Quackster the Duck

So some of you may know Quackster the Duck who lives in my office at Emblemax. My father sent him over in a package a few years ago and he has played an important part in everyday life here, but he almost left us to join a salesman friend who had craved his company. He came close to departing but after the death of my father, I was reluctant to see him go and so he stayed. I was going to publish a photo book to send with him when he nearly left Emblemax for good, but since he stayed, the book sat unfinished on my computer hard drive. It seemed a shame for it to languish unseen and unread so after having brought it up to date, here is Quackster's story:

 No one really knows when Quackster was born, but when he was, it became very clear that this would be no ordinary little duckling.

 He burst forth from his shell, quacked very loudly and promptly waddled out from the hatching room to join his brothers and sisters in the field.

Quackster loved his family and fit right in. He rarely questioned why he was a little different, just occasionally asking sometimes why he was the only one with a purple bow tie.

He kept up with everyone else in all activities but the only thing he was completely hopeless at was ice skating. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stay upright. But he never complained that he fell down more than the others. After all, at least he didn't get bruises like they did.

But as time went by Quackster became restless, and one day he chatted to his parents about how he'd love to see the big wide world and have a go at all those things he'd seen people do on TV. He especially wanted to travel a bit and maybe one day have a proper job.

So Quackster packed up a backpack and headed up the hills and down the dales, stopping every now and then for a paddle in a lake. He passed through many towns and met many wonderful people until eventually late one night he stopped at a bar where everyone seemed to be having a good time.

He partied hard with his new friends and became the center of attention with his quacked up sense of humor.

 Enjoying his new found popularity, he became quite a hit and was happy to try new hobbies and trends. Eventually though, he tired of having just fun and started to think about his wish for a job.

Scouring the local papers, he hunted for positions that would eggcite him and quench his thirst for knowledge. He applied for one in particular and crossed his feathers hoping for good luck.

A few days later, Quackster received the letter he'd been waiting for, an invitation to work for Emblemax.

Before the end of the week he was working full time and was soon learning the ropes in all the departments. He loved quality control and took his job very seriously.

He even had his own print room and could knock out a printed t-shirt in under 3 minutes.

Quackster was very particular about maintenance and quickly spotted printer errors. He would quack furiously until someone came and fixed the problem.

His imput was valued in the company and Quackster became a regular at the weekly meetings. 

But Quackster's life was not all work and no play. He soon made a name for himself raising money for charity at derby duck races and local fetes.

He even became a mascot for the Anaheim Ducks. He had taken many lessons to improve his ice skating skills and the Ducks were delighted when he offered his services.

But always he returned to Emblemax and his friends there, happy to have found his niche in life. And here he remains today, ever popular and ever quacking. Drop in for a visit, he loves meeting new people!

A Birthday and a Battleground

For the weekend we headed back up to Centreville as Rob was going to meet the Sterling crew and help celebrate Scott's birthday.

 Scott, quite deservedly, had a massive chocolate cake from the Cheesecake Factory. Debbie counted the layers and I think it was 8. Yummy! We played a practical joke on the others saying we were going to get stuck in, just the two of us, and we both had large spoons with which to start the attack. Jim actually believed us and tried to make us feel guilty by not sharing with the others. Like that would work. Not.

Scott and I are the Bestest Chocklit Buddies in the Whole Wide Weld, and nothing will come between us and chocolate.

Note Rob's face as he monitors our progress. He was a very dark horse and unbeknown to Scott and I had decided to scarf his down faster than us both. I was feeling quite green and not managing to complete my slice, Scott was struggling bravely with his, but Robert sucked and vaccuumed his plate and proudly showed off his gleamingly clean dish with a triumphant grin. Scott and I weren't quite sure how to deal with that so we didn't.
After cups of tea to soak up the cake and lots of chatting, Rob and I departed for some horizontal relaxation on my sofa and so he could undo his belt no doubt after that copious chocolate consumption.
Sunday was a lazy hot day and not wanting to do much in the heat, we decided to go to Manassas Battlefields. It was a first for Rob so it was fun to show him some of the sights. We went for more of a stroll than a hike, but in the blazing sun I really didn't mind.

The house above was caught in the middle of the battle crossfire and Judith Carter Henry, an old 85 year old bedridden widow became the only civilian to lose her life in the battle as she lay in her bed, unable to move.

Stone House which served as a refreshment stop for travelers, a tavern, a residence, a post office and also a refuge for battle casualties during the Civil War.

Rob's customary 'thumbs up'!
He came up with the idea of a couple of trick photos so as usual he did the easy stuff, posing for the shots, and I got to go home and come up with the results. C'est La Vie!

We used the Stonewall Jackson Memorial as the prop. Please forgive me for knocking him off of his horse! I'd done some research previously on the internet and found that the way a horse stands has a particular meaning. One leg raised means the rider died LATER of wounds caused in battle, both legs raised mean that the rider was KILLED IN BATTLE, and all four legs on the ground means the rider died of NATURAL CAUSES. I checked Stonewall's cause of death and he died of pneumonia after being accidentally shot at the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863.

Fireworks in Louisa

On Friday, Rob drove up to Centreville to pick me up and take me back down his way. It was great to have a break from the driving for a change and I relished being a passenger, relaxing as the landmarks swept past. We stopped in Orange to grab a late lunch at the Hornet's Nest and I enjoyed the huge burger above while Rob woofed down meatloaf.
Later, we headed over to Louisa where the firemens fair was taking place with fireworks later in the evening. We hopped onto the Big Wheel snapping photos from the top. And I mean snapping as I now only have the iPhone as my backup camera so I was not expecting big results. But I was pleasantly surprised as most turned out OK and although could never be blown up into large prints, were fine as snapshots with some editing.

We met up with Lance, Nicole, Hilary (their nanny), Declan and Ripley and wandered round to watch Declan ride a few of the attractions.

 Here he is with Mom Nicole on the Dragon. He'd been on the Slide previously and was gradually building up his confidence. He even managed hands in the air on his second spin on this ride. Daredevil!

 Lance with Ripley who smiled the whole time and didn't show an ounce of fear at anything, whether it was bright lights or loud noises.

 Declan spent a lot of time on Rob's shoulders brandishing a sword with blue lights.

 The fireworks started and we were amazed at how close we stood to the firing zone. As rockets zoomed upwards, debris fell down and landed like fallout onto us standing below, so much so that a few times I was unable to look up because there were so many cinders floating down. Declan was a little nervous at first but once he realized his flailing sword could eliminate the bangs and prevent the firework trails from reaching us on the ground he was happy to sit aloft on Rob's shoulders and protect us.
We parted company soon after the display and sleepily headed home, aware that timing had been perfect. As we approached our car, rain started sprinkling from the sky and before we'd been on the road for 10 minutes, the heavens opened and the storm broke.

July 4th Weekend part II

On Sunday and Monday, Rob and I took things really easy. We had trips to get ice cream, visits both days from his son's family and plenty of time just relaxing. The camera didn't see too much use but on Sunday as we came back from an ice cream trip, we passed the new scary truck site so I was compelled to take a few more photos.

It was parked closer to the road this time and seemed to almost pull out as we approached. Why does this chunk of metal scare me so? Heading back to the house we lazed some more and Rob drove the tractor out of the barn so we could sit on the porch and look at it. Country life! 

Even Kota has got into some of our routines and contentedly sat and looked at the tractor with us for a while. As darkness fell, we set up the hammock and I prepared some bloody marys, thanks to Lance who gave us an excellent bottle of vodka.

 We'd gone to his house to pick it up and I had a couple of tasters while there, getting the feeling that this was a guy I'd like to party with. It may well happen further down the road. I must point out that I have no idea how the Hersheys chocolate syrup sneaked into the photo but it didn't make it into the drinks.

 Rob cooked a couple of massive pork chops on the grill and once we'd stuffed ourselves with them and leftover potato salad, we topped up our glasses and headed for the hammock. Rob disappeared for a bit and then emerged with his West Virginian fireworks for our 4th of July evening. I was howling as he pulled out a book of matches, lit one and threw it in the air, whistling as it arced to the ground and then clapped his hands as it landed in the grass. It was one of the funniest things I'd ever seen and he even made me partake in the grand finale, whistling and clapping as the last match hit the ground.
Monday was another lazy day and once again I was in the hammock while my better half ran to the store for bacon. I saw his car approach and lifted my head as he overshot the parking area and continued to drive over the grass towards me. He swung the car alongside the hammock and thrust a bouquet of yellow, white and orange flowers out of the car window at me with a huge smile. I nearly bawled. This guy knows how to romance. Totally awesome, and we're not finished. He then went indoors and came out a couple of minutes later with an orange popsicle as he knows I love them. What a hunk. Love you, babe.

 A little later we went for a stroll by the Rivanna River near one of his plants. It was beautiful and because the heat was so intense, I pulled off my shoes and socks to paddle in the shallow water.

 Tiny fish darted back and forth while butterflies fluttered over the sandy beaches. We had the place to ourselves and it was paradise until Rob called to me while I was in the water. I heard the word camera and looked down to find my G10 was submerged. What an idiot. I shook off the water, pulled out the battery and card and laid them out on a rock to dry. I managed a photo of a butterfly a little later but the camera died again. I refused to let it spoil the day and afterwards we went for ice cream before heading home.

 

I tried again back at the house and managed the shot above of Rob. This was the last photo from the G10. I haven't fully accepted the fact that it's died yet but am acutely aware that I now only have one camera left. Oh well, at least it wasn't the 50D that took a dunking. Despite my camera loss, I had another great weekend, especially since I didn't see or sniff a single paint pot. How long will this last?

July 4th Weekend part I

After reading previous blog entries, Rob decided for some reason that he'd been overworking me and that I needed an idyllic weekend. Not one to argue, I readily agreed and continued to lay in bed after he'd gone to work on Saturday. After another couple of hours of deep sleep, I decided to rouse myself, munch a hearty breakfast of tea and peanut M&M's and then get into the car and drive the short distance to Lake Gordonsville. 
This lake is a stone's throw from Rob's and also his neighbor's house, yet neither of them knew where it was. I took great delight as a stranger to the area in smugly giving them directions.
I quickly put the kayak in the water and joyously paddled like crazy to burn off some energy causing small waves to lick up the sides of the boat. I then hung my legs over the side into the cool water and leaned back to soak up the sun. Looking around I saw that nearly every bank of the lake was buffered by blankets of lily pads and white flowers.

 It really was very pretty and looking down into the water I could see dozens of baby fish. There were some fishermen in small boats but nobody seemed to be having much luck. I paddled down the length of the lake and discovered that the last 5th or so of the water was completely covered by lily pads. Not a problem for me but it would be for any water craft with a rudder. As I sat back I became aware of two beavers playing in the water. They were leaping like dolphins out of the water towards my boat but as they came close they changed direction, moving swiftly out of sight. I didn't bother trying to photograph them. The image in my memory would be far better than any rushed effort with the Canon and I wanted to enjoy the moment.

 I also saw blue herons and ducks and even a deer came to the water's edge to chew on some lilies. The air was silent apart from the continuous popping of the lily flowers, even the fishermen were quiet. After a couple of hours the heat became unbearable so I headed for the shore to load the kayak back onto the car.

Arriving back at the house, Kota started pleading to go outside so we both went for a walk.

He found a great scratching pad in the front yard and sharpened his claws for his little adventure. We headed down the path to the creek and Jim's pond where we met Jim returning to his house on his mower. While we stopped to chat Kota sought sanctuary in the shade under Jim's trailer and waited for us to finish talking, just leaving a cream tail visible that swished back and forth as if to say, 'Hurry up with your chat.' After a few minutes, we carried on walking down the trail and I was aware of Kota panting in the heat. He flopped under a shady tree once we reached the water so I let him rest a little.

 On the way back, I hoisted him over my shoulder from where he purred happily for the rest of the journey. We got back to the house and I noticed a humming from the front porch.

 Some wasps had decided to make a nest under the eaves so I called Rob to let him know, deciding Kota and I would stay indoors until he came home. I felt very relaxed as I lay on the sofa and before I knew it, Rob came through the front door waking me up from a deep sleep. We headed out to the porch where he zapped the wasps' nest with a spray causing chaos and I contributed with a scream.
Back inside, the main man delighted me with a wonderful suggestion of going to the Skyline Drive to watch the sun set. How romantic, I was so thrilled. We quickly bundled our dinner of BBQ pork, potato salad, coleslaw and beers into a cooler and drove to the mountains.

 Rob found the perfect spot for the perfect view and we unpacked our meal, sitting on the wall waiting for the show to begin. We definitely could not have had a better location, the view was spectacular and as the sun slowly dropped down to the horizon, we played with my camera and held the glowing orb in our outstretched hands.

We waited until the sun had completely disappeared and the colors had muted into the night sky before we headed back. I could not have imagined a better way to end the day, and it was all the more wonderful for me because I'd not expected anything like it. Aren't I lucky to have such a thoughtful man?
I'm happy.