Yesterday morning it did not rain.  There were even some moments of sun.  It got me all excited, so I got myself together and headed out to…Nisqually Wildlife Refuge.  Shocking, yes? (Those that follow know this is a favorite haunt).

My enthusiasm caused me to overestimate how warm it was out.  I wore a light long-sleeved t-shirt, a hooded pullover (also relatively lightweight) and a fleece jacket (which, I know, would be plenty for some…but not me).  I was smart enough to grab a sock hat. When I arrived I unwrapped a package of hand warmers for my pockets, but decided to ditch the gloves because it felt pretty warm (despite the fact that the car’s thermometer reported it was 37).

I was a fool.

I wasn’t atrociously cold, or I would have turned around.  But, I was definitely not as cozy as I would have liked and the hand warmers, without the cover of a mitten, just weren’t really doing it.  It was a frozen hand, runny nose kind of morning.  I found myself wishing that someone would create a full-sized hand warmer.  You know how the boot warmers have a strip of adhesive on it so you can stick it to your sock?  Imagine a full-body body warmer with a large adhesive strip.  Peel and stick to your back or your front…or both.  That would be amazing.

Despite the chill it was a beautiful morning.  The tide was in, which is always a special treat.  It seems that, more often than not, the tide is low when I visit.  I don’t mind.  Last time I went at low tide I was treated to eagles out on the mud flats.  However, high tide is cool because you’re walking on this boardwalk, suspended over the delta, surrounded by water…and I swear it feels like the boardwalk is moving a bit.  It’s completely my imagination, but I’m okay with that if you’re okay with that.

There were no mature eagles about, though there were a couple of young ones sitting in a couple of snags.  They were too far away to get a good shot, though I kind of like the shadowy look.  However, it was obvious that their feathers were still coming in.  Even from a distance one of them looked…rough.  Feathers poking up, all gawky looking.  I imagine he cuts quite the picture close-up.

It is not uncommon to see impressive lenses out at Nisqually.  Big, honkin’ lenses.  I was following behind one such lens carrier and noticed that he had a monopod.  You know, instead of a tripod it’s a single…pod.  I don’t tend to carry my tripod when I go out there simply because I don’t want to bother.  I mean, yes, I’m out there to see what there is to see and to photograph what there is to photograph, but I’m also there to get a bit of exercise.  Wouldn’t a monopod be nice?  Much easier to carry than a tripod.  Right?

I found myself thinking that I wish I had a monopod.  Because that’s the black hole that is photography, yes?  There’s always something that new that you want.

Fast forward to yesterday evening, which we spent with friends.  I got in a conversation with one of them about tripods as he is interested in purchasing one and was inquiring about mine.  I told him about it, going so far as to show it to him as it was in the trunk (because that’s how I roll on the weekends).

If you’re interested, I have the MeFoto Roadtrip in titanium.  It’s light-weight aluminium that is compact enough to take on a hike but sturdy enough to comfortably strap my camera-body and 70-200mm to.  I’ve had it since November, used it numerous times and have yet to identify anything I don’t like about it.

When I got home I pulled it up on Amazon and sent he and his wife the link, as there are a whole lot of tripods out there, and noticed that it was described as a tripod/monopod kit. Huh-wuh?  It’s a monopod and a tripod?  Amazon didn’t tell me much more than that, so I Googled it and stumbled across a MeFoto blog that, in 11 easy to follow photographs, instructed me how to convert my tripod into a monopod.  Can life get any better?  It’s like I have a brand new toy without having spent any money! Ta-da and voila!

I may have to go back out to ‘squally today.  Or maybe Woodard Bay.  So very many options!