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Like a waterfall in slow motion, Part One
3 years ago
April 12, 2010
April 9, 2010
Taking a break from cleaning
I'm moving to Seattle metro area.
I prefer to be closer to Seattle proper, but I had a tough time finding an apartment that allowed "large dogs." The definition of a large dog? A dog 25 lbs and up. Cue massive eyerolling. I'm sure I would've found something eventually if I had more time and was already up there. But I'm not...this apartment complex, one of the few that allows large dogs, will do in the interim.
My current apartment complex has a very long checkout list, and I am determined to do as much as I can because they overcharge for cleaning or replacement. Here's an example: One of my electric burner's drip pan and ring was really dirty and I couldn't get it perfectly clean. The replacement for that would've cost me $18 for the ring, $16 for the drip pan. Total: $34. I went out and found the exact same kind for my specific stove. It cost me $7 total for both. Talk about ripoff... I know I'll lose some of the deposit because the carpet is filthy. But I'm hoping to get at least some of it back.
Last year, I moved across the country with only what fit in the trunk of my car. My folks kindly helped out by shipping a few straggling boxes that I couldn't fit in the car. This year, armed with a Jeep, I'm renting a small trailer, which I highly doubt I'll even halfway fill. But this time I actually have a few pieces of furniture. Woo.
Keep an eye out for photos next week! I anticipate it'll take me about 3 1/2 days to get there even though we could do it in two. Between the trailer vs the mountains and Apollo's frequent "Gotta pee" breaks, we'll be going fairly slow.
April 3, 2010
April is a bubble gum month
I haven't posted pictures because between getting ready to move and my parents visiting (read: staying with me) for my nephew's birthday, I've been fairly busy.
Read more...March 26, 2010
March 22, 2010
Assignment Monday: P is for...
"Póg mo thóin" of course!
March 19, 2010
Friday "OMG It's Snowing!" Apollo
On the last day of Winter, I chose to exercise my privilege as the foodlady to torture Apollo. Don't be fooled by these pictures, he was NOT happy about having to wear goggles and boots.
Last year, it snowed here in Denver in April. And it snowed on the last day of Summer. Since September, we've had about 60 inches of snow. And the weather guys are saying we could get up to 18 inches today.
I don't mind too much, actually. But I'm definitely glad I didn't plan on a road trip for this weekend.
As a side note - I absolutely hate those boots made by Ruff Wear. The rubber part is stiff and it doesn't conform to Apollo's feet, and inevitably ends up on the top side, with the cloth portion on underside. Supposedly the doggy socks - yep they make them now - helps with that, but I don't believe it. I will be on the lookout for a better-designed set for next year. Read more...
March 17, 2010
I visited the Arctics
And took pictures while I was there. Here's one from my trip. And yes, it was cold!
I'm having entirely too much fun with the macro setup.
Read more...
March 15, 2010
Assignment Monday
A few months ago I got a hankering to do some macro shots, but I didn't want to put a lot of money into a new lens that I'd use only occasionally because I have an eye on a pricey $10,000 camera - it hasn't even been released in the States yet. Expensive tastes. Anyway. I did some poking around and discovered that there are some very cheap workarounds called extension tubes. They range from $10 to $100 or so; I ordered the cheapest one for $10 - free shipping too - and eagerly waited for it. It was shipped alll the way from China.
When I finally got it, two weeks later, I tried it on my camera and...it didn't work! CRAP! I was pissed and confused. Kinda like how you'd feel if someone pissed on you.
Reading up on the extension tubes, I discovered that I needed an old fashioned lens with an aperture ring. Some of Pentax's newer lens don't have one because the camera's on-board computer can control that. And none of my lens have an aperture ring. At first, I was a little mad about that. What if the world ended and I wanted to be able to take pictures? But then I realized...I wouldn't have any way to charge up the batteries. Or download the pictures. My brain can be a strange place sometimes.
Back to the drawing board. I hit the ever-informative internet and found out that ALL of Pentax's lens are backward compatible up until a certain date - sometimes in early 70s, I believe. None of the other major camera producers can lay claim to this - they all change the mount system every few years. Hallelujah! I'm so glad I went with Pentax when I was first looking into professional cameras.
But I digress. Backward compatibility meant, in short, I could order an old manual lens very cheaply. I found and bought a nice 50mm f2.8 lens off Ebay for around $12. I actually got lucky with that buy - other similar lens were selling for around $40 or so. After waiting over a month (the seller took forever to put it in the mail), it finally arrived yesterday.
FINALLY!
Here's an image I took without the tube...
March 12, 2010
March 5, 2010
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