Here’s Julie’s report from Sept. 9:
“I am sorry it has taken me this long to give you an update. I moved the last box out of the FEMA Castle on August 25. Then on the  August 30 I had to put everything I could in the attic and on top of the kitchen cabinets because of Hurricane Gustav. Because of the job I have at present, I was required to stay at work from the 31 until the Sept 8. The house is fine and do not sustain any damages. I was afraid for a minute because the Gentilly side of the bank of the Industrial Canal was over topping. That is the body of water under the bridge that you crossed each day to get to camp. Anyway I had a few small branches and lots of leaves to get up. I am still very tired from work but all else is well.” 

For a variety of scheduling reasons, we were not able to get the family together to celebrate the event until this weekend, Sept. 6, 7. We spent Saturday afternoon/evening with our children, Sarah and Kevin, and Sarah’s boyfriend Chad, in Lake Geneva, WI. We took a boat ride on the lake and had dinner at the Geneva Inn. The dinner was exceptional, capped by the fact that the kids paid the bill!!

Sunday, we hosted the family for brunch, followed by cake, cookies, and conversation at our home. A highlight of the day was the cake, created by our magazine artist Elisa Kendal-Ward. It was quite a creation and the underlying cake was tasty. Here are a couple of shots of the cake.

From Julie:
I do not know if you saw Cathy and John today, but here are some pictures from last week. The floors look great, but I feel so bad that I had to work all week and this one is not going to be any better. We have a survey by the Respiratory branch of JCAHO, who is now using the tracer methodology to do the survey. The air went out last week but my brother says it can be on again before the weekend. Next Saturday is my birthday and the best present is being made possible by you. I will be moving the majority of my stuff out of the trailer into the house.
Love You, Many Blessings, and that is for Dennis also!

Just a line to say hello. My weekly progress is that I am still awaiting the Energy company to give me electrical power to the house. Cathy tell John I tried to copy his work in trimming out the doors. I put the flooring into the closet, but it will be almost as costly to put through out the house, so I am going to be learning how to do ceramic tiles in a couple of pay days. I have not taken anymore pictures mainly because I had put up plastic around the walls waiting for the ceilings to be completed with the popcorn. Christy the flowers are doing well!

Many Blessings!
Julie

Recently, I acquired a Canon Powershot SD1100 IS camera. The link takes you to B&H Photo, one of only two places with which I do business. The other is Allen’s Camera in Levittown, PA, where I got the camera. This little deck-of-cards-sized camera is simply amazing. I’m just starting to grasp what it can and cannot do, but its ability to nail the exposure in auto mode in just about every situation is incredible. It can easily blow highlights, which is normal for these small cameras, and will easily generate noise if underexposure reaches a stop or more, but in normal shooting conditions it produces sharp, clear, well saturated images.

I’ve also been impressed with its macro/closeup capabilities. Again it gets the exposure right and handles depth of field well. It’s much better at the wide end of the zoom range.

The image stabilization feature is also a big plus. I’ve had it help me deliver sharp images, handheld, at very slow shutter speeds.

Are there negatives? Definitely. The viewfinder is essentially useless. I have never liked composing with an LCD screen in full sun and, though this one is better than most I’ve seen, it’s still hard to see. The lens is susceptible to flare, so you have to watch what you’re doing in full sun. It goes through rechargeable batteries like water, especially with the LCD screen and IS on all of the time. I got an extra battery when I got the camera and am glad I did. Batteries recharge in about 90 min. so it’s not that big of a deal.

If you’re looking for a digital camera and want a small one, I’m sure that any of the several Powershot cameras in this size will perform as well as the SD1100. Mine is proving to be a handy piece of equipment that allows me to have a camera with me whenever I want one and gives me the confidence to know I can get good shots without my DSLR.–Gary

Here are a couple of shots from the SD1100. This first shot of a steeple had strong sun on the white steeple and a relatively dark cloud background. The camera nailed the exposure with only a few minor blown areas on the white wood.

This macro shot of a piece of tourist gift shop “junk” was shot handheld with flash turned off. I wouldn’t mind a little more depth of field, but the image is more than acceptable.

Many Blessings and much Love!”

If you’re wondering about our week’s work in New Orleans, let us know and we’ll fill you in.
Gary

New Orleans Katrina Flood Animation

http://www.julieshope.blogspot.com/