torsdag den 17. oktober 2013

Traffic

The traffic in Texas is almost the same as Denmark. The area I live in keeps growing, so there is a lot of road constructions, and the roads are getting bigger, because of the many people who is moving to the city every year. So the roads are bigger than I am used to, like the cars, and the houses, and even the kitchen towel.. And oh well, the people too.. ;)

I like the big cars (called trucks), but "my" car is not a truck, and I am honored to have my own car! It is a little silver PT Cruiser! And it has automatic gear (I don't know if it is the way to say it, but the danes know what I mean, hehe). It will be kinda weird to drive with a stick when I get home.

My little PT Cruiser!

Over here they have the 4-ways-stops (or all way stops)! That is when you get to an intersection all four roads will have a "STOP" sign. And then you have to make a full stop before you can keep going. If somebody gets to the intersection before you, you have to let them go first! But always remember to make a full stop! Even when you obviously is the only one nearby.. Always make a full stop!

This picture is from Google. 

Another strange (but really nice thing) that is different from Denmark is the "Right-turn-on-red". That means you are allowed to make a right turn, even when you got a red light. But only if no one else is moving. And you have to remember to make a full stop, before you continue.

This is also from Google.
Then they have school-zones, where there is a speed limit when the school starts, and when the parents pick up the kids in the afternoon. When you drive through these zones in these special hours, policemen will keep an eye on every car that goes by. If the speed limit is 20, it means 20! Not 25, not 24, not 21 but 20! Beth told me this, and sounded really serious, so it must be a really big deal. 

This is also from Google. 

Then there is some few other things that is different from Denmark. Please notice that sitting in a car, on a "bumpy" highway, on a cloudy day isn't the best conditions for photographing;

This is a bad picture showing a truck passing by another truck.
The trucks' speed limit is about 75-80 m.p.h, which would be 120/130 km/h. 

These signs are on the side of the road everywhere.

It isn't abnormal to see a mobile home with a car on the back of it.
You will also see trucks pulling another truck. It is kinda cool looking!

I do still not know what this means, and right now it doesn't make any sense.. ;)

They explain everything with words.

This is a speed limit sign. You have to keep an eye on these (and remember
what it said) when they show up, because you might not see another sign in the
following 5 miles (8km).

The highway with Dallas in the background.

A tunnel.

This is the city limit signs. It took me about 5 weeks to find out, that
they actually tell you when you enter a new city... ;)
Nope, these signs are not the same. In the U.S this (the yellow) means that
the right lane ends, and you have to merge left.
In Denmark this (the triangle) means that the right lane will turn a little smaller. 
I am sure that I forgot to tell other strange things about the traffic but now you know what I have to deal with... ;) 
Another thing; you are allowed to pass on the left AND right side. I thought this would be crazy, but it is not as bad as I thought. As long I don't have to pass by on the right side. ;)

fredag den 11. oktober 2013

Honey

Randy has his own beehive, and the other day (15-09-2013) he took out the honey. The two upper nucs are where the bees keep their honey. Each of them contains 10 frames. The lowest one is where the queen lives.


This was so exciting, and he did a very well job!


He is smoking the bees, so they get a little more calm.
He is smoking the bees, so they get a little more calm.

One frame of honey.

Now Randy has to get the honey of the frames.

A sharp knife is what it takes.






Here is the wax and honey from the frames. 

Jenny and Randy help each other to get the honey, and wax into a sieve.
You know, to separate the wax and honey.


So to the left we see the frames draining, to right in the sink we see the honey being
drain from the wax. And all the way to the right a bowl emptying itself.
- And yes, it is american football in the tv! And yes, that is what we watch all the time.. ;)

Close-up.

And the final draining of the honey. 

søndag den 29. september 2013

Flugtag, and a newspaper

So Saturday, September 21 I went with Beth and Brad's two children, Susan and Bill, and their boy/girlfriends, Sean and Jenny, and these four people's friend, Pamela to Flugtag in Grapevine.

Flugtag is an event organized by RedBull. The competitors attempt to fly home-made, size- and weight-limited, human powered flying machines. The flying machines are pushed by 3-4 people off a pier, that was about 9 meters high into a lake. Most of the competitors competes for fun, and most of the flying machines rarely fly at all.

The RedBull pier, and the first competitor. 

It is going down. 

And he left the flying machine from the very beginning.. 

Splash..

Didn't went well neither. 

A lots of people.

People everywhere.

I think this is a frisbee. 

It is flying!

People.

Cowboooysss.

Anything goes when you need to take pictures, or just watch.

People.

People.

Bill controlled the traffic on the parking place, so we could get out...  ;)
__________  __________  __________  __________  __________  __________

Brad gave me this article about the happiest people in the world. I think you are awesome, if you can read the text!
Because the quality is not the best.... ;)



søndag den 22. september 2013

Mustang Million

Friday, the 20th September, I went to a "show" called Mustang Million. It was a event made by Mustang Heritage Foundation, and their purpose is:
When you think about wild horses, you probably have a vision that pops into your mind of a herd running free in the West. Horses played an important part in America’s history from Spanish explorers, to western expansion and even providing recreational opportunities today. These majestic creatures have been protected as national treasures since 1971 when Wild Horse Annie united school children across the land to write letters to Congress. And while America’s wild horse herds still roam on public lands they are facing new issues. Over population and declining resources are forcing many horses from public lands and into government holding facilities, where American tax payers spend millions on their care each year. 
The Mustang Heritage Foundation’s mission is to increase successful adoptions of wild horses held in Bureau of Land Management (BLM) wild horse holding facilities. More than 42,000 horses reside in BLM short-term and long-term holding corrals and pastures and are in need of adoption. The BLM removes horses from the range in order to sustain natural resources (grass and water) necessary for the wild horses and other wildlife to live on public land. The Mustang Heritage Foundation works with horsemen and –women who have the knowledge, experience and facilities to gentle and or train a wild horse. Every time a horse is adopted and moved from BLM holding facilities, it saves taxpayers more than $10,000 per animal.  
But more importantly, it transforms the wild horse into a sensitive, yet hardy, authentic equine partner. The horse is not the only one being transformed by the experience. Horsemen and- women find that working with a wild horse creates an unspoken bond while also improving their horsemanship skills. We hope Mustang Million, and other MHF programs, serve as a reminder to Americans of our equine heritage and thus inspires you to adopt one of these living legends in an effort to protect the wild herds, our ranges and resources for future generations.

So I went to see this, and I just want to show you some pictures... You know, pictures say more than 1000 words... ;) Keep in mind, that these horses was wild mustangs about 120 days ago.

This is the program every rider went through

The light in this arena was not Christine-photographing-kindly, so the pictures might be a little..... noisy (?)..

Bridleless and bareback slide stop.
Bridleless and bareback reining.

Reining.

Slide stop.

Reining.

Slide stop.

Slide stop.

Western-rider in english saddle and bridle. 

This was not a part of the plan.

Reining.

Slide stop.

One more rider in english saddle and bridle.

Slide stop.

Canter after a slide stop-turn. Don't know what it is called ;)


Slide stop.

Reining.
This one planned the arena after every 5th horse.
English saddle and bridle. Slide stop.

Reining.

Slide stop.

Slide stop.

"Good horse".

Slide stop.

The menu at the event... I don't know what a "Danish" is, but it sounds fun..

Saturday the 21. Jenny, and I went to see the Legends Top 20 Finals Performance, and an "Unbranded" Horse Adoption. 

In the beginning of the final, the finalists were introduced, and this man stood with the american flag while the audience sang the national anthem.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Wylene Davis. 6th place.

Wylene Davis. 6th place.

The audience.

The audience.

Logan Leach. 9th and 13th place.

Zeke Zacharias. 15th place.
( This will be my next project with Phønix... ;p )

Zeke Zacharias. 15th place.

Miranda Holaday. 18th place. 

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Bobby Kerr. 2nd and 3rd place.

Dan James. 4th place.

Dan James. 4th place.

The horse that got adopted. The man on the ground rode with this horse, and 11 other horses, 3 man, and photographers from New Mexico to Canada. The girl on the horse's dad bought this horse for 25.000 dollars. That is 137.746 danish crowns. She was very happy!

Logan Leach. 9th and 13th place. 

Jason Charles. 10th and 17th place. 

The 19 out of 20 finalists. The last one had a accident, nothing bad.  I am not quit sure what happened.

And the winner was Tom Hagwood. 
This was a fun experience, and I hope I get to see more western riding, and rodeo shows while I am here!