This past Saturday, the Phoenix Mars Mission’s Science Operations Center had an open house. Being a space geek of many years standing, I couldn’t stay away from that one.

As of Saturday, the Phoenix Mars Mission was up to Sol 88 — that’s mission-speak for the 88th day on the Martian surface. The plucky little Lander is still sending back data, so the mission people just had to show us some photos. Many of them were in 3-D, which necessitated the donning of those oh-so-fetching glasses with paper frames…

Okay, that’s the earthling fashion report from the Science Operations Center’s press conference room. Let’s go take a look at the Lander mockup…

The video camera was there to record a series of robotic arm movements that the Mars Lander team was trying out. Or, I should say, the team was attempting to try them out. As so often happens in scientific research, Things Were Not Going According To Plan.

But, not to worry, the team will get things to run properly. Just give ‘em time. They already have a flawless landing and lots of successful data gathering under their belt.

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A fountain that lacks a continuous water flow soon turns into an interesting biology lesson. I don’t know how long this fountain had been idle, but it was growing quite the crop of algae when I happened upon it with my camera…

In addition to the algae, the standing water was attracting at least one airborne division of mosquitoes. And they were hungry. So, I didn’t linger in the area. Something about not wanting to become one of the four basic food groups for mosquitoes.

Tip: You can view more nature photography in my portfolio.

Southern summer mornings are misty times. The combination of airborne moisture and early morning light makes the piney woods into an eerie place.  This is scene is from Caswell Springs, which is located near Wade, Mississippi.

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On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the Tucson Lobos have basketball practice at the Northwest Center. The Tucson Lobos are Tucson’s only community-based wheelchair basketball program. They strongly believe that if you use a wheelchair, or if you’re missing a limb, you can still play sports.

The Lobos play against teams in the western U.S. and northern Mexico. In addition to playing, they also spend a fair amount of time talking strategy…

Enough talking, let’s see some action!

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Do you have some old stock certificates laying around the house? Well, don’t throw them away! They could be worth a lot of money.

Stock Search International has helped investors recover millions of dollars from old stocks and bonds thought to be worthless.  This Tucson-based company has been a Web design client since the late 1990s, and they recently returned for a website redesign.

This redesign wasn’t as drastic as some I’ve done. What was needed was a recoding of the existing site so that it meets Web Standards. The new version downloads much faster than its predecessor, and that was one of our goals.

We also wanted to make the home page work for visitors who are in a hurry. In just a few seconds, they can see what Stock Search is and does, then choose from one of the company’s three services:

1. The Database of Companies No Longer Listed. This unique research tool features more than 40,000 fully updated reports and includes information on stock splits, stock dividends, name changes, mergers, acquisitions, availability of funds and contacts to initiate recoveries.
2. Initiate New Research. You’ll be in good hands with Stock Search because they track down 97% of the companies they investigate. In fact, their reports are recognized by both the Internal Revenue Service and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
3. Historical Market Quotes. Stock Search provides historical stock market quotes to establish the cost basis of investments for tax purposes.

Although many site owners try to think of ways to keep visitors glued to their site, I think this is a losing battle. People have lots of other things to do besides spending hours on a website. It’s up to us as Web designers to help visitors accomplish their goals as quickly as possible.

Tip: You can view more website design projects in my portfolio.

This past Tuesday, communities all over the United States gathered for National Night Out Against Crime and Drugs. Tucson’s festivities included a get-together at the Northwest Center in Mansfield Park.

Severe thunderstorms kept attendance below the usual triple digits. They also forced the cancellation of several other NNO events.

Weather notwithstanding, we enjoyed some high-quality socializing with friends, neighbors, police officers, firefighters, and various public officials.

Nothing like cotton candy at the end of a hot summer day…

The Tucson Police Department showed up in force. The officers treated us to a K-9 demo…

Okay, demo’s over. Now it’s break time…

Although the storms halted the outdoor party, they didn’t stop the indoor party. Inside the Northwest Center, we were treated to a performance by Capoeira Mandinga Tucson. Capoeira is a Brazilian cultural art that combines martial arts with music and acrobatics…

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This past Saturday, the Watershed Management Group helped me get my yard into better shape. Permit me to explain…

After I moved in here, I set about the task of planting a xeriscape so I wouldn’t spend a fortune on water bills. In addition to planting low-water use plants, I tried to contour the property so that water would soak in around the greenery and stay away from the house.

But, alas, some recent summer downpours showed me that there was more work to be done. WMG to the rescue.

Early Saturday morning, a WMG workshop leader, eight Water Harvesting Co-op members, and three neighbors joined me for a work party.

They constructed berms to keep water around the plants and away from the house…

They rerouted my drainage swale so that it takes overflow from one planting basin and directs it to another…

And they planted low water use trees that will help shade the house…

 Tip: You can view more construction photography in my portfolio.

Changed planes in Houston a couple of weeks ago. While I walked from one terminal to another, I encountered this statue of former President George Herbert Walker Bush…

Among other things, I told the statue that the elder Bush was no John Adams, and that the son certainly doesn’t measure up to John Quincy Adams. (Did you know that the teenaged John Quincy acted as a diplomat on behalf of the United States? Could you see a youthful version of our current President doing anything like that?)

After having words with the statue, I boarded the tram…

In my not-so-humble opinion, the Houston airport tram gives a smoother, more reliable ride than its DFW counterpart.

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Looking for something interesting to do while visiting a small Southern town? Well, how about a walk around the cemetery?

Yes, it will be quiet, and you may well be the only live person there, but, oh, the stories. Some people’s lives just read like a good book. Take, for example, this rockin’ Army veteran who served with the local sheriff’s department…

You’ll also find yourself asking a lot of questions. You’ll see a headstone with birth and death dates in the same week and wonder what happened to that baby. Then there’s that headstone with a photo of a smiling teenager. Was it a car crash? Drugs? Or something else?

You’ll also see the impromptu memorials next to the headstones — lots of them…

Tip: You can view more travel photography in my portfolio.

Just returned from another week of post-Katrina reconstruction in Mississippi. Although much appears to be back to normal, there’s still quite a bit of work to be done.

Take, for example, this house. Almost three years after the storm (local people rarely call it Katrina), the owners are still living in a trailer.

Since drywalling is one of the final steps to completing a house, they should be able to move in soon.

When my work team wasn’t on the job, we were staying in Caswell Springs United Methodist Church, which is located in Wade, Mississippi…

The church pastors and numerous members of the congregation saw to our every need — and I mean everything from hearty meals to hot showers and fresh towels. We were also welcome to roam the church property, which included a walkway out to Caswell Springs…

Tip: You can view more construction photography in my portfolio.