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Thursday, November 24, 2016

"It's the music that we choose"

"Here you go
Get the cool
Get the cool shoeshine"
Gorillaz, Gorillaz
© 2001

As promised from earlier, I have some more pictures to post from this National Turkey Day. Hope you pardoned a piece of wing or something... save it for lunches for the weekend. Or.. if you're like a lot of people I know, re-use the carcass and make turkey soup for a warm pick me up. You're going to need it if you're out in the lines tonight and tomorrow, expecting great deals. If you're in your bedroom waiting for Monday, you'll probably want to throw out the meat by then if you haven't stored it properly...














To quote Garrison Keillor: “Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.”


Cheers;






See Also:








"Jump on board..."

"...Take a ride..."
Sing When You're Winning
 © Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue 

I have a sixteen year old song going on in my head, and it's by two very bubblegummy pop singers. Each have their own fame and they got together to make sure the world knows that the kids are alright. Some band once said it a few decades ago, but the times they are a changin' and the changing isn't free

However, one thing that has changed, is it's a little colder this week. It's been in the 50s to wake up to, and warms up to about 70-80 degrees during the day. No humidity, no worry; just some long pants and a t-shirt. Maybe a hoodie if you're out early enough. 

Today is no exception. It's the day of the Turkey, and I wanted to post some pictures before I went out and dined with friends and family (and maybe have no time to upload later. We'll see if I remember). It's not so big of a day; kind of quiet for 1pm.  But if you're going out tonight for the Black Friday store deals, bring a jacket and keep warm. If you're waiting for Cyber Monday deals, wear your underwear in your bedroom all day. I won't tell anyone. :-D

Outside of it being quiet and kind of warm, the clouds are looking a bit snowy, but I've yet to see snow down here in God's Waiting Room... it's too warm, regardless of it hitting 45 degrees one night! I will always say the same thing, each and every holiday I am in America's Wang: It is not the Christmas Season with a palm tree and no snow. There is nothing like the first snow of the year (of which my friends on the North Shore are telling me they had flurries this past week), and there's nothing like the smell of a pine tree next to a warm fire in the dead of winter. Am I a little nostalgic for past and not present? Maybe, but until Hell freezes over, I will always have my pictures...







Until next time...

Cheers;


See Also:
Evergreen candles to make up for a pine tree

(Beistle - Fireplace Insta-View to make up for a fireplace)

Saturday, November 19, 2016

To The Moon & Back

Quick posting today, as I was just editing some photos of Thursday's moon. I really wish I had my camera with me at work, found a way to pull over on my way home, and had taken pictures. As I was leaving for the night (9pm), there was a big red blob in the center of the sky for part of my ride. My iPhone couldn't capture it so greatly, and thus, I didn't get a clear view of the "Supermoon" everyone's been talking about for the past couple months. However, it reminded me of this past season of American Horror Story, where the theme revolved around a Blood Moon.

The pictures I was able to capture can't really do justice, as I was rushing around trying to get something on film digitally once I got home. I guess it's better than nothing, although no real trickery was done in post editing, outside a little sharpening and my watermark.

Thus, bringing a long over due title of "daily picture dump" back to my blog...










Cheers;



See Also:
To The Moon And Back via Amazon

Currently jamming to:

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

"I'm so high it makes my brain whirl"

"Dropped my cell phone down below"
© David Bowie,  Lazarus, ★, 2016


I may not have dropped my cell phone, but I was able to take some photos on my way out of work tonight. For wintering in America's Wang, it's still slightly humid out, and just as buggy. The holidays aren't the same with palm trees and Christmas lights, but I guess the sun photos sure look nice?





All photos were taken on an iPhone 5S and "sharpened" up in Photoshop CS5. I just wish I had my Canon EOS Rebel T3 Digital SLR Camera in place of my iPhone. Being able to quickly pull out my phone and snap a photo is nice, but nothing beats a real camera, truth be told.

Yes, I'm still working on CS5; why upgrade when this one still works? (knock on wood) It is serving its purpose and I'm learning something every day on it, when I can.

Much like when I was talking to my bosses today about using Cyberlink PowerDirector 15 Ultimate Suite and Pinnacle Studio 20 Ultimate. One of the guys wants to start getting into video editing (he's a fanboy of a certain YouTube vlogger out of New York), but needs a new computer before he can dive into anything special. I suggested trying one of the programs on the computer he has, so he's comfortable enough with it, and then he can install it on whatever new computer he buys. That way, once he starts making super hero movies, he knows what kind of processing speed and memory he needs to work with. His problem is it's a really old notebook and is on its last leg. So doing any type of editing is not so hot, and makes my "just test out a program" theory kind of moot.

The programs I alternate between are Pinnacle 18 and a really old version of PowerDirector Ultra (to which I can't even link to on Amazon because it's not there). Honestly, I'm finding myself using Pinnacle more often then not lately. Although, if push comes to shove, I can use either program equally the same. I just happened to have recently learned how to embed the titles into a video in Pinnacle a couple months ago (see some previous posts with video added, as well as recent YouTube videos). So plus 1 for that, on the learning level.  :-D

If anyone has any suggestions for a new computer that won't break the bank but can be used to edit videos and do blogs / vlogs, let me know and I'll pass on the information..


Cheers;






See Also:

Thursday, November 3, 2016

"How many times does an angel fall?"

Last night was one of those nights where I had an hour and twenty minute drive in front of me. I was working in a property that's located on one of the local "island" communities (one way in, same way out, essentially). From my house to the property, it's normally a sunny commute, however when I am scheduled until 10:30 pm, it's an interesting night time drive.

Due to the directions of the commute, there is a good 80 per cent of my ride where there are no forms of street lights. Yes, you've read that correctly: there are no lamps lining the road as you drive down a stretch of pavement warning you about "Panther Crossing: 4 Miles". I know you're probably asking yourself "I wonder if she's seen a panther..." and I'll be honest: I have. They aren't what you expect when you're not used to it. I happened to have seen one last month, and it was walking the breakdown lane on the highway. It was close to 11:30 in the evening and I was on my way home. In the corner of my headlights, I had seen some sort of beige 4 legged animal give me the stare down as I passed it. I thought it was a bobcat - what do I know? Since it was almost midnight and I had been working for the past 10 hours, I wasn't completely sure of what I just witnessed. Last time I saw a big cat, I was at a zoo. Plus, aren't panthers black? What's a tan cat doing here? The next day I had to return to said property, and I was telling the kid I was working with, about what I saw. Since he's half "FloGrown" (he's spent the last half of his life in Florida), he said that there in fact are tan / beige panthers in the area we are in, and I most certainly had seen one. I'm so used to thinking they're black, it never occurred to me they could be a lighter shade of nightfall. When I've seen tan cats, it's been in the mountains of New Hampshire. Typically regional cats know their place; this was new to me.

Anyway, back to last night.

I figured I'd plug my RCA USB MP3 player (which no longer is being made / sold, unfortunately) and listen to some tunes to keep my head occupied. Rather fitting, in some ways, the first song (and album) on my speakers was David Bowie's Blackstar (★).

Why is it fitting that this was first? Due to the haunting audio and lyrics of the title track, mixed with driving down a long and dark road, it's possible the driver / listener may find themselves contemplating life to its fullest capacity. Even simple things like "why aren't there any street lights around here?" or "Why am I the only car on the road for these past 20 miles? Is anyone out there, leaving work so late too?". There are just so many questions and thoughts going on in my head ("It's seriously November?", "Shit, db has been gone 11 months. WTF."), that I'm tired of flipping the dials on the radio every 3 to 4 minutes. I hate listening to the same commercials on 5 different stations (more specifically a pushy, egocentric car salesman). Sometimes I hear the same song replayed on 2 stations 20 minutes apart. The other week, one of the rock stations aired the same playlist 2 days in a row. They just switched a couple songs out of order. It becomes one of those "enough is enough" and I just dump some albums onto my player and have at it.

Yes, I'm fortunate now to have a CD player, aux port, and a USB port in my car. Interesting upgrades from my AM/FM, cassette tape and CD player...

It just boggles my mind, however, how dark it gets on these roads. It feels so desolate and lonely, that it's no wonder panthers come out at night to roam the land. Every once in a while, you can pass a statie in wait, trying to catch the next speed demon. However, I've found that's been the case during the end of the month when they need to meet their quota (not that I'm looking to get pulled over or anything. It just seems like I passed a good 30 cars at various points last week, and they all had cruisers behind them).

Until the state gets some street lights through out the city I was in (as well as some bits of the highway), all my questions will remained unanswered, I suppose. I will continue to let my mind wander as my music teases me into a haunting submission, and hope that someone finally answers my call.




There is one main thing that I'm still curious about: "Where the fuck did Monday go?"




Pictures, or it doesn't count:


All photos taken with an iPhone 5S.


Video or it doesn't count:

Video shot on an iPhone 5S. 
Music © David Bowie,



Cheers;



See also:
MP3 players