Tuesday, January 9, 2018

heterotelic \het-er-uh-TEL-ik\, adjective:

• Having the purpose of its existence or occurrence apart from itself.

Heterotelic is directly derived from the Greek roots héteros meaning "other", tele- meaning "distant", and the suffix -ic which denotes an adjective, as in metallic and athletic.

 

Blackberry roulette

• Driving a motor vehicle while talking or texting on a cell phone.

Each time I see someone driving and talking on the phone I say to myself something's got to be done about these dangerous people; but nothing ever is. They just keep motoring along playing Blackberry roulette until one day their carelessness alters the life of an innocent.

 

Trivia

What compound—included in most diets—is represented by the molecular formula C8H10N4O2?

• Caffeine.

History

• daguerreotype: L. J. M. Daguerre announced the first practical photographic process to the French Academy of Sciences (1839)
• autogiro: aeronautical engineer Juan de la Cierva made the first successful flight in the helicopter-like aircraft he had invented, in Madrid (1923)
• Martyr's Day of Panama: the tearing of a Panamanian flag during protests regarding US sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone led to several days of deadly fighting (1964)
• Commonwealth of Northern Marianas: was established (1978)

Birthdays

• Gracie Fields 1898
• Vilma Banky (Lonchit) 1898
• Chic (Murat Bernard) Young 1901
• George Balanchine 1904
• Simone de Beauvoir 1908
• Richard Milhous Nixon (U.S.) 1913
• Fernando Lamas 1915
• Anita Louise (Fremault) 1915
• Herbert Lom 1917
• Judith Krantz 1928
• Domenico Modugno 1928
• Bart Starr (NFL) 1934
• Bob Denver 1935
• Dick Enberg 1935
• Big Al Downing 1940
• Joan Baez 1941
• Susannah York 1941
  
• Roy Head 1943
• Jimmy Page 1944 - Musician (Led Zeppelin) 
• Scott (Noel) Engel (The Walker Brothers) 1944
• Bill Cowsill 1948 - Musician (Cowsills)
• Rio Reiser 1950
• David Johansen 1950 - Musician (Buster Poindexter)
• Crystal Gayle 1951
• J. K. Simmons 1955
• Eric Erlandson 1963 - Musician (Hole)
• Haddaway 1965
• Joely Richardson 1965
  
• David John "Dave" Matthews 1967
• Carl Bell 1967 - Musician (Fuel)
• Steve Harwell 1967 - Musician (Smash Mouth)
• Joey Lauren Adams 1968
• A.J. McLean 1978
• Catherine Elizabeth Middleton 1982 - Duchess of Cambridge, married to Prince William, Duke of Cambridge  
• Nina Dobrev 1989

Friday, October 20, 2017

tawdry \TAW-dree\, adjective:

1. Gaudy, showy and cheap.

2. Low or mean; base: tawdry motives.

noun:

1. Cheap, gaudy apparel.

Tawdry was originally short for (Sain)t Audrey lace, which was a kind of neck lace bought at St. Audrey's Fair in Ely, England named after St. Audrey, Northumbrian queen and patron saint of Ely, who, according to tradition, died of a throat tumor which she considered just punishment of her youthful liking for neck laces.

 

Counterfriends

• The complete strangers you talk to at a house party who are assembled around the neutral, alcohol friendly zone of the kitchen counter. Like you, they may know only a few people at the party, including the super-mingling host, and are looking for counterfriends.

If it weren't for my counterfriends, I would've been standing next to the wall for two hours!

Selfie 

• A picture taken of yourself that is planned to be uploaded to Facebook, Myspace or any other sort of social networking website. You can usually see the person's arm holding out the camera in which case you can clearly tell that this person does not have any friends to take pictures of them so they resort to Myspace to find internet friends and post pictures of themselves, taken by themselves. A selfie is usually accompanied by a kissy face or the individual looking in a direction that is not towards the camera.

myspace face facebook arm twitter instagram snapchat picture Selfie 

Trivia

Whose portraits hang on either side of the speaker’s rostrum in the U.S. House of Representatives?

• George Washington’s portrait hangs to the right; the Marquis de Lafayette’s to the left.

History

• Louisiana Purchase: acquisition that doubled the territory of the United States was ratified by the Senate (1803)
• "I shall return": General Douglas MacArthur fulfilled his 1942 promise when he led an Allied army in freeing the Philippines from Japanese control in WWII (1944)

  
• HUAC: opened hearings into alleged Communist influence in the movie industry (1947)
• Saturday Night Massacre: during Watergate, President Richard Nixon got rid of his special prosecutor, Archibald Cox, as well as his AG Elliot Richardson, and deputy AG William Ruckelshaus (1973)
• Sydney Opera House: distinctive building on Sydney Harbour was opened by Queen Elizabeth II (1973)

Birthdays

• Sir Christopher Wren 1632
• Arthur Rimbaud 1854
• James Mann 1856
• John Dewey 1859
• Charles Ives 1874

• Bela Lugosi (Blasko) 1882
• Ellery Queen (Frederic Dannay) 1905
• Arlene Francis 1908
• Will Rogers, Jr. 1912
• Granpa Jones (Louis Marshall) 1913
• Fayard Nicholas 1914
• Herschel Bernardi 1922
• Art Buchwald 1925
• Mickey Mantle (MLB) 1931
• William Christopher 1932
• Roosevelt Brown (NFL) 1932
  
• Michael Dunn 1934
• Jerry Orbach 1935
• Bobby Seale 1936
• Wanda Jackson 1937
• Juan "Manito" Marichal (MLB) 1937
• Jay Siegal (The Tokens) 1939
• Earl Hindman 1942
• Ric Lee (Ten Years After) 1945
• Isaac Curtis (NFL) 1950
• Al Greenwood (Foreigner) 1951
• Melanie Mayron 1952
• Dave Collins (MLB) 1952
• Tom Petty 1953 
  
• Keith Hernandez (MLB) 1953
• Eric Scott 1958
• Viggo Mortensen 1958
• Mark King (Level 42) 1958
• David Ryan (The Lemonheads) 1964
• James G. Sonefeld (Hootie & the Blowfish) 1964
• Fred Coury 1966 - Musician (Cinderella)
• Dannii Minogue 1971
• Snoop Doggy Dogg (Calvin Broadus) 1971

 

 

 

Review Tuesday: SEREE LED Light Portable Mini 96 LED 9W Camera Video Lamp Photo Lighting Hotshoe (LT-96)

 

SEREE LED Light Portable Mini 96 LED 9W Camera Video Lamp Photo Lighting Hotshoe (LT-96)

Anyone who knows me knows that I am an amateur photographer. My weapon of choice is an old Canon 350D DSLR adapted to use the legendary OM system by Olympus. 

While I take many nice photos with my set up, there's a major set back, THE FLASH. I can't take any photos requiring a fill-in flash, such as anything with a sunset in the background. So when this opportunity for a sponsored trial of this 96 LED Flash came up, I didn't have to think twice!

Specifications:

• 96LED light with 96 PCS light bulb.
• Model:LT-96
• Power:9W
• Color Temperature:5600K-3200K
• Illumination:850Lux
• LED light size: 115x70x30mm
• Light Source:LED
• Power Source:Battery(ies)
• Mount Type:Hot/Cold Shoe
• Package Content:1 x 96 LED Video light

It comes in a plain brown cardboard box. Better for the environment and easier to open. I love less-stress packaging! You open the box to find this:

A better look inside:

You get the LED flash with the clear and gold covers, phone type rechargeable battery complete with charger and cable, instructions and protective velvet case.

I charged it up and tested it out.  This device has the option to use the included battery or four AA batteries instead. Options are always useful. The flash has a dial so you can adjust the brightness, which is OUTSTANDING for my purposes! 

The flash cover not in use doubles as a battery cover! Smart!

The flash attached easily to any camera with a standard hot-shoe or can screw into any standard tripod. 

Keep in mind, this functions more like a flood light than a standard flash. It would be fantastic for any video equipment, or for dysfunctional DSLR cameras, like mine, that the flash doesn't work properly. 

I'll call this an impressive LED flash, especially for the price. 

#RankBoosterReview #Sponsored #SEREE
 
Get it on AMAZON:
http://amzn.to/2vDjzTQ

Turtle Thusday: Random 6/2/16

Another pic I found on Photobucket.

Turtle Thursday: SHARK!

Well, not really.

That's Snappy the RES.

Photo by Mrs. Bax0jayz.

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

fructuous \FRUHK-choo-uhs\, adjective:

• Fruitful; productive.

Fructuous comes from Latin fructuosus, from fructus, "enjoyment, product, fruit," from the past participle of frui, "to enjoy."

 

cognitus interruptus

• A disruption of the normal thought process, normally by an external distraction. This occurs most often at times where mental focus is a necessity. Cognitus interruptus sometimes leads to procrastination, leading to further cognitus interruptus and creating a cycle. Not to be confused with coitus interruptus, which is something entirely different.

Constant cognitus interruptus in my classes kept me from passing finals.

History

• Cato Street Conspiracy: a plot to assassinate the British cabinet and prime minister was uncovered; the conspirators were later executed (1820)
• Tootsie Roll: the chewy chocolate candy was introduced by Leo Hirshfield (1896)
• Guantánamo Bay: Cuba leased the area to the US to use as a naval base in perpetuity; it now serves as an internment camp for suspected Islamic militants (1903)
• Rotary Club: the not-for-profit service organization held its first meeting, in Beverly Hills, led by Paul P. Harris and three friends; it now has 1 million-plus members in about 200 countries (1905)
• Iwo Jima: Marines raised the US flag over the Japanese island after severe fighting during WWII; a Pulitzer-winning photograph was taken by AP photographer Joe Rosenthal (1945)

Birthdays

• Samuel Pepys 1633 - English naval administrator and Member of Parliament, known for his diary of events and quotes
• George Frederic Handel 1685 - Composer
• Mayer Amschel Rothschild 1734
• Emma Willard 1787 - Educator, writer of textbooks
• Istvan Ferenczi 1792
• George Watts 1817
• W.E.B. DuBois 1868
• Agnes M. Royden 1876
• Norman Lindsay 1879
• Victor Fleming 1883
• William Shirer 1904 - Jornalist, author ("The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich", "Ghandi: A Memoir")
• Walter Ernest Allen 1911
• Elston Howard 1929 - Baseball player
• Lee Calhoun 1933 - Hurdler, won the 110-meter hurdles twice in Olympics
• Diana Varsi 1938 - Actress ("Peyton Place")
• Sylvia Chase 1938 - Newscaster ("ABC News", "20/20")
• Peter Fonda 1940 - Director, actor ("Easy Rider"), Jane Fonda's brother, Henry Fonda's son, Bridget Fonda's dad
• Bobby (Wayne) Mitchell 1943 - Golfer
• Fred Biletnikoff 1943 - Football player
• Johnny Winter (John Dawson III) 1944 - Musician
• Mike Maxfield 1944 - Musician (Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas)
• Allan Boesak 1945
• Rusty Young 1946 - Musician (Poco)
• Ken (Kenneth George) Boswell 1946 - Baseball player
• Terry "Tex" Comer 1949
• Larry Demps 1949 - Musician (Dramatics)
• Steve Priest 1950 - Musician (The Sweet)
• Jim Youngblood 1950 - Football player
• Eddie Dibbs 1951 - Tennis player
• Ed ‘Too Tall’ Jones 1951 - Football player
• Patricia Richardson 1951 - Actess ("Home Improvement")
• Ray Oldham 1951 - Football player
• Brad Whitford 1952 - Musician (Aerosmith)
• Lorne Henning 1952 - Hockey player
• Howard Jones 1955 - Singer
• David Sylvian 1958 - Musician (Japan)
• Ria Brieffies 1958 - Musician (Dolly Dots)
• Michael Wilton 1962 - Musician (Queensryche)

  
• Robert Collins 1963 - Musician
• Bobby (Roberto Martin Antonio) Bonilla 1963 - Baseball player
• John Norum 1964
• Helen Sukova 1965
• Kristin Davis 1965 - Actress ("Sex and the City")
• Pam Blundell 1967
• Marc Price 1968
• Jeff Beres 1971 - Musician (Sister Hazel)
• Lasse Johansson 1973 - Musician (The Cardigans)
• Emily Blunt 1983 - Actress
• Dakota Fanning 1994 - Actress

Turtle Thursday: JAWS!!!

Well, not exactly.

That's Snappy the RES.

Photo by Mrs. Bax0jayz.

Turtle Thursday: A few words about Silent Bob from 2008

This is another baby pic of Silent Bob. He's a dark phased Texas Diamondback Terrapin. I estimate his age at under two years in this pic. The pic was definitely taken with an Olympus camera, maybe a D-560 or an FE-180.

I've been having a good time with this little guy lately. He enjoys a lot of attention. He gets excited when he sees me. He makes a fuss unless I pick him up and play with him. Lately he enjoys snuggling up on my chest and sleeping there. That shows he has complete faith in his safety in my possession. That's how you want your pet turtle to be!

Ponderous - My thoughts on buying camera parts

Before digital photography became inexpensive people used film. Just like today, you had simple "idiot box" cameras and the more involved SLR lines. I went with a vintage Olympus OM-1 from the 70s with a stock Zuiko 50mm lens and a Tokina 75-200mm macro. I read all I could on the topic and took some decent photos. But as time went on film became scarce, developing became expensive and digital photography became cheaper.

My OM-1 went into storage for a bunch of years until I decided to keep it up. I noticed that any OM was getting super-cheap on ePay so i started collecting lenses and additional cameras. The OM-10 was the last of that line and could be picked up for as little as $5 WITH A LENS! 

One day while looking up lenses I noticed that there were an array conversion kits that would allow you to use your old OM lenses on modern DSLR cameras. I did some comparison shopping and chose a Canon 350D, as I was able to get one cheaply.

It seems my trick has caught on because you see dozens of lens adapting rings now for all sorts of applications and as a result OM lenses have gone up in value. This was annoying especially when I needed a 28mm wide angle for my DSLR rig. The lenses regularly sold for over $40 and easily up to $100 for that specific lens. However, I was able to acquire the complete OM-10 set up pictured at top for $35 with shipping. The lens by itself is worth more than if it was attached to an old SLR Olympus OM-10 with owner's manual. Ponderous man. I just don't get it.

Judge Bax0jayz @ NYCC - 2013

Pic courtesy of Steve Bunche

http://buncheness.blogspot.com/

NYCC was last week, from Thursday, October 10th through Sunday the 13th. As an officer in my friend's comic book company I was able to obtain a creator's pass for all four days, but I only needed Friday. That's my day of choice. The place still fills up, but it's not insanely jammed with people.

Over the coming days I will feature pics of personalities I snapped with my trusty Canon EOS 350D with an Olympus OM 50mm lens. 

Today's feature is SPACEBALLS! I saw these two guys as I stormed off from the autograph area. (I promised a friend I would get Gillian Anderson's autograph for him. I arrived on line before 2PM. She was supposed to start signing at 3. By 4 she was still AWOL. I left.)

Spaceballs!

Terry Richardson's First Taste of POPwate

POPwater is shaking up the beverage industry with the launch of the "FIRST TASTE 4-pack" today. The company was started by a group of strange but endearing individuals from the POP culture community who wanted a healthier beverage that tasted great and wasn't filled with artificial ingredients. So that's exactly what they did.

TeamPOPwater, which includes Troy Carter (Atom Factory CEO and manager to artists including Lady Gaga & John Legend), Terry Richardson (world famous fashion/music/photographer), Atom Factory artists, mad scientists and more, is ready to debut the fruit flavored sparkling beverage with only 30 calories, 7 grams of sugar and just the right amount of POP.

"After working closely with our friends at Coca Cola and Pepsi on various music related initiatives over the years, we were inspired to create a beverage that had music and pop culture in its DNA. Terry Richardson and our creative team are bringing this vision to life and we're excited to have them tell this story," said Troy Carter, founder and CEO of Atom Factory.

Starting today, you can preorder a limited edition 4-pack of POPwater's signature flavors (orange, pineapple, apple and grape) plus a POPwater t-shirt and a bonus first taste download - including free shipping to any US address. Watch POPwater Creative Director Terry Richardson try his first taste in this new video and stay tuned for the official POPwater release on April 16th. Product will be hitting shelves in Los Angeles this month as well, with a national rollout to follow.

###

Terry video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUiwKtnIT60

Preorder: http://popwater.com/pop-water.html

Turtle Thursday: WTF

Were aliens responsible for this?

September 1st! STACEY OF THE MONTH!!!

Taken a week ago in the Poconos.

Looks like September will be a good month!

Friday, December 23, 2011

swaddle \SWOD-l\, verb:

1. To bind an infant with long, narrow strips of cloth to prevent free movement.

2. To wrap (anything) round with bandages.

noun:

1. A long, narrow strip of cloth used for swaddling or bandaging.

Swaddle is related to the Old English word swath meaning “a bandage or wrap.”

christmas eve eve

• December 23rd, the day before Christmas eve.

In order to avoid the Christmas eve rush, everybody does their last minute Christmas shopping on Christmas eve eve, the result being that December 23rd is the busiest shopping day of the year.

I never realised the insanity of Christmas eve eve until I worked in retail.

Trivia

How far can a skunk accurately aim its foul-smelling spray?

• 15 feet.

History

• kidney transplant: was successfully performed for first time, in Boston (1954)
• Federal Reserve Act: law signed by President Woodrow Wilson created the Federal Reserve System, a central banking system for the US (1913)
• Immaculate Reception: the Pittsburgh Steelers won an NFL playoff game over the Oakland Raiders with a "miraculous" touchdown (1972)
• Voyager: experimental plane designed by Burt Rutan completed a 9-day flight around the world without refueling (1986)
• Lenny Bruce: comedian who satirized politics, religion and sex was granted by the governor of New York a posthumous pardon for obscenity, for which he had been convicted 40 years earlier (2003)

Birthdays

• Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002): portrait photographer
• Akihito (78): emperor of Japan
• Harry Shearer (68): writer/director/actor, The Simpsons, This is Spinal Tap; also, actors Gerald S. O'Loughlin (90), Ronnie Schell (80), Frederic Forrest (75), Susan Lucci (65), Corey Haim (1971-2010) and Estella Warren (33)
• Eddie Vedder (47): singer/songwriter, frontman for Pearl Jam; plus, musicians Jorma Kaukonen (71), Ron Bushy (66), Dave Murray (55), Jamie Murphy (35) and Irvin Mayfield (34)
• Carla Bruni (44): wife of French president Nicolas Sarkozy

Read more: http://www.answers.com/