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October, 2007

  1. The Chili Experiment

    October 22, 2007 by Gail

    my homemade chili

    I took some photos last night to experiment with colour profiles and white balance to nail this neverending problem with trying to match the colours between my computer and what gets uploaded to Flickr.

    This is not bad, between Firefox and Safari. A screen capture with Firefox on the left and Safari on the right.

    How does this look on your computer? I’m using an entirely different method of colour management. Is the red pepper red and the cilantro green? Are the colours washed out? (Sorry Mace, I know you don’t like cilantro and you’re red-green challenged…!)

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    Posted in Food + Drink, House of Fielding, Unabashed Geekiness | 2 Comments

  2. Pronunciation Poll

    October 22, 2007 by Gail

    Over the weekend I watched the whole preview movie of the new Mac OS X v10.5 Leopard — which is rather impressive, by the way — but I cringed whenever the demonstrator said the word “presentation” with the first syllable pronounced with a long e, like “preacher”.

    In fact, it was so distracting I was nearly ready to mute him and just watch the demo silently. Especially when a second demonstrator came on the screen and she said it exactly the same way! It was like nails on a chalkboard!

    I live in a cosmopolitan society, I hear all kinds of pronunciations, but for some reason this one sounds new. But maybe it’s just my imagination. Maybe lots of people say it that way. So I’ve set up a little poll, for readers and lurkers alike. Even if you’ve never commented before, indulge my curiosity (the poll is anonymous) and click an answer. You can choose more than one.

    more at twiigs.com…

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    Posted in Memes, Polls, Quizzes | 11 Comments

  3. I Have Yet to Tame the Adobe Colour Profile Beast

    October 21, 2007 by Gail

    Just when I think I have it licked, something like this shows up.

    I calibrated my screen a while ago to match the colours I see in the Flickr uploads, because I want to know that what I’m uploading is matching how I manage colours in Adobe Photoshop CS2. It seems a little counterintuitive because it’s the monitor colours that also affect what I see uploaded to Flickr — chicken and egg, egg and chicken — but the point of this exercise is to get the colours as close to a match as I can.

    It seems to be something that rears its coloured head every six months or so.

    This has got to be the most glaring example of the mismatch I’m talking about, a photo I shot this afternoon in RAW after brunch (didn’t take a photo this time, but it was a Buddha Bowl at Juice For Life, similar to this) on my way home.

    This is a screen capture of what it looks like to me, in PS (click on the pic to see the discussion in Flickr):

    my Adobe colour profile is wonky

    This is what it looked like uploaded to Flickr — completely desaturated! [Note: if you're using Safari it won't look desaturated.]

    a fine October day

    I thought something had happened to my Adobe colour profile, but I checked the profiles of previous uploads and they’re the same. Nothing’s changed, except I converted the JPG from RAW and maybe the mismatch lies in the conversion. Argh, I’m going to make dinner and see if food helps me find a solution.

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    Posted in Unabashed Geekiness | 3 Comments

  4. Back to Brunch

    October 20, 2007 by Gail

    weekend brunch: crepes and a latte

    Man, it’s been far too long since I posted a food photo. I’ve been having weekend brunches in New York City and here and there in Pennsylvania, but didn’t bring out the camera. Today I was sitting by the window and had my camera with me, so *click*

    This crepe is called “La Hacienda” at Daddy-O’s on Roncesvalles Avenue in Toronto, if you happen to be in the area. It’s filled with mashed potatoes, shallots, and various cheeses, and it’s as good as it looks!

    Weekend brunch between loads of laundry is the best thing ever.

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    Posted in Food + Drink | 4 Comments

  5. Introducing the Pentax 50mm f/1.7

    October 19, 2007 by Gail

    these boots were made for walking... and that's just what they'll do
    These boots were made for walking…(err, I don’t think so)

    I couldn’t believe my good fortune a week ago when I did a search on Craigslist and found this used Pentax autofocus prime lens. I’ve wanted it since I bought my K100D, but it’s rare to see used primes on sale because once people buy them, they don’t let them go! I’m still rather new to the DSLR world, so I chatted with the K10D owner — a young and fetching lad who may blush if he reads this — for nearly an hour on Wednesday to pick his brain discuss the finer points of various Pentax lenses. He’s also from BC (The Island)!

    This week’s been busy at work (was at the office until almost 7pm today) and all I want to do when I get home is eat and pass out, so my first set of shots with the 50mm wasn’t until last night, when I moseyed around the neighbourhood after going to the post office. Some of the photos, forthwith:

    shiny pretty things
    shiny, pretty things

    nightcap
    nightcap

    insomnia on rye
    insomnia on rye

    (more…)

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    Posted in Photography | 3 Comments

  6. Happy Birthday, Princess Maddy

    October 18, 2007 by Gail

    Photo credit: Cheryl

    I was late with Michael’s birthday present (in the end I couldn’t decide on anything, so I copped out for the first time in the history of all five Ms and gave him money), so I was determined not to miss Madeleine’s. It’s not actually until Monday, but I was set on getting it there a bit earlier. Before any of her scheduled tea party engagements, that is.

    I sure hope this Princess phase ends soon (please!), because if I have to listen to Disney show tunes any longer I’m going to stick my fingers in my ears while shopping. Madeleine apparently loves everything pink and princessy, a la Disney, and when she gets old enough to realise the error of her ways I will be sure to remind her about this phase and how long it lasted!

    I packed that lunchbox with the pinkest things I could find. Things I didn’t even think I could find in pink, like a reading light!

    I can tell you — with firsthand knowledge, I’m afraid — that the Disney stores on both sides of the border have not only the same merchandise, but exactly the same promotional videos playing at the back of the store. The employees must have this music playing over and over in their dreams!

    With all the griping I do about Disney, I don’t do it with the kids, because you’re only six once. The age of innocence and the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is all too short for us aunties and uncles, too. Next thing I know the Ms will be asking for designer jeans and the latest music player, so I’d better enjoy shopping at the Disney store while they’re still young and easy to please.

    Happy Nearly-Sixth Birthday, Madeleine!

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    Posted in The Ms | 4 Comments

  7. I’m a Fairweather Driver

    October 18, 2007 by Gail

    I'm a fairweather driver

    Thankfully last Saturday was good weather like this, because I drove 600 miles that day alone.

    I-90 upstate New York, near Albany.

    tinges of autumn

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    Posted in USA | 1 Comment

  8. It’s Fire Prevention Month, Kids

    October 17, 2007 by Gail

    it's Fire Prevention Month, kids

    It’s true. My smoke detector bit the dust not long ago, and lo and behold, I won a smoke detector today in a draw at work — plus two 9 volt batteries for it!

    Am sending the fireman’s hat and kids stuff to the nieces and nephew in BC. Kermit’s a bit miffed as it was his Halloween costume.

    Last night Michael, 7, phoned me from his mother’s mobile.

    “Hello?”

    “Hi Auntie Gail! It’s Michael!”

    “Hi Michael, did you dial my phone number yourself?”

    “No, I just phoned your name. I’m phoning all the Edwins in mom’s phone.”

    That kid makes me laugh…

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    Posted in The Adventures of Kermit, The Ms | 2 Comments

  9. Oddity Tuesday

    October 16, 2007 by Gail

    I was reviewing some transactions done in the U.S. last weekend, and it was more than a little odd to see that I pay LESS in Canadian funds than I would in greenbacks. It’s been more than 30 years since the Canadian dollar was worth more than the U.S. dollar. I was only a wee’un back then, when we were very new to Canadian life and my parents were still comparing the practically worthless Philippine peso to the currency of their newly-adopted country.

    It’s a great time to travel south — I remember the sting of the exchange rate only five years ago, when I was in New York City and paying hefty sums for theatre tickets. As usual, retail prices have yet to catch up with currency rates, but monetary parity south of the border is something altogether new. The Canadian economy relies heavily on exports to the United States, however, so I can really only speak for importers and the tourists heading outside of Canada when I say it’s good to see the pendulum swing in our favour this time in terms of buying power.

    I’ve never seen the U.S. and British measurement system called ‘English’ before, have you? I grew up with metric, so I still have a tough time converting Fahrenheit to Celsius, and even though I drive a car with gauges in miles I have to look at the odometer to get a sense of how far I’ve travelled or convert it to kilometres in my head. In fact, that’s something I do on long car trips subconsciously: whenever I see the distance on a highway sign, I try and estimate my time of arrival based on my speed (I never use the cruise control, either) and then calculate the distance in kilometres. This was also actually useful when I rented cars in the States during the time when the Canadian dollar was at its lowest, around 60 cents U.S. I could convert currency and mileage simultaneously!

    One last oddity for today: I get a lot of wacky ISPs and domain names in my stats, but here’s one I thought of screen-capturing:

    And yes, I tried visiting, but apparently Satan Penguin isn’t very welcoming. Heh.

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    Posted in Politics + Economy, Randomage | 3 Comments

  10. Yet Another Niagara Falls Shot

    October 16, 2007 by Gail

    Niagara Falls

    Again, from the U.S. side. The garishness on the Canadian side puts me off and I can park right next to the river on the American side, which is much more peaceful. This winter I’d like to get ice shots at Niagara Falls, but I’d better buy some heavy duty gloves and something to keep my face from freezing in the chilly wind!

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    Posted in USA | 3 Comments

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