Colour Stack

27 December 2007
After a number of days off, back to work was pretty difficult. The joy of it is, I have the office pretty much to myself. Which means I can get a LOT of work done with little to no distraction. No loud sales-gaggle across the hall; no plethora of conference calls; no people wandering by to "have a chat." Lots of good, quality work gets done. it also allows for a bit of house-cleaning. That is: straightening the desk, cleaning out all those old pens that no longer work but you keep them around anyway, trashing old documents that are no longer relevant (or at least filing them) and so on. During the cleaning frenzy, I re-located these:

They had been shoved back behind a stack of file folders. I pulled them out, dusted them off and tried, once again in vain, to solve its hidden puzzle. These cubes (there are actually four of them) may be arranged in such a manner (only one solution exists, apparently) that all four long sides show each color only once. It's quite maddening and although Katrina gave this puzzle to me several years back, I have yet to solve it. I think I just give up too easily.
Cheers.

~KR (27 December 2007)

Listening to:
I Can't Win by The Mojo Filters

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.3 sec (3/10)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 1 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: TOY, PUZZLE, GAME, CUBES, PHOTOBLOG

The Protective Net

25 December 2007
Christmas Day. You know what that means? Yep. Time to go see a movie with the rest of humanity. Normally we would go to the Movie Tavern, but it was important enough to both of us that we see Sweeney Todd that we went to the Parks Mall (*shudder*) instead. Goodness. What a great movie, but do not take your children or overly-squeamish adults. Remember that this is a "horror" musical directed by Tim Burton. And Tim Burton is nothing if not over-the-top, so there was a whole lot of stylish, over-the-top blood-spilling. Great fun. On the way out, we walked near the Ice Skating rink. I guess everyone who wasn't seeing a movie with us was ice skating instead. The line to get into/onto the rink was at least 70 people strong (not counting the kids who wouldn't stand still long enough to be counted). I had no idea. While we were walking across the gangplank, some poor lady fell and smacked her head pretty hard. This is a photo of the suddenly cleared area near her:
and a really good view of the net that protects those on the upper floor from... uhmmm...
Right.
Cheers.

~KR (25 December 2007)

Listening to:
Hey by The Risk

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.017 sec (1/60)
Aperture: f/5.5
Focal Length: 23.2 mm
ISO Speed: 250
Exposure Bias: 0/3 EV
Flash: Flash fired, auto mode, red-eye reduction

Tags: NET, ICE+SKATING, ARLINGTON, TEXAS, PHOTOBLOG

The Face

24 December 2007
I've no real idea where this came from, but it's been hanging there for a while. So, I took a photo:
Making the mundane beautiful (or at least semi-interesting).
Cheers.

~KR (24 December 2007)

Listening to:
Winged/Wicked Things by Sunset Rubdown

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.04 sec (1/25)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 1 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: STATUE, FACE, DECORATION, PHOTOBLOG

Chocolate!

23 December 2007
I confess, this photo was actually taken at 12:01 AM on the 24th, not the 23rd. But, taking a page from my wife's excuse book: I haven't been to bed yet, so it's still today. Therefore this photo counts for my photo on the 23rd. Which is important, because I didn't take any photos.

It's chocolate.

Cheers.

~KR (23 December 2007)

Listening to:
Ceremony by Xiu Xiu

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.8 sec (4/5)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 1 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: CHOCOLATE, CLOSE-UP, BOKEH, SWEET, CANON, PHOTOBLOG

Rahr Brewery with Friends

22 December 2007
If you've not gleaned this yet, you're not paying attention: I like beer. I like beer of most sorts, but free beer really gets my attention. So, on Saturday's when Rahr Brewery, just south of downtown Ft. Worth gives away free beer for 2 hours, I'm quite likely to attend. This past Saturday we did attend, taking with us 2 great dogs and 5 great friends. More were invited, but we take what we can get. In this photo, we have Mary tossing back the rest of her Winter Warmer so that she can run grab a top-up before last call.


Notice the dainty method involved with draining that pint glass to its very last drop.
Cheers.

~KR (22 December 2007)

Listening to:
Breeze by Genki Rockets

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.077 sec (1/13)
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 10 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0/3 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: RAHR+BREWERY, FT.+WORTH, FRIENDS, PHOTOBLOG, BEER

Drip

21 December 2007
Making the mundane beautiful (or at least semi-intersting) is one of the major challenges of a daily photo-blog. Rarely is it easy. This is an example of an attempt at exactly that. It's a slightly drippy faucet that I ran across during the day. Several photos (and who knows how many odd looks) later I retreated from its drip-drip-drip. I took this photo as the best of the lot in my opinion:

Cheers.

~KR (21 December 2007)

Listening to:
False Sir John by Broadside Electric

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.167 sec (833334/5000003)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 1 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: FAUCET, DRIP, PHOTOBLOG, CANON

Pitcher and Pint

20 December 2007
A vacation day. I worked at home all day on A Wardrobe in Time, then followed it up with a trip to Rob's for a retirement party for a good man. We will sorely miss him - he cared about his job. There were a bunch of us that descended on Rob's, a local pool hall, to shoot pool and shoot the shit with the man who was leaving our company and companionship.

Take care, Denny.
Cheers.

~KR (20 December 2007)

Listening to:
Just Like Pat Benetar by Super Secret Handshake

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.077 sec (1/13)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0/3 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: PITCHER, PINT, BEER, ROB'S+BILLIARDS, FT.+WORTH, TEXAS, POOL+HALL, CANON, PHOTOBLOG

Plaza Pub

19 December 2007
Jury Duty. I'd deferred it once because of out-of-the-country travelling, and just simply couldn't do it again. Marita Beth kindly offered to take me to the courthouse so I wouldn't have to deal with the bus; the offer was gladly accepted. I went in, and was early enough, that the line was not overly long either at the metal detectors at the front door or to sign in for the jury duty bit itself. Unfortunately, as more and more people arrived, the sheer amount of perfume, cologne and other body odors overwhelmed my rather weak respiratory system and I had a mild, but serious enough, asthma attack. I was excused from jury duty. I called MB, she came and got me and we drove around until I was feeling better. Then she suggested breakfast.which I rarely do, but having been weakened by the attack, I conceeded and off we went to Ol' South Pancake House - a favourite in Ft. Worth. A whole bunch of other stuff happened in the middle of the day, but I don't recall it all. Somehow we ended up on the Northeast side of Arlington where we located a charming little place run by Ed, the Publican. It's called the Plaza Pub:

Despite the fact that is, and will remain, a smokers bar, I feel that I will be back. We each had a quick pint then off we trundled to watch the Enchanted followed by Alvin and the Chipmunks. You can read MB's entry to get the full extend of that experience.
Cheers.

~KR (19 December 2007)

Listening to:
The War by Lucero

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.001 sec (1/800)
Aperture: f/3.5
Focal Length: 10 mm
ISO Speed: 160
Exposure Bias: 0/3 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire, auto mode

Tags: PLAZA+PUB, BAR, PUB, ARLINGTON, TEXAS, PHOTOBLOG, CANON

Mountain o'Fabric

18 December 2007
A Stack of Fabric. How exciting is that?

Cheers.

~KR (18 December 2007)

Listening to:
The Storm by Teddy Larkin

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 1 sec (1)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 1 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: FABRIC, STACK, A+WARDROBE+IN+TIME, CANON, PHOTOBLOG

Lone Tree Hill

17 December 2007
The Lone Tree Hill. This is one of Marita Beth's favourite photos that I've taken in recent times. I like it, too, but not so much as I think she does. The tree stands directly behind Our Garden of Angels on the hill overlooking the Arlington Bottoms. In a different framing you could potentially see the Ft. Worth city skyline just to the right of the tree itself. I didn't choose to post that photo as MB preferred this one.

Cheers.

~KR (17 December 2007)

Watching: Ghost Rider

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.005 sec (1/200)
Aperture: f/9
Focal Length: 8.6 mm
ISO Speed: 80
Exposure Bias: 0/3 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire, auto mode

Tags: TREE, SUNSET, NATURAL, HILL, FT.+WORTH, ARLINGTON, TEXAS, PHOTOBLOG

The Strongbow Mat

16 December 2007
Marita Beth spent all day with her dance troupe working on a performance piece. I spent all day...not doing anything. It was delightful. Well, ok, I did do things, but they were non-critical, non-useful things like movie-watching (I saw Hitman - blecchh), footy-watching (Arsenal beat Chelsea 1-nil in a super-fun match to watch) and tegestology things. I have learned a new-found respect for people who shoot products in light-tents. What a difficult process. But, I'm still trying.

Cheers.

Listening to:
Thank You by Maral Salmassi

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.017 sec (1/60)
Aperture: f/4
Focal Length: 14.3 mm
ISO Speed: 250
Exposure Bias: 0/3 EV
Flash: Flash fired, auto mode, red-eye reduction

Tags: STRONGBOW, TEGESTOLOGY, BEER+MAT, COASTER, PHOTOBLOG, COLLECTION, HOBBY

Mike's Blurry Tegestological Contribution

15 December 2007
For a happy-happy gift, my wife got me (with my help) a light tent for close-up photography. Between our three businesses (Bannockburn Bridge, East Wind Games & A Wardrobe in Time) we frequently find need for close-up product shots. We've never had much success getting our poorly designed house to shed the proper kind of light for this sort of photography. I had recently read articles on making inexpensive light-tents, but MB had already scouted one out for me that was not only darned reasonably priced, but ws conveniently built & packaged, too. So, she bought it for me. So, what do I do? Take photos of product - the reason for the purchase of this light tent in the frist place? No. I decided that this is a perfect way to take my hobby of tegestology to the next level. Digitally recording and storing every beer mat I have in my collection. This is the very first shot taken in the brand new light tent and the first step toward a life-long goal of catalouging an immense collection of beer mats.

I can only get better.
Hooray beer!
Cheers.

~KR (15 December 2007)

Listening to:
Paper Planes by M.I.A.
from Kala

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.017 sec (1/60)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 800
Exposure Bias: 0/3 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire, auto mode

Tags: TEGESTOLOGY, BEER+MATS, COASTERS, COLLECTION, LIGHT+TENT, PHOTOBLOG

Trees from Above

14 December 2007
Friday, the 14th of December woke cold, damp and foggy. Many of my peers had taken the day off; in fact it seemed that much of the Dallas - Ft. Worth metropolitan area had taken the day off. The traffic was blissfully quiet and the drive was quick - for a change. I took the opportunity of a quiet office to walk down to my boss's corner and snap a few shots of the Bradford Pear trees under his window. Aside from their horrendous rotting meat smell for about a week in the early spring, these are lovely trees. They cause my allergies to a go a little nuts (at the same time they smell like rotting meat), but it's a short-lived irritant. The rest of the year, they're simply beautiful.

Cheers.

~KR (14 December 2007)

Listening to:
Super Mario's Sleigh Ride by the One Ups

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.008 sec (1/125)
Aperture: f/3.2
Focal Length: 7.5 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0/3 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: BRADFORD+PEAR+TREES, AUTUMN, COLOURS, WALKWAY, RAIN, WEATHER, PHOTOBLOG

Help?

13 December 2007
Had to get a trivia fix in somehow, so MB and I headed to NFG on a Thursday night to play trivia and maybe have a burger and/or some beer. I used to play this trivia thing nearly every night years and years and years ago. That was back when the boxes were operated by NTN (National Trivia Network). I grew out of it, because the questions just kept repeating themselves and there's no fun in winning every hand because you've already had those questions many times before. I stopped playing. Recently, a couple of years ago, Buzztime bought out NTN and started adding newer & better & more relevant questions. But, sadly, they also seemed to lose, at the same time, some of the technical consistency that NTN had down pat. The boxes go in and out of service, the delay between answering the question and receiving a response has gotten longer and more frequently irritating. In general, the quality has gone down. Yet still I play. There's nothing quite like accidental learning. Here is a photo of me playing. Notice my hand in strategic positioning to best answer the question quickly & accurately.

Cheers.

~KR (13 December 2007)

Listening to:
Stronger by 30 Seconds to Mars

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD850 IS
Exposure: 0.3 sec (3/10)
Aperture: f/2.8
Focal Length: 5.8 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 1 EV
Flash: Flash did not fire

Tags: TRIVIA, BOX, NO+FRILLS+GRILL, PHOTOBLOG