theparkerfamily⁽³¹⁴⁾

I hesitate to call this a hike, because there wasn’t a discernable trail. I also hesitate to imply that it is open to the public (it is) because it is so hard to get to and because the land just isn’t setup for visitors.

That being said, the Hellen Creek Hemlock Preserve is pretty remarkable in that it is the southernmost stand of Canadian hemlock in the eastern United States.

Hellen Creek Hemlock Preserve, Maryland
http://www.flickr.com/photos/unclevanya/sets/1417734/

Today is one of those fall federal holidays that we get off just because the federal goverment is shut down. I know I just offended someone, but not sure if that was the Italians (Columbus Day) or those who have served in our miliary (Veterans Day) or someone else.

Anyway, Jonathon (friend from work) and I took a rare, mutual day off and hiked Little Devil’s Stairs in the Shenandoah. Not much in the way of scenery, but one heck of a hike.

Little Devil’s Stairs
http://www.flickr.com/photos/unclevanya/sets/1360044/

Excitement about my new camera drove me to get up super early this morning, and wander over to a grove of autumn foliage I saw yesterday afternoon. Unfortunately, lack of familiarity with my new camera caused me to forget to bring the rechargable battery, so I had to make the trek twice.

The foliage was amazing. Every year I miss-call when the leaves are going to turn in Virginia. It’s hard to think of foliage and then think of November … the good stuff comes in early October (granted, that’s in northern New England).

Foliage in Arlington, Virginia
http://www.flickr.com/photos/unclevanya/sets/1305179/

I absolutely love poplar trees, so the Tall Poplar Trail in Patapsco State Park is one of my favorites. It was a great day for it too, with an exceptionally blue sky peppered (salted?) with fluffy white, cotton clouds. Perfection.

Patapsco State Park, Maryland
http://www.flickr.com/photos/unclevanya/sets/1300522/

So, I bought a new camera. I have been saving for this moment for a little less than three years, using a crappy 2 megapixel camera (Canon A60 — its actually a nice camera) while I bided my time.

It’s a Canon 20d, a 8.2-megapixel camera that captures images up to 3504 by 2336 pixel. It’s twice the camera of either of my old film cameras (Canon EOS Rebel X and a Canon AE-1) and four times the A60.

The lens I bought with it (well, separately, not part of a package) is just outstanding. It was recommended by the Director of Photography at my job, who said it was the best lens he’d ever seen for under $500. It’s a Tamron 28-75mm f/2.8 XR Di, and the clarity is just amazing. Love it.

Anyway, I took my new kit down to the Arlington side of the Potomac River, and took some snaps. I’m definately having some problems adapting to the camera’s exposure — I’ve been cheating with the A60’s preview screen for too long — but hopefully it will all come around.

Potomac Heritage Trail, Arlington
http://www.flickr.com/photos/unclevanya/sets/1292152/

Turns out the Exabytes isn’t just passively evil, they are actively evil. After months of crappy service (long waits, broken english) their server started going up and down like a ping-pong ball. Well no more. I have swapped over to equally cheap ($7.95/mo) and infinitely better regarded (have 1 friend who doesn’t hate them) Lunarpages hosting.

Spent the entire weekend moving everything over, but most moved pretty easily (mySQL databases, files, etc). The only real problem is that I decided to recode the entire site from ASP (8 years experience) to PHP (6 months experience) because it appears that ASP is a dying language (not the reason) and that PHP is $1/mo. cheaper (the reason).

I redid the bulk of the navigation. The far right column used to be just pictures, but now it’s pictures and words. I suddenly remembered that navigation was supposed to help people navigate. It’s a stunning notion, when you pause to think about it.