Once a Year Cat Food Shopping

JWise Photo of the Day

A giant bag of cat food for a giant cat fattening up to become worm food

So there we were, checking out cat drugs, not antibiotics, dewormer, or anything so mundane; I’m talking about the good stuff. The kind of drug that makes cats googly-eyed, meowing loudly, and generally looking as though they are having an encounter with their cat god or even multiple deities. Suddenly, a guy in a long dark coat brings our attention to the oversized packages of food in the next aisle, where we see this: 20% More – FOR FREE!!! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT??? This is such a profound bargain I gave serious thought to changing Caroline’s diet from a pure vegetarian meal plan to a Gourmet Flavor…….ok, yeah, I know, I’m getting carried away.

Great Grandfather Kurchoff

JWise Photo of the Day

Rudy and Herman Kurchoff on the left and unknown person on the right in this over 90 year old photo of my Great Grandfather Herman Kurchoff

The two guys on the left are the Famous Kurchoff Brothers – Rudy and Herman. Herman is in the middle; the guy on the right is unknown. The brothers were famous for their circus and sideshow act, where they were the first daredevils in America to speed on motorcycles at death-defying angles inside a round steel cage. Herman is my maternal great-grandfather. Thanks again to Photoshop and Neat Image for repairing this old photo.

Atom Heart, Anton, Caroline, Olaf, John

JWise Photo of the Day

Uwe Schmidt aka Atom Heart, Anton - the skull, Caroline Wise, Olaf Finkbeiner and John Wise in the background in a photo from early 1990

Early in 1990, with our Digiview image digitizer connected to our Amiga 2000, we grabbed this photo of Uwe Schmidt (Atom Heart) on the left, Anton the skull, Caroline Engelhardt (to become Caroline Wise 4 years later), Olaf Finkbeiner, and that’s me, John Wise in the back row. This photo of the day prior to a recent scanning only existed on a piece of paper printed on a dot-matrix printer, the original file is lost in time. Photoshop and Neat Image helped in bringing this poor-quality image back to life.

Uwe Hamm-Furholter / Exground Filmfest

JWise Photo of the Day

Mail from Uwe Hamm-Furholter in Aldlingen, Germany telling me of The Exground Filmfest

An old friend, Uwe Hamm-Furholter, wrote me and sent this brochure for the Exground Filmfest held in Wiesbaden, Germany, for the past 18 years – he and I went to the first one back in 1988, and I got my clock cleaned by Ari Roussimoff following the Exground showing of his film Shadows in the City in 1990 or 1991. Uwe brought the likes of Nick Zedd to Germany to show his films, did some documentary work with Richard Kern, and has always had a liking for extreme films.

Las Noches de las Luminarias

JWise Photo of the Day

Las Noches de las Luminarias at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, Arizona

On the trail at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix, Arizona for Las Noches de las Luminarias. The garden transforms into a holiday wonder – at least as far as this desert is concerned. There are half a dozen stands along the trails selling coffee, hot chocolate, wine, and soft drinks. We watched and listened to no less than eight musicians or groups as we strolled between the luminarias with their candles flickering. A woman playing harp greeted us at the front gate, and a barbershop quartet serenaded us and even made us laugh. Onlookers gathered around a Native American flutist in an Indian-style hut while the Scottsdale Bell Ringers drew a large crowd in the Patio Cafe. A cowboy sang songs of the old west, not to mention two jazz bands, mariachis, and more. It was a blast; we only wish we’d shown up at 5:30 when it all begins instead of coming in at 7:00. The luminarias are lit from 5:30 till 9:30, and quite a few weekend days are already sold out – well worth a visit.