Stupid Website

Once again I've stayed up too late. Tonight I was working on my photo website. I decided to put up my Photoshop projects both recent and old. I thought it'd be good motivation for working hard on my current projects. Otherwise, I'd be the only one seeing them and I could just please myself. Now perhaps I'll think of a wider audience.

Earlier this evening I finished creating a photo album on shutterfly.com. When I bought my camera, I got three coupons for free hard cover albums and they expired today. I used one a few weeks ago to make an album for Joanna with photos of her family from a CD she sent me last fall. I hear it looks awesome. I was hoping to use Anne and Jordan's photos from their trip out here last month for the other coupons but I didn't get them in time.

Joanna's folks just got back from a trip to Alaska and had taken her camera so had plenty of great photos. She used one of the coupons for an album for them. I'm sure it'll turn out great.

I used the other one for me. I put photos of my folks and family, some old and some more recent. I can't wait to see it.

Optical Effects

There are a couple blogs that I enjoy reading occasionally that have white (or light) text on a black background. I think these bloggers do not read their own blogs much.

After reading for a few minutes, when I glance away from the screen, I suffer optical effects that obscure my vision. Maybe I'm just getting old, but it takes awhile to return to normal. I sure wish they would choose to a more reader-friendly format.

Lunch Today

A big green mug full of tomato soup warmed in the micro.
A whole wheat pita toasted in the toaster.
Two sticks of low-fat string cheese chilled in the fridge.
An apple from my snack bin.

Yummy!

Tonight's Art Project

So in Photoshop you're supposed to be able to recreate various painting techniques like oil painting, chalk and charcoal. Tonight I was working on adjusting a photo in preparation of applying the watercolor filter. Here's the original image (cropped).



I used the blur tool, hue adjustments and the cloning tool to de-emphasize the background and the distracting orange sleeve, to remove the lollipop stick from her mouth and to lighten her eye color (the filter made them completely black). Here's my final project result. Click on the image to see a larger size.

Photoshop Project

I checked out a book on Photoshop on Saturday and have been plugging away on it this weekend. I'm not much of an artist but here's a project from the Paintbrushes and Art Tools chapter. It was my first try and I thought it was so pretty.

Movie of the Week

Today I watched Mr. & Mrs. Smith. It was highly entertaining. I have to say I loved it. I think it would've made an awesome book. Do you think they'll make a sequel? Mr. & Mrs. Smith Go to Washington?

I didn't love the earthquake effect of a hand-held camera at the beginning when they were in Colombia. But after awhile I got used to it (or they stopped using it). And I'm not a big fan of extended fight scenes, especially hand to hand, but their fight scene was kinda what the whole movie was leading up to, so I didn't fast forward through it (though I was tempted.)

I'm not the biggest Brad Pitt fan but if he's going to be in a movie, don't you think it behooves him to take off his shirt more often? I'm just saying...

Photos on Mac.com

I may still post an occasional photo here if it strikes me but for the time being I'm posting my pics to my .Mac website. They had some nice templates for photo albums. I'd rather spend my time editing the photos themselves than the website.

Too Much

Oh! The hockey game just went into overtime. Both it and the A's game are on in HD tonight. It's just too much good stuff.

I'm taping the A's game and watching the Carolina/Buffalo game live. I don't particularly care which team wins. I'm going to be for the Oilers in the Finals anyway.

Shave It Off

I love hockey.

I love the hockey playoffs even more.
(Oilers win the West!)

But I do not love hockey playoff beards. They're just not attractive.

I don't blame the players. They're only growing them because it's the playoffs, not because they think they look good (I hope). So it's not reflection on them as individuals. I just wish they would do something else other than grow facial hair. It's getting so bad even fans are getting into it. Okay, some of those images are pretty funny.

One year the Sharks were playing the St. Louis Blues in the playoffs and instead of growing the traditional beard, the Blues players dyed their hair blond. Even one guy who shaves his head got into the action by dyeing stripes into his bushy eyebrows. It wasn't a good look. Plus they lost to the Sharks. I didn't see the blond hair the next year.

Cable Modem Crazy

The lights on the cable modem are driving me crazy. They're all flashy, flashy all the time. I've tried various methods of blocking them. First was a breakfast bar, but I got hungry and ate it. Now I have an empty bottle of ibuprofen lying on its side, but it likes to roll away. I think I may have to just put the modem on the floor out of my line of sight. I just can't have the flickery distraction.

Sounding Good

As I was putting on my shoes (getting ready to go out for my usual Saturday morning errand run) I was reading the side of my monitor box and I read "concealed speakers". Concealed pretty well. I didn't even notice! So I found the audio cord and plugged it in. Wow. No more listening to my iTunes or WKBJ on the tinny speakers of the CPU. I am so lucky.

My Friend Elizabeth

Elizabeth is getting married in less than six months. Will she be ready? Will she make it? Will she go bonkers in the meantime?


Only time will tell...

The New Set-Up

Here's a pic of how my home computer is set up.

Books I've Read This Week

I scored big at the library last Saturday and was in a reading kind of mood last weekend so I have several books on the list this week on Books I've Read This Week.

Gentlemen and Players by Joanne Harris (of Chocolat fame) is told in first person from two different points of view, both teachers at a private boys school in England. One is a long-time teacher and the other (partly told in flashbacks) a new young teacher who grew up just outside the school's gates and who worshipped its elite atmosphere growing up but was denied attendance by economic and social position. I greatly enjoyed this story. I have to say, first person is my absolute favorite but one big disadvantage is always having only one perspective. There's a great twist at the end that I wasn't expecting which made me want to go back and re-read the whole thing. I didn't but maybe I will some day. Now, please don't take what I just told you and read the end of the book first. That would just be cheating.

Another book told partly in first person is Tomb of the Golden Bird, the latest in Elizabeth Peters' Amelia Peabody mysteries set in Egypt. Amelia herself is the main narrator with some sections told in third person from the perspective of her now-grown son, Ramses. This installment chronicles the discovery of the tomb of King Tut which is highly interesting but, for me, it's the family interactions that make this series a favorite. I even like the descriptions of their cats.

Have Your Cake and Kill Him Too by Nancy Martin and Bleeding Hearts by Susan Wittig Albert arrived on my hold shelf and I quickly consumed both. In Cake, we continue to follow the Blackbird sisters in their humorous attempts to find love and meaning in their lives in Philadelphia. Nora is trying to make sense of her pregnancy and who she wants as the baby's father as well as who may have done in a local millionaire estranged from his family. The mob, muffins and mayhem, what could be better?

In Hearts, China and Ruby investigate the suicide of a college student apparently connected to the powerful local high school football coach in Texas, and the theft of a potential best-in-show entry in a quilt contest. Ruby even breaks out the Ouija board to China's amusement and a neighbor's consternation. China discovers more about Ruby's mysterious current flame but may wish she'd been left in the dark.

I picked up two books by new (to me) authors: Ladies With Options by Cynthia Hartwick and Some Like it Haute by Julie K. L. Dam. Ladies is the first in a two book series that describes how some small town Minnesota church women, determined to save enough for retirement, made it big in the stock market in the '80s. You can't help but root for these ladies and their families as they attempt to make some dough and save their town. The second book, Ladies with Prospects, continues the story (and is on my hold list, of course).

Haute is a cheesy romance set in Paris during Fashion Week with overtones of reality TV. If you like Project Runway, you might like this book if you're not doing anything else worthwhile. It's short and fast and, though it attempts to be a mystery, there's really nothing mysterious about it.

Now I'm plugging through Their Noble Lordships by Simon Winchester in my attempt to read everything by this insightful author. In this book from 25 years ago, Simon explores the peers of the realm and their meaning to his world in 1981. He goes rank by rank, from dukes to marquesses to earls to viscounts to barons, describing selected individuals, the House of Lords and the design of heraldic arms (among other things). Again, I am surprised by how he can interest me in a subject I wouldn't necessarily find fascinating otherwise. I even found a mention of a possible relation whose barony is still active in Lincolnshire. Too bad Sallie and I won't be going that way in the fall.

Unread books on my shelf at home:
Sarum: The Novel of England, Edward Rutherfurd
The Rebels of Ireland, also Rutherford
A Crack in the Edge of the World, Simon Winchester
Guide to Mac OS X Tiger, Leo Laporte

Books on hold at the library:
Virgin Earth, Philippa Gregory (in transit)
Micah, Laurell K. Hamilton (11 of 25 holds)
The 5th Horseman, James Patterson (5 of 16 holds)
Definitely Dead, Charlaine Harris (8 of 13 holds)
Darcy & Elizabeth: Days & Nights at Pemberly, Linda Berdoll (2 of 2 holds)
Tool & Die, Sarah Graves (ready for pickup)
Nail Biter, Sarah Graves (due 6/8)
Ladies with Prospects, Cynthia Hartwick (in transit)
Sleep, Pale Sister, Joanne Harris (ready for pickup)

I hope I made up for a slightly lacking column on last week's books with this week's long-winded entry. Catch me next time on Books I've Read This Week.

Comcast Travails

I've feel like I've spent a lifetime on the phone with Comcast in the last 24 hours. Last night I couldn't get the cable modem to work. Turns out you actually have to turn the darn thing on. Who knew?

Today my MLB Extra Innings subscription wasn't working properly. I was getting two of the ten channels in but not, of course, the one that had the game on I wanted to watch (Detroit). So I called and the customer service rep said she was going to turn my box off remotely. Well, it didn't turn off and then she said the commands were backed up for 20 minutes. So I said forget it. I was going to be recording something (hockey). Wouldn't you know it after 20 minutes the box turned off anyway. Damn it.

The channels still weren't coming in so I called back and the rep said to turn off the box here. So I did, to no avail. She finally scheduled a service call for Sunday morning. I had to get up by 9. Yippee.

I tried the channels a few minutes later and sure enough they were coming in fine so something she did helped. But I had to call back to cancel the appointment and was on hold for a long time. Detroit was leading 3-0 when I started watching and now it's 3-2. Maybe I shouldn't be watching it after all.

Grey's Anatomy on Oprah!

Ooooo! I just found out that the stars of Grey's Anatomy are on Oprah. I'm soooo glad I'm home today!

Working at Home is Great

I have a bad sore throat and am coughing up dark gooey phlegm so I'm at home today. My eyes were almost glued shut when I woke up this morning. Yikes!

I had some stuff that needed to get out the door today so I'm working too. It's so great to have a ballgame on the telly while I'm working. I do love my comfy chaise and my tea on the side table. I may have to take a nap pretty soon though. I'm getting tired.

Online at Home, Sweet Home

Woo Hoo! I'm online at home!

More later, as my rice cooker just indicated the rice is done. Gotta go heat up my lentil stew.

Home Computer Update

FedEx should be delivering my monitor and trackball from CDW tomorrow. So I should have everything I need to set up at home tomorrow night. I drove over to the Comcast office Monday after work to pick up my cable modem and self-installation kit. Maybe I'll hook up the cables tonight so all I have to do tomorrow is install some software and plug in the Ethernet cord.

French Toast My Way

whole wheat sourdough bread
2 medium eggs
pinch of kosher salt
splash or two of fat-free milk
trans-fat-free margarine
1 t whey low
1/2 t cinnamon

Prep:
Slice your bread into 1/2 inch slices (I use four). Beat eggs well in a shallow dish (I use a deep dish glass pie plate). Add a pinch of salt and a splash or two of milk to loosen the eggs. Soak bread in dish, turning occasionally. While you're waiting, mix the sugar and cinnamon in small bowl and preheat a nonstick fry pan on medium. Preheat your toaster oven to 200º.

Cooking:
Melt a bit of margarine in your pan. You want it to sizzle a little. Lay two slices of bread in pan and cook for two minutes without moving them. (Soak your other slices of bread while the first two are cooking.) Flip and sprinkle the cinnamon sugar on the cooked side (I use my fingers for better control). Cook the second side for a minute and a half and remove to warm in the toaster oven. Cook the other two slices the same way.

Enjoy!

Books I Read Last Week

I'd like to apologize to my faithful readers for the late publication of this column. I was so overwhelmed with joy at setting up my new computer on Friday that I completely forgot. I did read some last week and even more this week as several of my books-on-hold had arrived by my Saturday morning visit. But those will have to wait for the next column.

Last week I finished Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife by Linda Berdoll and read Promise Me by Harlan Coben, as well as skimming through Creative Digital Photography by Michael Busselle.

Mr. Darcy was okay. I think if I were more of a Jane Austen fan I'd have more of an opinion (one way or the other). I was glad it wasn't just a "lived happily ever after" story as it was not just peaches and roses for Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy after they got married. I liked it enough to put the sequel, Darcy & Elizabeth: Days & Nights at Pemberley, on my hold list.

Harlan Coben is one of my all-time favorite authors and his Myron Bolitar novels are right up my alley. Myron was a college basketball star at Duke but injured his knee before he got his break in the NBA. So he became a sports agent and has had various adventures involving his clients and odd friends in the previous novels. In Promise Me, Myron asks his new girlfriend's daughter and her friend to promise they would call him if they found themselves in trouble. Well, the friend did and he finds himself once again investigating after six years of relative calm in his life. I really enjoyed it as I do all Harlan's novels but it was over too soon. I hope he finds another situation for Myron in his next book. Not that his stand-alones aren't also good. Cuz they are.

Creative Digital Photography had some good stuff but was more about editing photos after you've taken them and scanned them than about taking photos themselves. It was interesting for me to see what kind of books are out there for when I have my computer set up and want to do some Photoshop work with the images I capture with my camera.

More next time on this week's edition of Books I've Read This Week.

Evaluation Reflection

Today was my annual evaluation at work. I receive written evaluations from two colleagues and my supervisor, and I fill out a self-evaluation form as well. Then my boss and I meet for an hour or so to discuss the written reports.

I've worked at the same place and for the same boss since 1993 so not much usually needs to be said. But it always feels good to read nice things from people you work with. And I like to confirm that my boss still thinks I'm doing an okay job. Plus it gives me a chance to talk about what I'd like to be different about my job.

Since 1993 I've had various responsibilities including bookkeeper, office manager, computer tech, desktop publishing designer, and database administrator. My job has evolved as I have and, as I've traded one responsibility for another, we've hired others to do what I have left behind, like being the office manager and the computer tech. I still help out with those things a bit but mostly I like my three-pronged approach, or as my boss said today, the tri-furcation of my job. I'm lucky that I have such a variety of tasks to do each day so I don't get bored of always doing numbers-crunching or writing database scripts or creating layouts. I might do all three in one day.

Say What?

I'm posting this from my new computer: a Mac Mini! Can you believe it? I finally broke down and got my own little machine. And, you better sit down, I'm actually going to get internet access at home. I know! I can't believe it either. I have to wait for my monitor to come in before I set myself up at home (I'm at work right now).

I'm loving the mini so far. Well, I'm actually love the latest Mac operating system, Tiger. I really need to install it on my work computer. I don't know why I've waited this long.

Well, I've got to get back to setting things up. Woo hoo!!

Hippies Rule!

Congrats to BJ & Tyler! I knew you could do it. Rock on!

The Frat Boys ran a good Race. I would've been happy if they'd won. They were only second because of the very last challenge. If it weren't for a little thing like a million dollars I think they'd feel good about second place.

Ray and Yolanda just need to learn how to read a map. Come on, people!

Kids on Parade

High Moon

Rodeo Parade

Here are some images from the rodeo parade on Saturday.



Swirl those skirts!



Little farm girl



Pretty white horses



Steppin' up



Band groupies hauling water bottles


Gotta love the purple balloons


Please keep your smelly cigars to yourself, thank you



This would've been more impressive had the horse been real

Moon Over My Apt

The Moon

Images From My Morning

Morning Traffic


Hummer's gas mileage getting too low for ya?
Gotta take public transportation, huh?


On the BART platform

Chris's Job Offer

I heard a rumor that Chris had been offered a job by his favorite band and come to find out it's Fuel, one of my favorite artists! I'm so lame that I didn't even know that Bret Scallions, their previous lead singer, had left the band. (I really need to find out what he's doing now.) Chris is, of course, under contract with American Idol so who knows if he'll accept or whether he'll try it out on his own. Either way, I'll be downloading it from iTunes.

Books I've Read This Week

When I left you last week I had begun The Virgin's Lover by Philippa Gregory. I thought I would like it but again I found myself not caring for her characters. I like the historical content of Philippa's books usually but this time it was more a soap opera but with no warmth. I couldn't wait to finish it.

Saturday morning I spent a little time at the library perusing the photography book section to see what training I might get for my new camera. I picked up The Complete Guide to Digital Photography by Michael Freeman, Creative Digital Photography by Michael Busselle, and How to Look at Everything by David Finn. I skimmed through The Complete Guide and, though it had some good instruction, it was written over five years ago so I think I may need to find some newer resources. How to Look at Everything is one of a series of books by David Finn including How to Look at Photographs and How to Look at Sculpture (neither of which I've read). The basic message is to open your eyes and mind to what is around you and be ready to capture it with your camera. I haven't read the third photography book yet. But I'll get to it.

Other books I read parts of this week include:
The Virgin Queen, Christopher Hibbert (I stopped once I got to the part that The Virgin's Lover covered)
Great Britain, Eyewitness Travel Guide (lots of illustrations and photos)

This morning I started Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife by Linda Berdoll. It picks up where Pride & Prejudice left off (I'm trusting the BBC miniseries on this as I've never read that classic) but is quite concerned with marital relations (let's leave it at that).

Books I have to return to the library tho' I've not finished them (shame!):
The Intelligent Traveller's Guide to Historic Britain (too many renewals)
The Complete Stonehenge (too many renewals)

Unread books on my shelf at home:
Sarum: The Novel of England, Edward Rutherford
A Crack in the Edge of the World, Simon Winchester
Creative Digital Photography by Michael Busselle

Books on hold at the library:
Virgin Earth, Philippa Gregory (1 of 1 holds!)
Micah, Laurell K. Hamilton (11 of 22 holds)
Have Your Cake and Kill Him Too, Nancy Martin (1 of 5 holds!)
The 5th Horseman, James Patterson (23 of 30 holds)
Promise Me, Harlan Coben (arrived!)
Their Noble Lordships, Simon Winchester (the website said it had arrived but it wasn't at the library, hmm)
Bleeding Hearts, Susan Wittig Albert (3 of 8 holds)
Definitely Dead, Charlaine Harris (13 of 13 holds)

As you can see I'll be waiting quite awhile for some of these books. It's really cramping my style having so many books on long-term holds because they only let you have 10 holds at a time. I could use 20 or more! I had to create an auxiliary hold list by bookmarking the pages of books I want to add.

I really need to get down to the San Francisco library and get a card so I can have more of a selection. My library's pretty limited in what's on the shelves.

And I need to keep reading! So see you next time on Books I've Read This Week.

Fire! Fire! Fire!

Oh, a fire tiebreaker in Survivor. How original!

The only original thing they could think of for the tiebreaker was to NOT FINISH IT! How rude! How annoying!

What? They think we won't watch Sunday's finale unless we don't know who the final three are? Like we're not addicted already a little cliff-hanger's going to do it for us?

Unnecessary. Unneeded. Un-American, I tell you.

Stupid Simon!

I'm laying the blame for Chris' elimination from American Idol all on Simon's shoulders. If only he would've been more positive, America would've voted for him. I voted. Why didn't you?!

Now my Chris is gone and so abruptly too. Thanks, Ryan, for just dropping the news on us with no warning. Were you behind schedule with Taylor's unexpected encore performance? So, what? Chris (and his fans) had to suffer?

Fried Grasshoppers, Yum

Last night my SF hippies went from last place in the Amazing Race to first. They even started with no money, and one of them had no shoes or pants. Two of the other teams gave them items of clothing and they were able to beg for money before they left Australia. They were the first (and only) ones to complete the Fast Forward challenge (a big bowl of fried grasshoppers & crickets) which sent them right to the Pit Stop, guaranteeing them a place in the final leg. Good on ya, boys!

Triple OT

I pity the poor hockey writers in the East who had to stay up to watch the Sharks lose in triple overtime to the Oilers last night. I pity the Sharks players and coaches and equipment staff more. Momentum is definitely on Edmonton's side now. To play for 42 minutes of overtime and lose will be hard for the Sharks to recover from. It's a really good thing they won the first two games. So not all is lost.

I expect this series will last a long time while Anaheim is in a position to sweep Colorado tonight and be sitting around waiting for their Conference Finals opponent. My preferred teams are losing in the second round. Colorado and New Jersey will never recover from being down 0-3. We'll see if they can even win a game. I thought the Devils were going to pull it off on Monday with that last minute goal only to see (the beautiful) Eric Staal tie it up with 3 seconds left. It was fitting that they lost in OT. And last night I could hardly watch the game (even tho it was in HD) it was so depressing. Where is the team that won 15 straight games. Is Brodeur injured?

Guest Spot

Your favorite sourpuss and mine made a cameo appearance on Gilmore Girls last night. Stars Hollow's town troubadour was "discovered" by a passing music big shot. Soon there were troubadours galore on the town's street corners and town square. One of them was a familiar face to 24 fans -- Chloe! Or rather the actress (and guitarist) Mary Lynn Rajskub. She even got a sourpuss look or two in when the town busybody asked her and the others to move along.

Pandora Rocks

Today Katherine turned me on to Pandora.com, where you enter your favorite musical artists and Pandora will custom-make a radio station for you with songs taken from their Music Genome Project which are similar to those artists. Give a thumbs-up or a thumbs-down to a song to help make a station just right for you. You can create more than one radio station and I would recommend doing that if you have wide tastes.

Click on the album art in the player to be sent to iTunes or Amazon to purchase tracks and albums or to find out more information. If you really like a song, you can add it to your Favorites list that you can view or print out later.

You can even add links for your radio stations to your blog! See my link in the sidebar to see what's playing at WKBJ. (not recommended for dial-up, sorry.)

Books I've Read This Week, Vol. I, Issue 8

Welcome to Books I've Read This Week. Last week I described a book by a new find of mine, Simon Winchester, and some Britain guidebooks. This week I finished Simon's The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary but found time to fit in only one other complete book: Memory in Death by J.D. Robb. I also read another chapter in my Historic Britain guidebook. Now I'm up to Elizabeth I. So I thought I'd start Philippa Gregory's The Virgin's Lover. I'm just a couple chapters into that now. I definitely like it so far.

The Meaning of Everything, like Simon's The Map That Changed the World, could've been awfully dry and boring and not worth my time but he makes me want to read on and on about these subjects that I would never have thought I'd be interested in. The creation of the Oxford English Dictionary was full of odd characters and I just couldn't wait to see what would happen in the end. It took 70 years from the initial discussions of making a new English dictionary to when it eventually was finished. There were many different editors and sub-editors throughout the years. Hundreds and hundreds of volunteers would read books the editors needed read and would send in pieces of paper with quotations on them. It was a fascinating way to create a dictionary and a very interesting read.

Memory in Death by J.D. Robb (aka Nora Roberts) was another sucessful installation in the slightly futuristic saga of Eve Dallas, New York City cop in 2059. In this story, Eve is visited by her abusive foster mother who attempts to extort Eve's filthy rich husband Roarke with threats to expose Eve's early life. She is subsequently murdered and Eve must investigate. I have to say, though I do love Eve and Roarke, my favorite character in these books is Eve's now-partner Peabody. She is the softer, more humorous side of the partnership and has grown from a green uniform cop to an investigator that Eve respects and depends on. I don't know how Nora Roberts writes so many books but there's not a one I have not enjoyed so I hope she doesn't stop anytime soon.

Unread books on my shelf at home:
Here Be Dragons, Sharon Kay Penman (I have to return this one. Someone else has a hold on it, dammit.)
The Virgin Queen: Elizabeth I, Genius of the Golden Age, Christopher Hibbert (I chose to read Philippa Gregory's fictional account first and then read this, possibly more accurate, history.)
Sarum: The Novel of England, Edward Rutherford (I've read this before. I'm not sure when I'll have time to crack this one open again.)
A Crack in the Edge of the World, Simon Winchester

Books on hold at the library:
Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife, Linda Berdoll (arrived)
Virgin Earth, Philippa Gregory
Micah, Laurell K. Hamilton
Have Your Cake and Kill Him Too, Nancy Martin
The 5th Horseman, James Patterson
Promise Me, Harlan Coben
Their Noble Lordships, Simon Winchester (arrived)
Bleeding Hearts, Susan Wittig Albert
Great Britain, Eyewitness Travel Guide

Not much movement on the hold shelf. People better start reading faster! Hopefully, I'll have more to report next time on Books I've Read This Week.

Hockey Playoffs

There's a highly unusual situation in the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs this year. All four of the top seeds in the East made it through while all the lower seeds in the West won their first round series.

One result is that San Jose, the five seed, will have home ice advantage throughout the Western Conference finals (if they can get by Edmonton). Pretty cool.

Also, there are no teams in the Eastern or Central time zones left in the West (Detroit, Nashvile & Dallas all lost). This will make for much better travel schedules for the remaining teams. It's still far to Edmonton though.

Games start up tonight. The Devils play tomorrow morning but San Jose doesn't play until Sunday. I can't wait!

The Pulse of America

Back when I chose my favorite American Idol contestants, I had no idea that millions of Americans were making the same choices. Somehow I had the pulse of the nation because my top four are now the last four standing.

Who knew that America would vote for a prematurely-greying spastic Joe Cocker wanna-be?

Who knew that a shaved-headed hard rocker would make it this far in a pop competition?

Who knew that a big-eared, crooked-toothed shorty would wiggle his way into the hearts of America?

I didn't know but I sure hoped they would. The only one that's no surprise to me is Katherine. Her qualifications were present from the beginning.

It should be very interesting next week.

My Walk to Work

A sign near where I park.















Someone obviously didn't read the sign.

My New Toy

I finally broke down and joined the digital (camera) age. I figured I'd want a new camera for my trip to England in the fall. The last time I bought a camera was in 1987, right before my year abroad in Spain. And I still have it. And it works. I just never ever use it.

I'm excited about learning how to use my fancy new toy. It's a Sony DSC-H1. I bit fancier than I expected I would want, but I might as well learn a new hobby. It'll probably take me half a year to learn how to use it.

Amazon has been teasing me all week. Yesterday the case and extra batteries arrived. Then finally the camera and memory stick arrived today. I was pretty excited about it only to discover the batteries had to be charged up before I could stick them in camera. So I guess I'll take it home and play with it tonight. Maybe I'll have some pics to post later this week.

Audrey Who?

Where was Audrey last night? Did it take a whole hour to fix up her arm? Wasn't she concerned when they brought in Bill? Did I miss something?

All Dressed Up

Last week I got a $15 off a $15 purchase in-store-only coupon from a company whose website I occasionally shop at and whose store I rarely visit. I will be in need of fancy clothes half a year from now when I go to the wedding in England so I'm on the lookout for a travelable dress because it'll need to be packed in my suitcase for a few days before the wedding. So I decided to go to the mall on Saturday to see what they had and if there was anything for $15 I wanted.

I guess they don't really sell dresses at this place. The only ones I could find were really formal. Just not my style. However, I did find this great long dark brown cotton skirt. It has an elastic waistband that also ties in the front. The bottom edges are unfinished and it has an underskirt so it looks nice and full. It looked kinda wrinkly already like I could roll it up in my suitcase and it'd be okay.

So I picked it up to see what kind of top I might find to go with it. I found two sets of workable tops: 1) a wrinkly cotton weave off-white tank top with embroidered neck detailing that could go under a short-sleeved off-white cotton crocheted sweater, or 2) a 3/4-sleeve woven cotton v-neck blouse, with soft flowing collar, that poofs out right below ribbon detailing at the waist. I liked them both and I couldn't choose so I got both choices. I can always take them back if I decide I like one more than the other.

Immigration Day

There was talk about closing down for the day but since "we're part of the solution and not the problem" our management decided to allow us three hours of paid time off to join in the protests. I decided not to go but the office is pretty much deserted. Just me and my boss right now. I could hear lots of exciting things going on down on the streets though. They've moved on to the Civic Center area now, I guess. It's quiet down there. Not even the usual street musicians on the steel drums or sax. Maybe they decided to join the protesters. Lucky for me.

While I was watching the news this morning the traffic reporters were amazed at how few cars there were on the road. I kept expecting them to relate it to the fact that so many people weren't going to work or school today. But somehow they couldn't make that connection. I didn't notice that much difference on BART.

Sharks Are Through! Devils Are Through!

Both my teams were able to win four games in their first series before their opponents did, advancing themselves to the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The Devils made it look easy, sweeping the Rangers in four. They get to rest up while their unknown opponent is still fighting for their playoff lives. They could play anyone left in the East except Ottawa.

Similiarly, the revved up Sharks, by beating Nashville in five, could play anyone left in the West except Detroit. If Detroit makes it, that is. Edmonton is up on them 3-2. They play Game 6 tonight in Canada. Let's hope for a Game 7!

I was so happy to see Colorado win yesterday. Now normally I would not be cheering for the Avs but they were playing the hated Dallas Stars. Oh, it was so lovely to see Marty Turco and Mike Modano lose in five games. Ha ha ha! Nice try, Pacific Division champs. And I'm really rooting for Calgary tonight. Beat those Ducks!