Ah, the Benefits of Work

One aspect of my work is called "service" and it's part of how we're evaluated, we're told. Basically, it's volunteering to serve on committees, attend events, and be helpful all around. I have been doing quite a bit of this, maybe too much.

From a technical point, it's not easy to take pictures on a moving boat at night. Distant subjects in low light conditions require longer exposures and the images aren't crisp. I took lots of pictures, most of them I already deleted because they were very blurry.

But, sometimes this kind of "work" can be fun. The other day, I was a judge at a lip-singing event during new student orientation. I've also been on a couple boat cruises. These are the pictures from the latest one, when most of my peers chickened out since the weather forecast included thunderstorms. But, there was a beautiful night with the lightning in the distance. We missed the downpour too.

Are These the Dog Days of Summer?

Until a few days ago, the heat wasn't so bad... or at least, I was able to cope with it OK, but we're having a string of very hot (triple-digit) temps with high humidity.
The 4th of July holiday was decent--falling on a Sunday, thus making Monday a day off too. Ah, the World Cup is winding down with some great games. Glad to have access to a wide HD screen.

The big new is that I'm staying at a nice house these days... (more on this later). In-ground pool, deck with grill, and herb garden!

Went up to New Paltz/Lake Minnewaska the other day, but the air was oppressively hot & humid. No suicidal thoughts of mountain biking. Didn't even snap a photo.


The fireworks were fine, took lots of pictures as I'm trying to figure out my new Nikon camera. The most interesting ones were those above--as they reflected on a building on West 25th Street, NYC. The last picture is taken on the ferry from Manhattan to Governor's Island. It shows the financial district (Wall Street) and, in the distance, the 2 bridges, the Brooklyn and the Manhattan.


[note: the picts can be enlarged by clicking on them]