Archive for May, 2007
summer entertainment season
May 31st
I enjoy watching television. That’s a bad thing to say these days, isn’t it? I’m sure someone will look down on me because of that. I rarely just sit and watch; I’m usually doing homework, working out, or doing other things (I’m writing this and the TV is on) while watching.
The majority of mainstream television is now on the summer season. That means a lot of reruns, reality TV, and game shows. I like reality TV but I don’t typically watch reruns or game shows (what’s up with all of these shows that are like American Idol — which isn’t very good to begin with–America’s Top Model, So You Think You Can Dance, etc.?). So, I look to HBO and Showtime to give me their summer series. Since I just got Showtime, I’m catching up on some of their series: Dexter, The L Word (which I have gotten through Netflix), and The Tudors. On HBO, I’m watching the final episodes of The Sopranos, Entourage, and waiting impatiently for Big Love to start next week. Both channels have some interesting shows coming up.
But what is a girl to do when she wants to fill the silence of the house with good old raucus television? Sure, sure, there’s Netflix. I’ve been watching the Battlestar Gallactica series and it has been pretty good. I get a few movies in-between the series.
This summer, though, I’ve decided to put my iPod to good use. I mentioned before that I belong to an Audible bookclub with some of my co-workers. I also got an account. I have a few books that I can listen to:
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
Angel’s Rest by Charles Davis
Born on a Blue Day by Daniel Tammet
The Stranger by Albert Camus
Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
The City of Falling Angels by John Berendt
Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood
Running with Scissors by Augusten Burroughs
I’ve already listened to the Burroughs book. It was ok. It wasn’t as phenomenal as I thought it would be, given that it has gotten rave reviews from nearly everyone I talk to. Then again, I tend to be quirky and don’t like what others like to read. I rarely read mainstream top 10 books. They just aren’t my thing.
I’ll also be adding to my podcast subscriptions. I currently have about 50 subscriptions (and this doesn’t even include the blog subscriptions that I read in Google Reader). I have a few vlogcasts but mostly podcasts. I’ll try to stay caught up on those.
I have these great Griffin Ear Thumps that block out a lot of the noise and that are more comfortable than the ear buds. They make my listening manageable. And yes, I bought black Ear Thumps to match my black nano…because I’m dorky like that.
Do you have any listening / viewing recommendations? I’d love to hear them.
blight
May 31st
Today I had a six month checkup for cancer. We’ve backed down from every three months to every six. That’s a good thing.
I haven’t had any biopsies taken in almost a year and a half. That’s amazing. It’s really amazing because I was averaging a new biopsy for every visit, if not more, before then.
It caught up to me, though. It was bound to. I’m due.
It’s almost two years (in September) since my last melanoma was found. Two years. Can you believe it? Most of you who read my blog have been around at least that long, if not longer.
Five years is the magic number. At five years, they figure that you can go down to a yearly visit because it’s not coming back. I haven’t made it to five years yet.
First, carcinoma on my hand. Two months later, a melanoma on my back. Three years after that, another melanoma. Now, two years later, we’re watching.
Two biopsies today. A pound of flesh removed from my upper right thigh and another pound removed from the middle of the inside of my left calf. Ok, not nearly a pound…but it sure feels like it. Big scoops of flesh removed from my body — areas that will take months, if not years, to mend because legs mend so slowly. I still have one that is trying to mend from two years ago December on my lower right calf. Over two years and the mark is still there, still looking bruised and ugly.
I will find out the pathology results within a week. I’m not worried about the one from my calf. That one didn’t look bad. The one from my thigh, however, grew fast. It may be something. Then again, it might not be.
My war wounds. My little reminders that I’m still here, still kicking, and still moving forward. This blight upon my body will not win.
One of the other interesting things is that my doctor is now going to be taking digital photographs of my body so she can compare them to my visits. That way we’ll know if any of the moles have grown, appeared, or changed shape.
So, being the dorky photography nut I am, I started asking her about her camera, the megapixels, and the resolution of the photographs. Heh. She told me that we could look at the photos together, when they are taken, and then I can make recommendations about cameras. I’m up for that.
Hey, it’s just about the cameras and photography, folks!
dancing through the blogosphere
May 31st
So, I’ve decided that I’m no longer going to keep to my ten-year rule of posting only once a day. I collect things to write about and then when it comes to the next day, the news has changed and I no longer want to write about that topic. So I have pages and pages of stuff that is not relevant anymore simply because I wouldn’t blog about it when it was on my mind.
So there.
I know I’ve been writing about zooomr a lot lately. You know, I go through my phases of what interests me. Right now, that community is very interesting to me because it is on the cusp of big change. They are going *more* social — which is exactly what I love about social software and social networking. I do like the connections even if I am an introverted hermit of a geek girl. Heh.
–
So, the other day, a flickr user asked for a critique on his web site. He doesn’t ask in just any group — but he asks in a professional photographer’s critique group. Everyone kept writing, “looks alright by me” and “I like it.” What the heck? For photographs, we are *required* to critique the image on very specific points and I figure that’s what he wanted. He did say, after all, “Since this is a portfolio group, I thought I would open myself to all the critics I could find. Let me know what you think…”
So, what do I do? Yup, you guessed it. I critiqued it. I have to look at web sites and other materials on a daily basis with a critical eye. I figured I could give him some good feedback. So, I wrote
I’ll preface this by saying I’m on a Mac PowerBook G4 running Firefox 2.0.0.3. Part of my professional background is in usability, web development, and rhetorical values of text and graphics in online environments. That being said, these are only my opinions and are subjective. :-)
The most important things to remember are audience, context, and purpose. When you keep those three areas in mind, you can create a usable site that will promote you well.
I think it’s important to understand who your audience is. Are you trying to sell your photography to a certain demographic or just showcase it? In your contact, you write that you are seeking corporate, agency, and ministry-related assignments. Your site doesn’t say that to me, though, when I go to the splash page. Tell your audience up front what it is that you are doing. Let them know you are for hire for certain industries.
The brown text on brown background could cause problems for some who may have sight disabilities.
While flash is nice, also know that it is not always accessible for those with accessibility issues. That means you could lose customers because of it.
When I select a specific portfolio area, it would be nice if it closed with a click instead of having to open another in order to close one. Also, it would be better to have a gallery than to have rotating images. That could be confusing to a customer.
I do like the look of it and the palette. It has a relaxed atmosphere and makes me want to stick around and check out more. It is very peaceful. Your logo is wonderful — not too overwhelming and not too understated – perfect.
I realized, as I’m going through, that I am an expert in this field. I do know what I’m doing. I’m good at it. I not only have an education in looking at these kinds of things critically but I also have real-life on-the-job experience at doing so. I am good at this.
But he didn’t really want that kind of critique. He actually did want us to say, “atta boy, good job!”
Oy.
–
The ’sphere is all-a-twitter over twitter. Do you twitter?
I thought about it. But really, who wants to see what I’m doing throughout the day?
wake up
go to the bathroom
let dakota out
find some clothes to wear
take a shower
brush my teeth
Bored yet? Oh, sure…you got stuck on the shower image, didn’t you? Heh.
Plus, I can’t post photographs to go along with my twitters. How would I convey my meaning without visual cues?
Really.
–
Speaking of visual cues, I am thinking more and more about the connection between bloggers’ text and images. Of course, you may realize that my thesis is on the autobiography of women’s traumatic blogs — specifically women who write about trauma and also use visual media to aid in that conveyance of information.
What they write and what their images say are not necessarily the same things. I find that interesting.
But it’s true even throughout the ’sphere. People seem to miss that rhetorical connection between textual language and multimedia language.
I’m not sure why.
Maybe that’s the next step for the doctorate.
powerful mojo
May 31st
There are happy stories out there. It’s always amazing to me when they happen on a grand scale and bring together diverse sets of people to make something really special happen.
I belong to Flickr, but I also belong to Zooomr. While they are both photo-sharing sites, they are very different. I enjoy them both for very different reasons.
Zooomr has been going through some growing pains. Kristopher Tate, the boy-wonder developer of Zooomr, and Thomas Hawk, the CEO, have been trying to launch the newest version of Zooomr, MarkIII for the past week. At every turn, they’ve hit a wall that shouldn’t have been there. They’ve been amazingly optimistic throughout it all, though. I have spoken with both of them while this launch has been trying to happen. Thomas is loads of fun and was cracking me up with some of his antics (seriously, hearing him sing along with William Shatner has got to be the highlight of anyone’s evening — hah!). In addition, he set me up with a fellow photographer and kept dedicating songs to us…I think nuptials are in the works. Heh.
Robert Scoble came by to give support in the chat channels (and we’ve spoken several times since my flub up the other day).
Despite some naysayers, the positivity behind the delayed launch has been amazing. The community of Zooomr users has really rallied and has given incredible support to Tate and Hawk. This outpouring of community has reaffirmed my faith in people and community and social responsibility. We feel like we belong to something that is bigger than all of us but also inclusive of us. This is something that will benefit everyone and we’re willing to stand by and be ready to take part when the new version does launch later this week.
Beyond the users, though, some corporate names in the online community have come forward. Zoho has offered space in their datacenter and are currently assisting Tate and Hawk in getting their servers back up and running. Sun Microsystems has offered to loan a 42 terabyte server to Zooomr to assist in the launch. Companies that have no stock in Zooomr are stepping up to the plate to lend a helping hand.
It’s one thing when the community pulls together. We do have a stake in what is happening. It’s an entirely different matter when companies jump in. Altruism is not dead. Not by a long shot.
the players
May 30th
Last night, Microsoft announced its new tabletop computer. Now, I know that the world is moving into a more collaborative place and I know this would be a fantastic tool in our classrooms. But there is no way in hell that I would want one of these (even if the price came down from the projected $5-10,000 ticket).
Yeah, it’s cool as a kiosk…but…it also means that I have to share desktop space with others. Ick. My desktop is private and I like it that way. Don’t be looking over my shoulder and don’t be trying to move my computer to see what is on it. That is just so invasive.
What this really made me think about, though, is that whenever Microsoft comes out with something new, I wrinkle my nose at it: Vista, Zune, tabletop computer. I wonder why.
When Google comes out with something new, I get excited. Something innovative is coming and my fingers almost itch to try it out.
But I know why. Microsoft has milked us for billions of dollars. They have locked things down so tight that it’s hard to share the software between your own computers. They have violated antitrust and, in so many ways, our trust.
Google, on the other hand, while being investigated by the DOJ, has tried to be as transparent as possible in a very secretive world. They induce their employees to spend time working on pet projects. Their software is, mostly, free. We can all use it without having to pay out the nose for it. We can work collaboratively over thousands of miles and not lose our shirts on the cost.
I like that. I like a world when there really are still things for free and people are happy to share them. Sure, they have their ads — and those make a lot of money for them. But the software doesn’t cost me and the upgrades are painless — because it’s all done online.
It doesn’t happen often and I celebrate Google for their innovative practices. We need more of that kind of insight in today’s world.
just…shut up!
May 29th
I am fairly socially inept. No, no…it’s true. I am.
I know that people who know me will say that I do just fine. But it’s not true. I stick my foot in my mouth far more often than I should — simply because I don’t stop, think, and then speak.
So, I’m on a chat channel talking to people from zooomr. Thomas Hawk, CEO of zooomr, and all-around well-known photographer, is in there. I’ve spoken with Thomas a few times and he has highlighted my photographs on the zooomr blog a few times. He’s a nice guy.
I realize, as we’re all talking, that I’m the only woman in the room. Or, at least, the only woman who is speaking. That’s ok. I can hold my own with the men. I don’t feel inferior on an intellectual basis nor on a technological basis. I can keep up with the conversations.
I’m doing fine. I’m only speaking when I actually feel like I have something to say. But, really, I don’t know any of these people. Thomas is the only one I’ve ever spoken to and I doubt he even remembers who I am.
Anyway…
His friend, Robert Scoble comes in. And then my demise begins.
Not only am I the only female speaking but all of the guys seem to know one another. All of them.
And then Scoble says something about Microsoft Vista and I make a wisecrack — something that my co-workers would laugh at and something that my friends and family would totally understand was a joke. But Scoble — ok, you do know him, right? He’s a Microsoft graduate who is a bigtime blogger and now has his own company and video shows. Scoble doesn’t get my warped sense of humor and comes back at me with some monetary facts.
Oops.
I say a mea culpa and try to make amends but it’s all over. He doesn’t acknowledge me again.
I screwed up. Of course he wouldn’t get my sense of humor. He doesn’t know me. He doesn’t know that I joke around far more than I’m serious and he doesn’t understand that teasing is a way for me to feel comfortable around people I don’t know.
Ahem.
So, here I am talking to people who I find interesting and insightful and I make a mistake.
Ouch.
I need to learn to just…shut…up.
something new
May 24th
I apologize for the “ummms” and “uhhhs” but I thought y’all might enjoy this.
My first podcast.
Let me know if you’d like more of these or if it’s just not your thing.
Maybe, in the future, I’ll even try a video. Oooohhh. :-)
Thanks!
supple cord
May 20th
american life in poetry: column 107
by ted kooser, u.s. poet laureate, 2004-2006
Naomi Shihab Nye is one of my favorite poets. She lives in San Antonio, Texas, and travels widely, an ambassador for poetry. Here she captures a lovely moment from her childhood.
Supple Cord
My brother, in his small white bed,
held one end.
I tugged the other
to signal I was still awake.
We could have spoken,
could have sung
to one another,
we were in the same room
for five years,
but the soft cord
with its little frayed ends
connected us
in the dark,
gave comfort
even if we had been bickering
all day.
When he fell asleep first
and his end of the cord
dropped to the floor,
I missed him terribly,
though I could hear his even breath
and we had such long and separate lives
ahead.
Reprinted from “A MAZE ME,” Greenwillow, 2005, by permission of the author. Copyright (c) Naomi Shihab Nye, whose most recent book of poetry is “You and Yours,” BOA Editions, Ltd., 2005. This weekly column is supported by The Poetry Foundation, The Library of Congress, and the Department of English at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. This column does not accept unsolicited poetry.
this ‘n’ that
May 19th
Yesterday I had lunch with four other dynamic, intelligent, witty women. I am fortunate enough to work with these women and I was reminded of that during our foray into sushi.
At one point, we began discussing Harry Potter. I’m not sure why or how it came up but we all were in the fray and discovered that all of us have read all of the books, seen some of the movies (some of us have seen all of the movies and even, ahem, own them (plus all of the books)). That’s not the cool thing, though.
What was cool is that the discussion of Harry Potter turned into a theoretical discussion with connections between political, social, and rhetorical theories. We discussed the use of lies, manipulation, and influence to overcome and / or coerce others. We discussed the rise of “the one.”
We realized how geeky we are but also how much we really do have in common when it comes down to it. Some of these women are *much* more outgoing than I am but they also classify themselves as introverted and reticent to be a part of large crowds. They are able to put on a better face, I think, than I do, but it was nice to know I’m not alone. And it was wonderful to get so deep into an intellectual discussion about something silly and fun.
It still makes me chuckle when I think about the way we all looked and how our voices rose as we got excited and wanted to share our own theories on the topic.
–
I have been acknowledged and / or quoted in no less than three books this year. That’s more than any other time in my life.
The first, and most important book, is my brother’s dissertation. He acknowledges all of his family for the supportive roles we played in his journey. I know all of the work behind that book and it makes me proud to be mentioned in its pages.
The second is a book by my adviser, Laura Gray-Rosendale, Pop Perspectives: Readings to Critique Contemporary Culture. She mentions me by name (and a few of my colleagues) for our assistance with her online course, which is the basis for this book. The book is interesting and insightful and if you’re interested in the language of pop culture, it is a must-have.
The third book I was mentioned in is Naked on the Internet: Hookups, Downloads, and Cashing in on Internet Sexploration by Audacia Ray. I was interviewed for this book and will be doing a book review of it on June 27th.
–
I live on a dirt road that, when I bought my house, was not heavily traveled. However, in the past year or so, a few out-of-staters (read: Californians) have moved into our neighborhood. With them, they brought high-speed driving. In an arid climate with dirt roads, this means high dust levels. It also means torn-up roads. It also means danger for children and pets.
To combat this, my neighbor across the street put in a speed bump. I had been thinking about doing the very same thing and was glad to see him do it. The speeds had become dangerous even for us as adults, let alone the neighborhood kids. The first person to cross over it told us that were were putting in an illegal obstruction to the road. She said that in New York, where she was from, this was illegal. Lance and I chuckled. Here in Arizona, in our specific neighborhood, we own the road. I own half and he owns half. We can do whatever we want with it as long as it still allows access.
Most of our neighbors have been great, support it, and are talking about creating their own to slow down the traffic. The Californians, however, are hopping mad. Or maybe they are burn-out mad. They will speed (and I mean 60+mph speed) up to the bump, drive over it, then try to spin out on it to tear it up. Two nights ago, at 2am, they kept doing it over and over again, trying to get rid of it, making a lot of noise.
I don’t quite understand this behavior. Instead of supporting the issue of needing slower traffic for safety, they are causing more danger — repeatedly. It’s kind of scary. I wonder how they’d be when confronted with something even more irritating.
–
Let me know what you think of the new design. Like it? Don’t? Feedback is appreciated.
indigo girls
May 17th
I have been listening to the indigo girls for years. It all started long ago, when I worked in a small coffee shop in downtown Flagstaff and next door was a local music store (Dab Nabbitts).
The guys from Dab Nabbits would come over for a cup of coffee and we’d chat. I was working 8-12 hour days and we had a lot of time to get to know one another.
One of the regular guys at the store, Mike, would find music he thought I’d like; music that he called “Dawn’s Lesbian Chick Music.” He would keep the CDs behind the counter until I could go next door on a break or after work. He’d play it for me to see if I liked it. One of the first CDs he ever gave me (and you have to remember, CDs were fairly new back then so we loved them) was the Indigo Girls Rites of Passage. How could I not fall in love with that music. The harmonies are exquisite. The lyrics are sublime. It is the perfect CD (and, to this day, still my favorite IG CD even though I own as many as I can find). Another CD that he gave me was Brenda Kahn’s Epiphany in Brooklyn and I still love that one, too.
From that moment, I was hooked on the Indigo Girls. I couldn’t wait for each CD to come out. I’ve loved them all, each one different and unique and totally IG.
I have watched their tour dates for years. I have been hoping one would come close enough that I’d get to see them. This winter, I got notice they’d be in Tucson and Santa Fe. Those two cities aren’t too far away so I started making plans to see them. And then, two days later, I got another email. The Indigo Girls would be in Flagstaff. Flagstaff! Wow, wow, wow! Seriously WOW!
I was beside myself. I was so excited and called up my brother right away to see if he’d want to go (he likes them, too). We made plans to buy the tickets as soon as they went on sale. Wouldn’t you know it, though, that they went on sale while we were on the road to California for my great Aunt’s 90th birthday party? I was disappointed but figured that maybe we’d be able to find some tickets somehow. We got in later that night and logged on to the web site. Imagine my surprise when there were still premium tickets available. Not just one or two — enough for all of us (my brother, sister, sister-in-law, and me).
Not only are we going to see my favorite band in concert, but we have second row seats AND we get to meet Emily and Amy (and typically I wouldn’t be into the whole “meet and greet” thing — but this is a pretty cool event, I have to admit).
Tuesday, May 22nd, I get to see my favorite band — up close and personal. I’m so excited! And to share in that, this is their newest video, “Last Tears”:
