"I feel I'm incredibly fascinating and this blog bears witness to that simple fact. Friends, from far and wide, are often pestered to keep abreast of my life and opinions. I offer my most sincere greetings to random visitors as well."
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- British Columbia, CANADA
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Thursday, May 08, 2008
My Photos Published in France
You don't have to use Flickr, to have seen a few my 4,300 images found there. For example, if you're gay and read French, you can find nine of them in the current issue of PREF mag.
I wondered what that large-format magazine was. It was in the mail today but it had French postage. Then, I remembered the editors had emailed for permission to use some of the Flickr photos about Vancouver. Sure, why not? As well as pictures from the Vancouver Pride Parade, there were some from the area as well. I have to admit almost anything looks good on glossy paper in a magazine!
I gave permission in the past and have also had a few of my photos published in various issues of Travel Sri Lanka. They are always kind enough to send me a copy through the post. I don't care about cash; I make my money in other ways. I'm just appreciative seeing my images published anywhere.
I wondered what that large-format magazine was. It was in the mail today but it had French postage. Then, I remembered the editors had emailed for permission to use some of the Flickr photos about Vancouver. Sure, why not? As well as pictures from the Vancouver Pride Parade, there were some from the area as well. I have to admit almost anything looks good on glossy paper in a magazine!
I gave permission in the past and have also had a few of my photos published in various issues of Travel Sri Lanka. They are always kind enough to send me a copy through the post. I don't care about cash; I make my money in other ways. I'm just appreciative seeing my images published anywhere.
Friday, April 18, 2008
In Our Fair City
Go ahead. Think of something of which you have 4,300. Stumped?
I was out on a walk and decided to take an image of the downtown New Westminster parkade. It's a rather ugly structure that was built in the 1960's to allow parking for downtown shopping. After New Westminster's miracle mile fell into disarray, decades ago, it has solemnly and resolutely kept sunshine off Front Street which it covers. Downtown, after years of neglect, is recovering some of its former glory by attracting new residents in a multitude of towers being built. The parkade still doesn't do much at all. Though it must be said that things which become familiar tend to loose any perceived ugliness. I know the parkade has sort of grown on me.
Here is a slide-show with 37 photos of it. By the way, in answer to my own question at the top of this entry, the photo made my four thousand three hundredth image on Flickr.
I was out on a walk and decided to take an image of the downtown New Westminster parkade. It's a rather ugly structure that was built in the 1960's to allow parking for downtown shopping. After New Westminster's miracle mile fell into disarray, decades ago, it has solemnly and resolutely kept sunshine off Front Street which it covers. Downtown, after years of neglect, is recovering some of its former glory by attracting new residents in a multitude of towers being built. The parkade still doesn't do much at all. Though it must be said that things which become familiar tend to loose any perceived ugliness. I know the parkade has sort of grown on me.
Here is a slide-show with 37 photos of it. By the way, in answer to my own question at the top of this entry, the photo made my four thousand three hundredth image on Flickr.
Labels: Flickr, New Westminster
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Now with Kids of Their Own
Today's picture is not new to the blog. In fact it was first published on November 1, 2005.At the time, I mentioned that I had earnestly started to scan some old photographs for Flickr. The picture to the right was taken during my time in Taif, Saudi Arabia. On an outing one weekend, which occur on Thursday and Friday there, we used to venture around the mountain city. These boys were playing in a rural neighbourhood. In the very conservative parts of the Kingdom, taking photographs of people was frowned upon. Still, these kids were very happy to be the center of attention. This picture was mostly likely taken in 1985, so 23 years later I never again expected to hear about them.
I'm only including a re-posting of the photo because of this very interesting email that I received yesterday:
I was searching for Taif City on the Internet, accidentally arrived to your web site and luckily and I saw the photo of the two kids from Taif, there are my cousins, the kid on the right side of the photo is now a high school teacher and the other on the left of the photo, now he is Saudi Airlines Employee and the area where you have took the photo it is my home point in Taif. I have sent the photo to the two guys, they remember it and they were so happy. The two guys are married and both have kids.
Best Regards,
Abdullatif Al-Fageeh
Labels: Flickr, Internet, Saudi Arabia, sharing
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
One Thousand Days
We tend to make big deals about numbers that end with a lot of zeros, don't we? The photo above marks the one thousandth daily picture. It seemed like a big deal; therefore the reason for self applause. In actuality, it's in no way more special than 998 or 999. It was taken when I was uptown today.
Back on on the first day of July in 2005, decided that as digital photos don't cost anything, I was going to snap one every day. I figured it be a photo journal of sorts of at least one thing I'd seen or done that day. When I vow to do something, I always try to keep my word. I did so I have.
Labels: Daily Picture Parade, Flickr, flora and fauna, New Westminster, Royal City Mall
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Copyright Free
I'm thinking about photos today, as I'll mark a special occasion tomorrow. I'll wait until tomorrow's entry to talk about that.Generally, I love the idea of Flickr. If you are a regular reader here, then you undoubtedly know that already. I am not interested in owning any of the images from my camera. I don't expect to ever take a photo which will make me money. After all, I earn a living by other means. I am pleased to out them all. There's nothing sadder than having a photo languishing in an album in some dark cupboard. Even photos taken on a vacation deserve to run free on the Net.
When part of a Web 2.0 application, others can take my images and provide a new context for them. It happens. We spent around a month in Sri Lanka in both 2004 and 2006. Some of those images have made their way, with blessings into several editions of Travel Sri Lanka. Publishers find it even easier to connect Flickr photos to web applications. For example, today I found this site which has used a few of my images to help describe the history of an ancient Sri Lankan historical site.
Anuradhapura
Labels: Flickr, Sri Lanka 2004
Sunday, March 09, 2008
Digging Out or Mowing?
The morning news is on and it's showing the aftermath of the snow storm back east. Cars were all over the road and people were busy digging out. They've had quite a bad winter, I guess. We had a fair amount of snow this winter but generally it's been quite nice. British Columbians from the Metro-Vancouver area like to brag about our mild winters. Nothing sticks on the ground in the long term. I have no golfing photo to include but I did find an image in My Daily Picture Parade. It was taken on March 10, 2006 the day after snow flurries occurred here exactly two years ago.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Too Much of a Good Thing?
My Flickr membership runs until the end of next year. What a bargain it is! It costs me $5 a month to host this web site which allows 200 megabytes of storage, I think. Flickr costs out to a bit more than $2 per month for unlimited uploading. A single file from my Kodak can be as large as 4 megabytes. We're talking big numbers here.
Now I'm lazy though. So far I've put only ten photos from last week's cruise. In fact, I still have vacation photos from Zürich, Switzerland in the fall that I haven't gotten around to upload.
One really can take pictures of anything nowadays at near zero cost. I can compare this to when I was a kid and taking each photo had an associated price tag even when developing B&W film on the stairway. (When the door was closed it was nearly the darkest place in the house.) I took two photos from the balcony today and one yesterday. They're on Flickr now. I don't know at what point quantity becomes overload.
To see a slide show of pictures taken from the balcony over the years, click on this example picture.
Now I'm lazy though. So far I've put only ten photos from last week's cruise. In fact, I still have vacation photos from Zürich, Switzerland in the fall that I haven't gotten around to upload.
One really can take pictures of anything nowadays at near zero cost. I can compare this to when I was a kid and taking each photo had an associated price tag even when developing B&W film on the stairway. (When the door was closed it was nearly the darkest place in the house.) I took two photos from the balcony today and one yesterday. They're on Flickr now. I don't know at what point quantity becomes overload.
To see a slide show of pictures taken from the balcony over the years, click on this example picture.
Labels: balcony, Flickr, hard disk, New Westminster
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
How Can One Tell?
I thought perhaps I was searching for a a standard, English idiom but it seems there are many ways to complete the following phrase. I simply queried a few search engines and these seem among the winners.
You can tell a lot about a man by ...
Click anywhere on the word list above to visit the Flickr page containing the tag cloud. (Note: Recently these type of pages have been opening slowly on Flickr.)
You can tell a lot about a man by ...
I cannot verify the accuracy of any of them. I'd like to suggest a new one though. I believe you can find a lot about a person by checking his most popular Flickr tags. You're invited to take a look at mine. The page also has a box marked, JUMP TO, where you can type in almost anything to see if I have tagged photos which match it. For example, try LION!his shoes. the company he keeps. the tip he leaves. the way he treats animals. whom he loves. the friends he has. this laugh. the way he walks. the way he treats his mother.
Click anywhere on the word list above to visit the Flickr page containing the tag cloud. (Note: Recently these type of pages have been opening slowly on Flickr.)
Labels: Flickr
Friday, January 25, 2008
50k
I wasn't sure of what to add today as an entry. In the back of my mind I always have a few potential topics. On the back burner, there're some comments about the hospitality industry as I recently had an email message from a former high-school friends who's now owner of several hotels. I could've talked about my perceptions of today's teachers' meeting at BCIT. I really have more to say regarding Toshiba's HD-DVD player and the fact Blue-ray players are three times more expensive. I could have put in an entry about any of these things.
If I had though, I would have missed an important, personal Flickr accomplishment. I noticed this evening that people have viewed my photo collection 50,000 times. That sounds like a a special event to me but my account does have over 4,000 images. Of course, each image has not gleaned an equal number of views. For example, although I think the following photo looks all right, it has not been viewed a single time.
You can help correct that oversight. If you click it now, you can see a larger (1024x755) image from our days in Prague in the Czech Republic last September.
If I had though, I would have missed an important, personal Flickr accomplishment. I noticed this evening that people have viewed my photo collection 50,000 times. That sounds like a a special event to me but my account does have over 4,000 images. Of course, each image has not gleaned an equal number of views. For example, although I think the following photo looks all right, it has not been viewed a single time.
You can help correct that oversight. If you click it now, you can see a larger (1024x755) image from our days in Prague in the Czech Republic last September.
Labels: Eurotrip 2007, Flickr, Prague
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Freeing an Old Photo
It was just a picture taken without much planning over twenty-five years ago. I didn't know the guy in the photo nor was the location anyplace special. I recall thinking it was interesting and once enlarged it to an 8" x 10" wall photo after I left Kuwait. Then, I didn't see it for a few decades. At the end of October 2005, I scanned this particular copy from a piece of aging 3.5" x 5" photo paper.
Interestingly, today it is my third most-viewed Flickr image. So much life has gone on since I pressed that shutter. I seldom think about the two years I taught in Kuwait at this point in my life. Yet, the popularity of this photo prompted me to say a few words about it in my eJournal and images.
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Three Months After the Fact
I don't know why it's taking me so long to get our Eurotrip 2007 photos online. It really doesn't take much actual work to upload files to Flickr, so I can't think of a good reason for my continuing procrastination.
I did post photos from several days in Bratislava in the Slovak Republic. We were there for the nights of September 22nd and 23rd. In the photo, I'm sitting on lawn at the Bojnice Castle.
I did post photos from several days in Bratislava in the Slovak Republic. We were there for the nights of September 22nd and 23rd. In the photo, I'm sitting on lawn at the Bojnice Castle.
Labels: Bratislava, Flickr
Thursday, December 27, 2007
New Westminster in 700 Images
This image was taken from my balcony late yesterday afternoon. It marks the 700th digital image of my city that I've uploaded to Flickr. The collection spans nearly five years and three different cameras. They are arranged from the most recent to the earliest. The main focus is probably on downtown as that's the part of town where I live.
If you click on the photograph above, you will start a slide show of these images. Should that fail to be enough to satisfy your curiosity about New Westminster, you many also check out a special group I created that contains contributions from other local Flickr users. Athough my photos represent a fair number of those, the total now stands at over 1400. They were uploaded by close to 80 unique contributors.
Labels: camera, Flickr, Fraser River, New Westminster
Friday, December 21, 2007
The Troubles of Narcissus
To prevent me from staring at my own reflection all alone, please click my name or the screen image below. I don't want to fall any more deeply in love with myself and end up as a mere flower but it's not easy being drop-dead handsome and so very photogenic!
Image Search Yahoo: dennis hurd
(Beginning at about page 14, lots of images from my blog start appearing in the mix. Also, you may see quite a few of Tim's mis-tagged Flickr images.)
Do I have an Internet presence, or what?
Image Search Yahoo: dennis hurd
(Beginning at about page 14, lots of images from my blog start appearing in the mix. Also, you may see quite a few of Tim's mis-tagged Flickr images.)
Do I have an Internet presence, or what?
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
If It's Not Online ... It Doesn't Exist
As I spoke about photos yesterday, I've decided to stay on the same topic today.
The other evening with friends, we mentioned visiting Central Europe for parts of September and October this year. It'd been so long since we had seen one friend that he'd not been obliged to see any photos of our trip. Then, I remembered that I had never got around to uploading most of Eurotrip 2007 to Flickr. Of course, the Daily Picture Parade photos are there and I had started by getting Munich, Germany and Salzberg, Austria online.
Next on the trip was Budapest, Hungary. I needed to start from that point. In retrospect I'd probably say that Budapest was among the favourite cities of the trip. It seemed so manageable. It also helped that we stayed in a bed and breakfast rather than a hotel. So, we got the comfortable feeling of being in a real home.
This was one of around 35 photos I put online this morning. It is the Parliament House at night from across the Danube River.
The other evening with friends, we mentioned visiting Central Europe for parts of September and October this year. It'd been so long since we had seen one friend that he'd not been obliged to see any photos of our trip. Then, I remembered that I had never got around to uploading most of Eurotrip 2007 to Flickr. Of course, the Daily Picture Parade photos are there and I had started by getting Munich, Germany and Salzberg, Austria online.
Next on the trip was Budapest, Hungary. I needed to start from that point. In retrospect I'd probably say that Budapest was among the favourite cities of the trip. It seemed so manageable. It also helped that we stayed in a bed and breakfast rather than a hotel. So, we got the comfortable feeling of being in a real home.
This was one of around 35 photos I put online this morning. It is the Parliament House at night from across the Danube River.
Labels: Budapest, Eurotrip 2007, Flickr
Monday, December 17, 2007
Nine Hundred Days
For the next five days you'll see a a tiny representation of this picture as the first thing on this page. Photos from the last five days are always represented in My Daily Picture Parade. Guests are invited to click on one to see it in greater detail.
This photo is fairly representative of the type included in this online Flickr set. It is not pretty, nor is it an example of great photography. Those are not really part of the criteria for My Daily Picture Parade.
Since July 1, 2005, I have uploaded an image which characterizes something about each day of my life. That means that today marks the 900th photograph in the collection. It's quite interesting to think that I've held a camera in my hands and pressed the shutter button during each of the last 75 dozen days.
It's a rather personally-rewarding image journal of sorts. Most of the subjects can be quite ordinary although some were taken in various countries. I only wish I had developed this habit much, much earlier than two and a half years ago. Wouldn't it be great if I could go back and re-shoot something daily from the thirty years since graduating from high school.
I love the idea of personal archives, I guess.
This photo is fairly representative of the type included in this online Flickr set. It is not pretty, nor is it an example of great photography. Those are not really part of the criteria for My Daily Picture Parade.
Since July 1, 2005, I have uploaded an image which characterizes something about each day of my life. That means that today marks the 900th photograph in the collection. It's quite interesting to think that I've held a camera in my hands and pressed the shutter button during each of the last 75 dozen days.
It's a rather personally-rewarding image journal of sorts. Most of the subjects can be quite ordinary although some were taken in various countries. I only wish I had developed this habit much, much earlier than two and a half years ago. Wouldn't it be great if I could go back and re-shoot something daily from the thirty years since graduating from high school.
I love the idea of personal archives, I guess.
Labels: camera, Daily Picture Parade, Flickr, opinions
Thursday, December 06, 2007
A Natural Treadmill
When a nice winter day comes along in Metro-Vancouver, one can't help but appreciate it. The sky was such a deep blue that if seen in a sci-fi movie, it'd be panned for being unrealistic. It was a perfect day to be off. I'm still losing weight and I know that exercise proves useful. Actually though, I've been relying on a reduction of calories to shed about a kilogram a month since October of 1996. Just getting out of the house in New Westminster can be a healthy plus. If I walk uptown, it's only about a mile but the incline helps make it feel as if it were a workout.
Today, I walked up 4th and back via 7th Streets. The path took me straight through some lovely neighbourhoods. I always enjoy seeing all the houses between Royal and 6th Avenue and there's such a variety! Knowing that I'll never be an owner of a single-family dwelling isn't sad. I really can't imagine anything other than life in a condo building. Still, seeing all the shapes and designs makes me smile. There's something nice about looking at real estate, even if it's already owned by others.
You too can take a look at some other New Westminster dwellings by visiting a slideshow from my Flickr account. It may take a second or two to load.
Labels: Flickr, New Westminster, weight loss
Sunday, November 18, 2007
You Show Me Yours
On the way home from BCIT this evening, I snapped a picture while uptown. Over the years, I've taken lots of pictures around New Westminster.
For example, this picture shows the New Westminster City Hall. It's a rather plain, 50-year old building, but I like it. There are many things I like about living in New Westminster, BC. It's centrally located in what used to be called the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD). As of this year, that loose association of twenty-one municipalities, has become Metro-Vancouver. New West. is also small enough so that we actually feel like a part of it rather than just anonymous residents.
My city is historically important to British Columbia, but I've said all that before. I simply wanted to point out today, that other people have been willing to help show off the city. I created New Westminster, BC (The Royal City) on Flickr. Over seventy other people have joined and now there are over 1370 shots from around town. Come take a look around, even if you can get here in person.
For example, this picture shows the New Westminster City Hall. It's a rather plain, 50-year old building, but I like it. There are many things I like about living in New Westminster, BC. It's centrally located in what used to be called the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD). As of this year, that loose association of twenty-one municipalities, has become Metro-Vancouver. New West. is also small enough so that we actually feel like a part of it rather than just anonymous residents.
My city is historically important to British Columbia, but I've said all that before. I simply wanted to point out today, that other people have been willing to help show off the city. I created New Westminster, BC (The Royal City) on Flickr. Over seventy other people have joined and now there are over 1370 shots from around town. Come take a look around, even if you can get here in person.
Labels: Flickr, New Westminster
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Climb Every Mountain
I don't like feeling overwhelmed. We've been home for a week now but I have not yet uploaded most of the photos from our recent trip to Flickr.I have to remember that Rome wasn't built in a day. Likewise, there's no reason for me to hurry this job. For example, today, I worked only on the pictures taken in Salzburg, Austria. To make things interesting, I put on The Sound of Music to see if I could match any scenery and I was able to.
Although this particular shot wasn't a match to any movie scene, I thought maybe I'd place a copy here anyway. On our first afternoon in the city, we hiked up the mountain way beyond the castle.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
A Very Long Parade
I missed explaining about a somewhat important commemoration a few days back. The picture above was taken at the River Rock Casino in Richmond. I took Jay for lunch because it was his birthday. The birthday was important but wasn't the the big event though.
I took my first daily Flickr photo on July 1, 2005. Every single day since then, a new image has become part of My Daily Picture Parade set. Back on Saturday that project reached its 800th photo. Eight hundred of anything is a lot, don't you think? All images are arranged in reverse chronological order.
Enter that set now.
Labels: Daily Picture Parade, Flickr
Saturday, September 08, 2007
An Old Fellow's Ivory
Being such a global warehouse of images makes Flickr a common resource for those working on projects. All uploads can be restricted in a number of ways, but I choose not to do that. I occasionally get requests for the use of particular pictures. The image of the elephant in this entry was taken during the 2004 trip to Sri Lanka. Just yesterday, I got this nice note asking permission for its use. Of course I am happy when something I've 'captured' is useful to others. Hello Dennis,
My name is Steve Lane. I am Keeper (Curator) of Natural History at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum in Coventry, UK. I am currently working on an exciting and innovative Permanent Exhibition called 'Elements'. The Gallery themed around the four elements. earth, air, fire and water, will run for around ten-fifteen years and it will be a
multi-sensory celebration of natural objects and landscapes. Creative interactive content will feature throughout and the exhibition will be particularly attractive to the main target audience - people with disabilities. Interactives will include experiencing bird songs through sound, vibration and associated visual moving images. Visitors will also be able to create their own sculpture and land art using sea-shore debris and create and record their own landscape music using a range of natural instruments. Fabulous sea shell and mineral collections will also be displayed in the space.
Entrance to the Gallery and to the Museum as a whole will be free. The Museum operates as part of Coventry City Council Local Authority. It is a non-profit making service.
I am currently sourcing images for the gallery. All photographers whose work is included will be acknowledged and credited within the Gallery space. They will also be invited to the opening of the Gallery.
I am particularly interested in the photograph displayed on the flickr website of the elephant 'Big Tusker'. I would like to make the connection between the tusks in the photo and tusk shells from the indo-pacific oceans. I am therefore enquiring if you would be happy for us to use this image in the Gallery space and if so, how you would like to be acknowledged.
I look forward to hearing from you,
Kind Regards,
Steve Lane (Keeper of Natural History) UK, 02476 785313
Labels: Flickr, flora and fauna, sharing, world
Friday, September 07, 2007
Pulled from the Collection
I need to make an additional entry today to do a little further testing. I found a cool plug in for Writer called Flickr4Writer. It allows easy inclusion of a Flickr image into a post. As a trial, I'll post a photo taken from Hyack Square in downtown New Westminster. Eighth Street runs up the hill.
The term Web 2.0 apps is a rather well-worn concept by now but it may be unfamiliar to readers of this post. Briefly, a Web 2.0 site contains user generated information that can be re-used across different sites. Using Flickr and Blogger together is an example. Being able to drop a YouTube video here would be too.
The thing I like about this shiny Windows Live Writer is that it sort of covers up all the 'mechanics' under a common interface. One might not need to know what's going on 'under the hood', so to speak. I cannot help but see this as a future trend . . . (by Microsoft?)
Labels: blogging, Flickr, New Westminster
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Frozen in Time
My online photo collection increases daily. Many are just simple snaps but others are historical. One reason they're there is because it's a very accessible backup method. Another reason for using Flickr involves the ability to share, not only for friends but with random folks as well.
I like seeing how many of the photos are viewed by visitors. For example, I uploaded about 50 old, scans from Kuwait in the early 80's. They've been quite popular with folks who live there now. The little kid above was also in that set. I was just walking about the neighbourhood and snapped this kid who was accompanied by some family members.
For some reason, I think the one above does deserve to be in the top 200 listing. To me, it looks a bit like something out of a National Geographic magazine.
Saturday, August 18, 2007
Select, Scan, and Upload
A big chore is easy if one does a bit at a time. I don't know why I don't train myself to scan just several old photos every day. Scanning one takes less than a minute. Then, getting 'em online and in The Old Box in an e-Attic takes about the same amount.After having been uploaded, the potential for sharing them is much greater than when they are languishing in the photo suitcase beneath my hanging sports coats.
On Diamond Head in Waikiki, Hawaii in April 1998
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Chasing the Big Five in Kenya
Adding labels to my eJournal and images has meant going through nearly four years of daily entries with a fine-toothed comb. I don't mind taking the time as I've got a copious amount in August.
What has bothered me is how unrepresentative this blog is in regards to actually painting a picture of my 48 years on earth. Actually, few would believe that by entering a mere paragraph or two, even 1400 times, one could sum up a life. It's true; however, I have now vowed to chat much less about the weather! (Today is starting off to be fantastic though.)
Also, I run into a problem by spending a near equal amount of time in Flickr. I do my Daily Picture Parade, add lots of what's going on currently, and took to scanning a while back. In my mind these two repositories of Dennis data are intertwined. I have mentioned Flickr a lot but a visitor cannot possibly know what's on the other site when reading here. Even a link doesn't seem as powerful as pasting the image right on this page.
So, as there was only a single entry regarding a trip to Kenya in February 1994, I put this one of Jay standing in the middle of souvenir sellers in Nairobi. I know that was a long time ago, but I need to add to my world label.
What has bothered me is how unrepresentative this blog is in regards to actually painting a picture of my 48 years on earth. Actually, few would believe that by entering a mere paragraph or two, even 1400 times, one could sum up a life. It's true; however, I have now vowed to chat much less about the weather! (Today is starting off to be fantastic though.)
Also, I run into a problem by spending a near equal amount of time in Flickr. I do my Daily Picture Parade, add lots of what's going on currently, and took to scanning a while back. In my mind these two repositories of Dennis data are intertwined. I have mentioned Flickr a lot but a visitor cannot possibly know what's on the other site when reading here. Even a link doesn't seem as powerful as pasting the image right on this page.
So, as there was only a single entry regarding a trip to Kenya in February 1994, I put this one of Jay standing in the middle of souvenir sellers in Nairobi. I know that was a long time ago, but I need to add to my world label.
Labels: blogging, Daily Picture Parade, Flickr, labels, souvenirs, world
Sunday, July 22, 2007
Five By Fourteen Feet
It'd seem very strange to live in an unattached, single-family dwelling. We really are condo people. As mentioned here plenty of times, we're also resolute New Westminster residents. Apparently others agree as there are hundreds of new apartments being built within a kilometer.
I don't want to sound like one of those people who always comments that time flies, but it does. We've lived on the 10th floor in this building for nine years now. That has afforded many opportunities for me to snap pictures from the balcony. In fact my Daily Picture Parade probably has its share on those days I forgot to get a photo elsewhere.
The following photo was taken from the balcony during the Fraserfest fireworks display last night. To see fifty other photos from or of the balcony, look on Flickr.
I don't want to sound like one of those people who always comments that time flies, but it does. We've lived on the 10th floor in this building for nine years now. That has afforded many opportunities for me to snap pictures from the balcony. In fact my Daily Picture Parade probably has its share on those days I forgot to get a photo elsewhere.
The following photo was taken from the balcony during the Fraserfest fireworks display last night. To see fifty other photos from or of the balcony, look on Flickr.
Labels: balcony, Daily Picture Parade, fireworks, Flickr, New Westminster
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
Tags, Labels, and Searches
Spring cleaning is probably good for the soul. Regardless of the season, it's liberating to get rid of extra junk. For example, I just threw a few bags of clothes into the back of the truck. The Salvation Army Thrift Shop wasn't open yesterday, so they're still sitting in the back. All those pants with a waste size of 42 are no longer in the closet. I need a reason to stick to dieting. As long as I was at it, I also decided to make a few formatting changes to this blog over the weekend. Some things were dropped while others just moved around.
I decided after years to finally embrace the tags. Actually, I guess blogger.com refers to them as labels. Although there's already specific ways to search this blog, labels do offer an additional way to view its data. Rather than a brute force search to turn up an appropriate page, identifiable labels pinpoint my own concepts on how to organize my eJournal and images, essentially a database of information.
The problem is, to be effective, labels need to be added to the older entries too. I shan't expect that is going to occur any time soon. Rather than focus on the previous 1,600 entries, I'll label all new ones. If you do want to see how tagging works with my Flickr picture collection, click the image below.
I decided after years to finally embrace the tags. Actually, I guess blogger.com refers to them as labels. Although there's already specific ways to search this blog, labels do offer an additional way to view its data. Rather than a brute force search to turn up an appropriate page, identifiable labels pinpoint my own concepts on how to organize my eJournal and images, essentially a database of information.
The problem is, to be effective, labels need to be added to the older entries too. I shan't expect that is going to occur any time soon. Rather than focus on the previous 1,600 entries, I'll label all new ones. If you do want to see how tagging works with my Flickr picture collection, click the image below.
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Already 730 Times!
If you're reading this from up here, then felicitations for the special day. Although this is the nation's 140th, it's only our 11th.The weather outside seems perfect at this hour, so right now we are going to downtown Vancouver to see what's up at Canada Place.
I'll add a photo or two in the evening today to Flickr (and the daily photo under my own picture to the right). Today does mark something of a anniversary for this topic. I started my Daily Picture Parade exactly two years ago. I snapped a picture come hell or high water. So if you wish to view a personal image taken during every one of the last 730 days, please visit this Flickr page.
Labels: Canada Day, Daily Picture Parade, Flickr, Vancouver
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Humble Beginnings
I didn't upload this photo today as it was already posted here. Is that really coming up on being two years ago? Although I'd been blogging for over twenty months at that time, I did not have a place for just sharing photos. In fact it was this trip, and wanting to share it with others, which prompted me to investigate photo sharing websites. This was when I found Flickr. That was over 3,300 photos ago. I've never looked back ... well, until today!
Friday, June 01, 2007
700 Pictures = or > 7000 Words
Quick, name something you've done every one of the last seven hundred days! Okay, there are the obvious things like brushing one's teeth and eating lunch. I can, however, add something different to that list of basic trivialities.
I've taken photographs to document my most recent 700 days. They may not be stunning, but they're a hell of a way for me to remember things I've done.
I've taken photographs to document my most recent 700 days. They may not be stunning, but they're a hell of a way for me to remember things I've done.
Labels: briefcase, Daily Picture Parade, Flickr
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Modern Images of BC's First Capital
I really like living in downtown New Westminster. We can't imagine being happier in any other suburb of Vancouver, British Columbia. We feel the sense of community and are sitting in the exact geographical center of the Lower Mainland. Things seem as if they're growing and moving.
On Flickr I created a group named, New Westminster, BC (The Royal City). Apparently other people have digital photos that highlight the subject. Sixty-three others have joined me in uploading photos of New West. In fact, all combined there are now over a thousand of them!
On Flickr I created a group named, New Westminster, BC (The Royal City). Apparently other people have digital photos that highlight the subject. Sixty-three others have joined me in uploading photos of New West. In fact, all combined there are now over a thousand of them!
Labels: Flickr, Hayack, New Westminster, parade
Monday, May 14, 2007
A 'SkyTrain Bridge' Slideshow
Last week, I noticed Flickr had improved its slideshow component. The photos are now larger. While a photo is being shown, it's possible to click the center for additional information. These are positive improvements.
I thought I'd see if I could find a subject of which I might have multiple photos. If you click on the image above, you will load a set which currently holds 31 images. As I live in downtown New Westminster, the SkyTrain Bridge is a common visual element of my life. It is a transit-only span that crosses the Fraser River. It is next to the 70 year old Patullo bridge. These pictures were taken over a period of five years. Many were simply shot from my balcony.
Labels: balcony, Flickr, Fraser River, New Westminster, SkyTrain, transit
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
A Minute or So
I'm pretty good at keeping up habits. For example, I started blogging here on September 1, 2003 and have never looked back. I started taking a daily Flickr photo to add to a set from July 1, 2005. I have not missed a day in either daily task.
I am wondering whether it'd be wise to start another aspect to my documented life. As I carry around my camera with me each day, I could save a one-minute video clip and post on YouTube.
I never quite understood why anyone would use a camera to save video clips. I never played around with .mov files in the past. I always considered video something that should take up hours. After all, I reasoned, Hollywood seldom makes anything much under an hour and a half. Now, I have decided to see what can be saved on my Olympus SP350. I never had even set the selector to record one until yesterday. I tried taking the scene above in the Metrotown Mall in Burnaby on Easter Monday.
It was easy. I could press the button for about a minute every day. Then I could upload the file to YouTube. It would be similar to what I do with a photo but I could save a 60-second clip from my life. Although that doesn't sound like much, it would add up to more than six hours per year!
I am wondering whether it'd be wise to start another aspect to my documented life. As I carry around my camera with me each day, I could save a one-minute video clip and post on YouTube.
I never quite understood why anyone would use a camera to save video clips. I never played around with .mov files in the past. I always considered video something that should take up hours. After all, I reasoned, Hollywood seldom makes anything much under an hour and a half. Now, I have decided to see what can be saved on my Olympus SP350. I never had even set the selector to record one until yesterday. I tried taking the scene above in the Metrotown Mall in Burnaby on Easter Monday.
It was easy. I could press the button for about a minute every day. Then I could upload the file to YouTube. It would be similar to what I do with a photo but I could save a 60-second clip from my life. Although that doesn't sound like much, it would add up to more than six hours per year!
Labels: Flickr
Sunday, April 01, 2007
I'm Wary of Mash-Ups
The theory is excellent. If one could reuse and combine Internet data from various sources in one place, the results could be efficient and effective. Yet, I must've lived too long to be so trusting. What if a repository site went out of business? Just because it works at the moment, doesn't mean it'll last. Unfortunately, I take perverse enjoyment in the idea that data contained in this blog will be available down the road. It is clearly the archivist in me that keeps me adding an entry a day.
Net things surely come and go. The original form of GeoCities wasn't as permanent as initial users might have expected. Flickr has supplanted Webshots as my place for storing images. For heaven's sakes, I once had an @home.net email address. So although web velocity has slowed, I have a hard time thinking of anything as very permanent. A mash-up is no good if a part ends up falling by the wayside.
This may be why I've been slow to get all giddy about YouTube. If I want to spend my time watching video, I'd prefer it be created professionally. I really can't imagine getting all excited over someone's dog doing something stupid. I doubt anyone could create two minutes of anything that I'd kill for. Most importantly, until today, for the reason above, I've avoided mashing up their vids here.
I generally 30-second-skip past television commercials because of the PRV. Yet, somehow, particular TV ads become such favorites that I may want to showcase one. For example, I loved the Stella Artois pig commercial so much, I copied it and tried to tie it to my eJournal and images. That was a lot of work and took a lot of space. More recently, I saw a PBS promo advertisement that I thought was very cool. Of course it is on YouTube, so here goes something new:
I might love this as there are two goldfish on the desk near my monitor. (Click the image to the right to see if it's daylight on Pacific coast time.) I would certainly support the darlings if they decided to jump out the balcony door and into a puddle on the Columbia Street SkyTrain station. Then, if they somehow crossed over the roof of the Army Navy Department Store and rail tracks, they'd happily dive into the Fraser River. I can almost picture them fighting the rapids in a fish ladder at Hell's Gate. Go babies, go!
Net things surely come and go. The original form of GeoCities wasn't as permanent as initial users might have expected. Flickr has supplanted Webshots as my place for storing images. For heaven's sakes, I once had an @home.net email address. So although web velocity has slowed, I have a hard time thinking of anything as very permanent. A mash-up is no good if a part ends up falling by the wayside.
This may be why I've been slow to get all giddy about YouTube. If I want to spend my time watching video, I'd prefer it be created professionally. I really can't imagine getting all excited over someone's dog doing something stupid. I doubt anyone could create two minutes of anything that I'd kill for. Most importantly, until today, for the reason above, I've avoided mashing up their vids here.
I generally 30-second-skip past television commercials because of the PRV. Yet, somehow, particular TV ads become such favorites that I may want to showcase one. For example, I loved the Stella Artois pig commercial so much, I copied it and tried to tie it to my eJournal and images. That was a lot of work and took a lot of space. More recently, I saw a PBS promo advertisement that I thought was very cool. Of course it is on YouTube, so here goes something new:
I might love this as there are two goldfish on the desk near my monitor. (Click the image to the right to see if it's daylight on Pacific coast time.) I would certainly support the darlings if they decided to jump out the balcony door and into a puddle on the Columbia Street SkyTrain station. Then, if they somehow crossed over the roof of the Army Navy Department Store and rail tracks, they'd happily dive into the Fraser River. I can almost picture them fighting the rapids in a fish ladder at Hell's Gate. Go babies, go!
Friday, March 30, 2007
No View Like an Old View
I took a panorama shot from my balcony in August of 2005 and it's been on Flickr since that time. Although downtown New Westminster is undergoing a lot of changes, the view's not much different from where I sit.
Click this to see an enlarged version of this photo. Depending
on your screen size, you may need to do quite a bit of scrolling to
see the entire image.
Click this to see an enlarged version of this photo. Depending
on your screen size, you may need to do quite a bit of scrolling to
see the entire image.
Labels: balcony, Flickr, New Westminster
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Escaping from the Closet
My computer desk has a pull-out shelf for the keyboard; therefore, the scanner sits next to my knees as I type. For months on end, nothing is placed on its glass plate. Then suddenly, like yesterday, I went to the photo suitcase and pulled out a few old photos to scan. If I can keep up this habit more religiously, then eventually I'll make a dent in the decades of pictures in the closet.
Naturally, in my mind, I can remember living in the various places of my past. However, when I see an image actually taken at the time, I get a more complete recollection.
I feel very happy watching the likeness on old paper take on a brand new life. Better yet, I love the idea that I'm freeing it by uploading to Flickr. Whereas, the image was just sitting in a box in my closet one day, the next it becomes available worldwide!
Fly baby, fly. Go. Show up on a screen far, far away . . .
This was the view from the outside corridor of our apartment
in Juffair, Bahrain in the early 1990's. There was a large area
of date trees to the right of the photo. If you looked over the
dwellings of poor Iranians, you could see the beach. Click the
photo to see a larger version on Flickr.
Naturally, in my mind, I can remember living in the various places of my past. However, when I see an image actually taken at the time, I get a more complete recollection.
I feel very happy watching the likeness on old paper take on a brand new life. Better yet, I love the idea that I'm freeing it by uploading to Flickr. Whereas, the image was just sitting in a box in my closet one day, the next it becomes available worldwide!
Fly baby, fly. Go. Show up on a screen far, far away . . .
This was the view from the outside corridor of our apartment
in Juffair, Bahrain in the early 1990's. There was a large area
of date trees to the right of the photo. If you looked over the
dwellings of poor Iranians, you could see the beach. Click the
photo to see a larger version on Flickr.
Saturday, March 17, 2007
One Man's Junk
It's fun to see which of my 3,100 plus pictures on Flickr are viewed most often. Surprisingly, half of the top twenty are old, scanned snapshots. They show Kuwait in the early 1980's so they are of historical interest to folks there.
The other most viewed photos in the top twenty include:
I can see why they might have crept up on the listing. However, the following one does seem a bit odd coming in at #17. It's just our old TV after being thrown in the pile at the recycling center. Why has this photo been viewed over 200 times?Shinji's Thanksgiving turkey (674 times) several scenes from Sri Lanka my city's downtown an empty view of Wreck Beach the closeup of a smiley rubber ball a view beneath a section of SkyTrain students in my BCIT classroom.
Labels: Flickr
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Slices of Life
For a bit more than a year and a half, I've taken at least one photo every day. Even if I can't quite recall what I did on a specific day, it's been recorded and stored. This online collection, which I refer to as my Daily Picture Parade, has been on Flickr since I joined that website. Until this morning, I used to keep just the most recent weeks in the album. I decided that it'd be more impressive if I kept 'em all on display, conveniently arranged in reverse-chronological order.
Each of the last 576 days on this planet is represented by an image of a location or object I witnessed. Can you name something you did or saw in July of 2005?
Labels: Daily Picture Parade, Flickr
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Keep Reloading
Last week, I uploaded my 3000th photo to Flickr. Most are just digital debris from my camera in my valiant attempt at my Daily Picture Parade. There are recent trips and a number of scans from pre-digital days too. One would have to be a very interested to in searching in order to make use of the Flickr tags.
There is an easier way to waste a few minutes, if you're so inclined. My SixPics page loads random photos from the Flickr collection. The photos are represented by small thumbnails. If you mouse over you will see the title of the photo. If you click, you'll be taken to the photo's real page. Just selecting reload in your browser will bring up another six. Keep trying; it's sometimes surprising to see what shows up. Here are some examples:
There is an easier way to waste a few minutes, if you're so inclined. My SixPics page loads random photos from the Flickr collection. The photos are represented by small thumbnails. If you mouse over you will see the title of the photo. If you click, you'll be taken to the photo's real page. Just selecting reload in your browser will bring up another six. Keep trying; it's sometimes surprising to see what shows up. Here are some examples:Screen One
1) The British Parliament 2) Monoragula, Sri Lanka 3)Uptown New Westminster 4) Veddah Village, Sri Lanka 5) This Apartment Building 6) Gulf Islands from a BC Ferry.
Screen Two
1)Ivy 2) Cactus in Blodel Conservatory 3) Princess Di Memorial Fountain 4)Brussels, Belgium 5) Beach Cow 6) Columbia Street
Screen Three
1) Frankfurt, Germany 2) View from Empire State Building 3) Trincomalee, Sri Lanka 4) Kin's Vegetable Market 5) Kathmandu Temple 6) Students in Dubai.
Labels: Daily Picture Parade, Flickr
Friday, December 29, 2006
New Westminster in Images
I run around with a camera not to catch prize-worthy shots as I'm more pragmatic than that. I have a difficult time remembering the exact appearance of many places from my past. So, I started archiving images at the age of 45. I assume if I click the shutter button enough, then there'll be more for me to fall back on as my memory fades in future years. In addition, there are also lots of acquaintances who will probably never have the chance to visit British Columbia. I want to take enough personal photos including a representation of my present home town, so someone could get a flavour of it by just visiting my Flickr pages. Seeing a full screen image may provide an understanding of what it was like when I stood at the particular location.
It's nice too that fourty other people have joined a photo-sharing group I started. These people have contributed a variety of their images of New Westminster, BC to my Flickr group. I find it quite interesting to see how others' contributions reflect different aspects of the city. I would like to thank them for their participation.
Labels: Flickr, New Westminster
Monday, December 18, 2006
They've Gawked 30,040 Times
As of right now, people have viewed my Flickr photos over thirty thousand times. I have to consider that a milestone of sorts.
I joined the photo-sharing site at the end of June in 2005. I was trying to find a way to share digital photos of a trip with friends. A year and a half later, Flickr plays a much larger role in my daily affairs for, as well as trips, I upload something each day to my Daily Picture Parade.
This helps lead to the concept of my documented life. As well as the daily addition of photos, I have scanned some old personal photos too. This blog benefits from access to my Flickr collection. I can pull up an image from nearly any year in my life to embellish a blog entry. Many Flickr participants provide only their best or most artistic shots whereas I just want to have access to any aspect of my existence.
Here's an example photo taken in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was the
featured daily photo from September 11, 2006. The photo is ranked as my
sixth most popular having been viewed 266 times by other Flickr visitors.
I joined the photo-sharing site at the end of June in 2005. I was trying to find a way to share digital photos of a trip with friends. A year and a half later, Flickr plays a much larger role in my daily affairs for, as well as trips, I upload something each day to my Daily Picture Parade.
This helps lead to the concept of my documented life. As well as the daily addition of photos, I have scanned some old personal photos too. This blog benefits from access to my Flickr collection. I can pull up an image from nearly any year in my life to embellish a blog entry. Many Flickr participants provide only their best or most artistic shots whereas I just want to have access to any aspect of my existence.
Here's an example photo taken in Colombo, Sri Lanka. It was the
featured daily photo from September 11, 2006. The photo is ranked as my
sixth most popular having been viewed 266 times by other Flickr visitors.
Labels: Flickr, Sri Lanka 2006
Monday, November 20, 2006
Self-Documentation
Last Monday, I had snapped at least one photo for every one of the previous 500 days. It's an image-journal, of sorts, found on Flickr. I can wax poetic about the distant past or the unforseen future in this blog. However, my finger had to press the shutter button in the thick of the moment so I could include something in my Daily Picture Parade.
It's rather nice to be able to check on a specific date in the past. For example, a year ago in this blog I was bragging about being listed as #396 on Feedster's top blogs.
Yet, the photo above shows something that happened that day. It was taken after returning home from shopping at a speciality food store in Vancouver. A year ago November 20th was a Sunday.
It's rather nice to be able to check on a specific date in the past. For example, a year ago in this blog I was bragging about being listed as #396 on Feedster's top blogs.
Yet, the photo above shows something that happened that day. It was taken after returning home from shopping at a speciality food store in Vancouver. A year ago November 20th was a Sunday.
Labels: Daily Picture Parade, Flickr, food
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Have a Happy Day!
This is my blog and I will add whatever I wish.
I was too busy yesterday to spend much time considering what I'd enter here this morning. Do remember there are also days where I type in deep philosophical discussions. I can be both deep and very shallow.
Have I mentioned I am also quite wide?
This little rubber ball is between my fingers. It may be viewed on Flickr.
I was too busy yesterday to spend much time considering what I'd enter here this morning. Do remember there are also days where I type in deep philosophical discussions. I can be both deep and very shallow.
Have I mentioned I am also quite wide?
This little rubber ball is between my fingers. It may be viewed on Flickr.
Labels: Flickr
Sunday, November 12, 2006
My Tree House
Thirty-six members have joined a Flickr group I started. This is a bit like building a tree house and inviting anyone to join the club. The members are people who like photography, know about Flickr, and have an interest in my town of New Westminster, British Columbia.
By clicking the screenshot above, you can enjoy over 400 photographs that have been submitted to the collection on The Royal City. If you're so inclined, you may join and contribute too!
By clicking the screenshot above, you can enjoy over 400 photographs that have been submitted to the collection on The Royal City. If you're so inclined, you may join and contribute too!
Labels: Flickr, New Westminster
Friday, November 10, 2006
An Image Problem
I cannot believe we've been back for over a month and there are still photos I've not uploaded to Flickr. I did get all the 2006 Sri Lankan images online. I also completed most of the week in Hong Kong. I'm not sure why the process petered out although it could br something to do with being back at work!
The initial pictures from Hong Kong are available for viewing. For example, the photo above was taken on HK island. It was taken from the apartment where ex-colleagues live. I have decided I like this shot. On Flickr I put it in a newly created set with another forty plus photos. The group is called, Some I Like.
The initial pictures from Hong Kong are available for viewing. For example, the photo above was taken on HK island. It was taken from the apartment where ex-colleagues live. I have decided I like this shot. On Flickr I put it in a newly created set with another forty plus photos. The group is called, Some I Like.
Labels: Flickr
Saturday, October 21, 2006
It Ain't Poetry
Many people create huge chunks of text. I have present and ex-colleagues who can write dozens of paragraphs on any given subject. (Of course, these individuals can generally talk for endless hours in person too!) I'm not like that.Ever since I can remember, I've tried to write things briefly. I've always felt if one has something to say, it shouldn't take a marathon session of reading to decode. These characteristics are not things I wish to change. My directness is a trait that carries over well when attempting to teach technical writing to students.
I think I promised myself that I wasn't going to ramble on and on about Flickr in this blog. Still, I find that images continue to be a important avenue of expression. I'm sharing over 2770 online photos at present. These have been viewed over 25,700 times by visitors to the site. That's a fact worth blogging about. Isn't it?
Here's a picture from my newly created set entitled,