I love to take pictures (and sometimes I am good at it too- See this photo album for proof).  During any given race weekend I attend in person,  I normally end up with a sore or stiff neck by the end of the day from carrying one or both of my dslr cameras around hoping to find that perfect picture.  Last Fontana race was no different. I had my camera with me.  I was in the main grandstands – probably three sections or so before the flag stand. Now- five months later I don’t remember many of the details about the race.  I remember Jeff Gordon got a pit road speeding penalty because I remember Misty was MAD!  (I don’t blame her- I was pretty ticked when Tony got his penalty in Vegas). I also remember it was pretty hot (no surprise there) and worrying my mascara was melting all over my face (it wasn’t- yey Clinique).

So as the race was winding down, I remember thinking that Tony probably wouldn’t win but hoping he would have at least a top five finish.  Then the laps wound down even further and I must have  said  something like “He’s not going to win”  to Misty.  I say that because I remember her standing there in the stands next to me- decked out in her Jeff Gordon garb just to give you a clear picture- CHASTISING me HARD for saying whatever negative thing I had said.  I remember sitting down at one point because I didn’t want to see him NOT win.  Of course Misty told me to get up after letting me stew for about half a lap…which of course I did.  And then…I watched Tony cross the finish line first.  I was SOOO EXCITED because not only did I get to finally see Tony win a race in person but it was at a track he hadn’t won at yet.

I was so excited that I got only two pictures of the event.

This one…not so bad considering I was sitting way across from pit road in the grandstands:

Tony's crew celebrating victory at Fontana last year. (photo credit: ME)

And here is the second picture…and this one is my favorite even though it is probably one of the WORST picture I have EVER taken:

Very blurry portion of Tony's burn out in Fontana 2010. (photo credit: me)

You are probably looking at it and thinking: Egads woman- that picture sucks! Why do you love it so much? Well let me explain it to you.  I was so excited that I obviously forgot to not only focus, but I also forgot that I had the lens zoomed in on the crew.  So it’s blurry and only a partial shot of the car doing a burnout…but the emotion involved in getting the shot is what makes it priceless. That and I GOT TO WATCH TONY WIN IN PERSON AT A TRACK HE HADN’T WON AT BEFORE! It was an awesome day.

I hope he has another awesome day down there at AutoClub Speedway this Sunday! GO TONY GO!

Anyway- today I got a little crazy and signed up for an online CROCHET-ALONG where  we will get weekly clues as to what to crochet and by the time it’s over we will have made a blanket. No problem right? I mean I know how to crochet.  I haven’t actually crocheted anything in over a year or maybe even more now that I think about it. But I have been wanting to pick up a hook again.  I mean why NOT?  So maybe I haven’t EVER made anything as big as an afghan before- there is always a first time for everything right?

Well that is what my crazy right-brain side of me is saying anyway.  The smart (albeit slightly anal) left-side brain is screaming things like DUDE ARE YOU SERIOUS? Another project? Really? It’s not like you don’t have FIVE different things you are currently writing (including this blog), and don’t you have THREE different photography assignments you are working on? And when do you plan to sleep?  Because this is actually the BUSY TIME of the year at work and they just included you on that new assignment that will probably be a lot of work.  CRAZY! YOU ARE CRAZY! Oh and did you not forget that you are going to races in October and November AND champions week in Vegas? When will you have the time? When??????

So yeah- I am slightly crazy and added another thing to my plate but this will be FUN! And an ADVENTURE!  Because not only have I not made anything as big as an afghan before BUT I also haven’t ever crocheted anything without a solid pattern (with pictures) before I started. So it will be odd.  Not knowing what it’s suppose to look like while I am actually making it…so it could all go really wrong.  I will keep you all updated on my progress.

1. Write at least three posts for Badgroove.
2. Write my next post for Racing In America.
3. Do my photography class assignment (what? You didn’t know I was taking a photography class…you would have if I had completed number one).
4. Upload said assignment into my online classroom.
5. Change my sheets.
6. Wash the dog’s blanket.
7. Save a bunch of writing and photos onto my external hard drive.
8. Work on some fiction I am writing.

What I actually completed from that list:

1. Do my photography class assignment

What I did this weekend:

Took nearly 12 Gigs of photos in my adventures over the course of two days that took me to a parade:

To the staging for the parade:

A local state park that I had never been to before:

To a cemetery overrun with deer:

Saw the USS Mobile Bay anchored away in the bay:

And while I was at the wharf I saw:

Had a great time but I ended up with a nasty sunburn. It was a great way to waste the weekend. I am such a procrastinator.

In a desperate attempt to get some of the inspiration back I took a little road trip on Sunday since the race was on Saturday…I ended up at the zoo without meaning to.  I mean..by the time I got there I meant to be there but when I left the house in the morning I didn’t intend to be at the zoo. My dad and I love to go on “photo” outings…cameras in tow and my mom will often come for the ride.  Usually my dad drives and thus he picks where we go.  This time my parents and I had taken off with cameras in tote (five cameras between three people NOT including cell phone cameras) and since I was driving this time- I decided to head north on Highway 1 since we usually head south.  One thing lead to another and we ended up at the SF Zoo (ok basically my dad begged me to take him to the zoo).  Now I LOVE zoos. LOVE THEM!!!  Unfortunately the SF Zoo isn’t the best of Zoos but still I got some ok shots:

Baby Giraffe. Photo By Me

Gorilla. Photo by Me!

Lion resting in the shade. Photo by me

Swimming Penguin Photo By Me

I also took some flower pictures at the zoo:

Ruby Pinchshion Photo By Me

Some sort of purple flower. Photo by me.

On the way home we stopped to snap a few shots of the Point Pigeon lighthouse:

Point Pigeon Lighthouse Photo by me.

Point Pigeon Lighthouse Photo by me

And also on the way how we stopped and took some pictures of people kite boarding:

Kite Boarder getting some air on the pacific. Photo by me.

You can see the best of my pictures from Saturday’s adventures in my SF Zoo and NorCal Coast Flickr set.

I myself found myself with extra time on my hands this weekend as I wasn’t glued to a TV for several hours watching the race.  So I used my time to get out and get creative.  If you know me you know I love to take pictures.  Right before I left for Vegas I actually bought myself a new camera.  A Canon Rebel t1i.  Did I get rid of my 20D? No!!!  I just wanted something new. All of my dSLR cameras have been hand-me-downs from my dad as he as moved up  (his newest is a Mark 5d or something like that- I know I always want to call it a MARK 5 as in the Lincoln so…it’s something like that). We do our version of a photowalk which is really just my dad, me and sometimes my mom where we go somewhere and just walk around and take pictures.

During the off weekend we went to Pebble Beach, CA.  An exclusive community where if you aren’t a resident or there to play golf you have to pay nearly 10 bucks for the honor to go down there. We paid.  It was a great day though and I got some great ocean shots:

(Photos After The Jump)

Bird Rock Turnout. Pebble Beach. March 2010 Photo Credit: ME

Waves splashing. Restless Sea Turnout. Pebble Beach. Photo credit: Me

Coastal view. Taken by me whilst standing on my tiptoes and shooting without looking pretty much because of a chain link fence. Pebble Beach March 2010 Photo Credit: ME

While there I made some furry friends:

Squirrel. Bird Rock Turnout. Pebble Beach March 2010. Photo Credit: ME

Doesn't this one look like two of the squirrels were daring the leaper to leap? Bird Rock Turn Out. Pebble Beach March 2010 Photo Credit: ME

This has to be the best picture I have ever taken. Do you know how hard it is to get wild squirrels just to stay still enough to take a picture? And then to get one with an expression like this? Bird Rock Turn Out. Pebble Beach March 2010. Photo Credit: ME

We also encountered a furry foe:

Yep that would be one mangey looking coyote slinking along the fairway at one of the golf courses at Pebble Beach. We think he was hunting squirrels. He was actually pretty skiddish around people but I stayed in the backseat of my dad's silverado anyway. Pebble Beach March 2010 Photo Credit: ME

There were lots of signs like this:

No tresspassing. Point Joe Turn Out. Pebble Beach March 2010. Photo credit: ME

There were tons of gorgeous (FREAKING HUGE ELABORATE MANSION-ESQUE) homes but that would be weird to take pictures of. And who knows probably against the rules there anyway.

And you can’t go to Pebble Beach and not take a picture of The Lone Cypress:

The famed Lone Cypress of Pebble Beach. Lone Cypress Turnout. Pebble Beach March 2010 Photo Credit: ME

I also spent some time playing trucks with my nephew MXM:

MXM changes a tire on his CAT truck. Photo Credit: ME

I got to spend time holding and feeding with my 3 week old nephew JXM. This is not me. This is my mom feeding him later on. Its too hard to feed a baby and take his picture at the same time. Photo Credit: ME

I will be the first to admit that during those rare “off” NASCAR weekends I usually end up on SPEED or ESPN looking for some kind of motorsports to watch- because even though I was occupied most of the day I still had a jonesing for speed (not the drug- you know horsepower). This time I ended up watching all of the Supercross.  I don’t know how I ended up getting into the Supercross but this is the second whole Supercross I watched- I also somehow ended up watching the Daytona Supercross last weekend.  How I ended up watching it is a mystery to me but I liked it. Plus my boss is big into Supercross  so I can talk semi-intelligently about it if I have at least watched it right?

So that is my off weekend report.

The goslings follow momma in the lake.

Goslings Take A Break

Then we were off to the Coast Guard Pier where we found lots of sea lions:

Basking Sea Lion

Arguing Sea Lions

Some Pelicans:

Pelicans

And of course some ships:

The Skully Bones sits in the harbor

A sail boat in the bay

Just be glad I am not making you look at all 333 pictures!

So what do you think?