Work In Progress

Blog

  • New Apple TV Delivered

    I have tried to be an early adopter of technology but I always fall short. Apple TV for example has been out for years. I just never saw the point. With a pretty steep price tag for a less than sexy piece of hardware I just figured I’d wait until it made sense.

    Earlier this month I read that the new Apple TV was going to be a third of the price, a tenth of the size, and plays Netflix, I had to check it out. I placed my order earlier last month and was promised a September delivery. Apple almost came thru with the September. FedEx knocked on the door this morning and my Apple TV was delivered.

    I took a few quick shots of the box which turns out isn’t much bigger than two iPhones stacked on top of each other. I then took a shot of it setup in the living room. See if you can spot it. It really doesn’t take up much room at all.

    20101001_APPLETV-001

    See it?

    20101001_APPLETV-002

    How about now?

    20101001_APPLETV-003

    Now?

    20101001_APPLETV-004

    There it is! And speaking of early adoption and hanging onto old technology for no really good reason, yes, that is a VCR. I’m just using it to prop up the DVR. Honest. No really, I am. Seriously.

    TGIF!

  • Daily Visual Pushups

    Unless you won the genetic lottery, in order to stay in even reasonably good health not only should you eat right, but also exercise on a regular basis. I was recently reminded that this approach plays well in other areas of our lives as well.

    In this case, I am specifically talking about improving as a photographer. Like eating well, it is important to study the concept and technical aspects of the art form. However, like exercise, it’s equally (and perhaps even more) import in this example to do our daily visual pushups. Like working out, they need to be done on a regular if not daily basis if we’re going to see any real progress.

    Conclusion: I need to be taking pictures every day! I’ll also conclude that any old excuse is fine. More than anything else this is what makes the practice perfect (so to speak). On that note, may I introduce a lunch I like to make from time to time. If you like it the recipe is listed below. The following should make two reasonably sized servings. There. Workout complete.

    (Note: No resemblance to any celebrity or religious figure such as Mary or the Pope was intended in the creation of this sandwich. Furthermore, if it looks like an animal, your uncle, or even your next door neighbor, this was purely unintentional and total coincidence.)

    OWEN'S TUNAFISH SANDWICH

    Owen’s Tunafish Sandwich

    Tuna (Mix in Small Bowl)
    1 Can (7 oz) Chunk Light Tuna
    2 Tablespoons Nayonaise (or Mayo)
    2 Tablespoons Relish
    1 Squirt of Mustard (to taste)
    1 Handful of Chopped Mushrooms
    Pinch Sea Salt

    Top & Bottom
    Tomato Slices
    Slice(s) of Soy Cheese
    EarthGrains Whole Wheat Thin Buns

    Happy Thursday!

  • Curly Sue by Takida

    I write about a lot of stuff on here but I am not sure I’ve ever talked about music. My tastes have an unusually broad range from Classical to Heavy Metal and just about everything in between. Yes, even Country. That having been said, one of my favorite genres includes bands like Creed, Nickelback, Breaking Benjamin, Fuel, and Crossfade.

    My sister in law introduced me to a new (to me) band back in early summer that fits well inside that group. I had some of their music saved on my desktop but hadn’t imported them into iTunes. During a recent (out of season) spring cleaning I ran across the albums, imported them into iTunes, and have been enjoying them all day.

    Curly Sue by Takida

    This is the song of theirs I heard first and is still my favorite. Don’t try to find them in the iTunes store. They are a Swedish band and they aren’t on there. If you’re interested, leave me a comment and I’ll post more samples. Until then, enjoy.

    Happy Friday!

  • Seth's Blog

    I wrote a post a few weeks ago about my favorite blogs. While that list stays pretty consistent I have to share a blog I recently discovered that has really blown me away. The blog is written by Seth Godin. This guys has written twelve books. All of which went onto become best sellers. I haven’t read a single one but plan to. For right now I am complely content slash filled slash charged by just reading the blog posts.

    Do you actually care about privacy? This is one that’s timely and appropriate the this audience. It’s about our true expectations in regards to online privacy versus being surprised.

    All of his posts are short and concise, yet dense. Here are a few other posts I’d might suggest starting off with to get a taste but these spoke to me.

    The Corporate Conscience. “There isn’t one. Corporations don’t have a conscience, people do. That means that every time you say, “It’s just my job,” or “My department has a policy,” or “All I do is work here,” what you’ve done is abdicated responsibility–to no one.”

    Dude.

    Monitoring Your Internal Monologue. At the end of third paragraph Seth writes, “Theologians wrestle with this dilemma all the time. How can you study an idea or a trend or a belief system if you also accept it as a universal, unquestionable fact? …the smart marketer (my note: you can substitute the word “marketer” with “human being” ) throws away bias and stops cheering for one outcome over another and instead quietly takes notes on herself.”

    Come on.

    Little lies and small promises. “‘Your call is very important to us,’ is not a true statement… The truth is self-evident. The worst kind of little lies are the ones you make to yourself. Once you’re willing to lie to yourself, you’re also willing to cheat at golf, and after that, it’s all downhill.”

    Must read stuff.

    Happy Thursday!

  • The Phoenician Labor Day Weekend

    I wrote a post last month about a bad experience at the Doubletree Hotel in Tucson, Arizona. In the interest of not sounding like a complainer all the time, I wanted to write this post about a fantastic experience Linda and I had over Labor Day weekend at The Phoenician, in Scottsdale, Arizona.

    Grounds
    To be fair, this place is not a hotel. It is a five diamond resort. Keep in mind we are in the middle of the desert, yet the resort grounds? Green everywhere. Including around their nine swimming pools they somehow designed to feel intimate. Tired of lounging by the pools? Water slide anyone? How about a game of Cricket on the lawn? It’s like a putting green. Speaking of putting, you can also take advantage of their 27-hole championship course. Sadly, it was too hot for golf that weekend.

    Food
    Il Terrazzo Italian. We started in the lounge with three kinds of tuna tar tar. After being seated, and a quick perusal of the menu, we decided to start with the mussels. I can never turn down mussels in a fancy pants joint like this. Garlic, lemon, white white and black pepper. Garlic break soaking in the sauce.

    My dinner was free range chicken served with brocollini and asparagus. The chicken was skin on, a little different than I am used but it was the tastiest. Linda had the halibut with artichokes, fennel, basil, tomato, and black olive vinaigrette. Our meals where complimented with a beautiful chardonnay as oaky as it was buttery. Just how I like it.

    On Sunday night we had reservations for J&G Steakhouse. The restaurant is on the fifth floor of the resort. You take the elevator to the top and as you exit your eyes are drawn toward the breathtaking view of Scottsdale strait ahead. Amazing view. Amazing food.

    Lunch. However anticlimactic it may be to mention, even the pool food was great. Their turkey burger was hands down the best I’ve ever had. I had it for lunch both Saturday and Sunday. Mango salsa. Red onion. Homemade whole wheat bun with a green leafy salad in a light balsamic vinaigrette on the side.

    Service
    While the grounds where outstanding, the food fantastic, the service was the most impressive. Here are two examples. On our first night, Linda wore a black dress to dinner. One of the wait staff came over with a black napkin and asked politely if she would trade him for her white napkin. No white napkin fuzzes on her black dress. Linda was floored. Second example. There is staff working in the pool area who’s primary job is to make sure guests have a full jug of ice water at all times. Come on.

    In the end, we decided that this place is like the Wynn in Vegas but with a view of the outside. It was sad to go. Can’t wait to get back.

    Happy Monday!