Dell will be sending out an engineer to replace the screen on my laptop. In the meantime hooking it up to a monitor has let me extract the remaining photos. I'm hoping to go through them swiftly but with nearly 900 from the trip (excluding those already deleted) I'm not even going to try estimating. Instead this post will give you a few final photos before the full gallery is prepared (and in the meantime check out the set on Facebook). Jeff cooked a great meal one evening and since Jenna has been exploring food photography recently, I decided to try out the new 50mm lens on gastronomic imagery. Some of the results are below, along with scenery from the trip.

One of the other issues with the Mammoth Cave tour related to the tour guide himself. On being asked the age of the caves he explained it was around 8000 years old, before following this up with a response on their formation that geologists believe it took around 2 million years to form. Anyone else notice a minor discrepency there? It didn't bother me since he was pretty open about his obvious bias, although one could feel the entire room "start to squirm" as Jenna put it. Perhaps more worrying is that he backed up his own view by explaining he used to teach geology in school for many years. That's Kentucky, I guess.

Although it is traditional to bring chocolate back for the office, there's no way I was going to buy Hershes or American chocolate in general for that matter. This left a void which I decided to fill with taffy. For those unfamiliar, taffy is a generic name for chewy sweets like Starburst or Chewits that are stretched to make it "fluffier" before being rolled and cut into pieces. The store in Gatlinburg actually handmade it on-site, allowing visitors to view the process (and giving out free samples which always helps make my mind up).

And in other news it appears Telltale games have now picked up the Monkey Island franchise. For the most well-known adventure game title to fall into the hands of the most successful current developer in the genre could not be more fitting. The first episode lands July 7. I suspect I'll be insult swordfighting all week to celebrate. General comments on E3 news once it's new, but suffice to say the return to its previous over-the-top glory is certainly warranted.

As you may have picked up from other sources, a screen failure in my month-old laptop prevented updates in the second half of the trip. Hopefully getting it repaired won't be too stressful. Having returned I only have access to around half my photos at the moment, so a full gallery may take a little time. I have put a fairly comprehensive set of smaller images up on Facebook.

So what happened once we reached Tennessee? Aside from hanging out in our 3-floor, 5-bedroom cabin the mountains, we went on several hikes, explored the nearby town of Gatlinburg, and embarked on a couple of longer road trips to Nashville and Kentucky. Nashville included a bizarre recreation of the Parthenon and the country music spectacle of the Grand Ole Opry which featured some fantastic performances and was quite an experience. Kentucky was primarily for the Mammoth Cave (although an obligatory stop at the original KFC was a given). While the huge caves are a beautiful sight, the way the place is run makes it difficult to recommend. A strict no-bag policy will confound photographers who wish to carry multiple lenses, and the whole tour felt rather rushed, being generally picture unfriendly. Alternative tours such as an introduction to caving might be better options.

A couple of nights in, we decided to dust off the outdoor hot tub and spent several hours soaking, drinking beer and chatting. Jenna's unforgivably early departure clearly required retaliatory action. Knowing that the simplest punishments tend to be the most effective, she inherited the nickname, radio callsign, and every conceivable conversational reference to "Quitter" for the remainder of the trip. She finally escaped the title only after staying up with me until 3am on our last night together, as we shared photos and watched several hours of British comedy.

The trip to Tennessee proved to be the typically fun and eventful roadtrip that these extended family undertakings always promise. With 12 of us on this trip we split into two vehicles for the journey, the bulk in the 15-seater van, back seats loaded with luggage, and just two in the more intimate car, which had been packed like a mule. Communication between the two was facilitated by two-way radios I bought to equip each vehicle (during a traditional midnight trip to Wal-Mart with Jenna). Jeff and I took the car, sharing music and chatting for several hours until the first stop.

At this point, realising it had been several years since I last had an energy drink, I decided to make things interesting. Meanwhile Dwain decided to make things even more interesting by jacking our car when Jeff inadvertantly stepped away with the keys in the ignition. Initially a hostage, high on a range of American-strength energy products I swiftly switched sides and we ended up hurtling down the highway in our "jacked" car, blaring Shania Twain in some bizarrely twisted parody of the Southern criminal.

Our woodland "cabin" is more lavish than most houses I have seen recently, and on arrival Caleb and I cracked open the beer and played pool. Karleigh became curious and asked about the game so I explained the rules. Despite the fact there were no cues even vaguely small enough to fit her comfortably, she threw herself into the game wholeheartedly. Her persistence suggests with practice we could have the makings of a great pool hustler (who'd say "no" to such a cute girl?) so frankly I view the time spent as an investment.

This post is primarily to share more photos from the last few days, since the summary of what I've been up to is basically "hanging out with Jenna, Jeff, Karleigh and Clark". In pretty much equal amounts this trip, which has been nice. Last night, Nic, Jane and her boyfriend Nick came over for dinner which, as it got later, gradually degenerated into a fun, wine-fuelled session of friendly insults and ribaldry.

We spent today running through a list of errands Jenna had compiled that needed to be finished prior to the Tennessee trip. Naturally I felt the need to contribute to this list of goals. World domination seemed appropriate. In practice that meant buying a replacement belt for mine which broke a few days ago. As Che Guevara said, "you can't have a revolution if your trousers fall down" (okay, he probably didn't say that, but I'm sure he'd have agreed with the sentiment).

While shopping I came across the Weird American Product of the Day (WAPotD?). The Nerf N-Strike Switch Shot EX-3 is a dart blaster into which you can also slot in a Nintendo Wiimote to turn it into a peripheral for the console. Because foam weaponisation is clearly what the Japanese had overlooked. Which is sort of surprising. Incidentally this picture is top-secret evidence smuggled out of Wal-Mart after I was accosted by security guard for photographing a couple of their products. I understand they may be wary of undercover documentaries, but the store wouldn't even have earned a mention had they not felt the need to interfere…

In any case, we live in different times, by different standards, and we have different hopes for our children. They will learn to be afraid of Everything, which is pitiful. Life in the Fourth Reich will not be easy, for most of them. They will ride fast motorcycles and have a lot of sex, and that will be just about it.

-Hunter S. Thompson, Foreword to Boys on the Bus

After an uneventful, relatively comfortable, 10 hour flight with Continental (my only complaint being their choice of meal times which left room for improvement), we arrived in Houston, Texas. Encounters with US immigration officials, often unfriendly and occasionally borderline xenophobic, are not something I typically enjoy. This trip was a pleasant exception. "What's in Natchez!?" he asked cheerily, clearly perplexed as to why tourists would arrive in Texas only to head to a tiny town in Mississippi. "My sister," explained my dad, to which Romina added, "and not much else."

So far most of the holiday has been spent travelling. It took a six hour drive to get to Natchez, followed by one and a half to get to Baton Rouge. And the road trip to Tennessee is still ahead of us. In between, I spent a while photographing the beautiful coral tanks my uncle and aunt have spent months building up and maintaining since my last visit, along with the dogs. There's small gallery below. I'm certainly getting comfortable with the 50mm lens now and the plan is to shoot most of this trip with it, after which I'll go back to alternating generally between it and the 28-135mm.

While Twitterage will likely be limited, I'll aim for a continuous stream of short posts (ideally with photos) here since I'm unlikely to have time for anything longer or more in-depth until I return.

There are various ways one might approach the US election results: a victory for the Democrats, African Americans or simply common sense. Others will slyly ponder that perhaps Americans have at last proven they can be trusted to elect their own leader. There is little doubt that the result fulfilled the desires of the silent majority, by which I mean the rest of world (inexplicably illegible to vote on some technicality), made clear by the flood of supportive global congratulations.

While people are not wrong to characterise Obama's victory speech as sounding "historic", McCain's concession speech was also notably magnanimous and one can't help but wonder whether, had he campaigned in that manner throughout, the finish might have been somewhat tighter. The fact Obama is "untested" remains the chief concern amongst many Republicans, but then this is a job for which there is no real test. For that matter, in what way exactly was Bush tested before he landed the role? Unless pretzel choking featured substantively, I'm fairly sure he would have failed. Obama's campaign attracted some excellent minds and the people with which he now chooses to surround himself will greatly impact his effectiveness moving forward.

Last night I headed out with Ben and Anna from law school to see Quantum of Solace for a second time, taking the bold move of actually remaining awake throughout on this occasion. While Ravi's suggestion of an opening night screening last Friday had been conceptually good, the practicalities of end-of-the-week exhaustion and an 11:30pm start, possibly exacerbated by the beer in my hand, led to a somewhat inevitable conclusion. As it turns out, I didn't miss much in the additional half hour and my original views were pretty much spot on. This way, however, I can proffer my review without risk of reproach. I can say with certainty: Quantum of Solace is definitely a film I have seen.

The flood of gaming titles continues with the much anticipated sequel to Gears of War. While already impressed with its improved graphics (less, though still some, texture pop but particularly more open areas and a brighter palette with actual colours!) and continuing cinematic flair, I want to take a moment to praise the design of the limited edition box. You heard me. Metal cases are becoming commonplace for collectors releases and they do look and feel great. However the oversize tins required to stuff in extras like artbooks end up unwieldy and seem slightly tacky. To get around this, The Gears 2 discs come in a slim metal case the size of an ordinary game, which is then packed with a book inside a larger card case and slipcover. It's an elegant solution that I'd like to see other releases follow.

Now that things have settled down, in both work and life, I should be in position to resume writing here more frequently. It probably won't be regular because I'm still never quite sure when things of note are actually going to happen, but they do seem to. Which is nice.

This post was actually written before the American elections finished so I will only touch on Obama's victory briefly (at least until I can digest the results fully). While his platform of change became popular enough to secure the White House, actually effecting that change will still be an uphill struggle, particularly in the current economic climate where massive financial bailouts have left America's national debt even more monstrous than previously. The rest of the world, however, is breathing a collective sigh of relief —arguably less that Obama is in and more that Bush('s cronies) is out and Palin wasn't allowed anywhere near! I also particularly liked ad agency Grey NYC's recent campaign inverting the races of the two candidates, urging voters to vote on issues rather than race. Londonders will likely have seen it on the cover of yesterday's Metro. The posters quickly became collectors' items.

Currently I am preparing for the glut of high quality videogame titles heading this way. Although the numbers are roughly the same it seems significantly more daunting when combined with a job. Gabe and Tycho's Operation Myriad is not far off. Better make those holidays count, I guess. I'm currently exploring the wastelands of a post-apocalyptic Washington, D.C. in Fallout 3 and the feeling of isolation they have captured is fantastic, travelling between small communities.  Rather than just being quest hubs, there is a real sense that these isolated pockets are just people trying to get by.

I am also very pleased to announce that the demo for free running game Mirror's Edge has placed it firmly at the top of the pre-orders list. I already loved the clinical art style of the metropolis and the videos they have released, but with jump puzzles generally being the bane of any first-person game, devoting an entire experience to exactly that would require a seriously impressive control system. Fortunately, that's exactly what they have delivered with a surprisingly intuitive system for vertical interaction with the environment. The momentum you build up as you run is also key, particularly if you want to land on something soft after ziplining between buildings, since your momentum is conserved as you drop. The bottom line is that it can make you look and feel as cool as Assassin's Creed, but without taking all control away from the player like that game's one-button mechanic. I'm really impressed by this new EA, turned from churning out sports games, sequels and movie tie-ins to producing some really impressive and innovative new IPs.

I have been quiet but the result is a full gallery of photos from the States. Unsurprisingly you will find lots of photos of Clark (who became progressively easier to photographs in just the 2 weeks I was there) and Karleigh (who is the sort of kid that complains when you stop taking photos of her). At the end of the gallery you will find all the photos from before and after the Art Melt at the Dixon house. Dave Marley had been planning this all summer, and the event was a great success.

The principle is simple — several artists get together to exhibit their work while anyone is free to come by and view. Debbie was initially worried about the number of people who might descend upon the house, but she thoroughly enjoyed the night. Alongside the art was a range of food to nibble, cold drinks and live music from a band Dave knew. It was particularly interesting being around the week beforehand, seeing several of the artists coming to the house to sketch ideas and prepare.

Distinguished visitors included a man running for judge which highlighted another idiosyncrasy of the American system. Elected positions are not just the obvious political ones, but rather span sheriff, district attorney (the chief prosecutor) and judges. On the surface this appears a more democratic way of doing things. However beneath that, and the reason we do not adopt it here, is the concern that these people cannot be expected to do their jobs properly when a popular election is imminent — they are clearly conflicted by a desire to retain their position.

To avoid going stir crazy while cooped up in the apartment with medical books, a pregnant Jenna discovered couponing which has now overtaken her life (we mused that given our family's apparent addictive personality — Caleb and WOW, Manel and cleaning — it was a good thing none had ever been hooked on drugs). The basic system involves matching specific coupons with sales on at certain stores. So if there is a buy one get one free coupon and a buy one get one free sale at the shop, after both items and the coupon are rung up, the marvel of modern technology and automated tills reduces the price to zero. It gets much more complicated than that, of course, but there's a very odd feeling walking away with $18 of shampoo for 82 cents, particularly as the clerk apologises since he had technically overcharged us. The whole procedure becomes significantly more challenging when performed with three children in tow, I discovered, when we hooked up with Cassie. Jenna's least proud moment, however, has to be sitting in front of Target cutting out coupons around 10pm only to find that once she was done the store had been closed for 10 minutes.

Jenna and I discussed a group photo she had taken of her friends at university and how she felt she was very much part of the picture despite not being physically in it — she can see herself in it. In much the same way I am very definitely in many of the photos in this gallery. In fact as a photographer I have often found that I can tell how another photographer feels about their subjects simply from the way they choose to shoot them, occasionally with surprising results…

While the photos are being sorted out, here are some miscellaneous musings from my trip…

I had always assumed one of the drawbacks to city living in somewhere like London was the background noise — an incessant din which prevails throughout the night. Imagine my surprise to find that the comparably insignificant town of Natchez (and even Baton Rouge on some nights) was far louder outside, with a near deafening roar from cicadas in particular, as well as creatures of that ilk. Cicadas are particularly loud insects since their "singing" is not produced by rubbing parts of their body, but rather through clicking "timbals" in their exoskeleton, the sound being amplified by using their body as a resonance chamber.

The Coca Cola issue has become more severe now that I drink it more regularly in the UK, to the point where I actually have to avoid it in the States. Most Americans are sadly (blissfully?) unaware that they are given worse Coke than anywhere else in the world. In fairness, regular travellers aside, the rest of the world is largely unaware that US Coke is so bad either. The reason is that proper Coca Cola is sugar based, but the US variety is made with cheaper corn syrup instead. This actually spans to most soft drinks there, but the flavour is particularly noticeable in cola. You have been warned. And Americans, come try the good stuff!

Jenna and I share similar views when it comes to children's books, both disliking the majority of modern drivel which is thrown at kids on the basis that so long as they are reading it's a good thing. In fact bad books can even stifle their imaginations. For example Karleigh produces all sorts of stories when playing with her toy ponies but in the bookstore, were one to cave to her whims and buy the branded tie-in pony books, she tends towards reproducing the basic stories within rather than inventing her own adventures for them.

Personally there are two things I expect from a good children's book: inventive originality to develop imagination and avoiding talking down to children. The latter means a decent vocabulary in order to expand the child's, as well as content with some sort of depth, which sort of ties into the first part. There is a strange idea that children's stories need to be obvious when in fact children are often more open to parallel imagery than adults. Neil Gaiman's books for children have always appealed to me since, as an author of adult fiction too, he does not sit down with the goal of just producing a children's book. Rather he has various ideas some of which suit novels or comics while others work best as children's books. I was glad to be able to buy a copy of The Wolves in the Walls, a personal favourite, for Karleigh.

On a related note, all parents should carry around notebooks to jot down those wonderful things their child comes out with (and an adult never could). I heard several Karleighisms during my trip that I've already forgotten and wish I had written here or elsewhere. The alternative is to attach a dictaphone to your child but that might be considered expensive, time consuming and also slightly creepy.

I will write about the rest of my Stateside exploits once I go through the several hundred photographs from the trip and trim them down into something more manageable (hopefully without the Gallery glitch that plagued my last USA trip and I never actually solved). For now I will just discuss the fairly painless trip back.

Although they were keen to carefully rescan the Nintendo DS Lite I bought Kirsten as a birthday present (the dual coloured ones are very sleek with a matt black interior and back, clearly designed more for business executives than younger gamers), American security surprisingly gave me less hassle than their British counterparts. On the other hand most of the security was at the quaintly parochial Baton Rouge airport, with all of ten gates (a substantial rise, I am told, from its original four).

Jenna brought me to the airport with Karleigh and Clark so, several dozen photographs later, it was pretty hard to tear myself away. Things improved at Bush Intercontinental in Houston as I had a couple of hours to kill drinking martinis in a bar and chatting to a pleasant LA resident who was in town for a radiotherapy trade show. With his girlfriend working in "the industry" (she was a set designer on the short-lived Joey) we discussed the risk of an impending actors' strike in the coming month. That for me is what travelling alone is really about, and the essence of what Frank Moorhouse meant in describing the martini as a travelling drink.

I also stumbled across a store that was demoing Shure earphones, specifically the SE310s that I have been eyeing for a while, allowing me to try them with my own music. In short they are exactly the revelatory aural experience that I had heard and have suddenly jumped from merely desirable to a must-have purchase. I didn't dare try the SE530s for fear that their £250 price tag might start to look appealling. The 310s will be more than enough for now. My only concern is that with the foam earbuds (not the rubber ones pictured here) expanding further into the ear canal than I had realised, providing a great sound isolating seal, they may become dangerous for use when walking around the City. That would mean I'd need to carry two pairs of earphones which is cumbersome. Real world testing will be the only way to find out I suppose…