as if it were a notch in the Christian belt. Odd.
Some Ultimate Frisbee players do calisthenics in the Ellipse, the park between the Washington Monument and the White House. The team that was practicing was George Washington University's Hungry Hippos. They recently flew to Southern California to compete against teams from all over the United States. I even did my taxes today.
