Karla has joined the blog as an author, taking on the FBR feature and whatever else she dreams up. Thanks, Karla!
If anyone else would like to be a regular author, let me know. If you would like to contribute but are unsure how you could contribute, I have some ideas.
Friday, October 16, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Non-Mystery Picture 091015
We know a bit about this picture, based on what was written on it.
Cardston, Alberta
Leo, Rowan, Cliff
Fern, Eleanor, Verena
Does anyone know anything else about this picture or have a story to go with it?
Cardston, Alberta
Leo, Rowan, Cliff
Fern, Eleanor, Verena
Does anyone know anything else about this picture or have a story to go with it?
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
This Site Also Demonstrates One of the Great Dangers of Archeology, Not to Life and Limb, Although That Does Sometimes Take Place.
Ellen was archeologying (?) in Central America while Raiders of the Lost Ark was playing in the theaters. As a kid, I imagined her dodging boulders and fending off snakes. I suspect the reality was slightly less lively. But, who knows? Ellen does!
Here are a few pictures from an archeology trip of hers in 1981, I think. Unfortunately, none of the pictures have her wearing leather and brandishing a whip (which would actually be a pretty cool Halloween costume).
I chatted on Facebook with her today about sharing stories of her trip. I know you didn't find the Ark of the Covenant -- *spoiler alert* it's in a government warehouse -- but what did you find down there, Ellen?
UPDATE
Ellen writes in the comments:
"In 1980 I took my first trip to Guatemala. We stayed for a week in Guatemala City. We were waiting for the crew to finish cutting the landing strip for the airplane to land in El Mirador where we would be digging. Guatemala City is built on the ancient Mayan site of Kaminal-Juyu which seemed to spew artifacts every time anyone tried to build a new road or dig a foundation for a house or dig in a garden. Part of the ruins were preserved for study and tourists. The top picture is a sign at the entrance of one of these areas where archaeologists were working. The second picture shows a roof protecting some of the excavated walls of the ancient Maya building. The bottom picture shows mounds of unexcavated ruins. These hills are ancient remains of crumbled buildings: temples, palaces, plazas, even small pyramids. We spent several hours visiting with the local archaeologists and wandering through the area."
Thanks, Ellen! Were you on a school trip? Did you participate in any digs? Inquiring minds want to know!
Ellen writes again, this time with "the rest of the story!"
"The trip was when I was a graduate student at BYU studying archaeology. We had a grant from National Geographic to dig in as site called El Mirador which is located in the Guatemalan lowlands in northern Guatemala. Most of the students from BYU had driven down a couple of weeks before and had hiked into the site by mule. The expedition leader, Dr. Matheny, received additional money for the project after they had left and called me to see if I would like to participate as well. He and his wife and I flew down in a little 4-seater Cesna airplane which we would use to fly supplies in and out of the site. We flew from Provo to Mexico and on to Guatemala where we stayed for a week in Guatemala City. That is the background for the pictures that are posted. After a week or so, we flew to El Mirador but we were not sure if the crew had cleared a landing strip for us or not so we just circled the site from above. In those days there were no cell phones. All we had was a 'walkie-talkie' which buzzed and crackled and faded in and out as we tried to communicate with the crew. We asked about the landing strip and they said something about a 'week' so we assumed that it would be another week before it was ready. But what they were trying to say was that they couldn't hear us because the batteries were 'weak'. Nevertheless, we went back to Flores, the nearest city, and were prepared to wait another week. There was a group of Guatemalan workers who were hired to help us dig who were going to hike into El Mirador with mules. They would carry a load of supplies and equipment into the site for us. I had the option of waiting a week to fly, or to hike in with these workers. I chose to hike in. It took 3 days. We slept in hammocks and used machetes to cut our way through the jungle. It was quite an adventure which I won't elaborate on here. When I arrived at El Mirador, the misunderstanding about the plane had been resolved and Dr. Matheny was already there. I could have flown in if I had waited a day or two. But I never regretted the hike. It was one of those rites of passage that every archaeologist ought to do once."
Here are a few pictures from an archeology trip of hers in 1981, I think. Unfortunately, none of the pictures have her wearing leather and brandishing a whip (which would actually be a pretty cool Halloween costume).
I chatted on Facebook with her today about sharing stories of her trip. I know you didn't find the Ark of the Covenant -- *spoiler alert* it's in a government warehouse -- but what did you find down there, Ellen?UPDATE
Ellen writes in the comments:
"In 1980 I took my first trip to Guatemala. We stayed for a week in Guatemala City. We were waiting for the crew to finish cutting the landing strip for the airplane to land in El Mirador where we would be digging. Guatemala City is built on the ancient Mayan site of Kaminal-Juyu which seemed to spew artifacts every time anyone tried to build a new road or dig a foundation for a house or dig in a garden. Part of the ruins were preserved for study and tourists. The top picture is a sign at the entrance of one of these areas where archaeologists were working. The second picture shows a roof protecting some of the excavated walls of the ancient Maya building. The bottom picture shows mounds of unexcavated ruins. These hills are ancient remains of crumbled buildings: temples, palaces, plazas, even small pyramids. We spent several hours visiting with the local archaeologists and wandering through the area."
Thanks, Ellen! Were you on a school trip? Did you participate in any digs? Inquiring minds want to know!
Ellen writes again, this time with "the rest of the story!"
"The trip was when I was a graduate student at BYU studying archaeology. We had a grant from National Geographic to dig in as site called El Mirador which is located in the Guatemalan lowlands in northern Guatemala. Most of the students from BYU had driven down a couple of weeks before and had hiked into the site by mule. The expedition leader, Dr. Matheny, received additional money for the project after they had left and called me to see if I would like to participate as well. He and his wife and I flew down in a little 4-seater Cesna airplane which we would use to fly supplies in and out of the site. We flew from Provo to Mexico and on to Guatemala where we stayed for a week in Guatemala City. That is the background for the pictures that are posted. After a week or so, we flew to El Mirador but we were not sure if the crew had cleared a landing strip for us or not so we just circled the site from above. In those days there were no cell phones. All we had was a 'walkie-talkie' which buzzed and crackled and faded in and out as we tried to communicate with the crew. We asked about the landing strip and they said something about a 'week' so we assumed that it would be another week before it was ready. But what they were trying to say was that they couldn't hear us because the batteries were 'weak'. Nevertheless, we went back to Flores, the nearest city, and were prepared to wait another week. There was a group of Guatemalan workers who were hired to help us dig who were going to hike into El Mirador with mules. They would carry a load of supplies and equipment into the site for us. I had the option of waiting a week to fly, or to hike in with these workers. I chose to hike in. It took 3 days. We slept in hammocks and used machetes to cut our way through the jungle. It was quite an adventure which I won't elaborate on here. When I arrived at El Mirador, the misunderstanding about the plane had been resolved and Dr. Matheny was already there. I could have flown in if I had waited a day or two. But I never regretted the hike. It was one of those rites of passage that every archaeologist ought to do once."
Mystery Picture 091014
Facebook reminds me that today is Cathy's birthday. Not that I would forget; I think she and I are the two cousins closest in age -- six days apart. So, here's a mystery picture with Cathy.
Let's see ... there's Boyd, Carl, Wendy, Lori, and Cathy. But, who is the mystery man in the middle? I'll bet the kids out there know!
If you have not yet seen it on Facebook, be sure to check out Cathy's skydiving photo album from this summer!
Let's see ... there's Boyd, Carl, Wendy, Lori, and Cathy. But, who is the mystery man in the middle? I'll bet the kids out there know!If you have not yet seen it on Facebook, be sure to check out Cathy's skydiving photo album from this summer!
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Mystery Picture 091013
The mystery is the story behind the picture. Here is the info I have about it, using my fancy pants file naming method:
750600.JUN 75 P 7 (32).Susan & Ellen - 'Stuff' from basement during the flood.jpg
The picture doesn't show too much. Even at a low resolution it is clearly (Ha!) unfocused.
What caused the flood? Who discovered it? Was anything damaged? Have there been other floods?
BTW, this picture is from the slide in the earlier dirty slide post; you can sort of see the mattress in the earlier pictures.
UPDATE
Ellen provides the backstory in the comments.
"Our basement got flooded more than once, but I remember one time when the spring rains made the Provo River rise until it overflowed just upstream from the house. Water poured across the fields, across the parking lot at the Lutheran Church, across the road and right down into our basement. We scrambled to haul everything upstairs and outside. Dad got a sump pump to try to pump out the water and sprinkle it across the yard outside. I think that is what the waterspouts in the foreground are. If you notice, there are lilacs in bloom on the bushes in the background. That would make this springtime so it would fit the story. I'm sure that Mom and Dad were stressed out but I remember getting inner-tubes and having a good time paddling from room to room until the water was gone."
Thanks, Ellen! I've never heard of indoor tubing before.
750600.JUN 75 P 7 (32).Susan & Ellen - 'Stuff' from basement during the flood.jpg
The picture doesn't show too much. Even at a low resolution it is clearly (Ha!) unfocused.
What caused the flood? Who discovered it? Was anything damaged? Have there been other floods?BTW, this picture is from the slide in the earlier dirty slide post; you can sort of see the mattress in the earlier pictures.
UPDATE
Ellen provides the backstory in the comments.
"Our basement got flooded more than once, but I remember one time when the spring rains made the Provo River rise until it overflowed just upstream from the house. Water poured across the fields, across the parking lot at the Lutheran Church, across the road and right down into our basement. We scrambled to haul everything upstairs and outside. Dad got a sump pump to try to pump out the water and sprinkle it across the yard outside. I think that is what the waterspouts in the foreground are. If you notice, there are lilacs in bloom on the bushes in the background. That would make this springtime so it would fit the story. I'm sure that Mom and Dad were stressed out but I remember getting inner-tubes and having a good time paddling from room to room until the water was gone."
Thanks, Ellen! I've never heard of indoor tubing before.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Family Blog Roundup 091012
Priscilla's Pantry has a cookie salad recipe. Stutzfamily blog thingie has tons of stuff, including a music review (of sorts). Susan's ex gratia has thoughts on fall and baseball. Wyoming Toomer has favorite picture, fond memory, broken body, and sports updates.
This will not be a regular feature unless someone else wants the job. Any takers?
This will not be a regular feature unless someone else wants the job. Any takers?
Family Facebook
Family Facebook is a new list feature on the blog with links to family Facebook users. It is certainly incomplete. Your help identifying errors and omissions is appreciated.
Mystery Picture 091012
Do you know anything about this picture? Tell me!
UPDATE
In the comments, Ellen identifies Grandpa on the left and estimates that he is about 10 years old.
"The boy on the left is Grandpa Stutz. He is about 10 years old so the picture was taken about 1928. If you compare this picture to the picture of Grandpa in his family scrapbook, you can see that this was taken about the same time. The other boy is most likely one of his friends but I don't have a name."
Thanks, Ellen!
UPDATEIn the comments, Ellen identifies Grandpa on the left and estimates that he is about 10 years old.
"The boy on the left is Grandpa Stutz. He is about 10 years old so the picture was taken about 1928. If you compare this picture to the picture of Grandpa in his family scrapbook, you can see that this was taken about the same time. The other boy is most likely one of his friends but I don't have a name."
Thanks, Ellen!
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Creative Shots - Making Distant Objects Look Closer to Near Objects
Using your camera to zoom in on a distant object seems like a pretty straightforward way to make it look closer. Sure, you could walk to the object, but then it wouldn't be distant. Let's explore how we can use your camera's zoom creatively.
When you use your zoom, the camera takes a picture of a more narrow portion of what the camera normally sees without the zoom. For example, when I take a picture of the night sky without zooming, even a full moon looks very small. When I want to take a picture of the moon, I use my zoom to take a picture of the narrow portion of the sky around the moon. How narrow the portion of the sky depends on how much my camera can zoom. The more I zoom, the more narrow the view of the sky I see in the camera and the the larger the moon looks. The moon isn't getting any bigger, and I'm not getting any closer to it; I am just looking at a more narrow part of the sky.
"Angle of view" is the phrase for how wide or narrow the camera can see, and for most cameras this is adjusted with a zoom lens. A wide angle of view lets us see a lot of stuff, useful (for example) when shooting pictures at an indoor birthday party. A narrow angle of view lets us see a smaller amount of stuff, useful (for example) for shooting pictures at a baseball game.
What happens when we are taking pictures of different objects, some of which are close to the camera and some of which are further away? (Farther away? Help me grammar nerds!)
These pictures from last year both show Boyd and Sam sitting in the same place next to the Washington Monument, apparently after eating blue popsicles. The Lincoln Memorial is just under a mile away. In the first picture, I got close to the boys and took the picture with a wide angle of view, making the Lincoln Memorial look smaller than the boys' heads. In the second picture, I walked back a bit and zoomed in on the boys, using a narrow angle of view that made the Lincoln Memorial look larger than the boys. Because the Lincoln Memorial looms larger in the second picture and the distance to it looks compressed, it looks closer to the boys (QED, for the grammar nerds still reading).
This technique can also be used to make little boys look like they are giants crushing famous, distant landmarks. My boys will discover this someday and will be greatly amused by it. Until then, though, I will use this technique to compose creative shots of the boys.
By way of another example, last summer I took a perfectly innocent picture of Sam splashing a board in the Chesapeake Bay:
and made it look like he was playing in front of a nuclear power plant:
Don't worry, radiation is a source of superpowers (Hi Spiderman and the Hulk!).
I took the same picture this summer, but also included Boyd and a friend so they could be superheroes, too.
Let me know if you have any luck using this technique.
UPDATE
I found another image using this technique on a much larger scale at Creative Shots - MDOLCTNO Revisited.
When you use your zoom, the camera takes a picture of a more narrow portion of what the camera normally sees without the zoom. For example, when I take a picture of the night sky without zooming, even a full moon looks very small. When I want to take a picture of the moon, I use my zoom to take a picture of the narrow portion of the sky around the moon. How narrow the portion of the sky depends on how much my camera can zoom. The more I zoom, the more narrow the view of the sky I see in the camera and the the larger the moon looks. The moon isn't getting any bigger, and I'm not getting any closer to it; I am just looking at a more narrow part of the sky.
"Angle of view" is the phrase for how wide or narrow the camera can see, and for most cameras this is adjusted with a zoom lens. A wide angle of view lets us see a lot of stuff, useful (for example) when shooting pictures at an indoor birthday party. A narrow angle of view lets us see a smaller amount of stuff, useful (for example) for shooting pictures at a baseball game.
What happens when we are taking pictures of different objects, some of which are close to the camera and some of which are further away? (Farther away? Help me grammar nerds!)
These pictures from last year both show Boyd and Sam sitting in the same place next to the Washington Monument, apparently after eating blue popsicles. The Lincoln Memorial is just under a mile away. In the first picture, I got close to the boys and took the picture with a wide angle of view, making the Lincoln Memorial look smaller than the boys' heads. In the second picture, I walked back a bit and zoomed in on the boys, using a narrow angle of view that made the Lincoln Memorial look larger than the boys. Because the Lincoln Memorial looms larger in the second picture and the distance to it looks compressed, it looks closer to the boys (QED, for the grammar nerds still reading).This technique can also be used to make little boys look like they are giants crushing famous, distant landmarks. My boys will discover this someday and will be greatly amused by it. Until then, though, I will use this technique to compose creative shots of the boys.
By way of another example, last summer I took a perfectly innocent picture of Sam splashing a board in the Chesapeake Bay:
and made it look like he was playing in front of a nuclear power plant:
Don't worry, radiation is a source of superpowers (Hi Spiderman and the Hulk!).I took the same picture this summer, but also included Boyd and a friend so they could be superheroes, too.
Let me know if you have any luck using this technique.UPDATE
I found another image using this technique on a much larger scale at Creative Shots - MDOLCTNO Revisited.
Mystery Picture 091011
This mystery picture is another name-the-person group picture that I think is from a family reunion in the early 1990s. At least, it was in an album with other pictures from that time period. Does anyone recall which reunion this was?
The first picture can be clicked on to view a larger image. If you leave comments with the names of the people, I will fill in the numbered list as people are identified.
1 - Mandy Flecher (non-relative)
2 - Vanessa Scott (non-relative)
3 - ?
4 - Kiome Bulock (non-relative)
5 - Collette Maxwell (non-relative)
6 - Leah
7 - Monica (non-relative)
8 - Liz? (non-relative)
9 - Gina Woodhouse (non-relative)
10 - Ben
UPDATE
Susan takes a stab at Leah (that doesn't sound quite right) for number 6. Thanks, Susan!
Andrew guesses Ben for number 10. Thanks, Andrew!
Leah writes via Facebook and solves the mystery, including why it was so difficult to identify the kids!
The first picture can be clicked on to view a larger image. If you leave comments with the names of the people, I will fill in the numbered list as people are identified.
1 - Mandy Flecher (non-relative)2 - Vanessa Scott (non-relative)
3 - ?
4 - Kiome Bulock (non-relative)
5 - Collette Maxwell (non-relative)
6 - Leah
7 - Monica (non-relative)
8 - Liz? (non-relative)
9 - Gina Woodhouse (non-relative)
10 - Ben
UPDATE
Susan takes a stab at Leah (that doesn't sound quite right) for number 6. Thanks, Susan!
Andrew guesses Ben for number 10. Thanks, Andrew!
Leah writes via Facebook and solves the mystery, including why it was so difficult to identify the kids!
it was a birthday party many years ago. so everyone else are friend from elementary school form back in the day ... i remember most of them. 1 is Mandy Flecher 2 Vanessa Scott 3 i am not sure 4 Kiome Bulock 5 Collette Maxwell 6 me 7 Monica 8 Liz (i think) 9 Gina Woodhouse 10 Ben. I think it was my 9th birthday so that would have been in 1993 ishThanks, Leah! I have to say, I am not only impressed with Leah's power of recall, I am also impressed that Susan and Andrew could identify the few relatives in the picture. I love this family!
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Mystery Picture 091010
Today's mystery picture is not about the who or the where. We know it is Grandma with Chief Mountain in the background. Although Chief Mountain is in Montana, it is just a few miles from the Canadian border. This view is from the north side of the mountain, in Canada.
The mystery is when this picture was taken. The place looks very green and the clouds look very heavy, certainly greener and heavier than I would expect southern Alberta to look during a typical summer family reunion. Any guesses on the month and year?
John posted a bunch of pictures on Facebook from a reunion in Alberta this summer. You must be logged into Facebook to see the pictures, but he has about 100 from the reunion (and about 20 more from Glacier Park and Provo). The pictures are a lot of fun to browse, but one stood out to me as reminiscent of Grandma's picture above.
There's Chief Mountain in the background. And, might that be the same wooden fence that Grandma was standing next to? Who knows; they all look the same. But, it provides a nice visual connection between then and now.
I should note that, although I did adjust the colors/contrast slightly from John's original picture (thank you Easy.Filter), this is pretty much what his picture looked like when he posted it. The grass in this picture and the absence of clouds are what I would expect to see in that area in the summer. Thanks, John, for posting the pictures.
For those of us who do not get to the Cardston area much -- I last went with my siblings and Grandma and Grandpa in the early 1980s -- here is a satellite image (thanks, Google) that includes Chief Mountain (marked "A"). Where is the area that Grandpa is from?
If you have any old pictures, programs, flyers, etc. from a family reunion that you would like to contribute to Grandpa's Apple Press, please let me know.
UPDATE
Andrew Bore, who also contributed to a previous post, added some very helpful context to this one.
"Rob, my guess is the picture was taken in the Leavitt or Mountain View area. J.R. and Clara lived there when my grandmother (Aunt Fern) was born. This may have been at a Coombs reunion. The homestead is roughly in the middle of the area marked by the three highways. Leavitt and Mountain View are both on the highway heading west from Cardston. Glenwood, where the Stutz' also had a farm, is near the top of the map."
Thanks for the info, Andrew! If anyone has the addresses or a mapped location for these family farms, send them my way and I will post them.
John produces a slide of this picture that reveals when it was taken, which we discuss at Mystery Picture 091010 - Revisited.
The mystery is when this picture was taken. The place looks very green and the clouds look very heavy, certainly greener and heavier than I would expect southern Alberta to look during a typical summer family reunion. Any guesses on the month and year?John posted a bunch of pictures on Facebook from a reunion in Alberta this summer. You must be logged into Facebook to see the pictures, but he has about 100 from the reunion (and about 20 more from Glacier Park and Provo). The pictures are a lot of fun to browse, but one stood out to me as reminiscent of Grandma's picture above.
There's Chief Mountain in the background. And, might that be the same wooden fence that Grandma was standing next to? Who knows; they all look the same. But, it provides a nice visual connection between then and now.I should note that, although I did adjust the colors/contrast slightly from John's original picture (thank you Easy.Filter), this is pretty much what his picture looked like when he posted it. The grass in this picture and the absence of clouds are what I would expect to see in that area in the summer. Thanks, John, for posting the pictures.
For those of us who do not get to the Cardston area much -- I last went with my siblings and Grandma and Grandpa in the early 1980s -- here is a satellite image (thanks, Google) that includes Chief Mountain (marked "A"). Where is the area that Grandpa is from?
If you have any old pictures, programs, flyers, etc. from a family reunion that you would like to contribute to Grandpa's Apple Press, please let me know.UPDATE
Andrew Bore, who also contributed to a previous post, added some very helpful context to this one.
"Rob, my guess is the picture was taken in the Leavitt or Mountain View area. J.R. and Clara lived there when my grandmother (Aunt Fern) was born. This may have been at a Coombs reunion. The homestead is roughly in the middle of the area marked by the three highways. Leavitt and Mountain View are both on the highway heading west from Cardston. Glenwood, where the Stutz' also had a farm, is near the top of the map."
Thanks for the info, Andrew! If anyone has the addresses or a mapped location for these family farms, send them my way and I will post them.
John produces a slide of this picture that reveals when it was taken, which we discuss at Mystery Picture 091010 - Revisited.
Friday, October 9, 2009
Mystery Picture 091009
Yesterday and the day before we looked at some cars in our family history. Today, we have a final car photo (for now!) before moving on to some other topics.
That certainly looks like Grandpa with the Mayflower, but I do not recognize who he is with. Any ideas who she is or when and where this was taken?
Although Marlon Brando borrowed Grandpa's fashion sense for A Streetcar Named Desire (which, I'm guessing, came out about a decade after this photo was taken), I must say that Grandpa has Brando beat in the handsome category!
That certainly looks like Grandpa with the Mayflower, but I do not recognize who he is with. Any ideas who she is or when and where this was taken?Although Marlon Brando borrowed Grandpa's fashion sense for A Streetcar Named Desire (which, I'm guessing, came out about a decade after this photo was taken), I must say that Grandpa has Brando beat in the handsome category!
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