Our granddaughter Kira is now one year old, so Halloween 2008 was her first with a costume and candy. She really got into it.
No surprise that her mom had her dressed as a princess, complete with blue painted toenails. She had a little problem leaving her socks on at first, but she got over that.
Her brother, Kelton went as Batman. This year he had his own superhero costume. Year before last he used his father's handmade Robin costume from 1982. We figured it was time to move up. Sadly, I couldn't get the two of them together long enough to get a good shot.
But a grand time was had by all.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Most Awesome Chair EVER!
I'm now working every Friday at the Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center in Bellevue. I bring my two bags of gear and set up shop on a small desk. The woman who runs the place for Pacific Science Center, Apryl Brinkley got me a new chair to use. People, this is the BEST CHAIR I'VE EVER USED!
I'm not kidding. I could sit in this thing forever. It's mesh, infinitely configurable, supports my lower back. It's got it all.
Made by HermanMiller, the Aeron Chair is said to be the best selling office chair of all time. I can understand why. This thing is to die for.
Apryl, I owe you big time!
I'm not kidding. I could sit in this thing forever. It's mesh, infinitely configurable, supports my lower back. It's got it all.
Made by HermanMiller, the Aeron Chair is said to be the best selling office chair of all time. I can understand why. This thing is to die for.
Apryl, I owe you big time!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Fall On The Front Porch
When Joyce and I got home today we found Jennifer had been decorating again. She loves getting into the season, whatever it happens to be. She has a nice touch.
After doing some chores, I grabbed my iPhone and MacBook and sat down on the front porch to enjoy the sunset and a gorgeous warm afternoon. Then I remembered CameraBag and snapped a pic with the iPhone, applied CameraBag and uploaded to Flickr. It's awesome. No, not as good as my digital SLR or point-and-shoot camera. But it's fun, easy, quick, and I just did it. If I had taken the time to go get the SLR, the card reader, the computer, the moment would have passed. This all happened in a matter of moments. That makes up for a less than stellar image.
Or does it? I'd love to hear what others think. I look at this as I now look at Twitter. Send a tweet takes mere moment. Writing a blog post takes some time. Twitter won't replace blogging just as the iPhone or other such camera won't replace the higher end jobs. But the simplicity, the quickness, the moment-capturing aspect I think trumps a lot. Thoughts?
And yes, that is a woolley bear caterpillar there.
After doing some chores, I grabbed my iPhone and MacBook and sat down on the front porch to enjoy the sunset and a gorgeous warm afternoon. Then I remembered CameraBag and snapped a pic with the iPhone, applied CameraBag and uploaded to Flickr. It's awesome. No, not as good as my digital SLR or point-and-shoot camera. But it's fun, easy, quick, and I just did it. If I had taken the time to go get the SLR, the card reader, the computer, the moment would have passed. This all happened in a matter of moments. That makes up for a less than stellar image.
Or does it? I'd love to hear what others think. I look at this as I now look at Twitter. Send a tweet takes mere moment. Writing a blog post takes some time. Twitter won't replace blogging just as the iPhone or other such camera won't replace the higher end jobs. But the simplicity, the quickness, the moment-capturing aspect I think trumps a lot. Thoughts?
And yes, that is a woolley bear caterpillar there.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
CameraBag iPhone App Rules!
I just discovered a new iPhone app called CameraBag. Very nice! Gives you some nice templates to spice up the photos you snap with the iPhone. Sweet!
This one used the Lolo template. I snapped this pic while hiking around the Mercer Slough park. Open CameraBag, choose the image, apply the template, and presto! Looks nice! Then mailed it to myself and added some text with Photoshop. Pretty sweet. CameraBag enhanced the image with colors and border. Nice!
I'm starting to see photos on the iPhone sorta like Twittering. Making the most of that tiny camera, just like the 140 characters in each Tweet.
This one used the Lolo template. I snapped this pic while hiking around the Mercer Slough park. Open CameraBag, choose the image, apply the template, and presto! Looks nice! Then mailed it to myself and added some text with Photoshop. Pretty sweet. CameraBag enhanced the image with colors and border. Nice!
I'm starting to see photos on the iPhone sorta like Twittering. Making the most of that tiny camera, just like the 140 characters in each Tweet.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Sockeye Return To Landsburg
Fall around Hobart has been pretty darn nice this year. So far, anyway. This was another beautiful weekend so Kelton and I went for a hike down along the Cedar River at Landsburg.
This time of year is when the sockeye return. Between the turning leaves and the fish, there is a blaze of color all around. I'm no expert, but it looked like a pretty good return this year. Not nearly as good as years ago, but far better than back in the 80s and early 90s.
During October and the first weekend in November, volunteers can be found at Landsburg Park answering questions and explaining the sockeye cycle. Good stuff. Well worth a drive out from the city and just a couple of miles from Hobart! Here's a map to show you the way.
This time of year is when the sockeye return. Between the turning leaves and the fish, there is a blaze of color all around. I'm no expert, but it looked like a pretty good return this year. Not nearly as good as years ago, but far better than back in the 80s and early 90s.
During October and the first weekend in November, volunteers can be found at Landsburg Park answering questions and explaining the sockeye cycle. Good stuff. Well worth a drive out from the city and just a couple of miles from Hobart! Here's a map to show you the way.
Friday, October 17, 2008
My First Slough Hike
I'm now working one day a week at the Mercer Slough Environmental Education Center in Bellevue. It's a completely new facility and is just amazing. Pacific Science Center has been teaching classes there for 15 years but most people still don't know of our involvement there. Since we're trying to expand our classes, we need to get the word out to teachers and home school groups, hence my weekly trip to find stories to tell.
It really is an amazing place. The architects designed the buildings so they appear to be part of the landscape. Two of the buildings have living roofs, with plants and soil. The labs all face the wetlands below and with floor to ceiling windows, the views are outstanding. The students are taken down to the water to gather samples, then bring them back to study under microscopes. They're also taken on hikes with our teachers to study soil, wildlife, wetlands, and much more. An excellent program.
Today I had the chance to go off on my own for my first hike on some of the many trails through the park. To say it's spectacular is an understatement. You are right in the middle of Bellevue but you wouldn't know it. I could have spent hours out there just wandering, looking into the water, examining incredible mushrooms, snapping pictures, soaking up atmosphere, watching a garter snake in the middle of the trail, birds galore, and more.
This was taken around noon so the light was terrible, the sky was overcast, but it was quite warm. This little stretch is boardwalk, but most of the trail is good ol' dirt. Soggy dirt. It's a wetland after all.
Highly recommended. Check it out.
It really is an amazing place. The architects designed the buildings so they appear to be part of the landscape. Two of the buildings have living roofs, with plants and soil. The labs all face the wetlands below and with floor to ceiling windows, the views are outstanding. The students are taken down to the water to gather samples, then bring them back to study under microscopes. They're also taken on hikes with our teachers to study soil, wildlife, wetlands, and much more. An excellent program.
Today I had the chance to go off on my own for my first hike on some of the many trails through the park. To say it's spectacular is an understatement. You are right in the middle of Bellevue but you wouldn't know it. I could have spent hours out there just wandering, looking into the water, examining incredible mushrooms, snapping pictures, soaking up atmosphere, watching a garter snake in the middle of the trail, birds galore, and more.
This was taken around noon so the light was terrible, the sky was overcast, but it was quite warm. This little stretch is boardwalk, but most of the trail is good ol' dirt. Soggy dirt. It's a wetland after all.
Highly recommended. Check it out.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Kids Do The Wackiest Things
Jennifer sent me this shot from her cell phone. The message was slugged, "This is what happens when u stop paying attention for 2 seconds." Any parent can sympathize. One-year-old kids have a knack for making messes. Turn your back on them for just a second...
Jennifer has decorated their house with all sorts of Halloween stuff, so maybe Kira just wanted to get into the spirit of the season.
Jennifer has decorated their house with all sorts of Halloween stuff, so maybe Kira just wanted to get into the spirit of the season.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)