Father's Day

Let me start by saying my Dad, Fred Kurth will be 87 on his birthday in August.  He's always been spry, active and a bit of an adventurer.  His work has taken him all around the world including a memorable time in Morocco 27 years ago where he met and married my step-mother Najia.

So, when he landed in the hospital in early June for no known reason, we were surprised and distressed, never having thought of any infirmities connected with him.  And why would we?  He was always fine, "a wiry Texan" as Ed likes to say.

But things had piled up - new medications, a move into a 55+ (!) housing development in Fredericksburg, Virginia, some knee trouble, maybe a little too much stress and whamo - there he was - in the hospital for five days.  That was a bit of a wake-up call for us all and my brother Rob and I decided to drive down to see him last weekend.

My youngest sister Miriam is living at home and another sister Sarae had flown to Virginia from Tucson to help while Dad was in the hospital (she had to go home, alas, before we arrived).  My other brothers, Richard and Peter, and my sister Barbara all called with support, but Rob and I were the only ones able to take off from work and visit.

We were so glad we did.  Our Dad was pretty pretty worn out when we arrived, looking, um, OLD!  The time in the hospital had depleted him, he'd lost 10 pounds and seemed exhausted.  He has lots of caring people around, though, Najia, Miriam, Abdeillah, Najia's brother and other relatives in Fredericksburg who come by to visit and help out.

I think the experience of the hospital made it important for him to talk and we all enjoyed that.  My Dad was always pretty reserved when we were growing up, though he's mellowed so much since his marriage to Najia.  He's that rare man who can really talk about his feelings.

I'm glad to say that, during the short time we were there, Dad perked up a lot and seemed to get his appetite back a bit - he's always loved to eat, although where he puts it is a mystery.  We joked a lot about that, recommending a pumpkin pie diet until the lost 10 pounds reappeared.  No worries there - Najia is a fabulous cook - check out the beautiful couscous dish with lamb, cabbage, potatoes, eggplant, fava beans, carrots and onions.

Rob and I hadn't actually been WITH our Dad for Father's Day in many years, but just called him because of the distances. So Sunday and Saturday (my birthday, oldest child, and all) were very special for us all.  We were able to talk about important things - I'm not all that sentimental, as you may know, but I felt very close and connected.  We are so grateful to Najia and her dedication to making Dad's days so safe and happy.

Have a great summer, Dad.  Ed and I plan to visit again at Thanksgiving.  Keep up the exercise so we can all go for a jog!

Photography Fun

What do photographers do for fun, you ask?  At least, those of you who think our job is ALL fun, no work?  Well, I have to say that, although we do work hard, our connection to other photography pros is one of our most valued connections.  Most of us work alone or with a spouse, so having the chance to bounce ideas, sort through problems and laugh at what we all go through is a necessary part of our lives.



So Ed and I packed a book shelf onto the car (to drop off with son Anthony in Fairlee, VT) and headed down to Charlie Parker's birthday party in Quechee on Sunday.  It mostly rained all day, but Charlie's studio was perfect, full of great food and friends.

Charlie had asked us to go through some of the old photographs we had entered in competitions over the years and find those in the "WHAT WAS I THINKING???" category.  Most of us have earned or are working toward a Master of Photography degree from the Professional Photographers of America, so we've put our hearts on the line for years to have our best work evaluated and judged by the experts.  In hindsight, there were always a few bloopers in the mix, so we got a real kick out of setting up a mock judging panel and putting prints up for comment.

Charlie and Donna Goodhue were really courageous and brought their senior portfolios from the Rhode Island School of Photography.  I can't believe they save all that!  For me it was a good chance to sort through and GET RID of a lot of old competition prints I had been dragging around - why?  Memories of old triumphs and blue ribbons, I guess.

Anyway, thanks to Charlie, Meg and Adam Parker for a hilarious and heartwarming afternoon!

A Visit from Philip

Our grandson Philip Davis was in town for a quick visit on Friday.  He's up from Bradenton, Florida where he's a sophomore in college, studying to be a high school English teacher.

His Dad, Ed's son Will and family moved back to Vermont in January and this was Philip's first visit since then.  It was a whirlwind trip - first to Portland, Maine to see his aunt Lindsay, then a few days up in Fletcher, VT with Will, Rachel, Keely and Emily, then lunch and a few hours with us before heading to a friend's graduation party last night and the plane home this morning to get back to his job.  Whew!  Hope he can get some sleep on the plane!
 

It was great to catch up with him, even briefly.  He's one of those very busy kids, always on the go.  He plans to take a year or two off after college, maybe to travel, teach ESL somewhere, be out of school for a while.  Always a good idea, in my opinion.  Real life and responsibility come soon enough.

This morning Ed and I went to breakfast at Libby's Diner (one of our favorite breakfast spots) with Philip's other grandmother Diane McArthur, also up from Bradenton.  She and her husband Phil have two other grandchildren here, so they are fairly frequent visitors.

So here's a photo of two out of Philip's three grandmothers, along with Ed and Philip in E-Sreet MX tie-dye from Uncle Scott's track in Yuba City, CA.  If you know Ed, that's his dressed up look.

Crazy Cat Ladies, Etc.

I drove to southern Vermont for a meeting on Sunday and later had a visit with my beautiful friend Julie.  It's raining in this photograph - can you tell?

Anyway, she and I and another dear friend Lesley had a fabulous dinner and more margaritas than was good for us.

Julie's house is a refuge for animals, in the best sense.  Full of rescued cats and dogs (and clean as a whistle, may I add - she must spend half her life tidying up).  The feline population is  always between 8 and 12, plus a collie and a Newfie.  Julie is very big-hearted and loves all those animals unreservedly.

I am a pet owner, too, as you know, and have always loved cats.  I am more reserved with dogs, but they've grown on me over the years.  I know, I know - man's best friend.  But my personality is more suited to the cerebral, aloof demeanor of cats.  They're not really brainy, I suppose, but they can sure fake it.  Here are just a few of the permanent house guests:

I headed farther south on Monday for a board meeting of the Professional Photographers Association of New England (PPANE).  I have been on or connected with the board since the early 90s and have made some of my best friends in that group. 

Photographers are pretty gregarious on the whole and since we mostly work alone or with other family members, it's great to network and share ideas with other crazy people in the same boat.  Kidding, Nancy, you're not crazy.  A lot of the hard work of PPANE gets done in these board meetings and you can see from the photographs how glamorous it all is.

They're not all big showoffs, but I am, so here's a photo I've always wanted to have taken: