Mike heads in for surgery on his knee tomorrow. We’re hoping to post some pictures. 
Surgery for Mike
Jul 20th, 2010 by Helen Todd
Oil painting
Mar 11th, 2010 by Helen Todd
I’ve been having a good time experimenting with oil paints.
Here’s today’s picture:
Jetty Beach Driftwood
5″x7″, oil on panel
Jetty Beach is a manmade island by Everett. We were up there with Mike’s parents on a very windy day last year. This is walking through the meadow, back to the ferry.
Patio construction pictures
Jan 6th, 2010 by Helen Todd
For those who don’t have Facebook, here are some of the construction pictures from our new patio.
Work seems to be progressing nicely!
Crocheted silliness
Dec 21st, 2009 by Helen Todd
New crochet silliness at the end of the album.
Fused glass
Oct 18th, 2009 by Helen Todd
Here are the pieces of fused glass I made with Bill at www.rattarart.com.
Berlin, Nevada – a ghost town
Oct 10th, 2009 by Helen Todd
On Day 4, we went to Berlin – a ghost mining town in “arrested decay” south of Route 50. We got there in the late afternoon, and had absolutely amazing light.
These photos are not photoshopped at all – it really was this color. The photos marked “color toned” have been modified to give them new colors. The ones marked “HDR” are high dynamic range photos – three photo exposures have been combined into one (but not manipulated otherwise). I only say this because when I see these sorts of photos, the first thing I think is – “hm, someone upped the saturation on that…”
Enjoy..
Heading south to Great Basin National Park
Oct 6th, 2009 by Helen Todd
Great Basin National Park is at the far eastern end of Route 50, on the Nevada/Utah border. To get there from Wendover we headed south on Rt 93 and Alt. Rt. 93.
Our first stop was a place named “Dolly Varden”. The were a couple remnants of buildings and some great rocks lying around, presumably from the mine that had been there previously. There was a spring there, along with some wild horses and some shady trees.
I took a couple pictures but mostly got caught up in the rockhounding aspect. We found some great pyrite specimens. We ate our lunch in the shade of the truck before heading south to Ely.
Near Ely, we went to Garnet Hill. It wasn’t the best time of day for this – heat of the day and all that – but we found some small garnets and brought some rocks with us for later. It was a neat place, but probably best explored when the sun is not so high in the sky. By the time we got to Great Basin, we were both pretty tired.
Great Basin NP has four campsites. We decided to be adventurous and camped at the highest site – Wheeler Peak campground — at 10,000 feet. It was very cold, but stunningly beatiful. We had a great view of Wheeler Peak and lovely aspens from the campsite. I slept in my coat, layers of clothes, and wooly hat - the temperature got down to the mid 30′s. At about 2am, we got up to look at the night sky (the moon had set), and we briefly got back into the truck to make good use of the heated seats.
Bonneville Salt Flats
Oct 6th, 2009 by Helen Todd
Both Mike and I wanted to see the Bonneville salt flats after watching The World’s Fastest Indian. It was not disappointing. There are miles of salt flats, and a groomed area that is used for the speedway and Speed Week.
We took the truck out on the groomed area, which was very entertaining – like driving in slush. In fact, the salt looks very much like snow.
After that, we had to search for a self-serve car wash in Wendover to remove the salt from the truck and our shoes.
Road trip overview
Oct 6th, 2009 by Helen Todd
Nevada trip itinerary
key: rh – rockhounding, gt – ghost town, c – camping
- Day 1: Drive from Carnation, Washington to Wendover, Nevada
- Day 2: Bonneville salt flats, Dolly Varden spring (rh), Garnet Hill near Ely (rh), Great Basin National Park (c)
- Day 3: Ward Charcoal Ovens, Ward (gt), Hamilton (gt), Belmont Mill (gt), Hickison Petroglyphs (c)
- Day 4: Buffalo Canyon (rh), Berlin (gt)
- Day 5: Wonderstone Mountain (rh), Virginia City
- Day 6: Lake Tahoe drive-by, Bodie (gt)
- Day 7: Mono Lake, Yosemite
- Day 8: Drive from Sacramento, California to Carnation, Washington
Day 1
The drive to Wendover was pleasant and uneventful, with a lovely sunset.
We stayed at one of the casinos in Wendover, which was, at best, surreal. I guess I’m just not a casino person. I did like the neon cowboy welcoming you to Wendover, though.
Much more to come (I’m still sorting through photos)…
Train ride to Vancouver, BC
Sep 10th, 2009 by Helen Todd
Okay, here’s the trip summary in bullet points:
- Overall, it was a great trip, and I’m really glad I went. I just wished I’d had more time.
- The art exhibit was wonderful (“Vermeer, Rembrandt and the Golden Age of Dutch Art – Masterpieces from The Rijksmuseum”).
- The fabric/sari shops in the Indian section of town were lovely. (Take the #3 bus to Main and 49th – about 1/2 hour from the train station.)
- The $9 all-day transit pass is a good deal, especially when it’s raining.
- Nine hours on the train is too much for a day trip. (Between Customs and Immigration, you can expect a maximum of 4 1/2 hours in the city if you make the trip in one day.)
- The scenery from the train was great while it was light. I don’t recommend the rest of the train trip in the dark if you are prone to motion sickness (which, generally, I’m not, but I still got nauseous.)
- Best part of the train trip? When the train went right past the studios where they filmed Battlestar Galactica.
Anyway, if you want to go and see the exhibit, you’d better hurry up there – it closes this Sunday. I was very glad I went – the many pen and ink pieces were as lovely as the oils in their own way. I also enjoyed the Andreas Gursky photography exhibit (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andreas_Gursky).