Some kind of nature girl: Thanksgiving in July

I got up early to go adventuring with the scuba diving interns today, in their survey of the abalone population of a particular area they were planted. Kailey came too, which was nice since she, Jay and I were just sitting on the boat as they dove (57 minutes the first, shorter the second.) The swaying of the boat as we sat anchored started to get to my stomach, so I lay on the long seat in our boat's cabin and fell asleep during the second dive. I woke up when they were climbing back onto the boat and felt a lot better, especially once we were moving quickly again.

I brought my 4x5 thinking of getting portraits of them today, but the fog was thick and misty over the Sound. I didn't want to risk getting my bellows wet, so I'll just have to go out again. All that dive gear looks exhausting.

When we got back, I peeked around the lab to see who was working and talked to Shad for a while. As he had some time between projects, I got him for a portrait with his anemones in the Sea Table room (where all the organisms are kept in their tanks). The lighting in there is amazing from high windows with light filtered by trees, bouncing off all the water. It was a lot of fun and I did more directing than some other sessions. I think it helps people feel more comfortable if the pressure isn't on them to perfect a pose.

Finally, tonight was our Thanksgiving feast! It was so tasty and full of great food. Turkey, mashed potatoes, rolls, corn on the cob..We had to take a break before Anna-Mai's amazing apple pie. Things were getting pretty silly now that we were all full, relaxed and in one room. We'll have leftovers for days.