Mike's Playground

April 2006

This photograph from 1971 may explain why I did not pursue a military career as a medical supply specialist. It was taken at Carswell AFB Regional Hospital in Fort Worth, Texas. My victim,below, was a character named Sgt. Jeffrey Tipps. Our fighting motto, as I recall..."those who pull supplies also serve". We were not exactly the Green Berets.

I need to get out and shoot some more pictures. Since we are travelling very soon, I have gotten lazy. Here is a sketch effect applied to a photo of my friend Paul. I promise to get some fresh material out here soon.

This is Bo. He is just about six weeks old right now. We are picking him up in a couple of weeks from South Carolina. Bo may eventually be called Leroy or Spike, but for now it is Bo. The name is based on the name given to Alexander the Great's favorite horse, also known as "Big Head". I am sure you get the drift here... Gracie was a 'bobble head' too. I hope she likes her new brother.

Okay, after that crass display of famous people, back to more normal stuff. This is the National Art Gallery in Washington, DC. That guy in the leather jacket is me going up the steps. It does give you a feel for the size of this building. The inside is just as fantastic. We were greeted with paintings by all the European masters just within a few steps of the doors. It was terrific.

We didn't shoot too many pictures inside the National Art Gallery, but this bust of Louis XIV, the Sun King of France, I could not resist. Louis XIV was one of my favorite subjects in college.

Charlotte shot this image at the foot of the Capitol building. This was done on the day I had to attend the conference, but I think it is a beautiful image. Since she is slow to publish on her own blog, I grabbed it! Oh, come on, now you get to see it too, and there is this notion of community property to cover me. Anyway....

This is the Vietnam War Memorial. Some of the people you see are taking rubbings of the names on the wall. It is sobering to think those names on the wall are my contemporaries.

This is a close-up of names on the Vietnam War Memorial. Along the wall, there are occasionally flowers left by friends and family members.

One of the speakers at the Washington DC conference I attended was Colin Powell. Each of the attendees got a chance to speak briefly with the General and have a picture taken.

A few years ago I was allowed to meet Madeline Albright, the Secretary of State under President Clinton, at a PeopleSoft event. I was impressed by her wit and energy, and felt very fortunate to have the opportunity to speak with her. Ms. Albright is, as you can tell, a very small person. Her personality is very much the opposite, however.

While I am on a roll with the famous people, I will throw this one in, too. I met Bob Dole and Al Gore at a conference a couple of years ago, also. I thought they each had a good sense of humor, and was delighted to chat with them at a reception after the event. My dad served in the Army with Bob Dole. He occasionally would meet with Dad when passing through Fort Scott.

This was the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknown soldier in Arlington. The guards take their work extremely seriously. It is a very impressive military display.

Charlotte shot this great picture of Congress. I did have dinner at the Library of Congress one evening, right behind this building. I saw original documents written in long hand by Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, and a Guttenberg Bible. Washington is a wonderful city for history buffs.

We loved the houses in Georgetown. Our sense was that Georgetown college students lived in some of these, less-grand models. At least, that is what we guessed from the pizza boxes and beer bottles outside.

Okay, maybe not a lot of college students could have afforded these houses at Georgetown. It was great fun just to wander the streets.

It helps to get a sense of scale to see someone with the Lincoln Memorial. It is very memorable.

Me at the FDR memorial. Oh, come on, you would have done it, too!

My buddy Paul from Dallas visited this weekend. Gracie and Paul became friends instantly. Paul thought it might be because food sticks to his beard.


This was my favorite memorial in Washington DC, the FDR Memorial. While a hike away from the main exhibits, this was a highlight of our trip.

A view of headstones in Arlington. The layout is essentially the same as the national cemetery in Leavenworth, or even Fort Scott. The dignitaries buried there are significantly more famous. Did you know Arlington used to be owned by Robert E. Lee, but was confiscated after the Civil War? Me neither.

Gravesite of John and Jackie Kennedy. We were surprised how modest this gravesite appears. The eternal flame, as it has been labeled, is really a hole in the ground with a gas pipe. I don't think this is a political comment. Maybe it just proves the leveling impact of mortality on the great and the common.

A view of Georgetown University, as we walked over the Potomac bridge. We hiked all over the campus. It was uphill both ways, but worth the effort.

A nice shot of the Korean War Memorial with reflections. This is a stunning war memorial, and captures the eerie quality of a specific moment in war.

The Lincoln Memorial. This is also an incredible monument, leaving a somber feel. Lincoln is not 'beautified', but the impression is of strength and dignity.

Charlotte took this picture of me at the Jefferson Memorial. It gives a sense of the size of the monument.

A beautiful view of the Washington Monument and WWII Memorial, including reflecting pools.

March 2006

We spent most of last week in Washington, DC. Here I am at the Washington Monument. We will put together a gallery in the next week or so, but need to catch up on other things from the travel.

Visiting Leavenworth made me think of Alcatraz in San Francisco. Charlote and I toured Alcatraz inside and out. Even as a tourist stop, it was not a very welcoming spot. We did learn that sharks were not the escape deterrent we thought. The cold water of the bay was much more of a lethal threat than sharks.

We are finalizing plans for our summer trip. Europe looks like it is definitely out for this go round. We are looking at Charleston or a cabin in Tennessee. This photograph is from a vacation in San Francisco at Pier 39, where the sea lions have taken over completely. You can see the Golden Gate Bridge in the background.

Both of these portraits were done at the Plaza Art Fair in Kansas City. Neither of the subjects are real, but the artist clearly mastered realism.

This is a stylized version of one of my favorite photographs, taken in old town Edinburgh, Scotland. It is Mary Queen's Close. The blue colors and effect matched the mood of the original photograph to me. I remember the exact instant it was taken very clearly. We toured the underground old city with a terrific college student guide. The current city was built on top of the even older city, when it was abandoned due to plague.

One of the great perks of having a Boston Terrier is that they like to sleep in the bed, under the covers, preferably with their heads on the pillow. At least I think it is a perk. Gracie is a very spoiled bulldog.

This is the only photograph I have ever seen of Grandma Jackson with her family. The names are listed along the bottom in order. These people are buried in New Lancaster, Kansas, and Drexel, Missouri for the most part.

This is a photograph of my grandparents, Martha Elizabeth Abney and Peter F. Jackson on their wedding day, February 21, 1907. This photo was sent to me by Mary Lou Trowbridge along with a dozen others.

A picture of Grandparents Peter F. and Elizabeth later in life. I notice Grandma has the same style dress on in most of the pictures taken in her 70s. I was very close to my Grandmother as a boy. My grandfather is mostly a photograph memory, though I clearly remember the smell of the cigars he smoked.

Grandparents Peter F. and Elizabeth Jackson. The picture of Grandpa was taken in 1953. It is possible the child he is playing with might be my brother Pat.

My dad's parents headstone in New Lancaster, Kansas. The day my grandmother died is very clear in my memory, though I was only around 12.

Headstone of my great grandparents in New Lancaster, Kansas. I notice Peter would have been 20 at the start of the Civil War. I would like to research to see if he fought in the war. I tend to think we are a family of soldiers, and this would be an interesting piece to the theory. Minevera by legend was blind, and raised a family despite this challenge. My Dad did not speak of his grandmother kindly, though I know only one or two stories. Minerva died Aug 11, 1934, indicating this photograph was taken before that date.

Uncle Jim and Uncle Jake with Grandpa Jackson. I believe the child might be Uncle Jake's son, Frankie.

Bottom Lef is Edwin Trowbridge and possibly Mary Lou. Top Left is unknown, Jim, Peter F., and Jake Jackson.

Aunt Lucille with Bill and Alice Massie. Dad used to say his parents took Bill Massie in as a child and treated him as their own. Eleven children simply didn't provide enough farm hands, I suppose. Such generosity was common, I understand, and repaid over and over. Years later, Dad farmed a little bit with Bill Massie as a way to make some extra money.

Dad's sisters Mary Belle, Blanche, Lucille, Nellie, Dina, and brother Jim.

My dad as a schoolboy. The inscription said simpy "From Miss Hazel To Bud Jackson". Dad would be the tall boy in the back.

Blanche and Edwin Trowbridge on their wedding day, along with Jim and Hazel Jackson.

Uncles Jim, Jake, Grandpa, Bud, Charles Shumate, and I believe a Shumate daughter.

Robert, Kevin, Geraldine, Kathleen, Patrick, Bud, Mike. This is one of the very few photographs of all of us together. We had this taken more than 15 years ago as a gift for our parents.

I am experimenting with a special effect using pictures we took in England.

We went to Atchison, Kansas today. This is a Catholic Benedictine Convent just inside the city, Mount St. Scholastica.

One of the grand homes in Atchison, converted into a museum, the Muchnic art gallery.

CJ at the train depot in Atchison.

Gracie and I at the Missouri River in Atchison. A friend asked me if we ever let this dog's feet touch the ground. I had to laugh. We do, but the perspective for photographs is better if we are holding her.

Gracie and CJ at the Missouri River in Atchison. There is a very nice little walkway along the river, leading to a Louis & Clark memorial. Gracie had just spotted a stranger walking nearby, and was trying to decide whether or not this new person might be carrying dog treats.

This is the national cemetery in Fort Leavenworth. My parents initially planned to be buried there with their son, Wayne. Wayne was moved to Fort Scott after Mom and Dad changed their minds.

A corner guardhouse at the federal penitentiary in Leavenworth.

The federal pen at Leavenworth. It is hard to comprehend just how big this place really is unless you drive all around it. Today was visiting day, with lots of wives and kids in the parking lot.

The main entrace to Leavenworth prison. This is a very imposing place.

Gracie as our own Boston patriot!