One Picture of Me

 

One Picture of Me

By Mike Garofalo

When Laurence asked for poems on the theme of "Self-Portrait" I though of a long philosophical poem I wrote about the interrelated subjects of Picturing and Describing. 

One set of examples I used in that long poem was the human skull. I spoke of memories of Halloween in East Los Angeles, where Mexican Skulls, calaveras, filled displays on El Dia De La Muerte. Meaningful from artistic and religious perspectives.

The brief poem I'm sharing today is a excerpt about my own skull as Pictured by medical imaging, and described by me and interpreted by the oral surgeon.

"This bony skull of mine
electrified
pictured onscreen for me.
     Doctor recommends
     some oral surgery.

The brain disappeared,
an empty space
sliced from
X Ray images retraced.
Eyeless in inner space.

Monkey nose holes,
bony eye glasses,
teeth glowing in the dark.
     Inner spaces never seen
     underneath my very being.

Skinless, noseless, earless,
a shape, a form—
     the images informed.
Stripping away the unneeded,
revealing my inner core."

So, as we all know, a single picture or image can cause a flow of ideas, interpretations, and feelings in our minds.

Or, just two words can please, excite or inflame our minds. Our lover's name can explode our feelings.

But, just two other words can frighten our moral being.

For example, 

Donald Trump ...
[pause, raise your elbow]

Kick Him Out. 

See you on the street next Saturday.

The above "brief poem" will be printed in
The SkullCrushing Hummingbird
Zine #7, in Portland, Oregon,
on 10/12/2025.

Commentary: Off the Cuff

So, considering, have you ever seen
a picture or a video or a drawing
of a Skull Crushing Hummingbird,
crushing an insect's Skull
with its tiny beak or flashing wings?

No, you have not,
and that is just one reason why,
you don't believe
that Skull Crushing Hummingbirds
are really alive.

However,
Words, context, technical knowledge,
and intent claim meaningfulness,
even truth,
in addition to any pictures viewed.
The surgeon and I see differently.

Sometimes, though, we reader's prefer
fantasies and fictional
Skull Crushing Hummingbirds
to any ho-hum boring beings-
a moniker for fun memories.

***********************

Pictures mirroring things
displaying aspects of reality
uncovering hidden realms of being
pointing to more clear correspondence.
Show me a good picture - Please!

We drew pictures in caves
Heroes pictured in statues
Books illustrated pictured facts
Drones picture our towns from above
Hubble sends us clear pictures of Space

Our brains are
Picture processing ... Machines-
and you can picture mindfulness
you can picture your intent verbally...
picturing is a form of meaningfulness.

Science and technology have
invented new ways of picturing
so we can see into Reality
and open our ordinary eyes
to new ways of seeing.

Picturing - Defining
Planning - Imagining
Painting - Photography
Reflecting - Mimicking
Do I see what I mean?

Wittgenstein in the Tractatus of 1921
Used Pictures and Picturing as the
criterion of meaningfulness and truth.
Wittgenstein in the Investigations of 1953
changed to talking about our talking
about, in ordinary words, aspects of Picturing.

The best pictures, the best descriptions,
how we talk in everyday ways,
point to correspondence, mirroring,
a theory of epistemology.
Richard Rorty disagreed.

**********************************

Bundled Up, Volume 1
Quintains, Pentastichs, Tankas

Gushen Grove Sonnets

Highway 101 and 1: A Docu-Poem
California, Oregon, Washington

25 Steps and Beyond
The Poetry by Mike Garofalo

Stepping Over Epiphanies

Stepping Over Epiphanies

By Michael P. Garofalo

 

Affecting all the molecules in me
the pull of the moon and sea
feeling the call to walk the shore
Smiled, opened the door

Tides and time sent signals to me
to step nimbly over epiphanies
seen flipped over in the turning sands
Surprised, opened my hands

Waiting for nobody but me
a fleck of cold fire
flung out on this fleck of space
Sang out, loved this place

Shore pines paint a background scene
stubby short trees
swaying gently in the salty breeze
Unruffled, I found tranquility

Stunned by the crisp clean colors
savoring the scents of the sea
enchanted by the incessant singing surf
Awakened, a mystical reverie

Pointing to the ineffable realization of
insights known to me alone
Erupted up from our sensory reality
Profound, not foreknown

Such awakenings come and go
sometimes fast or sometimes slow
unpredictable visons playing peekaboo
Pausing, not thinking too

Slogging up and down the dunes
breathing hard on que
one step up, a half-step back
Stopping, quite a view

Tip toeing over bull kelp strands
stepping on broken shells
avoiding the driftwood piles ever moving
Listening, a foghorn knells

A friendly dog off-leash comes to me
seeking a gentle pat and pet
desiring a kind human face to see
Laughing, she was wet

My granddaughter and I once walked
beside a Washington dune
not very long ago it seemed to us
Remembered, gone too soon

 

The poem above "Stepping Over Epiphanies," is one of dozens of my poems
found on my webpage:

At the Edges of the West

https://www.egreenway.com/mpgss/shortpoemsmpg9sea2.htm

Travels on US Highway 101 and 1

Memories of Pacific Coast Places
West Coast Snapshots & Snippets
Delightful Coastal Spur Roads

Docu-Poem, Haiku, Short Poems, Photos,
Quatrians, Graphics, Concrete Poems

By Michael P. Garofalo

Vancouver, Washington

Oregon Coast Photos

 

Four Days in Grayland: Travels and Camping in Coastal Oregon and Washington

At the Edges of the West: Travels on US 101 - A Long Poem

Manzanita, Oregon

Repost from January 22, 2022:

Today, I remained in the small town of Manzanita all day.  I ate at local restaurants and shopped a little.  I read quite a lot today--sheltered from the steady rain.  

Plenty of forest trails, sand dunes, and seashore to wander and walk about in your rainproof gear.  

Fog, drizzling, misting, low clouds, cold, light rain ... and quite windy at times.  

I enjoyed sitting in my Ford Escape and taking in the dramatic seaside view from the road at Neahkahnie Beach.  Moderate surf today.  

I visited Horse Camp Cove many times today.  However, a prison crew were removing shrubs and it was a bit noisy today.  Driftwood was again piled high along the high tide mark in this little cove area.  

I had some ASUS laptop problems this morning, and no charged batteries for the Rebel T7 and no charger.  Thus, some of my Photography projects will wait till later.  

Images from the Internet:

Nehalem Bay and Manzanita Local Information            

 Nehalem Bay State Park     Images    Google Map

Nehalem Bay State Park Wikipedia

Manzanita City   Population 400.  Motels, restaurants, cafes, grocery, gas, supplies.  Images    

Explore Manzanita

Manzanita Visitor Center

Manzanita   Restaurants    "You can enjoy a farm-to-table experience at several local restaurants;A Mighty Thai, Big Wave Cafe, Bread & Ocean, and Neahkahnie Bistro just to name a few. Each serves seasonal, regional items year-round.  The area also features more conventional food offerings, including pizza, Mexican cuisine, casual fine dining, pies, pastries, contemporary and old-fashioned candy, ice cream and seafood."

Travel Options

Have a Great Time at the Beach

Neahkahnie Mountain   Hiking trails to peak.

Neahkahnie Mountain  "This peak is an inspiring place, where the Tillamook tribe believed their most powerful god resided. In fact, the name Neahkahnie comes from their words Ne ("place of") and Ekahnie {Ekone] ("supreme deity")."  

Four Days in Grayland   By Michael P. Garofalo.   Camping and travel adventures in the Pacific Northwest. 

Nehalem Valley Historical Society Museum in Manzanita

Nehalem City   Population 400.   Cafes, grocery, gas, supplies.  Images 

Nehalem Restaurants

Nehalem River     116 miles long.  Images

Nehalem Bay Area Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center in Wheeler 

Oswald West State Park Wikipedia

Oswald West State Park

Lower Columbia River: Astoria to Portland, Ilwaco to Vancouver

Long Beach Peninsula  

Wheeler   Population 400.     Images   Cafes, grocery, gas, supplies.

I have camped in a Yurt at Nehalem Bay State Park five times in the last two decades. 

Yurt Camping in the Coastal Northwest     By Michael P. Garofalo

Nehalem Spit Trail

Fishing, crabbing, walking beach dunes and shore, kite flying, river side exploring, mountain trails hiking, kayaking. 

DreamWeaver Days - Now Beginning

Dw     DreamWeaver

Adobe Dreamweaver Version 2.1 2021
I started using DreamWeaver on May 15, 2022
By Michael P. Garofalo 

From 2003 to 2022 I used Microsoft Front Page 2003 to develop webpages and websites. 
Pretty much simple .html webpages.  Index: https://www.egreenway.com/index.htm
Using Front Page was free after that first CD purchase way back in 2003.  

I use CuteFTP for FTP file/image transfer/management, and do not, at present, use Dw for that function.  There are many specific 2 panel line ups I have set up and linked up via all the specialized FTP settings need to connect with my WebHome on a Blue Host WebServer in Utah.  All my specialized and personalized settings work well in the CuteFTP software.  I think I first used this FTP transfer software back in 2000.    

I currently use the Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Photoshop, and Adobe Bridge package (@ $11.00 per month) .   My wife and I have many current photography projects.  

I have used Blogger since 2005.  It a quite powerful blogging tool for my low tech needs, is free, has plenty of options, and works just fine.

Unfortunately, My old "free" Microsoft Front Page 2003 will no longer work anymore @May2022!  Died!  RIP FrontPage.  

I purchased, installed, and am now (5/15/2022-) using and learning to use
Adobe Dreamweaver Version 2.1 2021.  

The Adobe Dreamweaver software comes with many good on-line instructional videos.  User groups, Q&A groups, UTube instructional videos, online instructors, and books are available to help a person learn how to create and edit webpages (i.e. hypertext documents, online documents) and manage whole websites using DreamWeaver.  Cost = $23.00 per month.  

This DreamWeaver software is used my many website design professionals along with possible WordPress applications.   

I purchased about $150 on DreamWeaver printed textbooks; mostly used.  I will probably use the following book as my main guide to using DreamWeaver:

Adobe Dreamweaver Classroom in a Book (2021 release)  1st Edition.  By James Maivald.  Adobe Press, 2021, 464 pages, $56.00.  

For now, in May, 

editing old webpages with Dreamweaver (Dw) for practice;
text editing features, side panels, tricks, search/find, design view WYSIWYG, keystroke setups; 
inserting images, graphics, links, text;
reading Maivald's DreamWeaver book;  
uploading edited hypertext documents to Blue Host WebServer using the CuteFTP software;
checking my work on Google Chrome home desktop Samsung screen;
check on consolidated $56.00 a month plan for all Adobe software; 
templates in Dw for photo gallery or shows;
add more "Sites" to DreamWeaver;

Our Family Photography Projects for 2022

We are now working on a  Family Photographs Project.

Phase 1

This involves the tedious process of collecting together all of our digital photographs from our two desktop computers, one laptop computer, cell phones, OneDrive, tablets, CD collections, and four external hard disk drives. 

We ended up gathering together 58,000 digital photographs into 450 Folders and using up 156 GB of external hard disk drive space.  I did some rough organizing, file renaming, weeding duplicate folders, and placing them all in one Folder (named "Photographs of BKG and MPG") on one Seagate 5Tb external hard disk drive.  Then, I backed up this one Folder on all the other three external hard disk drives.  

A lifetime of our personal digital photographs-- now all safe in one place, roughly organized by year, with backups.  I am sure we will add a few stray Folders of digital photos from the past, and our family or friends might add some other older digital photos.  

Also, now there is a new storage home for all the digital photographs that we will be adding after January of 2022.  Using my Canon SX740 digital camera, I intend to compose and transfer many more thousands of photographs before I die.  

I am studying two books on this new software. First, the book by Scott Kelby titled "Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 2021".  I am following his instructions.  This 'Lightroom' book is very informative and useful to me.  Second, the book by Rob Sylvan titled "Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic For Dummies 2019."  

I've always enjoyed working with database software and databases (manual and electronic) since 1963. I used Microsoft Access and Microsoft Excel and other database software many times in my professional employment.     

My first import into Lightroom was with 10 Test Folders so as to learn how to use Lightroom for Importing and doing basic classification and cataloging markup after importing a Folder.  I am taking my time.  I imported just one Test Folder, and then learned how to do classificatory mark up on individual photos or on larger groups of photos using keywords, search terms, signature presets, special collections, presets, rating flags, etc.  Plenty more to learn about Importing and using many other Lightroom functions in the Library Mode.   

Then, one by one, I will import into Lightroom the 450 Folders in "Photographs of BKG and MPG" and do the markup for each Folder.  Gradually, during February of 2022, I will complete the importation of all the 450 Folders containing 58,000 digital photographs.  

As a former professional Librarian for over 40 years, I find Lightroom to be a very good tool for the database management of digital graphic images.  

Our digital cameras, mostly Canon, over the decades, output digital files in the .jpeg format.  Lightroom can easily handle a wide variety of digital formats.  

Phase 2

In late January of 2022, we set up two portable tables with chairs in front of the fireplace in our larger TV/Reading room.  We placed our HP laptop and the new photo scanner on the tables.  

Then, we began the slow and tedious process of gathering together all our old paper photographs, both black and white photos, as well as color photos.  The old paper photographs were found in boxes, photo albums, drawers, plastic cases, on bookshelves, and in file cabinets.  They were found inside the house, the garage, the attic, the closets.  

We scan all the paper photographs with the Plustek Photo Scanner.  We are both very satisfied with the speed and ease of use in scanning, the quality of pictures scanned, the numerous software options, and its file handling.  It can output scanned files in .jpeg and other digital formats.  

A few of the best or treasured old paper photographs are kept, some of the best are sorted out and given to family members or friends, and many are tossed into the trash can for the landfill.  All are scanned!

These paper photographic images are now all digitalized.  Later, if needed, an images or group of images can be tweaked for digitalized quality or artistic improvements using Lightroom or Photoshop.  

Folders of the scanned paper photographs are then Imported into Lightroom and roughly classified or quality rated.  

Phase 3

Gather together all our photographic slides.  
Scan all these slides into new Folders.
Import into Lightroom the digitalized images of slides in the Folders.  

We will be using the Kodak Slide and Scan hardware and software for scanning color slides.  

Hardware and Software

In our home in suburban Vancouver, Washington, we have two small bedrooms each converted into a home Office and reading room.  Sometimes, on many cold days, to reduce our electric consumption, we only heat these two Office rooms.  Each of us has their own cozy den for reading, napping, electronic connectivity, and entertainment.  And, each of these rooms have a Dell desktop and other connected electronic equipment and gear.  Mostly old equipment, but working fine.  We have Comcast XFinity for Internet and telephone and umpteen channels.  

We are both using an old "renewed" HP Desktop Elitebook 8470p Laptop, Core i5 3320 m 2.6ghz - 8GB DDR3, 128 GB SSD, DVDRW, Windows 10 Pro 64 Bit.  $260, renewed, recycled, saved, or rescued.  Basically, an  old dog of a heavy computer.  It seems to be passing all my tests of performance, e.g., checked CDRW and audio today.  My little puny ASUS laptop died two weeks ago.  I use a Seagate 4Tb external hard disk drive.

Paper photographs Scanner:  Plustek Photo Scanner.  Ephoto Z300, scan 4x6 photo in 2 seconds.  It includes three software applications: scanner mode, picture quality editing and cropping mode, and file manager mode.  $215.  We are both very satisfied with the ease of use, quality of pictures scanned, software options, file handling.  

Digital Photo Viewer Portable:  Aluratek 10" digital photo frame w/4GB built in memory, USB SD/SDHC support, $85.00.  A nice gift for somebody special - including selected photographs that you have taken of them.  

I keep my Notes About Photography in a hypertext notebook.  

I pay for using Adobe Lightroom Classic and Adobe Photoshop, $10 a month.  

Makenna

A Blogger's Hardware Setbacks and Steps Forward

Suddenly, my thin ho-hum ASUS laptop computer, used for field work and play, lost the ability to connect to my home wifi, then went blank and would not turn on again.  It could not be revived, despite my heroic medico-laptop efforts.  Sadly, this weakly little laptop was pronounced dead on 1/21/2002 at 3:54 am.    

Things break down and don't work anymore and my wallet hurts.  

I went on a Yurt Camping trip from Monday (1/17) to Thursday (1/20) to Nehalem Bay State Park near Manzanita, Oregon.  All my writing about my travel experiences, nature studies, poetry, notes, and some photographs for this trip were lost, gone, taken to the grave in the hard-drive-soul of my dead ASUS laptop.  

Yes, a setback, a cheap laptop equipment failure,  DaRn$##!!XX**!, lost written work, no warranty backup, and my wallet groans.  

Home Office Desktop System:
I write, manage photographs, read my Kindle books and Internet documents, search the Internet, and use computer software on my home office desktop computer set up.  I run a big Dell desktop computer, Epson printer and scanner, and external hard drives.  I have a nice big Samsung computer screen. Yes, and all the associated peripheral electronic gear and goodies.  Also, I use a Samsung Galaxy A32 cellphone power-house will fast T-Mobile 5G.  Very Nice, very cool, very powerful, with it, current, and my wallet moans again.    

Recently, as a sad story goes on, I upgraded from Windows 10 to Windows 11 on my desktop.  Sadly, my trusted webpage editor, Front Page 2003, no longer can inset photos in a webpage.  Yikes,  DaRn$##!!XX**!.  Still have to solve this problem with Front Page.

History!  Figure out and find solutions.  Move on!  

What Steps Forward?  Do It!!

So, I bought a used and refurbished HP Elitebook 8470P laptop.  My wallet shed a $250 tear.  We shall see how this hefty businessman's travel tool works for me.  

Lot's of extra computer laptop work ahead for me in the weeks ahead.  Time, time, time ...

I use my Cloud Hands Blog as searchable electronic filing cabinet.  Blogger software is simple and free.  Material can be used elsewhere in webpages.  All blog files can be backed up.  Handy.  Sharable!

I do use the laptop in the field for viewing pictures taken.  For taking photographs, I use a Canon EOS Rebel T7/2000D, a Canon SX740 PowerShot, and my cellphone Galaxy A32.   

I do regular backups on external hard disk drives from my desktop and laptop.  

A Day at Twin Harbors

 We went clam digging at dawn at Twin Harbors State Park Beach.  There were some vehicles and clam diggers at the shore.  

Mick drove to different beaches in the nearby area for surf fishing.  He and April fished at the south jetty at Westhaven State Park.  They walked the beaches with their two dogs.  I think Mick wore his waders all day as a serious fisherman.  

It was very clear this afternoon, and the view from Westhaven State Park was stunning!!!

Four Days in Grayland, Part I     Grays Harbor and Willapa Bay: A Traveler's Hypertext Notebook and Guide 

Four Days in Grayland, Part II    Grayland Beach: A Camper's Hypertext Notebook, Studies, and Comments  

Clam Digging Razor Clams   Washington State Fish and Wildlife 

Clam Digging  Razor Clam Rules and Best Beaches for Digging  

Clam Digging Seasonal Schedule [Sept-Dec 2021]

Clam Digging Tides Grays Harbor

Clam Digging and Crabbing in Washington.  By John A. Johnson.  Adventure North Publishing, 1997, 125 pages.  VSCL. 

Clam Digging and Crabbing in Oregon.  By John A. Johnson. 

Clamming in the Pacific Northwest.  By Ken Axt.  Frank Amato, 2016, 88 pages.  VSCL. 

Clam Digging Westport 

Clam Digging Grayland and Twin Harbors   This stretch of beach is referred to in books as the 'Twin Harbors' Beaches. 

Preparing and Cooking Razor Clams

The Secret Life of Clams: The Mysteries and Magic of Our Favorite Shellfish.  By Anthony D. Dredericks.  Skyhorse, 2014, 286 pages.  FVRL

Clam Digging Tools:  Waist waders with attached boots.  Waterproof top as needed [mine is Riverruns].  Waterproof and warm gloves, hat, and warm clothing.  Clam shovels (9"x18" and 11'x31") and one cylindrical plastic clam digging tool.  Headlamps for night clamming.  Mesh basket for holding razor clams.  Snacks in your pocket.  Friends to have fun with at the seashore.

If you work at shellfishing and have some luck then you will need: A clam opening knife and cutting pad.  Pot in camp big enough to clean and cook clams, oysters, or crabs.  
Surf fishing for redtail surf perch is supposed to be very good using clam baits on the high tide immediately after the razor clammers have dug at low tide.