Suspension- the new word for us in Northampton.

Suspension by Paul Hood

I took the above shot at a fountain in Northampton MA, at the Smith University Campus. Yes, they let men on campus, but only if you're accompanied by a woman ( just kidding ). Still. . . Sheryl was there to protect me from harm. She was on our borrowed cell phone which surprises the heck out of us every time it rings, and she didn't even see this fine frog. I had enough time to snap only one frame and then he disappeared.

Love doing the photography around Northampton. Lots to see. Working on lining up some gigs when people figure out that they can hire me. Right now we're back in Sharon, MA because we had to return a rental car here. Otherwise we'd still be back in Northampton scouting around and applying for jobs in the Western Massachusetts area. We love Northampton. Some of the surrounding areas are very nice too-- the last place we checked out was one of Sheryl's long time favorites: Shelburne Falls. Greenfield is near there, and we'd get into that too, plus there's a couple jobs there which look really good to Sheryl. ref #4698 jpeg

Escaping the heat and going green,

Sleeping in the barn is much more comfortable than sleeping in the house these days. There's no roof insulation holding in the heat, just open rafters and the underside of the roof. The ceiling being higher, and there being several windows and two opposing doors which we block open makes for a cooler environment by the time we go to bed. There's also a little more privacy and separation from household noise.

It's odd that the much more well equipped and insulated house would be less comfortable in summer, when it is much nicer in winter. I used to think that insulation was the key to comfort, but it all depends on a lot of factors. Since it cools off at night here, we'd actually be better sleeping out in the open: except that it rains sometimes. So we're trying to emulate open air, but with a roof. Better yet would be a roof which actually reflects off heat energy ( in the Summer only ). I've always been interested in green designs and alternative energy. Used to read catalogs like "Real Goods" just to look at things like solar, wind, and green building techniques. Today there are probably better sources, haven't Googled it lately.

Another factor making the barn more comfortable at night: it's empty all day and has no electricity, no cooking, no refrigerator or other heat generating appliances, nor body heat adding to the overall ambient temperature. All of that stuff adds up. Even fans generate heat. Of course once we got out there the first thing I wanted to do was add a lamp to the mix-- it's all downhill from there.

Seems like us innovative humans are always wanting to add things, even when the real success is in the taking away.