The wonders of nature

As I was driving home under dark low clouds I could see a highlight of sun south of my house. I kept driving another ten miles and as I topped the crest of a hill the spectacle before me cannot be described the sun was so brilliant that it was difficult to see the road. I know there must be ways to balance the contrast, but this is exactly how bright the sun and how dark the road.

She Walks on Water

Today I went to the marina to take some test shots with a Nikon camera that I have not used for five years. I walked out on the jetty expecting my dogs to follow me. When I got near the end one dog started barking. I turned to find the other dog had followed the path of least resistance, walking on the ice. I had to pick up the other dog to keep him from trying to rescue his sister.




Poor little doggie she walked around several of the ice islands not daring to cross open waters. the whole thing was frozen, but it did look like floating icebergs.

Portuguese Alcatra

Saturday Night Jerry and I had a fantastic Christmas party. Thanks to everyone brave enough share their talents. We ended up having an impromptu little concert since many of Jerry's students were in attendance.

I made a Portuguese specialty for the first time. Jerry's cousin made this for family parties and every time I ate the dish it was so delicious. This was my first attempt and it came out just like cousin Cecilia's.

I did not take a photo, because I loathe looking at pictures of beef, cooked or not.

ALCATRA

(pronounced Al-COT-ra)

One clay pot
I use a Romertopf, but Ikea has one for only $25

Beef roast of any size that will fit your pot.
Bacon
Onion
Red wine

These directions are for a two pound roast. Increase onion and bacon for every two pounds more.

Season roast with garlic salt and powdered steak seasoning of your choice
marinate in refrigerator overnight in ziploc bag
chop 4 slices (1/3 pound) of bacon into small pieces and cook until crispy and fat is rendered
Remove bacon from drippings and add roast.
Sear all sides of roast in hot bacon drippings
Remove roast and then saute one thinly sliced onion in bacon drippings

Soak clay pot in cold water for 30+ minutes
place beef, onion, and bacon in pot
Cover completely with half water-half wine
place uncovered pot in cold oven
set oven temperature for 200º
Top up wine and water mixture whenever the roast becomes exposed, about every 6 hours.

Cook for 3-4 days

At the end of that time the beef will be very tender and stringy.
Remove roast and use a fork to shred or cut into slices
Serve with the pan juices

Mom's Funeral

Many people called Lois Cortez "Mom". Although she passed away in August 2007 I never did post the pictures I created. I think they tell the story well.

Oklahoma Rising

Jerry is playing guitar on this song created for Oklahoma's centennial.

Ice

The Face

Reflection

Crackle

These sheets of ice are about three feet above the waterline

A Low Ceiling

The Reeds

Field of Ice

A Frozen Beach

Another Lara Johnston

Here is another video of cute little Lara. hard to believe that a 17 year old has this much vocal power. I believe this is a Marin Academy gig. The music teacher at MA is playing guitar, not Jerry. This really showcases the potential Lara displays.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2090123228484708761&pr=goog-sl

Lara Johnston sings "Let the Good Times Roll"

Check out the cool ending! Jerry heard this ending on the Louie Jordan version and the singers came up with their own cool arrangement.

Love and Marriage

The vows of marriage were exchanged this weekend by my niece Heather and her new spouse Alex. Best of luck to them both for the future. We think Alex is a great guy and his family is really nice. Heather is a lucky girl and Alex couldn't have a finer bride.

Headed to her fate

The flower girl tripped and spilled her petals. Luckily she had a little help from the ringbearers

Bride and Dad

The bride and her court

Lara Johnston Sings "Dance With Me"

The band:
Mike Mani - Keys
Bryant Mills - Drums
Terry Miller - Bass
Jerry Cortez - Guitar
Tony Lindsey - Backing Vocals
Amber Morris - Backing Vocals
Annie Stocking - Backing Vocals
Mic Gillette - Trumpet
Marc Russo - Sax

I hope you enjoy this great video and thanks to Lara's camp for posting it on youtube.

Stained Glass Window Ornaments

I saw this craft on the Carol Duvall show, but it is the best present I have ever given. People still comment on it five years later. How many presents have that kind of effect?

Stained Glass Ornaments

What you'll need:

• Circle cutter
• transparency sheets that are compatible with your printer. If you use inkjet allow the ink to dry over night. Print on the rougher side of the transparency otherwise the ink flakes off the shiny side.
• Clear glass globes (Craft stores have the best prices)
• tweezers

On the show they used actual images of stained glass rose windows. My twist was to use family photos. Start with fairly large glass globes. It must have a removable top where the hanger is inserted into an opening with a metal cap. Buy the globes first. Take a piece of white paper and estimate the circumference of the glass globe. Roll the paper up into a tube shape. Insert it in the opening at the top of the ornament and estimate how much bigger or smaller the circumference needs to be. It will take several tries, but it is worth the effort. Once you have the size nailed down the circle cutter will give you the exact same size every time. Another tip is to place the circle cutter on the side of the transparency that does not have the ink. There will be less ink rubbed off. I chose to print everything in a sepia tone for consistency.

The basic idea is that you print an image, of any shape, on the transparency and cut it into a circle. Roll up the image and insert into the ornament. The transparency will pop open and be viewable from both sides. Use the tweezers to manipulate the image into place. Spray a light glue inside the ornament and swirl a small amount of fine glitter. Top it with a bow.

I chose large graphic images like headshots or individuals, instead of tiny detailed pictures like family groups. I chose iconic kind of images like a baby peeking out from under a blanket or grandpa with his fishing pole. I did not choose posed school or studio pictures and the like. You can see bold images from across the room. Years ago Look magazine took pictures of my grandparents and I used those photos for my mom's ornaments. She like them so much that she made duplicates for her sisters the next year. My aunts were screaming with joy and crying when they opened their gifts.

Steps:

• figure circumference using white paper
• using your computer and white paper print several image sizes until you get the desired one
• print the finalized image on the transparency (I try to squeeze several images onto one page)
  
• cut out with circle cutter
• roll the image and pop into ornament
• manipulate with tweezers until straight
• replace top and hanger

There is a fine balance if the image is a teeny bit too small the image will slide around within the ornament. A tiny bit too big and it will not unfurl all the way.