Fenestrations

For some reason or another which escapes me at the moment I have always found windows to be very interesting. As a result I have been photographing them for awhile. One of my friends says I have more windows than Andersen. I'm not sure about that but I have photographed quite a few. Some windows tell a story, such as hard times or elegance. Some are very colorful, some are truly marvelous. Some provide ventilation, some allow light to penetrate the interior of a building, some provide a view for the building occupants. Some examples are shown below.



The two windows shown above each tell a story of hard times with missing glass and weeds growing in the buildings. They are separated by thousands of miles, the one on the top is from Varna, Bulgaria and the one on the bottom from Miami, Arizona.

The window below reveals elegance and probably wealth on the part of the occupants. It is from Amsterdam.

The window below is in a shop on the Greek island of Santorini. I'm sure some stylish woman would find these attractive.

The window below is also from Thera, Santorini.

Some windows exist for no apparent reason except for decoration. Such is the one below found on a Victorian era house in St. Charles, Idaho.

The window below is one of my all time favorites. It is in the Alhambra in Grenada, Spain. The Alhambra as a whole is magnificent and this window is one of the many wonderful things there.

I am thinking about doing a book on windows. What do you think? Please vote in the poll. Thanks much for looking.

Riparian Reserve

The City of Gilbert, which is just to the south of Mesa, has done a very interesting and unique thing with their waste water. They decided they should use it to recharge the underground aquifer. They are doing this by having it percolate down to the aquifer from the surface. After it has been treated and is relatively clean, they put it in streams, shallow ponds and wetlands which they have created in a 110 acre plot of land. They have planted trees and other vegetation along the banks that you would find in riparian areas in the Sonoran desert. There are still a few natural riparian habitats in Arizona, but most of them have been damned and therefore turned into reservoirs or dry stream beds. They have placed fish in the ponds to eat weeds and insects. Some of the birds then eat the fish. There is one small lake where fishing by humans is allowed. There are some 3 miles of paths for walking, bicycling and horseback riding. There are benches and places to observe fauna, primarily birds. The photo above is a view of one of the ponds, with an egret on the far bank.

A red winged blackbird, seen below, welcomed us to his world.

Long billed dowitchers are common working the shallow waters for food, below.


There was a small flock of ring necked ducks the morning I was there, below.

Below is a photo of a great blue heron slowly walking across one of the ponds, stopping frequently. I presume he was hunting for breakfast.

Here is a photo of a great blue heron standing on top of a pole. I wonder if he is contemplating building a nest there.


The last photo is a cormorant. We watched him dive and return to the surface with this fish in his mouth. There was a problem, however. He was holding the fish in the middle, crosswise. In order to swallow it the fish needs to be lengthwise and go down head first. Any other way it will hang up because the fins need to go down flat, which they won't do if it goes tail first. So he tossed it in the air until he got it going right and then he swallowed it. Amazing to watch. The photo below is the flip where he gets it going head first. Serendipity at work allowing me to capture the action.


This is a great place for a morning walk. The only fly in the ointment is some fools have dropped cats off there which of course are now feral. The authorities are struggling with how to deal with this. I think a few red tail hawks and great horned owls would solve the problem.

The Pumpernickel Prince

I first met Larry Jung in med school at the U of Utah. Larry graduated in 1961, while I graduated in 1963. I believe he was an intern the year that, on the first weekend in June, three or four of my classmates and I skipped a couple of days of class and went to Yellowstone fishing. School lasted until almost July 1, but enough is enough. We invited a couple of house officers to join us and I think Larry was one of them. Our careers stayed two years apart for awhile. Larry went in the Army for two years after internship and then came back to the U for a residency in pediatrics. He finished residency just as I got out of the Army and began my residency at the U. I saw Larry one day just after starting residency, and he was wearing a very familiar bolo tie. In fact, it was mine! I asked him where he got it. He said he found it hanging in a house staff locker when he started residency. I said that it was mine, I had apparently left it there and would like it back, please and thank you. He said “finders keepers” and I obviously didn't appreciate it since I hadn't noticed it being missing for two years. As far as I know he had it until the end.

We both worked for a professor of peds at the U, I doing basic bench research and Larry doing more clinical things as a fellow. We collaborated on a study of packaging as a means of prevention of childhood poisoning due to medications. We turned it into an exhibit and Larry got to take it to various medical/scientific meetings. I didn't get to do any of these presentations because of the work load of the residency. It was bad enough under ordinary circumstances but because of the Vietnam war the residency was short staffed. We were both interested in newborns and the department agreed to send us to a neonatology meeting in January in Miami as a reward. It was a great meeting; we stayed with some friends of mine and had a great time. We found the meeting very stimulating and we managed to get in some snorkeling and a trip to the beach.

Larry liked to hunt and fish. One time during the house staff and fellowship days we went duck hunting on the Bear River in northern Utah. We used a flat bottomed, square nosed rowboat (which probably has some official name like a dingy or something but I have no idea what that might be). We left a car down stream where we wanted to get off the river, and put the boat in upstream quite a ways. It is legal to hunt ducks from a boat as long as you don't use a motor. We piled brush in the boat so it looked like a floating brush pile, got in and floated down the river. The ducks thought we were a pile of brush, which allowed us to get right in the middle of them. Then we would rise up, causing them to fly, and we would shoot. It was a great day; Larry, who was a taxidermist, mounted a duck for me from that trip.

We both liked country and western music. In those days there was some promoter who would put together a country and western concert about once a month. They were first held at the Old Mill at the mouth of one of the canyons in Salt Lake City and later at a theater in the round in Bountiful, a suburb of SLC. They had several performers at these, usually a mix of veterans and newcomers. We saw such old hands as Roy Acuff and some just starting out, such as Waylon Jennings. These concerts were a lot of fun. The old guys loved to entertain and didn't want to leave the stage. The new ones didn't know how to work an audience or show appreciation to the audience. Waylon was particularly bad that way. I never saw him live again, but I presume he got over it and learned how to deal with a live audience. But, I digress. Sorry about that.

Larry was much more of a big game hunter than I was. I only went mule deer hunting in Utah with him once or twice, and one time I had an elk tag. I went with him on a Wyoming antelope hunt, at a friend's ranch. After I moved back to Arizona he came down once to chase white tail deer with me in Southern Az. He introduced me to a member of his hunting group and we became fast friends. As a result I met all of the friend's family, including my wife. Best thing Larry ever did.

Neonatology was very much in its infancy. When Larry and I were starting our careers, you could literally count on one hand the number of genuine neonatologists in the United States. Larry did a fellowship with Dr. Lula Lubchenko in Denver, one of the few. I think it was for about 6 months. When he finished he came back to the U of U and started the first neonatal intensive care unit and the Intermountain Neonatal Progam which eventually resulted in neonatal and maternal transport and everything that goes along with high risk perinatal care. None of the things we take for granted today were available then—no transport incubators, no neonatal or infant ventilators, etc. Larry scrounged and jury rigged equipment to make do until manufacturers caught up.

The neonatology world was very small in those days. Larry had started his unit at the U and I had some extra neonatology training(not a full fellowship) and had a special care nursery at Cottonwood Hospital, a suburb of SLC. At that time Larry couldn't do much more than I could, but he had the advantage of house staff. I called him about a baby one day and he came out and we decided to transport it to the U. I know he used an ambulance with a Gurney and oxygen but I don't remember whether he used a fish bowl or what to deliver the oxygen and keep the baby warm. He said he was going to put the baby on a ventilator, which he was jury rigging. I remember saying “That's fine, Larry, but how are you gong to get him off the ventilator?” He said he didn't know but would cross that bridge when he came to it. This was the first baby Larry ventilated. Years later Dr. Belton Meyer, the first neonatologist in Arizona and a contemporary of Larry, and I were having a conversation about Larry. Belton said that Larry had him fly up to Utah to consult on the first baby Larry had put on a ventilator. The baby had been on the ventilator for 6 months and Larry needed help in getting him off. Belton was a bit surprised when I said that baby was originally my patient.

Larry was from the Chicago area; his father owned a bakery in Morton Grove where he baked and delivered a great deal of pumpernickel bread. Hence I sometimes referred to him as the “Pumpernickel Prince”. While I was in the Army I commanded a dispensary at Arlington Heights, not far from O'Hare.
One day during this time, Larry was flying in or out of O' Hare. Looking out the window he saw the Army facility at Arlington Heights and said to his wife “I wonder who's the poor bastard that's the doc down there?”

Larry had an endowed chair at the U of U named for him as well as the NICU at the U. He was truly a pioneer in neonatology and leaves a wonderful legacy. He was also an artist, sculptor and taxidermist.The photo below is of a premie newborn's hand sculpted by Larry. The sculpture is life size.

Most importantly, he was my friend. When I get to the other side, I expect him to have the river scouted and the boat piled with brush. He'll probably be wearing my bolo tie.

Chaco Canyon

Chaco Canyon National Historical Park is a National Park Service site that contains the largest collection of stone masonry ruins north of Mexico. It dates from about 850 AD to 1250 AD. It was built and populated by people referred to as Anasazi by the Utes and Navajos, which means "enemy ancestors" or "ancient ones." These people are thought to have been the ancestors of modern Pueblo peoples and are also referred to as "ancient or ancestral Puebloans".

Chaco is located in the four corners area of New Mexico southeast of Farmington. It is about 6200 feet elevation. The climate is high desert, with an average of about 9 inches of rain per year. Temperatures range from well below zero in the winter to 102 or so in the summer. Water is not plentiful in this area. Scientists say that the climate has not changed appreciably since the Chacoans setled there. One of the great mysteries to me is why? Why settle here instead of a more hospitable area?

The Anasazi culture included the Mesa Verde, Betatakin, Aztec, Hovenweep, and Canyon de Chelly villages and people. Chaco Canyon with its villages, called Great Houses, numerous kivas and dwellings is thought to be the religious and trading center of the Anasazi people. They built genuine roads out from Chaco. Trade goods from Mexico-Central America have been found, including macaws, copper bells, etc. Traces of cacao have also been found.

No one knows for sure why they abandoned these settlements and moved on, but the most common explanation is a 50 year drought that started in 1130 AD. The modern Pueblo people have oral traditions about their journey away from Chaco. They also regard the ruins as sacred; the Zuni and Laguna people return on the summer solstice for dances and ceremonies.

The ruins show evidence of master planning and fairly sophisticated engineering. The tallest part of the structure appears to have been 5 stories high. There is evidence that they made astronomical observations of the solstices, equinoxes and lunar cycles. The Great House at Pueblo Bonito is laid out with the straight front wall on the east-west axis and bisected by a north-south wall. The GreatHouses are generally laid out this way and some also on either the east-west axis or the north -south axis leading to Pueblo Bonito.

Above is a photo of Pueblo Bonito take from the mesa/cliff behind it. You can see the D shape of this 650 room structure and its two axes, north-south and east-west. You can also see the many kivas in this pueblo.

The photo above is the first part of the trail to the top of the cliff, through the talus at the bottom of the cliff. Part way up you get into a crack which takes you to the top, and is much easier than the bottom talus. The two photos below are in the crack.


Below is a photo of walls and rooms at the southeast corner of Pueblo Bonito.

The photo below shows a corner door. There are seven of these in Pueblo Bonito. Architects say this is supposed to weaken the walls. I suppose that may be true, but these have been there about 1000 years. The wood is original.

Below is a photo of an original ceiling at Pueblo Bonito.

Below is an unusual "keyhole" door at Pueblo Bonito.

Typical masonry with a beam sticking out is shown below. The mortar is mud. Timber was brought to Chaco from as far as 50 miles away, such as from the Chuska mountains or the Mt. Taylor region.


Below is the great kiva at Casa Rinconada, directly south of the wash from Pueblo Bonito. I believe this is the largest known kiva in the southwest. Four huge tree trunks held up the roof. 3-400 people could be in this kiva for a meeting or a ceremony. According to current scientific thought, the kivas were deroofed and any contents removed by the Chacoans when they were abandoned. Some were apparently burned.

At the Great House of Chetro Ketl there are the remains of colonnades along one wall, shown below. The spaces between were filled later for some reason or another. The nearest colonnades were constructed by the Toltecs in Mexico or Central America.

Chaco Canyon is one of the most interesting places I have ever been. The first time we went there as a family we camped about three feet from a ruin wall. There are many unanswered questions about this place which we are probably not going to get answers for, at least in this life.

Strange Events

A couple of weeks ago I was coming home just after sundown. A few blocks from home I saw this strange horse coach driven by a ghost. Scared, I drove home to find a group of ghosts dancing around a cauldron in our front yard. I think the coachman must have let them off at our house.

I ran in the house and found a strange kitty cat on our table.

I ran outside and found a ghost with Harry Potter, a cowgirl, the kitty and Captain Hook.



I was uncertain what to do. I asked my wife and she suggested we try bribing them. We got out all the candy we had and sure enough, they would take some and go away.
Below are some of the strange creatures who came to our house.








We managed to bribe them all with candy, including the devil. I was sure he wanted souls but he took the candy and went on his way. The next morning the dancing ghosts and the coach were gone. Did you have this kind of trouble at your house?

Doors

For some years now doors have been one of my favorite photographic subjects. I have shot them with 4x5, 645, 35mm and various digital cameras. The photo above is from the Topkapi palace in Istanbul. It was taken with a Sony a100, Carl Zeiss 16-80 lens. Below are a few of my favorites.



Detail from old door Miami, Az. Taken with Sony a900 and Zeiss 24-70 lens.



Amsterdam door. A100 with Zeiss 16-80.



Santorini door. a100, Zeiss 16-80.



Details on door at Hubbell Trading Post, Ganado, Arizona. Digital camera, unremembered model.



Doors at Aztec Ruins, New Mexico. A100 with Zeiss 16-80.

I am thinking of doing a book of doors. I have a whole bunch more photos of doors. What do you think? Please respond to the poll. Thanks much.

Mud, Mules, and Mountains

My father was called to active duty in January 1941 and remained on active duty until January 1 1946. He was overseas in combat for three and one half years(see blog entry of June 19, 2009). I was three and one half years old when he left and six years old when he returned. While he was gone I looked forward to every letter, photograph, etc that he sent home. One day a long wooden box arrived, which I opened, with help. I pulled out a long cavalry saber which he had acquired from a French army warehouse in North Africa. I was four years old at the time. I could barely get it off the floor with two hands and all my strength, but since it came from my dad, I was thrilled. I said “Oh boy, just what I've always wanted!”

Dad would send home postcards and pamphlets that he thought we might find interesting, and sometimes cartoons done by Bill Mauldin. Bill Mauldin was a young GI in the 45th Division who had joined the Army by way of the Arizona National Guard in 1940. Bill was a cartoonist who did some cartoons for the 45th Division newspaper and then later was picked up by Stars and Stripes, the Army newspaper. Eventually he was pulled out of line, given his own Jeep and did cartooning full time. He was a combat infantryman before being pulled out and after being pulled out spent three days out of 10 at the front. He was wounded by mortar rounds at Monte Casino in Italy. Since he covered much of the same ground as my father(Sicily, Italy, Southern France)I was very interested in his cartoons.

Bill Mauldin received the Pulitzer Prize in 1945 for his cartoons. Shortly after the war he published a book of his cartoons, along with his comments on the war. The book is called Up Front. As a kid I read and re-read that book so many times I practically wore it out. Mauldin became an editorial cartoonist for the St. Louis Post Dispatch and the Chicago Sun Times and won a second Pulitzer in 1958 or 1959.
Below is a typical Bill Mauldin cartoon, with Willie and Joe, his usual GIs, dog faces, grunts,also known as combat infantry enlisted men, in a pile of rubble.


A few months ago we sold my dad's house and finished cleaning it out. As we were going through his books, there were two copies of Up Front, and in one of them was a 6 x 9 inch paper pamphlet entitled Mud, Mules, and Mountains by Bill Mauldin, with “Mike” written on the outside cover in my mother's hand writing. It's about 40 pages long, with cartoons from the Italian campaign, and an introduction by Ernie Pyle. Ernie Pyle was probably the most famous war correspondent of WWII. Like Bill Mauldin he went to the front with the infantry and told their story. Ernie went to the Pacific theatre before the war ended and was killed there.


I was quite pleased to find this and I do not remember seeing it before. I suspect that I saw it when we first got it and then my mother put it away for safe keeping. I had looked through it once when we found it, and was looking through it again at home when I noticed something bleeding through the fly leaf. The fly leaf was clinging to the front cover. I pulled it away and saw the inscription shown below.


I think that dad got this at an Italian naval base. His outfit was in line near Florence and was pulled out and sent back to refit for the invasion of Southern France. The date on the inscription is August 5. D-day for Southern France was August 15, in which his outfit participated.


Thanks, Dad, from your little boy, Mike. And thanks, Mom, from your big boy.