September 2011
Next month is extremely full already – I’m planning to go on a short backpacking trip and spend a week in Chicago. Ginger is also spending a week in Chicago so I’ve a week alone with the kids to look forward to. Some fishing and time in the kayak might be nice.
1. Just me – reprise, 2. More of the same, 3. Sitting at the kitchen table chatting with Ginger, 4. I was going to use a picture of me facing right for a change. But I like this one more., 5. Gary, Lanie and Ginger (hiding at the back) too, 6. 2011 Day 249, 7. Gary at the computer, 8. Tedious, 9. Gary in the backyard, 10. No wall, 11. This evening I was momentarily stumped as to where to begin, 12. Staring into space, 13. Working late, 14. Day 257, 15. Studying again, 16. Warmth, 17. On the way home from the symphony, 18. This is what results when one accidentally presses the shutter while struggling to get the camera into position, 19. I have a bolt stuck in my tyre, 20. 2am, 21. Double take, 22. Thursday evening, 23. Gary’s a lumberjack for the day, 24. Saturday September 24., 25. I eat toast and marmalade while Mr. Getzger Cat exits frame right., 26. I have a new driving license, 27. Quick shot in the hall mirror, 28. At the computer, 29. Day 272, 30. Whoosh!
365 Days blog | Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman
August 2011
1. Manly shopping, 2. Today the temperature in Joplin Missouri was 111°F, 3. Filling up with gas, 4. Day 216, 5. Making a spice rack for Ginger, 6. Gary and Ginger at the dinner table, 7. It’s me and the wall again, 8. Making plans, 9. Gary upside down with his head under the deck of a Kayak, 10. More hours in front of a monitor, 11. Gary in the van, 12. It’s Friday. Put your feet up and take a break, 13. If I look a little surprised, 14. Gary sitting at the kitchen table, 15. Working late, 16. Sometimes there is a huge disparity between how I feel and how I appear to others. Wine does help though., 17. Gary + wall = picture, 18. I thought I ought to prove that my camera does have a colour sensor. My recent pictures would indicate otherwise., 19. More proof that my camera takes colour pictures, 20. I have nothing to add, 21. Dressing gown, 22. Gary + camera, 23. Wine and picture editing, 24. Working on a new project, 25. Self portrait and black foamie thing, 26. Gary and Tubby, 27. The problem with dirty glasses, 28. Chatting with Ginger, 29. McDonald’s, I’m good ‘n cold and I have two egg McMuffins!, 30. 2 am, 31. At my desk
365 Days blog | Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman
July 20011
Then it was back to earth with a bump; processing pictures, and hiding from the 100°F temps that prevailed in the Midwest.
1. Gary and Ginger at the end of the hike, 2. Hiding from the midges, 3. Gary and Ginger looking out over Gruinard Bay, 4. Enjoying the scenery by Loch Bad a’Ghaill, 5. Gary and Ginger in the tent camped beside Loch Rannoch, 6. Chinese restaurant Berwick-Upon-Tweed, 7. A photograph in which I appear to have a foot protruding from the back of my head. The foot does not belong to me., 8. A full day’s driving, a walk on the beach, beer and fish and chips take their toll, 9. Gary and Ginger on the beach at Hunstanton, 10. Gary, late at night sitting on the kitchen floor, 11. Keith and Gary, 12. Photo-lethargy strikes yet again, 13. Oh dear!, 14. Ginger and Gary on the beach, 15. On the flight from Dallas Fort Worth to Springfield, 16. Half cut – again., 17. It’s that wall again…, 18. Working late at the computer, 19. Processing, 20. And yet more picture processing, 21. Thursday evening service, 22. Day 203, 23. Wine and TV, 24. Day 205, 25. Gary takes a break from other duties to repair the washing machine, 26. Popcorn, 27. Phew! What a scorcher, 28. Reading before bed, 29. Gary, Sprinky and Inspector Morse, 30. Gary and Ginger at Emily and Larry’s Wedding reception, 31. Hello wall
365 Days blog | Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman
June 2011
The first couple of weeks were spent getting prepared and ready to go the UK, and the rest of the month was spent in the UK catching up with friends and family, eating and drinking. I managed to (at least temporarily) satisfy my desires for both pork pies and curry. I also managed to buy a new camera, and almost immediately broke it getting through security at the airport in Springfield (I was not a happy bunny).
By the end of the month we’d begun a short tour of Scotland, which started with a couple of day hikes, and on the last day of June, a backpacking trip in Glen Coe. The same day I discovered an inexplicable dent in our hire car.
We’ve only managed to hike 13.75 miles this month, though we’ve climbed 2,600 feet. We’ve spent a couple of nights in the tent too. Our running total is now 119.5 miles hiked and 14 nights camping. Way short of our target for the year.
1. Pumping Gas, 2. Enough!, 3. Van Repairs, 4. Breakfast at Anton’s Coffee Shop, 5. Gary + Wall = Today’s picture, 6. My legs and two cats, 7. Shopping day, 8. Stress Relief, 9. Geek Glasses, 10. Waiting and Writing, 11. New Toy, 12. Campfire, 13. Back to the wall, 14. Packed and ready to go, 15. Layover at Chicago, 16. Lego, 17. An evening with Mick, 18. Windy Day, 19. At the end of the evening, 20. Dinner with Robert and Mel, 21. Gary and Ginger at the Tate Modern, 22. Rest day, 23. Drinking my first pint in over two and a half years, 24. Hands, 25. Watching Coldplay live at Glastonbury in 3D, 26. Tonight we are in Shirley, 27. On the beach near West Kilbride, 28. Keith, Gary and Ginger – Dumyat, Stirling, Scotland, 29. Late at night sitting on my uncle’s sofa, apparently with a ceramic pigeon sticking out of my head, 30. Gary and Ginger at the saddle of Lairig Gartain
May 2011
On the negative side, I’ve finished year one of my EFM course and I’m going to miss it. Then there was the accident with my hand: painful and very costly. The cats managed to break my camera, which (hindsight tells me) will cost more to replace than my medical bills, and the camera will subsequently be repaired for just $15.
1. Living with cats, 2. Drawing, 3. Making huaraches, 4. Crossing Camp Creek, 5. At the High School Orchestra concert, 6. Studying with cats, 7. EFM Retreat, 8. Lighting test, 9. Saké, 10. Processing, 11. Gary and a milling machine, 12. Broken Nikon Lens Mount, 13. Walmart veggies section, 14. Late night Saturday, 15. Three x-rays, one tetanus shot and twelve stiches later, 16. Workshop Accident, 17. Studying outside, 18. Clearing up the workshop, 19. Gary and Ginger being nauseating in the hall, 20. Sock puppet, 21. Muddy feet, 22. Sunday night movie, 23. Antibiotic, 24. Return, 25. Lights, camera, inaction, 26. Bull Shoals Lake – Normal Pool Elevation 654, 27. Off backpacking for the weekend, 28. Just before I stuck my head in the falls behind me, 29. Lunch by the bluffs on Long Creek, 30. Waking up in the tent without the fly sheet set, 31. New Gloves
31 May 2011 | 365 Days blog | Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman
This month signals the return of colour; there are only eight black and white pictures.
I’ve built two marginally successful wood burning stoves for backpacking and I bought a summer sleeping bag. We’ve only managed to get out hiking three times, that’s a disappointing 10.5 miles, bringing our year’s hiking tally to 81 miles. We did take the Kayaks out twice (nine miles) bringing our yaking total to a miserly 12.6 miles. We need to try a lot harder in May. I went fishing with Tom twice, and I even caught five bass. I had a hair cut, took wedding pictures, helped out with a youth group lock-in, and laughed hysterically at people’s Facebook comments on the royal wedding.
Plans for May will need to be the same as those for April only more so. We are desperate to get out backpacking, and the yaks need exercise. So lots more hiking and kayaking pictures. We ought to manage at the very least 16 miles hiking. I want to make my Mark III backpacking stove, so some more workshop pictures, or even pictures of a pot of boiling water. Now that would be a good result.
1. Late night stand-by, 2. Sprinky appears to be giving me the ‘evil eye’, 3. Family hike at Busiek state park and wildlife area, 4. Trying out my new sleeping bag, 5. More fun in the workshop, 6. Reconnoitre, 7. My once a week ‘Studying’ picture, 8. Gary and Ginger on a run ashore, 9. Meh, 10. A fairly typical Sunday, 11. Fishing, 12. Running repairs, 13. Laying down in my kayak isn’t too difficult, 14. Hair cut, 15. Batch-loaded, inverted down-draft gassifier wood stove, 16. Beauty and the (out of focus) beast, 17. Gary and Loyal at Christ Episcopal Church, 18. Gary by the Little Sac River, 19. Lunch break and ‘phone call – day hike at Busiek, 20. Late night self portrait at the kitchen table, 21. Slideshow, 22. 2.25am Youth group lock-in, 23. You’ll always find me in the kitchen at lock-ins, 24. Dirty Martini, 25. Easter Eggs, 26. Bedtime, 27. Compressor coupling, 28. Gary and Ginger in ‘Urban Market’, 29. Gary and Ginger watching the running commentary on the Royal Wedding on Facebook, 30. Silliness on the Sac River Trail
30 April 2011 | 365 Days blog | Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman
March 2011
Colour pictures made a comeback this month, though the trend towards the end of the month was once more black and white. I’ve got my feet up in three pictures, the van appears in four, Sprinky the cat in one, and my wonderful wife Ginger appears with me in seven. There are far too many hiking / backpacking pictures with long write-ups. I’m sure I’ll get over it before the end of this project.
Next month let’s hope for some more hiking/camping and backpacking pictures and maybe some kayaking and fishing pictures too.
1. Day hike – with creeks, 2. At the end of the day, 3. I’ve found another wall, 4. Breakfast at Aunt Martha’s Pancake House, 5. Late night browsing, 6. Doing the dishes, 7. Lunch at Busiek, 8. Pancake supper at Christ Episcopal Church, Springfield Missouri, 9. Price Cutter parking lot, 10. Gary crossing Woods Fork at Busiek, 11. New tent, 12. Drinking a beer at Tom & Rebbie’s, 13. Self Portrait at Natalie Anne’s Christening, 14. Annual Accounts, 15. Something Spicy at Mama Jean’s, 16. Petting Sprinky, 17. Gary checking the tyre pressure, 18. Final preparations, 19. Resting my eyes, 20. Gary and Ginger Backpacking on the Berryman Trail, 21. Gary and Ginger on the Ozark / Berryman Trail, 22. Waking up in the woods. Berryman Trail, Missouri, 23. Feet up, taking a break on the trail, 24. Gary and Ginger at the end of our Berryman Trail backpacking trip, 25. Trail shelter, Bluffs Trail, Meramec State Park, 26. Snow? What snow?, 27. Changing the headlamp, 28. Lunch break in the old barn on the Sac River Trail, 29. Tired, 30. That’s it for today, 31. Parallel Guide
31 March 2011 | 365 days on Flickr | 365 Days blog | Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman
February summary
For some reason we’ve not had much opportunity to get out and about this month; we visited some flea markets, went for a hike in the snow and went backpacking for a couple of days, celebrating our second wedding anniversary in the process.
This month I’ve added eighteen black and white pictures, and just after day fifty began to get a bit disillusioned with the whole project. There are two pictures showing just my hand, one picture of me holding a baby (I think that’s a first for my 365 days projects). There’s a mirror shot (one of two pictures taken in the car), the cats only manage to sneak into one picture, which is surprising, and we managed to get nauseating in Walmart on Saint Valentine’s day. Somehow I managed to fit in five hiking / backpacking related pictures,
1. Snow day, 2. There’s an icicle in my beard, 3. One door opens as another closes, 4. At the Antique Mall, 5. Gary and Ginger on a snowy Sac River Trail, 6. After the Super Bowl, 7. Sometimes one pair of glasses just isn’t enough., 8. Happy Gary enjoying a blog-day, 9. A beer and a movie, 10. Thursday studies, 11. Morning rituals, 12. A brief visit to the workshop, 13. Gary and Ginger at the Church’s Annual Meeting, 14. Gary and Ginger being nauseating in Walmart on Saint Valentine’s Day, 15. Last thing on a Tuesday night, 16. Burning incense, 17. Afternoon school run, 18. Packing my backpack, 19. Wedding anniversary backpacking at Devils Backbone Wilderness, 20. Morning coffee in Mary Hollow – Devils Backbone Wilderness, 21. Wedding anniversary backpacking at Devils Backbone Wilderness, 22. High School parking lot, 23. Life can be like that, 24. Thursday, 25. Stacking the dishwasher, 26. Last thing, 27. Checking the weather, 28. A final check before closing my machine for the day
28 February 2011 | 365 days on Flickr | Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman
January Summary
I photographed my hands three times, posted thirteen black and white pictures, four pictures have one or more cats in them, there’s one dog and I appeared in bed twice, both times drinking coffee.
My most popular picture on Flickr was #17. But I suspect that’s only because the thumb nail image of my finger looks a bit like a penis, and Flickr’s like that.
1. New year’s day, 2. Gary and Ginger on the trail at Valley Water Mill Pond, 3. A quiet place, 4. Recycling, 5. Coursework, 6. Lesson remembered, 7. After the school run, 8. Taking it easy on a Saturday Morning, 9. Choral evensong, 10. My major achievement of the day, 11. Watching the world go by, 12. Lesson 15, 13. Gary in the parish hall kitchen, 14. Gary and Ginger relax at the end of the day, 15. The owl over my shoulder, 16. Gary and Ginger at Compton Hollow, 17. Gary and CD, 18. True Brits wear plaid, 19. Waiting for the kids, 20. Oil lamp reflection, 21. Checking the tires, 22. Kayaking in the ice on Lake Springfield, 23. Just before bed, 24. Cats, coffee and laptops in bed, 25. Tidying away, 26. Lesson 17: Numbers, 27. Halfway up the first hill – Busiek State Forest & Wildlife Area, 28. Drilling in the workshop, 29. Kayaking on James River, Springfield Missouri, 30. Thinking of Ginger, 31. The problem with varifocals…
31 January 2011 | Copyright © 2011 Gary Allman
