text:
Fixing stuff and maybe other things.

Media vs. Method

We recently debated an argument between two brilliant people: Richard E. Clark and Robert B. Kozma. The issue was the usefulness of media as an instructional tool. On the one side, Clark et al. believe that “media (video, computers, technology) will never influence instruction.” In a nutshell:

  1. Media is not a replacement for quality instruction.
  2. Media is interchangeable; method is not.
  3. Media are delivery vehicles for instruction and do not directly influence learning.
  4. Media are not directly responsible for motivating learning.
  5. Therefore, expensive media are uneconomical, because quality instruction could easily be delivered in a different and less expensive way.

Kozma argues that media are in fact important tools in instruction, worth the cost (when employed correctly), and that the use of media and technology does indeed have a tangible benefit on learning.

I was assigned to argue on the Clark side of things, and at first I was less than thrilled. Simply by reading the titles of the two author’s papers, I knew I agreed — strongly, even — with Kozma. But now, I’m not so sure. Clark does make some very interesting points. Considering the cost of media and computers, are we really getting our money’s worth in improved instruction? I’m not so sure we are.

Media and Motivation

On the other hand, I take issue with point #4 above. From my own experience, I have found this to be somewhat untrue. For over a decade, my father tried to get me to use a planner. He said it would improve my ability to keep on task, complete homework, and be on time. And he was right. I knew he was, so I let him get me one. Except — it never worked. I went through several planners in different sizes and shapes, and not one of them got used more than a day. It wasn’t until I got myself a Handspring PDA that suddenly things began to work. I found I actually used the thing. Not long later, I was able to use a program called AvantGo to have things from the Internet right in the palm of my hand. And, I started learning things. I read articles about the subjects that interested me — simply because I could. The media let me choose my own terms for learning, and my motivation increased. I was able to learn when I wanted to, when I felt I had the cognitive abilities to do so. Since then, things haven’t changed much. For years, I have almost always had my headphones on, but most of the time it’s not to rock out — I burn through podcasts like crazy. I review class lectures. I look up words and terms I don’t fully understand, and I take notes. I work on school projects anytime, from anywhere. Even collaboratively.

The Handspring Visor

My first portable learning device: the Handspring Visor

Would I have learned as much as I have over the past 10 years without these media — if my learning was confined to heavy books, lectures to classrooms only given at certain times, whether my brain can handle them or not? I’m not so sure I would. These media have given me more motivation to learn because they let me do it on my own terms. I choose to learn all the time now, simply because I can. And the novelty has yet to wear off.

In The Middle

What about the rest of the argument? There are other points of Clark’s that I take some minor issue with, and some I definitely agree with. Same with Kozma. I feel that, from my own experience, they are both right. When done correctly, I do believe that computers and media can provide educational experiences well above the norm. But not always, and not for everyone. As with most of life’s great debates, I think the truth is somewhere in-between.

Posted under: Educational Psychology | 1 Comment »

Testing, testing?

Last week we discussed the importance of developing assessments appropriate for the instruction we create.

During the lecture, I realized that often, a certain assessment may be assessing more than what I think it is going to. I spaced out (sorry, Prof. Monson) and started thinking about the math assessments I took while in school. Usually, I was assessed on my knowledge of, say, equations — but I was also assessed on my reading comprehension. If I’d had a conversation with my teachers, I imagine that they would not have listed reading comprehension as one of the things they were intending to test for by giving story problems on a math test. However, lengthy math story problems that contain the bulk of important information necessary for the task embedded in written context are really testing a student’s ability dissect the story problem and translate it into numbers before they ever use math. If a teacher gives story problems on a test without delivering enough instruction on reading comprehension necessary for the assessment (or ensuring that they get it somewhere else, like another class, at the same time), then they are, in fact, testing on something they did not teach.

This perspective on assessments is important when designing instruction in all kinds of instructional situations.  Since instruction designed with assessment in mind, it is important to carefully select the assessment intended for use and analyze what is truly being assessed. If the assessment chosen requires instruction that we do not intend to give, then a different assessment should be chosen. Or, if it requires certain background knowledge, then the instructor should verify that the students have the knowledge necessary to do the assessment before it is given.

An example of this in media would be designing a message board for students to post responses to an assigned article. The intention is to test on what the students were supposed to have read, sure. But what we’re also (and likely without knowing it) testing on their ability to use a message board. (We could go farther, to the point of “well, duh” and add Internet connection and usage, basic computer skills, and school skills.) So the possibility exists that, before students are able to complete the task, instruction on how to use the message board should be considered. Or at the very least, we should know if they’ve already learned about message boards and make sure that those who can’t use them get trained. While this kind of instruction may not be part of the intended learning outcomes of the class, it is still part of the instruction because it is part of the assessment given.

Does this sound familiar? It’s an interesting throwback to the analysis phase of our instruction where we figure out what students already know and how to build on it, or what they need to know before we can give them our instruction. Especially when considering how to build appropriate tests, that phase seems all the more important now.

Posted under: Educational Psychology | No Comments »

Do we need technology to reach today’s learners?

This was a forum posting for one of my classes. My response started becoming so long that I decided to put it here. After all, it’s a question worth exploring. Here’s the full question:

Do we need technology to reach today’s learners? Is a chalk board enough? How did we ever learn before the computer?

I would say yes, we do need it — but not necessarily because low-tech methods don’t/didn’t work. Just look at some of the advances made by humanity prior to 1960. Clearly, people were quite capable of learning before computers invaded the classroom.

I say yes mostly because of student expectations today. Today’s students were likely born in an age where there were never not computers, video games, and the Internet. Technology surrounds them in every aspect of their lives. It’s comfortable and familiar to them. There was never a time that it didn’t permeate their lives.

With the age gap widening, and technology becoming ever more important in almost every professional field, students are becoming increasingly confused and/or disillusioned when instructors avoid bringing it into the classroom. From my own experience with higher-ed students, the teachers that try to avoid technology are seen — at least to a degree — as bring outdated paper-wasters that are out of touch with the world that today’s will have to live in. I’ve heard many comments to the effect of, “Duh! Why do I have to turn this in on paper? Do they even know that email exists?” I’ve also seen instructors roll out overhead projectors and heard a quiet chorus of snickers and seen a wave of eye-rolling. Student engagement in these courses was often unimpressive.

That’s not to say that what Dr. Overhead Projector had to teach wasn’t perfectly relevant/interesting/useful. He/she often had plenty interesting information to offer, but the impression made by his/her avoidance of technology turned students off quicker than a power-outage. Most of these students were in their early to late 20s. Many of them had lived before the advent of the Internet. How will students born after the Web respond to all-paper classrooms, overhead projectors, chalkboards and pencil sharpeners?

Posted under: Educational Psychology | 1 Comment »

What IS Awesome Toast?

A lot of people ask me, “Your domain is AwesomeToast… but what does that mean?”

This is often a very difficult question to answer, as the definition of awesome toast is complex and varied — only some of which actually relate to toast as it is commonly understood. That said, I believe the following video begins to scratch the surface and gives an effective (and mouth-watering) demonstration of the fundamentals of awesome toast. Watch as chef Daniel Humm creates the grilled cheese sandwich of the gods:

[YouTube via Gizmodo via Feast]

Posted under: General Stuff | 3 Comments »

Ed Psych: Gestalt Psychology Trick

On Tuesday in class we went over a simple trick in class. It’s one you might have seen before:

In your head (no calculators or pens, etc.), take 1000 and add 40 to it. Now add another 1000. Now add 30. Add another 1000. Now add 20. Now add another 1000. Now add 10. What did you get?

Most people say 5000, but it’s really 4100. Even though it wasn’t specifically related to Instructional Design, I wanted to learn the psychology behind the trick. The answer wasn’t easy to find, but it appears this has to do with Gestalt psychology. Within Gestalt is the law of similarity, or the tendency of the mind to group similar things together. A visual example would be this:

We naturally tend to see the line of Os in a field of Xs instead of 14 lines of 11 characters consisting of 10 Xs and one O with the placement of the O in each consecutive string being a function of pos.O = pos.O + 1. It’s a nice mental shortcut that usually saves us a lot of time and helps us see patterns. Good stuff.

Except when we group things together that shouldn’t actually be grouped. In the math trick above, we’re dealing with multiples of 10, and a whole bunch of 1000s. When we get to that last part, we have 4090 in our heads, and we add 10 to get… 5000. What’s going on is that with all those 1000s being thrown at us, we’re grouping the sum of 90 + 10 (100) into the same group as the 1000s. Which is why we roll the number up to a full thousand instead of 100. 5000 seems to fit the pattern our brains are seeing better than 4100. It’s as if we took the X and O pattern above and changed only one line:

Even though the imaginary line of Os is broken, you either might not see the break at all, or you sort of fill it in. Maybe it even kind of bugs you because you “know” there should be an O there. That’s another gestalt theory called continuance — our brains want detected patterns to continue, even if they’re broken somewhere along the way. It’s what helps us see the triangle in this image, even though there’s no triangle there:

Examples of continuance in gestalt psychology

What does any of this have to do with instructional design?

Well, work with me here. I think there are two ways it applies:

One of the things we’ve learned about in class is to “trust the model” — as in one of the models used to design instruction I wrote about earlier. Without following the model, we may design instruction that looks like some of those pictures above. We see the triangle, but do our learners? What could we be leaving out that they need to know? Would a child who has never really thought about what makes a triangle a triangle see the same thing we would? Or would she see three little black Pac-Mans looking at each other?

Oh, 8 and 4. The things you can do.
Oh 8, and 4. The things you can do.

Also, we’ve learned about in class how experts often can’t explain why they’re good at something. When they try to impart their skill to others, they often focus on details that don’t matter, or in the case of the pro baseball players saying “keep your eyes on the ball”, details that just don’t work. Their knowledge and expertise is complex, and if we were to draw it out we might see a line of Os in a field of Xs — the Xs being things that seem to matter but don’t. The expert doesn’t really know that they don’t matter — that a line of Os could be drawn against a field of anything, or even just empty space. They just don’t think about it because they never have to. They’re experts; not teachers. They see the triangle, well, um, because they just do!

It’s up to educational psychologists to understand these quirks of the mind — and that there’s an art and science to proper teaching. Otherwise, you might accidentally teach a whole classroom of students that 4090 + 10 = 5000.

Posted under: Educational Psychology | 3 Comments »

Fix iTunes 10 vertical control buttons

iTunes 10. Good stuff. But I’m really surprised that Apple — who are known for their design expertise — would not only violate a well-known design convention, but their own well-known design convention with those stoplight control buttons. It may seem like a simple annoyance, but multiply it by 1000 times over the course of a week or a month, and you have a fairly irritating problem.

Fortunately, putting those buttons back the way they should be is pretty easy. (Mac only)

1. Close iTunes if it’s open.
2. Open up Terminal.
3. Copy/paste this line into it:
defaults write full-window -1
4. Mash Enter.

Done. Re-open iTunes and enjoy.

Posted under: Fixing Stuff | No Comments »

Measure while you saw

You’ve probably heard the phrase, “measure twice, cut once.” It’s good advice, and it works very well for wood/plastic/metal. But what about instruction? Well, it’s pretty much the same–but with one major difference. The beauty of computer-aided learning is that a product is often never “finished” — meaning we have a final product that we’re stuck with. Especially with Internet-connected instruction, we have the ability to update, fix, and adjust all the time. An update to this post will show up to all of you, instantly, the second I make it. You don’t have to purchase or a new edition of it in order to see a typo corrected. What this means is that we don’t just measure twice — we measure always.

A popular model in instructional design is the “ADDIE” model. Here’s a good illustration:

Notice how evaluation — or in other words, measurement — is central to every part of the process, including implementation. It’s a two-edged sword, that. It means that by constantly evaluating how well our instruction is working, we can make for better learning experiences, even as we go along. On the other hand, that means more work for us. But why are we in our field if not to make effective instruction? I’d say the extra work is more than worth it.

Measuring as you go along isn’t just confined to instructional design. Take a look at this PR/Strategic Communications model:

*Borrowed from

It’s surprising how similar they are, especially when you know that planning around the “Target Setting” is included in the ADDIE model, too. It’s just a little further along and combined with Implementation.

Right now I work at a place that, instead of a 5-6 step model, has lived off a 1- maybe 2-step model for years: Implementation. Ideas flash in their bulbs and instantly — we’re creating a finished product. There isn’t really any planning as to how best to make it, who it will be for, how much it will cost, or even if it’s worth making in the first place. And we never evaluate afterward whether it was effective or did what we want, which is easy because we often don’t flesh out what we were trying to do in the first place. This has made for a series of half-finished, ineffective tools.

Now, I don’t want to make it sound too bad. We’ve done some cool stuff. But too much of it has been for nothing, and the stuff that works could work even better if we planned it out ahead of time. And things are getting better. Along with another instructional designer, we’ve slowly begun to convince people that we need to think before we act. Then we’re going to — hopefully — help them realize that we not only need to think before we act, but while we act, and that software/instruction/communication are not one-offs, but cycles.

Wish us luck. We’re going to need it.

Posted under: Educational Psychology | 2 Comments »

What is Instructional Design?

So I’ve started the Instructional Design & Educational Technology graduate program at the University of Utah. The typical response when I tell people this is a momentary blank look, then a comment along the lines of, “Oh, good. We need more of those.” It’s true, we do. But why? What does “instructional design” even mean? Those are good questions with complicated answers. Let’s see if I can begin to articulate an answer here:

Ever had a class where you were bombarded with information, and you weren’t sure what any of it was for, why it was important, and what the main points you were supposed to get out of it were? (My most recent experience in this was my final Mass Media Law course, but that’s another story.) The answer is yes, you have. But in case you can’t remember it, here’s a fun video that illustrates the point:

Admit it. You’ve been in a class where you thought you were supposed to focus on the passes the white team makes — and then found a question on your final exam about a moonwalking bear.

Right there we get an answer to the first question: properly designed instruction is more than simply dumping information on people and expecting them to know what to do with it — Instead, it’s about helping the learners make sense of the information. And not only that, we help them focus on what’s important, and build up their knowledge in the right order and under the correct circumstances. (Learning theory calls this “scaffolding.”)

For example, think of all the things the narrator could have asked you to keep track of in that video. How many people were there?  Where do you think they are? Get three sentences said by the players. What type of ball? Is that an ambulance or a police siren in the background?  Which team is better? See? There’s a lot going on here. And what if the video had been in another language? What if you have poor eyesight and can’t see it very well — but you’re still tested the same as everyone else on what you see?

Instructional design helps learners get the information they need while skipping what’s not (or not yet) useful, and presents it in an appropriate manner, which all ends up saving time and money. And we like saving time and money.

There’s a whole lot more to it than this, but that’s scratching the surface. We’ll get deeper into the details later. As far as this post goes, Tom Kuhlmann explains it all in more depth over at

Posted under: Educational Psychology | 1 Comment »

Wallpaper Won’t Change on Windows 7?

We have Windows 7 Home Premium 3-bit on one computer and suddenly couldn’t change the wallpaper. This seems to be a problem out there. There can be various ways to fix it. This one worked for us:

  1. Hit the Start ball
  2. Type “adjust appearance”
  3. A link called “Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows” will appear. Click that.
  4. Toggle the top check box “Animate controls and elements inside windows”

Worked for us. Your actual mileage may vary.

Posted under: Fixing Stuff | 2 Comments »

Patience Fail

Tried this today. Didn’t work. It was funny though.

Posted under: General Stuff | 1 Comment »
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Thursday, June 12, 2008

My Little Princess

I was on my way to kolkata a couple of days back. It’s a four hour journey by train from Jamshedpur. I was getting really bored in the beginning as there were all elderly people around. My dad was already in deep sleep. I wanted to keep myself engaged as I was already getting mad of thinking a lot on useless things. Suddenly there entered a foreigner lady with her kid. A small girl of about 4-5 years. She was the center of attraction of all sitting there. The girl was carrying a balloon in hand and she came moving her blonde hair from one side to the other. The girl was just someone from fairy land. She had slightly brown eyes, short blonde hair with a pink-n- blue dress and a pink hair clip and blue shoes.

Her seat was just one ahead of mine in the chair car. The moment I saw her, I exclaimed, “How sweet!” she was actually so beautiful and so was her mom. I had never observed a foreigner’s kid so closely before and this little princess was so cute. She was walking to and fro in the train and every person she passed by she gave a bright and a shy smile. I smiled at her and called her. She gave a wink and ran to her mother and hid her face there. She did this every time when anyone tried to call her. Then there came an Indian family with a boy of the same age and kids have their own knack of making friendship. Both somehow managed to share a warmth friendship just by looking at each other. Finally she came near me. I pulled her and made her sit on my lap. She was struggling to go but I held her firmly. I caressed her soft hair and then asked her, “What’s your name baby?” she blinked again and ran to her mom. I desperately wanted to just cuddle her like a doll but she wasn’t coming.

Then she started drawing attention of the others by climbing the seats, jumping and she kept on saying something to her mom. I couldn’t understand it at all. It was so fast, smooth and soft but this attracted the little boy also. There was no Hi no hello. Both joined in the tantrum and the whole atmosphere there changed from boredom to liveliness. They were talking in their own language. The boys was making sounds and also singing the song, “Ye Ishq hai...” but this cute little girl was copying everything. She was also singing along not understanding a word yet enjoying. She was dancing along with that boy on the seat, shaking her golden hair and then also tapping her feet. I loved their ‘language’. It was beautiful to see two kids irrespective of the race to which they belong and what was there was just friendship. The boy was a bit shy though and tried to move away and take rest but ‘this princess’ wouldn’t let him sit. She pulled him and brought him back to the place they were playing. It was so cute...

Finally after lot of struggle I found out that they were Russian and there was no use talking in any other language as I didn’t know anything of Russian. Her mom was as chill as she was also very polite. Alas! I caught the girl firmly and started talking to her in sign language. I gave a flying kiss to her and she just pressed her lips on her little palm and…what one expects?? A flying kiss back... but… she said, “Booooooo”, instead. I burst out laughing and then I made faces with her. Both the kids came near me and they started making some weird sounds like- ta ra reee ree tum tum tum... teeeee ta ra raaaa.

I was also enjoying it and I realized that I had started humming that tune myself. What I notice next was surprising. My little princess whose name was Liza was wearing a locket in her chain. It was of Lord Ganesha. Meanwhile, it was time for us to get down and she wasn’t leaving that boy at all. I said, “Bye Liza.”

What she said just filled my heart with so much of love that I went and kissed her. She said, “No Bye. No Bye.” And hit on my head with her balloon. I did not want to leave her. She was ‘My Little Princess.’ I didn’t have a camera then to capture her but her face is still very clear in my memory.

All kids are cute and sweet but she was somewhat extraordinary for me. She filled in energy in me.

No comments:

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Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Staggering coincidences

I have so much in common with TD that it's unbelievable. No, he doesn't have bipolar disorder or any other Axis I pathology (or Axis II, from what I can tell, which is a very good thing), but we have a staggering number of similar experiences. I was blown away as he told me about his life; I can't even put it into words, and it wouldn't be fair to him to blog about it, but I definitely understood a lot of what he's gone through and how it led him to where he is now. I actually felt comfortable disclosing back, and he accepted me completely. It's uncanny. There's definitely a kesher.

Of course, I'm kind of annoyed that he beat me at Connect 4, which has always been the game I was better at than anyone else. And we're both kind of scared at the intensity of this connection. But we're taking it very slow.
Copyright (c) "Ayelet Survivor"

  1. He beat you? After our whole discussion about how you were going to kick his @$$, and how he wouldn't know what hit him?

  2. Yes, he beat me. Twice. I think this means I have to marry him.

  3. Don't go making jokes like that, hot stuff. Slow and steady wins the race.

    Maybe you were just unconsciously playing with less concentration because you wanted to make him feel all manly and conquery.

  4. Oh please. I'm not that kind of girl. If I were I'd probably be married by now.


text:
Monday, February 4, 2013

dhaka jobs: Web Developer

Ingenious Computer Organization of Numerous System, Bangladesh
Job Nature

Educational Requirements

    Completed or Appeared BSc Engineering in CSE or IT related subjects.

Experience Requirements
  • 0 to 2 year(s)

Additional Job Requirements
  • Experience in object-oriented languages such as C++, C# or Ruby.
  • Experience in web development with RoR or PHP or other languages.
  • Relational Database management and SQL
  • Some Front-End working knowledge with HTML, CSS, JQuery, AJAX
  • Comfortable with Linux OS such as Ubuntu / CentOS
Salary Range
  • TK.20000 - 60000
Other Benefits
  • Good working environment
  • Smart Salary Structure
  • Free Lunches and Snacks
  • Two days off per week
  • Two Festival bonus per year
  • Two Project / Company bonus per year
  • Two long distance tour per year
  • Two short distance tour per year
  • Regular Seminar and Workshops per week
  • Some games and entertainment
Job Location

 Send your CV to

 Application Deadline: February 24, 2013

No comments:

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BizStore » DVD » Cavalli: Ercole Amante [Blu-ray]
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Cavalli: Ercole Amante [Blu-ray]
Cavalli: Ercole Amante [Blu-ray]

List Price: $49.99
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Manufacturer: Opus Arte
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Starring: Luca Pisaroni, Veronica Cangemi, Jeremy Ovenden, Anna Maria Panzarella, Anna Bonitatibus
Directed By: Ivor Bolton, David Alden

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Product Description:
Aspect Ratio: 1.78:1
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
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Number Of Discs: 2
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Release Date: 2010-02-23
Running Time: 261
Studio: Opus Arte
Editorial Review:
Commissioned to celebrate the marriage of the Sun King, Louis XIV, and Marie-Thérèse of Spain, the original production of Cavalli's Ercole amante was, at the time, the grandest show ever performed in Europe. DNO's contemporary, hilarious and surreal production, directed by David Alden, is a triumph of opera buffa, a riot of decoration and symbolism complemented by Constance Hoffman's
exceptional costumes. Luca Pisaroni's Ercole is heroic and melodious in turn, Veronica Cangemi is a splendid Iole, and the Chorus of De Nederlandse
Opera and Concerto Köln give a sublime performance under Ivor Bolton, a master of baroque music. An
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sábado, 14 de junio de 2008

IBM: Mensajes de Error del Sistema y Códigos Abend

Interpretation of IBM operating system error codes and messages can be tedious and frustrating. Many times the appropriate manuals are not readily available for the user's access. If the manuals are available, the error description and corrective procedure are often impossible to interpret. A list of the errors most commonly encountered at the CIS Technical Support Department with a brief understandable description of their meaning and a suggested procedure for correcting the error is given below.

Identifying the error code is the first step in the process. The first page or pages of the printed output generated by a job is the JES3 job log or JESMSG dataset. This is a chronological listing that specifies JES3 and system operator messages issued during processing of your job. If your job abended (ABnormally ENDed), a message near the end of JESMSG will appear, resembling:

hh.mm.ss SYS2 R=IEF450I jobname procname stepname-ABEND Snnn Ummmm

The characters "IEF450I" are a message identifier code which can be looked up in the "IBM OS/VS Message Library: VS2 System Messages" manual for a description of the message. The actual jobname, procedure name, and stepname for your job will appear in the indicated locations in the message. The "Snnn" and "Ummmm" identify the more helpful parts of the message. The "Snnn" is a code denoting a SYSTEM abend. These codes can be found in the "IBM OS/VS Message Library: VS2 System Codes" manual. The "Ummmm" is a code denoting a USER abend. These codes will vary from one user's program to another, therefore these will not be discussed.

Following the JES3 joblog will be a print file referred to as JESJCL. This is a list that specifies JCL and any additional job control statements from included procedures.

The next section of output is referred to as the SYSMSG dataset. Within this file all system messages will be printed which will include a more descriptive message associated with the error message appearing in JESMSG. Quite commonly, one error code has several meanings, thereby making the extra information in this section very useful in identifying the problem. For example:

IEC150I 913-38,IFG0194C,jobname,procname,ddname,35D,UGS004,dsname
IEF472I jobname procname stepname - COMPLETION CODE - SYSTEM=913

The characters "IEC150I" are another message identifier code, which may be looked up in the system messages manual. To the right of this code is the system abend code. In this example it is "913". The "-38" is an additional code number occasionally used to distinguish between different errors under the same system abend code.

The following are the most commonly found system abend codes. If assistance is needed with the less common system codes, the Technical Support staff is available.

2.1.1 ABEND CODE 013

2. DESCRIPTION: The system could not OPEN one of your datasets properly, generally because of an incorrect DCB parameter (BLKSIZE), or it could not find the specified member of a partitioned dataset.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Check the BLKSIZE in the DCB parameter to insure that it matches the BLKSIZE of the dataset. Verify the spelling and existence of the member of the partitioned dataset.

2.1.2 ABEND CODE 0C1

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: The computer tried to execute an invalid machine instruction and an operation exception occurred.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Check the overlaying portion of your program. Accidentally overlaying part of your program with data (subscript out of range) or bad addresses will produce this error.

2.1.3 ABEND CODE 0C4

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: This is a storage protection violation generally caused by your program trying to STORE data in memory that is not allocated for your use.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Make sure any subscripts used do not exceed the boundary specified. Correct all bad addresses in a store-type statement.

2.1.4 ABEND CODE 0C5

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: The computer tried to ADDRESS an area in a non-existent part of memory (beyond the bounds of our installation memory).

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Check for improper subscripts and for inconsistent lists for subprograms.

2.1.5 ABEND CODE 0C7

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: This is a DATA exception error. The system tried to execute an instruction that works with packed decimal numbers and found the numbers to be incorrectly formatted. This error commonly occurs in PL/I and COBOL programs when working with data that has been incorrectly converted after inputting from cards or some other file or when numeric fields declared to contain packed decimal data are not initialized prior to use.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Either correct the data or the conversion format in your program.

2.1.6 ABEND CODE 106

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: A system software or disk problem occurred during the execution of a LINK or LOAD instruction.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Insure that the load request in the problem was specified correctly and was not incorrectly modified, then resubmit the job.

2.1.7 ABEND CODE 213

2. DESCRIPTION: The system tried to open a DASD data set and encountered difficulties. This ABEND customarily occurs when the dataset name specified in the DSNAME parameter does not exist.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: If the dataset is catalogued, make sure the spelling is correct. If the dataset is not catalogued, insure that the proper volume was specified on the VOL=SER parameter

2.1.8 ABEND CODE 222

2. DESCRIPTION: The operator cancelled the job.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: If no message is given in JESMSG, contact the operator for an explanation. Many times the error is caused by improperly accessing a magnetic tape

2.1.9 ABEND CODE 2F3

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: The job was executing when a system failure occurred

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Resubmit the job if your results are unsatisfactory and contact Technical Support for a job cost reimbursement

2.1.10 ABEND CODE 322

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: Execution of a job, job step, or catalogued procedure step took longer than the time specified. If no time was specified in the TIME parameter on your jobcard, the job was given the default value of 30 seconds.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Check for program errors, such as endless loops. Correct any such errors and rerun the job. If no such errors were found, increase the time and rerun the job.

2.1.11 ABEND CODE 613

2. DESCRIPTION: An input/output (I/O) error occurred during execution of an OPEN instruction for a dataset on magnetic tape. The error resulted in either reading or writing incorrectly a tape label or mark, or positioning a tape volume. This error typically occurs in standard label processing for multiple tape files.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Rerun the job, since malfunctioning equipment has likely produced the error

2.1.12 ABEND CODE 722

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: The system cancelled your job because an output limit was exceeded for lines being printed or cards being punched.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Assuming that the program is correct, increase the appropriate specification by use of a MAIN card. IF lines were exceeded (default=5000), the LINES parameter (in thousands) should be increased accordingly. If cards were exceeded (default=500), the CARDS parameter (in hundreds) should be increased.

2.1.13 ABEND CODE 804

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: Your job requested more virtual storage (memory) than the amount that was available.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Increase the REGION parameter on the abending step's EXEC card. If no region parameter was specified, the default value for the procedure being executed was assumed.

2.1.14 ABEND CODE 806

1. ERROR ID: none

2. DESCRIPTION: This error occurred during execution of a LINK or LOAD instruction. The system was unable to locate a load module.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURES: Make sure the spelling of the load module name or program name is correct or that the appropriate STEPLIB or JOBLIB DD card defining which library the load module resides in is included in you JCL stream.

2.1.15 ABEND CODE 80A

1. DESCRIPTION: This error is complimentary to system abend code 804, discussed above.

2. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURES: The same procedures should be exercised for this error.

2.1.16 ABEND CODE 813

2. DESCRIPTION: During execution of an OPEN instruction for a dataset on magnetic tape, the dataset name on the header label of the tape did not match that specified on the DD card.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Insure that the DD statement specifies the correct DSNAME, volume serial number, and label for the tape being accessed.

2.1.17 ABEND CODE 913

2. DESCRIPTION: An OPEN instruction was issued for a RACF-protected dataset on a DASD volume which your userid was not authorized to access. RACF only allows you to access datasets with a high level qualifier the same as your userid or which you have been explicitly given access permission to by the owner of the dataset.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Make sure you have the needed access authority to the dataset. Attention should be given to the publication "RACF, A Component of the IBM Operating System of The University of Georgia." This is a brief general information manual published specifically for IBM users at the University. It may be obtained at the Technical Support Department.

2.1.18 ABEND CODE A13

2. DESCRIPTION: The system tried to OPEN a non-existent dataset on magnetic tape. The system encountered the end-of-volume tape mark when forward spacing to the file you specified in the LABEL parameter on the DD card.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Check the file sequence number and volume serial number from the previous job that created the dataset.

2.1.19 ABEND CODE B37

2. DESCRIPTION: This error results if either one of two situations occurs. Firstly, if the DASD volume to which the system has assigned one of the program's output datasets does not have enough available space to allow the necessary secondary allocations to be made. Secondly, this ABEND can occur if the output dataset used all 16 extents of secondary allocations but still required more space.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Estimate the space required for the output dataset before rerunning your program. If possible, decrease the amount of space requested or if more space is obviously needed increase the primary and/or secondary allocations.

2.1.20 ABEND CODE D37

2. DESCRIPTION: An output dataset used all the primary space and no secondary space was requested.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Increase the primary allocation or add a secondary allocation to the space parameter for that output dataset.

2.1.21 ABEND CODE E37

2. DESCRIPTION: If creating a dataset on tape, all space available on the volume specified was used and the system attempted to write another record. If creating a partitioned dataset on direct access, 16 extents of secondary space were used when the program attempted to write another record.

3. CORRECTIVE PROCEDURE: Specify at least one more tape volume or specify more primary space if creating a partitioned dataset.

Fuente: http://www.eits.uga.edu/hostsys/mvs/ibm-mainframe-system-abend-codes.html#0C4
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Elections slated for Saturday

Early voting ended Tuesday, May 7 in advance of general elections slated for Saturday, May 11 around Texas.

Locally, a number of contested races will be decided along with propositions in Azle, Lakeside, and for Parker County Emergency Services District One.

Incumbent Mayor Alan Brundrett, Mayor Pro Tem Bill Jones in Place 3, and Paul Crabtree in Place 4 each ran unopposed and will retain their respective seats.

In Place 6, Jeffrey Wise did not defend his seat, so voters will elect either Damon Bethurum or Lee Barrett to represent them at large.

Voters who live in the portion of Azle that lies within Tarrant County will also decide for or against the following proposition:

“Authorizing the creation of the Azle Municipal Development District and the imposition of a sales and use tax at the rate of one-half of one percent for the purpose of financing development projects beneficial to the district.”

In the Azle Independent School District Board of Trustees election, Sam Merck in Place 5, board president Bill Lane in Place 6, and vice president Jeff Edwards in Place 7 are all unopposed and will retain their respective seats.

But the list of contenders for Place 1 is long. Former AISD board member Erik Loeffelholz was appointed to fill the seat until a special election could be held. Loeffelholz is running to fill the remainder of the term – about a year – along with challengers Bernadette Roquemore, Warren Smith, Thomas Kisner, and Clifton McDonnel.

In the town of Lakeside Mayor Pat Jacob and Amy Robinson in Place 4 are unopposed in their bids for reelection.

Place 5 is up for grabs, though, and voters will choose between Richard Dennis, Bill Mohr, and Charles Hamilton.

Voters will also give an up or down vote on the following proposition:

“The adoption of an additional sales and use tax within the city at the rate of one-fourth of one percent to be used to reduce the property tax rate; and the adoption of a ‘Type’ B sales and use tax for the benefit of a Texas Development Corporation Act (the ‘Act’) Type B Corporation at the rate of one-half of one percent to be used for any and all purposes provided or allowed by applicable provisions of the Act, as it may be amended from time to time, including Chapters 501 and 505 of the Texas Local Government Code, including but not limited to all projects authorized by the Act (including, but not limited to for infrastructure relating to water supply facilities, sewer facilities, and water conservation programs), and the maintenance and operations expenses for any of those projects; and the adoption of a local sales and use tax in the Town of Lakeside at the rate of one-fourth of one percent to provide revenue for maintenance and repair of municipal streets.”

Voters in the city of Pelican Bay will decide three contested races for their city council.

Bill Morley and Sabra Swaim are vying for Place 3, while Tish Allen and Glen Oberg are running for Place 4.

A three-way race is underway for Place 5 with Robin Finstad, Marshal Daniel, and Joe Bologna campaigning for the seat.

In the city of Reno, Mayor Linda Stokes and David Andrews in Place 2 are each unopposed and will retain their seats.

Voters will decide between Keith “Eric” Hunter and Carol Houlihan to fill Place 4.

The city of Sanctuary is not holding an election because Megg Elliott in Place 1, Michelle McCoy in Place 3, and Floyd Galloway in Place 5 are each running unopposed for their respective seats.


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Saturday, June 5, 2010

Coming to your TV set: So You Think You're An Artist?

Forget summer returns. Art is now being turned into the next reality show. "Work of Art: The Next Great Artist", which debuts on cable channel  Bravo on Wednesday, June 9, pits 14 very different artists against each  other in weekly challenges and awards the winner a $100,000 prize and a  solo exhibition.

The question is, can highly personal, visual art be judged like a  gourmet dish or a ready-to-wear collection? And is the rarefied world of  art ready for a reality TV make-over? Another question the producers dodge is how the "artists" REALLY were chosen. Can we trust their judgment on art when, when, judging by the above photo, the artists are all young, attractive and quite photogenic. What - there are no good artists over, say, 50? No older men or women? Louise Bourgeois would have never made it through the first round; neither would most of the artists whose works now grace our museums and whom we value - the list is endless.

"The whole point of the show is that there is no right opinion.  Everyone has their own subjective view. But it is amazing every week  that there is a consensus about the quality of the work, and what's good  and what's not," said Dan Cutforth, one of the executive producers. So, does this means that the show has already been taped and the "contest" already decided?

"Good art really moves people and inspires a reaction. You know it  when you see it. The old chestnut 'I don't know much about art, but I  know what I like' is true," he told Reuters. How about some..oh, I don't know.. .smidgen of art history or background as to why people like what they do. How do you define good art - by only a reaction? Whose reaction? And what kind of reaction?

"Work of Art" comes from the same Magical Elves production company  that blended personality and the process of fashion design in "Project  Runway", and helped lift the lid on how food goes from good to great in  "Top Chef."

In the first challenge, contestants ranging from 23 to 62 years-old  are randomly paired off and asked to produce a visual work that captures  the essence of their partner. A three-person panel of judges decides  who has responded best to the challenge, and who will go home. In future episodes, the contestants must create unique pieces in  mediums such as sculpture, photography, collage and industrial design.

"When we started reaching out to the art community, we were worried  that people would be against the idea of a reality show. What we found  was that people were pretty receptive," said Cutforth.

Or maybe they were desperate for a way to make a living; let's face it - if a contestant "wins" one of these shows, he or she has a shot at sales, a gallery and a huge step up in the competitive art scene. Artists don't live in an ivory tower, or, at least, those who have to pay the rent and put food on the table don't. I don't blame them for participating in this but it certainly can lead to a further degradation of any method of judging what's good and what's not. Far too often now, we judge solely by price; if a piece of art sells for a lot of money, it must be good. No sales equals bad art. By that standard, Van Gogh was a failure as were many artists whom we now value.

More than 2,000 people from oil painters to conceptual artists and  silk-screen experimenters applied to take part, reflecting the hunger  for a larger public canvas for an often misunderstood form of  expression. But will the show encourage more people to seek out art or simply be satisfied with what may be a visual version of McDonald's?

"One of our goals for this show is for people to realize that art is  all around them. It shouldn't frighten people to have opinions," said  Jane Lipsitz, Cutforth's Magical Elves business partner.

"People perceive art as being possibly elitist and a rarefied world.  So it would be amazing if we were to bring art more into the  mainstream," she said. Unfortunately for this laudable goal, the artists presented in the PR photo look, for the most part, young, attractive and today's version of hip. They don't look unique but more of the glossy, standardized model that we get on every other TV channel. Maybe the show will prove me wrong. I was appalled by the idea when I first read about it and I haven't seen anything that makes me feel otherwise. Or at least, not yet.

The TV show has been embraced by some professionals.  Mixed-media artist Jon Kessler and photographer Andres Serrano are  among the guest judges, while the permanent panel is made up of New York  gallery owners Bill Powers and Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn, and New York  Magazine art critic Jerry Saltz. What? No 800-dial-in-your-choice-for-this-evening's-contestant? Any bests as to whether they will have a text messaging option set up by the end of the first week?

Art auctioneer Simon de Pury acts as mentor to the contestants, and  the series winner gets a prestigious solo show at the Brooklyn Museum,  the second-largest art museum in New York City.

"I think the art world is definitely risky. It would be very easy  for people to think this show is not for them. But I think people who  actually watch will be sucked in," said Cutforth.

I will watch. After all, it's summer and the TV pickings are slim. But I'm withholding judgment, which one does anyway with a new show. It just seems wrong that something that can be as life-affirming and soul satisfying as art is turned into a spectator sport in this fashion.

One wonders what Louise would say.

1 comment:

Leslie said...

I wonder how successful this show will be, after the initial woo.

I confess my inner optimist hopes that maybe some people who would otherwise not participate in art might develop an interest.


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Thursday, August 7, 2008

Last Weekend

We went with Jeff's family for an awesome weekend trip to Bear Lake. I didn't get out my camera much and I didn't see one other camera the whole weekend! We'll just have to go back I guess. :-)
I snapped as many pics as I could at the end of our day at the lake and this is what I got.

This collage is some of Jeff's sister's with their hubbies and their children, and one of his dad.

This collage is just our little brood. The baby ate so much sand I think I'll see it in his diaper for a week...maybe longer.

I call this one "Mud Models". This isn't the first time on a family trip that Jeff's siblings have covered themselves in sloppy wet sand. I don't know what possesses a person to do this, but I laughed and laughed. Thanks for being weird Sarah and Bil! It's very entertaining.

The only other pics I got were when we went and picked wild Huckleberries. FUN. I loved this. It was so beautiful and cool and green on that mountain. And those berries taste delightful on ice cream.
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skcoe said...

So lush and green and beautiful while picking! That's stuff memories are made of...your kids seem to really be enjoying themselves.

LOVE YOU. Take US there one of these days!

Laura said...

What a fun family time! Your boys are darling and I freaking love the mud models! How nice for you to be able to have such a great time with Jeff's family. What great memories for you and your kids!

Marisa Jean said...

I want to go to the lake and roll around in mud and become a model. I'm so jealous of your chance to go there. It looks dreamy.

Sara Jane said...

Bear Lake looks like so much fun. You both have such fun families. I'm glad you had a good time!

Bryan and Marissa said...

so cute! looks like so much fun!

princess Desi said...

Your kids are so cute. Do you mind if i add you to our blog?

Courtney said...

I love Bear Lake. I'm going to have to remember the huckleberry picking and do it next year! Family & cousin time is always a good thing!


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Saturday, April 9, 2011

24 weeks!

So.  Yeah.  It's been a little while again.  But there really hasn't been too much to report.  Our beautiful baby is still growing and kicking.  Our 24-week appointment on Tuesday, April 5th (which also happened to be daddy's 28th birthday!) measured the heartbeat in the 150s (same as always!) and fundal height at 24 centimeters . . . which is right on target of where it should be!

Mommy and daddy finally got their rears in gear and went to Target and set up a registry. =] That was fun . . . although daddy spent most of his time there looking for camouflage items to add.  There wasn't much, but what he could find definitely ended up on the registry!  There were a few moments where he looked at me and said, a pair of overtly camouflage shorts in hand, "Do you think this is too boyish?"  I couldn't help but just smile at him and tell him, "Nah.  We'll pair it with a pink onesie."

We've almost got the nursery ready to start moving things in to.  All we have left to move out is two large bookshelves and they'll be going into our room once we find the energy to tackle them.  We've started move in what few baby things we have.  Quite a few newborn and 0-3 month clothing items have been unpacked, folded, and moved into a dresser in the closet.  Everything that we currently have that's larger than that is packed up in totes in the basement.  Oh!  And it's currently 46 degrees outside.  I think that means it's officially spring!  Which also means that GARAGE SALE season should start soon!  I can't wait to go baby girl shopping over the next couple of months!

Mommy still isn't showing much.  On one hand, I'm grateful, since that's just less time that I get to be uncomfortable.  But on the other hand, I'm a little envious of those women with their beautiful baby bumps!  I can't wait to sport mine!  To prove my point, here's a (roughly) 24-week belly picture that I took this morning:

Yes, there has definitely been some changes since the first few pictures I posted, but, I'm still at the point where anyone who didn't know that I was pregnant wouldn't suspect a thing just by looking at me!  My doctor swears I'll start bumping out by 28 weeks . . . but she said that I would probably start showing by my 24-week appointment as well, and that didn't happen.  So we shall see!

Mommy has been extra tired lately.  We're not in the best financial place, so we realized shortly after we got pregnant that there was no way we would be able to survive on a single income for six weeks.  Meaning, Mommy is now working two jobs in an effort to put aside money for this summer.  I spend my days at the Head Start and most of my evenings cashiering at Wal-mart now.  This means loooong days.  I put in four 14-hour days this week!  Sleeping in DEFINITELY felt glorious this morning!

It will only be this way until the school year ends though and then my schedule at the Head Start will be much more flexible and forgiving.  Only forty more days of a crazy schedule!  I'm tempted to break out the construction paper and make a paper chain so I can count them down!  But it will definitely all be worth it in the end.  Being able to take those six weeks off and NOT worry one bit about finances will be wonderful and we'll be able to focus all our attention on this beautiful little life that has graced ours!  Daddy has a fair amount of PTO saved up as well, so he's going to be able to take three or four weeks off as well.  I'm so excited for that time right after Brooklyn is born!

One other interesting happenstance that I wanted to bring up was weight gain.  Or lack thereof.  I was certain by now I'd be at least starting to pack on the pounds (we're almost to end of the second trimester!) but nope. I weighed myself this morning and was still down three or four pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight.  I'm honestly starting to wonder if I'm going to come out of this pregnancy weighing LESS than I went into it weighing!  It doesn't matter one way or the other to me, it just surprises me that this is the one time in my life when I honestly EXPECTED to gain weight . . . and so far, nothing!


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Submission to Social News Websites for multiplying your traffic and backlinks

Social news sites are basically all about having users submit interesting (at least in theory) information, and then have other users vote which entries deserve more coverage. So the most viral content ends up being seen by thousands of people, and the least viral content falls into oblivion.

Before I tell you anything else let me just show you the two leaders of this market, so you can understand what exactly a social news site is. These are: Digg and Reddit.

Social news sites
The main benefit of using social news sites

First of all, you have to do it right. You have to create awesome content, viral, and also be a little lucky while submitting it to the right social news sites.

If you get all of these elements right you might see a massive stream of traffic to your site. This is the kind of traffic your webhost might not be ready for and cause your site to crash. This happens quite often for some really popular stories.

So if the traffic is the biggest benefit, why am I listing social news sites as part of my "Get Backlinks" series? Two reasons:

  • You still get a link from the social news site.
  • The sole act of your story being popular may result in more links from other people who have seen it.

I know that this is not a given, but when it happens you get the most valuable links possible - natural links created by other people. Google loves those.

Giving yourself a head-start

Registering on, any social news site and only visiting it to submit your own stuff is the fastest way to get banned. That's because, essentially, this is spamming.

To have a better chance of succeeding you should pick just a small range of social news sites and be a somewhat active user there. Which means visiting them and voting on various stuff from time to time, and occasionally submitting your own story.

If you get banned anyway, simply create another account or choose a different site. Also, remember that using social news sites can't be your only technique of getting links and recognition. Link building is most effective when you're using a number of different techniques. This makes your backlinking profile look more natural.

That being said, I wouldn't focus the majority of my link building efforts on social news sites. Try to use it only when you know that you've created an outstanding piece of content. For example, something that has a significant number of shares and retweets already (as an indication of its viral nature).

When using social news sites in such a situation you have a big chance of multiplying your traffic and getting even more publicity. When using social news in a situation when you have just a mediocre piece of content you won't see any results.

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Five Boudoir Photo Props You Already Own

Most people believe that a boudoir photo session means you will only need to bring lingerie or your bare skin, but the truth is you can include anything that makes you feel sexy.  Boudoir photography is about giving you a place where you feel welcome, beautiful, accepted, able to be yourself, love yourself and above all have some fun.  Here are a few things you already own that you might consider bringing for your session with us.

  • Shoes

Shoes“Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world.” -Marilyn Monroe

Follow Marilyn’s advice and bring shoes that make you feel powerful, happy and playful.  Cowboy boots, Roman sandals or those five inch stilettos could help define your personal style and set the mood for some really fun photos.  If you’d like some thoughts on what he might like check out this blog by Beverly Feldman Shoes.

  • Fabric

What do you own that makes you feel happy every time you touch it?  How about an extra fluffy towel, satin sheet, fuzzy blanket or silky curtain?  Bring it!  We can drape you in whatever makes you feel most luxurious and capture an image of the way these fabrics make you feel.

  • Something That Defines You

What Defines You

Whether you are participating in the photo session for yourself or your partner, creating an image that defines who you are is important.  Be sure to bring that special something that makes you who you are.  Do you play an instrument?  What’s your favorite book?  Do you dabble in photography or cook gourmet meals?  Do you play a sport? You could even bring a favorite wine glass, coffee cup or tea set.  If it’s important to you we will create a beautiful image with it.

  • Accessories

To quote women’s sportswear fashion designer Michale Kors “I’ve always thought of accessories as the exclamation point of a woman’s outfit” and that is just as true for boudoir.  Glasses, stockings, gloves, hats, scarves, jewelry, anything you would wear to accessorize your everyday wear works well to bump up the glamor in a boudoir photo.

  • Something of His

Believe it or not, men love seeing you in their clothes.  I’m sure we could spend hours debating the subject but trust us, bring his sports jersey, dress shirt, boxers, tie or anything else of his you love wearing and we’ll help create an image that he will go nuts for.  And don’t forget to add a dash of his cologne to the item of clothing to make you feel all warm and cozy while wearing it.

Yes ladies, it’s that easy to find a few things to bring to your photo session that will make your images extra special.  Let us know what you plan to bring ahead of time and we can design some shots around what’s most special to you.  We’re looking forward to it!


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Saturday, December 14, 2013

Perler Bead Yoda

I needed to make Hubs his yearly Christmas ornament.  I found the pattern for Master Yoda on Pinterest and changed it a hair.  Now, all I have to do is to string some ribbon through his head and we'll be good to go! His clothes glow in the dark, but wouldn't you know, his light saber doesn't.  Rrr!

The Girl Party: K's birthday party #1.

Birthday party #1 is done.  We have survived.  Everyone came out happy and well-fed.

We had just your average at-home girl party with some crafts in the basement and "bars" of several in the kitchen.  We started out with a make-your-own-pizza bar.  I bought some pizza shells, pizza sauce, pineapple and pepperoni (name brand!) at the Dollar Tree.  I mean, two personal shells for a dollar (the size of a salad plate) is not a bad deal!  We had a salad bar, partially compliments of the Christmas Tea of Sunday.  We also had a Sundae Bar.  The Sundae Bar was filled with all sorts of movie theater boxes of candy, some homemade brownies, a couple of syrups, sprinkles, marshmallows and Cool Whip.

The kids crafted, they ate and we re-acquainted ourselves with how to fold the blasted cootie catchers.  (I had to excuse myself and consult Pinterest.  None of us could get it flipped the right way, but now we know.)

Most. Laid. Back. Party. Ever.

Now, if we can only keep that tradition going.  My house wasn't even trashed!  Even Hubs was thrilled!

Monday, December 9, 2013

Taco Soup-- A recipe that I don't want to forget.

I served Taco Soup at my Christmas Tea.  It may not be a very tea-like soup, but it was danged good.  It was so good that I'm going to write it down here before I forget.  You see, I went to one of those female obligation parties where food is had and sold and whatnot.  I purchased the Taco Soup and the Sea Salt Caramel Brownies.  Now, I could live without the brownies for a few different reasons.  First off, they had no actual sea salt.  Hmm.  I'm thinking that the name suggested and all.  Thankfully, my MIL just gave me a sea salt grinder.  Secondly, the caramel provided was nearly impossible to work with.  Thirdly, the brownies didn't wow me.  The soup, however, wow'd everyone.  I was disappointed when I opened the soup mix and thought, "I paid $7 for that?  I have the ingredients in my house!"  Besides, I had to add an extra taco seasoning, because the original package didn't have enough flavor.  With all that, here is my version of a more affordable Taco Soup.

Taco Soup
A cup or so of holiday soup mix beans, soaked overnight.  -- You know the kind with 12-15 types of beans in there.  Too lazy to count the beans listed out on my bulk bean label.
A pound of 93% fat free ground turkey.  You could use beef if beef is your thing.
1 can of whole kernel corn with water
1- 14 oz  can of diced tomatoes with juice
1/2 bag of matchstick carrots
2 packages of taco seasoning
3 cups of water
A couple of cranks with the sea salt grinder and of the pepper grinder
Pre-cook your meat, then add the rinsed beans (that you left soak overnight,) a regular size can of corn with the water (don't drain,) the diced tomatoes (don't drain,) the carrots, 2 packages of taco seasoning, water and salt and pepper.  Bring it to a boil, then simmer for 1-2 hours.  Do not cook in a crock-pot or slow cooker.
Voila!  Done!

People raved.  Not that I mean to toot my own horn, but it was dang good!

Sunday, December 8, 2013

The friends and family Christmas Tea

Today K and I hosted our Friends and Family Christmas tea.  This past week has been a whirlwind of way too much stuff.  I had a realization, confirmed by a best friend and my husband, that I had grossly overbooked myself.

Never fear, my peeps were here. My husband and K kicked in and helped.

The whirlwind started Thanksgiving week.  My sister and I entered the bowels of holiday retail on Black Friday (12 midnight, so it was FRIDAY) and came out victorious.  That lead to home, a nap and onward to the tree.  I admit that I was a wee swidge tuckered and since Hubs was still playing with lights hours later, K and I decided that Saturday would be a better day.  We spent all day Saturday decorating.  With a tree as full as mine, you can't bust it out in an hour and breaks are most definitely NOT an option.  We chipped away at it all day, as well as Thanksgiving leftovers and we had the house complete by the end of the day.  Sunday took us on a road trip to Frankenmuth, MI to Bronner's Christmas Wonderland.  We also stopped by Bass Pro in Toledo and Cabela's in Dundee, Michigan.  I worked M-W.  I also had a PTA board meeting on Wednesday morning and one on Thursday morning.  I had a date with my book fair chair/best friend to go to the Scholastic Warehouse sale to purchase books for the Birthday Book Club at school.  We had 66 books or so to purchase and they all needed to be hardbound.  We were able to bust that out and rock our way back to school.  I was at school for the day, because -- well, it just worked out that way.  Friday started with me and my weekly cleaning, but a bit more pressed to do so because of the tea.  I worked the Scholastic Warehouse sale breakdown, and was paid in a sweet pile of books.  Never mind that I rolled one of the big ole fat case carts over the inside of my book.  :S  I went back to school and helped set up Santa Shop until 8 PM.  I ended up back at school Saturday morning at 7:30 AM and was there for Winter Wonderland/Santa Shop until 2 PM.  I ran home, baked Sea Salt Caramel Brownies for Hubs' work Christmas party, cooked up the meat for the soup, got ready and hauled out for said party.  We got back and I started setting up for the tea, but decided that curling up on the couch with my cell alarm set for early was a better option over pressing on.  On came this morning.  Hubs was kind enough to bring my giant haul of Christmas dishes up from the basement and we readied for the tea until it was time to get ready for church.  We were the Advent readers this morning, we listened to the Cantata and skipped Sunday School in order to come home and continue with preparations.

My people are so kind to help me do this.  Truly kind.

I realize that I had the option of ironing the table cloths, but had no time.  Ignore that, please.

The table that my sister and I sit at.  My niece gave me a cookie jar last year and the poinsettia looked so good next to it, that I decided that putting it into it wasn't such a bad idea.

The kid table.  I found them wonderful foam craft house kits last year at Michael's for 90% off.  K has enjoyed putting hers together tonight.

The mama table.  The boys across the street loaned some table linens to me and I thought this one was a delightful touch.  My dessert stand was waiting for the other desserts to arrive.  You see, I make a soup and a giant salad, while the guests bring a small dessert.  Believe me when I tell you that we had more than enough dessert.

Everyone had a delightful time.  We ate.  We talked.  We all sat and relaxed.

After the tea K took my MIL to see her hamster and he had become a dearly departed.  While yes, her fundraiser prize hamster had taken his last breath some time before.  She asked that I call Hubs to let him know.  (He was at his parent's house watching football with his dad.)  "Do you want me to come home?"  "Yes, we need you."  We had a proper burial for him in the backyard.  He's in now what has become our pet cemetery.  :(  He was a good little hamster and again real soon, we'll have another.


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Thursday, 25 June 2015

Land Stewardship

We're proud to announce we have an additional 2.5 hectares protected from the encroaching monotony of intensive farming. The strategic purchasing of scattered plots throughout the area means that effectively 53.5 ha are off limits and the wonderful diversity of wild flora and fauna coupled with an extraordinary quantity of heritage fruit and nut trees in this area are much more likely to survive for our children to enjoy.

New Plots purchased in June 2015

Revenue from bio-nursery sales, our market gardens and educational courses sustain our project and help us to achieve our goal to protect and promote the regeneration of ecosystems here and beyond. We continue to commit to using all profit from our activities for the purchasing of land with high ecological value currently under threat from intensive agricultural development. The land, once under our stewardship, is managed with respect for its inherent value and vital ecosystem services.

A view from the land


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Elderly Man Who Died After Rescue From House Fire Identified

BALTIMORE (WJZ) — The Baltimore City Fire Department has identified the 73-year-old man who died after being rescued from a house fire Tuesday afternoon.

James Thrower is the 18th fire fatality in Baltimore this year.

RELATED: Elderly Man Dies After Being Rescued From East Baltimore Fire

The fire occurred at a home in the 300 block of E. 22nd St., and was reported just before 1 p.m.

Responding crews saw heavy smoke and flames coming from the second and third floors of the home.

Firefighters were able to rescue Thrower, and he was taken to a local hospital in critical condition.

Thrower was pronounced dead hours later.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, and Thrower’s cause of death will be determined by the State Medical Examiner’s Office.

Follow @CBSBaltimore on Twitter and like WJZ-TV | CBS Baltimore on Facebook

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Preserve, defend and protect the Constitution - Baltimore Post-ExaminerBaltimore Post-Examiner

Preserve, defend and protect the Constitution

When I entered the United States Army  40 years ago I took an oath. When I became a police officer I took an oath. When I went to work for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security I took an oath.

I raised my hand and swore to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.”

The First Amendment to the Constitution gives all Americans the right to free speech, freedom of expression, freedom of religion, freedom of the press and the right to peaceful dissent.

As an individual I may not always agree with what somebody else says or does. Sometimes another’s protest and or speech may be completely at odds to my own beliefs.   Sometimes I find it so abhorrent, so morally incomprehensible to what I stand for that it makes me angry.

That is my right and it is my right to express my opinion on whatever topic I deem necessary.

As an American citizen, I must respect the Constitution and another person’s right to do the same, even if I totally disagree with their point of view.

That freedom is why white racists can protest on the streets of this country and display symbols of the Nazi party or the KKK, no matter how vile and ignorant their protests are to most Americans. Hitler and his Nazi party murdered millions of human beings, and almost annihilated the Jewish race. The KKK murdered thousands of black Americans and white Americans that supported them.

Washington Redskins kneel down during the National Anthem. (Wikipedia)

Black Lives Matter can march down the street and chant that they want dead cops.

You can’t pick apart the Constitution and say the freedoms we hold so dear in this country only apply to those who we agree with. It doesn’t work that way and if it did we wouldn’t be a free society.

President John F. Kennedy said that peaceful dissent is what keeps us free.

The Constitution gives an NFL player or any other American for that matter, the right to kneel during the National Anthem for whatever reason he chooses and he doesn’t have to explain to anybody why he is doing it. That is his right as an American.

It is not something I would do, but I respect his right to do it.

President Donald Trump also has the right to free speech, however calling another person a son-of-a-bitch is something that I did not want to hear from the leader of this country.

But I do not believe a President has the right to tell another person that someone should lose their livelihood because they are exercising their First Amendment rights.

About the author

Doug Poppa

Doug Poppa is a US Army Military Police Veteran, former law enforcement officer, criminal investigator and private sector security and investigations management professional with 40 years of experience. In 1986 Mr. Poppa was awarded “Criminal Investigator of the Year” by the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia for his undercover work in narcotics enforcement. He was also re-assigned to the Northern Virginia Regional Narcotics Enforcement Task Force for 18 months. In 1991 and again in 1992 Mr. Poppa’s testimony under oath in court led to the discovery that exculpatory evidence was withheld from the defense by the prosecutor and sheriff’s office officials during the 1988 trial of a man accused of attempted murder of his wife that led to his conviction. As a result of his testimony the man was ordered released from prison, given a new trial in 1992 and found not guilty. Mr. Poppa became the subject of local and national news media attention as a result of his testimony which led to the demise of his 12-year police career. After losing his job, at the request of the FBI, Mr. Poppa infiltrated in an undercover capacity a group of men who were plotting the kidnapping of a Dupont Chemical fortune heir and his wife in 1992. His stories have been featured on Inside Edition, A Current Affair, and CBS News’ Street Stories with Ed Bradley. Contact the author.


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Chase Bank. 2 N LaSalle, Chicago, IL

Chase Bank. 2 N LaSalle, Chicago, IL
Chase Bank. 2 N LaSalle, Chicago, IL
Click Image Above to Enlarge

Date: 2014-09-11
Location: Chase Bank
Address: 2 N LaSalle
City: Chicago
State: IL
Hair: Grey
Eyes: Unknown
Height: 5’ 9"   to  5’ 11"
Description: Suspect in custody.

Male/Black; Approximately 70-75 years of age and 5'9" to 5'11"; Wearing a tan jacket. 3:13 PM

Narrative: Non-Takeover Robbery
Contact: FBI Chicago - (312) 421-6700

« Previous Suspect        |       Next Suspect »

The content on this site has been vetted and published by law enforcement . The photograph(s) have been provided by the Banks using best efforts and technology to properly identify the photo associated with the event in question. However, & affiliates make no representation that the photograph is, beyond any doubt, a depiction of the person making the transaction in question. and affiliates assume no responsibility for, or liability to, any person for the use of accuracy of this photograph. and affiliates offers no guaranties to results or payment of offered rewards on any suspects or photos shown on the site.


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Love Everyone As Much As Everyone Else In The Relationship

Getting Started with Polyamorous Dating

Many people want to experiment with polyamorous dating, but they aren’t sure how to go about it. A story about Polyamorous dating from CNN. It’s easy to get caught up in listening to how other people carry out their own polyamorous relationships, but the best thing for someone who is first starting out is to find what works best for them. It’s important not to assume that what works for some people will also work for you. Polymorous dating can be complex and confusing, but it can be perfect for the right people. If you’ve been considering getting involved in a polyamorous relationship, there are a few things that you should keep in mind to ensure that you have the […]

Don't Kiss And Tell

How to Date More Than One Person

Now it seems like as soon as you go out on one date with a person you’re suddenly boyfriend and girlfriend. Everyone makes a fuss about it and it has to become official on all of your social media sites. When you should change your relationship status. But that’s not how it’s always been. Back in the day you could date more than one person at a time and no one thought anything of it. While you did try to stay semi-serious about each one, you didn’t throw yourself into monogamy because of it. Luckily, no one outlawed dating more than one person at the same time. You don’t have to stick the crowds, you can serial date all you […]


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October 23, 2017
Latest News | Poll Questions | Haunted Maine | Bald Eagles | Medicaid Expansion

Bangor Roller Derby Presents: Memorial Mayhem

Community Author:
Post Date:

Fundraiser for The Maine Troop Greeters!!!!!!

Saturday June 1st

Doors open at 5p, first whistle at 6p
Skehan Recreation Center (Former Hampden Academy), 1 Main Rd. North, Hampden, Maine

Come see BRD split in two teams and battle for victory!

Adults $7 presale, $10 at the door

Kids 12-5 yrs $5, under 5yrs is free.

$2 from every ticket sale will be donated to The Maine Troop Greeters

Go to http://www.themainetroopgreeters.com/ to learn more about these amazing men and women!

Then join us for our after party at Tantrum Night Club 193 Broad St, Bangor https://www.facebook.com/tantrumnightclub

Contact Dawn Reese at 745-6547 with any questions.


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October 23, 2017
Bangor Daily News Latest News | Poll Questions | Haunted Maine | Bald Eagles | Medicaid Expansion

Van Buren Baseball 12 at Fort Kent 22

By Coach Hartt, Special to the BDN

At Fort Kent, Tom Morin led the Warriors with a triple, double and two RBIs.
Brandon Hartt and Abe Desjardins each had two RBI doubles for Fort Kent, and Charlie Nadeau pitched three scoreless innings, striking out seven, to close the game.
Van Buren’s Marc Lajoie had a single and two RBIs, while Lance LaBreck added a single and an RBI.
Van Buren 501 600 — 12
Fort Kent 250 (11)04 — 22

Have feedback? Want to know more? Send us ideas for follow-up stories.

comments for this post are closed

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Kadooment Barbados

The only part of Kadooment that I photograph is the street party.  I usually go along with The Blue Box Cart.

The security is very strict so I join the band.

If you decide to photograph kadooment, it is best to check the rout before and choose your spot long before.  Arrive early because you may have to park far away.  If you try to mingle with the participants you may be asked to leave by the security.

If you become part of a band, you are free to take all of the pictures that you want but you will miss out  on the other bands.  You will get fantastic pictures whether you go with the band or stand at the side.

Take rain protection for your camera (just in case) and if you jump with the band protect it from the showers that cool the participants along the way.

As you look through my pictures, you will get some ideas.  Have fun and enjoy my photos.


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30 November 2008

screen printing (and miscellany)

screenprinting was once called silkscreening, but nowadays it is often a synthetic rather than silk used on the screens. the basic concept is that you create a stencil, but it should be more durable than if you made a stencil from paper or cardboard and is used for multiple copies or printing on fabrics. and with access to technology, it should be a simple process. i know i know--access sometimes is hand in hand with privilege, but please remember who i am.
screen printing can be used for all sorts of projects for which you may need to make multiple copies: fliers, cards, posters or anything your imagination lets you do. plus, it can be a relatively cheap way to have color printing and once you are a bit used to it, you will know how to produce dandy fx onto your project.
here, i will be doing the cover to a tiny book.

your screen...screen frames can be made from wood, picture frames, etc. i'm sure you are inventive enough if you are going to do it yourself. for the screen part silk will work; there is also mesh that gets sold. or aquired. the higher the mesh count, the finer the holes to pass the ink through. a standard mesh count is around 110-120 for screenprinting. or, you can buy a screen where the material is already attached to a frame.

i was a bad doobie and didn't clean my screen. ideally, i would have screens with images fixed upon them or i would clean them right away. i remembered i didn't even use this screen last time as it's in bad condition from early use. so i cleaned it and opted not to use it. i chose an extra screen that is currently available for my use.

i put masking tape on both sides of the screen. it makes for easier clean-up.
next, i put some photo emulsion into a scoop designed to spread it across a flat area and cover the screen with a thin smooth layer of emulsion.

the emulsion is light sensitive, so don't leave the bottle sitting around with the cap off and put the screen in a dark place to dry.
since this takes time, i use the time in between trying to accomplish other tasks for this book.
i will do the foolish task of printing on black. so i take my cardstock(i put a couple extra in to allow for mess-ups) to the industrial paper cutter and with one fell swoop my stack is done. this paper cutter has a blade that drops down when two buttons are simultaneously pressed (hey, just like working in a factory!) and the other scraps of paper buffer the bottom so all my sheets will have a clean cut(that's just how i have learned to work with this cutter). i would otherwise use a smaller paper cutter, scissors, or most likely, a knife & ruler.

now, back in the day, i did things to size for a photocopier. nowadays i can have multiple pages on a file on my little memory stick for the computer.

in this production lab, i happen to have access to a copier machine. otherwise, you can take your thumbdrive to a printer. i imagine this could be a headache as i thought my file was correct, but test prints showed something was off just a little with computer settings, and i'd have to find the discrepancies in some step of creating the file. so, i fix whatever settings i need to and start printing!

i then take that stack to the paper cutter of the future...

now my screen has had time to dry and i prepare my transparencies. if i was a little more anal about this, i'd have it on file so if i ever lost it, i could print out a new transparency. in defense, thumbdrives can go missing too. basically i took my bottle of black and inked right on the transparency. tracing vellum can also do the trick, but i like the clear sheet because if i don't like a line, i can wipe it away with a tissue and spit. since the images are small, they can all fit on this one screen. i also put some tape along the edges and in corners that is sticky-side up so the transparencies will stay in place. this would probably be more crucial with more complex images. it also lends to making sure the images are that much closer to the screen.

(the tracing paper, you can use this instead)

(tape in the corner)

think of this next step as a sort of picture developing. there is a layer of the photo emulsion on the screen. any areas that are "blacked out" will block light exposure in that area. a light table is great for this, but if you don't have one in your living room, you can build one. i think you'll need a non-standard lightbulb, which could ordered on this here interweb(and other materials, if you cannot find them locally).
exposure times can take some getting used to. over- or under-exposing your screen by just a couple minutes can make a difference. the time for the table i'd been using had been around 18 minutes, but now there's this sign:

so i set the screen on the table, cover the other side with black paper (so the light doesn't reflect around to where i do not want light exposure) and set weight upon it all. i also set a timer and then start the exposure.

in the meantime i run up to get some newsprint for my cheap liner paper(i do enjoy a bit of fanciness) and cut that to size while waiting.

when the exposure is over, wash out the unexposed places in the screen. it should come out clearly, only the mesh should be in those areas you wish to print through. if there are fine lines you can check it by holding your screen in front of a light to see if the light comes through clearly.
a basin sink or hose comes in handy. here there is one of the sprayers used by dishwashers in restaurants. i've covered up the other portion of the screen so i can just print some of the images.

next comes registration. it is good if you've got a beater table that you can affix hardware to, or a flat board. for years i'd keep random hinges i'd come across in order to build up a cache of supplies for attaching frames to boards.
anyway, here there are some nifty screw clamp hinges attached to the table top. put the screen in your hinges and see where the image falls and figure out where on the paper it will be printed.
some folks like to create tabs to slip their sheets into. i've never found it to be accurate enough. so i merely line tape where i want my edges and that is usually precise enough for me. do what works for you. the first round of registration has more wiggle room than subsequent rounds, which need a bit more tweaking around the alignment.

it's good to do a test copies. plain/scrap paper is cheaper than the cardstock. so put some ink on the screen

and spread a layer of it over the image area with a squeegee. be careful not to apply much pressure here. this is just to cover the area, not to push the ink through.

now pull the swkeejee over the area, with pressure, so the ink goes through the open areas. look at your print!

and honestly, the screen did not come out as good as i would like. so i take some photo emulsion remover and clean off the screen.

i will have to start over, but next time i will have the other parts of the book ready already and will get to do other things during the wait times.
hopefully this is helpful if you have some sort of interest in print process. if you have questions, ask! i may have missed the inclusion of something.
i am also not the #1 expert on all things screen printing, but i want the information to be accessible, especially the visual of it. i've seen silkscreening steps in zines, but mostly in print with a couple diagrams, which can be overwhelming, depending upon how one processes information.
if i am able to have this camera again, i will show some more when i really do my printing.
stay tuned!

27 November 2008

new button

well, this isn't the skillshare posting yet. i woke up to a message asking if i had a paypal(apart from others asking), so that is why that has been added...perhaps temporarily. it is at the bottom of the left column.
there will be a products/buy button added when i have comics again. thank you.

26 November 2008

thank you!

i'm in school at the moment. after the semester started, a distasteful situation came up that i needed funds, pronto. and the whole thing sucked up a very large portion of two months' time, which i could have otherwise spent on drawing for my thesis or being nicer.
i just wanted to thank everyone who helped me with my fundraising, and all those who contacted me wishing that everything works out and that they were not able to send anything. but words do count for something big in my book. thank you, loves.
speaking of school, i need to have some sort of semblance of a thesis synopsis on monday. i'm a little fretful over this and what i will be able to include as above i had mentioned much time and energy had been put elsewhere.
i have other plans for this turkey weekend than preparing my thesis presentation, though! hopefully my next post will be a skill share. i have borrowed a camera from the school and will go over steps for screenprinting. i don't really ever take digital pictures, so this whole thing will be another learning experience, like this blog. see? i learn and hopefully you might too. my aquarian self thinks knowledge should be free and flowing for all.
also, i've run out of my comics on top of losing my thumbdrive, so there has been a process to slowly getting to print. this one that i am looking to do will be the pocket porn issue one that has the story in which i collaborated with writer pilou, "i like feet." the cover design is very simple and i feel like it will be a decent example for the skill share.

21 November 2008

so there are crazy coincidences. i have been hesitant to post what i've recently been drawing as it is intended as a (hopefully surprise) gift to an estranged friend. but i've reached a certain spot again in my being. it's since hearing about kerry. that evening i spoke with this friend, who once was lovers with kerry. i wanted to make sure they knew. most of you know i don't like using the phone. and the conversation i had with my old friend was comforting in the timeless connection kind of way, and intense on a few levels--her reaction to it all and the fact we haven't had much communication. and i told them to call me whenever, hoping it would be understood that not only would i understand the feelings and reactions of people involved (some of you know i had a lover with cancer a couple years ago but also that's around the time when those two friends were together, so it has stirred a little extra up in me as well) but that yeah, i am their friend and am open to speaking again. i am sorry if it is confusing if i am being ambiguous abut the identity of my friend. that's just how it has to be for me.
anyway, i thought it was funny that i thought this comic i am drawing would be the reaching out, but the universe has it's own way of working things out. so, i will scan something current soon, now that i feel like i don't need to be completely secretive about it.
here is a scribble i did one day for a warm-up, which i eventually thought was the best comic i've done in months! it probably won't make much sense to most people and is called for a love like brothers. love ya, buddy.

oh yeah...i quit smoking since then too! i feel a ghost of a lost as i didn't realize at the time that my last cigarette would be my last, and it feel like i should have been more celebratory around it, but oh well. the recent news has shaken me around certain aspects of life and it was time i quit being so self-abusive with the smoking. it did serve it's purpose for a while though.

18 November 2008

okay, this will lend some insight into me. this page is an excerpt out of a comic i drew six or seven years ago, when i was still quite ignorant that there is a whole world of folks making comics out there. that is, comics that are are not readily accessible if you do not live in a big town or have access to a computer or know where to look. and looking back, it amazes me that even a year and a half ago when i would try to search for comics on a computer, i still wouldn't find much.
anyway, the insight. admittedly, the reference from this page is to a richard brautigan book. i read much of his writing when i was younger and it certainly had an effect on me. even the very words on that page point toward why i have not had much of an internet presence.
i am also seeing how the image turns out, resolution-wise, so i will have a better idea of what to do with future images.

please help!

originally came down to maybe post some comics samplings, but something more important has come up:
this message is from Rainbow of Pagoda. Kerry and her family are my friends. i am a bit crushed by the news. i will be sending something, and if you are at all able to do so as well, please do too. if you would like a mailing address for a donation, email me at kubbybear at gmail dot com.

a jacksonville lesbian family needs to be in our healing circle
linda their mom, and daughters kerry and stacy, were frequent
visitors at pagoda, and festivals,
and the girls grew up to become lesbians. now kerry has cancer and
is out of the hospital,
stacy has arrived to help, and linda is also caring for her
alzheimers mom. granny.
this family is broke.
in st augustine, a fund raiser at kozmic blues cafe, will be held nov
30 starting at 2pm. shefay will play at 4:30, and they are not sure
of the rest of the line up. maybe kareoke.
please show up OR SEND A CHECK, or item to be donated.

linda jackson was with pat cobb, who produced the festival for years.
a lot of you met these
sweet daughters at potlucks.
we will continue to think about how to fund raise, and i hope you
will send your ideas to me or mama raga. or dorothy campbell. or
cheryl at c o e. or me.
THANKS FOR ANY ENERGY, especially your mental focus. it will be felt.

17 November 2008

exciting non-comics news!

i forgot the most exciting news of all!
i've already been accepted for crew this summer!!!
Set-Up/Srike, Flex
love and see you in july,
Kubbz Strike

trying this thing out

hi, it's kubby. i've started a blog, against my better notions.
in fact, in the middle of my first post, i froze the computer for about ten minutes and just had to start over. see? this computer thing is bad news bears.
anyway, here at barekublishing i will try to update what i am working on comics-wise. of course, i cannot limit myself to the narrowness of only posting on comics (i know, i know--any topic can become comics-related), so there will probably be tidbits here that interest or amuse me.
first of all being this: http://www.oculture.com/
open culture, your guide to smart media. amongst other things, i listened to a few podcasts on virology while drawing this weekend. i think it's one of the only podcasts dealing specifically with viruses, and the site is This Week In Virology: http://www.twiv.tv/
one exciting thing i heard was there was a guy with lukemia who also had HIV. he got a bone marrow transplant (for the lukemia) from someone who had a naturally occurring mutation (CCR5) which somehow blocks viruses from entering cells. so after his transplant with the white blood cells with the mutation , he is now apparently HIV-free. ... ! ... as this is new stuff there isn't a solid confirmation about it nor has it been submitted for publication yet. but this is exciting! if that mutation can be harnessed...
but back to this blog: hopefully there will be a facelift of sorts once i dig around how to manage this blog thing. blogspot has you choose a template, which are fine but kinda boring, especially considering the numerous blogs that get made in the same color/pattern scheme.
images coming soon!

e-mail me:

kubbybear at gmail

check out:

kubb cadets!

where to find some of my minis:

Domy Books
913 E Cesar Chavez
Austin, TX 78702
(512) 476 3669


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Sunday, 11 April 2010

Early to rise late to bed

We paid a flying visit to Nottingham yesterday to see various family after the morning feed run and lamb check - and no there was nothing!

I was desperate to see my new nephew, Archie. He is gorgeous and so content, I had a lovely cuddle. I haven't downloaded the photo's yet so I can't show you him.

Our friends Chris and Denise were very kindly doing the evening feed run and Alan (farmer friend) was on lamb watch. I thought Pepper was bound to produce whilst we weren't here but she didn't, and still hasn't. Alan did agree with me today though he's not sure how she is hanging on to them!!

Today we have been on the go all day. There were Lambivac injections to do this morning for the pregnant girls, all were very well behaved although Gabby had a bit more of a panic than usual, obviously her hormones.

Then we moved the girls to one of the fields behind the house ready for birthing to commence next month. I like to have them as close as possible and they certainly enjoyed the fresh grass. Not a strand of hay has been consumed today!

Despite Alice being due first on paper I think Molly will be first, she is already beginning to show signs of teat development. Willow is also waddling nicely so she might beat Alice to be second, but time will tell. Hopefully I'll have all my lambs before the alpaca cria arrive.

Once the girls had moved we had to move all the feed troughs, hurdles and hay mangers which Paul did whilst I was on water trough cleaning duties.

The boys are rather excited by the girls arrival, they are a couple of fields apart be they have a great view of each other. This won't be for long though as they boys are heading to the stud strips down the road one day this week.

Paul is on data transfer duties now, all the information off the old computer that I need on this new one. Hopefully it wont take all night but I'm not holding my breath. If I'm not back tomorrow you know it's still transferring.

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