The Curmudgeonly Professor

Store Window on the Hana Highway, Maui

Another Routinely Spectacular Sunset in St. George UT January 26 2012

Duck

Double click

Why Evangelicals Don't Like Mormons - NYTimes.com

According to a CNN exit poll of South Carolina Republican primary voters, Newt Gingrich, a thrice-married Catholic, won twice as much support from evangelical Protestants as Mitt Romney, a Protestant. And among voters for whom religion meant “a great deal,” 46 percent voted for Mr. Gingrich and only 10 percent for Mr. Romney.

via campaignstops.blogs.nytimes.com

A plea for religious tolerance

Brigham Young Winter Home St. George UT: Photo Processed in Topaz Filter

White Saguaro Cactus Blossoms in Topaz Filter

Just a Cinderella Tale from About Classic Literature Yahoo Reader

A Little Princess is usually considered a children's book--often read by girls. But, it's one of those rags-to-riches, Cinderella stories that reminds us how quickly life can change--good or bad. Our fortunes aren't promised to us; even the most wealthy have the potential for losing it all. So there must be something more to life than what we can touch or feel; there must be something about any experience from which we can learn and grow... Then, does it matter so very much what our state in life is at the end of the day. Have we made a difference?

Although they do so much more than just that, books tug at that something we call "heart", show us ways to live--they open up ways of being and knowing and becoming. We just have to be open to the messages. And, see the results... In the book, a bakerwoman tells Sara: "I've given away many a bit of bread since that wet afternoon, just along o' thinking of you--an' how wet an' cold you was, an' how hungry you looked; an' yet you gave away your hot buns as if you was a princess." It's a bit cliche when I say that any amount of money doesn't buy happiness; but books show us how we can be most blessed by the simple pleasures in life.

via my.yahoo.com

Why Politicians Get Away With Lying - Room for Debate - NYTimes.com

Maybe it’s a sign that the public has given up on honesty from presidential candidates. Instead, in a recent flurry prompted by the public editor of The New York Times, the assumption seems to be that politicians will always lie and that voters’ defense against that is fact checking by journalists.

But … why do voters let politicians lie to them? What sort of lies do people accept, and which do they object to?

via www.nytimes.com

Worth reading.

Blanket Flowers in a Topaz Filter

Pink and White Wild Morning Glories: From the Archives

Saguaro Cactus From the Archives

I just found several dozen unedited photos of Saguarao cactus blossoms from several years ago languishing on my hard drive as I tackle the monumental job of cleaning up and sorting out about 130,000 photos.  Finding lots of unexpected gems.  Soon there will be another crop of blooms and a few dozen more photos.  I never get tired of these pristinely white beauties.  Truly, the gorgeous white flower "that lasts an hour."

Palm Trees and Clouds St. George UT Jan 16 2012

Not a great photo, but I'm still learning about High Density photos.

Mesas and Utah Hill West of St. George UT in HD Color

Mesas and Utah Hill West of St. George UT in HD Black and White

Blue Blossoms along the Jordan River Trail: From the Archives 2009

Utah Hill and the Mesas West of St. George UT in HDR

I'm not sure I like this photo, which is the second one I took and processed in HDR. (See below for details).  However, since I spent two hours figuring out more or less how to do it, and another hour figuring out how to convert tif format to jpeg, here it is anyway.

My First Experiment with HDR: The Rosemary Bush Outside My Front Door

I'm trying to learn how to do HDR (high dynamic range) photography, which involves making camera settings on my Canon 7d to take three photos in rapid succession at three different settings and then merge the three photos into an HDR photo.  You can compare this HDR version of Rosemary with the earlier one posted below.  I've still got a lot to learn, but Rosemary does seem to look quite beautiful, especially with blue blooms in January.  Double click for fun. Oh, and then the HDR photo, which ends up in tif, must be converted to jpeg to post on Typepad, which involved paying $29 for Pixilion image converter.  I was afraid it didn't work, but here is the photo.

One of My Favorite Fixer Uppers in Bever UT

I've posted photos of this old pioneer rock home before, but it's one of my favorites and I take a new photo or two of it every time we go through Bever UT

Interesting Outbuildings for Livestock in Bever UT

Main Street of Bever UT along I-15

Another View of Street Scene South Salt Lake Valley

This photo is the same one posted earlier, only processed with a Topaz filter. Which one do you like the best?

A Nice Fixer Upper in Bever UT

Rosemary in January

Pink Sky at Sunset in St. George UT January 9 2012: Unretouched

Desert Sunset in St. George UT January 9 2012: Unretouched

Street Scene on a Hazy Day in the South Salt Lake Valley