Every Day a New Adventure

So, I went up in a balloon on Friday. On Saturday I went to a street fair and a soccer game, both to take pictures. I went to a "night glow" Saturday evening, and watched hot air balloons fill a stadium and glow. My pictures made the front page of the Monday paper and filled a two-page spread as well.

Yesterday I went to the Central Washington State Fair, and again, just went to take pictures. I got a number of decent shots. Each remaining day of the fair, I'll have one picture on the front page of the paper.

The weekend before last I covered a car show and rode along in a 1953 Chevy Bel Air Convertible on the most perfect weather day we've had all summer. I took some pictures there, too. Note: any picture on that site published after August 15th with "lg" in the file name is one of mine.

This morning I interviewed a veteran of WWII and Korea for two articles about Honor Flights. I was scheduled to interview a well-known Seattle ex-politician, but he canceled his trip over here. I have to do three more interviews this week alone, two of which I have utterly no idea who I'm going to talk to yet.

Since I started at the paper, I've interviewed a Hospice director, a kindergartener, a new business owner, an elementary school principal, a manager at Les Schwab and two dairymen at their dairies. I've written PR briefs, serious articles, and even got a headline with the word "poop" in it published (much to the delight of someone involved in that story). My opinion column may start up soon. I've had three working weekends, and have one more before December, plus this weekend I'm working for my old boss in Seattle AND taking pictures for my paper while I'm out there. I've got at least two more photo pages coming up in the next three months, possibly more if people keep helping me out like they've been! A huge thanks here to Carolyn Ibis, who saved my bacon with a great story and photos just when I needed them.

I was thanked today by one of the people I interviewed recently, and thanked profusely by another person who I interviewed on my second day on the job for the article I wrote. I've been given a handful of free meals and some giant blackberries. I've learned how to photograph sports, although I'm still crappy at it. My writing is steadily improving by having an editor marking my pages in red on a daily basis.

I freakin' LOVE my job. I never ever thought I'd write that. But I do. I love my job. I hope I can keep it until I can't function anymore.

Up, Up and Away...

When my alarm went off Friday morning at 4:30 a.m., I woke into a slightly strange world. I was just afraid enough of the morning's planned event that I didn't want to get up, and just excited enough that I couldn't be held by the fear. This morning I'm going on a balloon ride.

Now, I'm not really afraid of heights. At least, I don't think I am. But I've had trouble in situations where I'm high up. What usually happens is a mild panic attack, followed by deep dread and fear until I can convince myself I'm safe. So when my editor gave me this assignment, I was worried that I'd have trouble on the flight. Not that I was truly afraid, just that I was worried that I might have an attack and be unable to accomplish my job.

I got ready quickly, I needed to be at the airport in Prosser by sunrise. I had packed the camera bag the night before and grabbed my old bicycling jacket that can be scrunched up into a small pack to be worn around the waist. I hugged Eric tightly, not wanting to go, then finally got myself into the car and out on the road. The weather was perfect, calm and clear. Any hope that the flight might be canceled due to the weather evaporated before I got to the airport.

No, not my video

But you can bet this song has been going through my head for well over a day.

Eric and I went out to watch the launch this morning, and get more pictures since the ones I took yesterday with the professional camera had dust marks. I cleaned the camera last night, and what I took today looks good. We also took pictures of the balloon I went up in yesterday, and some more of the balloons all gathered. It was fun.

Tonight I get to take pictures of the "night glow" (and a soccer game this afternoon). I hope I do well enough. I've got two pages of paper to fill with these photos. The photographer at my paper said most of the pictures I took yesterday will still work, but I don't want to take too many chances.

I Survived the Balloon Ride

Smartphone? Maybe Not Yet

I was beginning to have serious problems keeping track of my calendar. I can easily update my Google Calendar at work and at home in front of my computer, but since I don't have a smart phone, I couldn't access the information in the calendar away from my desk. My paper calendar book was rapidly becoming a mess from updating venues and dates, erasing events I wasn't actually going to, and other minor issues. So I began to think I needed a smartphone.

Yesterday when I got home I started researching, seriously, smartphones. And found that Eric and I are grandfathered into a calling plan that keeps our cell phone service fairly cheap yet very nice. Any change to that plan would immediately add $20 to our bill. Add in a data plan for a smartphone for another $30, and we'd be adding $50 to our bill every month. Which, frankly, seems ridiculous to me.

There are other options, but I have a very very good phone that I've had for a very long time and love very much, my trusty LG VX8300. If LG still made this phone, I would buy nothing but it for my phone for the rest of my life. And last night it proved its worth yet again.

Using the same cable and program (BitPim) I used to import ringtones, I was able to import my Google Calendar into my phone. Yup. A later version of BitPim than I had before can be set up to import Google Calendar. I'm only two years late to the game, but I only recently have gotten enough of a life to need a calendar. Better, I was also able to import my working schedule into Eric's phone, so he can keep track of where I'll be!

Disadvantages: I have to manually update the phone when I make changes to the calendars. Advantages: It doesn't cost us a penny more and keeps me almost entirely up-to-date, and it's something I already carry with me everywhere (so I won't keep leaving it behind like I did my paper calendar book).

Sadly, I know my VX8300 can't last forever. But until it dies, I've got all the tech I need in it. Once again, thank you LG, for a fantastic product.

Happy Talk Like A Pirate Day!

Stop Forwarding...

It's Holy Pasta Week!

Sep 15-19 is "Holy Pasta Week"
What's Your Pasta Tonight?

A few links...

Best Cat "house" Ever.

I want a felted light-up Dalek.

While I have no doubt that electro-magnetic fields can have some minor effect on human brains, I'd need a lot of double-blind studies proving it before I'd believe in 'Wi-Fi allergies'.

Women who fought in the Civil War.

And this video shows what humans are capable of if they work together in an emergency, although I cringed terribly at the ankle-drag. Still, not sure how else they could have gotten him out of there. The video is from a car/motorcycle crash, and the man in the suit is apparently the driver of the car, still a little stunned. This happened in Logan, Utah. via.

UPDATE: Here's another version in case YouTube doesn't work for you, and another news story. The biker is in satisfactory condition now, with "a broken femur, broken tibia and pelvis, burns on his left foot and abrasions to his forehead". The woman who got down on her stomach yelled, "He's alive!" which is what brought people back to save him.

A Sunday Review

TV this week:

• Torchwood: Miracle Day: "The Blood Line" - And so it goes, and Torchwood is, as usual, a step ahead of everyone else. The funeral scene was heart-breaking, especially considering who was there. And that finale... whew. Plenty of plot-threads to pick up if someone should make another series.
• Doctor Who: "The Girl Who Waited" - Considering how long Rory waited, I'm not sure Amy has anything at all to complain about. Bitter Amy is spooky. I prefer the regular Amy.

---

This week's movie was The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones Chapter 8: Trenches of Hell (Somme and Germany, 1916). And Indy gets into war, the civilized way. He's a good guy, but wow, war was simply insane. His adventures and bravery were interesting to see, as was his capture and escape. He gets that escape bug early. I love how he just happens to run into a ton of famous and later famous people as he goes. It's just very like him to waltz through history.

---

Here are reviews of the DCBS comic books that I've gotten around to reading and reviewing, sorted by the original shipping date:

• Jul 13th
• Green Lantern #67 - Huh. Definitely not the way I was expecting the whole thing to end. What payment for all that hard work Hal did? Yikes.
• Green Lantern Corps #61 - There's way more to John Stewart than planet-killer. I hope we get more of this type of tale someday. He's an unfairly abused character.
• Flashpoint: Emperor Aquaman #2 - Wow. A new origin for Aquaman woven from his Silver Age origin with great skill. And it's got steampunk Vulko in it, too, looking like a toady to the old King. I'm really loving this book. But then, I always loved Elseworlds and Aquaman has NEVER gotten this great an Elseworld treatment before.
• Flashpoint: Deathstroke the Curse of the Ravager #2 - Aquaman is very brutal in this world, and I think that's all this book is trying to say about him. Ouch.
• Birds of Prey #14 - I want to read the next issue right now. I haven't been so curious about the end of a story for some time. I love Zinda.
• All New Batman The Brave and the Bold #9 - Hawkman and Hawkgirl are good in this one. I particularly like that final splash page showing what she's been up to while he's out wandering.
• Northlanders #42 - Ouch. Be careful what you do to a child, they may learn the lesson entirely too well.
• Doctor Who: A Fairytale Life #4 - About how I expected the whole story to end, but nicely done as it turns out. The reasons for everything were fleshed out very well, too. A good story.
• Jul 20th
• War of the Green Lanterns Aftermath #1 - What happened to Sinestro is quite a little surprise, but what's going to happen to him is far more interesting. I used to really like Soranik, now I'm just not sure about her.
• Flashpoint: Wonder Woman and the Furies #2 - And now we know what happened. And why Diana is wearing the same helmet Mera was wearing (euwww!). Brutal, and depressing how each misunderstanding built on the last.
• Justice League of America #59 - Is this horrid story over yet?
• Power Girl #26 - Heh, Power Girl Convention. Heh. Cosplayers. Heh. I would have thought a few more would have done variants on the design. That could have been cool. I like the little kid. Heh.
• Zatanna #15 - Ouch. Nasty from the start, and really nasty what she does to them at the end.
• Tiny Titans #42 - I'm just gonna say this issue is bizarre and leave it at that. *snerk*
• Cinderella: Fables are Forever #6 - Ew ew ew ew ew. I agree with Cindy, I threw up a little in my brain. But this is definitely not over, as that's not how the Fables universe works.
• DMZ #67 - Into the final storyline, and there's a lot left to happen despite the seeming ending to the war. Looking forward to the final few issues.
• Sergio Aragones Funnies #1 - I need about another two weeks to look at all the artwork closely before I can judge this book! No, kidding... it's one that will be great on rereads because of the detail, but as it stands it's really good already. If you like Sergio's work, just get this book already.
• Soldier Zero #10 - Um, wow? Are we going to get some sort of resolution now?
• Jul 27th
• Green Lantern Corps #62 - Kyle and Soranik... not a great relationship to start with, apparently much worse now. Yikes. And the Pink Lantern has learned a valuable lesson about interference.
• Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #12 - So that's it? Send out Guy and the problem is solved? I can't buy that no other Lantern was able to come up with that solution before.
• Flashpoint: Hal Jordan #2 - Um, cool? Sorry, just not really impressed with this one for some reason.
• Action Comics #903 - More Doomsday nonsense. Is it over yet?
• DC Retroactive: Green Lantern the 70's #1 - Was it just me or did none of the stories in this have conclusions? There was a Green Arrow tale... that didn't really get resolved. And a Green Lantern tale... that didn't get resolved. Then the classic GA/GL tale that led into a much longer story.
• DC Retroactive: Justice League of America the 70's #1 - Ok, if the GL book annoyed me with the lack of resolution, let's not talk about the incredibly annoying reprint in this book. Sheesh. At least the main story wrapped up nicely.
• Justice Society of America #53 - Ah, so now we know what the city is, and what it has, and what's going wrong. Now, will we get a solution before the new universe jumps into effect?
• Young Justice #6 - Superboy's battle within is deflected by Robin's internal origin recap, since he can't tell his teammates Batman's secrets. Not much happens in this one.
• Fables #107 - I can't quite figure out where this fits in the whole storyline. Maybe we really do need to get the previous volumes.
• Doctor Who Ongoing V2 #7 - Sontarans are clones, so they can only be used to the chaos. But what can you do with a dozen or more Doctors?

---

My Kindle book this week was No Good Deed by Mary McDonald. Mark Taylor has an antique camera that can help him predict the future, but when he tried to prevent 9/11 he gained some unwanted attention. I got this book for free, but there was a LOT of positive chatter about this book before I got my hands on it. The first half of the book is about Mark being suspected of being a terrorist, and what that means for his life. The second half is about putting that life back together. The amazing thing is how the book manages to treat the subject with respect and dignity, and allows questions to remain about the morality of the actions of some of the characters. The urge to preach had to be nearly unbearable. I found it a difficult read due to my own strong opinions on some topics, and yet I can't complain about the presentation. You may find you really disagree with the book, possibly regardless of your political viewpoint, which makes it more balanced than 90% of the stories on this subject out there. Not a book people will want to read lightly, but it is fiction and the end is definitely feel-good escapism.

---

Past Sunday Reviews -- Comics at Amazon.com -- Previews -- My Wishlist -- My Kindle Wishlist

Some Links

What teachers really want to tell parents.

Why Walmart produce is horrible. Yet another reason to completely avoid Walmart, along with how they ruined Vlasic and Rubbermaid (YouTube link).

A "cure" for shingles?

A pug in memory of Buddy.

Jack Be Little...

The tiny pumpkins growing in my garden are "Jack Be Little" pumpkins, and they are both decorative and good eating. I decided to try one today, following a "recipe" found on this page.

Basically, I cut a hole in the top of the pumpkin, scooped out more insides than it could possibly have held (transcendentally dimensional pumpkin goop!), put in some butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon, and baked it for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F in a pan with a little water in the bottom.

Didn't work. Well, sorta worked. It needed another good 15 minutes, and maybe I should have poked around the edges to let it bake better. The bits that were cooked were REALLY good, but the bits that were not cooked... ug. Let's just say it needs to cook until tender, not just until it appears to be tender.

There are a ton of recipes for the little guys all around the web, and they were fun to grow, if heart-breaking when one vine died off suddenly and possibly early (a massive windstorm followed by heavy rain hit and killed half my garden, right after I posted the last update). So I think I'll try them again next year and hopefully I'll have enough on the other vine this year to give this a try again. I think they would make fantastic desserts if they were properly cooked all the way through.

I also learned that this type of pumpkin can be taught to grow up a trellis, like a tomato plant, so next year I might try that so I can get the plant growing up as well as out. I have big plans for my garden next year, but I need to sit down and actually plan it out along with what I need to do and when. My biggest goal is to get proper irrigation in place for next year. I hope I'll have the time and the money to do it.

Oh yeah, one more thing I learned about these. Do NOT grab them by the stem until they've been properly cleaned and scoured. They have needle-sharp tiny thorns and they will get you and they will hurt. Wear gloves and cut them three inches from the fruit, and pick up by the fruit. Ouch ouch ouch.

A Sunday Review

TV this week:

• Torchwood: Miracle Day: "The Middle Men" - A really good cliffhanger in this one, but the rest of the episode was a little slow. Jack meets with the PhiCorp COO. Gwen saves her father. And everyone sort of just accepts that category 1 has got to happen. Depressing.
• Torchwood: Miracle Day: "Immortal Sins" - So much better, now that we finally get to see Jack in history doing what Jack was always best at. And now we can understand some of what it happening, even if it doesn't make a lot of sense yet.
• Torchwood: Miracle Day: "End of the Road" - That null field... does that mean that Jack is immortal while in it? A strange and cool episode, with a terrible cliffhanger ending that made me whine for the next episode.
• Torchwood: Miracle Day: "The Gathering" - And finally it's all coming together, quickly and solidly (though two months passed "in universe"). I'm still not sure what The Blessing is, even after seeing it, but that effect with Jack's blood was impressive. Pity about the mole in the CIA that's going to complicate life for Rex and Esther. But with one more episode, I'm really looking forward to the end.


• Doctor Who: "Let's Kill Hitler" - I didn't figure it out right away, but once it happened, I recognized that it was completely obvious. Rory rocks in this one, as he so often does. A good piece of the puzzle, but still just part of the ongoing puzzle.
• Doctor Who: "Night Terrors" - This was supposed to be scary. It was creepy, but I didn't find it particularly scary. The giant peg dolls were very nicely done, as was the morph into them. I love Rory's comments about dying again. That was a good moment, coupled with Amy's logic.

---

This week's movie was The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones Chapter 7: Love's Sweet Song (Ireland and London, 1916). On his way to World War I, Indy stops in Ireland then meets suffragettes in London. This had Eric's favorite scene from the original series, when a suffragette and Indy have a discussion in a number of languages. I enjoyed the whole thing, with Indy in his prime falling in love and causing trouble, and getting in the middle of the action even when he doesn't want to be. A fun one, and the extras are always educational.

---

Here are reviews of the DCBS comic books that I've gotten around to reading and reviewing, sorted by the original shipping date:

• Jul 6th
• Flashpoint #3 - Enter Superman, the stalwart heart of the DC Universe. Nice interesting take on him.
• Flashpoint: Abin Sur the Green Lantern #2 - Ok, that's not exactly what I expected to happen with Sinestro, but I'm just not surprised. He's always been all about control.
• Flashpoint: The World of Flashpoint #2 - And so Traci starts her quest in earnest. This was a great look at what happened to some of the other characters we know and love. I particularly like the priest.
• Batman Beyond #7 - Wow, you know, I quite liked this one, as it tied up a lot of loose ends and yet left at least one more mystery to solve. Very nicely done.
• Ozma of Oz #8 - And so ends the saga of the Nome King and Ev. Like most of Baum's books, the party at the end seems to take as much time as half the adventures within! Still, a very fun read. Looking forward to the next series.

---

My Kindle book this week was Bane, King by His own Hand by Kathleen and Hal Zucati. I got this book as a gift from my sister because she's friends with the authors. I admit I wasn't impressed at first and it took me a long time to read. Part of that is because it's a long book, very much in need of a good edit. Part was also because the formatting for the Kindle isn't very good. In fact, saying that it's pretty darn bad would be true. But despite formatting issues, the book itself isn't bad. In fact, it's surprisingly well written, if overlong. The main character, Bane, comes across early in the book as unlikeable and egotistical, but eventually wins people over, including this reader. There are plenty of adventures and fascinating characters. Most of the annoying aspects of the book are resolved by the end of the story, which is more than I can say for some books. The ending leaves the characters open for a sequel but stands alone. For $2 on Kindle, despite the formatting problems, it's worth a look.

---

Past Sunday Reviews -- Comics at Amazon.com -- Previews -- My Wishlist -- My Kindle Wishlist

Each Day I Go To Work...

...I imagine that the honeymoon will end. And each day the job just gets better. True, the workload has increased each week and I'm terrified I'm going to screw up, but I've gotten great support and I can look at the newspaper each day and see what I've been doing, there on the page (and on the website, though not as obviously (I rewrite a lots of press releases that don't have bylines)). I'm still a cub reporter, the lowest of the low, and I have a long way to go before I'm going to feel confident. But I feel more happy with my work than I have in many, many years.

Now, I'm wondering what I'll be saying about the job in another month or two...