LaserBlog.com

I signed up w/ fotki. I’d had a free account, but today I signed up for the premium account.

My page:
http://public.fotki.com/laserone/

I like it. For $30 a year you get unlimited space for your images, u can treat it like hosting in that you can link directly to the photos themselves, and u can use ftp which I really like.

I may upgrade my web hosting for my websites to a package that allows more domains, but less web space, and then start putting images there and linking to them from my sites. Not sure yet, they make it hard to chose.

But this’ll be good. I like fotki alot.

I also like buzznet.com. I like the layout alot, the photoblog style of it. But right now it says “Users [of Buzznet] can post up to 10 (TEN) images per day and up to 200 images per month. Buzznet is developing premium services which will be reasonably priced and will be announced soon and these levels will be adjusted accordingly. So you will NOT be able to always send 10 photos, however there will always be some free aspects to Buzznet.com.” But it’s said that for a while.

So, since I didn’t really KNOW how to compare their yet-to-be-seen premium service, I went w/ Fotki. But I have to say I really like both of them.

I’m a freaking dork!

I kept blogging and unclicking the “allow pings” box when submitting my post, because I was tired of waiting for MT to pink weblogs.com and blo.gs. But all this time that’s not what that box does, what that does is make it so that nobody can TRACKBACK ping.

I’m such a dork.

Just for the record, MY IPOD MINI FINALLY SHIPPED TODAY!

That’s 3 months and 16 days it took to ship from amazon. Now, if it will REALLY get here on Friday is another matter, and I probably won’t sleep knowing it’s in UPS’s hands. =:o

Have you ever seen a person squeegee their tongue w/ the neckband of their t-shirt?

Well, that’s what I did last night after trying Guinness beer for the first time.

BLLEEEAAAAGGGHHHH!

M said it was a hella funny sight.

UPDATE: But I will drink a Smithwicks. But I think the locals will burn me at the steak when I go to Ireland and ask for a Smithwicks, which M said that when last in Ireland, they referred to Smithwicks as “cabbage water”. I can just see it: “Can I have a Smithwicks please? No? You don’t have that? OK, just a Coke then”. Locals pounce on me and burn me at the steak outside the pub. hehehe

Went to the pound today and looked at dogs. They were all so cute and I wanted to take them all home. Some were bouncy, some had baby seal eyes. It’s the baby seal eyes that get to me though.

They even had a cat that was an exact Crystal look-alike:

Here’s what’s sad:
From the local paper:
“Roughly two-thirds of the 1,000 animals that wind up at the Animal Services Department each month must be euthanized to make room for more strays and pets people have discarded.”

I’m calmer now. (since my last post)

I’m not any happier, but I’m calmer now.

Sorry for my language earlier, but I’m not sorry enough to remove it. This is just my journal and so it is there for prosperity.

That’s what my blog is, a journal, for me.

I’m not going to reiterate and bore my two, maybe three readers to death with the whole “this is just a blog and I vent and rant and if you don’t know me well enough you might get the wrong idea about me because this is an outlet for me and if you judge me by this blog you’ll think I’m crazier and meaner than I really am”. You can read all that here.

But I do have to say this. I’ve considered moving the blog. I’ve considered this for a few months now. A few people have found me (the real life me) via this blog, in spite of my not using my real name nor alot of personal info.

Thankfully, those people were ok. I was glad that NF and I got to reconnect, and we email regularly and I’m so glad she’s back in my life, even if it is only long distance. Then today MT found me. (“HI MT!!!”) I was really glad to hear from MT as we have tons in common and get along real well. But what I worry about is if the wrong person finds this blog. The parent in law, the client, the uncle, etc. Those who think they know me well but really don’t, would be shocked to read what I write here. I say terrible things! I am NOT ashamed of them. But see, they’re the things we think but don’t say, or the things we journal about in our diaries but don’t repeat to our in-laws.

And when I write that I told some jerk-off on a message board that the answer to his question about what I’d do if I had a child is that I’d have it aborted, I’m repeating what I told a TROLL, an asshole who ripped me a new one when I’d done nothing to him first. It’s not necessarily the truth of my beliefs. It’s a statement I made for shock value. People who know this blog as simply the rantings of faceless ‘laserone’ can read it, choke on their coffee, and move on. But an uncle or client or in-law would never forget it and NEVER be able to look at me the same again. In this one-horse backwater fundamentalist-christian-overrun town, I’d be drawn and quartered (and repeatedly “saved” for saying such a thing! I have a business to run and can’t risk alienating all christian clients.

Google loves this blog. I talk at great length w/ my family about the lumix camera I got. If you do a search for that model number on google, laserblog is on the first page! If you do a search for that camera (or some other cams I have) plus the word “photos”, I’m not only on the first google page but I’m the #1 listing!!!! My mom will call me up and say “I did a search for [insert recent topic of discussion at lunch here] and found laserblog!”. If uncle or in-law came here, they’d know it’s me from the photography and the nickname, and the fact that SOME of the posts are the same as I put on my ‘family blog’, a blog just for family to keep tabs on M and I.

I thought a movable type blog w/ it’s own domain was the best way: total control and lots of visibility. But the truth is, more people come here looking for stuff I CAN’T give them, like drivers to a camera I no longer have which I mentioned once on this blog YEARS ago, or a medical explanation of what happens when exposed to Freon because one time YEARS ago I mentioned the word “freon” in passing.

I think most traffic to this site is accidental people searching for other pages. I think I only have a handful of readers and most of them know me in real life anyway.

So, I might take this blog down, and put it up somewhere else, w/ a different name, out of search engines, etc.

But that leads to the question of: WILL ANYBODY CARE? If this place disappears, who will want the new address? And if I DO put it back up somewhere else in more of a stealth mode, then what’s the point? I mean, I know I blog for myself, as a creative and cathartic outlet. But I like knowing that it’s out there just in case someone out there is interested, or just wants to know that they are not the only ones who are full of anger and frustration, depressed, or just simply “hate florida”.

So tell me. Comment here or email me (addy is at the top of the main page) and tell me if you want the address of this blog’s new home (if I do it).

I am so GOD DAMNED MOTHER FUCKING SICK of people!

Why is it that when I ask a simple question on a message board that always gives reasonable answers to everyone ELSE, *I* get my asshole ripped open by some psychotic low life? All I asked was what other photo travellers have bought for a rolling camera backpack (the kind w/ padded compartments designed by camera manufacturers like Canon to carry cameras and gear), and this is what I get in reply:

“Wait. Are you even remotely aware that the camera you place in your pack is a delicate electronic instrument? Why on earth would you subject it to the bumping and jarring that it will inevitably experience as your little wheels roll over every conceivable pebble and crack? A person who fails to think things through this far should by no means be allowed to purchase delicate electronic instruments. What, pray tell will you do if you ever have a child? Drag her by the hair?”

I wrote back:

“You’ve REALLY got screw lose, you know that? What part of PADDED don’t you understand? What part of BAG DESIGNED FOR CAMERA don’t you understand? They MAKE rolling camera bags, so I guess all camera bag manufacturers are stupid then? And you know more than they do? Canon makes these bags. Are you smarter than Canon? Oh and by the way, if we DID get pregnant, I’d have it aborted, so there.”

Motherfucker.

Today I was bummed out.

But later on one of the books I ordered on abebooks.com came and that made me very happy. The book that came today was
The Irish Way: A Walk Through Ireland’s Past and Present.
A seventy-some year old man walked the entire length of Ireland, and then wrote a book about his travels and the people he met. I’m really looking forward to reading that.

Then went to the mall and spent some money on some great stuff for my upcoming trip: new shoes and a real small photo backpack that will slip right into my larger rolling backpack. I’ll put all my camera gear in this and take it as a carry-on when I fly.

I’m going to set up a travel-blog so that others can enjoy daily messages and photos from my trip (give’ya the link later), but I’m also going to take a paper journal with me. Today I realized it might be fun to grab one of those $10 Polaroid I-zone cameras that take tiny photos as well as tiny adhesive photos.

Then I could stick periodic i-zone sticky photos into the journal. That’d be really cool! Yes I’m a nerd, but so what.

I forgot to post this before, but I took this photo around July 4th, I’m pretty sure I took it on July 5th actually. What is it? It’s the employees at Hallmark putting up CHRISTMAS CRAP!!!!! IN JULY!!!! IN EARLLY JULY!!!!

AAAAAAAAAAAAACK!

Today is an unusual rainy day. Not unusual probably by your standards, but unusual by south florida standards. Around here, in the summer, it’ll be 98F all day and then around 4pm you get a thunderstorm from hell that brings lightning, power outages, and floods. Then it ends an hour later, leaves everything more humid than before, but sunny, hot, and no storm clouds to be seen. Then, when it’s not summer, there is no rain any time and we have drought.

A day where it gently rains from the morning on is highly unusual any time of the year here. But that is how it is today. It reminds me of up north. That kind of rainy day is normal up north, but not here.

I was gonna run errands today but decided to stay in and read. I’m reading
McCarthy’s Bar: A Journey of Discovery In Ireland

It’s about Ireland, and written by a British guy, so I spend alot of time reading it in front of the computer so that I can try to look up the words. I never know if it’s his british vernacular or the use of an Irish term.

WikiPedia.com and www.bbcamerica.com/britain/dictionary.jsp are good places to look up British, Irish, or otherwise uncommon terminology. (thanks Conrad!)

I’m hoping that more of my Travel Essay books that I got for a steal off abebooks.com will arrive today, but my mailbox is depressingly empty.

With this rain it’s a good day to stay in and read. But u know that later I’ll have cabin-fever and be begging to be let out for sushi.

It’s interesting to me that people write books for travelers, but then they don’t explain things that they write about. I mean, this one book I’m reading on Ireland, the author will use phrases and terminology and assume we know what she means. But if I KNEW, I wouldn’t be reading your book now, would I?

Then I’m reading another book, not meant to be a guide, but it’s simply written by a British guy who went to Ireland, and I seem to be needing to look up words every other page. I’m not familiar w/ alot of the British terminology, or Irish terminology. So It’s kinda hard.

I wish Americans were taught more international ‘stuff’ in school. I mean, it’s embarassing how ignorant most americans are. I’M American and I feel I know more than alot others. For example, this quote from the book I’m reading:

“I had a few drinks [in Germany] with three American GI’s who were planning to visit Englad ‘because it would be neat to see where John Lennon and Elvis grew up’. They also wanted to know if they could use dollars, and would the street signs b e in English?”

No wonder people hate Americans! I mean, HOW could these Americans not know where Elvis came from and that they speak ENGLISH IN ENGLAND!

The public shool system is so f*cked up and we all graduate knowing nothing. I try to learn more about the world as I go throughout my life, reading lots of good books, and for the most part even if I DO read fiction (which is rare) I want to at least learn something about another culture or something along the way in the story.

ack.

M & I went to the movies w/ a friend last night. I went just to get OUT and DO something. I really had no interest in seeing Spiderman 2. Never saw the first one. Do not care. The effects look fake in the previews.

I really hated the movie.

But I am SO desperate to get OUT and DO stuff. This town is so freaking boring.

Anyway, I felt that alot was left unexplained, and thost things coulda been explained with THREE simple ONE-LINERS. So I was totally lost, and bored by the overall feel of it. I’m just not into comics and stuff like that.

I mean, when I was a kid, the only comics I read were Sad Sack and Richie Rich.

*snort!*

I want to see I Robot and The Terminal next.

Tonite was fun. I thought tonight was laser show night, but I was wrong, so we hooked up w/ some friends at this kinda weird gambling place, it was sorta fun, something to do in this backward old fart town.

Then we went to Blue Sushi which was HOPPING! Loud, crowded, and killer sushi. So good.

After that we were gonna go to the Irish Pub and get some dark beer but decided to go home and do our thang… surf, read, watch tv, play with cats.

We are nerds.

Forgot to mention, but the night before our road trip, M got my tiny laptop working so that it connects to my cell phone via bluetooth and uses the phone’s GPRS internet! So now, regardless of wifi availability, I can connect the laptop to the internet ANYWHERE. Have to turn graphics off to save bandwidth, but still, it’s great for most things, esp. logging into M’s work using SSH while in the middle of the everglades.

I’m sick to death of people who continually put pictures of their freaking offspring on photoblogs with the pretense of it being for a photo theme, or under the pretense that it’s artistic. I don’t want to see your damned baby pictures when I’m surfing for good photography! Call it what it is, a BABY BLOG and keep it off photography lists. Pictures of your stupid offspring do not qualify under the “cool” category of this week’s photo friday. Pictures of your ugly, squirming, blood-covered, fetus being “born” does not qualify for photo friday’s “father” theme. Baby blogs are baby blogs and they DON’T belong. The world does NOT revolve around your stupid offspring, the photography community DOES NOT CARE. Baby pictures should be shared w/ friends and family only, they’re the only ones who give a shit.

Got more StuffBak labels today. StuffBak.com is really awesome. You get these labels at Office Depot or online (or wherever) and you stick ‘em on your stuff. Pda’s, cell phones, keys, luggage, whatever, and register the label w/ stuffback.com. Then if the item is lost, it can be returned to you. Several news networks have tested stuffback.com and it’s competitors, and more often than not (“5 out of 6 times”), people will turn in the items. I really like stuffbak.com.

I have not seen a decent selection of PDA’s at Best Buy in over a year. I went last night and they have NONE. They just rearranged their entire store, and did not move the PDA section, so where were the PDA’s? M says PDA’s may just not be doing very well in general. I don’t see WHY that would be the case. I mean, it’s not like everyone is using paper date books anymore.

I have NO idea why PDA’s would not be doing well. Sure some phones can do alot of the same stuff a PDA can, but not ALL the things a PDA can… unless it’s a pda/phone, and I hardly ever see anyone with one of those.

It blows my mind that sony is going to stop making Clie’s and that PDA’s can’t be gotten except online.

I don’t get it. PDA’s can do everything for you, PLUS you can put ebooks on them, mp3′s, take photos, intall programs that range from diet programs to foreign language dictionaries. I can even surf the internet, chat, and send email using my PDA.

If people are just not buying Palms and other PDA’s, then I just don’t get people anymore.

In this day and age, why PDA’s would not be selling is beyond me.

UPDATE: More thoughts.

CLICK BELOW TO READ MORE…
(more…)

It’s in the 90′s, so I’m basically in HELL, and then I go to the internet cafe and for some unGODLY reason, they are playing COUNTRY MUSIC! KILL ME! KILL ME NOW!

Oh wow:

http://www.grouphug.us/

Type in (or read) anonymous confessions.

Love this.

Got this article from slashdot

Guy creates tired.com and people email him to tell him why they are tired. Some excerpts (sp?) from the really great article:

“I’m sick and tired of all this homophobia shit.
When are we all just going to be people? WHEN?
Also I could get more sleep at night.
I’m drunk.
Bye.”

“Tired of being in the navy and on a fucking ship in the middle of the god damn ocean with 400 of my not so closest friends who dont bathe as regular as normal folk should. Tired of my ugly little toe. Tired of wonderring why my bellybutton smells like cheese….” (it gets WORSE).

From slashdot: “Rafael Macedo de la Concha, Mexico’s Attorney-General, now has a non-removable microchip in his arm, to track his movements and to give him access to a new crime database, according to Bloomberg.”

http://yro.slashdot.org/yro/04/07/14/1226212.shtml?tid=126&tid=158&tid=99

What exactly do they mean by “non-removeable”? I mean, does he die if the chip is pulled out?

While digging around in a drawer for stamps and staples, I found this old Texas Instruments electronic organizer. I have no idea of the model number, and can’t remember if it was 64 k or what. But it still works! And was apparently Y2k compliant!

Let’s see, when did I get it… I know I HAD it and was USING it between 1995-1996. Not sure when I bought it.

Click to see larger:

UPDATE: Ha! Found a page about it here:
http://www.datamath.org/Personal/Organizer.htm
I guess it’s a PS-6600. Introduced in 1992. 64k. Wow. I used this thing religiously.

Filling out passport application today, whee fun. Going downtown to apply for passport. Maybe I can hit that really good sushi place down there. I have not had sushi in like a week and I’m going thru withdrawl.

The whole house smells like skunk all of a sudden. Either they sprayed for mosquitoes outside and I didnt hear it, or a skunk has sprayed and the smell is getting inside.

One time our next door neighbor had the same smell and had some critter removal service come, and what it turned out to be was that an owl had killed a skunk and took it to their roof to eat it, and then the smell got in thru the ridge-vent on the roof, smelling up the whole house for days. I hope to god that isnt what just happened. Ive seen an owl on our roof several times.

IS IT JUST ME?!?!?!?
Or do these two sentances JUST NOT GO TOGETHER!!?!?

From the local news tonight:
(man kills himself in park because he’s accused of molesting some kid)

“And those close to [name deleted] tell nbc2 [that] evidence from the state attourney’s office reported by the media in the past few days may have proven too much for him and lead to his suicide. NBC’s [name deleted] continues our team coverage.”

HOW can you recite those two sentances one right after another and sleep at night????

You might as well just say “we killed him with our nosy news coverage and we’re just gonna KEEP DOING IT until his ENTIRE FAMILY kills themselves!“

I go to a message board set up for fans of Ireland, where they ASK people to post if they’ve been to or are going to Ireland, so we can all chat about Ireland, and so I post and some jerk writes back not to get all excited, “it’s not all leprechuns and thatch cottages”. OH REALLY? I HAD NO IDEA! I THOUGHT IT WAS! OH NO! Fuck you. I’ll get excited if I want to. It’s my vacation. Kiss my ass. I hate people.

I hate people.

Thanks to some guy in Ireland who was kind enough to email me and make phone calls on my behalf, I’ve found out that the hotel we are staying at has internet in the rooms! Yay! So now I will EASILY be able to log onto my travel-journal and not only write entries, but upload photos. I’m relieved.

I will provide the link later. I’m still setting it up and deciding whether or not to buy a premium web-based blog so I can host photos on the blog itself, or if I should use a free blog with ads and no photo space and then link to photos at a photosite like webshots or fotki instead.

thinking, thinking…

I don’t believe this.

My uncle won a trip to Ireland. A newspaper gave him the trip. He gave the trip to my mother and I. The newspaper wants us to sign a release form releasing them from liability. Fine. But on that form they want my social security number. I do not want to give my social security number to a newspaper. I have no idea if they will lock that piece of paper in a vault or leave it lying on a desk. I have no idea what kind of people work at the newspaper. I have no idea how safe my SS# will be if I release it to them. Identity theft is on the rise BIG TIME and I’m not about to throw that number around. They have no legal right to demand that number, NONE.

But if I refuse, and then they refuse to let me go on the trip, my mom will NEVER forgive me.

I’m going to call a lawyer first thing in the morning and find out my options.

I will just sh*t a gold brick if I’m not allowed to take the trip because I refuse to give them information that they have no right to demand.

F*ck! Why is there always a fucked up catch? Why!

UPDATE: I always write these rants and then the next day wish I didn’t curse so much. I just get so mad. If I use fake numbers for the social, I forfeit the trip. It says so right on the form. I wonder if they even check it though. I’m making some phone calls today about alternative ID’s I can use and/or how securely they are going to store that form.

Tomorrow is 6 months since my brother died, and it’s really hard to believe. M’s friend’s wife asked me if I had any siblings and I just started crying, at a table of six, in a busy restaurant. I felt so stupid. But it’s hard, and it was so recent, it’s coming up on an anniversary of it, and I was sitting at a table of three generations (dh’s friend, his wife and baby, and his parents) and I just don’t have that in my family. My grandparents are gone, my parents are divorced and dad died, step father abandoned us (not that he COUNTS), two of my siblings are dead and both died too young, some (and only some, please don’t misread this) of my neices/nephews want nothing to do with me either because of who I’m realated to or because they simply don’t remember me, and I DON’T want kids but am worried about being alone later in life. It was just surprisingly emotional and I felt like an ASS.