My youngest turns two years old today! the runs and laughs and jabbers away. She loves soccer, putting on bracelets and necklaces, dinosaurs, books, raspberries, puppies, cute shoes, and shrimp. She dislikes diapers, changing time, and taking a walk in the stroller if the stroller is not headed to the park!

Logan shares a birthday with my father and one of my dear friends. Today it is all about her though. I have the day off and we are headed to the Baby Gym for playtime and for ice cream after. Tonight there will be family and friends, cake, and presents.

We did her birthday photoshoot at Crystal Cove State park and she had a ball! the light was perfect and our photographer was great. Here are a couple snaps from my iPhone. It will be a couple weeks before we have the files and I can hardly wait!!

My dad would have been 91 today. I miss him very much and think of him, what is reaction might be to something, and what he would say in any given situation almost every day.

Happy birthday, Daddy.

We lost Truffle today. It was peaceful. She wasn’t in pain or scared. She laid down on the porch beside my wife this morning after I had left for work and just never woke up. It has been a hard day. I was her person and I loved her very much.

I knew she felt so-so this morning. Instead of popping right up to go outside and then into the den for morning snuggles, she wanted to be a little closer to me and under the warm blankets. I snuggled her a little extra before my shower, with belly, neck and head scratches. She was a little shaky when I picked her up and out of the bed, but that sometimes happens first thing in the morning because she was getting a a little older.

I had been at work for 3 hours when Laurel called and said that she was pretty lethargic and seemed sick. Truffle has had cancer 4 times and she was receiving palliative care for the latest diagnosis. It had been 9 months and she was doing pretty well. Laurel called 30 minutes later and was at the vet and it was bad. I took an Uber strait to the Vet’s office and she was gone. I got to pet and kiss her one last time. She was my girl. My underbite princess. I have never loved a puppy like this – not in my whole life. I am just really sad.

We adopted Truffle in 2014 in Toulouse, France. She was less than a year old and was meant to be a friend and companion for our Boston terrier, Brodie. I let her sleep in our bed the first night and that was her assigned place for the next 11 years. She had to be touching you, no matter what you were doing: watching TV, reading, working on a computer, on the toilet… if you were still, she had to be on you. No matter how much you were petting her, you needed to pet or love her more! Truffle was amazing with Logan. She was so sweet and so gentle.

Truffle was so soft with the kindest deep brown eyes. She was built for snuggling and she LOVED kissing. If you got too close or too comfy, she would lick your teeth. Really. Her tongue was out almost all the time. She was beautiful. She was smart. She was loved.

The need was urgent, consuming
It was coming
A dash through the door and an escape into my sanctum Santorum
Rapidly I sit
What is that?!
A look, a touch, realization, horror!
Seething anger. 
A little deer-like pebble of doo-doo upon the seat of my throne. 
Now smashed and attached to me
Hard words. Dirty words. 
Who has done this!?!
This injury!  This violation. 
No one admits fault. 
No one knows how it got there. 
I think it was the toddler. 
I HOPE it was the toddler…
Disgruntled.

In Haiku Form:
Urgent call of fate,
A Throne marred by betrayal -
Silence cloaks the blame.

Took three camera out this weekend to take some pictures of a local VW – the Igloo Buss at their US Headquarters in Costa Mesa. I ran a roll through the Hasselblad and Rolleiflex and snapped a couple of pictures on the Zeiss Ikon to finish up the loaded roll of 35mm.

Happy with the light and the subject! pulled my van in to add it to some of the shots and will make a video of the entire process.

jkdjf

We have been in California, the new house, and new shop for 10 months. Progress has been slow. We have a Toddler and I have a Jobby-Job. I have been organizing, throwing away, moving, and rationalizing tools and supplies in the garage (woodshop) and the machine shop/forge a bit more lately. I am still not there, but I am working at it.

It has been hard not having a shop that could be worked in. I have so many things that I bot want and need to do. I have replaced forging and cabinet making with a little machining, some baking, and lots of photography, but I long for a shop that I can make sparks fly in.

Hammers and tongs are all clean and waxed and up near the power hammer. Tool boards in garage and shop are installed and MOSTLY populated. Still looking for a few tools that are scattered about in still unopened boxes.

C-Clamps and jigs are up in the welding/fabrication area. The 2″X72″ grinder belts are finally up and out of the storage drawer, and ready to use.

Again, coming along slowly, but it is happening.

It is well documented and known amongst family and friends that I love taking pictures with real film. My newest camera was made in 1983. Using film, especially black & white stock, makes me happy, but life gets in the way sometimes and I have not been using and enjoying my film cameras – it has been mostly digital work for the last couple of years.

So, I have challenged myself to take at least 1 roll of film a week, intentional shots, multiple cameras, film only, color and B&W, for the entirety of 2025. A re-acquisition of skill, love, focus, and reflection. A challenge that I have laid down for myself. At the end of the year, I want to take one shot from each roll and my favorite images, document the camera, settings, subject, and location for each and have a book made through Shutterfly or Mixbook. Just for me.

I feel blessed. Christmas this year was full of love and great food. Our home was warm and dry and we shared the holiday with friends, my mother-in-law came in for a few days, and my son and his wife spent 7 days in California with us.

we went to the beach a couple of times, cruised Hollywood Blvd., ate at Roscoe’s, went to the La Brea Tar pits, punched paper at the range, toured the Huntington Gardens, talked and laughed and had a big time!

Lots of bread and pies are being made and consumed as Christmas Day arrives. I do love to bake and someone got a new KitchenAid Mixer from the fat man in the red suit this year!

I killed my last sourdough starter. like forgot to feed it in the back of the fridge for like 8 months. I love baking bread, but was so swamped this summer and fall that I just didn’t stop and take a little time to make a loaf or two. I would cringe when buying bread at the grocery store, but just did it in the moment, had some self loathing, and told myself that I would make bread “next week”. Next week took a while, but just before thanksgiving, I decided to just make it happen.

The new starter was 1st. A week of feeding, cutting, feeding and BAM! Sourdough starter done.

Next was making the dough, folding, rising, proofing and cutting with my new super boogie lame (dough knife) that I got at Make Camp this year.

And then we had yummy fresh bread. I have made a loaf a week for the last month, have been making sourdough pizza crust, pancakes, and am keeping my new starter alive and well fed.

My Father-in-Law is a Buddhist and on a 2+ month trek in India and Nepal, staying at temples, ashrams, and monasteries. It think it is part vacation, part practice, and part pilgrimage for him. He had the opportunity to meet the Dalai Lama while there – no really!!

This is a huge deal! not only for him in the religious aspect, but also because of geopolitics, timing, and the future of the position. I know how much this meant to him and how happy he was! I am so happy and proud for him!

On the day we learned about his visit, we happened to be at the Fullerton Arboretum and took this picture in front of a tree that the Dalai Lama witnessed being planted. I sent him the picture 🙂

One of my many trades is baking. I love to bake: Bread, pie, cake, tarts, you name it! I bake an apple pie most years for Thanksgiving, but this year someone else was bringing the apple pie to our gathering, so I was asked to make a blueberry pie and “something else.” I chose Buttermilk pie.

Both were hits! most of the folks at Thanksgiving had never had a Buttermilk pie and there was not a crumb of either left. I really only bake for folks I love and to have it appreciated makes my little heart go pitter-patter.

Now, I am going to have an apple pie for thanksgiving and I had my doubts about the pie that was randomly promised. Was the crust going to be homemade? Would they use Crisco or Lard or some BS margarine?! What kind of apples would be in it….? Now I am not a complete ass. I didn’t bake an apple pie and bring it anyway. No… I baked an apple pie and left it at home for us to eat with turkey, stuffing, and ham leftovers.

Because I have this pie problem, I also have a pie basket made by a sweet amish woman that signed the bottom. It holds two pies nice and snug. I may have a problem…

It is the time of year that the evenings are fantastic in SoCal for grilling and eating outside. After way too long of a wait after our move, I finally got the Grozny pizza oven up and running and we have been having Saturday night pizza parties with friends.

The oven burns propane or wood, but I have mostly been running it on propane to make everything from Margarita, to Chèvre Miel (French creme fresh base, goat cheese, and honey drizzle) to pepperoni, to Hawaiian, and even Banana/Nutella desert pizza! Chicago style sourdough crust and all baked for ~90 seconds at 950F

In early 2023, Dr. Ross Brown and I started talking about a “Grand Whisky Tour of Scotland”.  Though it started as a “we ought to…” and quickly progressed to a “we need to” discussion.  We both love Scotch Whisky, Ross had never been to Europe and Scotland is a gentler introduction to the other side of the Atlantic than France or Germany, and as I am of Scottish descent (~55% according to family lore and 23&Me: Duncan, MacHam, and Baird) I will take any opportunity to roam the hills, glens, shore, and consume Aqua Vitae at the source.

It took us a year and a half to align schedules, buy airline tickets, research distilleries and Scotch, obsess over logistics, and pour over maps.  Multiple guide books were bought and devoured for general itineraries, historic sites, and “cant miss” spots on the map. 

Both of our work schedules were nuts and the days and nights leading up to the trip were crazy busy dealing with the daily details that would allow us to check out of everyday life for a short stint.  On September 11, 2024 we left the US for a 10 day tour of Caledonia!  

The itinerary was shuffled on day two and we were met with blue skies and perfect weather every day that were tour Scotland, with the exception of one drizzly morning and afternoon.  We drove our huge RV on tiny roads through Edinburgh, Sterling, Speyside, the north coast, Inverness, Loch Ness, the Highlands, the Isle of Skye, and Glencoe – sampling Uisge-beatha na h-Alba the entire way.  

I can be the quintessential tourist, with multiple cameras slung about my neck and in my pockets, whipping out a light meter, or setting up the “perfect” shot. I am aware of how annoying this can be for the people with me, so I limited myself to one 35mm camera, one lens, my iPhone, and a GoPro.  I brought rolls of slide file and 400-3200 ISO/ASA B&W film to document our travels.  Ross, to his credit, was so patient and didn’t complain even once when the camera came out or when I had to swap film constantly.  

We have been adventuring and traveling together for over 20 years and get each others strengths, challenges, and quirks.  We had a blast taking turns driving and navigation and, our RV laughing for 850 miles of some of the best Scotland had to offer.

A fine trip, fine company. stunning scenery. great whisky, and memories that will last a life time.  We also brought back more than a few bottles of scotch – all stuff that you can only get at the distilleries.  Five bottles came home with me, all carefully packed and padded.  I picked up one bottle of Glenturret especially for my son, who is coming to appreciate Scotch.  I try to help foster an appreciation of the good stuff.    

To say ‘thank you’ for letting me be a camera nut, I made a 50 page photo book from the shared album of both of our pictures after we got home.  Thick paper, matte finish, and hardcover.  Not cheap, but worth it as a memory of the trip and experience. I made it online with Mixbook after doing a couple evening of research.  I don’t have a discount code or get anything from sharing who I used.  I think that I am going to start doing a yearly “best iPhone photo dump as well. So that I have a physical copy of the 1TB of photos that live rent free on my phone.

We live in California, therefore we should go to the beach! I had an afternoon off an instead of doing adulting related things at home, we loaded up and headed for the sand.

The van is great for weekends and weeks on the road, but it EXCELS at day trips! Load it up with founders, coolers, snacks, toys, and gear and Glamp the day away. WE chose Dana Point, because you can drive right up to the sand, the fire pits are usually open, and it is 40 minutes from the house (if no traffic).

We spent hours playing in the sand, relaxing, walking the Surfline, finding the best rocks, building sand castles, and making Godzilla noises as they can crashing down…

Logan LOVED it all! The beach was a big hit!

Laurel, Logan, and I went to the Orange County Zoo and the Irvine Regional Park Pumpkin Patch this past Sunday. It was nice to be home after so much travel and the weather was perfect! Logan had a big time! Laurel got soft serve ice cream, and I played cameraman.

Mornings in Fullerton involve coffee, nest making, Blippie on the TV, and a pile of the three ladies that are my life: Laurel, Logan, and Truffle.  This is the routine.  

I was having a little bit of a hard day yesterday (Sunday).  I miss my son.  I want to hang out with him and just do dad stuff, but he is grown and lives 3000 miles away.  I sent him a note and tried to call, but he was tied up. 

To take my mind off it, I did some work in the yard, swapped a battery in the van, and went for a long walk with Logan.  We then played and read books until nap time.  We napped and I shot a picture of her snuggling that made me tear up.  I love her!

Carlton texted me back that afternoon and we talked on the phone.  Hearing his voice, laughing together, and spending time with Logan made my heart a little less heavy.  I am looking forward to Christmas when I will have them both under my roof – at least for a little while.

2024 was my second year at Makercamp and again, it did not disappoint.  It was a great time, I got to see blacksmiths, carpenters, printers, fabricators, photographers, YouTubers, and makers that I know as well as meet a bunch of new folks.  I bought a few things, made a coffee scoop, riveted together a fish spatula, fixed an electrical issue on a resort-owned golf cart, snagged a few freebies, had my picture taken by the amazing Mark Adams, checked out some tooling that I would like to buy from Coal Iron Works, snagged some letterpress prints for my shop wall.  Drank a little too much one night, roasted marshmallows, danced a little, did not do any Karaoke, ate fantastic food, and drove around the Catskills on my final day there before flying to a series of off-site meetings for my day J-O-B.  

I want to do it next year with my wife and daughter (We will be Karaokeing!).  The rooms at the Blackthorn are rustic and that is being generous, so, I would love to rent an RV for the weekend and make a long trip of it!  My two ladies will be more comfortable that way.

I sold Grünhilda, my 1990 Diesel VW Syncro Doka pickup.  She was my unicorn.  It hurt a little, but she went to a good home – literally placing 3rd in a VW show a week after she was delivered.  

Why did I sell the Doka?  Because I have too many vehicles and too much shit.  The stuff I own has started to own me.  The Doka was my biggest ticket item and the ting that had the quickest sell potential so the for sale sign went up, I made a sell/tour video for YouTube, and I listed her on a couple of VW sites.  She sold sight unseen to a retiree and VW collector in Mobile, AL for full asking price in three days.  Four days after the deposit hit my account, a transport company was at my door and the balance was in my hand.  

Before shipping, I have her a bath, cleaned her bed and interior, applied a little wax, and made a video for the new owner to document the starting process, keys, optimum running condition (exhaust temp, boost, etc.) and put that up on YouTube as well to limit the amount of after-sale calls that would come my way.

I still have the 1987 VW Syncro van, Schnitzel, and the 1986 CJ-7 Jeep, Pepper.  I need to put a new fuel pump on Pepper and new tires and will use some of the Doka sale cash for that.  The rest will pay some bills, a bit to Logan’s college fund, a spa day for my wife, and the rest into savings.

After my father’s funeral, we spent the weekend in Austin.  Carlton and his wife, Belle, were there with us (Me, Laurel, Logan, and the best auntie in the world, Emilie).  We threw down on some BBQ and TexMex.  Strolled the streets and shops downtown and found our way to the party on 6th street.

It was a good time, regardless of the occasion that brought us together.  I loved having Carlton and Logan close enough to snuggle both at the same time! 

We held the final graveside dedication for my father, Robert A. Burns, on September 20, 2024.  It was my birthday and was 2 years and 5 days since Bob’s passing.  I have had time to mourn, grieve, laugh, get angry, research, 2nd guess, plan, analyze, cry, and love Bob during that stretch.  I am in many ways grateful for it, the time, though I don’t know if I would have planned to draw the process out for so long if given the option up front.  

The Memorial Flier:

Bob is buried in the Texas State Cemetery, which is akin being interred in the Arlington National Cemetery for a Texan.  He rests diagonally from Jerry Jeff Walker and about sixty feet to the left of Chris Kyle.  The process to get him interned there was neither fast nor easy!  There was some bureaucracy to hurdle (Bob would have hit at least one feller in the mouth if he would have been present) and then there was an issue with his headstone: any and every monument in the cemetery is considered a State Historic Monument and has to go through a design approval process before work can even.  It is not a fast process… Also, when the final design was approved, the man carving Bob’s head stone was an artist and “would not be hurried!”  

Then there was arranging schedules for all the folks that wanted to be there.  The Newberry’s had two son’s graduation college, one going to Marine OCS, The Talley’s moved to California, The Bryant’s had a trips already scheduled here and there, my job was laced with travel, assorted cousins had summer vacations and illnesses, friends were scattered on various trips from Portugal to Maine.  In the end, we settled on a date that mostly worked for everyone.  A day that was 1 day after I flew in from Scotland and the 51st anniversary of my birth.  I made it work.

The cemetery staff was amazing!  They closed the cemetery for us from 9AM-2PM and gave us run of the reception hall and ornately furnished receiving room (leather chairs, bronze statues, and oil paintings on the wall).  The weather was hot, but the skies were blue.  Over 40 folks made the trek into Austin to honor Bob.  There was a duet performance of Sweet Beulah Land by his former wife, Katie, and his best friend, Joseph. A piper played Danny Boy as the service started, amazing Grace during the service, and then a Taps/Scotland the Brave after the Marine Corps Honor Guard fired a 3-rifle, multi-volley, salute and the flag was presented.  Some of us spoke and there was more laughter than tears.  Fajitas were served afterward because Bob was partial to them.  He would have loved the whole affair.  

As I said in my eulogy of him that day, I miss Bob. I miss his pipe, his drawl, the boyish twinkle in his eyes when he was being naughty, his cigars, his stories, that index finger stabbing into the table in time to emphasize a point he was making and I mourn the missed opportunities, the memories never made, and despise the thief of time that came with his sudden and untimely passing.

Laurel and I took Logan to the Sherman Library and Garden in Laguna Beach a couple weeks ago.  I think that the garden gets prettier and prettier each year.  The flora changes with the seasons (if you can call them that in SoCal, and it is a new garden 2-3 times a year.  We love it, first going there in 2004 and Logan loved it too.  She ooh’ed and awe’d over the flowers and butterflies and rocks and leaves.  I took my 35mm and my Rollei TLR and snapped a few pictures of both Laurel and Logan.  My two favorite female subjects to photograph.  

My wife had two friends come in for a long weekend and a trip to Harry Potter World at university City Studios was THE plan. I went along and had a great time. I was not drug there of made to go. It was fun. It was also fun being an adult at a theme park – you get to day drink in public! I MAY have walked around drinking Guinness for most of the day.

Hogsmeade!!

My wife went wand shopping

Hogwarts School