Day 210 - Misty Green

Thought of the day: Today I was trying to figure out whether I should get a new lens for the summer break.  I am getting a little tired of using only one lens, which happens to be the lens that came with the camera.  It has a good range and it does a decent job in a variety of situations but it doesn't do anything spectacularly well.  It's especially lacking in the handheld low light situation which I seem to run into a lot lately.  I would love to get a fast normal prime lens and a fast telephoto zoom lens.  But fast lens typically means big glass which typically means more money and more weight. So I have been hesitating before taking a plunge. When I was taking an inventory of what I already had at home today, I happily "uncovered" a Nikkor 50mm f/1.4 lens.  I couldn't believe that I had pretty much forgotten all about it.  I will surely miss the unparalleled object isolation effect of the 85mm f/1.4 lens (see my previous blog post about it), but I think this smaller and cheaper lens will serve me well, at least for a while. One thing I learned from this experience is that before I search far and away for something ideal, I should first take stock of what I already have and the chance is that I will find in my possession something close enough.  It may not be perfect, but it may serve me just as well - and nothing will end up to be perfect anyway especially after you can claim it your own.  This can be so true for worldly possessions, and also for other more abstract things in life as well.

Photo of the day:

Misty mountains and greenery in a rainy spring day, taken with my "new" lens.

Day 206 - Happy Pair

Thought of the day: It was the first day of Boulder Spring Festival - there're many weekend festivals and fairs at this time of the year.  I took Lila out to downtown in the early morning so the rest of the family can take a break.  There were musicians, painters, photographers, craftsmen and vendors setting up booths along Pearl St.  A woman was transporting an orphanage girl's photo onto a canvas and she did an amazing job of capturing the poignant expression of sadness on her face.  Her almost-finished oil painting stood out in the merriness of the festival crowd and it served as a reminder that there were very different lives going on elsewhere when we were out celebrating spring.

Photo of the day:

Happy pair - a daughter and father in Pearl St's rock park.  It's one of the most popular places in downtown.

Day 192 - Wedding

Thought of the day: It was a perfect day in Estes Park.  In the morning, we drove to Rocky Mountain National Park and hiked on a short trail to Bear Lake, which was still completely frozen and covered by snow at this time of the year.  And then we hiked on Lumpy Ridge trail in town. The first trail was surrounded by a forest and it was covered by snow and slippery.  It was even snowing when we did the hike.  The second trail was snow-free and dry and ran through some pretty interesting rock formations.  It was nice and sunny when we did that hike.   The two hikes couldn't be more different even though they were just within a short drive from each other.  We literally drove from one climate zone to another in a matter of minutes.  Jasmine and Lila were very excited by the adventure and they both enjoyed climbing up and down the rocks along the Lumpy Ridge Trail.  In the evening, we checked out Rock Inn Restaurant which is a steak house and a popular music venue in Estes Park.  The girls danced an evening away to the merry tunes played by a local musician.

Photo of the day:

A wedding party in Stanley Hotel where we are staying at.  Today must be an auspicious day to get married as we spotted at least 3 wedding parties in the hotel.  Other than weddings, we also counted a lot of elks in RMNP and in town, including a dozen or so munching on the grass right outside of our hotel room.  However, I took a lot more photos of wedding parties  than elks, so the elks would have to wait until our next trip to get on the blog!

Day 191 - Happy Music

Thought of the day: We're staying in Estes Park for the weekend.  It's much chillier here than in Boulder but it's good to do something different.  Jasmine loved the coziness of the hotel room and declared that she would not mind staying here forever.  I think that might be a little exaggerated and a spur of the moment declaration, but she is always the happiest when she gets to spend time with us.  It's yet another proof that kids, at least the young ones, crave for the quality time with parents more than anything else.  Watching movies or playing with new toys may provide them with temporary excitements, but there's nothing like the parents' unconditional love and undivided attention to make them genuinely happy.

Photo of the day:

Students of Kutandara Center performing African music on the Pearl St.  Today was the Colorado Children's Day in Boulder where there were fun activities for the kids and all events were free (even the balloon man refused to accept tips).  Looking at this photo reminded me just how warm it was a couple of hours ago!

Day 183 - Spring

Thought of the day:  It was a beautiful day to enjoy the spring with two of my dearest friends.  It was rainy in the early morning and windy at night, but the weather during the day was just perfect.  Because of the rain, the Flatirons were misty in the morning, and the air was clear, the grass was green and the spring flowers were in vivid display everywhere.  But my friend put it well: a beautiful landscape without people or other living creatures in it would be lacking a soul.  In the same way, a life without friends would be lacking and incomplete as well.  If we make each other's lives more fulfilled and interesting, we would have accomplished an important part of our mission on earth.

Photo of the day :

A empty path waiting for people to step on.  I think the expectation itself is giving the scenery a soul.