text:
To Orb Or Not To Orb
Posted 30 December 2016 - 06:48 AM
If anyone does not know, when using a source of illumination (eg IR Illuminator or Flash) with a camera, the amount of potential dust ords is dependant on location of flash/illumination and the camera lens. Have a read at http://strangeoccurrencesparanormal.weebly.com/orbs-explained.html
The size of the potential orb is dependant of size of dust particle and the cameras focal point. So if a dust particle is within the camera's focus point and is illumonated then the reflected light is reflected into the camera lens and a fuzzy round orb is then captured.
So to help me use illumination and an full spectrum camera and to avoid the dust etc reflecting to create orbs I am building a small handheld camera rig a bit like a rifle.
The full spectrum camera I am using is a Gitup Git2 Action with a 170deg non-ir lens. I am recording at 1080p 60fps. The focal point has been set at 50cm (This is important)
Now with the IR illuminator being fixed to the end to the camera rig (ie muzzle end) and the camera is fixed at the stock end (55cm away from the IR illuminator) which means that I will have no dust bunnies present as the illumination is past the fixed focal point. So if I then see an orb it can not really be dust (well it still might be if another light source comes close to the camera like a torch or other led from other equipment) and once that is rulled out then the orb has to be something else.
I have already built my first rig but once I put all the equipment on it it was a bit unbalanced so I am having to move things around a bit to put the balancing point on my wrist so I will not put strain on my wrist.
If anyone else has some ideas or other advice then I am happy to listen.
I don't know when I shall using it in an actual investigation but at least it is finished and ready.
I also redid the IR illuminator, I had used some 940mn IR LEDs but these had a red glow (in normal eye vision) when used and I wanted complete darkness in normal eye vision so I manaded to track some down and these work a treat.
Posted 30 December 2016 - 11:05 AM
You minimize risk. You make sure your equipment is scrupulously clean, separate the flash from the lens as much as possible (that's why integrated flashes are more of an issue than hotshoe flashes) and let the scene settle for ten minutes or so before shooting.
And you will still photograph dust.
That's the reason why even though I'm a true orb believer I say all orbs must be considered physical unless you saw it with your own two eyes.
Posted 31 December 2016 - 10:28 AM
Tantric KittenGStudy, on 30 December 2016 - 11:05 AM, said:
Thank you Tantric, and also yes, seeing is believing, especially with your own eyes of an orb that is generating it's own light.
Edited by Capt-Zeanie, 31 December 2016 - 10:29 AM.
Posted 27 February 2017 - 06:24 PM
In no case would I except an orb, save for maybe when I started. There were a few when the first experience with night vision made me pretty excited. That is to be expected.
Director Canadian Haunting and Paranormal Society
Liaison TAPS Family International.
Oshawa Ontario Canada
Posted 27 February 2017 - 09:37 PM
Posted 28 February 2017 - 06:15 PM
Aquène kah nahonnushagk(Peace and farewell),
WaûtuckquesSóchepo (SnowRabbit)
The Official GhostStudy Easter Bunny
Posted 01 March 2017 - 04:00 AM
MacCGStudy, on 28 February 2017 - 06:15 PM, said:
I agree in part, I don't know what they are only that I could see a heap of them as a child and they seemed to be able to understand what I would say. I was scared of them as a child and would tell them to "scat" and they would. I have seen them come through the wall or just pop into existence; I believe if they are spirit orbs; they could be used by spirits just like any other tool.
Posted 08 March 2017 - 11:09 AM
I become infuriated by so-called investigators who fail to investigate.
Part of becoming a polished investigator is trying to replicate events that cannot be readily explained. It will not remove all doubts but might encourage alternate enlightenment.
For those dogmatically repeating they have no dust in their homes, I'd suggest they lack understanding on what a "clean room" entails from Intel or denies that the human body sheds 7 lbs of skin yearly.
Here is a great DIY link on video avoidance.
As Tantric mentioned, off-camera flash/off camera lighting successfully reduces the natural occurrence. In fact, we turned off all the IR emitters on our cameras and used black light panels and other light sources distanced from the lens. This did not completely remove orbage but greatly removed it from footage.
But, on the other I will be the first to admit ONCE I had an event that defied the usual orbage. While passively investigating in a cemetery, a fellow investigator to my back with camera and myself with an audio recording quietly observed the tranquility.
Suddenly, I saw an self-illuminated orb with a 3 foot tail meander between the tombstones almost with intention. It lasted for 5 seconds or more before disappearing. Memorized by the occurrence, I signaled my partner to look but all in vain as it had already gone invisible. Naturally, I was the one holding the audio recorder and no camera. (Consider more than one piece equipment on hand….checkmark.)
Scientists suggest it could be ball lightning or possibly ignited swamp gas. I really do not know what I saw or whether it was spiritual in nature, but I'm elated that my skepticism was tested with another ponderous question to ask.
Edited by EVP, 08 March 2017 - 11:33 AM.
Today while shopping, I put items back because it said, "Made In China".
Posted 31 March 2017 - 03:36 PM
Kiwilady Kiwilady
Years may wrinkle the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul
Posted 01 April 2017 - 01:13 AM
I guess to truly appreciate them, you have to experience seeing them with your own eyes. I have seen them with my eyes twice and both times there was a witness.
I'm pretty sure I can prove they exist. You can find them in a huge nature park in the San Francisco bay area. It was dusk and I watched one drift by at a slow rate of speed. It had a streaming tail and it moved up and down as it traveled. My research partner looked at me and said, did you see it. I said yes. She said there was another one just before that one. It became dark shortly after that but I have always wanted to go back. I looked up the park online this week and I'll try to get over there this summer. I don't even know if a camera will be able to capture this particular type of orbs. But I guess I'll find out.
The other time, was at a haunted Inn in Virginia City, CA. I and another ghost hunter watched an orb come towards us and flew right between us and disappeared. Like at the park, I was asked if I saw it. We both did and it was an amazing experience.
I also captured one on film in 2002. But that's a story for another day.
Posted 29 December 2018 - 06:40 PM
Thanks for any help,
Posted 30 December 2018 - 03:37 AM
Most members use an image hosting places to show their videos or images here are 2 websites
I enjoy watching orb videos, although it is hard to say for sure what they are.


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Electronics thieves in Germany have decided to eschew the subtle approach for brute force. Thieves crashed a car into the Berlin Apple Store this morning and stole all sorts of fruit-branded electronics. And it's not the first time this has happened.
The robbery of the Apple Store, which is the retail arm of a small Californian electronics firm, occurred early this morning when a stolen Opel Corsa was crashed into the store. Thieves took iPhones, laptops, and iPads, and escaped in two Audis.
This is not the first sort of crime like this in Berlin this month. On December 9th, thieves crashed into a Berlin shopping mall and stole nearly $150,000 in electronics.
Berlin's Apple Store took years of planning and is located in an old theater at the end of the longest shopping street in the German city. No word yet on just how much was stolen or what the extent of the damage is, though from the video it appears to be limited to a door.

subset: commoncrawl


text: COVID-19 Visit Membership Animals General Events Is the Aquarium open given public concern regarding COVID-19 (Coronavirus)? No. As a precautionary measure and in an effort to protect the health and safety of our staff, volunteers, guests and animals, the National Aquarium and our Animal Care and Rescue Center are temporarily closed. In service to our mission, we've created many avenues through which you can stay connected with us during this temporary closure! Be sure to check out our livestreams of exhibits like Blacktip Reef and our new at-home activities page公和我做好爽 that includes word searches, coloring pages and recycled crafts! Sign up to receive the latest news and alerts公和我做好爽 from the National Aquarium regarding reopening information and other COVID-related announcements. How is my membership being affected by COVID-19? We know members are wondering when the National Aquarium will reopen and if memberships will be extended. 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This is a pretty neat house, built by Daihai Fei, age 24, he did it for only $960 US dollars. He had moved to Beijing to pursue his college degree, but after graduating he found to get work, he must stay in the city, but he couldn't afford rent. The house is mobile and covered with bags of dirt and grass seeds. Daihai Fei hopes that the seed will take and grow to fully encase his egg in grass, making it more weather resistant.
His egg house is now located across the street from his work, so commute is a 30 second walk. I was surprised that you could pull this off in Beijing, I would think in a modern city they wouldn't allow it. But Daihai Fei has become something of a local legend, so perhaps winning the hearts of people has allowed him to do this. After living in his egg house for two months Daihai Fei feel that his life has improved dramatically since living in his egg house.


text:
Dear Friend,
I've been in your shoes before! At the
beginning of 2003, I decided it was time
for me to quit my job. I'll be honest; it
wasn't an easy decision. I wasn't stuggling
at my job, I was actually doing very well.
I had a job as an "account executive" (a
glorified title for a sales rep). I was
24 years old and making over $50,000 per
year. My schedule was great - Monday
through Friday from 8-5. I was off every single
weekend. Why did I want to quit?
I wanted more FREEDOM! Maybe,
you understand the way I felt. I felt trapped.
I longed for freedom. Not freedom from a challenge. I
simply wanted to control my own schedule.
I took Nike's advice. I just did it. I
went to my boss and told him I'd be quitting
in two weeks. He was mad! But not as "mad"
as my parents were. My boss was mad
because he was losing his #1 salesperson.
My parents were mad because they paid for
half my college education, and now in their
opinion, I was wasting my life by starting
a lawn business.
Honestly, that wasn't the worst part. What
made it worse was all my friends telling
me I was crazy and laughing at me for my
"foolish" idea. But all their criticism and
joking made me that much more determined
to make my lawn business successful.
Two years prior to opening my lawn
business I graduated from college with a
degree in Business Management and Marketing.
I tried implementing several of the "techniques"
I had learned in college. But every "technique"
I tried seemed to fail, and brought me closer
to proving my friends and family correct.
If something didn't change soon, I'd have
to admit "they"(my friends and family)
were right, and go get another
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do. No idea who to trust for advice.
No idea if I would survive.
Out of the blue a friend suggested that
I call her cousin who owned what she called
a "very successful lawn business."
I had nothing to lose, so I gave him a call.
He agreed to meet with me and give me advice
on how to get my small, struggling lawn business
off life support.
When the appointed day came, I drove
over 150 miles one way to meet with him.
I remember thinking on my way there that
if he didn't give me some revolutionary
advice, I was going to close my lawn business.
I didn't know anything about his lawn business
or how "successful" it really was. But when
I pulled into the parking lot, I knew his
business had be to "very successful"!
As I turned into the parking lot, I noticed
a nursery to the left, a gift shop straight
in front of me, and a very large metal shop
to the right. It appeared as if he didn't
just own a "successful" lawn business, but
a very successful lawn empire.
After a brief introduction, my soon to
be mentor wanted me to meet his vice president
of lawn maintenance. After visiting with
him for a few minutes, he wanted to introduce
me to his vice president of landscaping.
From there he wanted me to meet the gift
shop manager, and then his landscape architect,
and then his salesman/estimator.
After all these introductions, he took
me on a tour of his facilities. I discovered
he had over 40 full-time employees. His
business was extremely successful.
Everything he touched seemed to turn to
In order to save myself some embarrassment
I wanted to tell him things were going well,
but I didn't. I told him exactly how horrible
things were. I even told him I was seriously considering
closing the business. When I
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Please order now if you would like the
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For any questions or difficulties contact firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
by HUGH GILMORE
Not too long ago I drove on a late spring morning to buy books from a widow in a nearby rowhouse neighborhood. With no parking allowed out front, I followed her instructions and parked in the alley behind her house. I found her gate and entered the back yard where a blue, flowered housedress, bra and panties hung on the clothesline next to the walk. I knocked on the back door.
Mrs. McBreen (a pseudonym) opened up and greeted me, and we walked through the narrow kitchen and dining room into the living room. It was 11 in the morning, and the place was only dimly lit, the only light coming in through jalousie-covered windows in the front and rear – true to widow practice among this Greatest Generation.
These folks survived the Great Depression, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam, and they don't need to be sitting around in the daytime with the lights on. I'd seen this before and tried a few times to explain Seasonal Affective Disorder and the need for light to keep your spirits up, but they'd say, "Oh, I couldn't waste electricity like that." I kept quiet this time.
Cherry wood bookcases occupied one wall of the sunroom. Some whatnots stood in front of the books on the middle shelf. The top of one case held three easel-propped framed photographs. A glance was enough. I told her the books were more modern than what we usually "can use for our customers," but if she didn't mind, I'd go ahead and dig in, maybe "find a treasure."
Nice books. Good taste. This family had been readers. Book lovers, but not collectors. Among the children's books, some Tasha Tudors and Arthur Rackhams, but recent printings. Good fiction, of the "literature" kind: "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer," "The Razor's Edge," several Dickens novels, and so on. No bestsellers. A few Thomas Merton titles, predictable on thinking-Catholic bookcases, some Caribbean travel guides from the 1970s.
The pictures on the bookcase included a black-and-white headshot of Mrs. McBreen as a good-looking young nurse. And another where she stood in full uniform, showing a nice figure, the kind a 1940s foxhole crooner might have had in mind when he sang, "You'd be so nice to come home to."
I also saw a photo of what I assumed was Mr. McBreen, a fine looking young Irishman, reminiscent of a youthful Fred MacMurray or Patrick O'Brien. Strong jawed, self-assured. The leader of the band. I stepped back from the bookcase and looked at another picture of him over the mantle in the living room. And then another, within a cluster of pictures on the wall, this one a wedding picture where he stood beside his bride.
The former bride now sat at the gloomy dining room table, her head bent, looking at a neat list of things to do before moving to a retirement home. She was already sweating at the start of what was supposed to become a hot day.
Love always ends badly, I thought. No matter how much in love you are. No matter that you survived the war, went to work every day, never cheated on one another, gave the kids three squares and clean clothes every day, made love a lot or a little – no matter what, it will end badly. Usually the husband starts to go first, and the wife must watch her partner enter the world of pained grimace, and turn inward like a plastic clock on the other side of a burning wall.
"Mrs. McBreen," I said, "I'm sorry, but there are only two books I can use. I'll pay you $35 for them."
I'd found a "Mother Goose" and a "Hans Brinker," later editions, but bright copies. The money was half of what I thought we could sell them for. She looked up from her list and said, "Well, that's better than nothing – I'll take it."
At the dining room table I wrote a check for the books, and, since I had some time, I remained seated and asked Mrs. McBreen about herself. I like to talk to older people. They look ordinary, but they've always led interesting lives. I once met a man who'd survived a famous hotel fire, another who'd served on the USS Intrepid, another who said he'd swum the Hellespont, and a woman who said she'd had six offers of marriage in five years before she chose her Harry.
Older people also know things that you'd have to trade your life away to learn: What's it's like to work for Schmidt's Brewery or Tasty Baking Company for forty years? Or raise a Down syndrome child? Or be an electrician, plumber, or policeman?
Or be a nurse, like Mrs. McBreen.
And have your husband commit suicide while the four kids were still young.
"He was … bipolar's what they'd call it today," she told me across the table.
I said, "You can't see it in his face, not from those pictures in the other room."
"No," she said. "When he was up, he was really outgoing. People liked him. That's why they were all surprised."
She got up to go toward the picture cluster on the wall and I followed.
I took a chance and asked, "How many good years did you have?"
I thought she'd need to think a moment before answering a question like that, but she must have reckoned the answer a long time ago.
"Three," she said. No hesitation.
Then, as if she knew my next question, she added, "We were together for twelve. Then he killed himself."
"You were still a young woman," I said. I pictured the panties and bra and dress on the line outside, blowing emptily in the backyard breeze.
"Yes, I was, with four young children to support. Shift work. It wasn't easy." She leaned in a little closer to the pictures. "But," here she turned and looked at me, and with a determined quaver said, "I loved my job. Outside of the kids, it was all I had."
We went back to the dining room table and talked some more. She grew up near the coal region upstate, came down here, met McBreen, such a handsome, outgoing guy. She felt a tender spot for him. There was something about him. He was adopted. He'd been in a Catholic orphanage, but was abused by the other children there, and the supervisors took pity and saw that a good family took him out and adopted him.
"The poor man," I said, "Poor you, so young, only three good years."
"The poor children," she said, "they never had the normal life they deserved. It was hardest on them."
There was a small silence.
Then she said, in that funny, mock-dramatic Irish way, "So that's my story, and I'm sticking to it."
If I could have wound time backwards, I'd have offered to marry her, she was that lovely a woman and fellow mortal.
But since I couldn't, it was either become lifetime, call-every-day friends, or it was time to go. Only late morning, and the place would stay dark all day unless the grandkids came over to play with that wicker basket of toys I'd seen in the corner. I was going back to work. She'd go on with her chores in that stuffed little house until she moved to the retirement home she and her daughter, who was helping her, were looking for. Disposing of the books was but one step along the way.
I went into the sunroom to get the two books I'd paid for and took another look at the picture of her and McBreen and then at McBreen alone. I'd wondered, when she tightened up her eyes and said, "I loved my job" with such emphasis what kind of nurse she'd been. I could have understood either way, hard or soft, because there was ample reason for either, or both.
Then I noticed that McBreen's pictures were all in semi-profile, a good profile it was, too, but none of them looking right at you, so you could read him head on, all looking toward the future, the bright path his elegant suit and strong chin and noble forehead implied he'd lead them down.
You never know, do you, what you're getting as a go-with when you lie down for pleasure with another human soul?
I shook hands with Mrs. McBreen and wished her well, which I really did, and headed home.


text:
Texas McCombs ·
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David Harrison
Current McCombs School of Business Faculty or staff?
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David A. Harrison is the Charles & Elizabeth Prothro Regents Chair of Business Administration at the University of Texas, Austin. He earned a doctorate in social, organizational, and individual differences psychology, along with masters' degrees in psychology and in applied statistics, from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Harrison has published over 100 articles, book chapters, editorial reviews, papers, and monographs addressing a) diversity in organizations, b) work role adjustment, c) time, and d) executive judgment and decision making. In addition to having been a National Science Foundation Fellow, his work has been honored with Walter de Gruyter and Sage Best Paper awards in 1991, 1992, 1995, and 2002 from the Research Methods Division of the Academy of Management, the inaugural Carolyn Dexter International Best Paper award (in 1995) from the Academy of Management, and the inaugural Saroj Parasuraman Award (in 2008) for Outstanding Publication in Gender and Diversity in Organizations (GDO) from the Academy of Management. Further honors include the 2007 Scholarly Achievement Award from the Human Resources Division of the Academy, the 2008 and 2009 Owens Scholarly Achievement Awards from the Society of Industrial-Organizational Psychology (SIOP), and the 2011 Sage Career Scholarly Contributions Award from the GDO Division of the Academy. He has been Editor-in-Chief and Associate Editor of Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes. Other editorial board memberships have included Academy of Management Journal, Academy of Management Review, Personnel Psychology, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Management, and Organizational Research Methods. Dr. Harrison has been an active member of SIOP, where he was elected a Fellow. He is also a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science. In addition, he has supported the Academy of Management in various roles, in the Research Methods Division as an award-winning Professional Development Chair (1996-97), Program Chair (1997-98), and Division Chair (1999-2000). From 2008-2011 he served on the Academy Board of Governors.
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text:
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
4SQS Summer Quilt Received!
She even put a sleeve on the back for hanging it. I must learn how to do that!
Thanks SO much, Gabriele! This quilt will be cherished.
Gabriele also sent 3 big bags of authentic German gummi bears, one for each of my kids. What a great treat! Ummm, they didn't last long enough to get a picture. Little did she know that anything gummi is a favorite at our house.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Rocketship Fabric
A lot of people have asked where they can find the rocketship fabric that I used in this quilt. Seems it's pretty hard to find. But I just came across a fat quarter bundle (very similar to the ones I used to make the quilt) for sale on Spool's website.
Looks like a great store -- check it out!
ALQS Quilt Received!
I had a great time and hope to participate in the second round. It hasn't been announced yet, but if you want to play be sure to bookmark this site.
Thanks again for this great little quilt, Solidia. It will have a very happy home here!
Monday, July 28, 2008
My Craftster Group
I was lucky enough to see that the latest incarnation, Lap Quilt Swap III, was open a few weeks back. Without much hesitation I jumped right in. I wanted 2 of the 36 slots, putting me in 2 groups of 12 people each, and I think I got the last two spots (or close to it!).
So when all is said and done, I will be receiving 22 blocks made of the fabric I picked out (Amy Butler's Midwest Modern in greens and blues along with some of her new coordinating solids) ... and along with 2 I will make myself, I'll have enough to make a 24-block quilt. And at the same time, I'll be making 22 blocks for other people.
Our deadline for mailing out our own fabrics isn't even until August 1st, but my fellow swappers wasted no time in getting started! Almost immediately following the email containing the names and addresses of my fellow swappers, packages of fantastically selected fabrics started showing up at my door.
Here's some of what I've been up to ...
Block 1 for SewHelpMe:
You may recognize the pattern as the Designer Mystery Block pattern I blogged about a few posts back. I really like that pattern because of the way it can showcase several different fabrics.
Block 2 for SewHelpMe:
I got this pattern off of Quilter's Cache. It's called "Box Quilt".
The thing I really enjoy about this swap is being able to work with so many different fabrics. I've always admired the "City Girl" line of fabrics but never bit the bullet to buy some. That's why I loved making SewHelpMe's two blocks above.
Here's a block for glittergirl94:
I gave her a hard time about having to work with fabric that had bras all over it. I guess people are still getting used to having a guy around! ; )
Here's a block for BertaBerta:
And here are two blocks that I've already received back from the swap. Like I said, these girls are fast. And good. There's a lot of paper piecing going on in this group (which I don't do, but may be inspired to try). Check out how beautiful these blocks are:
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Quilt-a-Long | Almost Done!
I've been catching up on some blocks:
Week 12's block:
Week 13's block:
And week 5's block from the first quilt-a-long:
This brings my grand total to 24 blocks ... just one more to make before I begin assembling the top! I haven't decided what my last block will be. I may repeat one of the stars ... or pick one of the 2 blocks that I haven't made yet from QAL1 ... or I might even go "off the grid" and make a rogue block of my own choosing. Stay tuned to see what I decide ... ... ..
As always, here's the mosaic to show what my quilt top might look like:
Friday, July 18, 2008
Recent Pictures
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Quilt Mix Playlist
(some of my current faves)
You may remember that as part of my giveaway, I sent the lucky winners a mix CD of some of my current favorite songs to listen to while sewing or otherwise relaxing in the evenings. Some people have asked me to share the playlist, so here it is!
The idea for a CD quickly grew to 3 CD's worth of music once I started picking songs. I ended up editing it down to just 2. Here's what the lucky recipients received:
Disc 1
"Make It Mine" - Jason Mraz
"Pocketful of Sunshine" - Natasha Bedingfield
"Life in a Northern Town (Live)" - Sugarland, Little Big Town, and Jake Owen
"Dreaming With a Broken Heart" - John Mayer
"Only You" - Josh Kelley
"Morningside" - Sara Bareilles
"Coyotes" - Jason Mraz
"Say (All I Need)" - OneRepublic
"Between the Lines" - Sara Bareilles
"New Deep" - John Mayer
"Bubbly" - Colbie Caillat
"1973" - James Blunt
"Live High" - Jason Mraz
"When the Stars Go Blue" - The Corrs
"All We Are" - OneRepublic
"Why Georgia" - John Mayer
"Love Song" - Sara Bareilles
"You Are a Part of Everything" - Josh Kelley
"Apologize" - OneRepublic featuring Timbaland
Disc 2
"If I Never See Your Face Again" - Maroon 5 featuring Rihanna
"Mercy" - Duffy
"I'm Yours" - Jason Mraz
"Many the Miles" - Sara Bareilles
"Lost In This Moment" - Big & Rich
"Baby" - Angie Stone
"Everybody Wants You" - Josh Kelley
"Lucky" - Jason Mraz featuring Colbie Caillat
"Stop and Stare" - OneRepublic
"You Wanted It" - MoZella
"Bring It On Home" - Little Big Town
"Clarity" - John Mayer
"I'm With The Band" - Little Big Town
"Love Me Like the World Is Ending" - Ben Lee
"Realize" - Colbie Caillat
"Butterfly" - Jason Mraz
"Say" - John Mayer
"Love On The Rocks" - Sara Bareilles
"Almost Honest" - Josh Kelley
All songs are available on iTunes. I should know -- I practically sign half of my paycheck over to Apple!
Man, I could have easily kept going.
I hope that by doing this I introduce my winners (and all of you!) to some new music that you might not otherwise have listened to. Enjoy!
So what do you like to listen to while crafting?
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
New (& Old) Quilt-a-Long Blocks
You can't really tell from the picture, but the color of that fish fabric is really great. It's a very vivid aquamarine. I think it will add a nice touch to the finished quilt. And because the terrible pictures from my last post were seriously bothering me, I took some new ones:
Here are all of my blocks so far:
Only 4 more blocks to go!
And finally, just because I got a better picture of it, the first week of the Designer Mystery BOM (again):
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Some More Blocks
And here's week 9's block from the first quilt-a-long. Boy, these pictures did not come out well at all.
Finally, I made the first block from the Fat Quarter Shop's Designer Mystery Block of the Month. It uses the "Peace on Earth" fabrics by 3 Sisters for Moda. I really like the way this came out -- the block is fairly simple but creates a really nice effect. And the fabrics are great, too. I can't wait to see next month's block.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Another Award! Thanks!
Here are the rules:
1. The winner can put the logo on his/her blog.
2. Link to the person you received your award from.
3. Nominate at least 7 other blogs.
4. Put links to those blogs on yours.
5. Leave a message on the blogs of the people you have nominated.
Of course, there are lots of deserving recipients, but for this round I'll nominate my four giveaway winners and three other blogs I enjoy reading:
- Rebekah at don't call me becky dot com
- Tine at Sodeste
- Tracy from Scrap Happy Quilts
- Elizabeth from French Village Life (even though it looks like she's won one already!)
- LisaJo at the Black Bear Cabin
- Dee at BubbaChic
- Anina from Twiddletails, who inspired my fabric selections for the quilt-a-long
Disclaimer -- please feel free to participate or not participate, as you so choose! No pressure here. But thanks for reading all the same!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
I just visited random.org to select the winners. I was planning on showing screen shots, but I can't seem to get the screen shots to work. I promise that this is legit ... Scout's honor!
Random.org selected the following numbers: 8, 51, 106, and 43. Now let me go see who the lucky winners are ...
#8: Tine
"The bags are beautiful!!! I would be so proud to call one of these my own! So PLEASE enter me in your very very generous giveaway!They are all wonderful, and I think my favourite is the blue and brown..."
Congrats, Tine! The blue and brown bag (my favorite) will be coming to live with you! So the first of my bags will be traveling all the way to Denmark. Where will the next bag go ... ?
#51: Tracy
"WOW! These are amazing! So happy! What a wonderful gift these would be! Hard to say which one is my favorite....please enter me in your giveaway and keep up the inspiring work!"
It's your lucky day, Tracy! Since you didn't specify a preference, would it be OK if the pink bag came to live with you in sunny California?
#106: Elizabeth
"Well, with 104 comments, there cant be much hope of winning your lovely giveaway! I do love the blue flutterby!I'm a quilter in France, how nice to see a male stitcher. I found you through Ann of En belle France, who doesnt live far `away from me, and one day we may meet to swap fabric."
Congratulations, Elizabeth ... o ye of little faith! I'm so happy to see one of my bags flying across the pond to France. Sorry, Elizabeth, but the blue Flutterby bag is already spoken for. How about the blue & green Ginger Blossom bag? P.S. Please say "hi" to Ann for me!
(I know that from her post, it sounds like Elizabeth was comment #105, but if you look at the time stamps, I think Boo just beat her to the "post" button!)
#43: Rebekah
"cute bags! I love them all, but especially the green and blue varieties : )"
OK, Rebekah ... the green Flutterby bag will be on its way to you shortly! From reading your blog, I would have picked this one out for you anyway! : )
Congratulations, ladies! Please email me your mailing addresses at firstname.lastname@example.com and I'll be sure to send these as soon as I can ... well, as soon as I make those mix CD's!
(Speaking of the mix CD's, I've started pulling songs that I want to put on the CD, and I've already pulled enough music to fill THREE CD's!! Self-editing is always the toughest part.)
Wow, this was a lot of fun. I had a great time reading everyone's comments, and I tried to respond to everyone if you left your email address visible. Hmmmm ... I think I'd better start planning my 100 post giveaway now -- I'll have to top myself!
Finally, because no post is complete without pictures (and because several people have asked), here are the most recent pics of Clancy:
FSQS Progress
On a separate note, I finished piecing together the top for my Four Seasons Quilt Swap quilt last night. I really like how it came out. Fits the summery theme, don't you think?
The pattern is called "Bay Breeze" and it's in the Summer 2008 issue of "BH&G Quilts and more".
See that striped piping around the border? That was tricky. It's a 3/4" strip of fabric folded in half, sewn on separately to the top, and then the borders sewn on top of it (and you have to cover the seams). Make sense? I've seen them called "peepers" online before.
Anyhow, working on such a small piece was tough. A lot of the piping got lost in the seam allowance.
OK, for all you eagle-eyed "Where's Waldo" fans out there, there is a bit of a blunder in this quilt. Can you spot it? I worried after making the mistake that it would no longer be "swap-worthy", but I think it's still OK. For you other FSQS swappers out there, what do you think?
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
My First Giveaway!
Let me start by saying that I am not a bag maker. That is certainly my wife's forte. But I had a stack of fat quarters that I was loving and had been contemplating working them in to one of my swaps this summer that I was instead inspired to turn into a set of small drawstring bags. They are from a great (& quick) Amy Butler pattern and have become our "go-to" gift when we need something quickly.
And here they are!
Hope you like them! And yes, they will be filled with goodies ... which may or may not include a chocolate Tar Heel, Sequana! ; ) I've also been grooving to some great new music while working on these, and was inspired to include a mix CD with each of the bags. (I LOVE making mix CD's, by the way).
So here's how I am going to do this. Simply leave me a comment on this post anytime between now and Thursday 7/10. I'll draw numbers and names at about 9PM EST, so spread the word and tell all of your friends! Oh, and if you have a preference on which of the four is your favorite, let me know ... I can't promise anything, but as I pull the names in order I'll try to honor preferences. Sound OK?
#1: Green Flutterby
#2: Pink Ginger Blossom
#3: Blue Flutterby (my personal favorite)
#4: Blue Ginger Blossom


text:
Consumers have come to expect the deep discounts that define Black Friday, but retailers hope to entice shoppers this year with more choices in how and when they buy.
Responding to what they say is consumer demand, retailers have pushed store openings into Thanksgiving evening as people are finishing their holiday feasts and replaced door buster opening events with waves of timed sales targeting different consumers.
For some of the nation's biggest chains, that means turning Thanksgiving Day into the new "Black Friday," sparking a backlash from some consumers and employees. U.S. consumers are expected to spend $586.1 billion this year, the National Retail Federation predicts, with 147 million people expected to jam stores during the coming weekend, traditionally the kickoff to the holiday shopping season.
Walmart, the nation's largest retailer, will open earlier than ever — 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving night — and try to appeal to different segments of shoppers with sales of family-oriented merchandise for those first in at 8 p.m., discounts on TVs, cameras, tablets and other electronics at 10 p.m. and specials on items such as jewelry, tires and tools starting at 5 a.m. Friday.
"We're giving customers a choice," said Danit Marquardt, a Walmart spokesperson. "We have these events so they can choose when they want to shop, [depending on] their shopping preferences. They can stay up late or shop early."
Other retailers are following Walmart's lead. Sears, Target and Toys "R" Us are also opening on Thanksgiving.
Sears, opening at 8 p.m., has two rounds of door-buster events. Toys "R" Us will open at 8 p.m. and give away goody bags with $30 worth of Crayola, Lego and Disney products to the first 200 people in line. And it's the earliest opening ever for Target, at 9 p.m., with "bonus" door buster specials starting at 4 a.m.
Kohl's is launching early online holiday sales, with free shipping, and has promised to pick up the tab for a winning shopper in each store every day for a month. Even Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc., the Baltimore-based men's apparel chain, plans a Thanksgiving night door buster sale, for four hours starting at 10 p.m.
Retailers are recognizing that hard-core bargain hunters who wake before dawn to line up for deals on flat-screen TVs and laptops may be just one slice of the consuming public this time of year, said Kurt Carlson, director of research for Georgetown University's Institute for Consumer Research and an associate professor of marketing. And none can afford to miss potential sales in this make-or-break season, when retailers typically generate as much as 40 percent of their sales and turn a profit.
Traditional Black Friday events offer in-store promotions with limited supplies. But not all shoppers plan to buy gifts. Many are simply taking advantage of sales, Carlson said, while others are "trying to get out of the house and find something to do with their relatives."
"These stores are smart to come at it with a cornucopia approach, throwing different sets of eggs in the basket," he said. "These deals are trying to address consumer needs of saving money, getting a head start on holiday shopping and spending time with relatives. Different segments have those needs, so they're taking Black Friday and turning it into a segmented thing."
Malls, for instance, are often the choice for later and more leisurely Black Friday shoppers. In the Baltimore area, malls such as Towson Town Center, The Mall in Columbia, White Marsh and Mondawmin have earlier-than-usual hours but will remain closed on Thanksgiving.
Black Friday will continue to be important to retailers, but "some of the excitement connected to the day could effectively shift as this strategy of earlier openings seems to be working for retailers," said Roseanne McCauley, vice president of the Americas for Experian FootFall, which analyzes retail trends.
Jenna Reck, a Target spokeswoman, said the mass discounter based its decision to open earlier on Thanksgiving this year on feedback from customers who said they want to shop that night.
"Many prefer to shop following their family gatherings rather than in the very early hours of the morning," Reck said in a email.
But retailers are also responding to the competition, said Casey C. Chroust, executive vice president of retail operations for the Retail Industry Leaders Association.
"Consumers only have so much to spend," Chroust said. "When your direct competitor is opening up before you, it puts pressure on you to mirror those store hours as well. The last thing they want is for [shoppers] to go to the competition and spend it all before you open."
Holiday spending is expected to rise only 4.1 percent, according to the National Retail Federation. That's a slower pace than last year's 5.6 percent gain, dragged down by continued slow job and income growth, persistent unemployment and concerns about the fiscal cliff.
"Consumers don't have a lot of cash," said Scott Hoyt, senior director of consumer economics at Moody's Analytics, which also is predicting weaker sales growth than during the past few holiday seasons. "We are adding jobs, but doing so only at a modest rate, and growth and wages are weak relative to employment growth. We still have limited access to credit and wealth that hasn't fully recovered from the recession."
Another wrinkle could be the higher prices consumers must pay for food, gasoline and, in storm-ravaged East Coast areas, building supplies, all of which could pull sales from traditional holiday categories, Hoyt said.
Still, retailers expect to fare better than the 10-year average increase of 3.5 percent during November and December, particularly as consumer confidence and home prices have begun to rebound, according to the retail federation.
Another trade group, the International Council of Shopping Centers, found that nearly one in five consumers plans to spend more on holiday gifts this year than last year — the highest rate in eight years. The group's survey, released Wednesday, showed that consumers plan to shop for gift cards, apparel, and toys and games, while they are hoping to be given gift cards, electronic gadgets and electronic media such as CDs, DVDs and e-books.
Consumers want to be able to buy those items, among others, on Thanksgiving, according to NRF research.
Last year, Target opened at midnight on Thanksgiving, but Walmart started at 10 p.m. and for the next hour saw its highest customer traffic of the post-Thanksgiving weekend, said Marquardt, the Walmart spokesperson.
Earlier store openings have sparked some backlash.
Last year, Thanksgiving openings triggered online petitions and protests. This year, the protests are becoming more visible, with an organized group of Walmart employees and former employees planning more than 1,000 strikes, protests or other actions up through and on Black Friday in cities such as Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, Dallas, Miami and Chicago to highlight what workers say is retaliation against those involved in a campaign to persuade Walmart to improve pay and working conditions.
Members of Our Walmart, backed by the United Food and Commercial workers, said at least one protest is planned in Maryland, on Monday at the Walmart in Capital Plaza Mall in Prince George's County.
Meanwhile, an online petition on Change.org started by Target employee Casey St. Clair, who says Thanksgiving is just one of three days retailer lets workers have off, has attracted more than 228,000 signatures in just over a week. Dozens of Target shareholders have also signed and commented on the petition, which asks the retailer not to open on Thanksgiving Day.
Despite the backlash, the trend toward earlier and earlier openings will likely continue, Chroust said.
"Retailers do it because consumers keep showing up," Chroust said. "Every year they go earlier, and consumers keep showing up at earlier times. Consumers love it because they get a head start on shopping. There's a convenience element. A lot of people would rather shop at 8 p.m. on Thanksgiving than at 5 a.m. on Friday morning. Retailers are being responsive to customers."
- Consumers
- Thanksgiving
- Arts and Culture
- Walmart
- Black Friday (shopping)
- Services and Shopping
- Science
- Target
- Consumer Goods Industries
- Petroleum Industry
- National Retail Federation
- Toys "R" Us
- Sears
- Consumer Confidence
- Fiscal Cliff (2013)
- The LEGO Group
- Jos. A. Bank Clothiers Inc.
- Moody's Corporation
- Binney and Smith
- Georgetown University


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Maloof Air Park
George J. Maloof Memorial Air Park is a safe and convenient facility for the use of remote control airplanes, helicopters, and cars.
Boca Negra Horseman's Complex
The Boca Negra Horseman's Complex is a facility located southwest of Boca Negra Petroglyph National Monument.
Reservation & Picnic Areas
Enjoy your next family reunion, office picnic, club meeting, or wedding reception in a mountain setting. Three outdoor reservation areas are available for your next function.


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Tired of the tickle in my throat!
Today, I napped on the sofa for hours with Casper, my "therapeutic kitty". I've been battling a cold, so I needed the rest. I feel much better this evening, but I have a persistent tickle in my throat. If I could talk to my tickle, I'd emphatically say, "Leave now, and never come back!", as Smeagol said when he exorcised Gollum.
Fisherman's Friend helps my cough as much as anything I've found, and it doesn't interfere with my blood pressure medicine (an unsolicited endorsement). The flavor certainly lives up to the product's "Extra Strong" slogan. I would never mistake the F.F. lozenges for candy!
Fisherman's Friend reminds me a little of Parke-Davis Medicated Throat Discs, also marketed as Parke-Davis Throat Lozenges. Does anyone else remember them? They were quite effective for sore throats and coughs.
Parke-Davis Throat Discs came in a small, flat box that slid open. The dime-size lozenges were neatly arranged in stacks of three. There were 90 lozenges in a box, as I recall. A new box was wrapped in plastic, and inside, it had a little sheet of paper over the lozenges to keep them exactly in place. As soon as the first lozenge was removed, the remaining lozenges could slide around, and the perfect order inside the box was lost.
Like the Parke-Davis Throat Discs, Fisherman's Friend contains capsicum (pepper extract) and licorice. The flavor is somewhat similar, but Fisherman's Friend doesn't have the zing of chloroform that the P. D. throat discs had. Yes, chloroform! Because of the chloroform, the P.D. box carried a caution about the number of throat discs that could be consumed within a given period of time.
Chloroform in over-the-counter medicines was outlawed in the mid-1970s, and that was apparently the end of the Parke-Davis Throat Lozenges. I haven't seen them in many years, and I didn't find very much information about them on the internet. Only older people would remember them now. I guess that classifies me!
Interesting related link: Weed, Booze, Cocaine and Other Old School "Medicine" Ads


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Special Guest at the NIT PowerConnect
The NIT (National Institute of Technology) Almuni Network in the Silicon Valley organizes a monthly power connect networking event. I am honored to be invited as a special guest to their event this evening. I am not an NIT alumni (I attended St. Stephen's College, XLRI and Courant, NYU) but do know that NIT (which was formerly known as REC) produces a number of very bright engineers every year. Although, IIT is the big global brand from India which has produced a number of very smart and well-recognized engineers, few know that NIT has a lot of great success stories as well.
I will be leading the conversation on NoSQL and Cloud Computing and would participate in a panel discussion on "Snakes and Ladders – How to climb the corporate Ladder" with a bunch of well-known and respected professionals including Bala Sahejpal (IT Director at Juniper Networks), Paul Chen (Director at PapayaMobile), Dilip Saraf (a career coach), Anand Kamannavar (Applied Ventures) and Biren Gandhi (Ex Studio CTO Zynga). Looking forward to the exciting event this evening. If you are coming to the event then look forward to seeing you there.


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Honor the Heroes of the Game, Preserve Its History, Promote Its Values & Celebrate Excellence Everywhere
"I know I'm not going to make every block, but I don't like to ever get beat. That's what keeps me motivated. There's always the next play to get ready for."
(Alabama)...6'2'', 255...Dwight Eugene Stephenson ... Dolphins' second-round draft pick, 1980 ... Exceptionally quick blocker with explosive charge off snap ... Recognized as the premier center of his time ... All-Pro, All-AFC five straight years, 1983-87 ... Elected to five consecutive Pro Bowls ... Started at center in Super Bowls XVII, XIX and 1982, 1984, 1985 AFC championship games ... Dolphins' offensive captain ... Career cut short by severe knee injury ... Born November 20, 1957, in Murfreesboro, North Carolina.
Dwight Stephenson, a second-round pick and the 48th player selected in the 1980 NFL Draft, excelled at center for the Miami Dolphins for eight seasons from 1980 to 1987. An All-America at the University of Alabama, the 6-2, 255-pound Stephenson lived up to all his advance notices as a Dolphin.
In just a few years, he was universally recognized as the premier center in the NFL. He earned both All-Pro and All-AFC recognition five straight years from 1983 to 1987. He was named the AFC or NFL Offensive Lineman of the Year in various major polls four years. Stephenson was selected for five straight Pro Bowl games, the first four as a starter. Injuries prevented him from playing in the 1987 and 1988 games.
Stephenson, who was born November 20, 1957, in Murfreesboro, North Carolina, was quiet, intense, hard-working and competitive. He was an exceptionally quick blocker and he possessed an explosive charge off the snap. He was the Dolphins offensive captain and his presence as the anchor of the offensive line was a major factor in the Dolphins' record of allowing the fewest quarterback sacks in the NFL for six straight years.
In his rookie season in 1980, Stephenson spent much of his time on special teams while learning the rudiments of pro football offensive line play. His first NFL start came in 1981 when the regular center, Mark Dennard, was injured in the 11th game.
Stephenson played in 107 straight games and started in 80 consecutive games until the 1987 players' strike ended the streak. He returned after the strike and started seven straight games before he suffered a serious left knee injury. Although he tried a comeback the next season, he was forced to retire when the injury failed to respond. Stephenson was the starting center in the 1982, 1984 and 1985 AFC championship games and in Super Bowls XVII and XIX.
Championship Games
1982 AFC - Miami Dolphins 14, New York Jets 0
Stephenson started at center for the Dolphins.
1984 AFC - Miami Dolphins 45, Pittsburgh Steelers 28
Stephenson started at center for the Dolphins.
1985 AFC - New England Patriots 31, Miami Dolphins 14
Stephenson started at center for the Dolphins.
Super Bowls
Super Bowl XVII - Washington Redskins 27, Miami Dolphins 17
Stephenson started at center for the Dolphins.
Super Bowl XIX - San Francisco 49ers 38, Miami Dolphins 16
Stephenson started at center for the Dolphins.
All-League Teams
All-Pro: 1983 (PFWA, NEA, PW) • 1984 (AP, PFWA, NEA, SN, PW) • 1985 (AP, PFWA, NEA, SN) • 1986 (AP, PFWA, NEA, SN, PW) • 1987 (AP, PFWA, PW)
All-Pro Second Team: 1983 (AP)
All-AFC: 1983 (UPI, PW) • 1984 (UPI, PW) • 1985 (UPI) • 1986 (UPI, PW) • 1987 (UPI, PW)
Pro Bowls
(5) – 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987*, 1988*
* Did not play
In the NFL Record book
Team Records
Dolphins Records held by Dwight Stephenson at the time of his retirement following the 1987 season
[Tied for 2nd] Most Pro Bowl Started – 4
[Tied for 2nd] Most Consecutive Pro Bowl Started – 4
[4th] Most Consecutive Games Played – 107
[7th] Most Consecutive Game Started – 80
Awards and Honors
All-Decade Team of the 1980s
Full Name: Dwight Eugene Stephenson
Birthdate: November 20, 1957
Birthplace: Murfreesboro, North Carolina
High School: Hampton (VA)
Elected to Pro Football Hall of Fame: January 24, 1998
Enshrined into Pro Football Hall of Fame: August 1, 1998
Presenter: Don Shula, Hall of Fame coach
Other Members of Class of 1998: Paul Krause, Tommy McDonald, Anthony Muñoz, Mike Singletary
Pro Career: 8 seasons, 114 games
Drafted: 2nd round (48th overall) in 1980 by Miami Dolphins
Uniform Number: 57


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William Butler Yeats
William Butler Yeats [W.B. Yeats] (13 June 1865 – 28 January 1939 / County Dublin / Ireland)
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To A Wealthy Man Who Promised A Second Subscription To The Dublin Municipal Gallery If It Were
You gave, but will not give again
Until enough of paudeen's pence
By Biddy's halfpennies have lain
To be 'some sort of evidence',
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Select option at checkout
O% APR Representative example. Credit subject to status and minimum order value.
Powerflex Polyurethane Bush kit for Alfa Romeo 105/115 Series - Spider Gt+Gtv Rear Trailing Arm Front Bush - PFR1-403BLK - - Bush Size: - PRICE IS PER CAR KIT, NOT per bush. Powerflex usually price their bushes singly, but we have combined the QTY and price to keep it simple for you!


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PD.com: the cesspool of the internet and one big retard magnet.
So, after all, there was not one kind of Strife alone, but all over the earth there are two. As for the one, a man would praise her when he came to understand her; but the other is blameworthy: and they are wholly different in nature.For one fosters evil war and battle, being cruel: her no man loves; but perforce, through the will of the deathless gods, men pay harsh Strife her honour due.But the other is the elder daughter of dark Night (Nyx), and the son of Cronus who sits above and dwells in the aether, set her in the roots of the earth: and she is far kinder to men. She stirs up even the shiftless to toil; for a man grows eager to work when he considers his neighbour, a rich man who hastens to plough and plant and put his house in good order; and neighbour vies with his neighbour as he hurries after wealth. This Strife is wholesome for men. And potter is angry with potter, and craftsman with craftsman, and beggar is jealous of beggar, and minstrel of minstrel.


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First Look: Epic Smokehouse in Arlington, VA
Epic Smokehouse looks exactly like you'd imagine it to just by hearing its name. All exposed wood, leather, and brushed metal, Epic is an Apple store-esque man cave. Since opening in early October, owners Joon Yang and Wayne Halleran are hoping to "take the backyard BBQ to the next level." Like delivering a sophisticated and tastefully appointed bachelor pad, Epic Smokehouse offers refined iterations of many smokehouse staples.
From apple wine glazed ribs to pancetta macaroni and cheese, everything is classed up without being pretentious. Influences range from all over—you'll find a massive Cuban Sandwich and the Hawaiian Kahlua Pig Rolls (a crowd favorite).
One of the most prominent influences, though, is Yang's Korean heritage. Sneaking in Korean influences, when chef Halleran will let him, you'll find them in Apple Wood Smoked Scallops served with kimchi, which he buys from Korean Korner, a hugely popular Korean grocery store. Even the Grape Martini has some Korean influence. A martini with Stoli vodka, grape pulp, and Sac Sac, a canned Korean grape drink.
Speaking of drinks, one of Yang's main missions with Epic is to "show people that you can do great wine pairings with barbecue." Epic offers an extensive wine list at affordable prices. Epic's cocktail program, however, delivers on the backyard BBQ premise by offering a selection of sweet, easy to drink concoctions that are basically sweet teas. You could drink the Blackberry Lemonade and Roll Tide Tea all day, which makes them particularly dangerous because they aren't weak drinks.
And, of course, there's the Bacon Old Fashioned: bacon infused bourbon served with a strip of bacon. Natch.
Pentagon City is not the easiest place to get to if you live in D.C. (or anywhere), but if you're in the area or are just in the mood for inventive barbecue, Epic Smokehouse might be worth a visit.
Check out more photos of the dishes, including the single largest piece of bacon I've ever seen!
Epic Smokehouse 1330 South Fern Street, Arlington, VA 22202 (map) 571-319-4001; epicsmokehouse.com
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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Arctic Monkeys Forum Fan Site - Arctic-Monkeys.com - The Number 1 Fan Site
Moderator: Moderators
irishscummyman wrote:www.myspace.com/2002garagescenerevival
Lmu Wanderer wrote:irishscummyman wrote:www.myspace.com/2002garagescenerevival
Sound like a mix of Franz Ferdinand and Kings of Leon, don't really do it for me... although those two girls in that picture on their top 8 is quite brilliant!
Come on people, I like myspace music so get this thread a bit more active!!
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text: Believe it or not there was a time not that long ago when I used to be cool… …suave… …and dead. Effing. Sexy. *Yeah, not really. And to this day, I still can't remember why I took a picture of myself coughing after a bad drag. But after spending most of the first decade of … Continue reading


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Find the cameras that have the specified features.
#include <camera/camera_api.h>
camera_error_t camera_find_capable(camera_feature_t *features, int nfeatures, camera_unit_t prevunit, camera_unit_t *nextunit)
- features
A pointer that lists the features to search for.
- nfeatures
The number of features specified in the first argument.
- prevunit
The previous unit that was queried or CAMERA_UNIT_NONE if this is the first call to this function.
- nextunit
A pointer to a camera_unit_t value where the function returns the next unit which supports all requested features. A value of CAMERA_UNIT_NONE is returned when you reach the end of the list.
You can use this function find cameras with features required for your application. For example, you can use it to find cameras which have flash or only cameras that face the front. This function is used to iterate through a list of cameras and is returned in the nextunit argument.
For example, to start iterating through the cameras, you set the prevunit argument to CAMERA_UNIT_NONE. Doing so, returns nextunit found on this iteration. If you wanted to continue iterating through the list of cameras, you would pass the value returned by the nextunit argument as the prevunit argument in your next call of the this function. When the end of the list is reached, nextunit returns with a value of CAMERA_UNIT_NONE.
CAMERA_EOK when the function successfully completes, otherwise another camera_error_t value that provides the reason that the call failed.


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Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (27 February 1807 – 24 March 1882 / Portland, Maine)
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Haroun Al Raschid
One day, Haroun Al Raschid read
A book wherein the poet said:--
"Where are the kings, and where the rest
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Kwando's Regular Sightings Reports Provided by Kwando Safaris Guides and Staff
Kwara Concession
The first day of January and we began with a great sighting of the four big lions – the "Zulu Boys" – resting under a candle pod acacia. About five kilometers away, there were another two males, also resting up. On the same day, we also saw three cheetah hunting and killing a baby common reedbuck. A hyena was watching the events unfold from nearby, and stole the kill from the cheetah.
The same lions and cheetahs were seen over the next few days, as well as a leopardess with her very young cub – last month she had a den site close to the boat station, and this month she moved the den a little further to the west. The mother and the cub are extremely relaxed, and we were able to have wonderful sightings of them, with the cub often playing about near his mum.
The Kwara concession is known for its good sightings of predators, including lions, wild dogs, leopards and cheetahs. However, on the 7th of January, one type of predator ruled the day: cheetahs. There were three separate sightings of cheetahs on the same day: A female with a sub adult male, another female with her two sub-adult cubs, and a solitary male. The two small families were resting up in an area fairly close to each other, whilst the male, in a different area, was feeding on a warthog.
Not so many sightings of wild dogs this month – but our most regular pack has had some individual members disperse, leaving a total of eight in the pack. They were seen a few times, including near the Bat Eared Fox den.
A youngish elephant was killed by five lions along the Machaba East road. Quite an amazing sighting. The lions fed on it for two days and then moved off, allowing the many vultures that had been waiting fairly patiently in the background, quickly arriving to squabble and hiss over what remained.
Unusually for this time of year, it is quite dry… this means a lot of game is attracted to the remaining waterways and lagoons, and with hardly any long grass, predators are still easy to see. The elephant herds are still around, and there are big groups of water birds feeding at the 'fish pools' – the waterholes that are slowly drying out.
Lagoon Camp
Early January, and the lions were on the move: apart from a single female that was seen a few times throughout the week, the other lions had headed west, following the large herd of buffalo that moved in that direction. In their absence, the intruder males came into the Lagoon area, and started to make themselves at home. The male lions were seen several times, and seem to have focused on killing warthogs at the moment. Towards the end of the month, the lions were on the move again – walking as much as 32 kilometers in one night!
The wild dogs still frequent the area, but the pack of 23 has split. This is a normal part of the social system of wild dogs, and allows for more junior dogs to start their own packs, becoming alpha male and female, or joining up with other dogs and diversifying the gene pool. The remaining pack began with 14 (9 adults and 5 puppies) and then reduced again to 11. They could hunt more than enough on their own, with their main prey being warthogs and young impalas.
At the beginning of the month, there were lots of breeding herds of elephants in the area, with young babies. As we finally started to get some rain during this month, the herds began to move off though the woodlands to the mopane scrub. Solitary bulls and bachelor herds remain, but the breeding herds will come back soon. Although the buffalo herds have dispersed from the main drive area, a large group remain in the valley to the west.
General game was very good, with giraffes, wildebest, impala, eland, and lots and lots of zebras. Bat eared foxes, jackals, and several types of mongoose were seen as well as caracals, african wildcats and porcupines on night game drive.
And a great sighting one morning of a young honey badger, proudly scurrying along the road with a leopard tortoise in his mouth!
Lebala Camp
Nature is harsh. And sometimes we don't realize how harsh it is until we witness the events ourselves. As part of their safari, most guests are keen to see a kill. The guides know that for many, when confronted with the reality, seeing a kill will actually be very very traumatic. Predator kills are rarely quick and clean cut.
Wild dogs, which have a reputation for being 'cruel' killers, as they don'tzkill their prey by suffocation, but by tearing it to pieces. However, they are very very fast, and the warthog was dead within a minute. Within 7 minutes, there is normally nothing left of the animal. Something to bear in mind when considering the larger predators hunting techniques…
Just a few days before, two males lions had cleverly managed to stalk an adult warthog, using a tree as cover to come up on it unawares. One male grabbed the neck and held it to suffocate it, but a warthog neck is very thick, and it takes a long time to suffocate… the other male could not wait, and begin eating from the back. Soon after, the first male couldn't hold his hunger any longer, released the neck and began eating as well. For seven minutes, all that could be heard was the screaming warthog, until it finally succumbed. Its one of the most distressing sounds that you can hear in the animal kingdom, and it chills you to the bone. Sadly, in nature, there's not often happy endings…
The month continued to produce plenty of lion sightings including a male and female mating at the beginning of the month. Hopefully, more cubs are on the way! We did happen upon two lion cubs along the BDF turnoff – no mother in sight, but lots of tracks around, so she must have hidden the cubs and gone off to hunt. We also regularly saw the four lionesses in the area, working together in their attempts to hunt.
The lionesses and the wild dogs met up at one point, when we were following the dogs hunting. They had not had any luck flushing game, but suddenly stopped and stared in one direction. Not too far away, were the four lionesses staring back at them. Both parties decided that it was easier to do nothing on this occasion, and they moved off without a confrontation.
General game was great, with big herds of elephants, lechwe, a herd of wildebeest almost permanently stationed in front of the camp, giraffe, lots of zebra, and of course the common impala.
Nxai Pan Camp
Elephants still abound, with the lack of consistent rain, they are frequenting the pumped waterholes to drink. One week in January produced the hottest temperatures that we have ever experienced in Botswana – reaching up to 46 degrees C (114.8 degrees F) in the shade! (It's exceptionally rare for us to reach 40 degrees C (104 degrees F)…) Water pumps were running 24 hours a day to try and ensure that the game had access to sufficient water, as both four legged and two legged mammals took strain.
And sadly this year, due to the drought, the zebra migration has not yet arrived in Nxai Pan. January is usually the peak of the numbers for zebras, but this year they have failed to arrive. Whether they will arrive in February or March is solely dependent on whether good rains arrive.
The big pride of fourteen lions was found along West Road, hunting giraffe. They were unsuccessful on this occasion. Whilst the ladies were out hunting, two male lions rested up near one of the camp sites (luckily unoccupied at the time), looking pretty hungry. Had the pride managed to bring down a giraffe, no doubt the two males would have made a dash for a share of the meal. A few days later, the whole gang of sixteen was seen together.
We also came across the two sub-adult cheetahs – away from their mum for a change – attempting to hunt close to the South camping grounds. They hadn't quite honed their skills well enough for a successful hunt; however, practice makes perfect. The next day, the mother cheetah was found on her own near the Wildlife Camp.
Tau Pan Camp
Tau Pan area is looking beautiful and green at the moment, after having some reasonable rains in January – more than other areas. This has attracted lots of general game to the area, to enjoy the good life. However, the taller grass and availability of water is making it harder to see the predators.
After more than six years of the Tau Pan pride of lions being firmly established in the area, they are becoming harder and harder to see as the intruders from the Passarge area attempt to take over the area. As a result, the Tau Pan Pride have changed the times that they visit the camp waterhole, sneaking down at night to drink and not vocalising, in order to not attract any unwanted attention from the intruders.
A lioness was seen with five cubs about 8 kilometers from Tau Pan camp. They were attempting to hunt, but were not successful whilst we were watching, though there was plenty of game in the area. All the lions' stomachs looked very empty….
A leopard was seen at the aptly named Leopard Pan in the middle of the month. Two cheetahs were lying down at the pan on the edge. The male cheetah then crossed the pan and headed north, before lying down again under the large trees at the edge.
On an afternoon game drive back to camp one day, an aardwolf was also spotted, coming out for its night-time feed of termites.


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So we're still about 4 months out from General Assembly and it feels like I'm banging my head into a wall. Not just for me but for a lot of the young adults I've talked to about this.
Warning! You'll probably find this post whiny if you're somebody who has monetary resources at their disposal.
There are so many assumptions made with regards to money it's ridiculous. The dorm housing is an amazing value but they change your card, in full, six weeks prior to GA. I know that a lot of folks my age have family who can and will front the money, or just pay for it all together, or have awesome jobs that allow them to head off and do whatever around the country. I also know there are folks my age who have "jobs" at GA who are getting everything paid for. And there are folks going in big groups, with lots of friends, or with folks from their congregations to help reduce costs.
But none of those are me.
I know that you're all going to scream THERE ARE SCHOLARSHIPS! at me.
Yeah, there are. And those are not accessible, either. Scholarships work as reimbursements meaning if you don't have the money then all the scholarship in the world won't help – because you still don't have the money up front to get there, to buy a plane ticket, or to even know if you'll have enough to get pay for the room you reserved. Additionally the only YAs who get to go multiple years in a row are the YAs who can afford it. You cannot get a youth/young adult scholarship two years in a row (or it's "very unusual") so you're pretty much out of luck unless your financial situation changes dramatically from one year to the next. Or you get to attend when you can get a scholarship while people who have money get to attend every year, making more of the decisions, and having a bigger influence on the direction our association is going. Even in the YA realm we vote on one of our caucus co-mods each year and if you're not there you don't have the chance to be one. People who get to attend each year have a much higher chance of getting appointed, elected or asked to be on something because they GET to be there.
And really, saving up for GA isn't an option for me. I don't have enough money to get by on a monthly basis as it is. Putting any into savings for something as extravagant as "something I might enjoy" is just not really an option. I can't afford to buy new clothes, much less save up a few hundred bucks for plane tickets and hotel rooms.
The folks who get to attend GA year after year are the people who can afford it. The people who get to consistently vote each year on things that are important to them are the people who have the money to go each year. If we were serious about wanting to bring and KEEP more young people in this faith it seems like there would be a way to let them see what is arguably the best that UUism has to offer.
Even if I find a way to attend this year it doesn't end here. Because the same issues will come up year after year. We're so far behind on financial accessibility. And every time something comes up it's like a big slap in the face.