At the beach

Normally I would include the end of the surf in the photo as the foreground that finishes the shot. But this time I didn't include the line where the water meets the sand for one very good reason. That's where my toes were.

Fog and foreground

The morning started out socked-in but in only a few hours the sun took over. But by then I was long gone, enjoying the rays in spots farther north. This is San Diego socked in. And it isn't just to show that bad weather doesn't mean bad photos, it's to show what a difference foreground makes. One foreground, or two, or none, you, the photographer, choose. In this case, I can't decide. I like them all.

At the fair

More fun than the roller coaster, real life at the county fair.

To my senators:

Dear Utah Senators Orrin Hatch and Mike Lee:

You did not represent me when you voted against the imperfect but necessary debt measure.

You did not represent me when you refused to negotiate or compromise with other leaders in our nation who were trying to prevent the loss of confidence in America that has resulted from your ill-advised actions.

I am not a member of the tea party. I am reconsidering my affilition with Republicans.

America wasn't built from hard-headed refusals to compromise and close-minded demands.

Getting re-elected, Senator Hatch, shouldn't be more important than doing what's right for the country.

Being stubborn, Senator Lee, isn't more impressive than listening to all sides and considering all solutions.

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A tree and a lesson

At first it looked like the tree had managed to grow from a crevice in the rock. We'd seen it happen in other formidable spots in Southern Utah, and it always brought a comment or two on the amazing resilience, the fortitude, that would allow a little seed to become a big tree on so little water and so little space.

But then we saw that it wasn't growing from a crevice, it was growing from sand way, way, down at the bottom of a deep, deep divide in Bryce Canyon. It somehow found enough water and managed enough nutrients from the sand and grew until it reached the sunlight too.

You can learn a lot from a tree.

Happy Independence!