Jonathan Neufeld Outdoor adventure photography and mountain life

Monday August 30, 2004 – Uvalde Texas
Well I went to see I, Robot tonight and it was pretty much as I had expected; futuristic, fancy and lots of special effects with only a limited amount of social commentary. Now, having never read the book it is based on I am going to launch into something with very little basis, ready? From what I know of Asimov I think his books were intended more to get people thinking about the future and how the development of technology impacts our lives today and down the road. I think the whole idea of sentience should have been called into question as Sunny certainly seemed sentient to me, as did V.I.K.I. the brains of the organization. It was certainly entertaining and had a few good one liners that actually made me laugh out loud, which was ok since there was only 4 other people in the theatre.

Technology is something that we as society should be watching develop and making sure that we play an active role in keeping it going where we wish. I applaud the people who oppose stem-cell research, not because I agree with them, but because they are standing up for what they believe in. I am reminded of a book I read when I was younger called “Devil on my Back” by Monica Hughes, it’s around the grade 7 level or so. It is set in the future and is about a boy growing up inside a walled and controlled city. The people are separated into classes and only the upper classes have access to knowledge through “pacs” that plug directly into their necks. Standard learning is for the poor and lower classes of society and knowledge is controlled by the upper classes. Eventually he decides to leave the city and finds new life without his instant knowledge. Sometimes I wonder if the internet isn’t becoming like those pacs on his neck, an instant source of information that we can access at all times, though we don’t really know anything. I wonder if technology will ever evolve to such a point where actually knowledge isn’t required since everything we ever need to know is accessible at our finger tips, I wonder if we will allow it to. Something to think about anyway.

Also, I love Calvin and Hobbes (c:

Friday August 27, 2004 – Uvalde Texas

Have you ever seen Groundhog Day with Bill Murray? Where the alarm goes off every morning and plays the same song, every day he ends up doing the same thing until he finally figures a way out of that loop he is stuck in? Some days I feel like I am living that movie, every morning the alarm goes off and I get up and hear that it is cloudy out and the day continues on from there. Nah, it’s not that bad but I do like to dramatize sometimes.
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EDIT This sure piqued my interest.

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Alrighty then, lets talk about New Zealand for a while. I think I have probably told a few people this story and if I have told you, feel free to skip to the next paragraph. So, I applied for a job with a company in NZ and since I am on the road I didn’t think to bring a proper resume with me, what with not expecting to fill out many job applications. I emailed them originally and sent it a light resume that I did up a while back that was actually for a contract my company was bidding on. Well, they seemed interested and asked for more, so I got my real one sent down by my lovely and kind roommate (sorry Steve… not you) and sent that in to them. Well, they liked that too and now they want to set up some sort of phone interview at some time. Quite frankly I am both excited and nervous. I was really only half expecting to hear from them since the position is Senior Photogrammetrist and I am really neither senior nor a photogrammetrist but it is still an excellent opportunity and I think I could really do some cool stuff with them. I am just nervous/excited about it, what if I get it!? And what if I have to move to NZ for a year or so!? But how cool would that be!? But holy crap that’s a long way away… and it goes on and on. So, what are your thoughts on it, I would like to know; especially those who have either a) moved a long ways away for work or b) been to NZ themselves.

I don’t really have anything of consequence to write about tonight, no rants, no soapboxes, no philosophical deepness, no amusing anecdotes from the day so I think I’ll just blather on for a bit, hope that fits what you came here for.

We had to do a test on the ADS today, we have been getting some weird errors on it and needed to figure a few things out. On the way out to the airplane there was a slight breeze and it honestly dried my mouth out and parched my throat. I could taste the dryness of the dirt and the hot flavour of the grass, it was very strange and very alarming. Calgary isn’t really all that humid of a city but it was coastal compared to this. It was such a dry wind that I expected to see a few tumble weeds dancing across the runways, alas it was not to be.

We went for dinner to Jack’s Steakhouse again, and as we walked in I saw the girl that works in the hotel restaurant going in with her family (I presume). She clearly recognized us and we said hi to each other in the way that awkward acquaintances do. She smiled sweetly though, which was nice. It’s kind of interesting when you end up staying in a town long enough to recognize people, even if they do serve you breakfast every morning.

I got a haircut yesterday; don’t worry though it was nothing like the one I got in Corpus Christie. I am back to my standard haircut again and it kind of feels nice, like a familiar sweater, just on my head (c: The girl that cut my hair was an interesting subject though, we got to chatting and she asked if I was from around there. So I filled her in on what we do and how long we are away and how much travel we do. She was quite shocked and said “You must not be very close to your family then, but I guess girls are generally closer to their family than guys.” She also informed me that “Well, my Father wants to retire here to Uvalde so I’ll probably never leave” apparently she had never left Texas and didn’t think that she ever would. She also said that “I see my parents most everyday and don’t think I could be away for that long” and seemed a little offended when I said “you might be surprised” (c: Not to say that I am glad to be away from my family and friends for months at a time, but it is certainly not the life-and-death situation that she seemed to think it was. There is nothing wrong with being attached and close to ones family but knowing at 27 (her estimated age) that one will never live anywhere else or see anything but this backwater small town because this is where her parents wanted to live seemed very sad to me. Hmm I guess this could tie in to the paragraph four up from this one eh?

I am always surprised to hear Canadian music on the radio down here. I hear Avril and Alanis a lot and they jump out at me when I am here more than they do at home. I think perhaps that I have to work harder to stay Canadian when I am not in [sic] Canadia. It is interesting though.

I am thinking of doing some travelling when I get home. Strange perhaps that I would want to travel in my time off, but it is totally different. Being able to do what one wants and go where one pleases rather than being controlled by airports and weather. So, I am thinking of

a) Road trip across Canada
b) Road trip to Yukon/NWT/Alaska
c) British Isles: Ireland, Scotland, Wales, England etc
d) Scandinavia
e) Australia, NZ, Oceania etc

What are your thoughts, where should I go? Any place I haven’t mentioned you can think of? Let me know.

To everyone embarking on their own adventures whether it is educational, emotional, international or fiscal (and you know who you are) I would like to wish you the best of luck, and know that I am rooting for you.

Monday August 23 – Uvalde Texas
I am always impressed by Olympic Diving. They divers always seem so fluid and graceful yet sinewy as well. I am likewise impressed by the way they can enter the water with almost no splash, just incredible.

The guys have taken off to El Paso today in the west end of Texas. There is a small hole there we might be able to exploit, it’s supposed to rain tomorrow so they should be back either tonight or tomorrow.

Quick note, the Canadian diver is ranked #1 right now in the competition (c: Here’s hoping!

Friday August 20, 2004 – Uvalde Texas
Well, today dawned hot, muggy, and cloudy, pretty much like every other day so far in Texas. We went for breakfast at 9, and discussed the weather and the whatnot of life and work. The outgoing pilot and I left for San Antonio at 11 since his flight was at 3 and he really didn’t want to miss it. The drive out was pretty much uneventful, though we did stop for ice cream in Castroville. I dropped him off at 1, pretty much as planned and took off for a day on the town. First stop was The Quarry, one of the shopping centers in town. I hit the Borders, the only bookstore I could find and restocked. This town is entirely devoid of any source for books save the HEB which only has trashy romance novels with covers depicting busty maidens and windswept heroes with hairless chests and ponytails. But I digress…

After the bookstore it was the local tourist trap, a real chunk of American History, the Alamo. First off, did you know that they actually lost the battle at the Alamo? I had always thought that they had won; I mean I always heard about this amazing battle where the odds were 10:1 and how they fought for Texas independence. I spose they did fight for Texas independence but in the story it always seemed like they won! Hmm well it was quite the battle anyway and from I gleaned it did set the stage for Texas independence. All in all though I wasn’t too impressed by the Alamo, there wasn’t a whole lot there and a lot of the actual site has fallen prey to commercial development. Still, it was good to see and I am glad that I went; it is possible that like a movie with a great review I built it up too much in my mind.

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And now a great quote from a Chris Rock movie:
Chris Rock: “What does she do?”
Aid: “She sleeps with you. We got tired of sex scandals so we commissioned a team of super whores”

I don’t know the name of the movie, but it really isn’t very good… that’s not to say that I didn’t watch it though (c: And yes… I laughed a lot.

Random Quote #2
Guy Running against Chris Rock: “God Bless America, and no where else!”

Wednesday August 18, 2004 – Uvalde Texas
As I drove the Texas landscape went whipping by my windows. The hot prairie stretched out for miles and miles in every direction with only scrub and small bushes dotting the landscape. Occasionally I would cross a bridge proclaiming to cover this or that creek, but they were all invariably dry. I was headed for San Antonio 85miles from “home” or at least my home away from home. It was 6pm and the sun was low in the sky threatening to set at any moment but holding out as if reluctant to do so and so the miles passed and the shadows lengthened. San Antonio was my destination for a variety of reasons, better food, sights and sounds, an elegant river walk, but most importantly was the plain reason that I had to do something. The rest of my crew, pilot and navigator, were off in a different city having chased weather all day with nothing to show for it but fuel receipts. I passed smaller town, Hondo, Castroville, saw the signs to Utopia and Lacoste, but held my course steady on I90 east. Finally I encountered San Antonio, a city with so many circular bypass roads the map looked like a spiderweb. I ploughed through the outer roads intent on my destination, the bright lights and bustle of downtown. Through the maze of off-ramps and interstates I finally came to the right exit and pulled off to the right heading north. The downtown itself was old, not in a rundown way and not in a historic way, just old with the occasional sandstone building sitting on the corner like a silent sentinel of history. There was an imitation of the Calgary Tower, though I think this one was bigger and the Alamodome right beside it. I turned down a side street whilst navigating semi-randomly towards the river. I have heard from those who came before me that the River Walk was the nicest part of San Anntoe. I pulled into a seedy looking parking lot proclaiming discounts after dark, by this time the sun was an orange ball hanging right above the street level and blinded me if I tried driving west. I took my ticket and parked the van, the door opened to the hot Texas night as the effect of air conditioning was washed away in an instant. I started to walk, again semi-randomly and stumbled across a bridge that had running water beneath it. All this time I had been looking for a river on the same level as downtown but all this time it had been hidden beneath the city. A narrow stone staircase took me down to the river and the city came alive. I stood for as moment watching people go by and letting my eyes adjust to the semi-darkness of the River Walk.

The Walk was alive with people of every shape and size walking placidly along the cobblestone paths. Both sides of the calm narrow river were set with pathways and both sides were alive with people. Restaurants lined the streets with gaily colourd tables right down by the water. There were sports bars and Italian places and steak houses with tuxedoed staff, there were Mexican places with four piece bands and all along were faux gas lamps adding a touch of ambiance to the new darkness. I began to walk and let my feet carry me where ever they will, “It’s a dangerous business stepping out your door. If you don’t keep your feet, there is no telling where you might end up.” I walked to the end of the paths in one direction, or at least until the crowd had thinned out a little, then took an arched stone bridge across the canal to the other side. I moved slowly back towards the people and tried to find a place to eat. I stopped at a few places here and there along the path but none seemed right for some reason so I continued to walk. Finally I found an Italian place with tables that had an excellent view of the sidewalk and the river. I was seated at a table and the waiter brought my bread and margarita, the first without asking the second after a polite inquiry. I perused the menu but mostly watched the people passing by on the cobbled path, trying to figure out who they were and what they were doing. After a beautiful meal I paid the tab and walked slowly back to the car.
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Today was nothing special, the biggest thing was getting a sweet-smelling room and perhaps the second biggest thing was missing the FedEx guy, though I did find a drop box so all worked out. We get a new pilot tomorrow, the same guy I worked with the first time I was in Texas. Should be a good time.

While I am on a rant, why is it that whenever I ask someone “what is new?” they often say “nothing” but yet when I pry and ask direct questions they actually have something to say and seem to have experianced something in the elapsed time since we talked last? Is everyone so uninterested in their own lives that they have nothing to say for themselves? Or is it that everyone wakes up and then stares at a blank wall for 12 hours before going to bed again? Remember:

Those who thus slip into the anonymous masses will never be other than members of the impersonal flock, having fled from themselves into self-deception. On the other hand our freedom obliges us to make something of ourselves, to live ‘authentically’ or ‘truly’.”

So live truly and make something of your life, be aware that everything around you is interesting whether it is a three week trip to England or a simple day at the office, there are stories in everything!

Monday August 16, 2004 – Uvalde Texas
Scene: a well lit street corner in a large urban center, there are well dressed people streaming past at midday as someone comes down the street dragging a large wooden box with the words “Sudsy Soap Company” printed in fading letters on the side. The man turns the box over and steps up onto it.

Well the hotel we are staying in is filling up and as a result I had to move to a new room, the only rooms they had left were smoking rooms. I moved my stuff in first thing in the morning and the first thought that hit me was “MY GOD this room smells BAD!”

So what is it about smokers that such a habit would appeal to them? What on earth could possibly motivate someone to believe that such a thing was a good way to pass the time? To stink up ones surroundings and clothing and more importantly ones lungs seems like a rather poor use of time and resources. I have heard the classic arguments that it is relaxing and that it is an effective appetite suppressant but it is also a dirty filthy habit that stinks up hotel rooms and forces those of us that have chosen not to consume tar and cyanide to do so at a rather alarming rate. So now I find myself stuck in a room that smells awful and is probably leading to deteriorating health and I have very few choices about it; all the other hotels in town are likewise full. The other aspect of this wonderful habit/pastime/lifestyle is the garbage produced by it. I sat down at the desk, which was also home to one of the two ashtrays in a room that is 3m by 7m or 21m^2 (approx 9×21 ft or 189sq ft) only to find remnants of ash and butts and burns on the desk. Let me tell you, there is nothing more wonderful that coming into a stinking room and finding someone else’s cancer-ash on the desk, that was a great start to the day. Not to say that all smokers are inconsiderate ignorant buffoons, I do know a few that will only smoke outside and some that make a conscious effort to stand downwind from another person, but I still find it a repugnant filthy habit. Anyone out there have any idea why this is such a pervasive and popular habit? Please feel free to fill me in, either in the comments or by email.

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Ok, new topic; conspiracies.
One of the guys I am currently working with is a very philosophical person and tends to believe in things that most would consider a little far out. He was talking today about Tesla Technology and generators that allow someone to put in a small amount of energy and receive 18x that amount out the other side. Hmm I believe the laws of thermodynamics generally prohibit such things, but then I could be wrong. He went on to say that there have been many such inventions, even as far back as 1900 but that all have been kept down by what essentially amounts to “The Man”, be it government, big oil or the US Military. Now, I tend to believe that I am an open minded person but maybe I am not as open minded as I like to believe (Exhibit A: Sushi, Exhibit B: Ice climbing). However the few sites that were given as examples were high in words and factoids but shockingly low on actual facts; in fact there is one experiment that can be tried at home except they don’t give a full scientific methodology so reproduction would be guesswork at best. Here are some of those sites:

Scalar Wars by Bill Morgan
Tom Bearden’s website
A book detailing the HAARP project
A guy who supposedly found the cure to cancer but was kept down

So I am overly closed-minded and sceptical, believing only in what the main stream education system has taught me? Or is it reasonable to belie that just because I don’t know that such a thing isn’t possible that it doesn’t mean it is not? Perhaps more research is needed…. Let me know what you think, either comments or email.

The man gets slowly down from the wooden box and begins dragging it back up the street in the same direction he came from, before disappearing into the anonymous masses

Sunday August 15, 2004 – Uvalde Texas
Rumour has it that a storm named Charley might have created a little work for us. You may have heard that Florida recently had a rather large storm that may have damaged a few things. Well, if any of you remember my trip to North Carolina last year this sounds very similar, hurricane mapping! Course, this is all just a rumour but who knows by tonight we could be in Tallahasse. Who knows?

Friday August 13, 2004 – Uvalde Texas
Well its official, I know I am in fully established in the field when I forget what day it is. It just doesn’t seem to matter out here really, life carries on and nothing really changes with the passing of the days. It’s not like we get weekends off so there isn’t much to think of. Today was fairly standard, up at 8:30, breakfast at 9, find out we have bad weather all day all over the state, random email/web stuff at 10, 2pm sit by the pool and read, 4:30 get too hot and come sit in air conditioning till dinner, 6:20 go for mediocre steak next door, 8O’clock go for ice cream at DQ, 8:30 write a journal update, 9:30 look for a good movie on HBO, failing that play guitar or finish the bad book I am reading.

The bad book is called “Point of Origin” and it’s about a medical examiner solving a grisly arson related murder. It’s neither particularly well written nor interesting yet I probably won’t put it down. I have a thing about that, I don’t like to not-finish books, even if they are bad, although if they are really bad I am willing to make an exception.

Right now I am watching the opening ceremonies of the Olympics in Athens, so far the march of the athletes is going quite well I spose. It is interesting to see the countries come in, in what appears to be non-alphabetical order, but I guess in Greek the countries’ names start with different letters. I am also finding out that there are countries I have never heard of like “Eritrea” and “Gambia” and “Russia”. I have to feel a little bad for the British Virgin Islands though, they only have one athlete; at least he gets to be the flag bearer I guess.

It is a shame I am in the states right now, I think it will be very tough to get any Canadian results down in Texas. I guess that it is also a little hard to get American results in Canada though too. Dammit, why can’t the TV cater their programming to me?! And why are so many of the female athletes so darn cute too… especially the Canadian ones!

Thursday, August 12, 2004 – Uvalde Texas
Well another day has elapsed here in Uvalde, they seem to do that with astonishing regularity really, one every 24hrs or so. Yesterday was an average day went out to the airplane and farted around with some of the equipment while the pilot put in a new radar. I should also say that there is a “Soaring” competition going on in town right now so there are about 50 gliders at the airport clogging the runways and taxiways etc. I guess it would be a bigger deal if we were actually flying though since they shut the airport down everyday from 12-2 or so for the gliders. Anyway, so I was sitting there in the airplane and this old guy comes wandering over and starts to chat:

Old Guy: “So get any good weather for mapping today?”
Me: “Nope too cloudy today”
OG: “That’s too bad, seems like a nice day. Say, what size film do you use in that camera?”
Me: “None, its digital. Yup, all digital these days”
OG: “Really? Wow, how big is the pixel array?”
Me: “Uhm, actually I don’t know, but it generally runs around 100,00 megapixel per hour if that helps”
OG: “What field of view is it? How high do you fly?”
Me: “FOV is 62.4 degrees and we usually fly at 30,00 ft. gives us a 1m resolution”
OG: (muttering under his breath) “ok, so 30,000 ft, 1m res and 62.4 degrees.. .that would be blah blah blah number of elements”
He looks up at me with a wide proud grin.
Me: “Your hat is on inside out”

Ok, so I didn’t actually say the last line, but damn I wanted too! And his hat really was inside out too… some people irritate me with they’re know-it-allism, and sometimes I wonder if I act like that.

Today’s To Do List
1. Wait for FedEx
2. Watch gliders
3. Buy sunscreen since I got a bit of a burn yesterday
4. Go for dinner
5. Update journal – Check!