Gorgeous Saturday

It is a nice day outside today. I was out and enjoying it for a bit. I strolled down to the Ballard Locks, but didn't take pictures of anything but flowers, though people were out in force as well. (There is a black and blue bird sunning itself on my balcony right now, but I can't tell what type and since he just flew away can't take a picture of his backside for folks to guess.) As the afternoon progressed and I was reading CNN or BBCNews, I stumbled across some article on Facebook, and there came a mention of Instagram and all the hipster over-processed photos there as a result, and all I can say, is that I don't recall ever seeing any of my friends post something that looked as if it were processed using Instagram. My guess is either none of my friends use that photo app on their iPhone, or else since my friends aren't the twenty-somethings mentioned by the author, they are all too old to be taken in by such trendiness. Oh well, shallow or not, the app is fun, and that is really all that matters to me.

iPhone App stuff

I have been enjoying some new photo apps on my iPhone lately, Instagram is one of them and the other is Nofinder. Instagram is what I have been using for the square photos in all the posts this week. Kind of a neat program that gives a choice of filters for immediate gratification in the processed style of your choice, though there is a no filter option. Nofinder is a different beast, as it really makes your camera a point and shoot and you don't really know what that shot will be since you viewfinder is blacked out.

What really struck me today was how cropping and processing can really change the way things look. These two pictures were taken twenty feet or so apart, but with the same two people walking in the same direction both times. One really looks suburban desolate, in my opinion, while the other isn't quite so bleak. The Nofinder picture with the greenery in the foreground took me by surprise. But I think it makes a nice contrast.

With the phone cameras I can see that I am taking more pictures, and they tend to be of more mundane things, but so many great pictures aren't great because the subject (physical) is great, but because mood, light, and subject all fit together with a degree of serendipity that qualifies the whole as extraordinary. (None of my experiments so far qualify.) Even without qualifying as art photographer, I am having fun with the camera on the phone, and will continue to putter about with it, as long as I am enjoying the results.

Another day, another entry

Perhaps not interesting in and of itself, but I find that when I am making a conscious effort to avoid the time sink that is MMO gaming, I tend to create more blog entries. Gaming is fun, but it is very easy to lose way too much time doing it. After so many levels and whatnot, there doesn't seem to be much to do, unless you have friends online and can chat with them. The games themselves are very similar to each other, and the rewards are as virtual as you can imagine, perhaps if you are lucky, and upgrade to your armor that allows you better use of the skills the game has gifted your character with. There is nothing inherently wrong with spending time like this, but when most of one's time is spent there, there is nothing really gained either. Aside from the social aspect, reading gives better rewards, and forcing oneself to actually do something, even something like typing up a blog entry, I think may be even better, as it is engaging your brain in forcing it to create, rather than just blithely gorging on content.

It seems summer is going to be an "on again, off again" sort of affair this year, as the evenings seem very summer-like, and the mornings do not. Considering I work days, this state of affairs is somewhat satisfactory, though I want my weekend to be all beautiful, all the time-- but that is just me being greedy.

One last thing, I did get stopped by that bridge this morning on the way to work, but rather than the usual single sailboat going by, a larger ship did, so I had a pleasant surprise early in the day.

No more blue sky

The lovely weekend we had has retreated into a gloomy Monday, with weather more stereo-typically Seattle, than what summer should actually be. This is supposed to be the dry season, but it sure hasn't seemed that way.

I wasn't sure when I started writing tonight if I wanted to discuss the politics currently going on in DC, and I think I may pass on saying much of anything, except I hope something is worked out that doesn't just benefit a small percentage of the country. Our republic doesn't feel like it is running they way it was intended to, as the parties in Congress are supposed to compromise and not just hold their breath until they get everything they want. I guess those without children finally get to experience the exasperation of a parent with siblings that refuse to work together.

Overall, I would have to say that today was another generic Monday at work, like so many before, and like so many probably to follow. There is nothing wrong with a lack of crises and fires to deal with, but there is also something extremely deadening about the lack of variety. In addition to the overcast skies, I am sure this is contributing to my less than stellar mood.

Summer and Neglect

Well, this is the second go at this. My earlier post didn't post, nor did a draft save correctly, so I guess I will write something else. I know I had said something about how my hopes and efforts at the beginning of the year gave me some belief that I would actually manage to write on a regular basis, and keep things moving to such a degree that momentum was formed, and the blog kept moving, rather than petering out to the occasional I am still here sort of thing. This weekend has been gorgeous here in Seattle, with temps in the low-mid 80's, which was high enough to cause someone at the neighboring table tonight to complain about the heat, while I was finishing my beer. Oddly enough, we was sitting on a patio at a restaurant that did have indoor seating, and he chose not to go someplace with air conditioning. Since it was very comfortable in the shade, I don't know why he was complaining, but folks seem to do it out here, below 40 is too cold, above 80, too hot.

Rather than bemoan what I thought was a really nice weekend, I have been thinking about glass casting, and what to do in my next class, which is in August. I picked up some beach toys, so I can make glass castles, rather than sand castles, though either way I am still playing in the sand. I have been thinking of what to do that would make my glass pieces even more fun, but since I have three weeks to figure that out, I hope to have some decent ideas.