Thanks to Cap’n Stephel for posting this on his Vox earlier. It would have been ages before I discovered Simon’s latest had been released!
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It's time for a new phone. My little Alltel/Verizon LG AX275 cell phone has been acting up. Lately the LG will sit quietly at home in its overnight resting spot with everything seeming just fine. Then it emits a strange tone, another, finally shutting down because its formerly well-charged battery is extremely low! If I sneak up on it while it is sleeping and press the button that lights it's front panel, the time may be way off (several hours ahead), the signal low, and the battery charge on its way down. Same thing happened this morning when I was out on a walk, phone in pocket. Swapping out and charging batteries has no corrective effect. (It's probably an internal antenna connection problem or maybe intermittent signal for the local tower resulting in the phone endlessly seeking a signal.) So far the phone has made it through my commute and the day at the office just fine though checking, just now, I see the battery is down as is signal strength. The misbehavior began over the weekend and so I began shopping for new phones and a new provider.
I settled on TracFone and their Motorola TFW376-4 flip-style phone, ordered it online, and paid for overnight FedEx delivery. That was Monday. TracFone said they would ship on Tuesday so, naturally enough, I expected to receive the new hardware today. Uh-uh! Checking order status I found they shipped today and FedEx promises to have it in my hot little hands by 3:00 PM tomorrow. To TracFone: that's not the right way to treat a new customer; FedEx overnight delivery cost nearly as much as the phone!
So as a consumer more in a hurry than a wise shopper, I now had time to second-guess my snap decision. Oh boy! The Motorola gets decidedly mixed reviews, everything from "great phone" and "good build" to "crappy camera" and "it literally falls apart." Add to that, I consciously ordered a GSM network phone instead of the more widely-usable (in the U.S.) CDMA standard. Now I'm hoping I'll still get coverage in the places I travel. {sigh} Well, I guess the good thing is the new phone only cost me (sans shipping) about $20 so if it doesn't work I can pick up a CDMA phone for a song (or invest a bit more) and stick with TracFone — which my sister tells me is a very good provider.
By this time tomorrow night, I ought to have some idea of how things will be with my new communication tool. I'm hoping I don't have to make a quick trip to Target to replace it within the first week!
The night before last, the humidity of the past week finally blew away. The air is clear and light again and, when the clouds part, we can see lovely, deep blue sky in place of a hazy mess. This morning that deep blue sky played host to a nice display of whispy cirrus clouds. Taking an opportunity to pull into a park on during my commute, I spent a few minutes enjoying and photographing the sky with cirrus for decoration.
Too hot to do much outdoors but too nice a day to stay in, we made an early visit to the Cleveland Museum of Art. It was not a rushed visit and, with that early morning arrival, we received easy parking and quiet surroundings; often it was just us and the museum floor staff. The grand renovation is in full force so confusing detours still rule. While much of the CMA's permanent collection is off-exhibit (in storage) there is still much to be seen. It was a lovely spending the morning visiting old "friends," missing some others, and discovering new works. It was somehow reassuring to see some of the galleries of the 1916 portion of the building. For now, and unless I contact a curator with my avatar (profile) photo, the exact identity of the Asian sculpture will remain unknown to me… at least until the excellent Southeast Asian collection is once again put on exhibit. I viewed a local photographer's work in another gallery. He received a commission from a big local development foundation. Seeing those works hanging in a major museum, images which, to my eye, lacked composition, delivered no feeling, and were printed irritatingly flat (contrast-wise). Simply put, they were snapshots. Then my mind shot back to an earlier photographic exhibit I'd seen at the museum… a fellow got a grant from some organization and shot photos of fields of weeds. No composition. No message. No art (to my eye). Just overgrown fields, and possibly only a single field, picture after picture. High concept justified with many words explaining how it's art. Made me very jealous, even angry that my own work wasn't hanging there. Also disappointed in myself for not putting myself out there; how can it be in a gallery if one's art isn't put out for consideration? Much the way I felt today. I've been taking pretty pictures lately but I used to make art. I've got to get back to that place. Maybe I need an agent. Fortunately there were far more beautiful and inspired works of art to be seen and enjoyed, which we did. After the museum, a delicious lunch at the deli in Mustard Seed Market, Solon, then on to Hudson for a visit to a couple of favorite shops. Relaxed. Then home. A pleasant, aimless day.
A curious bull and curious photographer come nose-to-lens
at Sauder Village, Archbold, Ohio, on a recent visit there.
at Sauder Village, Archbold, Ohio, on a recent visit there.
I was running a bit ahead of schedule on my way to work this morning. I stopped by the David Fortier River Park, in Olmsted Falls, to take in some quiet beauty. It was a good morning.
Fridays off with not much to do are a good thing. I did not plan to go to Hinckley Lake this morning but the day began too pleasantly to spend much time indoors. I tossed the camera bag in the trunk and headed out. I stopped along the way to watch and photograph turkey vultures, perched on bare tree branches, warming themselves in the early rays of the sun. At the lake, I set off to see what birds {herons} I might see. Checking their favorite haunts from the lakeside trail, I was richly rewarded. In one of those favorite spots, I crept towards the water and peered around the lakeside vegitation. There, a literal stone's throw away, was a Great Blue Heron standing still as a statue. We regarded each other cautiously and I squeezed off a few shutter clicks. The bird was nervous. I was being attacked by mosquitoes. Not a good combination for a photo session. Off flew the great bird but not before I made my catch of the day! There were other beautiful scenes to be enjoyed and recorded as I hiked around the lake. None, however, matched the close encounter with one truly great bird. It was a surprising morning.
Driving to Hiram today I passed a field dotted with huge rolls of hay that had been cut and bound. It looked like someone's avant-garde art installation. I turned around and parked the car in a nearby lane, and extracted my camera to take a few shots. As I strolled along the road shooting photos, neighbors shouted questions like, "haven't you ever seen hay before?" Well, I explained, yes I had but I haven't often seen it like that! I'm sure they thought I was crazy-odd but I don't care.
We woke up late and to a beautiful day. The first thing She suggested was a visit to the East Harbor State Park on the Marblehead Peninsula in Lake Erie. We'd only recently heard about the park and were interested in checking it out. Well, long story short, it seems to be a fine and popular beach but the mapped nature trails were not well signed and extremely difficult to find. We spent little time there and decided to move along to the little town of Marblehead. Marblehead (map) is really kind of a stepping off port for those who wish to fish, enjoy the party island of Put-In-Bay, or relax in the quieter environment of Kelly's Island. The town does offer its own assortment of gift shops, antique stores, and eating places. Lunch for us, however, was a disaster.
We found a pizzeria that offered a pleasant atmosphere and had a "Veggie Delight" pie on its menu. After what seemed a very long wait –we arrived with the rest of the lunch crowd– our pizza arrived. I took one bite and the first impression was good. Then a particular texture and flavor filled my mouth and triggered an old memory… pepperoni! Our "veggie" pizza was really a pepperoni pizza with some veg toppings scattered over the meat! We were hungry but, as vegetarians, to us the pie was inedible. We refused the offered discount explaining it was a meat pie served to herbivores, and were then told we owed nothing. Nice waitress, dumb kitchen.
Eventually we stopped in at the small local grocery. It's a convenience for locals and an important source of provisions for visitors. We discovered a tub of prepared hummus, some whole wheat flat bread, and a vast array of very cold drinks. We gathered our purchases up and had a picnic in a public park which, as it happens, was right behind the pizzeria. Delightful and delicious. Following lunch we headed to the Marblehead Lighthouse.
The Marblehead lighthouse used to be a lonely monument to bygone days of maritime technology — quietly standing on its rock foundations, posing for pictures made by occasional visitors. In 1998, however, the light and adjoining property became a state park. We were astonished today at the number of people enjoying the little park, the ca. 1821 lighthouse, and the Lake Erie surf splashing over the light's rocky foundations. The scenery, the beauty of the day, and the lake breeze made the day. We returned home happy.
Sometimes it takes a lighthouse to help you find your way.
We were minding our own business, heading out on a pleasant little Saturday morning trip to a shopping area, more as an outing than an expedition. Stopped for a red light at an intersection, all was was quiet when suddenly –BOOM– a heavy blow from behind rocked the Insight! A second later we realized we'd been hit by a large black car. I shut off the engine, carefully got out of the Honda –the guy who hit us was already out of his– and we examined the results. (He said he "thinks" his foot slipped off the brake at the stop.) Whew! Nobody hurt. No broken glass. No smashed plastic lenses. No folded or torn bumpers.
The Insight, however, now wears as part of its rear bumper the distinct impressions of the other guy's license plate bolt heads (you can count the sides) and license plate frame. Of course, the other guy showed no signs of impact on the front end of his car. Probably nothing to be done but application of a bit of touch-up paint and. Too little damage for a call to the police or a call to the insurance company. So we were given the guy's license info, shook hands, and parted company. I think I know what I'll do about the bolt impressions –a new bumper sticker will do the trick– but some small scuffs and scratches will be harder to hide. The Insight is only a bit over a year old and was unscathed up to this point. Now it has its first permanent marks and I'll be reminded of the incident almost daily.
Well, crap!
PhotonStopper 