Saying Goodbye to Our Dear Next-Door Neighbors

JJ the organizational whiz tries to brainwash the #2 son into liking her alma mater, the University of Kansas.

We’re extremely fortunate that we live in a close-knit subdivision in our master-planned community, which is marathon distance southwest of Houston. We not only know most of our neighbors, but we like them, too. They’ve got our back, and we, of course, have theirs.

Most of us have lived in our neighborhood for at least a decade, and we’ve watched each other’s kids growing up. When the weather is nice, we like to sit outside together and revel in the comfortable feeling that comes with warm, genuine friendship.

The neighbors crowd around JJ and Bill as they look at photos.

Last Sunday that friendship was once again on display, but this time it had a bittersweet tinge to it. Our dear, cherished next-door neighbors—JJ the organizational whiz, her husband Bill, and their kids Lindsey (a sophomore at the University of Kansas) and Michael (who graduates early from high school this week and will attend KU next fall)—are leaving our little nest. They’re moving back to Kansas City, Kansas (JJ already is there to set up their new house a mile from her mom and one of her brothers). Back to family and old friends. Back to being close to their beloved alma mater.

Bill and JJ check out a local wine in their Remember Texas bag.

We’re happy that they’re going back to the comforts of home after what’s been a very difficult year. A year that started with so much promise for them became one of shock as JJ’s much-loved father, Dick Jones, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in the spring and sadly passed away in October. No one can blame them for feeling the tug from their other favorite state.

Grace photographs her three girls with JJ and Bill.

But no one can blame us for wanting at least a few more years with such wonderful neighbors. Living next door to them for almost 11 years has been terrific! We’ve talked a lot, laughed even more, and shared lunches, dinners, tears, getting toilet paper out of their trees, highs, and lows. Our #1 son and Michael, who are the same age, became good pals in elementary school and had great fun together before drifting apart. We’ve relished the chance to watch Michael and Lindsey growing up to be fine young adults.

Marcel, Bill, the Mister, and Vic stand around.

I remember one Saturday years ago when we were taking the boys and Michael to see “Snow Dogs.” All of a sudden, JJ and Bill popped into our minivan. They wanted to see it, too!

The Mister, who owns a box company, inspects the moving boxes.

That’s what I’ll miss most about our neighbors moving: That sense of spontaneity. I loved it when I would call JJ or she would text me wanting to go to lunch at the spur of a moment. Can’t do that now . . . KC is a little too far to meet up at Chipotle or Quizno’s. I’ll also miss the heart-to-heart talks and discussing our hopes and fears when it came to our kids. Oh, and those catty chats, too! We did sharpen the nails a time or two!!

The ever-shy JJ and the #2 son hug goodbye.

Fortunately, in this day and age it’s so easy to stay in touch. E-mail and Facebook can’t replace that day-to-day contact, but they do take the sting out of moving away from long-time friends. They’re the next best thing to being there!

JJ, Bill, and their kids will always be in our hearts. JJ and I are forever friends; our destinies always will intertwine. I hope we never lose that sense of closeness that we’ve felt since March of 1999 when we first met on my driveway. I knew in an instant that she was someone I’d always want to be friends with.

Surprising weather news catches JJ off guard!

I sure hope JJ feels the same way when I text her every day this winter about how much warmer it is here while she’s freezing her butt off in Kansas City!

Kansas City Flora and Fauna

The lake at Lake Shore Disc Golf Course

As regular reader(s) know, when I take disc golf photos, I find it hard to ignore the beauty of the park where the action is taking place. The main reason I use the Nikon 105mm lens on my Nikon D300 when I shoot is that I can use it to capture great close-ups of nature’s best . . . as well as discs flying through the air and into baskets.

Yellow flower number one

The Lake Shore Disc Golf Course in Pleasant Hill, Missouri, was one of the venues for the junior disc golfers at the recent PDGA Disc Golf World Championships. It was a favorite for the #2 son, because he played really well there. Fortunately, the lake never came into play; otherwise, #2 might have had a very different opinion of the course as he bemoaned a lost disc or two!

Yellow flower number two

While I enjoyed documenting #2’s play, I had even more fun with the macro abilities of the 105. Both with the flora and the fauna.

Purple flowers

As usual, I have no earthly idea what the names are of any of the flowers. But that never stops this clueless yet intrepid photographer!

Blue flowers

I’m sure there’s an iPhone app for identifying flowers. But that would take all the fun out of being clueless!

The butterfly was free.

This butterfly tortured me for several minutes, as it flitted in the bushes near me. I kept trying . . . and failing . . . to track it with my lens and keep it in focus long enough to take its picture. Then it finally took pity on me and landed nearby. Thanks, dude!

White flowers

When I noisily snapped this photo of some delicate-looking, white flowers, I failed to notice that the flora had some fauna company.

What seemed like a nice, peaceful photo to me was anything but to the poor ant resting on the flowers. Sorry, man!

Photo Friday: Make the Most of Pro Photo Ops

Who's my focus?

Last week’s Disc Golf World Championships in Kansas City wasn’t only about the amateur players like the #2 son. The pro world championship was conducted at the same time. On our last full day in KC, the Mister, #2, and I went to the very-long and hilly Blue Valley disc golf course to watch the top four male pros—Avery Jenkins, Josh Anthon, Matt Orum, and Cale Leiviska—battle for the $5,500 prize and the right to call themselves the best pro male disc golfer in the world.

I, of course, carried my Nikon D300 and Nikon 105mm lens to capture the action. But there was one teensy problem . . . well, okay, one big problem: About 1,500 people also were watching, and I think they all wanted to stand in front of me!

The leaderboard . . . just like in the Pro Golfers Association!

On the first couple holes, this photo of the leaderboard was the best picture I snapped. People were all over the course surrounding the players as they teed off, threw upshots, and putted. Frustrating! What was I to do to get decent photos of the pros?

Fourth-place finisher Cale Leiviska putts.

Simple! I moved around and tried to anticipate where the players would be. If you snooze, you lose when it comes to being in the right photographic place at the right time. I didn’t always guess right, but I carved out my spot enough times to get some good photos. Of course, I was pretty winded by the end; those hills are especially torturous when you’ve got a lung infection!

Avery Jenkins putts for a birdie (that he missed).

As much as I didn’t like the crowd blocking my shots, I did want them surrounding the players. Having all the people in the photos helps to tell the story of the finals—there’s so much pressure on these top pros to perform well amidst these loyal minions.

Matt Orum putts.

This is a much better photo of Matt Orum than the first one. I only wish he had used a colored disc; it was unfortunate timing that I stopped the action of his white disc against a white truck in the background.

Sidebar: A note for the Texas A&M fans—Matt is not an Aggie! He’s from Alabama, as in the Crimson Tide. I must admit, though, that “Aggie” was the first thought that popped in my mind when I saw Matt dressed in maroon.

The Mister and the #2 son watch the action.

It’s nice to get a photo or two of some faces in the crowd to help document the event. These are two usual suspects who I love taking pix of!

Avery putts downhill from my location.

The setting for the finals was a beautiful, scenic park in Kansas City. It was nice to show some of that beauty when I stayed up on a hill and took photos of the players putting at a basket that was next to a lake.

Sidebar: Quite honestly, this was just a lucky photo. I was too tired to walk down the hill to get closer to the action. In the Houston area, almost every disc golf course is flat; you don’t need to be in great shape to take photos. KC was a challenge for me!

Josh Anthon watches his clutch par putt soar towards the basket on hole nine.

Even though there were four guys in the finals, the real drama was between Avery Jenkins and Josh Anthon. Avery had taken a two-shot lead into the nine-hole final, but Josh caught up, and the two were tied going into hole nine. Avery threw and hit the bottom of the basket, putting the pressure on Josh to make his par putt and force a sudden-death playoff.

Relief and happiness for Josh!

The Mister and I had walked ahead to hole nine and claimed our spots where we couldn’t be blocked to watch and shoot the action. I was in the right place when Josh canned his putt and showed a mix of relief and joy afterwards.

Avery bested Josh on the fifth hole of sudden death to become the world champ. And because I was able to move around the crowd, I was able to get photos of the top four in action that always will be memorable to the Mister, #2, and me.

So remember that if you want to make the most out of pro—or any—photo ops, be on the move with your camera!

A Thousand Mea Culpas in Advance

A tee-box marker at our local disc golf course

Apologies in advance to everyone who’s on today’s early-morning flight to Kansas City, Missouri, from Houston. And some advanced warning: You might want to have ear plugs or headphones handy. Ears will need to be plugged.

My lung infection and I will be flying to the Disc Golf World Championships to see the #2 son play a couple rounds. Oh, and my obnoxious, dry, hacking cough will be along for the ride, too, unfortunately. Even I can’t stand myself! For the first time ever, I’m hoping there will be a crying baby or two on the plane. Anything to cover up the racket I’ll be making in seat 10A.

Sidebar: The #2 son had a frustrating day on a difficult course yesterday. Seems like every tree had his name on it. But I know he’s a resilient athlete who will rise to the occasion today, as he plays his two rounds. Especially with his ever-lovin’, ever-coughin’ mama watching him. Note to self: Keep shutter speed on the Nikon D300 high enough to avoid camera shake.

Sidebar 2: So what lenses am I taking to document this memory? I’ll shoot play with my reliable Nikon 105mm. Usually, my Nikon 70-200mm is my weapon of choice for outdoor sports, but it’s too heavy to carry. I’ll have Nikon’s 17-55mm and 50mm lenses to cover any other shooting situations that might arise.

And what about my broken-hearted #1 son, you ask? Will he be tagging along? Yeah, right.

What 17-year-old kid wants to walk for a couple hours watching their younger sibling play? Totally boring. So we’ve taken pity on him, and he’ll be staying with our “half” son, his best friend Chase. I’ll be worried about him, of course, but I think he’ll be happier with his friend’s family.

The Mister (who did do a better job texting yesterday, I’m happy to say . . . for his sake), #2, and I will be flying home Sunday. I sure hope I’ll be rid of this nagging cough by then. Otherwise . . . .

Apologies in advance to everyone who’s on Sunday morning’s flight from Kansas City to Houston!