Daily Photo 2022: Sep. 01-15
I do not use drugs recreationally, so getting stoned and then high on Fentanyl was never really on my bucket list. And yet, here we are. The first half of September 2022 has been a challenging one! Buckle up and I'll tell you my tale of woe...
2022 September 01
In advance of the Labour Day long weekend, I travelled to Antigonish on Thursday the first. I left directly from work, took a bus to Antigonish, walked to my house (where I picked up my car), and then drove to my parents' place. On the way to my place, I took this dusky photo of the Antigonish Sugarloaf.
Olympus E-PL9, 12-200mm telephoto lens
f5.8, 1/80 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 02
On the Friday before the long weekend I worked remotely from my parents' house. After work, I went for a walk. I saw a so-called parsley worm, which is to say the caterpillar of a swallowtail butterfly. I also happened upon a hairy woodpecker. As the species name suggests, its feathers are a bit shaggy-looking.
Olympus E-PL9, 60mm macro lens
f4, 1/250 sec, ISO 800
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
Olympus E-PL9, 12-200mm telephoto lens
f6.3, 1/200 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 03
For several decades, clotheslines were forbidden by a Halifax bylaw. Thankfully, that has changed. Lines are much more environmentally friendly than dryers, and are gentler on the clothes, too. Plus, they always look interesting when in use. Anyway, I took advantage of the chance to do some cleaning (and line-drying) while in Antigonish County.
Olympus E-PL9, 12-200mm telephoto lens
f7.1, 1/500 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 04
While on a Sunday stroll I came across this caterpillar. Personally, I am terrible at identifying insects. Luckily, there's a website called iNaturalist which is quite useful in that regard. I submitted this photo, and it seems to be something within the owlet moth family. The jury is still out on which particular species, though.
Olympus E-PL9, 60mm macro lens
f4, 1/500 sec, ISO 250
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 05
By the end of Monday I was back in Halifax, refreshed and ready for a shortened workweek. I took this photograph of an old boot, which I must note I am quite pleased with. I was imagining that it heralded rainy, muddy adventures as we begin thinking ahead to the Autumn. Little did I know, I was in for a trip of a different kind.
Olympus E-PL9, 60mm macro lens
f2.8, 1/60 sec, ISO 6400, -0.3 EV
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 06
This is the former battery of my smoke detector. It didn't quite make it to the time change. I almost thought I wouldn't, either! In the wee hours of the sixth I was wakened from my sleep by a sharp abdominal pain. It persisted until morning, so instead of going to work I went to the emergency room. Given the location of the hurt, the medical staff was initially concerned it was appendicitis, but that diagnosis fizzled under scrutiny. In the end they sent me home, the mystery unsolved.
Olympus E-PL9, 60mm macro lens
f2.8, 1/80 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 07
On my lunchtime walk the tide was particularly low. I was able to get this shot looking underneath the boardwalk. I took it from one of the floating docks. The barnacles and mussels sure do like the boardwalk supports! My belly was in a little bit of pain, which I attributed to being the leftovers from the previous night's episode.
Olympus E-PL9, 12-200mm telephoto lens
f4, 1/500 sec, ISO 2500
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 08
My excruciations resumed midway through work on the eighth. I headed back to the ER. This time they did a CT scan and we finally learned the cause of all my suffering: A medium-sized kidney stone. To think that a 5mm clump of minerals can wreak such havoc! They gave me Fentanyl, which I found underwhelming. The stone made it through the pinch point and into my bladder. To do the CT scan I had to remove my blood glucose sensor. This is it later in the night, recharging for another week of use.
Olympus E-PL9, 12-200mm telephoto lens
f6.1, 1/25 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 10
I failed to take a photo on the ninth, the day I returned to my parents' place to wait out the stone and to recuperate. On the tenth we played Settlers Of Catan. I managed to sneak in a win despite having fallen victim to the dreaded Invasion Card. My Mom went to photograph my victory, and instead of the usual pose I reenacted having a kidney stone.
Olympus E-PL9, 12-200mm telephoto lens
f4.3, 1/160 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
Olympus E-PL9, 12-200mm telephoto lens
f3.5, 1/180 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
Photo Credit: Priscella Matheson
2022 September 11
My medical woes were pretty draining, and for several days after my ER trip I was on a medication meant to assist the passage of the stone. My parents kindly occupied my time with board games and television. On the eleventh we played the North American Ticket To Tide, and also TTR Japan and TTR Netherlands, which is pictured here.
Olympus E-PL9, 12-200mm telephoto lens
f4.4, 1/160 sec, ISO 6400
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 12
I spent Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday working remotely from Antigonish County before eventually returning to the city. This impressive spider crafted a web near my parents' house. It is one of the largest spiders I've ever seen in the wild, a member of the orbweaver genus, Aranaeus. Charlotte, from Charlotte's Web, was an orbweaver of a different species.
Olympus E-PL9, 60mm macro lens
f22, 1/60 sec, ISO 800
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 13
So... This was supposed to be a photo of a bee. The insect flew away between me beginning to press the shutter button and the aperture actually opening. In lieu of the bee, I was treated to this very nice floral shot.
Olympus E-PL9, 60mm macro lens
f4.5, 1/1250 sec, ISO 200
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 14
Kidney stones are children of the urinary tract, which until this affliction I didn't realize was entirely disconnected from the digestive tract. The kidneys connect to the bladder via long narrow tubes (Ordinarily narrower than 5mm, it seems!), and from the bladder onward the plumbing varies by sex. Despite my problem being urinary rather than digestivein nature, my Mom made sure to reinforce the importance of eating lots of salad, which is generally good for whatever ails a person.
Olympus E-PL9, 60mm macro lens
f2.8, 1/500 sec, ISO 5000
IrfanView: Crop, Colour
2022 September 15
Upon returning to Halifax I had some mail waiting, and it comes with a happier story than stones and heavy medication. Months ago there was a local climbing event which I didn't attend, but for which I did see the packing list. One item on it was, "Magic sending talisman". Since then I've kept my eye out for the piece of kit which I was apparently missing. I saw this climbing-themed pendant, and knew it would be the perfect sending amulet. I'll just ignore that carabiners (Like the border of the pendant) are often kidney-shaped.
