Day 31 What costume would I have if I could have any?

That would be hard for me, I kind of play it by ear and decide as Halloween gets closer.


Knowing me it would have to be heroic, maybe a soldier, or pilot, or maybe a warlock like Harry Potter.  


I really have no idea.  I had said to my wife that I would probably do a mix, which is still possible.


The cloak of Robin Hood, the Gold Tunic of Captain Kirk, The cowl of Batman, the wand of Merlin, the pants of a world war two pilot. 

How about you?

Day 30 A Motto or Philosophy

I have several, all from movies.  The first is from Galaxy Quest, and is said by Tim Allen. The second is from Buzz Lightyear of Star Command.

From STAR TREK

For me, my philosophy of life has always been symbolized by media references; whether it be Galaxy Quest or Knight Rider, I have allowed others to symbolically speak for me.

Each of these video's do represent an aspect of my full philosophy of life. 

With both Galaxy Quest and Toy Story, it is about endurance, overcoming the odds or limitations, whether they be ones you had put on you by teachers, parents or employers you must always strive to overcome.  "Never give up, never surrender." and the entire Toy story sequence coming from "To infinity, and beyond" are reminders to me, not to ever allow apathy or to push beyond what has been safe for me.

"Out there. that a-way" is another variation of this, except here it is about the endless exploration of life, of seeing what is beyond the next mountain or veil. 

"One man can make a difference",each of us, whether male or female, has a purpose, a reason for being.  Each of us can change the world, if we again trust in ourselves and find the place we are meant to be.

I have said many times before, each of us has the ultimate potential to achieve remarkable things, we just need to find the door way and if one isn't there, create one.  Nothing is impossible, unless we allow it to be.

Day 29 Hopes Dreams and Plans for the next year

How appropriate.

Get a new job

Visit my aunt and uncle in Hawaii

Visit the Arizona Memorial

See the U.S.S. New Jersey

Get my drivers license

Move to Missouri

Pay off all debts

Visit my brother and sister in law, in California.

See Alcatraz

Walk the Golden Gate bridge.

Run in the Pikes Peak marathon.

Day 28 A Scar I Have....

Several years ago I was attacked while I was walking home, an individual came up to me demanding I give them any money I had.  I refused, this person hit me with brass knuckles and my chin was torn open, and I bled.

The wound healed, but there is still a scar from this. 

In all photos I have, you can not see the scar.

Day 27 A Physical Feature I Like

For me, the physical feature that I love, is the smile.  I am not just talking about the lips, but a full face smile including the eyes.  When someone is sincerely happy they show it in their smile.

Here's a collage I did at Picnik, that shows what I mean, along with two songs.

Day 26 A Childhood Memory

When I was about five years old, the original "BATMAN" TV series, with Adam West and Burt Ward, was on television during the summer; I was a huge fan.

I always thought it was so cool, how they would slide down the Bat Poles and appear magically in their costumes in Bat Cave below.

Well my father was an instrumental music teacher and he had to take some instruments back to school after a performance, I went with him, and we took this old cargo elevator to the second floor of the school.  For some reason I stayed behind and stayed with the elevator, as my father took the instruments back to his classroom.

As I said this was an old cargo elevator, so there was no back, it was wide open, you could see the cables behind the elevator; well being a curious kid, and one who thought TV at times was reality, I didn't see the cables, I saw two Bat Poles.

I jumped into thin air and suddenly found myself falling like a brick.  The next thing I remember is that I had stopped falling and was on my back.  I was crying out to my father.

I was told, that they had to remove the doors in the basement of the school and that I was rushed to Children's Hospital.  I was in the emergency room for a few days, then moved to a regular room, where I got orange sherbet and my parents visited me.  According to my mom, my face looked like the rear end of a hyena for several days.

The accident, caused me to be a little slower in learning things and may have short wired me with my temperament at times.  However it didn't stop me from moving forward.

This lead to me being in special education classes from the time I was five until I was in my last two years of Junior High School, my father and mother had home schooled me in part, and my father knew I had the smarts to be in regular classes.

He worked to have me test out of the special education classes.  I was able to graduate in the top fifteen of my class in 1980.

So these are my memories.  This goes out to you dad, and mom.  Thanks.

Post Script.

In 1966, I joined the "BATMAN" Junior Crime Fighter club, and Adam West, in full costume, came to my classroom and in front of everyone, swore me in as a junior crime fighter.  It was one of the coolest moments of my life, and to this day, I am still a huge "BATMAN" fan, I have seen every movie and collected episodes of the animated series.  So my liking of this hero did not diminish, I just learned that such things aren't real. 

Day 25 A Recipe Bobby Flay's Sweet Potato Soup.

Wish I could take credit for this recipe, but this one belongs to Bobby Flay.  I was watching his cooking show, Boy Meets Grill, and I saw him make this recipe.  I had to go to the library and buy his cookbook, so I could make this. 

Hope you enjoy this unique soup, as much as I do.

Ingredients



Mashed sweet potatoes:


4 tablespoons unsalted butter


1 cup whole milk


1/2 cup heavy cream


1 tablespoon chipotle chile puree


5 large sweet potatoes boiled until just cooked through and peeled


2 tablespoons pure maple syrup


2 tablespoons honey


1 teaspoon ground cinnamon


Salt and freshly ground black pepper


Directions


Combine the butter, milk, cream and chipotle puree in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer.


While the potatoes are hot, run them though a ricer into a large bowl. Add the warm milk mixture, syrup, honey, cinnamon and salt and pepper and mix until combined.

Sweet Potato Soup:


3 cups leftover mashed sweet potatoes


1 1/2 to 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth


1/2 teaspoon ground ginger


1/2 teaspoon allspice


1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg


1/2 cup creme fraiche


2 teaspoons chipotle in adobo puree


Salt and freshly ground black pepper


Fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish


Blue Corn tortilla chips, coarsely crushed, for garnish


Whisk together the mashed potatoes, 1 1/2 cups of the broth, ginger, allspice, and nutmeg in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Whisk in the 1/4 cup creme fraiche and more broth, if needed, and cook for 5 minutes.

Whisk together the remaining 1/4 cup of creme fraiche and chipotle puree in a small bowl, and season with salt and pepper. Ladle the soup into bowls and top with a dollop of the creme fraiche, some cilantro leaves and some of the tortilla chips.

Day 24 A Movie no one would expect me to love

Stripes, Caddyshack, and Spies like Us are three, and on a serious note A Beautiful Mind.

Here are some clips.

Day 23 How Do I want to be remembered

How do I want to be remembered?

As a loving husband.

As a caring Step Father.

As someone who succeeded in creating something of value.

As someone who changed the world in a positive way.

And as a successful writer.

Day 22 A Website

For me, I have several websites that I enjoy.  The first is not a conventional website, it is Facebook.  Yes I have a facebook page, and have a ton of friends from family members, to NCIS and a page dedicated to both Manitou Springs, and the Hawker Hurricane.

What I love about Facebook, it is a chance to chat with and get to know people all around the world.

One website that I use quite a bit here, is Youtube.  Love being able to find videos, clips from movies and TV series, reminds me of how the world once was.

Hulu is another website I love.  Here I can go and watch old classic like "Barney Miller" to new shows like Hawaii Five O. 

So there you have it.  My websites.

Day 21 Somethng I do differently than other people,

I build models differently.  Or I think I do.

Instead of just painting the parts I need for an assembly, like the flight deck of an aircraft, I will research the aircraft, ship, spacecraft, whatever and first find a unique paint scheme, then I will prepaint the whole model, while all the parts are on the tree.

This is easier and you avoid getting paint on clear parts this way.  I also use acrylic paints, so I have better control and clean up.

Here are some examples of me working a few of my models, and showing the process.

P.S.  One thing I also do, is look for out of the ordinary kits, the above is an example of this, this is a model of the SM-79 bomber, used by Italy in World War 2  The plane is not one of the better known types, like the P-47 or Me-109, and the paint scheme I found at a facebook page that does profiles of WW 2 aircraft and armor, and this paint scheme was shown at the page.

Look for something out of the ordinary, it makes model building, that much more fun.

Day 20 A Hobby I have

See yesterday's blhttp://mypixsoftheuniverse.blogspot.com/og, or go to these pages, they are dedicated to two of my hobbies

My page dedicated to photography   http://mypixsoftheuniverse.blogspot.com/

 
My page dedicated to my model building. http://tamirisc-scalemodeler.blogspot.com/

Day 18 A Time you Felt Passionate and Alive Day 19 A Talent of Mine

Right now, is a time when I feel passionate and alive. For right now, I am living my life fully again.  Since 2008, I have taken risks and moved forward in ways I never considered. 

I fell in love, only for the second time in my life, and I married the woman after knowing her only a few months.  That woman is Naila Moon, of the Gray Wolf.  She has helped me find the passion that I had lost, nearly 8 years before.

I am writing again, rediscovering my model building, and photography, and I am moving forward with taking risks in fining a better job, after keeping my current job for over two years, and we are looking at moving to Missouri in the next year.

I am learning to drive, and get a license and I am not allowing fear to cloud my mind.  I am alive and passionate about life again.

Grand daughter Izabella

I am an Grand Dad too, with a  Grand Daughter, and I am looking forward to spoiling her rotten.


Day 19 A Talent I have

I am talented as both a writer of fiction and poetry, as a photographer and as a scale model builder.

I discovered my ability as  poet only with-in the past 17 years, I had never written poetry until 1993, when I met a young woman, who brougt out the poet in me.  I have written romantic poetry, political poetry, and poetry that is about my life since 1993.

Sunrise In Sherwood

Silence as the cool water goes its’ way,

The first chirps of birds,

the hoof beat of deer at the break of day
The dark night makes a last attempt to remain

But the Orange, gold and yellow of the sun sings a new refrain

In the silence there is a stirring, as little john and Friar Tuck awaken

Yet they move about quietly as if not to disturb she who rests in

Such wonder and beauty.

I stand and watch you from a distance, and yet it is as if I still hold you near.

The sun begins to warm the land and a cold winter mist

Rises from the cool forest, yet it as if m’ lady is being kissed.

For the mist rises from your lips in soft cushions of air

Yet like an unskilled lad all I do is stand and stare.


Finally you rise and I see the gentle love in your eyes.

I wonder if you knew that I stood and watched you

Sleep like a child?

Touched by the air ever mild

But it is just another sunrise here in Sherwood Forest for all to see.

Yet I dream of a day when you Lady Marian and I Robin of Loxleigh

Will be free to love each other openly and honestly.


Poem from the unpublished book Legends written November 15 1993 rewritten September 19.1999.




I have been into photography since I was about eight years old, and have used everything from a 35mm camera to a 110, to my Kodak digital camera.

Seaview

DS 9

M4 Sherman

SM 79 Bomber

Lunar Landing base

Lunar Lader

Me on my birthday 1973.

My dad

My father opened the door for me, as a scale mode builder.  On weekends, we would go to the local hobby shops, and get the latest MPC kit and build it.  After my dads death in 1974, I began to really expand in the area of my model building and started to do the detail work, of painting the pilots and guns and other parts.  I now take weeks, if not months in building a model, keeping this talent alive, and one I intend on sharing with my grand daughter when she is older.

Day 17 A Piece of Art

This is my take on a piece of art, it is not a painting, or a photograph, it is a movie I made, from photos taken this past year entering Manitou Springs, Colorado.  I added the music of John Denver, and used animation to convert the photos into a joyful video.

Enjoy.

NIGHT TREK THE ADVENTURE BEGINS...

This is my first movie, that I made, using Microsoft Movie Maker, I edited together movie segments and added  titles and credits.

Day 16, A song that makes you cry.

Lady Marion, by Clannad is a song that will bring me to tears at times.  The song was from the series, Robin of Sherwood, and Clannad did all the music for this series.




Why does this song make me cry?  When I watched this series, I was dating a young woman, whom was the first woman, I ever fell head over heals in love with.  She died several years later.  The song reminds me of her, because we had used the Robin Hood myth as a way to disguise our romance at work.



So two versions of Lady Marion, one Guitar, very haunting, and then the original.




 

Day 15. (A) Persons I admire

As always, I am one who can not give simply one person whom I admire.

So here are the people I admire and a little about them.  Some you already have seen, and a few may surprise you.

First up, President John F Kennedy.  I have always admired JFK, since I was a child.  I cut my teeth reading about his daring survival in the south pacific in World War Two, how he saved 11 out 13 members of his crew of the P.T. 109, and how he had back pain and an injury that would have crippled many others, but he did not allow that.

As an adult, I learned that John Kennedy, was a flawed man, he nearly flunked out of Harvard Law school, until he wrote one paper, that lead to a first book, and his life in politics eventually.  I came to know he was flawed in other areas too; however I still feel he was someone to be admired for his heroism and determination.



Next , Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  Dr. King was right next to JFK, when I grew up.  I admired and admire Dr. King, because he was positively proactive, for no matter how hard things were, no matter how he was belittled or shunned he continued to press forward to bring civil rights to all people of this nation.

I have always admired him most, for the fact that no matter how hard things were, he remained calm and used intellect and his mind to achieve his goal.  He lived and died as a man of peace, in a world of anger, hatred and violence; which is amazing.



John Glenn is next, here was a man who defines his life by taking chances and going beyond limitations.  He was one of the first men in space, in Project Mercury back in 1962; he was the first American to orbit the earth.  His mission was one of high drama, because ice particles were coming off the back of his space craft, and the people at NASA felt that he could be losing his heat shield 

He successfully returned to earth and after his fifteen minutes of fame, left the space program and became a senator.  In 1997, Glenn returned to space, as one of the oldest Americans to do so. 

Time and again, this man has taken on challenges and has pushed past boundaries that others would have not.



Martha Stewart.  A woman who has not allowed anything, or anyone stand in her way.  She has explored areas as a stock broker, an interior designer, and of course has several cook books, home improvement books and both a magazine and tv series by the name Martha Stewart Living.

She triumphed when charged with insider trading, and came back with determination and self assurance to succeed an reinvent herself.  She has never allowed barriers to stop her from accomplishing a goal.

My wife is also here.  Naila Moon, she has two wonderful children, now young adults, a son Josh, who is a father of his own daughter.  And then there is Natasha, she is constantly moving in so many directions, you need a score card to keep up.  Naila herself, is in the process of getting a degree as a teacher.  My wife also is a fantastic cook, only slightly less perfect than I, in the kitchen.

So there you have it.  The people I admire.

Day 14 A Vacation, you would like to take

One word says it all.

Hawaii.

I went when I was 15, and I have photos only of my family, from that trip, and very few memoris

So if all goes according to plan,, my wife and I will be going to Hawaii, in December of next year.  Aunt Karen, start planning now.

Here is a video from Youtube, of what we hope to see and experience.

Day 13. A Guilty Pleasure

I am a heart attack survivor, because of this, I have a diet that prohibits, high fat items, such as beef.

My guilty pleasure, on a rare occasion is to have Pizza with Italian Sausage, and Pepperoni, or A Fat Burger, er Cheese burger, with real beef.

So there you have it.

Day 12, A song you would want, or had played at your wedding.

My wife and I were wed on December 25th 2008, here are some pictures and the song... Anything is possible.

The blushing bride

The priestess, and Daughter.

First kiss as a wedded couple

It's officiall,

The happy couple.  Yes, I was happy, honestly.  She is the best thing since apple pie, pizza and Coors Beer.

There were three pieces of music we used at our wedding, two came off the soundtrack of BATLESTAR GALACTICA, the Mini Series.

They were, Apollo is gone and Starbuck Returns



,  the second was The storm and the Dead.  Strange sounding, but it worked. 






Here's the song  Heart, with "Anything's Possible"

Day 11 Me recently

Here are 4 picks of me. more recently, all taken since 2009

4 times me.  Top left, me at the Cliff Dwellings in Manitou Springs, Co April 2010
Top Right, Me standing at overlook at Ute Pass, with Manitou Springs, Co in Background, July 2010
Bottom Left, Me standing on the largest Student Desk, Down town Manitou Springs, Co. August 2010
Bottom Right, Me standing in front of mock up of Neil Armstrong at the Saint Louis Science Museum, December 2009

I have only become more Handsome.

Day 10 Me from long ago

Today, I did something a bit different.  I did a collage of photos of me, from when I was 4 year old, to 40.  Here's the collage.

Top Left to Right: Me, with my first cat Miss Kitty, I was about 7 or 8 there.  Next me, with my friends Steven Hill and Anthony Gant, in the backyard of my house, about 4 or 5.   Me on my brothers Harley, about 8 years old.
Second Row, Left to Right.
Me mellowing out in my room about 13 there.  Loved jump suits.
A year later, on my birth day, looking over the instructions of a model I would build with my dad.  Little did I know, it would be one of the last, my dad would die of a massive heart attack a year later.
At 15 with a guitar, on the step.  Thought I would be the next Paul McCarney back then.
Last Row, Yep, you guessed it Left to Right.
Me wearing my BART shirt, and hamming it up, about 16 here.
Me in Las Vegas, the second time in 1996, 36 years old.  How did that happen?
Last photo, me in the PE Building hallway at Auraria Campus in June of 2000.  I was 40 then.

There you have them 9 photos of me, from 10 years ago, or longer.

Blog Challenge Day 9 A Photo I took

I am terrible. when it comes down to selecting one photo.  So what follows are several photos I have taken over the last year.  So come along and take a photographic journey.

Here are several photos.  The first is on Market Street at the RTD Shuttle station.  Love the architecture here.

A Sunrise photo from our balcony

The Brown Palace Hotel

Garden Of the Gods, Manitou Springs, Colorado.  February 2010

Cliff Dwellings, Manitou Springs, Colorado April 2010

Day Blog Challenge, A Letter of Thanks to someone, who changed your life

My beloved,

When you entered my life two years ago, I thought you were a raving lunatic.  You lived in a place in Missouri, that I had never heard of... and you had fallen in love with me, because of my writing.

I tried everything to dissuade you, I bore my entire sorted life, trying to terrify you into leaving me alone, yet you didn't give up.  If anything you became more insistent on meeting me.

We met, and suddenly, I fell head over heals in love, there was no logic, no reason, I was in love with you.

We had our whirl wind romance and were married that Christmas. 

My life has been moving forward in positive ways, since.  Nothing seems impossible, me learning to drive, us moving to live in Missouri or Alabama or even Hawaii.  For with you, anything is possible.

I am so glad you are part of my life, and I love you more each and every day.

Your whacked out Hubby.  Tamirisc.

30 Day Blog, Day 7

5 Things You Can not Live without.

Number 1: My wonderful loving wife, whom without I would be lost.

Number 2  My family, both in Missouri California,, and  Hawaii

Family picnic in Missouri September of this year.

Left to right, My Sister in Law Jennifer, Me, and my brother Geoff.  Photo taken by Naila Moon  April 2009

Picture of my Uncle David Akanna Espinda the 3rd, Aunt Karen and Little David, from 1975 when we went to Hawaii for Christmas.

My scale model collection, which I am slowly rebuilding, just a few photos of the collection.

Old MPC kit of the Junkers, Ju-52 transport.

My model of the Seaview Submarine and flying sub.

My model of the Starship Enterprise.

A diorama I did using ground crew figures and a model of the F4F Wildcat fighter from WW 2

My model of the Spitfire fighter.

The magic of Sunrises

Music, here are a few samples