The fact that I struggle to blog with anything even resembling consistency or regularity is obvious. I have never really been able to figure this out, after all, I think about things, I have stuff to say, why don't I blog about it? Over the past hour I thought of about 2 post, possibly three, one of which I was tempted to do tonight. I thought I'd wait, so I would have a post for tomorrow, after having posted already today.
It is gone. Totally. Completely. Gone. I no longer even remotely remember the topic I was so enchanted with mere minutes ago, it is completely wiped from my mind. Bother! I don't think it's age or CRS, I think it just is a sign of the times, dump anything that isn't immediately required, to avoid overload. But really...no wonder I never blog.
Next time I think of a blog post, I will at least make myself a note.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Just because it's late, doesn't make it less true
I have carried the seeds for this post with me for a few weeks now, but until now have not had, or made the time to actually commit it to a post. A few weeks ago the Virginia, DC, Maryland section of the country was buried under about 20 inches of snow that mere weeks later were followed by two back-to-back winter storms. The government closed for almost a week, drivers were encouraged to stay off the roads and even the Washington transit system came to a grinding halt due to snow.
We were lucky in that we both made it home before the weather hit and therefore were safe. We did, however, lose power. For 5 days. Our house is all electric, so no power means no water, no heat, no nothing. We were not unprepared, we keep some camping gear in the house, so we were able to cook and we had back-up lights. We do have a small propane heater, but it is designed to heat a small tent, not a house. We have a fairly well stocked pantry with food and water stores, as well as candles, paper products and some additional pet supplies. We knew there were two big items still missing from the emergency preparedness plan, an emergency radio and supplemental heat. We had wisely left the cars on the bottom of the hill, so after two days, we managed to drive to town and arrange for a propane heater and the radio. Overall, I give us good marks for preparedness. We will improve a few things in case of future problems, but the start is made.
What really came out of this experience though, was a reaffirmation that my husband and I are very well suited to each other and make an excellent team. Neither one of us got frustrated, whiny or pissed and quite frankly we had a pretty good time throughout the whole experience. We worked together, made things as comfortable as possible, played games, read and did our chores. I'm not sure I'd want to repeat the experience anytime soon, but it is good to confirm yet again that my life partner and I are one the same frequency.
We were lucky in that we both made it home before the weather hit and therefore were safe. We did, however, lose power. For 5 days. Our house is all electric, so no power means no water, no heat, no nothing. We were not unprepared, we keep some camping gear in the house, so we were able to cook and we had back-up lights. We do have a small propane heater, but it is designed to heat a small tent, not a house. We have a fairly well stocked pantry with food and water stores, as well as candles, paper products and some additional pet supplies. We knew there were two big items still missing from the emergency preparedness plan, an emergency radio and supplemental heat. We had wisely left the cars on the bottom of the hill, so after two days, we managed to drive to town and arrange for a propane heater and the radio. Overall, I give us good marks for preparedness. We will improve a few things in case of future problems, but the start is made.
What really came out of this experience though, was a reaffirmation that my husband and I are very well suited to each other and make an excellent team. Neither one of us got frustrated, whiny or pissed and quite frankly we had a pretty good time throughout the whole experience. We worked together, made things as comfortable as possible, played games, read and did our chores. I'm not sure I'd want to repeat the experience anytime soon, but it is good to confirm yet again that my life partner and I are one the same frequency.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Camera-derie
We are a Nikon family. My DH has used Nikons for probably going on 30 years and I have had mine for almost 25. I started with a Nikon N2000. I bought it at a photo store in Massachusetts, when the original owner traded it in after 2 weeks to get a slightly bigger model. Because of that, I started out with a Nikkor 50mm 1:1.8 as well as an Underground 28mm 1:2.8. Fairly soon thereafter I saved all my pennies and picked up a Vivitar 35-200mm 1:3.0-4.5, which became my all around, every purpose lens from then on.
I had a decent eye, but technically, I was never really good. I compensated for lack of understanding with decent instinct, but over time the hassle, the weight of the gear and the long-windedness of the process (shoot, develop, evaluate, discard or reprint, repeat) caused me to use the gear less and less.
Then came digital photography and for a good long time, nothing changed. DH and I both love gadgets and technology, but the digital bandwagon was eyed suspiciously for a fairly long time. Eventually, we bought a point-and-shoot to try it out. This camera, to my knowledge the only non-Nikon interloper in the family, a Canon Powershot A620, has served us well and after DH upgraded to a D80, the Canon was mine to use pretty much exclusively.
I have to admit, I started to have DSLR envy. I love pulling things in real close, especially architectural elements and plants (I'm not good at portraits), so the somewhat limited zoom capability of the point-and-shoot niggled me. However, I hadn't taken pictures in a while and didn't seem to exhibit the level of commitment to the hobby that I would have liked to see to justify the investment of a DSLR. Also, I had pretty specific ideas of what I wanted and it wasn't really anything that was available yet. Basically I wanted an entry level DSLR that any photo-moron could use, but one with enough oomph to last me trough the growth towards a possible later upgrade, but at a good price.
When I initially saw the D5000 I got pretty excited. It looked pretty much like the camera I "ordered", except that it still had features I didn't want or need (video, for example) and the price was still not where I wanted it. I continued to ponder...
When I realized there was now also a D3000 I started to research it and read the reviews and I realized that this was exactly what I had been looking for. Last Saturday DH and I exchanged our birthday presents (3 weeks early, but we knew we'd have time to play with them then, so why not) and I got my new baby.
I got the kit with the 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 Nikkor lens and I am probably going to add the other lens often available in the kit (a 55-120mm I believe) fairly soon. My old lenses work, of course, except that I have to figure out how to use them (they are manual lenses). Since practice is supposed to increase skill, I am going to try to participate in my own little 365 project. who knows, it may actually prime the pump and get me back into photography the way I hope it will.
I had a decent eye, but technically, I was never really good. I compensated for lack of understanding with decent instinct, but over time the hassle, the weight of the gear and the long-windedness of the process (shoot, develop, evaluate, discard or reprint, repeat) caused me to use the gear less and less.
Then came digital photography and for a good long time, nothing changed. DH and I both love gadgets and technology, but the digital bandwagon was eyed suspiciously for a fairly long time. Eventually, we bought a point-and-shoot to try it out. This camera, to my knowledge the only non-Nikon interloper in the family, a Canon Powershot A620, has served us well and after DH upgraded to a D80, the Canon was mine to use pretty much exclusively.
I have to admit, I started to have DSLR envy. I love pulling things in real close, especially architectural elements and plants (I'm not good at portraits), so the somewhat limited zoom capability of the point-and-shoot niggled me. However, I hadn't taken pictures in a while and didn't seem to exhibit the level of commitment to the hobby that I would have liked to see to justify the investment of a DSLR. Also, I had pretty specific ideas of what I wanted and it wasn't really anything that was available yet. Basically I wanted an entry level DSLR that any photo-moron could use, but one with enough oomph to last me trough the growth towards a possible later upgrade, but at a good price.
When I initially saw the D5000 I got pretty excited. It looked pretty much like the camera I "ordered", except that it still had features I didn't want or need (video, for example) and the price was still not where I wanted it. I continued to ponder...
When I realized there was now also a D3000 I started to research it and read the reviews and I realized that this was exactly what I had been looking for. Last Saturday DH and I exchanged our birthday presents (3 weeks early, but we knew we'd have time to play with them then, so why not) and I got my new baby.
I got the kit with the 18-55mm 1:3.5-5.6 Nikkor lens and I am probably going to add the other lens often available in the kit (a 55-120mm I believe) fairly soon. My old lenses work, of course, except that I have to figure out how to use them (they are manual lenses). Since practice is supposed to increase skill, I am going to try to participate in my own little 365 project. who knows, it may actually prime the pump and get me back into photography the way I hope it will.
Sunday, November 8, 2009
Things to strive for
Living with the seasons, making more with less, cooking more meals from scratch, all of these are goals I am trying to incorporate into my life. Actually, these are goals I have been trying to incorporate into my life for years now.
I work in the IT field, 70-ish miles from home in a 24/7 environment. My work schedule makes it a challenge at times to pursue my own goals.
I try to do what I can. Over the past three years, my DH was deployed twice. To make room for the extra responsibilities that left me with, I "outsourced" some of my life. While I have always been an affirmed ironer of shirts (I know, I am weird), I have sent most of my shirt to the dry cleaners. I neither liked the results, nor the expense, but I had clean shirts, so it was a good investment. DH is back for now and currently I iron my own stuff again, but come January, when I take another class towards my next degree, the dry cleaner will be there to pick up my slack if I need it.
I got help cleaning my house. Once a week or every two weeks, 2 wonderful ladies buzz through my home and dust, scrub, vacuum and sweep everything and then some. Sometimes I am lazy and use the time to relax, a lot of times I sew and often I take the time to work on some sorting/purging project. We have made a lot of progress towards a comfortable home over the past few years, but there is still a lot to do. If I need to, I will reduce the frequency of the visits, but I will try to keep them in the budget, not just for the clean house, but for the friendship as well.
Pretty much the first thing we did when we moved into our home was to establish a pantry. DH and I both love our pantry. It is nice sized and lovely. It is not as well organized as I would like and until a few weeks ago it held some small appliances etc that took up valuable shelf space. We finally made a space for those things in what we (somewhat tongue-in-cheek) refer to as our "butler's pantry". The bp consists of several sturdy shelves (think commercial kitchen style chrome wire shelves) in a cupboard under the stairs. In addition to the small appliances mentioned above, that space now also holds extra dishes, large platters and serving dishes, the silver flatware etc. The space will still need some tweaking, but it is already developing quite nicely.
The food pantry now has a surprising amount of free shelf space that I will have to ponder on and rearrange, possibly in the coming week (at least that's when I hope to get started on it). I think this will allow me to get a better grip on our stores and use them more wisely. Once I get things a bit more organized, I will try to use my price book and sales etc to replenish things.
We built 4 raised beds in the veggie garden this spring. Those crops did really well, the ones in the remaining garden beds not so much. We will add a few more raised beds next year and hopefully, little by little, we will have a larger selection of crops each year. With canning and dehydrating, we should be able to fill those pantry shelves in no time.
There are many things I would like to do better, but as long as we make progress towards our goals, I am happy.
I work in the IT field, 70-ish miles from home in a 24/7 environment. My work schedule makes it a challenge at times to pursue my own goals.
I try to do what I can. Over the past three years, my DH was deployed twice. To make room for the extra responsibilities that left me with, I "outsourced" some of my life. While I have always been an affirmed ironer of shirts (I know, I am weird), I have sent most of my shirt to the dry cleaners. I neither liked the results, nor the expense, but I had clean shirts, so it was a good investment. DH is back for now and currently I iron my own stuff again, but come January, when I take another class towards my next degree, the dry cleaner will be there to pick up my slack if I need it.
I got help cleaning my house. Once a week or every two weeks, 2 wonderful ladies buzz through my home and dust, scrub, vacuum and sweep everything and then some. Sometimes I am lazy and use the time to relax, a lot of times I sew and often I take the time to work on some sorting/purging project. We have made a lot of progress towards a comfortable home over the past few years, but there is still a lot to do. If I need to, I will reduce the frequency of the visits, but I will try to keep them in the budget, not just for the clean house, but for the friendship as well.
Pretty much the first thing we did when we moved into our home was to establish a pantry. DH and I both love our pantry. It is nice sized and lovely. It is not as well organized as I would like and until a few weeks ago it held some small appliances etc that took up valuable shelf space. We finally made a space for those things in what we (somewhat tongue-in-cheek) refer to as our "butler's pantry". The bp consists of several sturdy shelves (think commercial kitchen style chrome wire shelves) in a cupboard under the stairs. In addition to the small appliances mentioned above, that space now also holds extra dishes, large platters and serving dishes, the silver flatware etc. The space will still need some tweaking, but it is already developing quite nicely.
The food pantry now has a surprising amount of free shelf space that I will have to ponder on and rearrange, possibly in the coming week (at least that's when I hope to get started on it). I think this will allow me to get a better grip on our stores and use them more wisely. Once I get things a bit more organized, I will try to use my price book and sales etc to replenish things.
We built 4 raised beds in the veggie garden this spring. Those crops did really well, the ones in the remaining garden beds not so much. We will add a few more raised beds next year and hopefully, little by little, we will have a larger selection of crops each year. With canning and dehydrating, we should be able to fill those pantry shelves in no time.
There are many things I would like to do better, but as long as we make progress towards our goals, I am happy.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Today's daily bread...
Look what came out of the oven this morning:
This is the first time I've used the Artisan Bread Topping from King Arthur Flour (http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/artisan-bread-topping-8-oz) That stuff is terrific!
This is the first time I've used the Artisan Bread Topping from King Arthur Flour (http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/items/artisan-bread-topping-8-oz) That stuff is terrific!
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Goodies!
Here are the wonderful things I found today:
As I mentioned in the last post, I found a great garden ornament at the Design House. The tall white rusted contraption to the right of the chair is it. The globe portion spins around the arrow. The height is fantastic, I can stick it in the back of the bed and it looks lovely (permanent place yet to be determined)
In the Community Center I picked this little goodness up. It's about 14 inches tall.
This came from the same booth as the dress form. I'm not entirely sure where I'll put it, but it is really pretty and it was very reasonable, so I decided to sort it out later.
Ah, cloches, I love them. This is actually my first one, although I do have a very nice short one, which is actually a cheese dome, so I guess that doesn't really count. There is some engraving on the bell, but it didn't show up very well in the pictures I took. Maybe once it's filled it'll be more visible.
After I left Lucketts and returned home, I "happened to be in the neighborhood" of Slindy's, our local treasure trove (sometimes more than others, of course)
This little picnic basket was mine for the bargain price of $1.99. Can't beat that and I already have a need for it next week when we have tickets for Wolftrap.
Also from Slindy's, for the great price of $1.50 is this little covered dish. I have a weakness for tureens, covered dishes and large bowls and if they are white porcelain or ironstone, I find it very hard to resist.
And finally, two aisles over, temptation loomed large. at $6, I didn't even try to resist.
As I mentioned in the last post, I found a great garden ornament at the Design House. The tall white rusted contraption to the right of the chair is it. The globe portion spins around the arrow. The height is fantastic, I can stick it in the back of the bed and it looks lovely (permanent place yet to be determined)
In the Community Center I picked this little goodness up. It's about 14 inches tall.
This came from the same booth as the dress form. I'm not entirely sure where I'll put it, but it is really pretty and it was very reasonable, so I decided to sort it out later.
Ah, cloches, I love them. This is actually my first one, although I do have a very nice short one, which is actually a cheese dome, so I guess that doesn't really count. There is some engraving on the bell, but it didn't show up very well in the pictures I took. Maybe once it's filled it'll be more visible.
After I left Lucketts and returned home, I "happened to be in the neighborhood" of Slindy's, our local treasure trove (sometimes more than others, of course)
This little picnic basket was mine for the bargain price of $1.99. Can't beat that and I already have a need for it next week when we have tickets for Wolftrap.
Also from Slindy's, for the great price of $1.50 is this little covered dish. I have a weakness for tureens, covered dishes and large bowls and if they are white porcelain or ironstone, I find it very hard to resist.
And finally, two aisles over, temptation loomed large. at $6, I didn't even try to resist.
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