Photo 365 - Geek Culture Day

As a celebration of Geek Culture Day, I programmed an Arduino board to send the message "Hello Geek Cultures!" in Morse Code. The plural on cultures is because there are so many different ways of being geek- find yours and embrace it. A video of this code running has been posted to below for your enjoyment.

Photo 365 - Sunny Day

A nice sunny day in America.

Photo 365 - Back to the Future Delorean

I didn't start the day expecting to see a Delorean decked out in Back to the Future style. But there it is! Nicely done, the interior featured appropriate renderings as well. And yes, that is a person dressed as Batman in the background. Don't ask.

Photo 365 - Carriage Hills Paved

Been a while since I've posted a "Pic of the Day". Golf course development continues, here's a shot from the fairway.

Photo 365 Project - Minneapolis at 5 Miles

A weak picture of downtown Minneapolis from 5 miles south. It's from a phone camera not designed for distance, but a keeper because the sun has come out after days of haze.

Photo 365 Project - Cat Under Tree

It seems cats in general, not just this one, love sitting under a Christmas Tree.

Photo 365 Project - Snowy Deck

OK, the snow has stopped. But I don't think we'll be dining outside today.

Photo 365 - Snow Dog

You've probably heard of sun dogs, well here's a Snow Dog in fresh powder.

Photo 365 Project - Just Add Curb

More progress in the new Stone Haven development (formerly Carriage Hills golf course, this road going through what was a club house into the driving range).

Photo 365 Project - Reflections Two

Given the view in this photo is facing North, What's wrong with this picture? That isn't a sun rising on the horizon, its a reflection off a couple buildings appropriately named "Reflections". They are an interesting pair of buildings; their LEED certification (translation: environmentally friendly construction and energy efficient) may explain the highly reflective nature of the curtain-glass walls. I walked into my office at just the right time to catch the sun rising and reflecting at an angle towards me.

Photo 365 Project - New Road

Time to walk back to the former carriage hills golf course and see how things are going. There are well defined roads now, this one goes through the former club house site. It's being built with what I call the Suburban Curve. I think there is a rule that suburban roads cannot be straight, it distinguishes the 'suburbs' from the 'city'. Or something like that.

Photo 365 Project - Ground Fog

Another sign of the changing seasons - Ground Fog! It's hard to get a good picture on the fly. Sure you could stake out the perfect spot (maybe a picturesque golf course), arrive before sunrise and wait for the light to be just right. Or you could be just waiting to turn onto a street after picking up some coffee and snap a picture through the windshield of your car.

Photo 365 Project - Tree Shedding Leaves

We've had an odd fall anomaly in my neighborhood, all the trees were changing colors at once. Usually a few will go early, then the die-hards will follow suit. Not so much this year, but that seems to have passed. The green faded and the tree's true color stood out for a while, now that has faded too and the dry leaves are falling. Without a strong wind you get scenes like this one, a lone tree with its leaves piled underneath and green grass everywhere else. The grass will be the next to go; the green will fade to brown then turn blazing white as it gets buried in snow. Stay tuned for those pictures, perhaps far too soon.

Photo 365 Project - Frosty Leaf

It's getting colder in the North Country. This little leaf caught some frost overnight in the lawn.

Photo 365 Project - Golden Trees

Not quite a yellow brick road, more a golden tree drive (with an amazon man shadow in the street, at this time of year near sunset my shadow is 27 feet long).

Photo 365 Project - Ditto Lawn

If this photo were taken a couple months from now, Ditto Dog would be on a field of white snow.

Photo 365 Project - New Street View

Looking closely between the bulldozer and dump truck you can see a line of sticks with pink flags and fire hydrants. That, my friends, is a future road through what used to be a golf course.

Photo 365 Project - Crops Are In

In June I took a picture of this area as a freshly planted field. I was thinking I'd get back during growing season, taking pictures as the field grew. Summer was busy, including a trip to a farmers market where these kinds of crops get sold. Here we are in the fall, some of the crops have been harvested but there's still more coming in.

Photo 365 Project - Renaissance Fair

It was time for the annual Renaissance Fair picture. Each year I take one outside the main entrance. This particular Reni Fair is outside the Twin Cities. It was started in 1971, making it one of the oldest and largest in the United States. But what does Wikipedia know? What I know is its big. Permanent buildings and performance spaces make for a well attended six-weekend event where people party like its 1499.

Photo 365 Project - What $11 billion buys

Just in case you were wondering what could be done with a little over $11 billion dollars, I give you City Center, Las Vegas. It covers 76 acres, and was originally estimated to cost $4 billion (whoops, I thought my estimates were sometimes off). Multiple towers are connected by walkways inside and out, bringing the 2,400 condo units, 4,800 hotel rooms, unknown number of stores, resturants, and theaters into a "cohesive" complex that is more like a city unto itself than simply a construction project. Bisected by a tram system, the whole thing is a marvel. If you're into engineering and architecture, it is a must see. FYI, the Veer tower on the right in the photo above (actually a pair of towers, only one is visible in the picture above) appear to be leaning not because of sloppy camera work...they actually are leaning.