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August 31, 2005
APEs Extinct in Our Lifetime
According to the BBC, APES will be extinct in our lifetime. As a charter member of the APEs, I find this rather disturbing.
But seriously ... the great apes gone in my lifetime? What a huge cockup on humanity's part.
Posted by Steven at 08:21 PM | Comments (0)
August 29, 2005
RSB Caption Contest
Enter our caption contest (I, being a family member, cannot participate) by coming up with the most appropriate phrase for this photo.
Winners get to see what Anne dishes out for revenge!
Posted by Steven at 09:49 PM | Comments (5)
Ruby Update
She's starting to have trouble sleeping, which is expected as her lungs become less and less efficient. I took these shots today and yesterday of her with Anne.
[right]Ruby interviews Anne on her work with human children. |
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[above]Ruby checks out Anne's breath ("Hmmm ... catminty fresh!") |
Posted by Steven at 09:15 PM | Comments (0)
Leo's First SLR Photo
On Eldorado Parkway, the west-side of McKinney's first high rise office building is going up. Leo snapped this shot of the crane used to erect the steel on the Nikon D70s.
Posted by Steven at 09:13 PM | Comments (0)
Alanna's Braces Are Finally Off!
See for yourself:
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Posted by Steven at 09:01 PM | Comments (1)
McKinney North HS Band Practice
I took some shots during an evening band practice tonite.
Posted by Steven at 08:44 PM | Comments (0)
August 28, 2005
Uncle "Kung Foo" John Visits
My brother John visited this afternoon, to donate to Alanna's marching band, eat some dinner, watch some TV, and catch up. On the way out, I took this photo of his incredible high kick.
Posted by Steven at 07:06 PM | Comments (1)
August 27, 2005
McKinney North HS vs. Denison HS
I'm too tired to fish through the 514 photos I took tonite at the McKinney North HS game against Denison HS to show you just the photos of Alanna. here is the link to the thumbnails for all the photos ... there are quite a few of Alanna but many more of the other kids.
Some notes of interest ...
The MNHS football team was crushed by Denison last year. Tonite, they won by a respectable score and beat the odds as a result.
Mr. Harkey said this was the best opening concert and marching performance he's had at MNHS, and he also said that the parent participation was the highest/best so far. My family name was called out by the announcer for some kind of donation ... I was startled by it, actually.
The Nikon D70s performed admirably. There are some capabilities I'd like to refine (in particular, shooting with the flash disabled) as I learn more about the camera, but overall, it was worlds apart from shooting with the Coolpix 5400. I took numerous high-speed sequences that were utterly impossible on the Coolpix, as well as many shots that required "instant on" shutter opening. Both the SB-600 speedlite and the built-in flash performed admirably. I'm very pleased with this camera and the photos on the link above (unretouched) show it.
Alanna seems to tolerate my presence at the game very well, and I thank her for letting me be part of the experience without it being uncomfortable for her. It's a real joy being able to participate in this with her and to document it so extensively. I hope that someday she appreciates it as much as I enjoy doing it. Except ... next time, I'm taking ibuprophen before the game! My back is not a happy camper.
PS. We got our Band Parent shirts today, with our names and Alanna's as well as her school and instrument, sewn onto the shirt. I wore my and the sideline pass with great pleasure tonite!
Update
Alanna can be seen here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.
I caught Anne here with Leo.
Posted by Steven at 01:26 AM | Comments (0)
August 25, 2005
And You Thought There Was No Answer
Why, to the question, "What's the airspeed of an unlaiden swallow?"
Turns out, someone's worked it all out.
Joe Bob sez, "Check it out <waaaaaaaaa!>"
Posted by Steven at 09:25 PM | Comments (0)
Nikon D70s dSLR
 | Yesterday I purchased my first digital SLR camera, a Nikon D70s w/18-70mm DX lens. I've already shot over three hundred frames; of Anne and Alanna at Tae Kwon Do, around the neighborhood, the house, of Ruby, and I am looking forward to the first marching band football game this Friday and AnimeFest in two weeks. |
Posted by Steven at 12:53 PM | Comments (1)
August 23, 2005
Our Cat Ruby Has Lung Cancer
Anne took Ruby, our 16 yr. old Persian cat, to the vet today for a six months checkup after her radical mastecomy in Feb. The good news (such as it is) is the surgery worked, and she no longer has a tumor on her chest. The bad news is that now she has lung cancer.
We could try giving her chemotherapy, but she's not all that strong (and the side-effects are awful) so for now, we're going to keep her comfortable until she cannot rest or sleep, and then we'll have to put her to sleep. I don't have a hard figure for that date, but I'd guess it's sooner than the end of the year.
Anne is pretty upset about it, Alanna is resigned to this, and I will miss her when she's gone. But for now, we just try to enjoy our time together with Ruby with extra pets, chin rubs and whatever else she wants. Many of my friends have lost long time pets in the last few years, so I know you know how awful this experience is. I'm dreading the day we have to end her life, but I know that day will come soon now.
Posted by Steven at 10:02 PM | Comments (3)
August 22, 2005
Dr. Bob Moog, RIP
 | I'm still in shock after reading that Bob Moog passed away at the age of 71. I can think of few engineers who have had as much influence on my life as Bob Moog. Perhaps Steven Wozniak, but he's the only one that comes to mind at the moment. Bob gave us the first usable synthesizer, and from that came Walter Carlos, Switched on Bach, the soundtracks of two Kubrick films, and of Tron. He revived the Theremin, and brought a new sound to the 60's music scene that helped define an era. He was one smart dude, too. |
Have a listen to Jesu, Joy of Man's Desire from SOB and hang your head for Bob Moog.
We recommend this superb New York Times obitutary of Robert Moog.
Posted by Steven at 03:04 PM | Comments (1)
The Fellowship of the Submarine
Bought this print at ArmadilloCon 27 and I just have to share the image:
Posted by Steven at 01:00 PM | Comments (1)
August 20, 2005
Home Again, Home Again
Spent a week in Austin for Maskina (taking one for the team), starting with a wild Saturday night company dinner at Maiko Sushi and ending with my bailing on ArmadilloCon 27 to swing by the office and do some more work on Sat. afternoon. Last Sunday we had a "come to Jesus" company meeting at the Barton Creek Country Club, which was just over the top. Having to play a round of putt-putt golf there was hilarious, and the dinner at the County Line BBQ was kinda cramped as we squeezed into too small a big table.
The highlight of the week was meeting the Icelander and Norwegian co-workers I'd only corresponded with by e-mail. We had a few dinners and lunches during the week and I got to know the guys; we seem to work together well. I spent much of my time internationalizing our product for the Icelander language ... it's not like anything I've seen before.
I went to ArmadilloCon for barely 12 hours, arriving Fri. evening and bailing around lunch time on Sat. It is clearly a Very Small Convention (of course, compared to Noreascon or A-Kon, what isn't?) but I found some old Star Trek books I never had, caught up on Myth Adventures, discovered Denver is bidding for 2008, and bought a rather clever piece of art titled The Fellowship of the Submarine (I'll post an image later).
The drive home as well as down was uneventful. I stopped at Yanni's to get some keftetes and their olive dip that is so good for dinner tomorrow. Mmmmmm...
Posted by Steven at 06:16 PM | Comments (0)
McKinney (City of) Billboard
For many trips back and forth from Austin, I've obsessed over spotting the elusive City of McKinney billboard. I remember reading that the McKinney tourist board (?!?) decided to pay for a billboard on one of Texas' interstate highways, but the location they chose is baffling.
A scant 190 miles south of McKinney on I-35, just north of Georgetown (and only visible in the northbound lanes) one finds the following apparation:
I know that I saw this, I'd rush for another 190 miles (skipping Temple, Waco, Carl's Corners and even Dallas) to reach this obvious mecca of civilization.
As if. Sure, we now have a Cafe Brazil and possibly a Snuffer's (new estimate is late December), but it's still just another small town in tornado alley.
Posted by Steven at 04:45 PM | Comments (0)
August 11, 2005
Star Trek Business Cards
Paul Claerhout sent this link to "Star Trek Business Cards".
Live long, in laughter.
Posted by Steven at 01:43 PM | Comments (0)
August 10, 2005
Alanna's Band Week (So Far)
Alanna's had a busy end-of-summer with McKinney North HS marching band camp.
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| At Snuffer's in Addison with Alicia and Kathleen. | Morning practice on the parking lot. |
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| Alanna at attention in morning practice. | Marching along during evening practice. |
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| Marching in morning practice. | Friday's 70's Party in the Band Hall. |
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| Collosus of Rhodes? No, Mr. Harkey the Band Director. | Alanna at attention during evening practice. |
Posted by Steven at 09:17 PM | Comments (2)
August 05, 2005
Austin For Nine Days
I'll be in Austin from the 13th to the 21st, likely at the Holiday Inn Express near Lakeline Mall.
Posted by Steven at 09:05 AM | Comments (0)
August 02, 2005
Cafe Brazil Opens in McKinney
I went by the new Cafe Brazil today and was shocked to see it was open! This is at the southwest corner of Eldorado Parkway and US 75 (Central Expressway), where the Snuffer's is being built (the latest info on that is they plan to open Dec. 15th).
Woot!
Update
It just gets better. They have WiFi in the restaurant! A laptop, a cup of joe, and McKinney's first real brunch restaurant (Le Peep, where did you go?) just raised this town's "livability index" a notch.
And (yes) I am entering this on my iBook in the Cafe Brazil.
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| (Above) Main restaurant room, which wraps around the corner of the building. (Left) Anne relaxing in the Art Exhibit section with the colorful wall and wide bench. |
Posted by Steven at 04:51 PM | Comments (0)
August 01, 2005
One Man Star Wars Show
The New York Times has done a review of the "One Man Star Wars Show", an act that I saw last year at the Noreascon Four (World Science Fiction Convention). It's a great piece of theater, and some of the ad libs are hilarious (e.g. Luke removes Darth's helmut and says, "I thought you'd be blacker?"). If you get a chance to see this guy do his thing and you love Star Wars then this is a treat.
Posted by Steven at 02:54 PM | Comments (0)