Welcome newcomers! Please introduce yourself
Come on in!
Coffee & Tea under the window, platters of treats on every table
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Newspapers are in their regular spot next to the door
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Please recommend (and unrecommend the Cafe/Lounge from yesterday)
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May the 4’s be with you
Hey isn’t it cool how that abbreviation looks like ‘eat’?
The sun is out this morning. I hope it lasts.
Wow! and Wow.
I didn’t think of the abv at all. That is very cool.
But, this photograph is better. I think it’s your best macro shot (or at least the best I’ve seen).
(I just sent you an e)
Got the email. I’m messing with it.
Thanks on nice words on the picture — it wasn’t a macro shot though, just a close-up. But I like it — it feels (don’t tell kansas I said this) peaceful.
Well, I wouldn’t say “just a close-up” for something that perfect. In fact, if I could do that with a close-up, I wouldn’t bother with macros.
Its almost scary in its perfection.
Gorgeous photo. Makes me want to go wading.
E4T. That’s AMAZING. I’m kind of staggered by that. What a hell of a logo that will make on t-shirts, coffee cups, tattoos & stuff. When you first noticed it, Andi, did you boggle?
tattoos!
I, of course, immediately thought how brilliant I was 😀
Isn’t serendipity wonderful — next up, the discovery of penicillin.
That one is one of my favorites of all yours so far.
That’s a great shot Andi. I am jealous of your sunshine. We had sun yesterday only to have snow a gray skies today.
Nice pic Andi…can you put a polarizing filter on your camera?
They really allow you to “play” w/ reflections and are great for landscape shots as they enable you to darken the sky and crank up color density. I suspect Jim has some for his Nikon lenses.
Peace
I’m using a canon powershot so no filter — although I haven’t come close to exploring all the features yet. I also think that since all the data is saved with the camera, the software that comes with it can do some things like that but I haven’t tried anything much yet.
One thing I’m finding about the polarizer and digital is that I am using it less and less and making my adjustments in PhotoShop. I think there are PhotoShop plugins that will control reflections like a polarizing filter, but I am not sure about that.
jf
Interesting comment/observation. My background is entirely in film cameras and I am very new (4 mos.) to digital gear. I’ve always concentrated on getting the image “correct” on the film and have never had an ability to make after the fact adjustments before, with the exception of B&W darkroom games.
I just rec’d Photoshop Basics for Christmas and have not even loaded the program…too distracted by other things, and am still working on developing a comfort level w/ the new camera. The learning curve is much steeper than I imagined.
To date, I find I’m not overly impressed by the, so called, advantages of digital. But then again, I’ve been doing the other for a very long time…dinosaurus photographus.
Peace
Our digital background is a little longer than yours. We decided to try out digital with a Canon A40 point and shoot. Andi became the queen of the panorama with it. I quickly fell in love with the ability to get instant feedback on each shot and not worrying about wasting film. When the Nikon D70 came out, we bought one.
I was shocked that my photos weren’t as good with it as they were with my film bodies or our Canon P&S. I had to learn some of the basics of digital photography. It seems that the P&S cameras are calibrated to make photos with more punch, more saturation, more foolproof.
It took a lot of trial and error and error and error and error to become comfortable with the D70. I still do not feel that I have mastered it yet. Color space is a mystery to me. But I love the freedom it has given me to manipulate my shots and make them as close as I can to what I had envisioned them to be.
After 4 months, I was just about ready to chuck it all and sell the D70 on ebay, and then we went to Lassen, Shasta, and Redwoods. I changed my mind.
As for the PhotoShop learning curve. It isn’t a curve; it’s a wall. It is such a powerful program I think we start out lost and stay that way for years, but at least it gives you immediate feedback. My two pieces of advice with PhotoShop are work only on a duplicate image and learn everything you can about layers.
jf
for E4T?
If their offering is chosen, tell em what they’ll win, katiebird!
;>
I just finished writing an e about this very topic!
I don’t know about everyone else, but I feel totally overwhelmed by the incredible response at E4T. This is a good problem, but we’ve got to find a way to thread the comments and to display Latest/Recent Activity so we can follow discussions.
It’s too easy to lose a thread right now. Although I think it helps that we shortened the front page displays.
you can get them all more accessible.
And yes, it is a terrific “problem” to have! 🙂
Don’t hold off for that — We’ll be making changes in baby steps that might not be obvious from day-to-day. Post whenever you’re ready. But, it might be nice to have something fresh in the morning.
I swear the people in this Cafe who grace us with their photos are of such exquisite composition and the caliber of them that I wonder why they are all not out winning photography awards somewhere or enjoying Gallery showing of all their photography.
And I can’t wait for the 2cnd Annual Photo Fair-that was amazing….and also proves that Bootrib is really has a unique place in the Blog world for the diversity here with politics yet we have our Cafe(which has to be a first for Blogs)and our Book Club and so on..
By the way Good Afternoon everyone.
And good afternoon to you!
I can’t speak for everybody else (well, I would but I think they are all bigger than me) but knowing that you and others get pleasure from the photographs is more than sufficient satisfaction and validation for me.
Good Morning. Hope everybody’s day is going well. That’s a beautiful picture Andif. Katiebird just visited your site again and I’m so happy to see it thriving.
Thank you Family Man! I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to respond to your comment there yesterday. I was at work & just don’t feel comfortable doing more than lurking (and really, I don’t feel comfortable doing that. I just couldn’t resist on the first day!)
I really appreciate your kind words and interest.
Don’t give it a second thought. After all the work and effort you’ve put into it, I’m just glad to see it starting so well.
Andi – check e
How are you this morning? We’ve finally got some sunshine so I hope down south is having a nice day, too.
And thanks for the compliment on the pic.
It’s cold. Mid 20’s this morning with wind chill of 17. I do wish the weather would make up its mind. At the beginning of the week we were at 75 degrees and on monday its supposed to go back up there again.
Your welcome about the pic comp. But it’s so true that everyone here at the pond takes such lovely pictures.
Good morning everyone — the sun is out here too. Amazing how that improves my mood! I’m off for the morning to meet some friends for coffee and run some errands. Everyone have a great day! (I promise to stop over and comment later today Katiebird — I also don’t like to do much more than lurk when I’m at work.)
Mary — you might as well wait a little while. We’ve got changes brewing!
Question for you — do you get your email automatically (mine gets checked every 10 minutes) or should I let you know when I’ve sent you something (like I have now)?
If I’m online I get email automatically. So you don’t have to tell me. But, it’s fun & makes me feel like a cool kid & kind of show offy to get messages here.
Like when kansas & I casually talk about how we’re going to get together next week for coffee or lunch.
I started to answer & then decided to find out if that issue you mentioned solves the problem before I actually hit “send”
If you and kansas start talking about she is going to give you an ARC of her book, then I’ll really be jealous.
(cough)
so I should already be jealous.
I didn’t say anything. Can’t a girl cough?
OK, I won’t peek until later today. I’m just in to eat a little lunch and then run out again. I’ll have more time tomorrow to browse.
Oh, Mary — That was from early this morning — we’ve got all the updates in place now!
(Please come!)
For the past few years, Andi and I have taken some of our photos, mostly vacation shots, and had a local printer make up sets of note cards with them. Since this is a picture friendly place, I thought you might like to look at the ones we used this year.
http://homepage.mac.com/jimferguson/PhotoAlbum9.html
jf
Having access to that page almost makes it possible to actually use the notecards instead of hoarding them.
That page is supposed to remove the almost from your sentence.
I went to that page and it is just magnificent. Oh the places you’ve been.
When are you two leading the next Booman photo group tour?? And the even bigger question, where?
Thanks and thanks for the compliment on the image I posted.
We’re going to take a trip to our favorite place, southern Utah, in March. Anybody that want to come along, can show up in either Kanab or Escanlante around the 19th. We probably going to stay in both places but we haven’t decided yet how we are splitting things up.
sawy you posted that link over in BJoe’s diary and meant to tell you thanks..great link/good ideas, how can you go wrong with Einstein….and also might fit in with Kansas diary of on inner peace but on the peace activism part?
They are all great but my favorite is Fog Below Fairview Mountain.
You guys do professional quality work. When do you put out the calendar for us to buy?
Hey thanks but in this we are very much slackers.
And speaking of which, you really need this t-shirt.
OH yeah, I think I do need it — because, if I wear it, it is so.
Good morning all. We have snow here in Upstate NY, and temps in the 20’s. My wife and I have colds but the kids are doing fine.
Hope all is well (and warmer) where you are.
Good morning all. Yikes – we’re in the 30s, got to run the furnace. This morning I was thinking that I prefer to start my day with the Bood, he’s been missing since describing his hate mail. No worries though he’s still at work on his own website. Lo and behold, somebody new and unknown to me (called Disgusted in St. Louis) has picked up the fallen banner and posted a great diary. Check it out – the beat goes on.
I am glad to see this, but I can still find the Bood. Couldn’t live without Andi’s photos of my dream life, so don’t you disappear.
I hadn’t noticed that Bush Misadministration: Bat Villians diary. It was very good.
I’m glad you enjoy the photos — I sure enjoy taking them.
I’m gonna stop over and find out where in St. Louis he or she’s from.
After some ten continuous days of overcast… and numerous whining posts to BT, the not-so-very-patient photographer was rewarded with a few hours of sunlight Thursday afternoon… [we won’t talk about today, or yesterday.]
I’m in and out today, as I’m off to visit with the lefty coffee gang, which ranges in ages from 22-75.
This is exquisite….to see piled snow on evergreen branches lit by bright sun and clear skies. Wow!
That’s gorgeous!
I never answered you last night because I decided to emulate Andi and go to bed. The bathtub gin machine is Great! I haven’t bathed since you sent it to me but I’m not noticing wrong with that myself (hic).
What a fine picture and a great payoff for waiting for some sunshine.
That would make an awesome holiday card next winter… 🙂
I agree and I really tend to run out of superlatives for the people who post photos here and wonder how they can top a previous photo but they always seem to manage to do this.
I don’t get pictures of turkeys because they usually take off and are gone before I can react. But this one decided to hang around in a low branch of a nearby tree.
(Note: snide remarks about who might be a BC turkey are expected but really not necessary)
Makes me nervous just to sit under that photo, much less take the chance of standing under there to take it. Possibly you shot from long range, so you couldn’t get shat upon from short range?
We need to give you some more involving to worry about. Say, what if that guy whose van you rammed decided that he has been suffering from PTSD all these years and decides to sue you?
Nature wreaked a terrible revenge on him. Impotence. Even I feel sorry for him.
I could have sworn that I read some other woman’s similar account here on Boo, many moons ago, of ramming a boyfriend’s vehicle. Maybe I only wanted company in my felonious memories.
I’m never, ever doing anything that pisses you off.
Maybe I’ll tell his story every few months, just to keep people on their toes. Of course, I don’t have the 1968 Mustang any more. I think the dainty little grill of my Mercury Mystique is not nearly as suited to the task as that heavy Mustang nose was. It would be so humiliating to ram somebody’s SUV and come away with the only damage showing on my own car.
When you tell the story though, you have to be sure to mention the impotence. That’s what really puts gives you that extra dimension in revenge.
And you can’t do that kind of thing now anyway — it would really ruin the peace pilgrim series.
She’s the “After.” I’m the “Before.”
Great photo. I like the way that the trees lead you into the picture
jf
Mount Erie from Ala Spit on north Whidbey Island.
Had some family errands in north Puget Sound yesterday so we swung by a few scenic areas. I see hints of blue sky today but the Pacific weather map is an unending series of rainsqualls.
On the other hand, breaking news is that Tom DeLay is giving up his post. So at least the TV is bright enough at the moment to cast shadows.
I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this but I love your photos in particular because I’m one of those people who love cloudy/foggy days and these kind of photos only reinforce my belief in that.
Too much sun is depressing and cloudy days can make you want to curl up with a good book(always a plus) or lend itself to more introspection to my way of thinking..for some reason.
years and years, living in Ohio.
We could walk a university campus any cloudy afternoon and feel like it was winter break, so many people were inside.
We moved out here several years ago, and while the 2 months around the solstice become a little trying for darkness, even the 3-4 month sessions of general greys, fog and rain are surprisingly tolerable because of the beauty when the sun or even a little blue sky breaks. It’s amazing what they’re allowed to do out here with fog, rain and sun at the same time.
The only climate thing we miss about the Great Lakes is the wind. Puget Sound is amazingly calm 99% of the time.
–But not just now. We’re having a 1% day today. I’ll have pictures when the evening cafe opens.
I’m on the computer all day today – typing up mid-term exams. It’s strange to create tests for material covered when I wasn’t even there. I hope that all are doing well.
Late start here on the Left Coast…spouse just now getting in the shower.
Need to do some general menu planning; with MacWorld Expo taking up most of next week we’ll probably be eating out a bit, but I hope we can eat at home a couple of days next week. Bought a couple new cookbooks (my main passion); actually, new/old cookbooks — the Better Homes and Gardens Limited Edition cookbook (portion of proceeds go to breast cancer research, and it has a section on “Eating For Life” with tips on nutrition and cancer-fighting foods), and the current edition of the Betty Crocker cookbook. One thing I noticed is that they now have the nutritional information including the diabetic exchanges…I got rid of a bunch of my older cookbooks because they didn’t have the info, so I was glad to see that. Actually found a recipe for doing the tortilla bowls (for tostada salads, which I love) in the oven instead of frying, so will be healthier especially using the low-cholesterol/high-fiber tortillas we usually have around here. Thinking about doing tostada salads for one of the days; I can brown the ground meat mixture up ahead of time (like Sunday while watching football), then just heat it in the microwave while I’m baking the bowls. Looking forward to trying new stuff in the weeks to come; I’m trying to expand my repetoire in the kitchen… 🙂
Okay, time to settle down with my reading material for the morning…
I love cookbooks also(after all it’s a book). I can spend a whole day just reading through a cookbook-not necessarily making anything out of it, just browsing.
My dad was a chef and had lots of cookbooks and also some very very old ones that he managed to acquire in his travels, from other chefs and such.
One of my favorites is one called the Encyclopedia of Cookery…from 1952 which is alphabetized…if you want to look up apple recipes you simply go to apples, looking up Ginger will give you a half a page about what ginger is/where it comes from and so and then have recipes with Ginger in them…very cool, and makes it easy to look up something. Of course it is dated as the first couple sentences on Lard mentions how it is one of the most important of our food stuffs..and yes it does say ‘stuffs’.
Another huge and old cookbook is called the Epicurean from 1948 and written by or from the restaurant Delmonico’s and says it is a complete treatise of Analylitcal and Practical Studies of Culinary Art…and menus from Delmonico’s from 1862 to 1894.
Tom DeLay is stepping down! Check out the front page!!!
Happy New Year!!
Yipppppeeeeeee!
BTW you know what they call a Big Froggy Dance?
The hop.
Sweepin’ the nation clean! I hope that this is the start of one big soul train line back to sanity.
KERRROKE
Peace
urban bad boy
I Posted a Thread Just 4 You, but you never showed up!
By the way, did you know that
there is a vast amount of
frogabilia at The Frog Store?
I saw!! I’ve been there too!!
Eat4Today, or The Frog Store?
Where else have you been? Have you been to Booman’s Open Thread w/Poll?
I thought it was going to be something like the earlier Rage-O-Meter…. but it was about FOOTBALL !!
The thing is there’s a woman there who knows all about football because when her husband’s team is winning he gets frisky. So here’s to football !! Here’s to that woman !! And here’s to the whole lot of you… I hope your loved one’s team wins !
No, to the Just 4 today thread — I’ve been participating! And I voted on reading in the poll. I don’t do football.
And too cool for words — must be a self-portrait.
Oh. My. Gawd.
We splurged for lunch and had dinner, a wild halibut steak, lightly Ohio-boiled starch-veggies, and seaweed salad. But I had my two Saturday fresh local oysters (from Nanaimo I think) and lordy were they fresh. They couldn’t be sweeter unless I was eating them standing knee deep where they grow.
To stick reasonably close to Puget4’s low cholesterol diet I only eat 2 and only once a week or less. Plus, she hates them, so I’m not tempting her with cruel or unusual nourishment.
The rest of the weekend we’re back on budget with spaghetti sauce or perhaps paella made with tofu & codfish. Those’ll be good for days of leftovers, fresh & frozen.
Anyways I’ll leave a virtual sack of the oysters up at the self-serve for you all. Enjoy!
As long as you’re not showing me dungeness crab or caught salmon in the morning from the Makah Indian Reservation, I can deal.
What a treat! Especially for us midwesterners who never get fresh seafood. s’why I love to travel to the coasts 🙂
I just got back from the grocery store and my eggs, cheese, fruit etc. doesn’t sound nearly as enticing as fresh seafood.
Any food can be enticing if you don’t mind experimenting with different combinations.
True. I’m not a very creative cook. So I tend to make the same things over and over.
The magic word is cookbooks.
OTOH, you live in a large city. Restaurants and take out are an attractive alternative.
I actually have shelves of cookbooks, which everyone I know finds quite funny. I love to look through them — and its not so much that I don’t like cooking but I hate grocery shopping, so I never have all the ingredients. I also like to buy magazines that have great recipes in them — like Southern Living. One of my new year’s resolutions is to try at least one new recipe a month.
I was just checking out Katiebird’s new site (which BTW looks great) and maybe I’ll rely on YOU for recipes. Hidden talents that haven’t come out here at the frogpond! (I don’t count any recipes you may have submitted on redneck night).
But luckily this is one of the ways Jim and I have worked our partnership. We take over each other’s disliked tasks. He doesn’t mind going to the grocery at all so he does. I don’t mind doing the dishes, so I do them.
We take the don’t have the ingredients problem very seriously since the nearest grocery store is 10 miles away. So we plan our meals in advance so that we get what we need ahead of time.
True confessions time — I’ve actually been considering having my groceries delivered! I know, I know. How lazy can I be? And why pay the delivery fee? But we have a couple of stores that will deliver and I don’t think the fee is that much. Then I could just order everything on line and it would all just show up. And I would have cookbooks and recipes in front of me when I order so I could get creative. I’m truly considering it.
If I had to do the grocery shopping and I lived somewhere that had delivery, I wouldn’t have to think about it at all. It would already be done.
I just hate it. And I’ve had the worst of experiences with it. And when I was a kid (as the oldest) I always had to help doing it. And then I lived alone & of course had to do it. And then it turns out our kids are NEVER home when it’s time for grocery shopping.
So, I’m still bringing groceries into the house.
I’d have them delivered in a flash if I could. mr katiebird doesn’t mind doing it, but since it’s just about the only thing he’ll leave the house to do, I think of it as dating now. Except the end, when you have to bring them in the house.
I’m with you katie. I don’t mind grocery shopping half as much as I despise for some reason bringing groceries into the house and putting them away. One of my number one pet peeves..and if I could have someone come in and put my groceries away I would. When I was in worse shape my sister did it for me but as I’m doing better right now I’m stuck with the dirty deed, damn. And I’m picky about putting my cans and such away..in fact fairly anal about it..you know lined up right, soups in order etc. so it’s not like I can just throw things in the cupboard and be done with it.
Doing laundry is the same deal, don’t mind doing laundry but I hate folding clothes.
You can make meat (especially beef) dishes with chopped up chicken, turkey, almost any kind of fish, and most shellfish. Tonight we’re having spaghetti sauce made with tofu and codfish instead of ground meat, for example. Other house favorites are chile, curry and a shortcut paella recipe we found. Most any protein source can be swapped into these. Puget4’s getting ready to look at the Meat Loaf Family (which includes meat loaf, stuffed peppers, stuffed cabbage etc.).
And some canned fish can be extremely cheap. So far we’ve found canned mackerel, which should travel to any arbitrary stores, in 14-16 oz cans for around $1.50 a pound. It’s already cooked and it doesn’t taste even slightly fishy.
This is a great way to use fish inland where it tends to be a day or two older than you get near water.
whenever I am tempted to overeat, I just think of your mackerel chili, and the urge vanishes.
So thanks!
but no, thanks! 😀
Diner is open here.