...as I raise my tea in a toast to our great nation.
Those people who are protesting taxation... need to talk to their representatives before invoking the Revolution. Geesh.
Jp
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
A Brief Recap
Easter Sunday was very odd, but also quite enjoyable... especially from 1 - 2 AM... LOL! My sis and I were alone for much of the day, so after listening to a sermon, we watched Toby Tyler... and I remembered much of it for watching it so long ago. We thought we'd get work done at the same time, but we were both so enthralled with watching it again, that we did nothing but eat pizza during it. This was followed by some MASH, and then my parents returned. And after a short respite, we watched another one. Odd, odd, odd, but fun.
Monday, after a very dull day at work, I went to school to work in the lab on this week's assignment that I couldn't figure out how to do on my laptop. And it took a while. And then I came home, watched one MASH and went to bed after a quick snack.
Yesterday, Tuesday, was absolutely wonderful! I took a day off work, got up at 5:20AM, drove with my sis to her job at the Community College in Covingiton to watch her teach logic (and get a refresher, myself - I get to supervise 3 homework days the first week of May). After that and an hour of office hours - during which I read - we had brunch at Subway and went shopping at Fred's where I found athletic pants and a couple tops. Still in Covington, we took Hwy 18 to I-90 to Preston where we headed out to Carnation to go horseback riding. It took forever to brush them, as they are beginning to shed. Roo was awful for picking his feet again, but he was fine when I got up; and very patient too... I had my camera along to take more soft pictures of the forest. On the trail past the power lines, we saw a wild coyote come walking onto the trail from the brush ahead, only 10 yds away. The dogs took off, chasing it... stupid things! Thankfully they came back to us without any trouble.
The weather was very off and on... the sun broke through thick clouds when we were brushing and picking, but it was lightly hailing when we were returning from the trails. There was a slight dusting of snow along the trail as we went. Wild!
We got back to the house just in time for me to take off to class after changing my pants and retrieving my purse, which I had left on my chair that morning. Class was fabulous! We learned to make a PDF slide show in Photoshop, and then how to combine multiple pictures for even exposure. And then we had a mini assignment to go out and take pictures on campus for over an hour! What pure fun! I got a little carried away! This week, we are to use the pictures we took and make a slide show and a combined picture. :)
And I successfully bid for the Elkhart trumpet I was watching on eBay. LOL! (No, no... I actually wanted a trumpet in the first place. I used to play trumpet in Jr. High before I switched to horn. Having it be an antique made in Elkhart during the 1930's is an added pleasure :)
Today, work has been steady and engaging. I wish I could take every Tuesday off!
Jp
[Update, April 14, 2013: Easter Sunday, April 12, from around 1-2 am, was the first time my husband Mike and I talked on the phone. At this point in life I was still worried about saying too much on the Internet, for fear of who should know what about me. We were chatting later than everyone else, as usual, and suddenly we were talking about phone calls, and suddenly I gave him my home phone number. He called and we were both a little nervous, but had a whale of a great time talking vocally for the first time.]
Monday, after a very dull day at work, I went to school to work in the lab on this week's assignment that I couldn't figure out how to do on my laptop. And it took a while. And then I came home, watched one MASH and went to bed after a quick snack.
Yesterday, Tuesday, was absolutely wonderful! I took a day off work, got up at 5:20AM, drove with my sis to her job at the Community College in Covingiton to watch her teach logic (and get a refresher, myself - I get to supervise 3 homework days the first week of May). After that and an hour of office hours - during which I read - we had brunch at Subway and went shopping at Fred's where I found athletic pants and a couple tops. Still in Covington, we took Hwy 18 to I-90 to Preston where we headed out to Carnation to go horseback riding. It took forever to brush them, as they are beginning to shed. Roo was awful for picking his feet again, but he was fine when I got up; and very patient too... I had my camera along to take more soft pictures of the forest. On the trail past the power lines, we saw a wild coyote come walking onto the trail from the brush ahead, only 10 yds away. The dogs took off, chasing it... stupid things! Thankfully they came back to us without any trouble.
The weather was very off and on... the sun broke through thick clouds when we were brushing and picking, but it was lightly hailing when we were returning from the trails. There was a slight dusting of snow along the trail as we went. Wild!
We got back to the house just in time for me to take off to class after changing my pants and retrieving my purse, which I had left on my chair that morning. Class was fabulous! We learned to make a PDF slide show in Photoshop, and then how to combine multiple pictures for even exposure. And then we had a mini assignment to go out and take pictures on campus for over an hour! What pure fun! I got a little carried away! This week, we are to use the pictures we took and make a slide show and a combined picture. :)
And I successfully bid for the Elkhart trumpet I was watching on eBay. LOL! (No, no... I actually wanted a trumpet in the first place. I used to play trumpet in Jr. High before I switched to horn. Having it be an antique made in Elkhart during the 1930's is an added pleasure :)
Today, work has been steady and engaging. I wish I could take every Tuesday off!
Jp
[Update, April 14, 2013: Easter Sunday, April 12, from around 1-2 am, was the first time my husband Mike and I talked on the phone. At this point in life I was still worried about saying too much on the Internet, for fear of who should know what about me. We were chatting later than everyone else, as usual, and suddenly we were talking about phone calls, and suddenly I gave him my home phone number. He called and we were both a little nervous, but had a whale of a great time talking vocally for the first time.]
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Biking, Crashing and Printing
I had planned on getting up at 9:30, but I woke myself up just before 8... turned out it was good I did! I got lots of stuff done: washed the bed, ate breakfast, wrote a letter... and I left in time, about 20 to 11 AM.
Biking was really good! We went on the Burke-Gilman to Bothell and back. I tried out using my bike's stirrups this time and only fell over once. LOL! But then there was that other time I was stopping and I rode into the chain link fence on the bridge... red mark on the shoulder! And the leg is already sore. The ride took a long time because someone needed a flat changed in Bothell. We didn't get back until 3PM.
After that, I went to the Art building on upper campus to print from yesterday's photo shoot at the Seattle Aquarium (at which I spent four hours - and loved every minute of it - good thing I had a spare battery and spare 4GB card - LOL!) And I printed 10 photos to show in class. It took until 5PM to select the ones I wanted (out of 400+) and then actually print. I'm glad I took the time to convert them last night!
So I'm switching the project to abstract/macro aquarium pictures because I love fish so much, and I want to show the beautiful detail of smaller, less noticed things. Most people in aquariums fly right by most of the beauty. It's a shame, but I understand why they do it... little kids! Oh, little kids at aquariums are so funny to watch! I remember myself when I see them staring with wide eyes at the big fish.
I could spend my whole life watching the fish! :)
So my sister and I are alone this weekend, and tonight we had a lovely steak dinner together, pan seared with spices. And then some avocados and garlic sourdough bread. yum! Tomorrow will be the most odd Easter ever... just the two of us!
Jp
Biking was really good! We went on the Burke-Gilman to Bothell and back. I tried out using my bike's stirrups this time and only fell over once. LOL! But then there was that other time I was stopping and I rode into the chain link fence on the bridge... red mark on the shoulder! And the leg is already sore. The ride took a long time because someone needed a flat changed in Bothell. We didn't get back until 3PM.
After that, I went to the Art building on upper campus to print from yesterday's photo shoot at the Seattle Aquarium (at which I spent four hours - and loved every minute of it - good thing I had a spare battery and spare 4GB card - LOL!) And I printed 10 photos to show in class. It took until 5PM to select the ones I wanted (out of 400+) and then actually print. I'm glad I took the time to convert them last night!
So I'm switching the project to abstract/macro aquarium pictures because I love fish so much, and I want to show the beautiful detail of smaller, less noticed things. Most people in aquariums fly right by most of the beauty. It's a shame, but I understand why they do it... little kids! Oh, little kids at aquariums are so funny to watch! I remember myself when I see them staring with wide eyes at the big fish.
I could spend my whole life watching the fish! :)
So my sister and I are alone this weekend, and tonight we had a lovely steak dinner together, pan seared with spices. And then some avocados and garlic sourdough bread. yum! Tomorrow will be the most odd Easter ever... just the two of us!
Jp
Friday, April 10, 2009
Minor Happenings
Our beautiful weather only lasted until Tuesday afternoon, when the sun was again enveloped in clouds... only to be interrupted briefly, yesterday evening, before being further blanketed by thick clouds this morning. But that break was pure heaven... I was walking to class from the north parking lot under a canopy of green trees near the dorm that my friends stayed at, back when we were in school. Lots of memories... mixed feelings. But the weather was great!
I found something important to me on eBay yesterday: an old Carnegie Allosaurus model from 1988 that isn't available anymore. My favorite toy store, Tree Top Toys in Redmond, has a display model that I've asked them about maybe 5 times, but they always say they'll have someone call. My goodness! It had to come from England! That pretty much rounds out my collection now!
Class on Tuesday didn't fry my brain! It was all about the different ways to make selections on a photograph, and I understood everything! Class on Thursday was amazing! We had Jock Sturges as a guest lecturer. I didn't know how I would react, as his work is mostly of nudes, but I didn't think too much about it. He showed a slide show of his work and talked about the stories of the models. It was very touching and tasteful, and not at all sexual... in fact, I enjoyed it! It's difficult to describe. The success of the images is not about the nudity, it's about the innocence... if that makes any sense. It's the relationships with, and love that he had for the families he was photographing. I was enchanted with his quiet, open and honest manner. He truly cares about people. I really thought about our culture as it relates to nudity, and I'm interested. I don't plan on changing my own culture, but it's interesting to think about. And I thought I was learning photography!
Here's to living and learning!
Jp
I found something important to me on eBay yesterday: an old Carnegie Allosaurus model from 1988 that isn't available anymore. My favorite toy store, Tree Top Toys in Redmond, has a display model that I've asked them about maybe 5 times, but they always say they'll have someone call. My goodness! It had to come from England! That pretty much rounds out my collection now!
Class on Tuesday didn't fry my brain! It was all about the different ways to make selections on a photograph, and I understood everything! Class on Thursday was amazing! We had Jock Sturges as a guest lecturer. I didn't know how I would react, as his work is mostly of nudes, but I didn't think too much about it. He showed a slide show of his work and talked about the stories of the models. It was very touching and tasteful, and not at all sexual... in fact, I enjoyed it! It's difficult to describe. The success of the images is not about the nudity, it's about the innocence... if that makes any sense. It's the relationships with, and love that he had for the families he was photographing. I was enchanted with his quiet, open and honest manner. He truly cares about people. I really thought about our culture as it relates to nudity, and I'm interested. I don't plan on changing my own culture, but it's interesting to think about. And I thought I was learning photography!
Here's to living and learning!
Jp
Monday, April 6, 2009
Woweee!
76 degrees at quitting time today! Beautiful sunshine with an unheard of cloudless sky, all day long. Today was exquisite... just perfect... and now we're hearing the birds really go at it! Ah! I love the cool spring air: everything fresh and green, cherry blossoms popping out everywhere before the hardwoods get their leaves; and the little girls are practicing softball again at 132nd square park, on the way home from work. It reminds me of all those Little League evening practices more than a decade ago.
Here in the Seattle area, we've been blanketed by clouds and rain (and snow!) for much longer than normal... it seemed that winter lasted forever... It's like I just woke up today and found out I was alive. Ah! It's almost like I forgot what the color blue looked like. And it made me happy!
Another letter from my brother! And I wrote him today too... our letters are crossing in the mail.
Tonight, after dinner, I put on my new biking pants and jumped in my car to go enjoy the last few moments of perfect weather. I biked for an hour, going 12 and a half miles round-trip on the Sammamish River Trail. The crickets were singing their guts out, the Canadian geese honked as they flew in for landings, all sorts of varieties of birds chirped and a wild bunny scampered across the path in front of me on my way back, getting out of the way just in time. Just a mile into the ride, I saw what I thought was a duck swimming in the river. But I realized it couldn't be, since there wasn't anything where the duck's head should be. It turned out to be a river otter, swimming briskly upstream! But my favorite encounter of the evening was the bald eagle, perched high on a young, bare tree, just on the river's edge. Lord, I love Willows Valley! What a beautiful place! As I returned, it was getting dark. The sun had gone over the west ridge, but the sky was still a deep, bright blue, and it reflected brilliantly off of the glassy surface of the water, accenting the crisp images of bare trees painted on the river.
I am in love with this place.
I returned right at 9 o'clock, and in order to completely avoid an episode of 24, my sister and I watched two episodes of MASH downstairs. What a day!
Jp
Here in the Seattle area, we've been blanketed by clouds and rain (and snow!) for much longer than normal... it seemed that winter lasted forever... It's like I just woke up today and found out I was alive. Ah! It's almost like I forgot what the color blue looked like. And it made me happy!
Another letter from my brother! And I wrote him today too... our letters are crossing in the mail.
Tonight, after dinner, I put on my new biking pants and jumped in my car to go enjoy the last few moments of perfect weather. I biked for an hour, going 12 and a half miles round-trip on the Sammamish River Trail. The crickets were singing their guts out, the Canadian geese honked as they flew in for landings, all sorts of varieties of birds chirped and a wild bunny scampered across the path in front of me on my way back, getting out of the way just in time. Just a mile into the ride, I saw what I thought was a duck swimming in the river. But I realized it couldn't be, since there wasn't anything where the duck's head should be. It turned out to be a river otter, swimming briskly upstream! But my favorite encounter of the evening was the bald eagle, perched high on a young, bare tree, just on the river's edge. Lord, I love Willows Valley! What a beautiful place! As I returned, it was getting dark. The sun had gone over the west ridge, but the sky was still a deep, bright blue, and it reflected brilliantly off of the glassy surface of the water, accenting the crisp images of bare trees painted on the river.
I am in love with this place.
I returned right at 9 o'clock, and in order to completely avoid an episode of 24, my sister and I watched two episodes of MASH downstairs. What a day!
Jp
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Sunny Sunday
Bright sun again!
It was nice, because today was the Walk for MS... it was fun to see my band friends again! And the weather was perfect! My only complaint is that my left foot is hurting me now... I know - I'm falling apart. lol! It was a lovely morning! I was up an' at 'em at 7:30, arriving right on time at 8:30. We hung out together in the band block in Husky Stadium until we gathered our team and it was time to go. I loved the free beef jerky and bananas! It was a very pleasant walk, not too fast, sometimes too slow and just long enough. I was back home by 12:30... it was a good two hours of walking.
At home I took a brief lay-down/nap until my friend came over. Our family did a Passover celebration, in honor of Easter next week (My brother in law is partly Jewish), and although it certainly was not Kosher, it was sorta close... Mom got all the readings together from the Bible and we each read as we walked through God's promises and provisions for the Israelites. There was an added portion about Jesus, and we drank and feasted sort of similarly, complete with lamb. Very tasty, indeed.
Afterwards, my sister performed her LOTR/WENN fanfiction for us, as my friend and I were going to complete watching the series after desert with the last three episodes. It really is hilarious. After screaming about the usual things during the finale, I realized I didn't hate this episode as much as I thought. The last few times I watched it, I had been studying nuances about the B/S/V relationship... but now that my epic fanfiction is done, it's much more enjoyable. Some of those lines are hysterical! even if there are certain historical impossibilities... Also, we were watching it on my brother's projector, which is very cool, in and of itself. Betty, being magnified ten times! ...well, maybe not that much... LOL
And then the perfect day was rounded out with three episodes of MASH, which even my sister hadn't seen before! And they were really good! I really liked the one where Hawkeye and Hot Lips and Klinger did battlefield surgery up at the front because the surgeon had been killed there. Major character development for Major Houlihan. Darn, I love this show! Only 8 seasons of new episodes for me to watch! I'm going to miss Henry!
Jp
It was nice, because today was the Walk for MS... it was fun to see my band friends again! And the weather was perfect! My only complaint is that my left foot is hurting me now... I know - I'm falling apart. lol! It was a lovely morning! I was up an' at 'em at 7:30, arriving right on time at 8:30. We hung out together in the band block in Husky Stadium until we gathered our team and it was time to go. I loved the free beef jerky and bananas! It was a very pleasant walk, not too fast, sometimes too slow and just long enough. I was back home by 12:30... it was a good two hours of walking.
At home I took a brief lay-down/nap until my friend came over. Our family did a Passover celebration, in honor of Easter next week (My brother in law is partly Jewish), and although it certainly was not Kosher, it was sorta close... Mom got all the readings together from the Bible and we each read as we walked through God's promises and provisions for the Israelites. There was an added portion about Jesus, and we drank and feasted sort of similarly, complete with lamb. Very tasty, indeed.
Afterwards, my sister performed her LOTR/WENN fanfiction for us, as my friend and I were going to complete watching the series after desert with the last three episodes. It really is hilarious. After screaming about the usual things during the finale, I realized I didn't hate this episode as much as I thought. The last few times I watched it, I had been studying nuances about the B/S/V relationship... but now that my epic fanfiction is done, it's much more enjoyable. Some of those lines are hysterical! even if there are certain historical impossibilities... Also, we were watching it on my brother's projector, which is very cool, in and of itself. Betty, being magnified ten times! ...well, maybe not that much... LOL
And then the perfect day was rounded out with three episodes of MASH, which even my sister hadn't seen before! And they were really good! I really liked the one where Hawkeye and Hot Lips and Klinger did battlefield surgery up at the front because the surgeon had been killed there. Major character development for Major Houlihan. Darn, I love this show! Only 8 seasons of new episodes for me to watch! I'm going to miss Henry!
Jp
Sunny Day on Saturday
Wow! All of a sudden the weather is beautiful! With more on the way, I hear!
Yesterday I had a ride on the ferry with my sister, as we had something to go to on the peninsula across Puget Sound from Seattle. I love riding the ferry and smelling the sea, looking at birds and seals, basking in the sun, getting blown by the icy wind and taking pictures. (smile)
She had a meeting, so I mostly just read and relaxed... I read Shag: the last of the plains buffalo, by McClung and finished the first two acts of Twelfth Night, as I'm going to see it this summer.
To pass the time, we stopped by an antique shop on the way to the ferry, and found a nice painting for the library downstairs... or wherever we put it. Cute little shop... and not too expensive either. I also got a little fish book that goes in a set with others I have... the Golden Nature Guides from 1955... I also have Mammals and Seashores. "A Guide to Familiar American Species"... I like the drawings; they are richly drawn! Cute little books too!
Coming and going from Bremerton, we passed by the Bremerton Naval Shipyard, where we saw the USS Kitty Hawk CV-63, at it's final berth. But we only saw it from the ferry.
On the way home we stopped at Ivar's for dinner and went home. I just found out that it's only in Washington! Huh!
Jp
Yesterday I had a ride on the ferry with my sister, as we had something to go to on the peninsula across Puget Sound from Seattle. I love riding the ferry and smelling the sea, looking at birds and seals, basking in the sun, getting blown by the icy wind and taking pictures. (smile)
She had a meeting, so I mostly just read and relaxed... I read Shag: the last of the plains buffalo, by McClung and finished the first two acts of Twelfth Night, as I'm going to see it this summer.
To pass the time, we stopped by an antique shop on the way to the ferry, and found a nice painting for the library downstairs... or wherever we put it. Cute little shop... and not too expensive either. I also got a little fish book that goes in a set with others I have... the Golden Nature Guides from 1955... I also have Mammals and Seashores. "A Guide to Familiar American Species"... I like the drawings; they are richly drawn! Cute little books too!
Coming and going from Bremerton, we passed by the Bremerton Naval Shipyard, where we saw the USS Kitty Hawk CV-63, at it's final berth. But we only saw it from the ferry.
On the way home we stopped at Ivar's for dinner and went home. I just found out that it's only in Washington! Huh!
Jp
Friday, April 3, 2009
Utterly Unpredictable
Yes, the weather. I got up in time for Jazzercise this morning, and found as I was driving to Redmond, that snow was coming down with the rain.
Work was great, actually. I cleaned up many things on my desk.
After work and a quick snack of leftovers at home, I retired to my room to put more things in order. Then I took the Dingo for a walk and took many pictures... there were great compositions because it had just been pouring a moment before we went out. The rain had been a steady, fresh rain, with the sun still shining a ways away. A very springy rain. Thank goodness! Maybe it's finally here!
Jp
Work was great, actually. I cleaned up many things on my desk.
After work and a quick snack of leftovers at home, I retired to my room to put more things in order. Then I took the Dingo for a walk and took many pictures... there were great compositions because it had just been pouring a moment before we went out. The rain had been a steady, fresh rain, with the sun still shining a ways away. A very springy rain. Thank goodness! Maybe it's finally here!
Jp
Thursday, April 2, 2009
A. Fool's Weather
It's been raining hard for two days now... but yesterday we had snow mixed in. (rolls eyes - I wasn't even too taken aback at this news)
Crazy weather. I think that's made it six or seven times that we've had snow since January... in Seattle... This is nuts!
Jp
Crazy weather. I think that's made it six or seven times that we've had snow since January... in Seattle... This is nuts!
Jp
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Success!
I was in bed by 11pm, and this morning I heard my alarm! Yey! Still took me 15 minutes to get out though... do I hear 10pm? Yeah, I'll try! I don't plan on making another photo album soon, so it might be easier than I think.
Class was both fun and difficult last night. It was a little bit of a refresher, and new operations in Photoshop as well. My head got pretty full of functions, but I did a better job of writing stuff down this time. It was great to see my classmates and teachers again!
Jp
Class was both fun and difficult last night. It was a little bit of a refresher, and new operations in Photoshop as well. My head got pretty full of functions, but I did a better job of writing stuff down this time. It was great to see my classmates and teachers again!
Jp
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