09-AUG-2013
Seen Better Days
They're my favorite Birkenstock's and they need repair. I found many repair services online - some authorized, some not, offering a dizzying array of options. Took this picture to send to one discussing my concerns and asking what repairs they would advise.
Can you think back to a pair of shoes you owned that were beyond repair that you wish you still had?
I'm happy that I can have these repaired, but most likely it will cost more than their original price.
06-MAR-2013
Did you have one of these?
We've been using computers since a Sinclair membrane keyboard 2K which we rented from our library ($15 a month). Next we purchased an Apple IIe with a whole 32K memory, for about $2,100.
My husband has finally decided to part with those we've collected through the years. This tape backup was not cheap. Look at size of the memory!
07-JAN-2013
Democracy in Action
We went to a County Commissioners' Meeting tonight to hear varying opinions about gun control. It was uplifting to see how many more people were there supporting the ban of assault weapons than those who were there to defend their Second Amendment Rights. (The clock on the screen was very faint. It indicated the remaining time each speaker had.)
09-AUG-2012
Covenant Restrictions Do Not Permit Its Display
I'm really ticked that we can't put this out on our lawn, but as law-abiding residents of a community with covenants and restrictions I guess we have to abide by them.
21-JUL-2012
P7216376 Frustration
Read this and weep for our country:
http://truth-out.org/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=3079%3Agoodbye-to-all-that-reflections-of-a-gop-operative-who-left-the-cult
16-MAR-2012
"GAS" - Do you have it?
(Gear Acquisition Syndrome)
It rained about half the time we were out on the lake, getting a bit scary at times when we heard thunder - fortunately, no lightning.
No....I don't really miss my 100-400 lens (equivalent 160 to 640mm), which I sold a few months ago - except when there's a juvenile eagle up in a tree, far, far away, and the results I get from the Panasonic 45-200 lens (equivalent 90-400) aren't up to the job.
27-FEB-2012
_MG_2642 Laundry Day
Will we ever get our manufacturing base back?
02-DEC-2011
Morning Has Broken
Time to fill the suet feeder and log. I have to prepare the mix about every three or four days. My efforts are rewarded by a rich assortment of photo ops. Only problem is making the birds dependent on the resource. I need to have someone come and fill the feeders if I'm going to be away for more than a day.
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 cup lard (not vegetable shortening)
2 cups quick-cook oats
2 cups cornmeal
1 cup plain flour
1/3 cup sugar
Melt lard and peanut butter in microwave. Stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into square or rectangular container. Refrigerate to harden and then use as required to fill feeders. After it's hardened it doesn't have to be refrigerated.
25-NOV-2011
So you think YOUR desk is a mess?
This area is sending me notice that it's time to stop playing with images, and straighten up a little. (Now where did I put that wall hanging that said "Creative people don't have neat homes"?)
17-SEP-2011
Comic Relief
In these tough times, laughs are few and far between.
Ricky likes to curl up in whatever he finds that is wrappable.
When I spied him in this throw on the couch I yelled "Stay"...and he did...while I went for a camera.
31-AUG-2011
_MG_6141 Are you a lens snob?
Does sporting a red ring around your lens make your heart and ego swell with pride?
Does the sight of a red ring on someone else's lens make you green with envy?
Start studying!
There are marvelous lenses out there for the finding!
When the Canon ef-s 55-250 lens first came out I was very surprised by the excellent quality of the images, but I wanted for the lens to prove itself first, and it really has. A rating of 8.9 on Fred Miranda's Lens Forum is nothing to sneeze at.
I still didn't need it, but a member of my Digipets Yahoo group posted some pictures she had taken with it and they were way better than what I'd been seeing. It was obvious that her Photoshop skills tweaked the images to perfection.
So...still determined not to give in to yet another lens, I took a peek at the specifications on the B & H website. Ah....it weighed so little! How nice, I thought, it would be to have a lens with a little bit more reach than my 70-200 f/4L and one that would fit entirely into my favored Adorama Slinger case...and one that weighed 12.8 ounces less. My shoulder was excited about less drag on it.
The lens arrived yesterday and although it lacks usm (you can't focus manually while you are in autofocus mode, but must move the switch on the lens to mf) and the focusing sounds more Volkswagen than BMW, the image quality makes it a winner in my book...and I shouldn't forget the fact that is has image stabilization, which the 700-200 f/4L lacks.
22-FEB-2010
DSC03090 Golden Oldie from 5 megapixels..
Crop representing about 1/3 of the original picture content.
the Sony DSC F717 is one heck of a camera that's always been a favorite of mine.
I recently had to buy two new batteries because the older ones had lost their ability to hold a charge. I hope to keep them going by grabbing a shot every now and then.
By the way, this is the 2nd go round for the picture numbering.
Don't forget your older cameras and the excitement you experienced when they first got into your eager hands. They still can please you.
Sorry about the overdone framing, but that's the result of the gallery theme!
14-FEB-2010
The Diet Isn't Working!
In the summer I put Beegie on a diet because she was looking and feeling quite pudgy.
Over the weekend a member of my Digipets Yahoo Group asked a question about making a collage in Photoshop (which we've since learned is really a montage - according to what she wanted to do). I started reading tutorials, as she did as well, and made many attempts to get something I liked.
Went off onto another tangent and put some of the steps into this image. The background was a 7D shot and Beegie was captured with a Sony DSC F717 (MY BAD - I had originally stated this was taken with my Panasonic LX3 and then noticed the picture below in my PBlog.)
01-JAN-2010
DSC03010 7 years old...the camera that is
Every time I find myself hankering for a new "toy" (translation: camera) I take out one of my golden oldies and start shooting with it. Of all of them, I cherish the DSC F717 the most because it makes the greatest images. The lens is spectacular. This was taken handheld in my laundry room, with light filtering through closed blinds with Auto ISO, which I have never used with this camera. Something special about the older digicams that weren't yet in the megapixel race.
26-DEC-2009
Thirteen Portions
Once a year I make a great sacrifice and prepare a turkey. Hard to get out of this unfavored task since my supermarket will give me a "free" turkey if I spend $50 a week for six weeks. Unfortunately, they do not provide a cook for its preparation.
Well...at least there are 13 portions left for my husband's hiking sandwiches (or a hot meal), shown here vacuum-sealed.
I wonder if I should have posted instead a picture of the tipped over drippings cascading down the cabinets, or the juices overflowing the cutting board.
It wasn't all bad. I tried something new, bacon slices on the skin to keep it moist while it roasted. Best part was munching on a few of those when I took the turkey out of the oven...and my husband did the carving and cleanup.
18-DEC-2009
First Snow Squirrel and Recipe
Snow started aggressively this morning but has tapered off. They're predicting 10-14 inches for tonight. Had to move my squirrel food tray under the overhang and they haven't found it yet. Made the No Melt Suet Mix yesterday and it smelled so good I wanted to eat it. It's so easy to cut into bite sized pieces. Will no doubt make it rather than the mix with Crisco. Here's the recipe:
1 cup crunchy peanut butter
1 cup lard (not vegetable shortening)
2 cups quick-cook oats
2 cups cornmeal
1 cup plain flour
1/3 cup sugar
Melt lard and peanut butter in microwave. Stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into square or rectangular container. Refrigerate and cut into squares and serve the birds (and squirrels). They love it!
30-NOV-2009
Joan Crawford would turn over in her grave!
I know she didn't like wire hangers, but what would she think of these?
04-OCT-2009
Do you belong to a cult?"
"That's what a visitor asked as he entered the front door.
"Why is that thing over there?"
Because after being up for several weeks on my deck without incident, my hunting blind, used for bird and squirrel photography, had to be brought in because the wind blew it over.
I'm going to have to anchor it to the deck and the current idea is to put locking plastic strips around the deck slats and then use the tie-down loops on the blind to secure it to the deck.
I'll also open zippers on all sides so that wind can blow through and hopefully, I'll be able to get shots this coming winter, than I did last winter, when I had to shoot through a window or sliding door.
02-MAY-2009
It Broke my Heart....
when this female pileated woodpecker arrived for her evening nibble at the suet mix I had been putting in the tree stump on my deck. She seemed very puzzled that it was no longer there, and hung around a long time, maybe hoping it would magically reappear.
I'm feeling very guilty for the enforced dietary restriction!
I had to clear away the bird feeding paraphernalia because my vegetable plants have been put into large containers on the deck and leaving bird, squirrel and raccoon attracting feeders out there would make those plants vulnerable.
03-APR-2009
Interrupted
I really should take in the bird feeder at night because I know I will find it empty the next morning, but how could I give up a photo op like this, taken with my 85mm f/1.8 lens at almost a fast enough shutter speed? Light is from two 65 watt floodlights in the ceiling over my deck.
25-MAR-2009
I am having the best time with this bit of tree trunk!
There's a cavity in that stump and this male pileated woodpecker has been dipping for the contents, which I've filled with a homemade "suet" mix of Crisco, peanut butter and cornmeal. I've also had a female pileated visiting. (She doesn't have the white stripe extending back from the beak.) Many insect eating birds have visited the cavity in this log. It sure has made the winter pass quickly watching the visitors it has attracted.
21-FEB-2009
Every now and then....
Comes a shot that REALLY works! So...it pays to take lots of them! (Through my window, as most of my bird shots have been taken) Taken later in the day, the lighting on this is better than many of my shots - I prefer gray days, actually.
20-FEB-2009
Business is Picking Up
It's a few weeks since I put this log on my deck and the bluebirds know that I stuff suet mix in the cavity.
15-FEB-2009
They took their sweet time!
Well it's been fifteen days since I placed the sawn-off tree trunk on a table outside and while occasionally I would see a bird on it, between the time I reached for the camera and arrived at the window, the bird would disappear.
Today, I finally outwitted a bluebird. I think adding sunflower seeds to the suet atracted a greater variety of birds, so the spot became more attractive.
This was shot through my kitchen window. (I'm going to have to figure how to get a darker colored suet mix - it's always overexposed if I want the bird exposed properly!)
01-FEB-2009
"Build it and they will come...."
Remember the movie from which that quote was taken? It was all about hope.
I'm hoping that birds will be atracted to the suet mix:
2 + cups yellow cornmeal
1/2c. peanut butter
1/2 c. Crisco (vegetable shortening)
handful of raisins and/or birdseed
Do not add flour as it gets moldy
The particular amount of cornmeal is determined by greasiness of the peanut butter and Crisco you use.
(Too little cornmeal and the chunks are too big)
I know it's going to take a few days before the woodpeckers and bluebirds find this, but I know they will come, and photographing them on a log, rather than a bird feeder might look a bit more "natural".
I am going to search for a log with a nice branch on it. Might be a bit better.
26-NOV-2008
Free to be Me!
I'm finally cutting the recipe following umbilical cord!
It all started because I picked up a package of dumpling wrappers in the Korean market. After looking at the package in the fridge for two weeks I decided I just had to use them. Checked through several recipes and just didn't have all the ingredients I needed, so I decided to invent. Wound up sautéing the following chopped ingredients: cabbage, chicken tender, ginger, green onions and garlic, to which I added a little sugar, drizzle of mirin, sesame oil and soy sauce. Then put a spoonful of the mix into the middle of the dumpling skin (which I often see in my supermarket as well as the Korean market), pressed it closed with a dumpling press and fried it in about an inch of canola oil in my wok. Served with both Thai Chili Sauce and/or a dip of soy sauce, rice vinegar and a bit of sugar. (The Food Saver has nothing to do with the dumplings. It just sits there on the counter.) Be adventurous. Experiment with your food. You never know what you'll come up with!
23-MAR-2008
Frugality
(Next time I will use matching thread!) One of the great joys in my life is the womblike comfort of "Smart Wool" socks. Unfortunately, they wear out under the heel and get discarded. Today, as I found another hole and contemplated the loss of a cozy friend, I remembered that my long-neglected sewing machine had a darning stitch. I delighted in hearing the smooth, quiet operation of my long-neglected Pfaff as it put this sock back into working condition and thought, "Today, I will feel just a little bit less guilty about neglected socks and an unused sewing machine".
28-FEB-2008
The Promise of Spring
No pillowy hills of snow or icicles hanging ominously from too-weighted down tree branches. Our winter has wimped its way along, with no stunning photo ops.
How many daffodils have I snapped at? I really don't know, but I sure do appreciate their appearance and the promise they bring.
13-FEB-2008
Do you have the Photography Winter Blahs?
I don't like cold weather, so in the winter most of my images are shot from the warmth of my home. I do love to photograph birds through my windows and have found that in addition to seed feeders, a bowl of homemade "suet" (actually a blend of Crisco, Peanut Butter, and Cornmeal with some peanuts and raisins thrown in) has become a great attractant to a larger variety of birds than I've seen in previous winters. I thought this bird was a confused American Goldfinch until someone told me it was a Pine Warbler. First time I'd ever seen one. A real spirit lift to see a new bird.
This is Crazy!
Must candidates spend millions to get elected?
It didn't work for Romney.
Now Hillary is running out of money.
I can't fathom how campaign financing is allowed to explode to these astronomical expenditures.
Our country's entire electoral system needs a huge overall.
I needed to vent!
31-DEC-2007
Does cold weather dampen your photo spirit?
I hate the cold! I'd much rather bird watch through my windows than with freezing hands waiting for a photo op to flit into view.
02-DEC-2007
With Apologies to Anne Geddes
I was in the midst of devouring Ms. Geddes "A Labor of Love", her very inspiring autobiography, when I stopped for a moment to rub my eyes and laid my eyeglasses on one of her images.
I heartily encourage those of you who are passionate about your developing your photographic eye and mindset to read this book.
01-DEC-2007
Priorities?
What a lousy housewife I am!
That laundry has been sitting on top of the drier for at least three days, or is it more?
Needed to get that off my chest!
At least Louie appreciates it!
28-NOV-2007
A Cheery Spot
Just appreciating the bonus I get from putting my Christmas Cactus (schlumbergera)outside for the summer. Various plants throughout the house have graced us with blooms for weeks. This one is just starting.
30-AUG-2007
Reality Bites
The pile of ironing was getting higher and higher. I really wanted to be taking pictures, so I combined the two activities. Posted this in my "Digipets" pbase gallery and someone commented that she wasn't sure what the image "meant", but wondered if it had something to do with the outsourcing of American manufacturing. I thought that was a super interpretation of the image.
Are we having company?
Standard joke to this day is when we go into frantic cleaning mode it's because guests are coming. This picture was taken over 25 years ago. I have just finished scanning the majority of pictures from six albums I kept up when the kids were small, preparing over three hundred 800 pixel x 480 pixel files (many of which have two pictures on them) to view on a digital photo frame. It has been a real treat putting Photoshop skills to work to resurrect severely overexposed (from internal flash) and faded images (from non-archival albums). I would like to encourage you to scan your old photos NOW and archive them in several places. The originals have probably lost quality and will continue to do so.
24-AUG-2007
Alfred Stieglitz: The Eloquent Eye
Beegie kept me company as I watched this inspiring documentary. I jotted reminders for Google search after the program which I rented it from Netflix. Watching a DVD like this is very curative for what ails you about the populace of dpreview forums.
24-AUG-2007
Cheap Camera, Cheap Printer
Were you all hot and bothered about the Canon 40D and then had your bubble burst by the Nikon D300? I know I was...but I decided to put new camera purchases on hold and rediscover my Canon A610, a digicam gem that was sulking in the drawer. Took this with Auto White Balance, low sharpening, ISO 200, a few minutes ago, with window light. Slightly cropped, resized and sharpened only the in-focus areas and printed it with my Canon i860 printer on Red River Ultra Pro Satin paper. No fancy settings or profiles, just let the printer have control of the color. Shooting with digicams and cheap idiot-proof printers can be so satisfying. (Fuzzy area at lower left is light reflecting off the print.)
30-JUL-2007
Ohmygod...I'm in a rut!
Just tonight I noticed that a large section of my closet rod had denim hanging from it. I've been addicted to denim for a long time, but I didn't realize my habit had gotten this bad!
25-JUL-2007
Why do we obsess?
This is a scan of a portrait of Pablo Picasso which was published in Henry Cartier-Bresson's "Tête à Tête". You will please note that the composition does not follow the "Rule of Thirds". The glints in the eyes are blurred, indicating camera shake. Were it not a photo of a famous person, would it be a "great" photo?
Why do we obsess about technical perfection?
The more I look through Cartier-Bresson's work, the more I appreciate MY OWN images. I have been underappreciating them...and I'll bet you have underappreciated yours too!
Rather than concentrating on pixel peeping, burnt out highlights, and visual noise, shouldn't we try to be a little more concerned about our content and whether we get that "Ahah" feeling when we click on an image and it impacts us to the point of taking an extra breath?
When I prepare images for uploading to my galleries I put them in a folder and run a slideshow. If an image says "Blah" to me it goes into the recycle bin. If it sparks that extra breath feeling, it gets uploaded.
No doubt I have too many images in my galleries, but I hope that through them people will be educated (or at least amused) and encouraged to think differently about the way they shoot.
If you haven't visited the myriad galleries on pBase with great creative works by non-famous-photographers, mostly non-professionals, you are missing many great experiences.
19-JUN-2007
The Decisive Moment
In "Cartier-Bresson's France", the author François Nourissier states, "The unmistakable trademark of a photograph of Cartier-Bresson combines purity of subject, the instant caught in flight, ephemeral truth made lasting."
Last week I had the pleasure of viewing "Henri Cartier-Bresson - The Impassioned Eye" on the Ovation Network. I found the presentation so inspiring that I looked for a DVD online and found I could download it from EZTakes.com.
It was raining when I arrived to take pictures of the officers of the local kennel club. The gentleman at the door was telling us that dogs were not allowed in the building. Monte, the golden, was there to have some obedience shots taken.
I hope this represents the kind of decisive moment that Cartier-Bresson tried to capture.
(Afterthought: He worked mostly in black and white with a 50mm lens on a Leica. He did not do his own processing. About those purists who think digital isn't real photography, I wonder what they would have to say about the lady I saw in the presentation using a paintbrush to retouch a print of Cartier-Bresson's.)
17-MAY-2007
Camera Lust Abated
After my second Sony H camera return (the H9) I have become convinced that until camera manufacturers get over this megapixel megazoom race without improving the sensors, there simply aren't going to be any cameras out there with the same beautiful detail that my older cameras produce(d).
Fancy features like huge zoom, super high ISOs, image stabilization, and large lcds do not make up for sensor deficiencies covered up by intolerable detail bashing noise reduction.
This morning as I watched my two cats chowing down I thought about capturing their sizes, since Beegie is packing on the weight again. My Canon A610 was in grabbing distance, so I changed the ISO to 400 (its highest) and got this shot in my dimly lit laundry room. I so very much cherish its wonderful auto white balance - the BEST of any digicam I've owned - even better than that from my dslrs. (This isn't a particularly spectacular image, but it did inspire me to pontificate here.)
I treasure my A610 and the hundreds of beautiful images it has produced, as I cherished the A80 which came before it.
For extreme low light photography I chose to get a Fuji F30, which has not disappointed me in low light, but I think the A610 has the edge on bright light dynamic range.
For "serious" work at high ISOs I still use my dslrs, but they're not nearly as much fun as my little digicams. Carrying several pounds around can get mighty tiring.
The point of this post? Appreciate what you have while you're waiting for the announcement that the megapixel, megazoom, high ISO race is over and they've come out with a super sensor that has increased dynamic range a hundredfold, along with solving the high ISO quality issue.
It seems that rather than getting better, the newer crop of digicams is more disappointing than anything else. I think I'm on "hold" now in the camera acquisition department - but I never can tell when I'm going to get caught up again in the race for the latest and greatest.
How far they've come!
This is the 10th Anniversary of my entry into the digital photography world. Amazing how much progress can be made in 10 years. I paid $864 for my one megapixel Kodak DC 120 and $220 for my 10 mb San Disk Compact Flash card. Here's some info from Kodak's digital camera history site:
"In April, the company unveiled the KODAK DIGITAL SCIENCE DC120 Zoom Digital Camera, the first point-and-shoot megapixel quality digital camera under $1,000."
Just think about all the quality digital cameras there are out there today for under $1000...and how the price of digital storage has plummeted. It boggles my mind.
24-MAR-2007
DSC02068 Queen of the Mountain
As you can see, the fur is growing back nicely on Beegie's recovering leg. She has been deeply into eating and lounging, two of her favorite activities, and I have delighted in watching her enjoy her life once more.
17-MAR-2007
Sony DSCF 717 Sensor Won't Die!
I have until October 2007 to return the 717 with a failed sensor, and Sony will repair it free. 717 sensors around the world have been dropping like flies. Mine continues to thrive, and it was one of the first sold. Yesterday, in desperation, having been told it was humidity that made the sensor fail, I turned the shower on full blast, closed the bathroom door, and left the 717 in there for a couple of hours. No luck. It's still going strong. I really love this camera.
10-MAR-2007
First sunbath in a long time
Doesn't her expression say, "Please don't move me?" It warms my heart to see her free again to enjoy what she enjoys ALMOST more than eating!
21-JAN-2007
Will I ever get out of Solitary?
Now this is one sad cat...but she certainly is "enjoying" Pogo and Kit Kat's pillow. It's stuffed with buckwheat hulls and I can heat it in the microwave for 30 seconds. This is the way I found her when I went to switch her from this smaller crate to the larger one she stays in most of the time, the one that can accommodate a litter pan.
19-JAN-2007
Welcome Committee
This morning Beegie went to have have sutures removed and was fine for that procedure. When they went to return the cast to her leg she threw a fit and left two assistants with scratches. I was very surprised about that because she is such a sweet, placid cat. From the surgeon's office I had to take her to my regular vet to be "purged" because she'd been plugged up for too many days. I feared they would have to sedate her because of her previous temper tantrum. These two are the office cats who it seems must have calmed her down because she was a perfectly behaved young lady who didn't require any calmatives. By the way, she's down to 11.7 pounds.
12-JAN-2007
Where's that Vet Tech?
Beegie went back today to have the padding under her cast changed (for the first time). The vet said The cast had dropped about a half inch and that under no circumstances should I let her walk even a little on the leg because the cast can slip off! She's being a good girl about taking her Clavamox (antibiotic) which I hide in a "Pill Pocket". Sure beats trying to get her to take her pills crushed and mixed with her food. I think having the tv on for her has helped with the boredom. I wanted to watch the padding change procedure but there was another cat in the room that would have been disturbed by my presence (or so they told me). Perhaps next week I'll be able to take some pictures. Update 1/15/07: She's rejecting the Pill Pockets, even dipped in tuna juice!...so I'm holding back on the food to make sure she's really hungry when pill time comes and mixing the crushed pill in with her food. That's working.
06-JAN-2007
Portent of a Good Recovery?
Brought Beegie home from her ankle surgery this morning and made this cake this afternoon. I think it's trying to tell me everything will be all right.
01-JAN-2007
Mozart Therapy
One late Sunday afternoon a little over ten days ago, Beegie was wandering amongst the computer wires beneath my desk and cried out in pain. She emerged limping with a very sore rear right leg. The vet took an x-ray the next day and pronounced soft tissue damage, no break(s). Beegie's been on painkiller ever since and a couple of days ago starting putting just the barest amount of pressure on that leg. She's jumped up on the bed a couple of times, but won't uncurl her toes. Tomorrow she goes back to the vet. She's been kept company by public tv. Here, she's listening to Leif Ove Andsnes, a brilliant pianist. I really do feel the tv helps. I also put Louie in the room periodically and he sleeps in there. Update 1/02/07: A return visit to the vet and further x-rays still show no bone damage, but the vet feels a visit to a veterinary orthopedist is in order since she thinks there may be achilles tendon damage. We have an appointment in two days. Update 1/04/07: Beegie will have a metal plate and screws inserted in the ankle tomorrow. She will come home with her leg in a cast the day after and will have to have the packing in the cast changed weekly. She will have to be confined for about 8 weeks. This is the THIRD time I have gone through leg surgery on a cat. It's the second for Beegie on the same leg. Last time it was a luxated patella. Please send good thoughts our way.
Count To Ten
Holiday preparations have you all tied up in knots? Lost sight of the "good will towards men" part of the season? Got a cat? Invite her (or him) into your lap. (No use to place her there. She probably won't stay there - has to be her idea to visit.) Stroke her gently as you listen to the purring and feel the vibrations. Breathe in deeply, maybe run your cheek over her fur. You are really blessed to have the gift of one of the greatest natural tranquilizers in the world. Enjoy the peaceful moments.
21-JUL-2006
You can't imagine how loud it was!
When we left Long Island's hurricanes to happily retire to Western North Carolina, little did we know about routine hail along with daily afternoon thunderstorms in hot weather. Today's was a doozy! Scared the heck out of Louie, Beegie and Ricky. Sent this to our local ABC TV affiliate and it was shown on the 11pm news. (Might have made it for the 5pm news had we not had a power failure just as I was about to hit "send".) Note: This is quite oversharpened, but that was necessary in order to make the size of the hail visible.
12-JUL-2006
Technogeeks with an Old Car
We're the kind of folk that drive our cars into the ground and all the while park in the boondocks, to keep them looking as ding-free as possible. We say we need our exercise and that's why we park so far out, but at heart we know the truth. We're overprotective.
A couple of years ago we got a new little car and it gets parked even further out than our nearly 10 year old van.
As technology has advanced with satellite radio and gps navigation becoming built-in possibilities, we were able to put a navi system into the newer little car, but neither the radio nor navigation system could be easily retrofitted into the old van, so we jury-rigged them into place, and thus this picture!
Note the very elegant waistband elastic holding the gps in place!
24-JUN-2006
_MG_2805 Flying Squirrel on Squirrel Proof Feeder
I couldn't believe my luck...went out on the deck in the rain with just the very dimmest of lights and managed to get the Tamron 90 macro to focus - and with the internal flash in the 20D got this shot. These little guys let you get close! I even spoke to it! (The feeder is supposed to be squirrel proof - the weight of the squirrel closes the opening to the seed...but they weren't talking about FLYING squirrel weight!) Here's some information:
http://www.fws.gov/endangered/i/a/saa8g.html and a close encounter report:
http://www.sitnews.us/PhotoGallery/KathyStack/092003_flying_squirrel.html
30-APR-2006
That kind of a day
You know the kind...I'm waiting for the sun to come out and it just doesn't. I could use the poor weather as an excuse to clean out a closet or drawer, sew on a button that's been waiting several months, sweep out the garage...but I'd rather do something that's a little more exciting so I victimize my cat by testing out the flash on him. He's not crazy about the idea, much preferring that I not use it, but the results are oh so pleasing. I love the automation of the Canon 580ex and the color balance it produces too. (EXIF shows manual exposure, but I had the camera on shutter priority)
21-APR-2006
Crown Molding Picture Shelf
I got the idea for this from a similar shelf sold by Pottery Barn. If you go to this link and look at the first and next two pictures you will see how the shelf was constructed by my husband. More descriptive material in the captions and comments.
http://www.pbase.com/digipets/image/59001883
Yes...there are things sadder than a sick pet, but...
it's so heart wrenching to see them suffer.
After hearing that a friend's veterinary bill for cat dental work was over $500 I decided to take Louie in for "preventive maintenance" since his teeth (what I could see of them) didn't look too bad, but his gums were kind of red.
A call from the vet after Louie was anesthetized informed me that his teeth, along with his gums and the surrounding bone structure, were in bad shape and several would have to be removed.
He came home with antibiotic and pain killer and did seem to be fine, if a bit quiet. (He had also had two innoculations. A lot for a little cat to take in one day.)
He had the work done on Tuesday and yesterday, Friday, when it came time for him to charge out of his quarters for breakfast he was nowhere to be seen. A short search found him on a guest bed, curled up and unenthusiastic about getting up.
I brought him to the kitchen table (which we never use - it's been dedicated to cat feeding) where I offered some Fancy Feast. He sniffed at it and didn't take any. I also noticed he was doing a lot of sneezing.
Made an appointment to take him back to the vet where they kept him for most of the day and hydrated him with an IV of water under his skin. We agreed that he was probably having a recurrence of an upper respiratory virus with which he had had a couple of bouts when he first joined the family 5 years ago. The congestion takes away his ability to smell food and thus, no appetite.
When I picked him up he was very quiet and just went to sleep - still didn't want any food. I noticed a wet spot on his back and wondered if he had taken up Beegie's sport of playing with the faucet I allow to drip for her. I wiped it off and a few seconds later it was wet again! Realized it was the water the vet had injected into him!
He spent the rest of the day and night sleeping and instead of closing him in quarters across the house I put him back in the laundry room, hoping I'd be once again awakened by his familiar "It's time to get up, Ma" door banging too early in the morning.
I was not disappointed! Louie is feeling much better today. Still sneezing, but much more active and verbal, even purring, and he has made a few lusty grabs at his food.
I'm relieved.
Has the Pen Tool in Photoshop eluded you?
It's been literally years that I have tried to learn the pen tool and I just can't "get it".
12-APR-2006
Nightmare under my desk
Do you long for the day when your computer peripherals will all be wireless?
11-APR-2006
PBlog: What I do when I'm in a Photographic Rut
Is it possible to take too many cat pictures? Not if you are the lover of the cats...but sometimes they need a vacation from the camera, so I take out my stuffed helpers and try to invent creative situations for them.
Ping Pong is a distant cousin to Frimpong, the famed "World Travelling Bear". I had the good fortune to convince him to visit me in North Carolina, and his stay is documented here:
http://www.pbase.com/frimpong/north_carolina
So what is the purpose of this blog? To test this new feature of pBase!
Well...I don't see the nice page layouts I've seen in the few pBlogs that are beginning to appear. Guess I have to learn more about setting page options...Ahah! I see I have to go to the "template" option up above the Style Sheet on the Edit this Gallery Page, and choose PBlog.