colinwoon

I hope everybody had a great Christmas holiday. I know we did! Uh-oh, I'm bragging, am I? Life's short.

Faye and I visited some good friends in the Washington DC area and for the first time, we had a white Christmas. Yup, the real snow, unlike the 1" of snow we had in Houston a few weeks ago.

I can wake up to a view like this every morning. Wait, no I can't, I don't mind looking at it but I do mind dealing with it.


White snow and blue sky...what a view!


We manage to get some ski time on this trip too! This is where we were on Christmas eve, Wisp Resort, Maryland. The view from our room - can't get any closer to the ski slope than this.


Some shaky video to show too. I was going faster than I had hope, thus the shaky video.

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It is a cold and busy day in Houston, city vehicles are out spraying chemical onto highway to prevent icing. Some businesses shut down for a day, some meetings canceled, some appointments postponed, all because it's snowing in Houston. Yes, Houston, we have snow, and that's a BIG DEAL.

My facebook page were flooded with messages and status updates about snow in Houston. And photos to prove.

I'm doing my part right now...

While friends from the north (especially the few friends from Canada) wonder what's with all this commotion about, it's just snow. Well, that's because, in Houston, we see more hurricanes then snow.

I was outdoor wearing shorts last week and today, this?!


More please...

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Congratulations are due for 2 cute couples! Tying the knot this December, Sandy and AS. And then in January, Kristy and CC. Both couples are good friends of ours for years. We're really glad this is finally happening.

Since pre-wedding photos are not common around here, something about groom isn't supposed to see future bride in wedding dress before they walk down the aisle. Some says doing so will cause bad luck, some says it's just another excuse created by guys so they don't have to go shopping for the dress with the girls ("Honey, is this ivory better than that ivory?" -_-! ). Whatever the reason is, no harm staying with tradition. So we just went for a casual outdoor photo shoot, something to make it a part of the wedding experience.

Beside, this will give me an opportunity to test out my new lens and sharpen my skills.

#1 - A beautiful bride to be, Sandy. Who would have thought a walkway next to a construction site can be a good spot for photography.


#2


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#4 - "I will own you soon..." Sandy didn't say that, I did, hehehe...


#5 - I don't have anything to do with this pose, they thought of it and I like it!


#6 - Another beautiful bride to be, Kristy. The reflected sunlight on the white wall makes great fill light.


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No, not the dirty stuffs...just a little lens p0rn for those who's into photography.

The Canon EF24-70mm f/2.8L!!! Yes!!! Finally an "L" series lens in my arsenal!!!

A gift from Faye for washing the dishes being a good husband. Also because I became a little wiser that day.

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"Trick or treat, give me something nice to eat!" - That's the best line I heard the whole night while giving out candies to angels, monsters, fairies, super heroes, cheerleaders, etc., and helping various dentist business at the same time.

#1 - Janine & Benjamin, dressed & ready to hunt for candies.


#2 - A young gangster, I think.


#3 - That's actually tattoo sleeve on their arm, pretty cool huh?


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#18 - I just love it when kids volunteer their smile for the camera.

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If you ask most people to fly to a city 1600 miles away and then driving back in a newly acquired car, you will probably get responds like "HUH?", "Are you CRAZY?", "What's WRONG with you?", etc.

To me, the same question will yield an enthusiastic "OH YEAH!!! When do we depart???". Especially when the acquired car is a Lotus Exige!!!

#1 - Off we flew to Los Angeles to pick up AS's new slightly used Lotus Exige.


#2 - The beauty, sitting at the seller's garage, waiting for us. AS is like a little kid at the candy store when he first saw the car. I bet I would too if I'm buying this beauty!


#3 - A little protection is applied to protect the car from rocks and bugs we might encounter through the mountain and dessert area.


#4 - Okay, a lot of protection. AS will probably want to cover the whole car with these special tape if we had time.


#5 - Greeted by the rare Los Angeles rain as soon as we hit the highway in the evening.


#6 - And the infamous LA traffic jam too.


#7 - Roughly 600 miles and 10 hours later, our stop for the night at Tucson, Arizona. Arrived at 3am in the morning, departed 6 hours later with well rested eyes and full stomach.


#8 - Yep, it's 80mph but we're not speeding. Some stretch of the highway actually has speed limit at 80mph, way out there in the no man land.


#9 - Common encounter through out the trip, cargo train.


#10 - Common theme of the journey, vast lands, straight roads, mountain range.


#11 - Other than the occasional pee pit stop, it's mostly drive and sleep which is the main reason why I missed some interesting captures with my camera.


#12 - Yet another cargo train.


#13 - You know this car is cool when a 6 years old kid tells you, "I really really like your car.", yes, with 2 "really". Or when guys give you a thumb up as you pull into the gas station. Or when a girl tells her girlfriend, "Now that's a good looking car!"


#14 - The 1.8 liter engine at the back of this car produces 190hp which is capable of propelling this 2000lb machine from 0 to 60mph in 4.7sec, and yet it still can achieve 28mpg on the highway. I have never driven a car as quick and as responsive as the Lotus Exige. It's not the most comfortable car but it's definitely the most fun to drive. I want one too!


#15 - We're finally back in Texas again but still hundred of miles away from home.


#16 - Sunset hours.


#17 - Finally, road signs to city we're familiar with.


#18 - One last photo before the light fade away when taking photos in a moving car near impossible.

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