Monday, December 31, 2007

Happy Creepy New Year

What is it about dolls that's so scary? There was Talky Tina from the 1963 Twilight Zone episode, "Living Doll" ("My name is Talky Tina, and I'm going to kill you...."), Chucky (from the "Child's Play" horror film series), and my favorite scary dolls of all time, The Geezenstacks.

Watching the Twilight Zone marathon this evening--an annual New Year's tradition--I was reminded of a 1986 episode of Tales From The Darkside entitled "The Geezenstacks." I was delighted to find it on You Tube. I'm a hopeless Zone addict, but some of the Darkside stories were hard to forget. The Geezenstacks was one of them.

And so, I submit for your perusal...The Geezenstacks. Running time: 22 minutes.

The Geezenstacks - Part 1




The Geezenstacks - Part 2

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

Merry Christmas


The "kids" love their new tug. It's an extra-strenth toy for aggressive tuggers. I suspect it might last through lunch, but I doubt it will be intact by nightfall.


Monday, December 17, 2007

Preparing For Christmas


Another reason to be cheerful around the holidays: funny hats.




Shame On Me

Judy has put me to shame with her many interesting blog posts lately. She's already issued a mandate that I post something before she stops reading my blog altogether. In spite of her threats, I continue to spend night after night plopped in front of the TV, too lazy (or uninspired) to write.

OK, I lied. She didn't threaten me. But I do worry I've lost my blog readers because of my protracted written silence.

Turnabout is fair play. I put Judy to shame this evening with the elaborate vegan dinner I prepared. Her dinner, apparently, was a sticky bun. I've decided after several months of general malaise it's time to make some changes in my life, starting with diet and exercise. It's never too late to get healthy again. My sedentary lifestyle has caught up with me. I am becoming one with the sofa.

The dogs are enjoying the cooler weather in Albuquerque. It seems to energize them, and their rough play has taken an almost aggressive edge, as if they're pushing their wrestling to the edge just to see how far they can go before one of them complains. Telly is beginning to show signs of growing out of puppyhood, though she's nowhere near abandoning her puppy ways. She still jumps, wags her tail incessantly, and climbs in any available lap - all 60 pounds of her - whenever she feels cuddly, which is most of the time. Telly sleeps soundly at my side right now, her wet nose resting at my elbow.

Thanksgiving was spent with siblings who flew to New Mexico for a week. It was nice to spend time with my brothers and their significant others. The last time we gathered for Thanksgiving was eight or nine years ago.

David and Telly


David and Jennifer posing on the banks of the Rio Grande


Ginger - what a cutie!


Jim and Ginger catch up on their reading

We dined one evening at the High Noon Saloon and Restaurant in Old Town, and were served the largest slab of chocolate cake I've ever seen. It weighed in at one pound. (The waiter brought 6 forks.)

One serious piece of cake

The desert is chilly these days, though only the mountains are frosted with snow. Nights are cold and days sunny. Albuquerque winters are short. By February our days will be warm again. It's a great time of year to hike.


Unfortunately, hiking seems like too much work these days. (There are signs that this attitude may soon change.) Instead of fresh air and exercise, I've become addicted to eBay. The dining room is bursting with pottery I've won in online auctions during the past month. But that's another post.

Monday, December 03, 2007

Just For Judy

This is my reply to Judy's December 2 blog post. Blogger wouldn't let me post the code as a comment, so here's my video/audio comment to Judy.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Balloon Fiesta 2007

Here's the third chapter of a trilogy of slideshows of photos I took at the 2007 Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta. This year I actually got up at 4 am in order to get to the Balloon Fiesta Park by 5:15. "Dawn Patrol" consists of a handful of hot-air balloons that launch before dawn to check the winds aloft. At dawn the mass ascension begins, led by the Wells Fargo balloons, gently lifting off to the Star Spangled Banner, American flags hanging from the balloon baskets and rippling in the breeze. The day we went was one of two "Special Shapes Rodeo" days. When you watch the video below, you'll see what "special shapes" means.



Part 1

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

How to Land a Balloon

What goes up must come down. Today's photos were taken on the first day of Balloon Fiesta, October 6. Shortly after sunrise, four of us piled into the Subaru to chase balloons. Chase crews generally follow one balloon, but we chose to follow many, ending up just north of Albuquerque in Corrales. This balloon was just dropping from the sky into a parking lot. Step one: find someone strong to catch a rope.




A safe landing.


Now the fun part: bringing the balloon down and tipping the basket.

What you don't see in these pictures is the crew at the other end pulling the balloon to the ground.






The bottom of a balloon basket is a convenient place to post messages to loved ones.

The final phase: removing the air. Once the air is forced out, the envelope is systematically folded. The final press to remove any trapped air requires that six squealing children sit on the folded bundle.


We moved on and headed toward Rio Rancho, following hundreds of balloons.


Cam and Gail were duly impressed with our early morning adventure.

I can't say the same about this horse, who was a little spooked by the hot-air craft all around him.



Sometimes a street makes a great landing strip, especially if there are neighbors eager to help with the landing. This balloon's chase crew arrived several minutes later.



Honey, there's a giant cow in the back yard...

Time to go home and rest. Chasing balloons is hard work!

How NOT to Land a Balloon


Thank you, Lana, for this chilling photo.

Sunday, October 14, 2007

How To Launch A Balloon

Albuquerque Aloft, a prelude to the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta, is held the Friday before Fiesta (October 5). The unofficial Fiesta kickoff, balloons launch from various schools around the city. This year, a balloon launched from M's school, piloted by a kindergarten teacher. I rushed to the school early in the morning to photograph the launch of "Mary Alice In Wonderland" with Cam, who had arrived a few days earlier from New Hampshire with Gail.

If you are interested in ballooning, here's a primer for launching your hot air craft. First off, you need a funky little trailer announcing to the world that you are really serious about your hobby.


You also need a lot of friends with muscles. Launching a hot air balloon takes a bit of work. First, the propane burner is assembled on the wicker basket (or gondola). Next, the propane lines are connected and tested, to make sure the burner is firing properly.



Now it's time to lay the envelope (that's the actual balloon) on the ground and prepare to inflate it.



A hot air balloon is first inflated cold, using a large, gas-powered fan.




The crew holds the envelope open for inflation.





No one is sure these folks ever made it out alive after the balloon swallowed them head-first.



Happy Cam-per.


Time to turn the gas on and get this baby aloft. Cold air sits on the ground, but hot air rises!





Final check before lift off.




And they're off!