No Coffee Table Books

Eighteen pounds and counting...

I know I have put quite a few photos on Facebook over the past nine months providing a nice memory of my deployment to Afghanistan.  A few of my very nice friends and family have said "Oh, you should put these in a book!"  Yeah....no.  It is flattering but the quality of the photos don't measure up to a book. Plus there is no rhyme or reason to the photos I take.  For many of them I am shooting while I move because we are always moving in a tactical formation so there is no time to stop and frame a shot and ensure I get the best shot.  Often I will rest the camera on the extra magazines (the kind that have bullets not the kind you read) in my tactical vest and just take photos as I walk.  This is why many of my photos are out of focus or not framed well.  For a few weeks we had a French photojournalist with us.  It was funny to see him work because he had no shame.  He would walk up to people on the street, put his camera lens in their face, snap a couple of pictures and then be off in a flash, scurrying to the next potential photo op.  No shame, no words just move, stop, point, shoot, move on.  I don't have it in me.

Over the past nine months I have posted over 300 photos on Facebook.  It is intriguing to see which pictures people will comment on or push the "Like" button for.  Oftentimes I will look and say to myself "Really?"  How come no one is liking this one or that one.  There have been some that I really really liked but no one would comment or like.  No, no need for a book.  For me it is fun to look at them and think back to where it was taken and what I was doing.  Back in the day I thought it would be fun to be a photographer for National Geographic.  When the kids were small I started taking thousands of pictures and now our house is full of photo albums....and  I am still in the Navy....with no future at National Geographic.  But I always said, if it works out great!  If it doesn't then we have a wonderful chronicle of our family.

My cameras have taken a beating and I am down one lens after an unfortunate accident, but they were sturdy and were always with me.  Now, there are few missions left so soon the chapter on Afghanistan will come to a close.  I look forward to the next chapter...

28 Reasons after 28 Years

Amazing to think that 28 years ago today we woke up in a studio apartment in Phoenix, Arizona.  I walked the couple of miles to work, arriving just before the 6:00am start time, punched my time card to get my $4.75 an hour started for the day.  At noon I left work early, walked home, took a shower and put on my best (and only) slacks and button-down shirt.  Midori and I then walked to the bus stop and took the bus downtown to the Maricopa County Courthouse.   Mom and Dad happened to be in Scottsdale for a horse show, so they joined us at the courthouse along with our friend George.  After Dad paid the $25 for the marriage license we waited around until the justice of the peace, who looked suspiciously like Burl Ives, greeted us in his chambers and pronounced us man and wife (just me and Midori...not Mom, Dad or George).

Now hear I am celebrating our anniversary in Afghanistan for the second year in a row (last year I was here on the site survey).  Midori put out the rule not to get her anything since I am terrible at buying stuff online and spend large amounts of money on things that look pretty cool in the picture but cost large amounts of money.  So rather than break the rule, I decided to give Midori the following...Happy Anniversary Midori!

After 28 Years

The 28 Things I Love About You

1.   Your beautiful smile that lights up a room and steals my heart
2.   Your patience
3.   The way you look at new things with sparkling eyes and child-like wonder
4.   While I was gone for so many years you managed to raise three amazing kids
5.   The way your skin smells…it smells like, home, warmth, comfort, love
6.   You always support me whether it is a Navy League dinner or a staff get together you allow me to drag you to events you are not necessarily comfortable going to
7.   No matter what room we are in or how many people are in it, you are always the most stunningly beautiful woman in the room
8.   I would not have achieved professional success in the Navy without you
9.  You buy my clothes and usually get it right
10. When you don’t get it right you recognize it and tell me to stop wearing it (because I will wear it until you tell me to stop)
11. You are an amazing cook
12. I feel that you are proud of me and that gets me through each day more than you know
13. For the most part we have a similar outlook on life
14. For the parts of life we don’t necessarily match, you tolerate my outlook (back to the patience thing)
15. You are so very good to your parents.  Even though you live across the ocean from them you have done more for them than anyone else in their lives
16. Your gifts are always perfect
17. You tolerate my gifts…better yet you tell me not to buy you gifts
18. Your body.  Whereas I have bounced up and down in weight (50 here, 50 there) you continue to look amazing
19. You are more beautiful today than when I first met you and you were gorgeous back then
20. You care about your friends
21. Although you claim to not have a ‘religion’ you are the most spiritual person I know
22. You cry at sappy movies…and don’t give me a hard time when I do too
23. You have tolerated my singing to the radio in the car for the last 28 years
24. You love our dogs and cats
25. Your laugh
26. You are good to my family
27. You are kind and so unconditionally thoughtful as you do things for me and the kids, planning events or buying things thinking about what would make us happy…
28. You truly are my best friend

Here's to 28 more years...I love you Midori.

H