The weather on Tuesday was sublime air temperatures in the mid-tens; about 15ºC. Much of the snow in the backyard had melted, but the grass and ground sill felt soggy underfoot.
The weather on Tuesday was sublime with air temperatures in the mid-tens; about 15ºC. Much of the snow in the backyard had melted, but the grass and ground sill felt soggy underfoot. Still, I wanted to satisfy my urge to be outdoors. I had been inside for far too long during the cold, grey and snow damp weeks of January and February. I am still looking for new contract opportunities, and without work to distract me, being at home was affecting my mental health. I was tired of the fluorescent glow from the iMac's display. I wanted to feel some natural light on my face. I decide to hike the Aunt Molly Trail on St. Michael's Preserve.
Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄400 sec at f/11 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄280 sec at f/11 | ISO 400
The first part of the trail was a mixture of ice, water, mud and snow slushy. But once I got up the steep incline near the brook, things changed as the hiking trail opened. The sun fell and soaked my face in cosmic rays of warmth.
Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1/1400 sec at f/11 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄350 sec at f/10 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄750 sec at f/11 | ISO 400
The trail changed to a crunch layer of packed snow. I could see that many other hikers had trampled the snow and packed it onto the trail.
Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄350 sec at f/11 | ISO 400
Despite the warmer weather and exposure to full sun, there were large patches of snow. In some places, there was still so much snow that I could not see the trail.
Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄250 sec at f/7.1 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄500 sec at f/11 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1/2500 sec at f/2.8 | ISO 400
In other areas, the leaf biomass's warmth and the lichen had melted the snow to reveal green patches, not just from the Holly.
Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1/1250 sec at f/2.8 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄40 sec at f/13 | ISO 200Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄180 sec at f/2.8 | ISO 200
I could hear bird song even as the trail changed from ice and snow to mud and ice and ice and water.
Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄500 sec at f/2.8 | ISO 200Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄90 sec at f/11 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1/1700 sec at f/4.0 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1/1800 sec at f/4.5 | ISO 400
Then the trail changed again, mostly mud and ice. The trail was less open and more claustrophobic, lined with leafless trees and shrubs. I could see pockets of green lichen on dead branches and the base of trees.
Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄4700 sec at f/4.5 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄550 sec at f/9.0 | ISO 200Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄750 sec at f/9.0 | ISO 200Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄250 sec at f/9.0 | ISO 500Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄850 sec at f/9.0 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1⁄450 sec at f/9.0 | ISO 400Tuesday 9 March, 2021 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF27mmF2.8 | 1/2900 sec at f/9.0 | ISO 400
I was mildly concerned that I could no longer tell if I was still on the trail, that I might be wandering off. It was then clear again, and soon, I was back where I started and ready to head home.
If insanity can be defined as doing the same thing over and over again but expecting a different result, what is living the same day over and over again called?
I found myself reading about Fujica 35mm film cameras, and a short while later I was on eBay looking for used Fujica ST801. From what I read, my SMC Takumar lenses are compatible with the Fujica ST801. But I don't need another film camera body.
What I can use is a macro lens. I wanted a macro lens back when the lockdown started but the one I wanted, the Fujinon XF80mmF2.8 R LM OIS WR Macro but it's a $1200 lense, so I waited. I may have waited too long. Finding a used XF80mm has been challenging, and the used prices are not much lower than for a new one.
The air was cooler this evening. Our dinner at the Brick Farm Tavern was terrific as usual.
This week WordPress 5.5 "Eckstine" was released. I upgraded my website, and things immediately went sideways. But the problems started earlier, on 6 August, after I upgraded to JetPack version 8.8.1.
I didn't suspect JetPack 8.8.1 as the cause at the time, but my website was slower, and unknown to me, the upgrade broke the connection between VaultPress and my site was broken. JetPack is required to use VaultPress properly. Still in the dark on the issue, on 11 August, I upgraded to WordPress 5.5, and everything broke. My website went offline until 15 August when I recovered manually from a backup I downloaded from VaultPress.
I want to express my gratitude to the web designer and WordPress consultant Daniel Brinneman for his help in brainstorming avenues of troubleshooting.
At some point, after I calm down, I'll write up a longer post on what I think happened, what I did to recover the website, and lessons learned.
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