Okay, it does work...

If you choose the right settings.  After minutes of checking for it to display, I went into my postings and found it sitting there as a Draft.  That explains the “Publish” option I didn’t check for fear of publishing the email address I created for this purpose…

 

Let’s see if this one works!

 

~nv

Email Posts??

I just found out I can /email/ posts to my blog… interesting… so here’s my first attempt. Of course formatting and such may be lost to defaults, but… neat idea!!

~nv

Adventure in the Park

This is both a remarkable tale of adventure, and one of those "You might be a geek if..." things. The latter will come at the end.

A friend of ours (let's call him "Mike") recently wrote about an adventure he had in the park he looks after. This park is huge, and has a wide variety of trails to walk or bike on. It's a beautiful place to get away from the more city-like appearance only blocks from its main entrance. Mike does a lot of work at the park such as cutting away fallen trees and clearing stones off trails, that sort of thing, to keep it mostly natural but also passable. Most recently he worked on this huge sign at the entrance. He's a great resource and an avid outdoors person.

Well, the adventure began when Mike decided to ride his bike yesterday afternoon. He gets on one of the trails and ends up meeting a bunch of policemen. Turns out someone/people had seen an older gentleman on a trail looking kind of off. It's thought the guy might be lost or has Alzheimers or something and is confused. So off the police go looking for him. Mike ends up helping them as he knows the trails well and they had a dinky little map that wasn't really helpful. There was a command center set up behind the Pierpoint Library so when no confused guy turned up and Mike had to talk a few officers out of the woods over a radio, he went home, got his 40"x30" maps of the park he'd created (these are beautiful btw), brought them back, and laid them out over this rough little paper sketch the police had. Here are all these police (and firefighters too) staring at this beautiful, detailed map of the woods... all trails clearly marked and updated... the map of beauty aside, I can only imagine what this must be like for a policeman who just had a close encounter of the trail kind... LOL So apparently it got too dark and they had to call off the search, but are resuming this morning in hopes the guy is still OK out there, if he's still out there. Mike is going to print out more copies of his maps for them so they don't get lost anymore, I'm sure they're all pretty happy with this, I mean, it's not every day you get a detailed map of such a large area of woods.

Now, I'm reading his email going, "Wow, what excitement..." the whole way through. It was truly an adventure!! Yet one little detail had caught my attention and wouldn't let me forget it. So when I hit "reply," I wrote:

"Holy moly... there's a library at Pierpoint??"

~nv

New website

www.longtrailfestivalvt.com is my newest website creation. It's simple, but I like simple, and it gets the point across. I admit, however, that I obliged my need to use Xara by creating buttons for it. Took me 1.5 hours to purchase and forward the domain, create the buttons, write the code, splash some humour into the pages, and upload everything to the server.

Did this for a friend, actually, who has yet to give me real information on the thing. She only told me on tuesday however so I might be *slightly* impatient... oh, and my landlord and I chatted briefly on the steps shortly afterward. I mentioned the new site and he's like, "You do websites too?" Well duh, I maintain four now. So I might be picking up another little project soon... told him I'd throw it on my server since I've got so much room at the moment, but I wouldn't put up anything really fancy schmancy and he'd have to pay for the domain, though, these domains add up!! (He was fine with all that of course...)

In other news, I'm working on yet another little PhotoShop project. Dale won the Championship for his Nascar league, so I'm putting together a celebratory picture for him. This be my second contribution to his league. Yay! I love creative stuff...

Speaking of creative stuff... I came up with a cool solution to a problem I've had with information retrieval. Ever hear of SharePoint? Well, you can save docs in that and it automatically indexes them, like SpotLight does in Mac OS X. It's thus quite easy to locate a document you don't recall the exact location or name of. The problem is that information is everywhere in my situation. I'd be in an Access database, and there's a button that takes you to a makeshift form which has all sorts of useful info. To find anything you have to have a pretty good idea of where to locate it. In comes SharePoint - literally. I did some research and discovered it's possible to code an Access command button to open another application. Awesome!! So I finally figured it out and stuck it to the button. It actually works. I click the button, and I get the webpage I wanted. SahWEEEET!!

Can't believe I used to hate Access so much...

~nv

Poem - Kashmir

I've been listening to Bond the last half hour or so and OMG are they good... inspiration from them hath created a poem, below. Off to bed for mine tired self now.

Kashmir
2006092511 - ©2006 WLL

power power how I love the power
the power of music
kashmir softness of the Bond
heavy strings are in the air
I heed the call
follow me, I follow them
walking cellos made of glass
impose their beauty on the sky
violins so delicate
fleeting in and out of highs
electric impulse woven in
hearts are beating as I grin
hold it, hold it, bridge again
I love you like I did then
Kashmir ends another reign
I think I'll play it all again

website updated

For those of you who care, my website has been updated. (My personal one, that is, psychomuse.com.) Xara's been very good to me and I had to flaunt it a bit. Tee hee.

I'm in, like, super design mode lately. It's insane. Helped Dale with his site last night by creating little Xara things for him such as a spinning wheel for his new iPod nano and such funstuffs. Then I tackled my site, which has been in serious shambles for a while now. borING. So I'm trying to spruce it up a bit.

Anywho, enjoy, laters, over and out!

~nv

Which finger are you?

Help me... Help me... Help me... I'm being attacked by quizzes...

You are the Thumb!!!!!

You are extremely unique. You enjoy surprising people with your new ideas that can take you to new heights. You could be a comedian someday, or a job not even made up yet! You have so much individuality! Congrats for being... yourself!

no more quizzes. really.

Honest. I am.. resisting... the urge... and suddenly have an urge to listen to "Futile, the star trek remix" where "Resistance Is Futile."

Yeah. I'm insane. It's been proven time and time again but let's allow the proof to manifest itself yet again, shall we? ;)

My former English teacher emailed me a few weeks ago, I responded, and she's not written back. Reminds me of a few friends of mine. Haha. But ya know... I understand more and more the busy-ness of people's lives as mine gets more and more filled with fun and activities and peoples.

Dangit. I was just imming someone and mentioned "Yeah, I'm addicted to quizzes. You know, like, 'answer these questions and we'll tell you what finger you are.'" Then it dawned on me: I haven't seen THAT quiz yet... so I'd better end this post so I can go look for one (or create one)!!

~nv

COLOR!! (Quizzes are SUCH a waste of time.)

But they're fun. I've NO idea why, but they are. Maybe it's some ego thing. Who knows. Maybe there should be a quiz on that... ;)

You scored as Green. Green is mostly associated with 'envy' but it best suits the description of freshness, rebirth and renewal. You believe that sometimes it is best to start things fresh just for the energising buzz an adventure gives you. And this is what you are all about; adventure. You love exploring, testing the limits and reaching out to what is out there. Green 89% Black 67% Purple 55% Blue 45% Yellow 44% Pink 39% White 39% Orange 33% Red 22% Which Colour Represents You??? created with QuizFarm.com

Perfect Major?

Yes, I'm still at it... stupid quizzes...

You scored as Journalism. You are an aspiring journalist, and you should major in journalism! Like me, you are passionate about writing and expressing yourself, and you want the world to understand your beliefs through writing. Linguistics 92% Journalism 92% Engineering 75% Psychology 75% Philosophy 75% Biology 67% English 67% Theater 67% Sociology 67% Art 67% Mathematics 58% Anthropology 42% Chemistry 42% Dance 25% What is your Perfect Major? (PLEASE RATE ME!!<3) created with QuizFarm.com

What kind of Artist?

Okay, now I KNOW this is a waste of time!!! LOL!!!!! (I can hear it now... "But Mom, the website said..." "I don't care!! SHUT THAT KEYBOARD OFF NOW!!! You'll wake up the dead!!!")

You Should Be a Musician

You have a rare combinations of talents: an ear for music, nimble fingers, and the willpower to practice. You could master almost any instrument you choose to play (if you haven't already!)

What Sort of Artist Should You Be?

Masculine or Feminine?

I tell ya... waste of time...

You Are 50% Feminine, 50% Masculine

You are in touch with both your feminine and masculine sides. You're sensitive at the right times, but you don't let your emotions overwhelm you. You're not a eunuch, just the best of both genders.

Are You Masculine or Feminine?

How Logical Are You?

Stupid quizzes... what a wonderful way to waste time...

You Are Incredibly Logical

Move over Spock - you're the new master of logic You think rationally, clearly, and quickly. A seasoned problem solver, your mind is like a computer!

How Logical Are You?

Which Mythological Creature Are You?

You Are a Chimera

You are very outgoing and well connected to many people. Incredibly devoted to your family and friends, you find purpose in nurturing others. You are rarely alone, and you do best in the company of others. You are incredibly expressive, and people are sometimes overwhelmed by your strong emotions.

What Mythological Creature Are You?

What Tree Are You?

You scored as The Rowan. In Celtic astrology, you're a Rowan tree. The animal symbol that accompanies this tree is the dragon. The ancient Druids say Rowan people have powerful imaginations and are idealistic, progressive, humanitarian, spiritual and good with change. However, Rowans may be prone to restlessness, quarreling, impatience or aloofness. The Rowan 70% The Birch 65% The Holly 65% The Ash 60% The Hazel 60% The Willow 60% The Reed 55% The Alder 50% The Vine 50% The Hawthorn 50% The Ivy 45% The Oak 40% The Elder 35% What Tree Are You? (Celtic astrology) created with QuizFarm.com

Citrix

Now, this is cool. I was informed the other day at work that I have a "Citrix" account. Up until that day, I was only aware that Citrix was a remote access tool so one can log into things from most any internet connection. Once I heard /I/ had an account, however... WELL... this is one nifty utility. You type in the address provided, log in, and vóìlá, you have access to things at work. I can even check email that way. Granted, I could check email from home before, but /this/ allows me to use Outlook instead of a webinized version. That makes me very happy. It's not remote desktop, mind you, but a virtual pc located on a server which runs the applications as you. I won't go into any further detail since I don't know enough about it to ensure my wording won't endanger some some form of security at the workplace, but suffice it to say you can probably find out anything you want to know from the Citrix website.

VERY cool. 'nuff said.

~nv

i, Mac

Anticipated birth date: 2/3/06
iMac!! (gender and name as yet unknown)
20-inch TFT active matrix LCD
2.16GHz Intel Core Duo
1680x1050
4MB shared L2 Cache
250GB SATA 7200rpm
SuperDrive 8X (DVD=R DL/DVD+-RW/CD-RW)
Apple Wireless Kbd/Mighty Mouse
Mac OS X
ATI Radeon X1600/256MB GDDR3 SDRAM (pci express)
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM (2x1GB)
Built-in AirPort Extreme (802.11g, 54Mbps)
Bluetooth 2.0+EDR
Apple Remote
iSight
USB 2.0 x3
FireWire 400 x2
10/100/1000 BASE-T Gigabit Ethernet
mini-DVI video out
built-in stereo speakers
built-in microphone
optical digital audio in/out jacks
support for external display in extended desktop

18.6"h x 19.4"w x7.4"d
22lbs

OS X v10.4 Tiger:
Spotlight
Dashboard
Safari 2
Mail 2
Address Book 4
iChat AV 3
iCal 2
Font Book 2
DVD Player 4.5
Preview 3
QuickTime
Xcode 2 developer tools

Included Software:
iLife '06
iTunes
iPhoto
iMovie HD
iDVD
iWeb
GarageBand
Front Row
Photo Booth
Big Bang Board Games
Comic Life
OmniOutliner

Notes:
Parallels Desktop is currently $79.99 at MacMall.
Acer 17" TFT Flat-Panel LCD currently $149.99 at MacMall...
Minimate 250GB USB 2.0 Hard Drive currently $119.99 at MacMall...
I need to stop looking at this ad...
That was just the front page!! GAH!!!!!

I'm soooooo in love... thank goodness for raises.



ps free advertising for: Toyota, Land-Scapes, and of course, Apple, in that picture. ;)

~nv

Pondering Technician

I just happened to glance over at my business card and noticed that I'd put "Technician" on there under my name. At the time, I was called a "Data Center Operator" but I knew a bit more than /just/ an operator. So I didn't think it presumptuous of me to call myself a technician for my side business. After all, I have done some hardware and software troubleshooting on occasion which some of my peers had never even attempted to learn about.

Well, the thing that hit me is that I /am/ a technician at work. Yours truly was recently promoted. We did this little merging thing where everyone became a level 1 tech anyway, but a spot opened up for a level 2. So I decided to try skipping the level 1 altogether and go for what I firmly believed (and still believe) I can do well while still giving myself some strong challenges. Obviously I got the position. I am both honoured and satiated with this because I'm glad my people have bestowed trust upon me to perform this job, and that they actually noticed that I've become such a strong asset to them and deserve this promotion. (I still have trouble believing that I get paid so well for doing something I love. I wish everyone could say that.)

Still, I got to thinking a lot about the past two years and how much I've grown over this period. I think about this frequently, really, but usually it's more of a passing thought than one that strikes without warning. My customer service has always been strong, but has indeed improved over the years. My professionalism has skyrocketed. I've learned to silence myself long enough to see bigger pictures. I've toned down my reactive nature to avoid becoming emotional where it's both detrimental and unnecessary to work AND home situations. (Starting with work, believe it or not!) And finally, I have put myself into my own work ethic and continuously strive to hold myself to my own standards rather than those of others. This allows me a type of freedom that provides me with opportunities to excel, as I am not held back by worrying about what other people are thinking.

This last mindset has helped define me immensely over the last two years. Developing and sticking to my own standards has allowed me to grow beyond what my borders once were. I see myself growing even now, unlimited by what I've been told, unhindered by the wishes of others. I'm doing what I want to do, which is what I'm doing now. I know who I am, what I want, and that life is OK if you simply decide to see it that way. I now understand that when I begin feeling like my whole world is after me, it's because of some hormonal or chemical thing, or stress, or whatever, and that it's all internal to myself. Nothing outside can truly affect how I feel about myself, so yes, it's internal. When I accept this, stop blaming others for how I feel, and take responsibility for myself, it seems to pass so much more quickly than it once did. This attitude reduces guilt, too, and allows me to expand my horizons. Worrying really does not help much at all. I appreciate efficiency, so why bother wasting my energy on something that does not promote it?

This does not come without a lot of hard and stubborn work, but it's so worth it. And I now wonder, if somehow at some level, I knew over two years ago that one day I would officially be a Technician. After all, I've been known to get what I dream of - eventually. Even my childhood dream of becoming a programmer is within my reach right now. VB.NET is installed on my computer at work for that very purpose. It may take some time yet, but one day... well, you never know.

Hold onto your dreams. Sometimes they're all you have, but you never know when they'll come true.

~nv

Didn't I tell ya I'd be back?

Well, by the time I got back to my shopping experience, my cart was emptied. I didn't feel like clickity-ing anymore so I gave up for today, but I did click on a few more things just to see what they were. I saw these things at Victoria's Secrets called "adhesives." I started wondering again what women wear when they wear backless dresses and such. Perhaps these? What about people looking for more [support]? So off I went to research. Not that I wear backless anythings, but I've been curious for years, and you never know when I might decide to change my look as a way to shock people for a few days. Hehheh. That's when I somehow stumbled into wedding dresses.

Why, may I ask, do people find it necessary to put themselves into a gown which:
1. requires some special (probably very uncomfortable) shoe
2. requires some special (probably very uncomfortable) bra
3. requires talented people to help you put it on
4. requires slow deliberate walking to avoid trippance
5. poofs out like an afro (I see this as knocking-things-over material)
6. costs a gazillion bucks
7. will only be worn once because even if not for sentimental or pass-it-down reasons, is WAY too impractical to be worn ANY OTHER TIME IN ONE'S NATURAL LIFE??

My idea of a wedding dress is:
1. Fully covers one's body.
2. You can walk in it.
3. It's a style AND colour that the bride actually likes for any other day's wear.
4. It doesn't cost exponentially more than your typical clothing.
5. It's adjustable in such a way that the only adjustments that need doing are hemming for short people and letting down for tall people. (Good for passing down for those who like that sort of thing, or in case someone gains a pound.)
6. It's not necessarily reserved only for weddings, although it could be.
7. It's long enough to cover whatever shoes you decide to wear. These may be ankle boots with the typical black crew socks.

Oh yeah, and leave my hair alone... I'll wear jewelry at my wedding (if I ever have one) but anyone who wants to make me afraid to move lest my hair get ruined is going to get sacked.

Now, my other thing is, why do people want BIG weddings? Yeah yeah, to show each other's undying love in front of a mass of people. What business is it of theirs? I know marriage was once a more communal event. I understand that. But nowdays, at least where I'm from, marriage is supposed to be about love, respect, and the relationship, not the communal question, "Do they know our rules, and will they produce viable, desirable offspring that can plow our fields and lead our community later on when we're all dead?" (Of course, my offspring would more likely be running its own mainframe by the time it was born, not plowing fields, but hey, there could be a throwback.)

I think marriage is still a holy, preferably permanent arrangement and should not be taken lightly. However, all the planning that goes into one? Get rid of that. Simply wait six months or more to make sure you really want to do it. Then get the two little lovegeeks in the room, add zero or more extremely important witnesses (by important, I mean important to the two getting married, not important in the community), get your marrying-you person, dress respectfully (no ripped jeans unless that's considered respectful to those involved), exchange vows, be pronounced people, smile for the digital camera you've placed on a tripod and set to go off in ten seconds, and get back online before you miss a stupid email about a boy who got run over by a lizard five years ago and is now asking you to forward the email on to 100 of your friends so he can get five cents added to his bank account and thus become the toeless typist he always wanted to be.

Simple, efficient, and cost-effective so you can buy that next computer you've been drooling over. Or a house. Or whatever makes more sense than wasting time and money on a wedding you'll only experience once (unless you weren't as sure as you thought you were).

My two cents... LOL (Maybe I should contribute to that boy's fund...)

~nv

Practical Bras

I've been poking around Victoria's Secrets on the 'net this morning in search of additional bras. Some might find it risqué to mention, but I'm going to mention my appreciation for racerback, padded, front enclosure bras because it's taken me a long time to figure out what all these types of bras are and when I find clothing I like, I LOVE it.

When I go into a typical store around these parts, I can not, for the life of me, FIND a bra that fits to the point where I can put it on and forget it's there. There's always something: Rides up and over the top of my *woo hoos*, straps fall down, itches, too loose, too tight, etc etc etc. One thing I will say about Victoria's Secrets - you want to follow their sizing recommendations. They are correct for their own stuff no matter how weird it sounds to you at first.

I was poor growing up. I hung out mostly with males the first few decades of my life. The girls I knew were larger than me and lacked some of the problems I did because they actually had enough to hold things down. Being a geek absorbed in BASIC at the time, I didn't care to research much even if I'd had the resources to do so. My mom only said bras suck. Well, as I said, I grew up poor. She never went into such places as Victoria's Secrets, and I'll tell you, when it comes to bras, I'm willing to pay a bit extra for something that's worth even wearing.

You can go to the website (www.victoriassecrets.com) in case you're wondering what ALL the styles are, but for those of you like me out there, this is why I like what I do:

Racerback - back of the bra is extended upward so that the straps have a shorter length. This makes it nearly impossible for the straps to fall off your shoulders.

Front closure - More of a luxury than anything else, I think, but I love these. You put the bra on like a button-up shirt. No fussing behind yourself in the morning after a three-minute shower while you're scarfing down a slice of bacon, spooning oatmeal in your mouth and doing laundry before work. (I work second shift, but these mundane things cut into my computer time so I very much appreciate efficiency.)

Underwire - for me, it means the thing STAYS. Some people hate these because they're uncomfortable. I don't have a problem with them and prefer the sensation of staying to the sensation of "riding" upwards. Especially when I'm bouncing around or dancing or whathaveyou. I can even lift printers and computers without going, "Uh...?" (I don't like sleeping in them, however - they are certainly not comfortable to sleep in, especially when you like sleeping on your stomach as I do.)

Padded - for two reasons, actually. One, they cover things up, which is the only reason I really wear a bra at all (aside from being accustomed to it). Two, they add some meat to us skinny people's "bones" without pushing anything out of whack. ;) See, if I'm too small to fully fill something out, the padding allows room to be comfortable while not collapsing and making me look like I'm buying bras that are a bit too big for me. The idea of squishing myself is not appealing. I somehow suspect that pushing one's boobies into distortion could be a cause of breast cancer. Even if it's not, why take the chance, right?

So, this scary post has ended. Unfortunately, I have a strange feeling another one will arise today. I got a very nice night's sleep last night on the couch. My back feels great, I got to sleep in some weird positions, my muscles feel pulled and stretched and VERY much in a good happy way. I had no idea just how much I missed my weird positions...

Anyway, back to surfing. I haven't finished my purchase yet.

~nv

Broadband is sexy

20060916 - early a.m.
I'm up late, reading forums and such. I happened across one about some former jock who discovered
an iMac. Apparently he's all excited about it and wants to know how to become a geek. Hehheh.
Well, someone wrote something about broadband being sexy. They mentioned even the sound of dialup
being a turn-on. I got to thinking about how I love listening to various computer sounds, tuning
into them, that sort of thing. Geek? Perhaps. But it /is/ sexy in its own way. My boyfriend has
an iMac and we were talking about Parallels. Parallels, for those of you who do not know, is a
program that you run on a Mac so you can "install" virtual PCs on the Mac. Thus, you can run
Windows XP (or most any OS) inside the Mac OS. I've been wanting an iMac for over a month now and plan to get one next year. Parallels isn't making it easy to wait. Well, after reading extensively about Parallels, I got all excited and as Dale showed our friend HIS iMac, I felt strongly attracted to him, like toner clinging to paper. He was radiant in his Macgeek glory.

I'm not sure what it is. I think I enjoy Dale's passions the most. He has such strong interests in so many things, but they're /subtly/ strong interests for the most part. He loves his iMac, obviously, and is the main reason I've developed an interest in Apple products. He strives for excellence in all he does without worry for an ego. He /has/ no ego, at least, none to speak of. All is for fun and self-exploration. When he runs, he doesn't run to beat someone in the race, he runs to improve upon his last time. When he plays table tennis, he genuinely appreciates his opponent's play and strives to learn. When he takes a picture, he sees things others do not. And when he talks about his iMac's superiority over a typical PC, he isn't putting down the PC, he's simply telling it as he sees it from the perspective of someone who's dealt with both types of computer. He admits there are pros and cons to each, too. I love all of this about him.

But most of all, I love watching his eyes glitter as he describes the newest Apple technology. I love his enthusiasm for everything he touches. I love his patient fortitude as he struggles with new concepts. I love his playfulness. I love his respect for everything and everyone. And when all of these things manifest themselves at once, it's as if my whole world has appeared before my eyes.

Broadband is certainly sexy. After all, it brought Dale and I together. I love Broadband... :)

~nv

You can find anything at Google

You can find anything at Google.

I put anything into the search box, and I get 701,000,000 results in .10 seconds.

Cool, huh? ;)

~nv

Happy Belated Birthday

Something was bugging me all day yesterday. Every time I saw 9/13 somewhere, I'd think, "Today is special. What's so special about it? Why can't I remember?" It finally dawned on me around 10:30pm at work.

Peter Cetera's birthday!!

I don't remember if I celebrated last year or not. I know a lot has happened in my life to allow me less and less time for celebrating Peter's achievements over here by myself, but to /completely/ forget about his birthday until 10:30pm that night... well...

So here's a happy belated birthday to Peter. May all your days be bright, may you find true love, and may you remain healthy and happy for a long time to come. Since I missed it most of the day yesterday, today I dedicate my CD players completely to your music. Maybe I'll even stop at the store and pick up a cake for work to enjoy on your behalf, as is my own personal tradition for your honour.

Despite my lifestyle, despite my new musical tastes these days - you will always hold a special place in my heart. I'm so glad I finally got to meet you a couple of years ago to thank you for all you've done for me (and others!) by sharing your music with the world.

Blessings,

~nv

PowerShop is more like it

PhotoShop is just way too scary. I've become so accustomed to several of its tools that it's starting to be an extension of my imagination instead of a graphical tool.

I just finished an hour-long endeavor which I embarked upon for Aflac. He won a race last night and the guy who normally does the "winner" photoshoppings either didn't have time or couldn't find a good theme or whatever. So Aflac told him to give him a day, he'd get something for him to put up.

Uh, yeah, /I/ will be getting something for him to put up... but Aflac knows me well. "Want a PhotoShop project?" Don't ask me THAT twice!! So after looking over the pictures he provided me with, I decided I /had/ to use the truck. This is his own specially-designed truck with the Aflac duck on it and Wal-Fart emblazoned across the back, the X-Files "X" gracing the area behind the tire. Beautiful truck if you ask me, and intricately sculpted right down to the Apple logo with the dragon in it on the hood. Too bad the game's graphics aren't better... such art is wasted!

Well, another shot caught my attention. This race took place at Flemington Speedway, so Aflac went looking for a picture of the actual racetrack. He found one of the winner in the year 2000, kneeling in front of his car and holding the checkered flag. NICE!! And perfect for my encroaching idea... So, I take Dale's truck, plop it on the scene, erase the offending background from the truck's layer to allow the "real" background to shine through, and resize the truck until it covers the car properly. Then I erase parts of the truck to allow it to "hide" behind the Nascar sign. Next is the trophy and the two people in the front of the picture.

Whups. One of them is the winner of the race. He doesn't look like Aflac...

So I go into my own personal collection of photographs and find one of my beloved racer. For simplicity's sake, it should be one where he's facing about the same direction. Wouldn't you know, I just *happen* to have one!! I took it at an airshow a month or two ago. He's very serious in it and somehow it just looks perfect for the picture. So in it goes.

Another problem, however, is that his face is very grayish because it had been cloudy that day. In the picture from Flemington, everyone has a pinkish face. No biggie. My memory kicks in from my exploring days and locates "lighting effects." I add a reddish hue, get the angle just right, and whammo, Dale's face is now lighter and has [almost] the same pinkish glare. It's pretty obvious he was photoshopped in, but with a quick resize, his head is proportionate to his newly-adopted body, and now I have my winner, the driver of the cartoonish truck.

This is getting fun.

My last challenge, and perhaps one of the more difficult, is to change the 2000 to 2006, so the sign is accurate of this race. I copy a piece of the last 0, rotate it into the 0, then blacken out an area to create a makeshift 6.

Satisfied with this particular work, I save it (which I really should have done a while ago now that I think about it), and convert to jpg. I send it to Aflac via email and open this even as I scan for viruses. This is when it hits me: I just created a photo out of a photo... the power these applications instill into us... LOL

~nv

CVS Photos

CVS Photofinishing. I'm rather impressed. Have been for a while. Granted, I'm not experienced with having digital photos printed in many places, but I'm certainly happy with the results of my digital prowess when it's applied to photographic paper at CVS.

Today, for the first time, I submitted my order online instead of bringing my memory stick into the store itself. I indicated I would pick them up myself, hence, no delivery charges. The only catch about doing this online is that you must order at least $5 worth of photos or they charge you $1.49 or something. So I added an 8x10 since I'd been wanting one anyway, and submitted. I immediately got an email confirming my order.

36 minutes later, I got another email. This one told me my photos were ready to be picked up at the store I'd chosen just 37 minutes earlier.

So I can effectively take a clump of plastic, metal, and glass, aim at a frog, press a button, and get a duplicate of nature in virtual format. Then I can take a little card the size of a large stamp, shove it into a slot on my computer, use long thin insulated strips of wire to send my "image" to a computer in CVS about 8 miles from here, and in 36 minutes, I can pick up this image on a piece of paper. Full glossy. In fact, if I sent these, then took a shower and left, I'd probably get there just as they stuffed my photos in an envelope.

This is a magnificent, albeit scary, age that we live in.

~nv

And you may ask yourself

And you may ask yourself, "Did that cat really just bite my head off?" And you may ask yourself, "Did that guy really come into my life?" And you may ask yourself, "Is this really our awesome place?"

I was introduced to Talking Heads by a friend's son. I ended up dating him briefly, and when the dalliance ended, so did my beginning appreciation for the music he'd brought to my awareness. The appreciation resurfaced when I dated another admirer a while later. This gentleman was refined and artsy, even if darkly stoic. His taste in music inevitably involved a marching rhythm - evidenced readily by his strong familiarity with Kate Bush. I could easily picture him in a Victorian mansion: Aptly buttoned jacket perfectly adorning his tall, thin frame; walking slowly and erectly down the polished wood of the stairs; wife spreading place settings upon the long table; children perfect replicas of their parents, speaking only when spoken to and as polite as can be. But for all his intriguing eccentricities, I found something lacking as I took note of his music collection. There were frames, but no furnishings.

So as the dapper young Stoic drifted sadly and slowly away into his lonely Mansion, once again, so did Talking Heads. I thought little of it until today when I opened Windows Media Player and happened across a song called "Like Humans Do" by a guy named David Byrne. I have no idea where it came from, but I listened to it. The voice and rhythm were both eerily familiar to me. So I dragged out my meager collection of Talking Heads and found "This Must Be The Place." It is a song which both Momma's Boy and Stoic Victorian had appreciated.

I have now rediscovered Talking Heads in addition to discovering this odd fellow, David Byrne. David has a website, www.davidbyrne.com . He keeps a journal which offers insights I don't often see from a singer. He has a lot of music available. And yes, he was the singer in Talking Heads that I recall.

My close friends know that I place a high importance on Peter Cetera's music, as it's played a vital role in my life. I associate sign posts with each of his albums, right down to the songs themselves, both when he was solo and when he was with Chicago. At least one of Talking Heads' songs, however, appears to have particularly symbolic meaning in my life: Two of the most similiar - and opposite - people I've ever known introduced me to the song as they were also introducing me to the concept of what I was looking for in a mate. While simple, the song combines a rhythmic frame with a fun optimism. The lyrics flow easily into my current life: Ironically enough, what I was looking for in a mate is Aflac, and we have this apartment we call "The Place." Home is where I want to be, but I guess I'm already there. I love the passing of time...

As to the inspiration for this posting, however, I must touch upon another song: "Same As It Ever Was." I was downstairs earlier, in the window, watching Aflac get into his car. Kitty had alighted herself upon the sill, and I was feeling cuddly, so I rubbed my head playfully into her fur. She started purring, and it felt good, so I kept rubbing up against her fuzziness. More purring, more rubbing. I was somewhat aware that Aflac was watching us, bemused, from his car, but I was so caught up in the rare moment of Kitty-enjoyment that I decided to wait until his car moved before I'd react to him and wave "I love you" for the day.

Then she bit my head.

~nv