Thursday, February 18, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 49


I was sitting at my cubicle, making an effort to look busy, when I noticed the reflection of my water in the darkened face of my Ipod.


Specifications:

Exposure: 1/30

Aperture: f2.8

Focal Length: 6.3 mm
ISO: 320
Camera: Sony DSC-W50

Lens: Point & Shoot
Date & Time: 1:51 pm-2/18/10
Posted: 2/18/10

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 48

Fog City

It was really foggy when I left for work this morning. I opened the sunroof and took this while waiting for the light to change.


Specifications:

Exposure: 1/20

Aperture: f2.8

Focal Length: 6.3 mm
ISO: 320
Camera: Sony DSC-W50

Lens: Point & Shoot
Date & Time: 7:02 am-2/17/10
Posted: 2/17/10

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 47

Old Cellphone

There's no story behind this photo other than I was sitting at my desk, avoiding homework, when I took the picture.

Specifications:

Exposure: 1/15

Aperture: f2.8

Focal Length: 6.3 mm
ISO: 320
Camera: Sony DSC-W50

Lens: Point & Shoot
Date & Time: 9:38 pm-2/11/10
Posted: 2/16/10

Monday, February 15, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 46

Dirty Daisy

Ok, for all I know this isn't a daisy. I'm not sure what kind of flower this is actually. I just thought it was pretty. I had almost forgotten that I owned a point and shoot camera. I've been lugging my DSLR around all these weeks. I took this with my 3 year old Sony Cybershot. I played with the color just a teeny tiny bit in Lightroom. I wish I could have figured out how to get rid of the dirt on the flower. It's buggin' me.

Specifications:

Exposure: 1/320

Aperture: f2.8

Focal Length: 6.3 mm
ISO: 80
Camera: Sony DSC-W50

Lens: Point & Shoot
Date & Time: 11:49 am-2/12/10
Posted: 2/15/10

Sunday, February 14, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 45

Rainy Day Red Velvet Cupcakes

I took this photo last month. CraigiePoo and I were on Fourth Street and the cupcake van was there. Cupcakes were bought. Cupcakes were eaten. All was right with the world.


Specifications:

Exposure: 1/15

Aperture: f6.3

Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO: 640
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Date & Time: 1:06 pm-1/24/10
Posted: 2/14/10

Saturday, February 13, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 44

Roots


I took this photo last month while CraigiePoo and I were out looking at apartment. We passed on the apartment (the electricity was 5000 years old in the place), but I couldn't pass on this tree. I thought the roots were kinda creepy looking. Like something out of a horror movie.

Specifications
:

Exposure: 1/13

Aperture: f6.3

Focal Length: 28 mm
ISO: 200
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Date & Time: 11:48 am-1/24/10
Posted: 2/13/10

Friday, February 12, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 43

Cherry Blossom

I want to call these flowers cherry blossoms. I'm pretty sure that's what they are. They're blooming outside the plantation and falling on the ground.

Specifications:

Exposure: 1/40

Aperture: f6.3

Focal Length: 135 mm
ISO: 250
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Date & Time: 3:10 pm-2/12/10
Posted: 2/12/10


- Strange ((^_~))

Thursday, February 11, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 42



This building is a few doors down from my apartment building. I think it's a halfway, rehab type of building. I never see it from this point of few because I'm always in my car when ever I go past it. This day I was actually walking around in my neighborhood and really liked the pointy thing at the top.

Specifications:

Exposure: 1/1000

Aperture: f6.3

Focal Length: 80 mm
ISO:400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Date & Time: 4:23 pm-2/11/10
Posted: 2/11/10


- Strange ((^_~))

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 41

Rejected Candy


More flash work today. I'm not happy with this photo. I could not get rid of the shadow and the lighting was just icky today. This is what you get when you incorporate common household lights into your photography.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/80 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 112mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 7:39 pm
Date: 2/10/10
Posted: 2/10/10

- Strange ((^_~))

Tuesday, February 09, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 40

Christmas Candy


Today I decided to not be afraid of using an external flash and hooked it up to my camera. The few times I've used the built in flash on my Canon 50D the pictures come out looking crazy and washed out. I've been reading a lot of photo sites lately about techniques for using an external flash and decided to bite the bullet.

Voila!

Christmas candy is still edible two months later, right?

Specifications
:
Exposure: 1/13 sec at f/6.3
Focal Length: 135mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 5:24pm
Date: 2/9/10
Posted: 2/9/10

Monday, February 08, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 39

Courtyard Water Fountain

This water fountain actually has a rusty and peeling brownish orange color. I got a little hue happy in Lightroom. I'm not sure how I feel about the overall photo. I couldn't figure out how to get the pinkish color out of the background.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/125 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 135mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 4:24pm
Date: 2/8/10
Posted: 2/8/10

Sunday, February 07, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 38

Weekend potatoes and french toast

Breakfast courtesy of CraigiePoo. I don't know what she does to these potatoes, but they are delicious.


Specifications:
Exposure: 1/13 sec at f/4.5
Focal Length: 50mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 10:51 am
Date: 2/7/10
Posted: 2/7/10

Saturday, February 06, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 37


CraigiePoo aka Christina


So the Mrs. took her first burlesque dance class today. She was showing me one of the moves she learned in class. There was a chair involved. It was hot. That's all I'm going to say about that. I love how the light from the window fell on her face. She liked this photo better in B & W than in color so here it is B & W.

Isn't she gorgeous.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/13 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 95mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 3:42 pm
Date: 2/6/10
Posted: 2/6/10

Friday, February 05, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 36


Another random photo. I shot this while waiting in my car for my hair appointment. I was trying to take a photo of myself, but ended up with more of the scenery outside the car. I don't know why I like this one, but I do. I think I'm liking how the camera not only caught the reflection of the cars on the street in the mirror, but also the part of the white car that was not in the mirror but actually in front of me.

It was an overcast day (rain's ah-comin' soon) so I tweaked with the color again to make the green pop a little more than the reality.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/100 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 53mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 4:27 pm
Date: 2/5/10
Posted: 2/5/10

Thursday, February 04, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 35


Just a random photo today. My two external backup hard drives. I shoot photos in the largest JPEG format possible for my camera so the files tend to be quite large and take up a lot of room on my computer. I've had to take the photos off my computer and store them on these guys.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/15 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 47 mm
ISO: 640
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 8:45 pm
Date: 2/4/10
Posted: 2/4/10

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 34

Christina

I was surfing around a photography blog today and one of the participants was lamenting over an assigned photo project for her class. She had to take a photo of a loved one, but the loved one couldn't be in the photo. I decided to borrow the idea. This is just one of many things that remind me of my wife, CraigiePoo aka Christina.

I was having issues with the color. The jewelry is really shiny and was reflecting the color of other items sitting on the table. A quick click of a button or two in Adobe Lightroom 2 and the photo went from color to B&W.


Specifications:
Exposure: 1/100 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 127 mm
ISO: 640
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 8:46 pm
Date: 2/3/10
Posted: 2/3/10


- Strange ((^_~))

Tuesday, February 02, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 33

Sunset

I took this on campus. The sun was setting and casting strange glows. I'm not sure how I feel about this one. I think I may have gone a little to far with the tweaking in Adobe Lightroom 2. In person the sky was more red, but somehow in the 5 minutes it took me to get up all the damn stairs to get this photo the light had moved (actually I blame the trees) and I just couldn't capture any of the red-pinkish hue. All I got was a flat grayish-blue sky. I did snap a few photos while I was on the ground, but didn't really care for them. One day I'll figure out how to get the trees to show more green.


Specifications:
Exposure: 1/8 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 33mm
ISO: 640
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 5:39pm
Date: 2/2/10
Posted: 2/2/10

Monday, February 01, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 32

Scar

This tree has this funky scar running about arm's length down it's trunk. I thought it was kind of cool and a little gross. The original photo came about grayish. It was an overcast day and this side of the street is hidden from the sun by the building not shown. I tweaked with color a little in Adobe Lightroom 2 to give it more brownish hue.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/100 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 47mm
ISO: 200
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 11:42am
Date: 2/1/10
Posted: 2/1/10

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 31

Self Portrait

The first month of my 365 Photo Project is done. I'm ending this month with a self portrait. For the most part I like this photograph. I didn't realize until after I had downloaded the pictures to my computer the mistake. Can you see it? I'll wait...

Did you find it? Fine, I'll tell you.

I don't put my makeup while I'm wearing my glasses. I was so intent on getting the picture in focus and making sure the composition was how I wanted it that I forgot to take them off.

Specifications
:
Exposure: 1/20 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 117mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 11:42am
Date: 1/30/10
Posted: 1/31/10

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 30

Here it is. The finished product. The last photo in this week theme is:

Mixed Berry Cooler, Mango Daiquiri, and Cape Cod

These are all so delicious. I'm going to try and not eat them all at once. CraigiePoo is thinking about starting this as a side business. Contact me if you're interested. So delicious. ::insert Homer Simpson drool::

Mmm...jam.


Specifications:
Exposure: 1/8 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 135mm
ISO: 200
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 8:57pm
Date: 1/26/10
Posted: 1/30/10

Friday, January 29, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 29

Theme photo of the day:

Food mill used to puree the fruit and remove skin and seeds.

CraigiePoo was just about to put the mangoes through this to remove the fibers and make a nice smooth mixture for the jam.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/13 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 56mm
ISO: 640
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 2:28pm
Date: 1/24/10
Posted: 1/29/10

Thursday, January 28, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 28

Theme week photo of the day is:

Adding that special ingredient to the cranberries. Yep, that's vodka.


Specifications:
Exposure: 1/60 sec at f/3.5
Focal Length: 35mm
ISO: 1250
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 1:53pm
Date: 1/24/10
Posted: 1/28/10

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 27

Today's photo in theme week:

Peeling the Mango

That's CraigiePoo peeling a mango for the mango jam.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/6 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 85mm
ISO: 3200
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 1:38pm
Date: 1/24/10
Posted: 1/27/10

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 26

Theme week continues:


Mmm...cranberries covered in sugar. The lime peel added to give the jam that tangy flavor. Delicious.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/6 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 135mm
ISO: 800
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 2:05pm
Date: 1/24/10
Posted: 1/26/10

Monday, January 25, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 25

Continuing theme week. Here is today's photo:

Strawberries & blueberries liberally sprinkled with sugar.

Personally, this flavor might be my favorite. So good.


Specifications
:
Exposure: 1/6 sec at f/6.3
Focal Length: 100mm
ISO: 800
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 1:20pm
Date: 1/24/10
Posted: 1/25/10

Sunday, January 24, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 24

Hey y'all. I was on a photo taking roll today. CraigiePoo has taken up making compote (jam like stuff that ain't technically jam). She made three flavors today and I spent the entire afternoon snapping photos. I think this week will be a theme week. You guessed it! I'll be posting pictures of the process throughout the week. According to my memory card I took over 1200 photos today! That's just counting the photos that made it to my computer before I started deleting.

Here's the first photo:

Cranberries, mangos, limes, oranges, and a mixture of strawberries and blueberries (not shown in this photo).


Specifications:
Exposure: 1/13 sec at f/6.3
Focal Length: 127mm
ISO: 1000
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 1:24pm
Date: 1/24/10

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 23

Cloud on Fourth Street

CraigiePoo and I were hanging over on Fourth Street in Berkeley at the Crate & Barrel store today. I took this photo just as we were about to get in the car. It's been raining all week and today was the first day with no rain. This cloud was just hanging out, waiting to cause trouble.

I delved a little deeper in Adobe Lightroom 2 with this photo. I made the sky bluer than it actually was. Neither of the buildings are actually that bright in person. If I remember correctly one is actually a fading yellow color (the one with the windows) and the other is actually gray.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/2000 sec at f/6.3
Focal Length: 28mm
ISO: 200
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 2:40pm
Date: 1/23/10

Friday, January 22, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 22

Plain bagel with cream cheese and homemade cranberry compote


Specifications:
Exposure: 1/13 sec at f/6.3
Focal Length: 60mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 6:00pm
Date: 1/22/10

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 21

Blue Dawn

I took this photo in the parking lot at work. It had stopped raining long enough for me to snap this photo and get from the car to my building without getting drenched I'm loving the light and color.


Specifications
:
Exposure: 1/30 sec at f/6.3
Focal Length: 60mm
ISO: 1250
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 7:07am
Date: 1/21/10

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 20

Red Vines

I love me some red vines. They are so delicious. ::drool:: CraigiePoo brought these home today as a surprise for me.

I shot this using the Close-Up Macro Filters I got for my birthday last year. They're great for shooting close ups if you don't have an actual macro lens.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/13 sec at f/6.3
Focal Length: 120mm
ISO: 500
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 6:34pm
Date: 1/20/10

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 19

When it rains heavily, this street outside my window at my plantation tends to flood. Today I thought I was going to need to hitch a ride with Noah on his ark. There was a ridiculous amount of rain. I also experimented a little with the color using Adobe Lightroom 2. I should read one of the three manuals I have about Lightroom and really learn how to use the program.

- Strange ((^_~))

Photo of the Day-Day 18


One day I'm going to buy a macro lens so I can get real good and close to those raindrops.

- Strange ((^_~))

Photo of the Day-Day 17...again

So, CraigiePoo actually likes me posting my photos directly here on the blog because they then show up in her blog reader feed thingie. I'll post photos here and on my flickr account.

Here's the Photo of the Day for day 17

This apple crisp was delicious. ::drool::

- Strange ((^_~))

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 17

Hey y'all,

I've decided to move my 365 Photo Project to my Flickr account. I had forgotten I even had an account on the site. I need to figure out how to put the Flickr widget icon thingie on the sidebar. Until then, here's the direct link to my Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8299601@N04/sets/72157623231984716/.

- Strange ((^_~))

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 16


Today was just one of them days. I could barely get off my couch and wasn't even about to go out of the apartment to shoot some photos. If I wasn't feeling so lazy I would cut up these mangoes and have my way with them.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/8 sec at f/5.0
Focal Length: 65mm
ISO: 500
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 8:55pm
Date: 1/16/10

Friday, January 15, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 15


CraigiePoo's Seasonings
Adobo
Lemon Salt
Toasted Spice Rub
Cinnamon Sugar



Hee hee. I got the copyright to finally show up on the photos. Sweet!!!

Specifications
:
Exposure: 1/8 sec at f/4.5
Focal Length: 56mm
ISO: 320
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 5:15pm
Date: 1/15/10

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 14


One of the best salads ever. CraigiePoo had a doctor's appointment today and was craving a salad afterwards. Viola!

Ingredients:
- Cherry tomatoes
- Grilled chicken
- Avocado
- Bacon bits (real bacon)
- Green olives
- Mixed greens (spinach and some other healthy green leafy stuff)
- Cheddar cheese
- Croutons (homemade. CraigiePoo is awesome in the kitchen)
- Olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/60 sec at f/5.6
Focal Length: 135mm
ISO: 1000
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 4:48pm
Date: 1/14/10

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 13




When I started this "a photo everyday project" for 2010, I didn't' factor in the fact that I work 40 hours a week!!! Being a responsible adult gets in the way of creativity. Geez!!!

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/400 sec at f/9.0
Focal Length: 53mm
ISO: 125
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 4:48pm
Date: 1/13/10

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 12


Just a little lite reading.

This is reason number two why I need to get out of the book industry. I haven't learned that just because it's on the free bookshelf doesn't mean I have to bring it home with me. I took this in my living room. What you don't see are the other three bookshelves crammed with books, the books on the floor, and the books under my desk. There are even books on another bookshelf in the bedroom.

Yes, I do have a lot of books about sex (there are a lot more not shown in the photo). I plan to amass the world's largest collection of books on sex and sexuality.

Specifications:
Exposure: 1/10 sec at f/4.3
Focal Length: 50mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 6:57pm
Date: 1/12/10

Monday, January 11, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 11


I took this in the parking lot at work. I noticed the sky as I was pulling into work this morning and was a bit awestruck at the colors

Specifications

Exposure: 1/20 sec at f6.3
Focal Length: 135mm
ISO: 400
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF 28-135mm f3.5-5.6
Time: 7:11am
Date: 1/11/10

- Strange ((^_~))

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 10



One of the three new pairs of shoes I've bought in the last couple of weeks. I even bought a brown pair of shoes! Anybody who knows me knows I'm a black shoe only kinda chick. Ooh look at me, stepping out of my comfort zone. For some reason, all the recent shoe purchases have been shoes with this size heel. They're girly and cute, but I'm finding it a bit difficult to drive while wearing them. I should wearing my old flats when I drive and just slip the new shoes on before I get out of the car.

Saturday, January 09, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 9



My desk looking slightly less messy than usual.

- Strange ((^_~))

Friday, January 08, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 8



Today's word of the day: RANDOM. This cap was just hanging out on the branches of the bush that grow against the building.

- Strange ((^_~))

Thursday, January 07, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 7



My nice, new purse that I bought the day after Christmas. My new, expensive purse that I discovered has a nice big hole in the pocket liner and will need to be returned. Bitter. I was really falling in love with this purse.

- Strange ((^_~))

Wednesday, January 06, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 6



I discovered last night that this lens, which actually belongs to my traditional 35mm camera, can be used on my DSLR camera. Awesome!!! I took this photo on my perpetually clutter desk with just the desk lamp lighting the shot. I really like the results I get with lighting when I take shots of things on my desk.

- Strange ((^_~))

Tuesday, January 05, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 5



I figured since it wasn't too cold out and not raining that I should take my camera out and go for a walk during my morning break. These flowers (I don't know what type) grow on the side of the building. I've always really liked the purple color. Can anyone say calamari?

You know you're thinking those stem thingies look like calamari.

- Strange ((^_~))

Monday, January 04, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 4



I had to take CraigiePoo to the dentist today. This fish was just hanging out in the scratched up fish tank in the office. It was kinda creepy the way it just stuck itself to the glass.

- Strange ((^_~))

Sunday, January 03, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 3



Mmm...more pomegranates. CraigiePoo wanted me to let y'all know that she's the one who actually did the cutting and plucking to get all these beautiful pomegranate seeds into the bowl. She's faster and better at it than I am.

Not quite sure how I'm feeling about this photo. I could totally envision the photograph in my head while I was setting up, but it didn't come out looking quite right.

- Strange ((^_~))

Saturday, January 02, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 2



Seriously, one of the best things about winter is that pomegranates are in season. They're messy and it takes forever to get the meat out, but it is so worth the effort.

Friday, January 01, 2010

Photo of the Day-Day 1


A close up of the decorations on our tree. I'm attempting to play around with depth of field in this photo. It's one of those concepts that I haven't quite wrapped my brain around.

- Strange ((^_~))

New Year's Reso...Challenges

It’s that time of year again where we look to shake off the bad of the previous year and welcome the New Year with open arms. ::sings Open Arms by Journey::

It’s also that time of year when many of us make our New Year’s Resolutions. It is always the same resolutions year after year. Quit smoking. Lose weight. Spend more time with the family. Stop watching gay porn at work...oh...am I the only who does that? Usually around mid-January (or February if you’re really strong-willed) when we pick up that nicotine stick or wolf down that 12 piece from KFC, washing it down with a bucket of soda, or slip into the bathroom for a quick sneak peek at the new “Black Inches.”

For 2010, I say no more New Year’s Resolutions!!! They’re useless, a waste of time, and most of us can’t keep them. Let’s try working on some New Year’s Challenges. Resolution sounds so final, concrete. Challenges are more forgiving in my opinion (and it is my blog and my opinion is really the only one that matters). If you succeed, awesome! If you don’t quite finish, at least you tried.

I’ve decided to challenge myself to nurture my creative side. It’s been in hibernation for years and I think it’s time to wake up. My first challenge for 2010 is to develop my photography skills and take one photograph everyday and post it on this here blog. I can read all the books I want, but the only real way to learn is by doing. I find myself carrying a camera around in my purse at all times, but rarely do I actually pull it out and snap a picture. Time to change that.

So, in 2010, what are you challenging yourself to do?

- Strange ((^_~))

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

I's free...for now

Um...yeah. So that whole idea of writing and updating this blog 3 times a week hasn’t worked out so well. That last month of the semester kicked my ass. Somehow I managed to survive. I’s free! I said I’s free...until the middle of next month anyway. I’m still waiting on the final grades for 2 of my classes but the breakdown for grades is:

* Sociology 1= "A"

* ISAC 104= "A" (ISAC classes are really history classes,but for some reason, HNU refuses to realize and call them history classes. I always have to explain what an “ISAC” class is)

* Social/Cultural History= "A-"

* ISAC 195W= "B-" (I was sure I was going to get an “A” in this course. It was my senior thesis course and my final paper was pretty damn good if I
say so myself. I’m tempted to email the instructor to find out what
the actual grade for the paper was. The “B-” is for the overall class.

* Dramatic Literature= "B-" (f*ckin' hated this class and the teacher)

* Psych 1B= not sure yet, possibly a “B”

* Political Science 1= not sure yet, possibly another “B”

I did slightly worse than I expected this semester. Towards the very end I just said “f*ck it!” to some of the minor assignments & extra credit. I can only bullsh*t so much in one semester and had reached my limit.

Now that school is over for a few weeks I have no idea what to do with myself. I’m sitting at home after work and it always hits me that I ain’t got sh*t to do. I can’t relax. Of course, two days before classes start up again I’ll finally start relaxing and enjoying my time off. I’ll probably spend most of my time off researching graduate schools. I really would like to find a program that is entirely online, but no luck so far. If I wanted to study something like Business Administration or get a degree more geared towards the corporate world finding an online program would be no problem. Once again, I’ve changed my mind on post undergrad education. As of this writing I have no real idea of what I’m going to be studying in the fall. I can’t quite make up my mind. I originally decided not to apply to SFSU Human Sexuality program and look at other graduate programs. I’m rethinking that decision. If I get accepted the SFSU program that would be great, but I’m still not sure if it’s actually the right path for yours truly. I’ve found myself really drawn to sociology over the past year and am leaning heavily towards pursuing a Masters in Sociology. Don’t worry, dear hearts, I will still be pursuing a career as a Sexual Health Educator. I think the Sociology degree would be really beneficial. I did look into Social Work, but have decided against that after going to an information meeting at one of the local colleges. It’s not for me.

Guess I’ll finally start working on the grad school admissions paperwork. One day I’ll look back on all this and smile...I hope. Or maybe I’ll be drinking in a gutter crying over all the bloody debt I’m incurring, wondering what the hell am I really going to do now that I’ve got PhD after my name.

- Strange ((^_~))

Friday, November 13, 2009

The difference between erotica and porn

There is always a question of what is erotica and what is porn? Are they same thing? This what I say about when it comes to writing sex.

Porn is: get in, get it on, get out.

Erotica is: a little small talk, get in, little more small talk, get it on, just a tiny bit more small talk, get out.

And now you know.

You're welcome.

- Strange ((^_~))

4 weeks and counting

I think I can! I think I can! I think I can!

That's what's going to be running through my head these next few weeks. I've got 4 weeks until this semester is over. I've got so much shit due and I'm trying real hard not to find a nice corner, curl up into a ball, and just start crying like a baby. I finally had to make a list of remaining assignments due and post it near my computer at home and in my cubicle at work. I'm so scatterbrain right now and somehow I've managed to keep up with all my work.

Even with all my academic, boring writing, I've managed to eek out little pieces of time to work on my personal writing. I have an erotica piece that's coming along nicely. I actually started writing it over 6 years ago, got a few paragraphs into and then quit. The main character started out as woman, but 6 years later I just didn't feel like writing lesbian erotica, so presto-chango to a few names and pronouns and now I have a hot ass gay guy as the main character. This is the first time I have ever written a story where my protagonist is male. I may have to watch some gay porn...for research of course.

Bit of advice for my fellow erotica/porn writers out there: writing sexy stuff at work makes it hard to concentrate on work. I write on my break and during lunch and always have a hard time...um...err...uh...settling down (if you know what I mean) once I get back to my desk.

It's on those days that I wish I had van with tinted windows.((^_~))

- Strange ((^_~))

Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Walking down memory lane

It wasn't so long ago I was lamenting about about the passing of Proposition 8. My, my, what a difference a year DOESN'T MAKE. Proposition 1 passed in Maine last night.

This latest act of hatred has got me wondering, It is time to go old school and invoke the spirit of the Women's rights movement, the Black Civil Right movement, and the Stonewall riots? Are we finally ready to do more than marching in the Castro or West Hollywood, just to preach to the choir. Is it time to get really angry? Enough of this trying to talk to our enemies. News flash: THEY AIN'T LISTENING AND DON'T CARE.

I know there are some of you out there saying "but Strange, what about the children? What about tradition? Someone has go to think of the children. This isn't about hate, it's about protecting our children." News flash number 2: America don't give damn about children. If America really cared about children, the millions and millions of dollars spent on these anti-gay campaigns would be used to provide better education and health care to all children.

As for tradition, there are a lot of things that we used to allow that were considered part of our tradition that eventually had to go the way of dinosaurs. But for those of you who really want to preserve the sanctity of marriage and have it remain between 1 man and 1 woman. Here is what I propose:

1: Only unions that are performed by a religious authority figure (priest, reverend, rabbi,etc.) and in a house of worship (temple, mosque, church, etc.) will be recognized as having the legal standing of marriage. If you were thinking of just going down to the courthouse or hopping on a plane to get married by an Elvis impersonator, think again.

2. If you are an atheist, please see #1. Guess this means you're shit out of luck.

3. Outlaw divorce. You marry someone after knowing them for 1 month and it don't work out. Tough, work it out, remember the sanctity of marriage!

4. Many of the anti-marriage equality folks believe that marriage should only be between a man and woman because of procreative reasons. Ok, fine. I proposed that only people who agree to reproduce offspring should be allowed to obtain legal marriage. Since men can reproduce children from the time they hit puberty until they day they croak, this new law will only affect women. So, only women between, let's say the ages of 18-35 will allowed to be married. No one under 18 should ever be married because that's just not right and let's face it, who wants to marry someone over 35, with their 35 year old unfertilized eggs. Gross.

What people don't seem to understand (or choose to ignore) is those who are for marriage equality are not trying to tell any religious institution who they can or cannot marry. I would never go into any religious institution and demand that they marry me & Craigie Poo. I may not agree with a lot of religious ideology out there today, but I respect their right to practice and believe how they wish. Marriage equality is exactly what it says: it's about equality. I should be just as legally married to Craigie in Pennsylvania as I am in California as I am in Virginia. Marriage equality is about giving LGBT people the same rights that heterosexual often do not think about when they sign that marriage license. For example, Craigie Poo has multiple sclerosis and twice this year she has been hospitalized. If we were in some place like Arkansas, there is a good chance that I would have no legal say in her treatment because has far as the state is concerned, I'm no different from some stranger on the street.

I often hear that marriage is a religious sacrament and always has been (it was also about fathers selling their daughters, but let's just ignore that). What people fail to realize is, in the United States if you don't sign the document known as a marriage certificate, you ain't married. You and your Suga'bear/Honeybunch/Snugglebunny are just two people living together. You can go through all the hoops and theatrics to have a big fancy church wedding, but if you haven't taken yourself down to your local courthouse signed, paid your fee, and submitted that piece of paper, you ain't married in the eyes of the law. What you have is a religious marriage. Everybody who gets legally married in the United States has this thing called a civil marriage but not everybody who has a civil marriage has a religious marriage. Civil marriage (not civil unions because honestly, I really have no damn idea what they hell those are) is what the fight for Marriage Equality is about. It is with civil marriage that all the rights Marriage Equality advocate fight for come through. If two people want to also have a religious marriage and ceremony then that will be an issue that they will need to work out privately with their religious faith institutions.

When will we learn that the rights of a minority can never be put up for a vote? Hell, if that was true, my black female ass would still be sitting at the back of the damn bus waiting for my daddy to sell me to the highest bidder.

I doubt he'd get much seeing how I haven't been a virgin in a loooooong time.



- Strange ((^_~))

Monday, November 02, 2009

Writing and Insomnia

Good news: I have managed to do a lot of writing this past week and have been exceeding my minimum 250 daily word count.

Bad news: most of it has been academic writing.

I had told myself that I wasn't going to include academic writing in my word count, but reality is reality and my reality includes writing a lot of papers as this semester winds down. I have managed to sneak in a few creative writing moments over this past week. I'm starting to flesh out this screenplay idea about a heterosexual couple exploring the world of BDSM. That's all I'm saying about it for now. I'm really excited about how the story is just flowing onto paper. It's been an idea that's been floating in my brianium (I don't think that's a real word, but so what. I like it.) for a few years now.

I've been trying to formulate some good ideas for some erotica short stories, but having no luck. I've tried reading some erotica lately, but everything seems so tame and just not horny. Maybe I should look at reading porn. There is a difference between the two. I'm not quite sure what it is, but I know it when I see it.

I can't be sure, but I think all this creative energy that I have stored up is the reason why I'm suffering from a bit of insomnia. There are days when all I can think about is getting in bed and going to sleep. The minute I get into bed my brain turns on and won't shut the hell up. It's not especially pleasant seeing how I usually set my alarm for 4:30 am (with the hopes of working out) and 5:40 am (the latest I can sleep during the work week and get to work on time). The melatonin tablets aren't working anymore.

Whine whine whine. :(

- Strange ((^_~))

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Back at the Plantation

We have a new email server/system thingie here at the plantation. It ain't working probably (shocking) and everybody seems to be in a panic.

I took 2 days of vacation early this week so I could focus on my school work. Somehow I've managed to work 40 hours a week and carry 7 classes. That's 21 units. Yeah, I know...what was I thinking? Let's just say math and the hard sciences will never be my friends and the 4 classes I took over this past year in those disciplines really brought my GPA down. While I was still just above a 3.1, I added more humanities and social science classes to my already full course load this semester to bring that GPA of mine back up. Luckily 3 of my classes are all online.

I LOVE ONLINE LEARNING!!!

I can't believe I waited so long to take online classes. I can do it anytime, anywhere, and unlike being in traditional classrooms, I actually participate in the discussions." I'm taking a political science course and if I actually had to sit in a classroom and be a part of live discussions, I would have dropped weeks ago. Dudes, if I could find an online graduate program that fit my needs I would so be there.

I also finally started writing my senior thesis paper (I've have a rough draft due this Friday). Of course, all my creative juices start flowing during the last few hours of my vacation time (which was quite annoying since I took the 2 days of vacation so I could focus on writing the bloody paper). That might explain why I could not turn off my brain last night and didn't get to sleep until close to 1am. Somehow I managed to drag myself out of bed at 4:30am this morning and did some additional studying.

I also made a big purchase this morning from Amazon. I give more information when I have my new toy in my greedy little hands.

- Strange ((^_~))

P.S. If you were looking for something juicier in a blog posting, remember this, I said I would update this blog more...I didn't say nothing about them being good blog post. Don't judge me. You don't know me. ((^_~))

Sunday, October 25, 2009

The Muse is back…or at least she’s trying real hard to surface

I don’t know what’s been going on the last few weeks, but for the first time in damn near 10 years I’m feeling inspired to get back into pursuing my creative arts. For those you who don’t know, yours truly is a published author. I’ve had at least 3 stories published in various lesbian erotica anthologies. Yes, dears, your girl's a smut peddler and quite proud! You can check them out here, here , and here.

I used to write all the time and loved it. I would daydream about writing and directing films. Somewhere along the way, those dreams got pushed further and further to the back of my brain. I think it coincided with my entering the work world full time.

Before I was a full fledge adult working full time, I would spend hours at the library roaming the stacks or riding back and forth on BART just writing away in my notebook. I completed my first (and to date only) feature length screenplay in a few months just riding BART. I would start at which every station I was closest to, ride to the end of the line, and ride all the way back to the end of the other line. It was amazing.

Now, all these years later I look at my life and I realized I’m not happy (work wise) and more importantly completely unfilled when it comes to my work life and career. I really don’t have a career. I have a job. I don’t want that anymore. I need to focus on where my real talents lie and get off my flat ass and start pursuing them hard. I’ve decided that if I’m going to be making next no money it should be doing something that I don’t mind waking up at dark o’clock in the morning for.

So, here are my goals for the upcoming year:.

1. Write- from now until the end of the year (which is about 9 weeks) I’m determined to write at least 250 words a day. That equals hovers around half a page singled space or a full page double spaced. Being a Pisces, I'm big on the daydreaming and I recently realized that my daydreams would make really interesting tales. After the start of the new year, I’ll look into increasing the 250 word count.

2. Update this damn blog more than once every few months. I always complain when I go to blogs that haven’t been update in 2 years. I’m aiming for new blog postings at least 3 times a week for now.

3. Take a film/video class. I did take about a year's worth of classes at City College of San Francisco back in the late nineties. I have a rudimentary knowledge of the process. I still got dreams of writing/directing films. Hollywood is in desperate need of new ideas these days. How many more damn remakes can I see being advertised?

4. Now that the first part of college education is coming to a close, I’ll be able to focus on pursuing my other career goal of being a Sexual Health Educator. I’ll be looking into applying to some programs to get that foundational education.

5. I’ve really gotten into listening to podcasts over the past few months. I’m in the mental stages of planning my own podcast. I got random shit I like to talk about why not share with the rest of the world. I’m also really loving video podcasts and having been searching around for a decent camcorder.

What are your goals for the upcoming year? Please share.

-Strange ((^_~))