In celebration (or is that denial...) of the month of my birthday, I have decided to post one image a day that I have taken myself on that specific day. Starting today. Lets see if I can keep this up or if taking one photo a day will get the better of me.
Instead of posting the images on here and wasting valuable cyberspace, I have supplied a link to my Facebook album containing the images.
You're welcome.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=170710&id=701397190&l=42a18d06ee
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Can you feel my presents?
The calendar on my computer tells me its February but for me, its Christmas. Less than 24 hours ago, I pressed the "confirm transaction" button in my browser and made an electronic purchase online. This in turn, I knew would summon Santa Clause himself to my doorstep, to deliver the present that I had been waiting so long for. Had I been a good boy? This Santa did not care. As long as the cash was in his bank account, he would deliver the goods so to speak.
Looking around the house, I realised that we did not possess a chimney. Not a problem. The modern day Santa didnt require one. His methods were a lot more contemporary and blatant. He preferred the front door. Waiting for his arrival, I anxiously paced the length of our lounge. It was now past midday and there was no sign of him. I wondered if perhaps he had lost his way. I hoped that Santa had packed his GPS. To kill some time, I flopped down onto the sofa to watch some TV. Skipping past the infomercials, I managed to find the only thing worth a second glance. A 30 minute slot comprising of new release movie reviews. Although I didn't really trust these things. One man's Spielberg is ultimately another man's poison.
Then it happened. The doorbell rang. I was there in a flash. I greeted Santa whose real name was on his name-badge. Dave. Instead of a velvety red top and matching leggings, he wore the standard khaki shorts and collared shirt. The reindeer driven sleigh in the background had been replaced by a Mercedes powered truck, containing countless other goodies, unclaimed as yet by their eager recipients. As he handed the package over, I almost felt guilty for not offering him any milk and cookies. But at just over $1400 that I had forked out for my gift, I figured he could find his own damn sustenance. I signed my name on his electronic hand-held device as proof of receipt although I had no idea how my digital signature (which now resembled more of an abstract spiders web than it did my surname) would hold up in a court of law should my purchase ever be queried.
Back inside, I hovered over the package, wrapped in brown paper with an invoice casually plastered onto the side. Moments later it was split wide open, morsels of polystyrene drifting in the air and decorating the table top. There it was in all its glory. My latest baby. A brand new Canon EOS 50D digital camera. I took a few moments to admire it. Unspoilt and untouched as of yet by human hands. Perfect in every aspect. Gingerly, I prised my fingers around its frame and gently raised it from its crib. Nestling it in my hands, I felt its weight, rotated it and viewed it from every angle. The back, sides, bottom. Unmarked and unblemished. After the admiration started to fade ever so slightly, I realised that baby was naked and it was my fatherly duty to correct that. Firstly, I threaded the ends of the neck strap through the relevant sections on the chassis, adjusting and tightening accordingly. I then swiftly connected a lens to the face, twisting it until I heard its familiar click. Next, I slid the flash unit into the hot-shoe on top and lastly, a memory card to complete the process. With all its added accessories, my child was now a lot heavier. They always grow up so quickly don't they...
One final component was all that was required. Baby was now dressed, all it needed was to be fed. The single, re-chargeable battery was larger than what I was used to, and it did the job perfectly. Now with food in its belly, he was ready for action. Flicking the power switch into position, an LED on the back panel blinked, signalling his rise from slumber. Spinning around, I searched for my first unsuspecting victim. My wife was on the couch, in the middle of an important call. Perfect. Within an instant I had focused and the muffled gurgle of the shutter's motion signalled that the image had been captured. Immediately reviewing it on the screen, I was amazed at the clarity, the contrast and saturation of colour. I was proud. My child had passed its first test with flying colours. It deserved a reward. Possibly a bigger memory card or maybe an extra few batteries to sustain his hunger. But that would have to wait until next payday. Until then my son...
Looking around the house, I realised that we did not possess a chimney. Not a problem. The modern day Santa didnt require one. His methods were a lot more contemporary and blatant. He preferred the front door. Waiting for his arrival, I anxiously paced the length of our lounge. It was now past midday and there was no sign of him. I wondered if perhaps he had lost his way. I hoped that Santa had packed his GPS. To kill some time, I flopped down onto the sofa to watch some TV. Skipping past the infomercials, I managed to find the only thing worth a second glance. A 30 minute slot comprising of new release movie reviews. Although I didn't really trust these things. One man's Spielberg is ultimately another man's poison.
Then it happened. The doorbell rang. I was there in a flash. I greeted Santa whose real name was on his name-badge. Dave. Instead of a velvety red top and matching leggings, he wore the standard khaki shorts and collared shirt. The reindeer driven sleigh in the background had been replaced by a Mercedes powered truck, containing countless other goodies, unclaimed as yet by their eager recipients. As he handed the package over, I almost felt guilty for not offering him any milk and cookies. But at just over $1400 that I had forked out for my gift, I figured he could find his own damn sustenance. I signed my name on his electronic hand-held device as proof of receipt although I had no idea how my digital signature (which now resembled more of an abstract spiders web than it did my surname) would hold up in a court of law should my purchase ever be queried.
Back inside, I hovered over the package, wrapped in brown paper with an invoice casually plastered onto the side. Moments later it was split wide open, morsels of polystyrene drifting in the air and decorating the table top. There it was in all its glory. My latest baby. A brand new Canon EOS 50D digital camera. I took a few moments to admire it. Unspoilt and untouched as of yet by human hands. Perfect in every aspect. Gingerly, I prised my fingers around its frame and gently raised it from its crib. Nestling it in my hands, I felt its weight, rotated it and viewed it from every angle. The back, sides, bottom. Unmarked and unblemished. After the admiration started to fade ever so slightly, I realised that baby was naked and it was my fatherly duty to correct that. Firstly, I threaded the ends of the neck strap through the relevant sections on the chassis, adjusting and tightening accordingly. I then swiftly connected a lens to the face, twisting it until I heard its familiar click. Next, I slid the flash unit into the hot-shoe on top and lastly, a memory card to complete the process. With all its added accessories, my child was now a lot heavier. They always grow up so quickly don't they...
One final component was all that was required. Baby was now dressed, all it needed was to be fed. The single, re-chargeable battery was larger than what I was used to, and it did the job perfectly. Now with food in its belly, he was ready for action. Flicking the power switch into position, an LED on the back panel blinked, signalling his rise from slumber. Spinning around, I searched for my first unsuspecting victim. My wife was on the couch, in the middle of an important call. Perfect. Within an instant I had focused and the muffled gurgle of the shutter's motion signalled that the image had been captured. Immediately reviewing it on the screen, I was amazed at the clarity, the contrast and saturation of colour. I was proud. My child had passed its first test with flying colours. It deserved a reward. Possibly a bigger memory card or maybe an extra few batteries to sustain his hunger. But that would have to wait until next payday. Until then my son...
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Rain, rain, go away.
The weather in our state of Queensland I am told is about as predictable as a bi-polar Bengal tiger. Up to now the reports have been pretty accurate for each day (ie. rain) but today, they got it wrong. We normally leave our big expeditions for the weekend, and we were glad to see that today was supposed to be the only sunny day of this week. But unfortunately, the skies have opened and sporadic bouts of rain have arrived to dampen not only our spirits, but our clothing too.
The Sunshine Coast up north was our destination this time. With a name like that, rain should surely be a rare commodity right? Wishful thinking. It seemed to follow us everywhere. But a little precipitation was not going to stop us. First stop was a 700 meter trek up a hill (which would not look out of place, were it in the Amazon jungle) to a lookout spot. After venturing approximately 20 meters and being attacked by hoards of killer mosquitoes, we made a hasty retreat back to the car and decided to try the next spot - yet another lookout gazing upon the legendary Glass House Mountains. Looking at it from the summit reminded me of a scene from Jurassic Park and I would not have been surprised to see herds of velociraptors, bounding about in the forests below. Didn't manage to see any glass houses though, so we moved on.
It was now almost 1pm and my system warned me that food levels were dangerously low. The closest provider of lunch happened to be a place called Aussie World... which kinda baffled me. Surely ANY place in Australia could be granted this title couldn't it? It was here that I stumbled upon one of the biggest and coolest looking pubs I have ever come across. One beer and steak sandwich later and we were ready to continue. After visiting a curios shop (we are such tourists) we hit the road again. More rain. This wasn't good. Every dirt road on our route worth following or exploring was becoming waterlogged. We came, we saw, we bought souvenirs. It was time to call it a day.
The trip back home was lengthy and one by one (excepting the driver fortunately) each of the occupants of our car started falling asleep. There is something strangely hypnotic about long drives in that vehicle that affects us more than washing down a dozen sleeping pills with a litre of warm milk. We needed caffeine. Stopping at a fuel station, I entered, paid the guy behind the counter for three cappuccinos and expected him to serve me. This I soon learnt was a self service coffee shop. Pay in the front, make your own coffee at the machine in the back. After making two successful coffees, the milk ran out. I could have asked them to refill the machine but that would have taken too long. I needed coffee and I needed it now. Pressing the appropriate button once more, I topped the paper cup up with a few more doses of high level caffeine and no milk. I liked my coffee strong anyways. After dumping two sachets of sugar into the dark liquid to take the edge off, I left the store. A few sips later and the entire car was buzzing. Not one eye was shut. Conversation was flowing quickly and constantly. Our liquid energy injections were working just fine. Three hours down the line and I'm unsure if my caffeine rush has worn off yet. I'm guessing probably not. After all, it only took me 11 and a half seconds to type this entire article...
Dinosaurs: Scarce
The Sunshine Coast up north was our destination this time. With a name like that, rain should surely be a rare commodity right? Wishful thinking. It seemed to follow us everywhere. But a little precipitation was not going to stop us. First stop was a 700 meter trek up a hill (which would not look out of place, were it in the Amazon jungle) to a lookout spot. After venturing approximately 20 meters and being attacked by hoards of killer mosquitoes, we made a hasty retreat back to the car and decided to try the next spot - yet another lookout gazing upon the legendary Glass House Mountains. Looking at it from the summit reminded me of a scene from Jurassic Park and I would not have been surprised to see herds of velociraptors, bounding about in the forests below. Didn't manage to see any glass houses though, so we moved on.
It was now almost 1pm and my system warned me that food levels were dangerously low. The closest provider of lunch happened to be a place called Aussie World... which kinda baffled me. Surely ANY place in Australia could be granted this title couldn't it? It was here that I stumbled upon one of the biggest and coolest looking pubs I have ever come across. One beer and steak sandwich later and we were ready to continue. After visiting a curios shop (we are such tourists) we hit the road again. More rain. This wasn't good. Every dirt road on our route worth following or exploring was becoming waterlogged. We came, we saw, we bought souvenirs. It was time to call it a day.
The trip back home was lengthy and one by one (excepting the driver fortunately) each of the occupants of our car started falling asleep. There is something strangely hypnotic about long drives in that vehicle that affects us more than washing down a dozen sleeping pills with a litre of warm milk. We needed caffeine. Stopping at a fuel station, I entered, paid the guy behind the counter for three cappuccinos and expected him to serve me. This I soon learnt was a self service coffee shop. Pay in the front, make your own coffee at the machine in the back. After making two successful coffees, the milk ran out. I could have asked them to refill the machine but that would have taken too long. I needed coffee and I needed it now. Pressing the appropriate button once more, I topped the paper cup up with a few more doses of high level caffeine and no milk. I liked my coffee strong anyways. After dumping two sachets of sugar into the dark liquid to take the edge off, I left the store. A few sips later and the entire car was buzzing. Not one eye was shut. Conversation was flowing quickly and constantly. Our liquid energy injections were working just fine. Three hours down the line and I'm unsure if my caffeine rush has worn off yet. I'm guessing probably not. After all, it only took me 11 and a half seconds to type this entire article...
Dinosaurs: Scarce
Pubs: Unpronouncable
Australia: Fast and fun. Apparently.
Aussie beer: Vital
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