Family Fun

Two fun projects to share with you tonight (or very early morning, as the case seems to be):

First, we took the kids to see the new VeggieTales movie: The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything. We all enjoyed it and I used my little camera to capture the first impressions upon leaving the movies. I enjoyed Eleanor's reaction the most. You'll laugh again after you see the movie for yourself, but to explain: it is her impression of the monster cheese puffs from the movie.


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Next, after I put together the little video review, I was waiting for it to render and upload and I read a post on "Light Graffiti", or using long shutter times and flashlights to "paint" with light. So, I pulled out the tripod and gave it a go:

My first attempt at writing my name wasn't very good.
My second attempt used a flash to capture the image and then left the shutter open... but not long enough for me to finish spelling.I got the word spelled, but backwards and a really weird "half-way standing" pose.


Finally! Success. Could I do it again?
Indeed. Now, with some practice, maybe I could do something really impressive.
At this point, MH woke up (it was about 1am) and wanted to know what I was doing. So I showed her.
I was trying to draw a smiley face. It is harder than it looks...

MH wanted to try and did a great "kitty cat" for her first attempt.
My last picture before I sent MH back to bed. I had her spotlight me as I moved around. Pretty cool. I'll have to play some more with it.

-jeff

Redneck Pirate

I see lots of funny pictures on the web and sometimes wonder, where do people *find* this stuff? I mean, c'mon... you don't find cute kittens with limes cut up into a helmet shape in nature... it was staged. Cute, but staged. Budding graphic artists with 1337 skilz in pirated copies of Photoshop are nothing if not creative and prolific. But occasionally, you stumble across something in real life that reminds you that *they*are out there... people who actually keep 100 ceramic deer in their front yard. People who have their electric hibachis floating on makeshift rafts of buoyant flotsam in the midst of their 5 ft. above ground pools while they grill hamburgers. And you laugh at them and you marvel that they can function in everyday life. Such was my delight when I drove past this trailer house: 3 parts redneck and 1 part pirate.

Enjoy life, and don't let any stupid elitist blogger tell you what colors you can fly.

Found! Lost and other TV shows available online

Less than a year ago, I could honestly say that I didn't watch much TV. I was simply too busy and my interest in all things TV was pretty low compared to my interest in MMORPGs, photography and other hobbies. That all changed the day I discovered that most of the major networks have started making prime-time offerings available for free online.

It started with Ugly Betty and when I had exhausted the previous episodes, I started trying out shows that I never got to see because I didn't have time to watch them at 7pm on Monday or 8pm CST Thursday. Heroes got me hooked next. I am a Heroes-ophile (as all of you who have added the My Heroes Ability on Facebook know...). Then came Bionic Woman, Life, Rules of Engagement, Big Shots, and even though I was kind of burnt out on it... Grey's Anatomy.

Recently, as I was sadly (I say "sadly" because there were no new episodes and the writer's strike seems to bode no good for the near future) trolling the Major Networks for episodes of shows I liked, but hadn't seen, I noticed that ABC was trying to drum up interest in it's hit drama series: Lost by offering up all three previous seasons in High Definition Streaming. I never watched it because it always came on when I was at church or otherwise committed. So I decided to give it a try. Wow! What fun! I love the storytelling, the blend of characters and issues... the tension between science and faith! I'm midway through season two right now and I'm loving it. The only real drawback for me is that I can't multi-task while watching Lost. You really have to watch it for clues and visuals because each episode builds on previous ones. Unlike Chuck (which I also love) or My Name is Earl, which have running themes and an overall timeline, but can be watched as individual stories, shows like Lost and Life need addicted audiences who compile Wikis and fan-sites full of trivia and background info.

Anyhow, I didn't have a full 50 minute to watch another episode of Lost, so I decided to ramble on the blog, but now it is time to go home and cuddle up with my.... laptop in bed and squeeze in one more show before I fall asleep (Amelia appreciates when I use my headphones).

Leave me a note and tell me which shows you're addicted to and whether you've discovered the joy of online TV viewing. It's almost as good as TiVo (and cheaper!)

-jeff

From our house to yours