Virtual-Doug

The First Memorial

During our recent trip to Angel Fire, New Mexico, I just had to drive down to road to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial on our last night there.   

This place has always had a special place in my heart – for obvious reasons.  Both the Mystery Guest Blogger and I are veterans of that war,  and of course, we both lived in Việt Nam as civilians in 2005-2006.  The chapel portion of the memorial was originally built by the late Dr. Victor Westphall in memory of his son, Marine Lieutenant David Westphall who was killed in action in 1968.  The memorial was first opened in 1971 – while the war was still being fought.  It long predates The Wall in Washington.

The chapel is striking in its simplicity.  Because the chapel is open twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, the building is always lit at night.  Sitting on a knoll overlooking the Moreno Valley, it is truly striking.  Inside is a small place where folks who lost loved ones in the war can remember them in a respectful silence.  I have learned that through his grief, Dr. Westphall became as appreciative of the Vietnamese people as I have become.  Before his death, he went to Việt Nam – to the site where his son died.  He left a small amount of dirt from the area around the memorial, and brought back some of Việt Nam’s earth with him to mix in with New Mexico’s.  Though his son died in a war on the other side of the world, Dr. Westphall became a man of peace.

Too soon I had to leave the mountains – but not before a quick prayer to tell Lt. Westphall and his father that I would soon be returning to Việt Nam.  But, I shall be returning to a country, not a war.

Peace – in the mountains.

Paradise Found – and Left

Mountains. 

I miss mountains in south Texas.

Even though it is called “The Valley”, there ain’t no mountains here in deep south Texas.  But there are mountains in northern New Mexico.  The Mystery Guest Blogger and I took a short trip to Angel Fire, New Mexico, to visit our property there.

As you might expect at this time of year, the weather is winterish.  After all, the village of Angel Fire’s elevation is 8,500 feet. The aspen leaves are at the end of the fall color cycle – just waiting for a strong wind to blow them off  the trees.  Most nights are below freezing in anticipation of the beginning of ski season.

(As always, be sure to click on each photo to see a larger version.)

The first full day we were there brought snow squalls and wind.  The ground was still too warm for the snow to stick to the ground in the valley where Angel Fire is located, but  I loved to watch the snow swirl and dance even though there wasn’t any prospect of building a snow man.  I used to hate cold and snow, but that was before I discovered skiing.  Now I watch the snow and don’t worry about shoveling it or driving in it – I just like to watch while its falling, and ski on it when the storm passes.

The next day dawned bright and clear.  God had deposited a big glop of marshmallow on nearby Wheeler Peak.  This photo was taken from the same location as the snow photo above.  The weather was so perfect, I just had to go for a walk.  In the late afternoon, all I needed was a long sleeved shirt and a light jacket – there was just enough breeze to make the air feel crisp.

I discovered that late afternoon is dinner time for hawks.  The trail wound through a wet lands area centered on a small creek.  High above the reeds and grasses were at least a dozen hawks.  I know absolutely nothing about birds – I mean nothing – but through the magic of Internet discussions boards, I have found out this is a juvenile female Northern Harrier.  I guess she was looking for some field mice to harrie, eh?  And this guy, I am told, is a juvenile red tailed hawk.  I guess if I’d seen the top of his tail, I would know for sure if it really was a red tailed hawk.  He seemed to be looking right at me much of the time.  I wonder if he was intrigued by the red hat I was wearing.

There is something that invites me to go for walks when I’m in Angel Fire – even at night.  Because the bears are looking for the last scraps of food to gorge on before they go into hibernation, I kept an eye pealed for any of the large critters rummaging around the dumpsters, but I didn’t see any bears.  With no bears in sight, I had time to look at the village from a different perspective – at night, before ski season starts, when it is quiet and little traffic.

Two days – that’s all the time I had in the mountains – much too short a time.  But, I’ll return.  The pull of New Mexico’s mountains is too strong. Thanx for the trip, Sis.

New Mexico

The Mystery Guest Blogger and I will be gone for a few days - off to Angel Fire, New Mexico.  It has been three long years since I've been there, and even though its for only four days, I am so looking forward to being in the southern Rockie Mountains again.  The low temperatures are in the 20s at night, and the air as dry as a popcorn fart.

I'll have a chance to reconnect with two of my siblings too, as well as long walks at night and family remembrances into the night.

See you next week.  I'll be out of Internet range - on purpose!

Flashbacks – the Good Kind

The assignment from the Progress-Times sounded fun.  I was asked to shoot to the story of a local high school’s program that prepares students for becoming Emergency Medical Technicians.

(As always, be sure to click on each photo to see a larger version.)

The class this day would entail learning how to load a medical evacuation helicopter.

And the helicopter would land on the school’s lawn.

I heard it before I saw it, but I soon saw the bird circling the area, the pilot looking for hazards – phone lines, piles of loose debris, and such.  I already knew the direction he would land as I had checked the wind.  Sure enough, after circling, the bird began its descent.  As anticipated, he flared at just about the place I thought he would.  I admit I thought about popping smoke.  Way back in the ancient wars fought in Việt Nam, we grunts would throw out a smoke grenade as our helicopters approached.  Not only did it allow the pilots to identify us on the ground as friendlies, but told the wind direction as well.

Once the bird settled on the ground, I took a pix of the pilot.  I saw the white beard, looked at the face and thought “This old coot is as old as I am.  I wonder if he flew Hueys in Vietnam.”  Sure enough, Vic had flown two tours – and the second was with the 1st Cavalry Division – the same outfit I was with.  It was fun thinking about the possibility that he may have flown in support of Charlie Company or that we may have talked over the radio a long time ago.  I found him to be very knowledgeable about the war – and he even expressed an interest in seeing the country once again.

But, of course, the assignment was to shoot a class – and a very different class too.  Besides the pilot, there were two other crew members on board – both medical professionals.  Working with their teachers and the crew, the students discussed the safety aspects of landing a  helicopter, as well as the methods for getting a patient on board.  They had a chance to ask questions about the equipment on board, and the ways to keep a patient alive during transport.  They learned how to work with the local fire department to set up a safe landing zone.  They learned how to work as a team.

When the school year is over, these kids will graduate.  The courses they have taken will allow them to do their clinical rotation and eventually take their state licensing exam.

Oh yeah – the name of the high school?  Veterans Memorial High School.  I hope the students never have to bring in a bird for me – nostalgia has its limits.

Việt Nam – the Next Return

Our next trip will be way too short, but any trip to Việt Nam is something we look forward to with great anticipation.  We will leave on November 4th, and be back home on November 19th, so its only about two weeks.  After taking care of some business in Hà Nội for the first week, we’ll then have four days in Huê, and a final day in Sài Gòn.   

That’s much too short a time to be able to see all our friends – but we’ll struggle on and do the best we can!  Hopefully, I’ll have some time to spend with my friend Cu and we can disappear for a ½ day and get some photos.

Of course we have arranged it so we will arrive in Huê at the beginning of the rainy season.  Better a damp day in Huê than no day in Huê.

The Sports Shooter

Its fall – and that means high school sports.  I do a little freelance photography for the Progress-Times, our local weekly newspaper, and most of the work is of high school sports.  Doing this kind of freelance shooting won’t pay many bills, but its fun and keeps me out of the bars.

In Texas, it is against the law to play high school football at any other time than Friday night.  (That’s why both the book and the movie are titled “Friday Night Lights.”)  Okay – that’s not totally true –local school districts that have more than one high school may have more than one school using the football stadium, but Thursday night games are rare.

Friday nights usually finds me at a football game.  There are four schools in the newspaper’s readership area, so I have some variety and work at three different stadiums.

(As always, be sure to click on each photo to see a larger version.)

My Vietnamese friends may be saying “That’s not football – what are they playing?”  This is American football – what you call football is called soccer in America.  To the best of my knowledge, American football is only played in Canada and a few schools in Mexico.  There was a league in Europe, but it folded.

What makes this so much fun is that I am right down on the field where the game is played – and I get in free because I am a member of “the press.”  Even the coaches don’t mess with me – they want their team’s pictures in the paper.  (I do try to stay out of the way, though – its their game, not mine.)  The downside is that its hot down there on the field – and this old man sweats almost as much as the hard working players sweat.  (Thanx for the pix, Mike.)

Access to the playing field offers the chance to get some good shots.  The lights in high school stadiums are located at the sides of the field – none on the ends – which means that any shot taken inside the end zone is going to be in shadow.  Still – the only way I could have gotten this shot was to be just outside the end zone.  By the way  -you tell me whether this was an incomplete pass or pass interference.

As you can see on my mug shot above, I use a fairly long lens – it was the New Toy  mentioned back in June.  Of course, it obviously lets me get closer to the action, but the best benefit of a long telephoto lens is that the background is blurred and the subject stands out from the rest of the photo.  When I do my part, the camera and the lens do theirs – and the editor buys another photo.

The girls are not left out.  Fall is also the time for volleyball.  As I have mentioned before, I enjoy watching girl’s sports more than the boys – the girls seem to be having a lot more fun than the boys, and I seldom see them showboat like the boys.  That doesn’t mean there aren’t some very skilled athletes – some are awesome.  This young lady could jump out of the gym.

However, skilled as she is, I have my doubts this hard-hitter will want this photo shown to her prom date.  Through out the game, she had a “Michael Jordan” look as she usually stuck her tongue out just before she hit the ball.

There is no college football around here – and that’s okay with me.  I’d rather watch the kids play anyway.  Fall is a great time for a high school sports shooter.