Friday, December 29, 2006
"Best" Astronomy Pictures of 2006
If you have some spare time, check out this blog that has a "best of 2006" for astronomy pictures. Some of the pictures by themselves might not seem too amazing, but if you read the descriptions there's a lot of interesting stuff there. I personally like the one with the space station and space shuttle visible in front of the sun. And the saturn picture with a tiny spec known as earth in the background is pretty cool, too!
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Fortune of the Week (7)
"Be satisfied with what you already own."
Hmmm... not really a fortune, but more Buddhist-inspired advice - always a good thing I suppose, and very similar to this previous fortune from several weeks past.
Hmmm... not really a fortune, but more Buddhist-inspired advice - always a good thing I suppose, and very similar to this previous fortune from several weeks past.
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Baking proof
I almost forgot to mention this. For Christmas day I baked another pie, and this time, I remembered to take a picture to help prove I really did make it from scratch.
Ok, so I admit there's not 100% proof here in this picture. All you see are the apple guts and the finished unbaked pie. But there is a rolling pin in the background with some flour on it. Next time I'll get some step-by-step pictures of the whole process, ok?
Ok, so I admit there's not 100% proof here in this picture. All you see are the apple guts and the finished unbaked pie. But there is a rolling pin in the background with some flour on it. Next time I'll get some step-by-step pictures of the whole process, ok?
Origami
Earlier this month, two friends of mine invited me to their apartment to help decorate their Christmas tree. However, instead of the usual Christmas tree ornaments, we made origami ornaments (mostly cranes). This piqued my interest in origami. So, for Christmas this year, my sister gave me two cool origami books and some origami paper. (As an aside, I should mention she also thoughtfully made a donation to Oxfam America as part of my Christmas gift. Way to go sis! When asked for a Christmas wishlist, I usually put together a grab bag of items, some more serious than others (pond scum usually makes the list for some reason each year). This year's list included a request for an end to world hunger. We all know a donation to Oxfam won't end world hunger, but it's a help just the same.)
Anyhow, back to origami. One of the books is quite interesting. It's called Origami, from Angelfish to Zen, by Peter Engel. At first glance, it looks more like a companion volume to Douglas R. Hofstadter's Godel Escher Bach than a book about Origami. Sure enough, after glancing through the acknowledgements section of the book, the author makes mention of Hofstadter's influence. The book makes connections between origami and music and science and all sorts of other interesting topics. Then, to top off all that heavy reading, the latter half of the book is folding instructions for a boat-load of origami critters, some of them quite complex.
This afternoon I had about 45 minutes of free time before heading out to karate and made my first attempt at one of the more simple figures from the book. Here it is. Hopefully you can figure out what it's supposed to be.
Anyhow, back to origami. One of the books is quite interesting. It's called Origami, from Angelfish to Zen, by Peter Engel. At first glance, it looks more like a companion volume to Douglas R. Hofstadter's Godel Escher Bach than a book about Origami. Sure enough, after glancing through the acknowledgements section of the book, the author makes mention of Hofstadter's influence. The book makes connections between origami and music and science and all sorts of other interesting topics. Then, to top off all that heavy reading, the latter half of the book is folding instructions for a boat-load of origami critters, some of them quite complex.
This afternoon I had about 45 minutes of free time before heading out to karate and made my first attempt at one of the more simple figures from the book. Here it is. Hopefully you can figure out what it's supposed to be.
Pushing the human endurance limits
Here's an article for motivation on what the human body is capable. As just one example from the article, this guy ran 50 marathons in 50 days! Yikes!
Monday, December 25, 2006
Belted Kingfisher
After waking up to the traditional Christmas morning sounds of rapid-fire shotgun blasts from duck hunters on the cove, I noticed this bird in a tree across the river:
It was about 100 yards away, so unfortunately the picture quality is pretty bad. I'm pretty sure it's a kingfisher.
It was about 100 yards away, so unfortunately the picture quality is pretty bad. I'm pretty sure it's a kingfisher.
Sunday, December 24, 2006
The earth is round!
While at the beach today, I made an amazing discovery. The earth is round! It was such a clear day, I could see Block Island quite well. It's about 12 miles away, and given that distance the curve of the earth appears to be visible. Take a look at this cropped image:
The building in the center is Block Island North Lighthouse. Notice how it appears to be right on the sea level. Now look at this picture take from a much closer distance (image linked from the Block Island tourism web page):
Or for an even better view, look at this. The lighthouse is obviously on a small hill. But, with my 12 mile away view, it appears at sea level as the hill is hidden behind the curvature of the earth. There are other parts of my cropped photo showing just the roofs of houses on the island viewable behind the edge of the sea, but I thought it was interesting to compare this recognizable building with photos taken from the island to get a different perspective.
And yes, I do realize everyone really already knows the earth is round. But it's still kind of neat to be able to see it first hand.
The building in the center is Block Island North Lighthouse. Notice how it appears to be right on the sea level. Now look at this picture take from a much closer distance (image linked from the Block Island tourism web page):
Or for an even better view, look at this. The lighthouse is obviously on a small hill. But, with my 12 mile away view, it appears at sea level as the hill is hidden behind the curvature of the earth. There are other parts of my cropped photo showing just the roofs of houses on the island viewable behind the edge of the sea, but I thought it was interesting to compare this recognizable building with photos taken from the island to get a different perspective.
And yes, I do realize everyone really already knows the earth is round. But it's still kind of neat to be able to see it first hand.
Yellow-rumped Warbler
The weather was incredibly unlike the day before Christmas - quite warm for this time of year. I went to East Beach for a hike with a friend. Since we were both disappointed with the lack of snow so far this year, my friend commented that walking in the sand would be good snow-like practice. It was very windy, so not much wildlife to be seen. I did manage to get this one picture of a yellow-rumped warbler (yes, that's it's real name). I like the subtle yellow markings.
The only other bird of interest I saw was what appeared to be a sharp-shinned hawk (perhaps looking for warblers for dinner). My reaction time was a bit too slow to get a picture, however. All I could do was point and say, "Hawk!" as it glided overhead and out of view into some nearby pine trees.
The only other bird of interest I saw was what appeared to be a sharp-shinned hawk (perhaps looking for warblers for dinner). My reaction time was a bit too slow to get a picture, however. All I could do was point and say, "Hawk!" as it glided overhead and out of view into some nearby pine trees.
Volkswagen owners love their cars more than people!
Here's a direct quote from a Volkswagen ad I found in a magazine:
"Volkswagen owners love their cars more than other drivers."
Maybe I just interpreted it the wrong way, but does the wording sound a bit odd to you? English grammar was never my strong point, so perhaps this is totally proper - it just seems unclear what the phrase "more than other drivers" is modifying. Anyhow, I thought it was a bit funny to read.
"Volkswagen owners love their cars more than other drivers."
Maybe I just interpreted it the wrong way, but does the wording sound a bit odd to you? English grammar was never my strong point, so perhaps this is totally proper - it just seems unclear what the phrase "more than other drivers" is modifying. Anyhow, I thought it was a bit funny to read.
Saturday, December 23, 2006
Volunteer!
There is a recent advertisement on the local RI buses around here that has the heading "Volunteer!". It's an ad looking for volunteers for child advocates in the court system. I don't really know anything about that particular type of volunteering, but I think the idea of volunteering in general is a good one. It's easy to get caught up in our own lives and not think of taking the time out of our schedules to help others. There are plenty of opportunities for volunteer work, just type "volunteer" into a Google search and you'll find opportunities for all sorts of interests - helping people, helping animals, helping the environment, etc. Or try Volunteer Match. You can enter your zip code and how far you are willing to drive and you'll find a list of places that need help. If everyone spent even just a little time doing volunteer work, the world would be a much better place.
I know it's not always easy to just go out and volunteer. I'm embarassed to say I had been thinking about the idea of working in a soup kitchen for years, but never actually did anything about it. I always had some excuse for not doing it - I didn't really know what I'd do there, or how to find out specifically how to help, I'm shy around strangers, etc. Finally, about six months ago, out of the blue, a friend of mine suggested the idea of helping out at a soup kitchen, not knowing it was something that had been in the back of my mind for too long a time. So, since June I've been working for a few hours each Saturday morning helping prepare breakfast at a local soup kitchen. And all those excuses I had had in my mind for not doing it earlier turned out to be pretty silly. The first day we went there, we just showed up unannounced and asked if there was something we could do to help. Since we were complete unknowns, we were initially given pretty simple tasks - setting up chairs, sweeping, organizing the food pantry, etc. But, the point is the people there were happy to have the extra help. And, as we got to know the place and consistently came week after week, we were able to take on more responsibilities and be even more helpful.
So, if you've been thinking that you've always wanted to do volunteer work but never have, go out and get to it! There are plenty of places that need help! And if you never considered the idea - please do! Just a few hours of volunteer work a week can make a big difference!
I know it's not always easy to just go out and volunteer. I'm embarassed to say I had been thinking about the idea of working in a soup kitchen for years, but never actually did anything about it. I always had some excuse for not doing it - I didn't really know what I'd do there, or how to find out specifically how to help, I'm shy around strangers, etc. Finally, about six months ago, out of the blue, a friend of mine suggested the idea of helping out at a soup kitchen, not knowing it was something that had been in the back of my mind for too long a time. So, since June I've been working for a few hours each Saturday morning helping prepare breakfast at a local soup kitchen. And all those excuses I had had in my mind for not doing it earlier turned out to be pretty silly. The first day we went there, we just showed up unannounced and asked if there was something we could do to help. Since we were complete unknowns, we were initially given pretty simple tasks - setting up chairs, sweeping, organizing the food pantry, etc. But, the point is the people there were happy to have the extra help. And, as we got to know the place and consistently came week after week, we were able to take on more responsibilities and be even more helpful.
So, if you've been thinking that you've always wanted to do volunteer work but never have, go out and get to it! There are plenty of places that need help! And if you never considered the idea - please do! Just a few hours of volunteer work a week can make a big difference!
Fortune of the Week (6)
"Your help will be needed in an embarassing situation"
Hmmmm.... embarassing for whom? Well, at least it's a real fortune this time. I can't complain, I suppose.
Hmmmm.... embarassing for whom? Well, at least it's a real fortune this time. I can't complain, I suppose.
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Odd shaped ducks
These are definitely the strangest looking ducks I've seen. They could puff up their head and neck to about the same size as the rest of their body.
This is what the duck looked like normally:
Sorry the pictures are a bit pixelated. The ducks were a fair distance from my condo window. I had to zoom in and crop the pictures to show the details. Then the automated program I wrote for posting the photos automatically scaled the images to a width of 600 pixels. Normally this scaling to 600 pixels is a good thing as most of my photos are hi-res and are much wider than that. But since these pictures were tiny crops smaller than 600 pixels wide to begin with, they got blown up instead.
This is what the duck looked like normally:
Sorry the pictures are a bit pixelated. The ducks were a fair distance from my condo window. I had to zoom in and crop the pictures to show the details. Then the automated program I wrote for posting the photos automatically scaled the images to a width of 600 pixels. Normally this scaling to 600 pixels is a good thing as most of my photos are hi-res and are much wider than that. But since these pictures were tiny crops smaller than 600 pixels wide to begin with, they got blown up instead.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Happiness in the Workplace
A friend at work sent me this link to a book about about finding happiness in the workplace. At first glance I thought it sounded a little goofy, but while giving it a chance and reading the introduction I thought this quote was interesting:
"I can safely say that there is no greater job than making other people happy! It’s continually fun, exciting and rewarding. And when you think about it, isn’t that really the true purpose of most jobs—to make people happy? You must make the customers happy. Or your co-workers. Or the boss. Or the shareholders.
A nurse who makes the patients happy and healthy is better than one who only makes them healthy. A boss who makes his employees happy and efficient is better than one who only touts efficiency. A teacher who can make his students smarter and happier is better than one who only passes on knowledge."
I thought it raised a good point about rather than just doing your job (whatever it might be), you should try to also try to show a way towards happiness for others with whom you interact. I really don't like the phrase make someone happy as it implies you have control over other people and can just cause them to feel a certain way. If there's one thing I've learning in life regarding interpersonal relationships, it's this: try as you may, you really can't control other people's feelings - it's up to each individual to be happy (or sad, or angry, etc.) on their own. However, you can do your best to show people a way towards feeling happy.
So far I haven't read more than the introduction to this book, so I can't say whether it's good or not, but it's free to read via the web site link I provided above. It's worth a look. Hopefully it doesn't tout the trend of trying to generate happiness in people by giving false phrase and lowering expectations. I still cringe when I recall reading the results of an international study measuring self-esteem and performance of students from different countries. Americans were rated among the highest in regards to self-esteem and confidence in their abilities, yet actually performed near the bottom when tested on actual skills. We definitely don't need books encouraging that form of blind happiness.
"I can safely say that there is no greater job than making other people happy! It’s continually fun, exciting and rewarding. And when you think about it, isn’t that really the true purpose of most jobs—to make people happy? You must make the customers happy. Or your co-workers. Or the boss. Or the shareholders.
A nurse who makes the patients happy and healthy is better than one who only makes them healthy. A boss who makes his employees happy and efficient is better than one who only touts efficiency. A teacher who can make his students smarter and happier is better than one who only passes on knowledge."
I thought it raised a good point about rather than just doing your job (whatever it might be), you should try to also try to show a way towards happiness for others with whom you interact. I really don't like the phrase make someone happy as it implies you have control over other people and can just cause them to feel a certain way. If there's one thing I've learning in life regarding interpersonal relationships, it's this: try as you may, you really can't control other people's feelings - it's up to each individual to be happy (or sad, or angry, etc.) on their own. However, you can do your best to show people a way towards feeling happy.
So far I haven't read more than the introduction to this book, so I can't say whether it's good or not, but it's free to read via the web site link I provided above. It's worth a look. Hopefully it doesn't tout the trend of trying to generate happiness in people by giving false phrase and lowering expectations. I still cringe when I recall reading the results of an international study measuring self-esteem and performance of students from different countries. Americans were rated among the highest in regards to self-esteem and confidence in their abilities, yet actually performed near the bottom when tested on actual skills. We definitely don't need books encouraging that form of blind happiness.
Monday, December 11, 2006
A walk to the the seals
The seals are back in town! I assume they've been here for about a month, but I hadn't gone out to Rome Point until today. It was a very mild day and coincidentally a friend of mine was visiting from London, so we took a walk out to spot the seals.
Ok, in the above picture you'd have to have really good eyes to spot the seals - but they are there. The little specks on the right hand edge of the picture are actually seals out on some rocks several hundred yards off the shore. I included this picture just to give an idea of how far away they are.
We walked further up the shore to get a better view, but still even with a 400mm zoom lens they are still pretty far off:
Here's the same picture cropped a bit so you can see abit more detail:
(And as with just about all the photos I post here, you can click on them for a slightly larger view.)
There was no breeze at all, so the bay was like glass. It would have been a perfect day for kayaking.
They were doing some demolition work on the old Jamestown Bridge - I assume the cranes were being used to remove the few remaining pieces. The new bridge is in the foreground.
The large white building is the old mill building I live in. This is a view of it looking back from Rome Point across Bissel Cove.
And just some last snapshots as the sun was setting....
Ok, in the above picture you'd have to have really good eyes to spot the seals - but they are there. The little specks on the right hand edge of the picture are actually seals out on some rocks several hundred yards off the shore. I included this picture just to give an idea of how far away they are.
We walked further up the shore to get a better view, but still even with a 400mm zoom lens they are still pretty far off:
Here's the same picture cropped a bit so you can see abit more detail:
(And as with just about all the photos I post here, you can click on them for a slightly larger view.)
There was no breeze at all, so the bay was like glass. It would have been a perfect day for kayaking.
They were doing some demolition work on the old Jamestown Bridge - I assume the cranes were being used to remove the few remaining pieces. The new bridge is in the foreground.
The large white building is the old mill building I live in. This is a view of it looking back from Rome Point across Bissel Cove.
And just some last snapshots as the sun was setting....
Sunday, December 10, 2006
A rare baking event
For the first time in about a year, I actually baked something at home in the oven:
It's an apple pie, completely made from scratch. Since baking for me is such a rare event, I figured I may as well document it lest no one believe me.
I can't think of a better smell than that of a baking apple pie. Mmmmmmm......
It's an apple pie, completely made from scratch. Since baking for me is such a rare event, I figured I may as well document it lest no one believe me.
I can't think of a better smell than that of a baking apple pie. Mmmmmmm......
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Loose Change
I've noticed these Coinstar machines at the local supermarket for the past couple years, however I've never used them because they charge a service fee of about 9% of the total value of the coins. I always thought it would be very handy to not have to roll coins, but the 9% fee seemed a bit steep. But, I honestly never set aside the time to roll my coins, so for the past few years I've been accumulating quite a bit of spare change. It was enough to fill one and a half medium-sized laundry detergent bottles.
Well, the other day I noticed the Coinstar machines now offer a free option for cashing in your spare change - if you choose to get the value of the coins as a gift certificate to various online companies (Amazon, Cabelas, and two other I can't remember). Since it's the holday season and I'll most likely be buying gifts for people online, I figured it would be a good time to cash in my change for an Amazon gift certificate. So I trudged (yes trudged - these coins were heavy!) out to the local Stop and Shop and poured the coins into the machine. One neat feature of the process is the machine displays statistics of the coinage as it is counted. So, what does one and a half laundry detergent bottles of coins add up to? I had 164 quarters, 1310 dimes, 761 nickels, and 2872 pennies (yikes! that's a lot of pennies!), giving a grand total of $238.77.
If you have jars of spare change and shop from Amazon or Cabelas (or those other places I can't remember), it might be worth your time to just dump your change in a Coinstar machine instead of rolling it. I've heard some banks offer a similar bulk coin counting service for free to their customers, but mine does not.
I should note that the Coinstar machines also offer an option to donate your change to a list of different non-profit organizations. What I wasn't able to determine was whether Coinstar takes a cut of the money in this case by charging the service fee.
Well, the other day I noticed the Coinstar machines now offer a free option for cashing in your spare change - if you choose to get the value of the coins as a gift certificate to various online companies (Amazon, Cabelas, and two other I can't remember). Since it's the holday season and I'll most likely be buying gifts for people online, I figured it would be a good time to cash in my change for an Amazon gift certificate. So I trudged (yes trudged - these coins were heavy!) out to the local Stop and Shop and poured the coins into the machine. One neat feature of the process is the machine displays statistics of the coinage as it is counted. So, what does one and a half laundry detergent bottles of coins add up to? I had 164 quarters, 1310 dimes, 761 nickels, and 2872 pennies (yikes! that's a lot of pennies!), giving a grand total of $238.77.
If you have jars of spare change and shop from Amazon or Cabelas (or those other places I can't remember), it might be worth your time to just dump your change in a Coinstar machine instead of rolling it. I've heard some banks offer a similar bulk coin counting service for free to their customers, but mine does not.
I should note that the Coinstar machines also offer an option to donate your change to a list of different non-profit organizations. What I wasn't able to determine was whether Coinstar takes a cut of the money in this case by charging the service fee.
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Morning Visitor
I was running slightly late for work this morning, but couldn't resist snapping a quick picture of this sight when I glanced out my living room window. When I say it was right outside my window, I'm not kidding.
The heron was so close I couldn't take a chance and go anywhere near the window for fear of scaring the bird off. I ended up standing halfway up my stairs and used a 400mm telephoto lens. Who would have thought I'd ever being using that lens in close quarters in my livingroom?
Of course, since I took the time to write this, now I'm really late for work.
The heron was so close I couldn't take a chance and go anywhere near the window for fear of scaring the bird off. I ended up standing halfway up my stairs and used a 400mm telephoto lens. Who would have thought I'd ever being using that lens in close quarters in my livingroom?
Of course, since I took the time to write this, now I'm really late for work.
Monday, December 04, 2006
The Wonders of YouTube
The past two days I've been sent links to two very entertaining videos on YouTube.
The first is about 8 minutes long and is an educational video about how to behave in a sushi restaurant in Japan. I know, I know. That doesn't sound very entertaining. But trust me, it's worth watching.
The second video is a music video by OK Go, a band I had never heard of, but whose synchronized performance on six treadmills is a sight to behold. The music's not too bad, either, if you like indie style pop rock. What I found most impressive is the whole 3 minute segment is done with one take. There are no camera cuts. [UPDATE: Apparantly I'm completely out of touch with today's pop culture. Several people have told me this video has been around for a while on TV. Since I don't have a TV, it was new to me.]
The first is about 8 minutes long and is an educational video about how to behave in a sushi restaurant in Japan. I know, I know. That doesn't sound very entertaining. But trust me, it's worth watching.
The second video is a music video by OK Go, a band I had never heard of, but whose synchronized performance on six treadmills is a sight to behold. The music's not too bad, either, if you like indie style pop rock. What I found most impressive is the whole 3 minute segment is done with one take. There are no camera cuts. [UPDATE: Apparantly I'm completely out of touch with today's pop culture. Several people have told me this video has been around for a while on TV. Since I don't have a TV, it was new to me.]
Fortune of the Week (5)
Ok, so I skipped a week. I hadn't had Chinese food in a while.
This week's fortune leaves me bemused:
"You should be able to make money and hold on to it."
Is it telling me I'm careless with my finances? Or is it supposed to be a positive message foretelling future monetary gains? Or is it just an observation about money in general - maybe speaking to the physical qualities of printing it. Perhaps it's against things like Paypal and virtual money - only the real cold hard cash will do.
I dunno. I think I just wasted 5 minutes of my life thinking too much about it. I could have been making money, instead.
This week's fortune leaves me bemused:
"You should be able to make money and hold on to it."
Is it telling me I'm careless with my finances? Or is it supposed to be a positive message foretelling future monetary gains? Or is it just an observation about money in general - maybe speaking to the physical qualities of printing it. Perhaps it's against things like Paypal and virtual money - only the real cold hard cash will do.
I dunno. I think I just wasted 5 minutes of my life thinking too much about it. I could have been making money, instead.
Sunday, December 03, 2006
Revisiting Karate Motivation
I recently stumbled across an interesting article about karate and its origins. The heart of the article focuses on how the main point of karate is not the physical aspects, but the character building that occurs along the way. This quote from the article sums it up nicely:
"Character is the goal. Karate training is simply an excuse for developing character. Blood, sweat and tears are to form the character of the student. Karate is a means to an end.
Character is not one of the benefits of Karate training. It is the goal. Without it, there is no Karate, only athletics."
You can read the full article (which I highly recommend) here. I found it was a refreshing reminder of why I enjoy the karate training so much and why I am thankful to have found a dojo where this character building is truly emphasised by the sensei.
"Character is the goal. Karate training is simply an excuse for developing character. Blood, sweat and tears are to form the character of the student. Karate is a means to an end.
Character is not one of the benefits of Karate training. It is the goal. Without it, there is no Karate, only athletics."
You can read the full article (which I highly recommend) here. I found it was a refreshing reminder of why I enjoy the karate training so much and why I am thankful to have found a dojo where this character building is truly emphasised by the sensei.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
The British Museum
I stopped in at the British Museum this afternoon. The place is enormous! I could have spent a whole week here and still not have seen everything. Given the short time available I opted to see the Japan exhibit. It's a pretty nice collection of stuff - some of it dating back to over a thousand years or more. It was interesting to see a samurai sword from 1100AD that was still razor sharp. There were also lots of ancient buddha statues, paintings and scrollworks.
Unfortunately, I forgot to borrow my friend's camera, so I have no pictures. It's a shame, too. The new renovations they made to the main entry hall are gorgeous. It's an incredible airy space. Here's a link to a brief description of the Japan exhibit. There's also a link to some of the items on display. If you click on the "related objects and information" pictures on that page, you can explore quite a bit of what's in the exhibit.
Gotta run -friends are nagging me to play a game. (They're reading over my shoulder right now and say that's an awful thing for me to say... fortunately they know I'm joking. Hey, I'm joking, really! Don't leave! Sheesh. I really must run.)
Oh, one more thing before I run - here's a nice link to all the Japan images on the museum site.
Unfortunately, I forgot to borrow my friend's camera, so I have no pictures. It's a shame, too. The new renovations they made to the main entry hall are gorgeous. It's an incredible airy space. Here's a link to a brief description of the Japan exhibit. There's also a link to some of the items on display. If you click on the "related objects and information" pictures on that page, you can explore quite a bit of what's in the exhibit.
Gotta run -friends are nagging me to play a game. (They're reading over my shoulder right now and say that's an awful thing for me to say... fortunately they know I'm joking. Hey, I'm joking, really! Don't leave! Sheesh. I really must run.)
Oh, one more thing before I run - here's a nice link to all the Japan images on the museum site.
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Day trip to Rye
On Friday we drove out to Rye. The drive reminded me of travel in Okinawa. Even though we weren't going too far (maybe 70 miles), with all the stop-and-go traffic and small meandering roads outside of the city, it took several hours to get there.
Rye is quite nice - it's a very old village. It has some very very old building (things from the 1300s). Here are a few pictures I snapped while borrowing my friend's camera.
This last picture is of a small door in the side of one of the original gates to the town. It was built in 1300 and is about 50 feet thick!
Rye is quite nice - it's a very old village. It has some very very old building (things from the 1300s). Here are a few pictures I snapped while borrowing my friend's camera.
This last picture is of a small door in the side of one of the original gates to the town. It was built in 1300 and is about 50 feet thick!
Bond in London
What better place to watch a James Bond film than in London?
This theater is across the street from where I'm staying on Upper Street. I haven't actually seen the movie yet, though.
This theater is across the street from where I'm staying on Upper Street. I haven't actually seen the movie yet, though.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Fatality at the Underground
This afternoon, on the way back from the Science Museum, the underground route we would normally take (the Picadily line) was unexpectedly closed. There was just a handwritten message on a large whiteboard sign saying it was closed due to a customer "incident". One of the people I was traveling with remarked that that meant someone had been hit by a train. Sadly, it turned out he was correct. It was reported later on the BBC news. And just earlier today (before the accident) I had noticed a sign saying to be careful boarding and departing the underground cars. It said there were some 500+ injuries and 5 fatalities per year.
It got me to wondering at what level do we accept the negatives that go along with certain conveniences. For example, when any building project of a large magnitude is undertaken, it is pretty much known statistically that x number of people will be injured in the process and if the project is large enough, x number of people will be accidentally killed. So, is the person giving the go ahead for the project consciously accepting those deaths as part of the cost?
Or take the invention of the automobile as another example. I had once read a book that posed the question, (I'm paraphrasing here) "Given the number of deaths annually from automobile accidents (in the tens of thousands), if someone had originally presented the idea saying, 'Hey I have a great new invention that will drastically decrease how long it takes to travel. The only bad thing is it will kill about 40,000 people in the US each year.' Would people have embraced it as a good idea?" I dunno the answer. It's something to think about.
I suppose I got to thinking about this more since I started reading a book called Freakonomics on the flight over here. It's an interesting read and takes some very unconventional looks at cause and effect in society.
It got me to wondering at what level do we accept the negatives that go along with certain conveniences. For example, when any building project of a large magnitude is undertaken, it is pretty much known statistically that x number of people will be injured in the process and if the project is large enough, x number of people will be accidentally killed. So, is the person giving the go ahead for the project consciously accepting those deaths as part of the cost?
Or take the invention of the automobile as another example. I had once read a book that posed the question, (I'm paraphrasing here) "Given the number of deaths annually from automobile accidents (in the tens of thousands), if someone had originally presented the idea saying, 'Hey I have a great new invention that will drastically decrease how long it takes to travel. The only bad thing is it will kill about 40,000 people in the US each year.' Would people have embraced it as a good idea?" I dunno the answer. It's something to think about.
I suppose I got to thinking about this more since I started reading a book called Freakonomics on the flight over here. It's an interesting read and takes some very unconventional looks at cause and effect in society.
On the Streets of London
I'm on a short trip to London for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Unfortunately, due to trying to travel light (just one carry-on bag and nothing else), I didn't bring my camera. So as of yet I don't have any pictures to share.
I do, however, have some thoughts. They're not as interesting as pictures, perhaps, but sorry, that's all I've got right now.
I'm not sure why, but for some reason even though London is an international mix of people from all over the world, they all generally dress in the same dark color scheme. When looking at a busy city sidewalk or a packed subway car (called "the underground" or "the tube") it's nothing but a sea of black and navy blue. I'll have to try to get a picture of it just so you can see I'm not exagerating. Last time I was here I had brought along my bright yellow goretex rain coat (since it does rain a lot here) and made a note of trying to spot someone else who was also wearing some colorful jacket. Over the course of a day walking the city's streets, I saw just one other person wearing a jacket that wasn't a dark blue, black or brown. It's a national phenomena.
I arrived in London in the mid-afternoon and grabbed a quick bite to eat at Pret A Manger. It's a chain of sandwhich shops that seem to be everywhere in the city. In all the times I've been to London, I've always noticed these shops but had never actually eaten at one. Today when I finally did, I was pleasantly surprised. All their sandwichs are made from all natural ingredients, fresh each day on location and they taste great. They even have a vegetarian selection. They also have vegetarian soup which was great. Plus, at the end of the day, any left-over sandwiches are donated to the homeless. They average donating 12,000 meals each week! I also greatly enjoyed reading their napkins. This is what is printed on it:
"This ugly brown napkin is made from 100% recycled stock (pretty white napkins are bleached which can result in environmentally damaging toxic waste). If Pret staff get all serviette-ish and hand you huge bunches of napkins (which you don't need or want) please give them the evil eye. Waste not want not."
I only received two napkins, so I didn't give the girl behind the counter an evil eye...
After eating, we went to the Science Museum where there is a history of video games feature going on called Game On. They have all sorts of classic video game machines and home arcade systems set up for hands-on playing. It was very interesting to see all in one place the evolution and progression of the machines. They even have one of my favorite arcade machines there - Discs of Tron. I haven't played that game in years, but I did manage on my first playing here at the museum to get the furthest I've ever gotten on this game and surprisingly got to enter my initials for the highest score on the machine. There were all sorts of extra details about the making of some of the games - so it was a very interesting exhibit. Unfortuntely, by the time we finished up at the video game exhibit, the museum was closing for the day, so we didn't get to see anything else.
I do, however, have some thoughts. They're not as interesting as pictures, perhaps, but sorry, that's all I've got right now.
I'm not sure why, but for some reason even though London is an international mix of people from all over the world, they all generally dress in the same dark color scheme. When looking at a busy city sidewalk or a packed subway car (called "the underground" or "the tube") it's nothing but a sea of black and navy blue. I'll have to try to get a picture of it just so you can see I'm not exagerating. Last time I was here I had brought along my bright yellow goretex rain coat (since it does rain a lot here) and made a note of trying to spot someone else who was also wearing some colorful jacket. Over the course of a day walking the city's streets, I saw just one other person wearing a jacket that wasn't a dark blue, black or brown. It's a national phenomena.
I arrived in London in the mid-afternoon and grabbed a quick bite to eat at Pret A Manger. It's a chain of sandwhich shops that seem to be everywhere in the city. In all the times I've been to London, I've always noticed these shops but had never actually eaten at one. Today when I finally did, I was pleasantly surprised. All their sandwichs are made from all natural ingredients, fresh each day on location and they taste great. They even have a vegetarian selection. They also have vegetarian soup which was great. Plus, at the end of the day, any left-over sandwiches are donated to the homeless. They average donating 12,000 meals each week! I also greatly enjoyed reading their napkins. This is what is printed on it:
"This ugly brown napkin is made from 100% recycled stock (pretty white napkins are bleached which can result in environmentally damaging toxic waste). If Pret staff get all serviette-ish and hand you huge bunches of napkins (which you don't need or want) please give them the evil eye. Waste not want not."
I only received two napkins, so I didn't give the girl behind the counter an evil eye...
After eating, we went to the Science Museum where there is a history of video games feature going on called Game On. They have all sorts of classic video game machines and home arcade systems set up for hands-on playing. It was very interesting to see all in one place the evolution and progression of the machines. They even have one of my favorite arcade machines there - Discs of Tron. I haven't played that game in years, but I did manage on my first playing here at the museum to get the furthest I've ever gotten on this game and surprisingly got to enter my initials for the highest score on the machine. There were all sorts of extra details about the making of some of the games - so it was a very interesting exhibit. Unfortuntely, by the time we finished up at the video game exhibit, the museum was closing for the day, so we didn't get to see anything else.
Friday, November 17, 2006
Moody Heron
At the risk of boring you all with yet another heron picture... here's yet another heron picture.
I can't help it, they keep hanging out outside my window.
I can't help it, they keep hanging out outside my window.
Monday, November 13, 2006
The Dancing Egret
Here's a whole series of pictures (in reverse chronological order) I took a few weekends ago when the snowy egret was fishing outside my condo window. The one thing all the pictures have in common is the egret was jumping. At one point I planned on weeding out some of the pictures, but I found I enjoyed looking at the whole series even though they aren't great photos (and I'm not the best at making choices like that), so I finally decided to just post the whole batch of them. Some of the pictures remind me of snippets of certain karate kata.
I included the last photo with a mallard duck also in the frame just to give a better idea of how small the egret actually is.
Note: I moved all the photos to another web page so the viewing of this page wasn't so slow with all 20 photos. If you want to see all 20 pictures, click here.
I included the last photo with a mallard duck also in the frame just to give a better idea of how small the egret actually is.
Note: I moved all the photos to another web page so the viewing of this page wasn't so slow with all 20 photos. If you want to see all 20 pictures, click here.
Hiking Find
I completely forgot to mention this interesting find from my hike on Saturday. At one point I was wandering off the beaten path along the bank of a river and something on the ground caught my eye. Oddly, it was an MP3 player! Also on the ground was the headphone plug - but no headphones - it looked like the wires had been cut off. I'm not really sure how someone could have lost the player, along with having the headphone cord ripped apart, and not have noticed it.
So, I put the thing in my pocket and promptly forgot about it. I just noticed it again tonight, so I dusted it off, replaced the battery and surprisingly, it works just fine! In addition to having enough memory for 64 MP3 songs, it even plays FM radio and has a built-in microphone for recording spur-of-the-moment ideas. The whole thing is quite small - about the size of a lighter - in fact, that's what I first thought it was when I saw it on the ground.
I wasnt sure how the MP3 files could be transferred to the thing - I couldn't find any obvious connectors or sockets for plugging in a cable. Then I decided to pull on the thing and it turned into a USB drive! It looks like this when pulled apart:
So, it's really quite simple to transfer stuff to and from it. It's a pretty cool design - I feel bad for the person who lost it.
So, I put the thing in my pocket and promptly forgot about it. I just noticed it again tonight, so I dusted it off, replaced the battery and surprisingly, it works just fine! In addition to having enough memory for 64 MP3 songs, it even plays FM radio and has a built-in microphone for recording spur-of-the-moment ideas. The whole thing is quite small - about the size of a lighter - in fact, that's what I first thought it was when I saw it on the ground.
I wasnt sure how the MP3 files could be transferred to the thing - I couldn't find any obvious connectors or sockets for plugging in a cable. Then I decided to pull on the thing and it turned into a USB drive! It looks like this when pulled apart:
So, it's really quite simple to transfer stuff to and from it. It's a pretty cool design - I feel bad for the person who lost it.
Sunday, November 12, 2006
Buffumville Lake
Yesterday was a beautiful fall day - I couldn't imagine nicer weather for this time of year. Some friends and I went for a hike around Buffumville Lake. Since it is hunting season, for safety we decided to pick a place that would definitely not have hunters.
(The leaf in the foreground of the above picture was intentional. I was goofing around with my camera near the end of the hike and I decided to take a bunch of pictures with a leaf in front of the lens. It turned out to not produce any interesting photos. I only include this one as it shows the name of the place where we hiked.)
Near the beginning of the hike I saw this smoke stack off in the distance. I'm not sure what it was - perhaps an old mill.
All along the lake there are beaver-damaged trees. This picture captures an attempt to help finish the beaver's work. Alas, the power of a triple side-kick was not enough - the tree remained where it was.
Since all the people I was hiking with also practice karate, whenever we passed a good-sized fallen log, someone would suggest practicing a kata on it. In this poorly lit picture, I'm doing Naihanchi Shodan. I took a few pictures of other people practicing kata, but they came out even worse. That purple fringing in the backlit part of the picture is quite terrible!
I was experimenting a bit with my camera on this hike and as a result didn't get much worth posting. In this last picture I was trying to capture the clastrophobic feeling with all the branches. Im not really sure if it worked. It definitely looks better in full size.
(The leaf in the foreground of the above picture was intentional. I was goofing around with my camera near the end of the hike and I decided to take a bunch of pictures with a leaf in front of the lens. It turned out to not produce any interesting photos. I only include this one as it shows the name of the place where we hiked.)
Near the beginning of the hike I saw this smoke stack off in the distance. I'm not sure what it was - perhaps an old mill.
All along the lake there are beaver-damaged trees. This picture captures an attempt to help finish the beaver's work. Alas, the power of a triple side-kick was not enough - the tree remained where it was.
Since all the people I was hiking with also practice karate, whenever we passed a good-sized fallen log, someone would suggest practicing a kata on it. In this poorly lit picture, I'm doing Naihanchi Shodan. I took a few pictures of other people practicing kata, but they came out even worse. That purple fringing in the backlit part of the picture is quite terrible!
I was experimenting a bit with my camera on this hike and as a result didn't get much worth posting. In this last picture I was trying to capture the clastrophobic feeling with all the branches. Im not really sure if it worked. It definitely looks better in full size.
East Beach, Charlestown, RI
I had some free time on this overcast and foggy Sunday afternoon, so I drove down to East Beach in Charlestown, RI.
It's a barrier beach that has a salt pond on one side and the ocean on the other. It's a couple miles long with a sandy road down the middle usable by 4-wheel drive vehicles.
Here's a view of the salt pond side:
And the road down the middle:
And the ocean side:
Since it was a fairly iffy day weather-wise, the parking lot was completely empty and for long stretches of time I had the beach completely to myself. There were only a couple people fishing scattered along the several mile length of the beach. There were lots of deer tracks along the edge of the road down the middle of the beach, but I never spotted any deer. I did manage to sneak up on this log and catch its picture:
There were a few sanderlings running about on the beach. These birds tend to stay along the edge of the surf, waiting for a wave to crash, quickly running along the edge of the wave as it retreats, picking up little things to eat.
I'm not really sure why, but for some reason these things liked to stand on one leg quite a bit of the time. They would even go so far as to hop on that one leg rather than walk with both legs. At one point I thought maybe the birds were missing legs, but later I saw them with both feet on the ground.
I took quite a few pictures of the sanderlings...
Since this is a barrier beach, they restrict where you are allowed to walk, as can bee seen in this picture - the small sign
says, "Keep off dune". Oddly, they don't seem to mind that fisherman drive 4 wheel drive trucks up and down the beach. They actually issue permits allowing this. You'd think that would contribute to erosion a lot more than people walking.
It's a barrier beach that has a salt pond on one side and the ocean on the other. It's a couple miles long with a sandy road down the middle usable by 4-wheel drive vehicles.
Here's a view of the salt pond side:
And the road down the middle:
And the ocean side:
Since it was a fairly iffy day weather-wise, the parking lot was completely empty and for long stretches of time I had the beach completely to myself. There were only a couple people fishing scattered along the several mile length of the beach. There were lots of deer tracks along the edge of the road down the middle of the beach, but I never spotted any deer. I did manage to sneak up on this log and catch its picture:
There were a few sanderlings running about on the beach. These birds tend to stay along the edge of the surf, waiting for a wave to crash, quickly running along the edge of the wave as it retreats, picking up little things to eat.
I'm not really sure why, but for some reason these things liked to stand on one leg quite a bit of the time. They would even go so far as to hop on that one leg rather than walk with both legs. At one point I thought maybe the birds were missing legs, but later I saw them with both feet on the ground.
I took quite a few pictures of the sanderlings...
Since this is a barrier beach, they restrict where you are allowed to walk, as can bee seen in this picture - the small sign
says, "Keep off dune". Oddly, they don't seem to mind that fisherman drive 4 wheel drive trucks up and down the beach. They actually issue permits allowing this. You'd think that would contribute to erosion a lot more than people walking.
Friday, November 10, 2006
Fortune of the Week (4)
Finally! I got an actual fortune this week rather than some words of advice...
"Your infinite capacity for patience will be rewarded sooner or later."
Of course, as luck would have it, this is in direct contradiction to another fortune I got a few days earlier - "If you want it... take it."
Good thing I don't take these things seriously - otherwise I'd be paralyzed with conflicting information.
"Your infinite capacity for patience will be rewarded sooner or later."
Of course, as luck would have it, this is in direct contradiction to another fortune I got a few days earlier - "If you want it... take it."
Good thing I don't take these things seriously - otherwise I'd be paralyzed with conflicting information.
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Name that duck
Yet another bird picture that was almost good. This one I took while leaving my condo this morning. I was driving out of the condo complex and noticed this small duck in a canal on the side of the road. I snapped the picture out my car window, but unfortuntely there was a branch in the way - hence the yellow cast on the top portion of the picture.
This picture is a bit clearer (even though there are still some branches in the foreground on the lower right), but not as interesting a pose as the previous one.
Can you identify the type of duck?
This picture is a bit clearer (even though there are still some branches in the foreground on the lower right), but not as interesting a pose as the previous one.
Can you identify the type of duck?
Bogu Kumite Video
If you are interested in seeing the not very pretty sight of me being totally overwhelmed in my first bogu kumite match from last night, you can view a portion of it here. Also on that web page there's a very good description of the whole point of using the bogu gear and how it applies to karate (and even zen). I'm not sure how long the video will remain on that web page - the web site gets updated fairly often - so if it's no longer there when you take a look, sorry.
Oh, and in case you can't pick me out in the video, I'm the person who is constantly being hit and who keeps backing up.
Oh, and in case you can't pick me out in the video, I'm the person who is constantly being hit and who keeps backing up.
Monday, November 06, 2006
The Dreaded Bogu Gear
As I mentioned a few days ago, I picked up a set of bogu gear and was looking forward to using it. Tonight in kumite class I learned first-hand why people say they hate the bogu gear. I wouldn't go so far as to say I hate it, but it's not exactly a fun experience either. It is, however, definitely a worthwhile learning experience and I look forward to trying it again.
Before the bogu kumite match tonight, I didn't really know what to expect. I've been taking kumite classes regularly for about a year now, but those are all controlled matches where action stops when a "point" is scored and all hits are meant to only lightly touch cloth or skin. I have never watched a bogu kumite match.
So, here is how it went...
We had a regular kumite class first. Then, for the last few minutes I was to wear the bogu gear and face Sensei in a match. After I was helped into the gear and it was all snuggly tied, Sensei explained to the class what they were about to see. I listened intently hoping to get a better idea of what I had gotten myself into. He mentioned something about how in Okinawa it was not uncommon for people to be thrown about, perhaps into walls, through windows, etc. I then thought - "Wait a second! Did I just hear that right?" My immediate thought was he must be joking. He continued on, explaining how the match usually proceeds - you start about 10 to 15 feet apart and then rush at each other, punching, kicking, etc. and never stopping until someone falls to the ground in which case the two people are pulled apart, placed 10 to 15 feet apart again, and pushed towards each other. This goes on for 3 minutes. Now after hearing this, I wished Angie hadn't tied my gear on securely behind my back with a double knot. Maybe there was still time to take it all off. Sensei then asked if I had any questions and I resisted the urge to ask if this was all some kind of joke to scare me half-to-death.
So, with that explanation complete, we bowed to each other and the match began. I don't really remember many details of the actual fighting other than repeatedly being hit in the chest and thinking the chest protector wasn't really doing that great a job of protecting my chest. I think I spent most of the time backing away, trying to get far enough away to throw a kick (probably I was also hoping to just get far enough away to stop from being hit). I think I might have remembered once to actually try to block something.
It was a very eye-opening experience. It was completely different from the regular kumite class - there was no comfort zone of getting to pause each time a hit was scored. In this case the opponent was constantly there, forcing me to deal with a very unpleasant situation. Having never been in a real fight, I'm only guessing here, but I suspect this bogu kumite is a much more realistic portrayal of how a real fight would proceed. So, in that way, I think it's a very worthwhile experience and there is much to be learned from it.
And, in the end, I'm happy to say, the gear did its job well. While the force of a lot of the hits were felt, there we no lasting injuries or even bruises. Of course, Sensei was going easy on me. I would not want to suffer the full force of his hits even when wearing the full bogu gear.
Oddly, the whole experience in some way did remind me of playing ice hockey. If you've ever played hockey you might know what I mean. There was the same feeling of going full tilt for a short period of time until you are totally out of breath, stuggling against someone else all while getting violently knocked about (but also being protected by a bunch of gear). Obviously there are a huge number of differences between the two activities, but the base emotional feeling brought back some memories of when I used to play hockey.
Before the bogu kumite match tonight, I didn't really know what to expect. I've been taking kumite classes regularly for about a year now, but those are all controlled matches where action stops when a "point" is scored and all hits are meant to only lightly touch cloth or skin. I have never watched a bogu kumite match.
So, here is how it went...
We had a regular kumite class first. Then, for the last few minutes I was to wear the bogu gear and face Sensei in a match. After I was helped into the gear and it was all snuggly tied, Sensei explained to the class what they were about to see. I listened intently hoping to get a better idea of what I had gotten myself into. He mentioned something about how in Okinawa it was not uncommon for people to be thrown about, perhaps into walls, through windows, etc. I then thought - "Wait a second! Did I just hear that right?" My immediate thought was he must be joking. He continued on, explaining how the match usually proceeds - you start about 10 to 15 feet apart and then rush at each other, punching, kicking, etc. and never stopping until someone falls to the ground in which case the two people are pulled apart, placed 10 to 15 feet apart again, and pushed towards each other. This goes on for 3 minutes. Now after hearing this, I wished Angie hadn't tied my gear on securely behind my back with a double knot. Maybe there was still time to take it all off. Sensei then asked if I had any questions and I resisted the urge to ask if this was all some kind of joke to scare me half-to-death.
So, with that explanation complete, we bowed to each other and the match began. I don't really remember many details of the actual fighting other than repeatedly being hit in the chest and thinking the chest protector wasn't really doing that great a job of protecting my chest. I think I spent most of the time backing away, trying to get far enough away to throw a kick (probably I was also hoping to just get far enough away to stop from being hit). I think I might have remembered once to actually try to block something.
It was a very eye-opening experience. It was completely different from the regular kumite class - there was no comfort zone of getting to pause each time a hit was scored. In this case the opponent was constantly there, forcing me to deal with a very unpleasant situation. Having never been in a real fight, I'm only guessing here, but I suspect this bogu kumite is a much more realistic portrayal of how a real fight would proceed. So, in that way, I think it's a very worthwhile experience and there is much to be learned from it.
And, in the end, I'm happy to say, the gear did its job well. While the force of a lot of the hits were felt, there we no lasting injuries or even bruises. Of course, Sensei was going easy on me. I would not want to suffer the full force of his hits even when wearing the full bogu gear.
Oddly, the whole experience in some way did remind me of playing ice hockey. If you've ever played hockey you might know what I mean. There was the same feeling of going full tilt for a short period of time until you are totally out of breath, stuggling against someone else all while getting violently knocked about (but also being protected by a bunch of gear). Obviously there are a huge number of differences between the two activities, but the base emotional feeling brought back some memories of when I used to play hockey.
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Full Moon Tonight
It's a nice clear night tonight - good time to take a picture of the full moon.
This picture was taken at 5:39 PM. f5.6, 1/320 sec at 400mm.
This picture was taken at 5:39 PM. f5.6, 1/320 sec at 400mm.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Bogu Gear
This week I received the final piece needed to complete my karate bogu gear set - the helmet, or Men, as it is called in Japanese. I look forward to getting a chance to use it in the kumite class, although just about everyone I've talked to who has actually worn this stuff before say they hate it.
I got the chest protector when I was in Okinawa this summer, but I still haven't actually used it. I've had the gloves (kote) for a while - they used to sell them at the dojo - and I use them in kumite class all the time. The helmet came from BoguBag. I was very surprised with how quickly the helmet shipped. BoguBag is located in Idaho, but just about everything they sell ships directly from a partner company called Koei Budogo, a large kendo retailer in Japan. My order was processed on Friday and I received it on Monday - direct from Japan! That's faster than I normally get packages from places in the US.
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Fortune of the Week (3)
These fortune cookie fortunes lately are more words of advice than fortunes. Here's the one I got today:
"Reach out your hand today to support others who need you."
"Reach out your hand today to support others who need you."
Monday, October 30, 2006
The one that got away
With the time change yesterday, I found I was able to easily wake up early this morning. Right after I got out of the shower I noticed a great blue heron off in the distance flying towards my condo. I had just enough time to pull the lens cap off and snap a picture. Unfortunately, I didn't quite get enough time to focus well. By the time it was landing in front of my window, this blurry photo is all I managed to get:
I did take a few more pictures after it landed, but nothing that would have been as impressive as the heron landing. But, at least I managed to get a picture that was a bit sharper:
(As is the case with just about all the photos I post here, you can click on the photo to get a larger view.)
I did take a few more pictures after it landed, but nothing that would have been as impressive as the heron landing. But, at least I managed to get a picture that was a bit sharper:
(As is the case with just about all the photos I post here, you can click on the photo to get a larger view.)
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Snowy Egret
One more egret picture... my favorite of the batch from this morning. Even though this one was taken with the window of my condo open, it's still not as sharp as I'd like. But, I think that's more my lack of understanding/skill with various camera settings rather than a shortcoming of the new lens.
It should be noted also that this is the original photo as taken. I did not crop it or modify it in any way.
It should be noted also that this is the original photo as taken. I did not crop it or modify it in any way.
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