So, yesterday was my daughter’s seventh birthday, and we had a nice gathering at Chuck E Cheese’s with a few friends. However, when it came time to cut the cake, there was a small abnormality with it that was explained to me in more detail after the party. Can you spot the issue in the picture above?
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OK, so I’m posting some pictures after all. These pictures of my youngest, taken the other day, turned out so well, I had to share them. She absolutely loves the water, and this bath time was no exception. Ever the ham, she poured it on when the camera came out, and though she’s getting a little big for the sink, she definitely had a grand time splashing about:
Well, I suppose one might say this is long overdue — after all, I am a web developer, right? No matter how much work I’m able to get done, I seldom have time to actually add to my personal sites, so when I found out just how easily zenPhoto could be added to my site, I jumped. In a matter of an hour (give or take), I had this new section up and running, primed with many of the photos I’ve had sitting around just waiting to be posted somewhere. Needless to say, I won’t have to blog as many of my pictures anymore, since I’ll be able to link directly to their galleries now. So, when you have a moment, follow the link at the top of this page, or just go here to see the new gallery. As time allows, I will be working on a theme for both the blog and photo gallery that is more uniform and unique — but who knows when that will actually be completed…
Enjoy!
While flash photography to some may simply be that which causes red-eye, I have been trying to read and learn some of the nuances of lighting and flash usage in my pictures. My biggest difficulty has been the lack of a “real” flash, but I am happy to say that I was able to get one for my birthday over the weekend. The Nikkon SB-600 Speedlight is pretty much the base model in good flashes for my D90, and I’ve been waiting to find a good sale. Pricing doesn’t vary much on them, apparently, so I jumped on the chance to get one from the Circuit City liquidation pricing at almost half off retail.
As with so many other things in life, I had seen and understood a part of the difference a good flash can make, but until you actually use one, it’s hard to really grasp the significant difference in the shots. I thought I would share my first comparison with you. Keep in mind that one of the biggest differences (besides the obvious brightness difference) between using the on-board flash and the hot shoe one is the ability to be able to direct the light and reflect it off different surfaces to keep from the harsh direct lighting typical to home photography. The following two photos show this poignant difference illustrated.
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Well, it’s overdue, and I’ve been slacking with the software a bit, but I finally got around to upgrading the blog to use WordPress 2.7. The admin interface is a definite improvement over the last few upgrades, and once again, when I’ve done something right, it makes me wonder what took me so long to carry out the upgrade. Anyway, it shouldn’t really affect you, the reader, at all, but things will hopefully be a little more streamlined now as we get under way for a new year of posting.
Enjoy!
Isn’t it amazing how much we learn during tax season? It seems to me that, no matter how long I pay taxes, I always discover a new way to give the government more of my money each time this season rolls around. This year has proven no different. We made the move from Buffalo, NY to the Seattle area mid-year, and we were thrilled to see that we no longer had state income tax withholdings, because Washington state has no income tax. Well, that bubble burst in the last 24 hours when I discovered that good ol’ New York state won some controversial court case that allows them to tax — get this — nonresident income if the source of the income is in NY state. So, in essence, I get to pay income tax to NY state for all the money I’ve earned in the last 6 months while living in a stat with no income tax, and to top it off, as I’m filling out the forms in TurboTax, I get the nice little note that in addition to the taxes I need to pay, I may be hit with an underpayment penalty, since we didn’t pay it all through the year — wow.
Needless to say, I’m not too excited about the scenario, but what is there to do? The most frustrating thing is that the flux between the refund it seemed we were due to the amount we now owe is nearly a $3,000 spread… not fun. Anyway, I suppose I will end my little rant now, but I cannot justify paying taxes to a state when I no longer live there. Perhaps I should just be thankful that we now live in a state with no income tax, or we may well have had to pay both states what they claim is their due.
As expected, my life during the Christmas season has been extraordinarily hectic, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Family and friends bring laughs and joy to my life that I cannot fully express in words. I have always enjoyed Christmas and what it means, and while growing up, there was never a lack of family or friends stopping by to celebrate with us in some way. Whether it was having an open house for our church family to stop by or spending a weekend with family in the mountains of North Carolina, Christmas time has always held a special place in my heart.
With that being said, it is little wonder that I didn’t take the time to do much development work or even post to my blog, as much as I enjoy doing both. Over the past several years, it has been amazing to see how priorities have changed, and this season shows that more than any other. Having the opportunity to give to my family, not only the physical gifts I purchased for them, but also the additional time and the opportunity to take some time off work: those are the things that will last a lifetime.
So, I can say without regret that, while I am anxious to get back to some of my projects, I’m not at all sorry for not being online more, but now that the season is drawing to a close, I hope to be able to get back into the swing of things. I hope each and every one of you had a very Merry Christmas and that you have a wonderful New Year’s Day this week as well!
Well, once again the holiday season brings an extra measure of business to our family with two of our children celebrating birthdays during the month of December. Our youngest celebrated her first birthday on Sunday, so it was an even more special occasion than the traditional birthday party, and our son turned four today. We had the combined party for their friends last week and had 50 (yes, you read right: 50) guests at the house, and this week we did the individual parties and family gifts for them.
A new thing this year is that I am going to try to get a good birthday portrait of them myself instead of spending the money to have it done. I got one of my son yesterday that I am very pleased with, and while I have yet to get one of my daughter, I thought I would at least share one from her birthday so those who know us can see how much she has grown.
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Yes, it’s an unusual title for a blog post — I know. But this is something that has been remarkable to me over the years, and I decided that, since I now have a place to just pour out my thoughts, I would do just that as we enter into the holiday season.
I have always been one that really likes Thanksgiving. Besides having an incredibly long weekend, it is so refreshing to take the time to examine my life and focus on the positivity of all that is good and wholesome and those things for which I have to be thankful. Each year, the list seems to grow, and I cannot express my gratitude for my friends, family, job, home, health… and the list goes on. What is amazing to me, however, is the complete lack of attention this holiday receives every year from the media (except for the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving specials and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, of course).
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One thing we missed in our time in New York was not having friends who shared our same interest in board games and staying up until the wee hours conversing about everything and nothing. As much as we enjoy a good game, often the game seems to be only a conduit we use as an excuse to spend the time together. When we lived in South Carolina, we had a number of couples who shared our interest in games (both video and board), and many of the guys also shared my interest in miniatures: something I have yet to delve into much. We are blessed to have found another family with whom we have been able to share those mutual late night game sessions again. Our children are the same ages, so it is a very good fit when we crash at one or the other of our houses for a “quick game” that often lasts well into the night.
Most recently, we have been playing Carcassonne and The Settlers of Catan at some length. I actually purchased the Carcassonne Big Box set with a handful of expansions from a friend before we made our move away from SC, but although we had heard great things about Settlers, we had never actually played it until a couple weeks ago. We broke open a new box, and I am happy to say that so far, with the four of us playing, I have a 3/4 winning streak.
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