Tag: postaday

Big Bend

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"Arrival" Big Bend, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/160 sec, ISO400
 “Arrival” Big Bend, 2016

こんばんは！How’s it going?

Today was an exciting day because we finally made it to Big Bend National Park. And by “finally”, I mean that it was a very long drive to get here, and also it took us 17 years of living in Texas to finally visit the state’s sole national park.

"Natural" West Texas, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/7.1, 1/140 sec, ISO400
 “Natural” West Texas, 2016

We didn’t rush to get here, but instead took a short driving tour of the city of Alpine and then drove to Terlingua to check out the famously quirky town and grab a bite to eat and a coffee. From there, it was a 40 minute drive to reach the Chisos Mountain Lodge where we are staying for the next 2 days.

"Waiting for Sunset" Big Bend, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/105 sec, ISO400
 “Waiting for Sunset” Big Bend, 2016

The Chisos Basin is an amazing place, with the massive Casa Grande looming on one side, and the beautiful Window on the other side. At sunset, we walked the short Window View trail and took a bunch of photos, then had a nice dinner at the restaurant before heading to our room for some relaxation and star viewing.

"Sunset at Window View" Big Bend, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/8, 1/15 sec, ISO200
 “Sunset at Window View” Big Bend, 2016

Big Bend has a spectacular sky so I did a little bit of astro-photography using Mariko’s X-T10 and kit lens. I think the photos turned out pretty good. I even saw a beautiful shooting star!

"Texas Sky" Big Bend, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X-T10, 18mm, f/3.2, 20 sec, ISO5000
 “Texas Sky” Big Bend, 2016

Tomorrow will be a full day of sightseeing and hiking, so I’ll end this post here and get some rest.

おやすみなさい！

– B Barron Fujimoto

Drive to Alpine

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"Alpine Bound" West Texas, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/8, 1/900 sec, ISO200
 “Alpine Bound” West Texas, 2016

こんばんは！How’s it going?

I’m writing this post as I sit by the fireplace in the lobby of The Holland Hotel in Alpine, Texas. Today we started our vacation in which we will visit Big Bend National Park for the first time! But to get out here, it takes forever… Texas is so darned big. 😜

"Endless Highway" Texas, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/10, 1/420 sec, ISO400
 “Endless Highway” Texas, 2016

So this first day, we decided to drive to Alpine which is a 6-hour journey by car. Luckily the speed limits on I-10 in west Texas is 80 MPH so we cruised along and made good time. 💨

"Shark" Alpine, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/8, 1/6 sec, ISO1600
 “Shark” Alpine, 2016

We arrived in Alpine around 3:30 in the afternoon (we got a nice, late 9 AM start) and wanted to go to the Big Bend Brewery, but unfortunately they are closed on Mondays 😔 so we just checked in at the hotel, shot some pool, and relaxed before heading out for dinner. We decided on the Reata restaurant, which is known for their steak and it was only a few minutes walk from our hotel.

"Riata" Alpine, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/7 sec, ISO3200
 “Riata” Alpine, 2016

The steak was delicious (we split a 16 oz. between three of us) and we also got a sour-cream enchilada plate which was also yummy. A great meal to start the vacation! Oh, and we toasted with a couple of Big Bend Brewery draft beers, so we did get to taste the local brew. 🍻

"Night Walk" Alpine, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/20 sec, ISO6400
 “Night Walk” Alpine, 2016

And that brings us up to date with the trip! I’m going to finish my glass of wine (we brought a couple bottles along with us) and then get some rest.

Hope you had a nice day!

おやすみなさい！

– B Barron Fujimoto

Repairs

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"Ain't Pretty" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/100 sec, ISO6400
 “Ain’t Pretty” Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！How’s it going?

Today’s photo is a close-up of some “repair” work I did on my hiking boots. I bought a pair of Keen Targhee II boots several years ago, on sale at REI for only $12 and they have served me well over the years. They are comfortable and have an adequate amount of support. But the one huge flaw is that Keen used a glue for that particular model which wasn’t as strong as other types of glue. The rumor is that they used a more environmentally friendly type of glue, which is commendable, but the sole pretty much separated from the upper. Upon close inspection, I couldn’t find any glue residue at all – it’s as if the glue just disappeared!

I probably should get new boots, but since I love these so much that I decided to slather a good amount of Shoe Goo on them and reattach the soles. It’s definitely not pretty, but I am hoping they hold.

We are going hiking in a couple days and I’m not 100% confident that the soles will stay on, so I am bringing another pair of shoes (running) just in case. But perhaps it’s time to look for some replacements. Either way, I am happy with my $12 purchase! 😄

*** Update 11/27/2016 *** The Shoe Goo held up and the soles stayed connected the whole trip, including three moderately easy hikes. Go Shoe Goo!!!

Cold Front and Mexican Food

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"Kotatsu" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO1600
 “Kotatsu” Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！How’s it going?

The weather has turned cold and so I brought down the kotatsu and set it up in front of the tv. The kotatsu is a Japanese table with blanket and small heating element. In many homes in Japan the rooms are pretty cold in the Winter, and people keep warm by using heavier clothes, small space heaters, and kotatsu.

Here in the States, we tend to keep the whole house warmer, but we still like to break out the kotatsu because it is so comfortable! It’s a little “dangerous” though, because once you get comfortable under the kotatsu, the chances of falling asleep go up considerably! In fact, this afternoon I took a nice 1-hour nap… it was too hard to resist.

For lunch today, Koa and I were going to go to Taco Bell to get a couple burritos, but I decided we’d go to another place, that served more authentic Mexican food. I wanted to eat our food there, but Koa wanted to take it home so I compromised and we got the meals to-go. (He really wanted Taco Bell!) Anyways, the food was delicious and I liked going to this restaurant because all the diners there were seemed to be Mexican workers on their lunch-breaks.

"Mexican Take-out" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/125 sec, ISO2000
 “Mexican Take-out” Cedar Park, 2016

Here in Texas, we have plenty of Mexican restaurants and also Tex-Mex style. I grew up in Southern California, so I am used to a different kind of style of Mexican food, and when I first tried Tex-Mex, I thought it was strange. It was yummy, but just strange. Tex-Mex tends to use more gooey American-style cheese, whereas California-style has more fresh ingredients, most notably avocado. I actually like both styles of Americanized Mexican food, but still cannot stand American cheese in Mexican food.

However, I love to eat where the “locals” eat, and going to a Mexican restaurant in which 95% of the diners are Latino means you are getting the real-deal.

Sunrise

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"Sunrise" Cedar Park, 2016
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.2, 1/125 sec, ISO800
 “Sunrise” Cedar Park, 2016

こんばんは！How’s it going?

Tonight is the start of a long vacation for my family! The kids have all next week off from school, and I am also taking some vacation days so that I don’t have to go back to work until November 28th. That’s 10 days! Woohoo! 😄

I can’t remember if I posted what our plans will be, but you’ll find out soon enough. For the next couple days, it’ll be business as usual… just hanging at the house. And I’ll try to be in full relax-mode. It’s been a couple of stressful weeks, so I need to recharge… or at least attempt to recharge.

Today’s photo is of the sunrise this morning. Life goes on!

おやすみなさい！

– B Barron Fujimoto