Photo taken with Vivitar 24mm f/2.8

In past Christmas weekend, we did a short hiking in Don Edwards park near Newark and Ardenwood area of Fremont, California. And I brought along my Vivitar 24mm f/2.8 for the first time. It was a beautiful scene that I am happy to have my camera along in the hiking.

Last week ABC Wednesday is on Violet Chair

In support of teachers in Fremont Unified School District, I wrote the following letter to five board members of the Fremont Unified School District and among the five board members, two of them reply my support letter with explanation to the issues and I am here to support both the teachers and FUSD in getting what all teachers deserve -- a contract and a reasonable raise for their distinctive and honorable profession and great care for our youngsters.

Dear School Board members of Fremont,

I am writing to you all to show support of our teachers in Fremont. My older boy is in Kinder Garden in Fremont. It is the best school that I am so grateful everyday knowing that my boy is in good hands with wonderful teachers and principal of the school. From time to time when I drive my boy to school, I sometimes joke with him to exchange role as I really love the class and his wonderful teacher. I find it more fun to be in his shoes learning from his special Kinder Garden teacher.

And it is mind boggling for me to hear about the issues of not having a contract for the teachers and let alone a reasonable raise to cover their recent increase of insurance deductibles. I may not know all the details about the issues, but I really want to write you to show my concerns as well as full genuine support for the teachers. If there is any profession that the Almighty asks me to bless for a financial rewarding career that makes ends meet plus some, I will pray to Him to give the best to teachers as they are the best guardians for our little ones to teenagers, who are our futures to take care of America and live the American dreams with generosity to help all people in all nations. We as parents have full support for teachers to have their reasonable benefits such as having a raise and contract to cover the mind wrenching and non-stop increases of health insurance costs. If the board has to cut corners in balancing the FUSD General Fund Ending Balance of $28,674,737 in 2007, please cut somewhere else but not on the salary increase that every teacher dearly deserves in FUSD. Please cut on the quality of toilet paper if you have to find a way to solve the problems.

I hope you bear with me on the frustration and perhaps misunderstanding on my part to the issues that you have. And please give your care and most attention to your kids' guardians. I am referring to the teachers of your own children, please think for a moment that every teachers who are in the schools that you drive your kids to in the morning are deprived of a salary that make ends meet, just imagine how thankful and motivating we as parents are telling the guardians of my beloved children.

Sincerely yours,
Hin Man

Wordless Wednesday

Last week on My Morning View

I pass by this Cafe every night and it opens late till midnight. I am very happy in shooting with FA 50 f/1.4 in the night. It has jazzed up all my energy better than the aroma of the espresso. I only spent 20 minutes for the series and I wanted another hour and I had a hard time leaving the night scene

All photos taken hand-held with Pentax FA 50 f/1.4

Free WiFi attracts a lot of students

Bay Street Coffee at night

Broadway West Theater on 2nd floor

Bay Street Coffee in Fremont

Last week ABC Wednesday is on Korean Lunch.

Thursday Challenge

I took this shot with Fuji F30 last year during Olive Festival in Fremont last year. Time goes very fast and it has been a year that I have owned Fuji F30 and I still have not managed to finish the blog post on my thoughts on Fuji F30. It is a great point & shoot camera for taking snapshots and a perfect compliment to digital SLR types of camera.

Correction: The photo was actually taken with Casio ex-z750

I have some unplanned sunset pictures when I happen to have my camera bag with me yesterday at pre-school meeting for my younger boy. Sunset picture was taken with Pentax K100D and Pentax DA 50-200.

I am yet to tell about my worst photographic session as a amateur enthusiastic with new Pentax gear. I am way over my head in learning a difficult lesson that there is seldom a second chance in photography. It was about three weeks ago with National Night Out event in my neighborhood in which I volunteered to be the main photographer. Everyone of my neighbors is very supportive of each other and they all cheer me up for my love of photography. I was tireless that night preparing 2 main dishes after work for pot-luck dinner in front of a beautiful antique house and I shot 40+ pictures on a band playing jazz music and the gathering of 50+ people and with firefighter engine visit from the city of Fremont.

I skipped dinner in the event for the wonderful sunset shots with my Pentax K100D and Pentax DA 50-200. In every shot with my Pentax, I could see the success and hear the lovely shutter snap echoed in my K100D. The light was perfect on the front porch of a 180 years antique house with a wonderful jazz band and torch lights lid up in front of the cheerful and lovely audience. And the party includes all neighbors from my kid aged at 3 to graceful neighbor over 80+ years old. The scenes were more than perfect for photographic sessions that an amateur like me could have ever asked for.

I trust my camera completely as I have always had. It was not until intermission that I had to change to my kit's lens for faster speed into the darker evening. My FA 50 f/1.4 had not arrived that time, I was devastated to find out that I HAD NO MEMORY CARD in the camera. How could this happen! I did not get a 'no disk error' at all in all those 40+ shots. I was naive and stupid enough not to have a backup camera or any playback of the wonderful shots made in the better and brighter half of the event. I was devastated and I told my neighbor right after the event. My face was dark and red and many negative thoughts ran through my mind and I felt for ages in that minute of discovery. My neighbors sure cheered me up with 'no worry' and I had not told anyone except my friends in dpreview forum for the first time with this blog post. My first hardest learned lesson in photography -- always check photo with playback and never ever carry a camera without a memory card.

I did not take any pictures with my Pentax in the rest of the event. I was plainly devastated for my mistakes and I kept myself in solitude and despair. After taking some food from the pot luck, I gathered myself for the last minutes' photo opportunity time using my Fuji F30 to photograph the band in the dark trying to salvage the memory for the wonderful evening of music, food, fun, friendship, and good neighbors.

Pictures are taken with Pentax K100D and Pentax FA 50 f/1.4

1. IMGP1461, 2. IMGP1437, 3. IMGP1460, 4. IMGP1458, 5. IMGP1456, 6. IMGP1446, 7. IMGP1449, 8. IMGP1448, 9. IMGP1445, 10. IMGP1434, 11. IMGP1452, 12. IMGP1435, 13. IMGP1451

I have always wanted to take pictures of St. Joseph, Mission church that I always pass by on my way home through highway 680 in Fremont. It is right in the junction between Mission and Washington Blvd. It has a beautiful door and hence I pick this Door for the Wednesday Photograph on 'D.' As my good friend WalksFarWoman puts it beautifully in her comment

"Doors are wonderful when you think of who enters them

and how they feel when they leave them. Great idea. "

1. IMGP1446, 2. IMGP1457, 3. IMGP1444, 4. IMGP1452

Links:

• BlogCatalog discussion
• Last week on 'C'
  
  

Photograph ABC on 8/15/2007:

• Downward Dog | Dracular's Doorway |
  Dahlia | Door | Drummer | Darts
  Dandelion | Department Store | Dump Truck
  Derelict | Dilemma | Debris |
  Dinghy | Deers | Salty Dogs |
  Salty Dogs Extra | Driving
  
  

I have this photo sitting for about 2 months in my Fuji F30. Once I put some retouching in Picasa. The light blue sky comes out very pretty and unique. I wish to go back to that park next spring near Highway 84 and Ardenwood in Fremont.

Related Posts:

• Picasa 'I am feeling lucky'
• Fremont Photos
  

While hiking in Mission Peak of Fremont, we ran into a ranch with two friendly horses. My kids had so much fun feeding the lovely horses. Children are full of energy and laugh and I can see excitement in the pictures. Pictures taken with Pentax K100D and kit's len Pentax DA 18-55.

Our family had a pleasant visit to the Olive Festival in Fremont. I learned about the festival from Mission Coffee that I visited last week. What a great treat from visiting events that are annual. And I love the jazz band playing very nice music all around the event.

Again, I have my p&s in my backpack and I like all the displays on olive products and decorations with artworks. Only the first vendor that I visit prefers no pictures and I have then learned to ask courteously for the rest with a smile and honest compliment to their products.

Fremont is a great city full of activities for the family. It is a city that I love living in. It just had a 50th anniversary in in central park. And I only managed to have a single picture in the event due to a very short visit because of family matter.

I took a right turn after dropping off my older son for pre-school in the morning. I visited this coffee house the very first time even though I had driven by this place many times before. What a special treat! It is a very special place indeed. I thought it was a small coffee shop, am I so wrong before. It is very spacious inside and it has the best coffee that I have tasted in Fremont. How can I not know about this place. This coffee place is full of character and it is one of a kind in Fremont.

It is very odd that sometime we take a different turn in our life and we meet something totally awesome to one's imagination. I thought visiting this coffee shop was the best treat of my day -- a very different day indeed. My next treat in the coffee shop is to bump into Sue whom I had worked together in iPlanet time, a joint venture between AOL/Netscape and Sun Microsystems. It is the best treat for me to meet an old friend that I have not seen in about five years. Since I met Sue, I went back for the 2nd visit with a cup of 'Don's Blend' and time flies when I talk to Sue. What a place and what a great treat for me for a different turn on a road that I drive everyday.

My neighbor organized a national night with barbebque right in front of my home. I enjoy it very much. With invitation to Fremont city, two police officers play us a visit -- you see one picture of me in handcuffs -- ooops. It is all fun last night. Mom, mommy and kids stayed out of the party for fear of smoke that Ben may get allergic with his Asthma -- it would have been more fun had they been there too. I am glad to have my old camera Olympus c-3040 as a backup at home becasue Carmen has taken my beloved casio ex-z750 to the Golden Gate Park.

I make a salad and drumsticks for the party. And the salad is done in 15 minutes and it actually looks better than what is caputred in the picture. I am very impressed with the look but I need to work on the taste as I put in too much apple vinegar.