I think I’ve become a much much better photographer through the process.  You clearly see a big change after April 9th when I took the class at the Chicago Photography Center. The other part of it was the constant practice and repetition of shooting and editing. I still have a long road to go in terms of skill and eye, but its been an amazing year of growth.

Some things I’ve learned:

1. Doing something every day is HARD, no matter what it is except necessary bodily functions. Its more of a time commitment than one would think.
2. It’s very difficult to keep coming up with fresh ideas if you feel the need to have every day be a little bit different. There were days when I didn’t shoot anything all day and wanted to go to bed and ended up shooting stuff in the house. By the end of the year, I ran out stuff in the house. Also, I ended up doing accidental themes for days at a time because I couldn’t think of anything new.
3. There are days when things don’t work out or you just shot all crap…but if you are gonna stay on the daily mission, you post it.
4. I have a hard time asking people I don’t know if I can take their picture, or just taking a picture of unknown people. Hence, you got a lot of landscapes and buildings and whatnot.

Here’s links to 23 of my favorites through the year in no particular order:

• The Biltmore Hotel
• The Washington Monument at dusk
• Ding Dong, MMMkay
• The Chicago Skyline
• Swing!
• Y?
• Fall Colors
• Violin
• Waiting
• Wrigley and Trump
• Sunset over the Golden Gate Bridge
• Reach
• The US Capitol
• Chicago Water Tower
• Pike Place Market
• North of the Border
• The bonus beer shot on Epcot from the boardwalk
• Beer
• Forest Gears
• What are you looking at?
• Spring on Michigan Ave
• The strawberries from Wine
• Train approaching

Here’s the top 5 most visited photos on the blog:

1. Ice skating in flight – I’d like to reshoot this, I could do better now. Its very search engine friendly
2. Any skirt in a storm – The Marilyn statue is still a big deal, and this shot got around to a bunch of blogs
3. Food Porn: Matzo Softball – Search Engine friendly
4. Will you be my date for life? – I pointed out it was Sarah’s and my 10 year anniversary
5. Blue wall: Half-way done! – I think I talked this one up when I painted it. It’s just a nice blue

I really enjoy photography, so I’ll still continue to shoot. Hey, I gotta learn to use the backdrops more.  That said, the frequency of photo posts will be going down.  I might just hide for a month and take no pictures. I need a break.

Evan’s sister was running with scissors and ran into her brother. After a quick visit to the ER, we can confirm that all is good, its didn’t puncture the eyelid and the eye underneath is just fine.

On this day, I own a buttload of Apple gear: iPhone, iPod, iPad, MacBook Pro, Apple TV, Apple TV 2, Time Capsule, Mac Mini… I’m planning on getting an iPhone 4S as soon as possible.

I was (and am) a big open source dork at heart, but Apple’s simplicity and ease of use, especially the past 7 years really spoke to the pragmatic side of me.  It turned me into a fan boy, I guess.  It didn’t hurt that OS X is NeXTStep is UNIX… I touch OS X and Linux every day.

One of Dinah’s first words was iPod which she taught herself so she could ask me to turn on music for her.

In college, I loved using the NeXT computers we had. My first class in college used scheme on the NeXT’s. The NeXT is one of the first places I played Doom.  I took calculus using Mathematica on the Mac in college.

Steve also touched my kids’ lives via Pixar. (Okay, my life too, I saw Toy Story in the theater first run, long before I had kids.) Also through their first computer, a Mac Mini.

There were too other public figures who’s lives and deaths touched me the way Steve’s passing is touching me today: Jim Henson and Fred Rodgers.

I like the face and the water splashing around so this image is the photo of the day.  2nd place for the photo of the day is also here for you to enjoy. It fell to second because she was too much in shadow.

(Evan was being crabby, so I didn’t get him to do some cool pool poses.  Next time.

(If you were wondering about the post title, here’s a link to one of Dinah’s favorite songs: Seven by They Might Be Giants.)

I stayed home sick today battling an ear infection in my left ear.  Today was better than the past two days when I had stabbing pains in my ear, but its still not 100%.  For most of the day I’d say I hovered around 45 to 50% since I couldn’t hear out of it.  I’m feeling better this evening, but its still tender. Tomorrow is 48 hours on antibiotics, so I should be mostly out of the woods.  Although, I do kinda feel like I have something only children should get.

Anyway, my ear seems strangely small to me when made the subject of the today’s photo,

I’ve been in a portrait mood this week…

An experiment assigned by Jason. Not staged well, I really could do without the napkin holder, but this one turned out well.

This was my experiment at doing a panning shot. It was way to bright to really pull it off, but I like how Dinah in the swing is appearing stationary while the world is moving around here.  Even in though I couldn’t get the shutter time I wanted, I think this is pretty successful.

Also, my children rock:

Both of these were attempts to use the knowledge I got yesterday.

It was sunglasses day AND photo day at school today.  Stylin!

Today, Evan turns 4.  He has survived living with his older sister and his parents for 4 rotations around the sun, and equally, I think we survived living with him as he can be a crazy-man. He’s developed a great sense of humor and is very definitely his own person distinct from the rest of us.

As part of his birthday celebration, he becomes today’s photo of the day wearing the birthday crown his sister made and eating his chosen breakfast of coffeecake.

Here’s some bonus images from his birthday gathering yesterday, including that special time in a boys life which includes spending time with his robot and his dad.

Bonus photo by Sarah, but included because its a great picture of Evan:

I do the “portrait with dept of focus” trick too much, but the subjects I have make it so easy.

Bonus for more mask detail:

“Daddy, take a picture, he looks like Tron” – Evan.  I’m training him well. Also, consider this my Oscar tribute.

Dinah was invited to an ice skating party by a classmate.  The classmate and her sister participate in ice skating competitions and each did their routine as part of the party.  This gave me a good excuse to play with the telephoto lense.  I’m not entirely happy with what I took of the skaters as the light caused the camera to kick back to ISO3200, so they are grainy as hell.  Today’s bonus photo is here because I couldn’t pass this up without showing a photo of Dinah her first time in ice skates.

Luckily the flashlight didn’t wake him up.  Man, the iPhone gets grainy in really low light.

In any case, this point was to share that something that shouldn’t at all be fun is, but also to test to see if the blog migrated okay.   If you notice anything weird, please let me know.  But if its broken, you probably can’t let me know, and i’ll live in blissful ignorance.

When I went in, it was for one final “do I still want this” before Sarah and the kids got it for me for my birthday. I decided I still wanted it, and the next week, I got it. What is this it I keep talking about? Its the Giant Halfway folding bike.

I was back in the store a few weeks ago to get a minor part replaced, and Greg said I should post on the store’s FaceBook wall about my experiences. Since I don’t do FaceBook, I told him I’d write a blog post and get him the link. So, here it is!

Let’s start with the bike itself: The Giant Halfway is a folding bike that folds down to 32″x30″x14″ which is pretty close to as small as you’re going to get. When assembled, it feels like an adult version of a kids BMXish bike. The ride is nice and quick, and thanks to the small tires, it feels very responsive and nimble on turns. The bike seat is a standard bike seat, so the first few weeks hurt a bit as my doughy ass got used to it. The bike is only about 30 pounds, so its very easy for me to carry with one arm. It fits nicely into the trunk of my Ford Fusion with some room left over for other cargo.

The bike also comes with soft carrying case with a shoulder strap. Its good for storing the bike, but for my and my 5’7″ frame, its actually more cumbersome to carry in the bag. I’ve managed to rip a hole in the bag already where the seat meets the ground in the folded position. It happened about three weeks in, and it may be a combination of the bike not fully being on the reinforced bottom along with the gritty ground it was on, but I was disappointed that happened so fast. (And really, that’s been my only disappointment really.)

As I mentioned earlier, my main goal for this bike is for my commute. I take Metra Milwaukee District West Line from Bartlett to Union Station. Before I had the bike, to get from Union Station to work I would take either the Chicago Water Taxi or CTA Bus 121. My goal is to replace waiting for and then sitting on the vehicle for a total of 15 to 20 minutes with 10 minutes or so of exercise. And if gets me to/from work faster than the vehicles, all the better.

What one should do before they take a bike on the train is something I hadn’t done until I was writing this, review Metra’s rules for taking bikes on the train. I took it on faith that the Spin Doctor people knew what they were talking about (and they did) but I still should have read it myself. Anyway, there is one specific rule that applies to the folding bikes:

16. Folding bicycles in protective covers are permitted on all trains at all times but should not block train aisles or doorways.

Reality has shown that you can often get away sometimes with it not being covered. In my experience it depends on who the conductor is and what their general mood is that day and how much they care. But by the letter of the law you need the bag. Experimentation has shown that if I drape a cover over it, they’ll let that pass, so I’m thinking about making a “quick-release” cover for it since I want to be ready to ride when I hit downtown or I have to walk 2 blocks to my car in Bartlett.

The biggest trick I’ve learned is to just go to the handicap cars and try to get on either end of the 4 person bench or the two person bench. Those usually have enough room to sneak the bike in. At worst, you have to put it in front of you. As long as the aisle is clear and everyone else around you is comfortable, you’re usually left alone. I’ve been lucky enough to fit into those spaces, I haven’t yet had to come up with a backup plan for when I’m not there. In any case, though, those cars are your best bet.

When I hit downtown, I then walk to the Madison Ave exit of my platform and carry the bike up the long stairs. This is where the bike only weighting 30 pounds really pays off. If it was any heaver, I don’t think I’d really be able to make it up because I’m weak. Luckily, my children are around 30 pounds, so I’m used to it. If I had gotten the bike pre-children, I might have a tougher go. Doughy computer guy here, remember?

Once I hit the street I unfold the bike, snap on the helmet, and head off to work. The google map below has the route I take from the train to work and back again. Its only about 1.3 miles, but its 1.3 miles where I wasn’t exercising before.

Canal is a nice street because it has an official bike lane for most of it. Kinzie doesn’t a bike lane, but is known to be a bike friendly route. Usually in the morning on Kinzie if I’m stopped at a light, I’m usually one of at least 5 bikes waiting to go, if that doesn’t say its the way to go, I’m not sure what is.

View Morning Bike Route in a larger map

Once I get to work, I go in via the loading dock, fold my bike up, and take the elevator up to my floor. I keep the bike in my office as I’ve got space to do so, and its also makes a nice conversation piece.

Due to travel, weather, and some other misc. stuffas, I’ve been averaging about 4 days a week riding the bike in. I’ve been doing it for 5 weeks or so now, which tells me I must like it to be keeping it up like this.

On days when I don’t have to drop the kids off I also bike from home to the train station. That gives me another 2 miles in the morning and evening. Again, a small distance, but exercise and fun riding.

All in all, I’ve been terrifically happy with the bike and with biking to work. I’m getting to work earlier then I would have, I’m a bit more awake from the brief exercise, and I’m feeling better over all. A win all around.

In looking at how little I blog at times, those bookmarks were often the only thing making my feed grow. I also can’t get much feedback on those links in how it works. So in thinking about how I want to present myself and my site online, I’ve decided to separate the tags back out.

For all zero of you who want to follow my bookmarks just follow the feed from my delicious feed.

This meme requires me to share seven facts about myself.  The hard part about this will be coming up with 7 facts that will be interesting to people not me.

1. I too often accept things the way they are. This description will be mostly slanted in looking at myself as a pogrammer, but this is where I can identify it best.  On a day to day basis this acceptance often makes me feel stifiled in creativity due to my lack of skill in identifying problems.  I can come up with great and creative solutions, but actually finding the interesting problems to solve if difficult because I accept that’s how things are, and don’t find shortcuts/solutions/whatever to make them better.  Eric Raymond described that as the “itch” that drives programmers to create…  As a programmer, I’m not itchy enough.
2. Beer snob: I iz one. To anyone who’s been reading this blog or watching my twitter feed this is not news.  Part of the blame lies with Jon Roma who introduced me to the good stuff first when I started drinking.  I never went down the good old fashion macrobrew route.  I’ve learned to tolerate the macrobrews so I can drink beer at ball games or social events when something better isn’t available, but its rough going.  I’m no Charlie the Beer Guy, but I’m working on being on his level.  I’m just too lazy right now to take up my own brewing.  Maybe once the kids are older.  In any case, give me a Duvel, something from Stone, Goose Island, etc.  Don’t offer me anything named Bud, Miller, etc.
   Bonus fact 2.5:  I didn’t start drinking until I was in my junior year of college at age 20.  Given that when most people think of me they think of beer, this is probably a surprising fact.
3. At heart, I’m a Geek’s geek and I’ve come to accept it. A few months ago, I finally accepted If there is a stereotype for being a geek, I probably fit it.  Again, not news for those who have been playing along at home for awhile.  There are exceptions, but all in all, I’m a geek.  I full embrace the geekiness and let it wash over me.  There are much worse ways to view yourself so it works for me.  (Notable exception: I have never played any desktop roleplaying type games such as D&D.  Not sure why that never happened, but it didn’t.)
4. Needles piercing my skin send me into panic attacks. Its weird, I don’t mind blood, I don’t mind seeing myself cut, and I don’t mind looking at needles, but knowing one is about to pierce my skin turns me into a sweaty little girl.  It doesn’t matter if its the dentist, a lab tech taking blood, or whatever, I get tense and sweaty.  When having blood drawn I’ve learned to mitigate the effects by getting them to take it while I’m lying down, but that’s about it.  If I’m sitting up, I’ll pass out.  Its probably an anticipating thing, but I’m okay when I get cut when doing yard work or making dinner or something like that, but know I’m about to get a needle stuck in just puts me over.  I’m not sure what the deal is.  I guess the good news is that this is yet another sign that I’ll never get addicted to heroin.
5. I hate small talk. I just can’t stand it.  It could be that I’m just not very good at it and that’s why I don’t like it, but the whole idle chit chat thing does nothing for me.  I’m good and I look forward to actually connecting with people and having deeper discussions, but if I have nothing in common with someone, its very painful for me to try to force the small talk.  I am faced with the slight challenge of how do you know if you have something in common with someone without having the small talk, but there are ways around that and I get by okay so I don’t worry too much about it.
6. I love presenting and educating if I know the material and/or have a story to tell with it.  One of the great things about my old job and my still-employeer was that on a more than monthly basis I was giving presentations to our members on subject matter I had down cold.  Once I know the “story” I want to tell to educate others I love putting the presentations together, guiding discussions around the material, and generally helping people see the light.  Nothing made me feel better than to see the look of realization and/or understanding on someone’s face.  Or the look of horror once someone realized that they’d have to change their ways to make something work for them, but that’s a different story…  Either way, it means the message got across.  Someone would say this somewhat contradicts #3, as geeks aren’t well known for being showman, but I’ve always had a bit of an extroverted streak in me.  I guess I’m only extroverted in the right circumstances…
7. I watch way too much TV and my reading and video game playing suffer due to it.  Part of it is the young kids and the job that just leave me energyless at the end of the day, some of it is I just really like good TV.  Heck, I probably like shitty TV too, but I try to keep it on the good side with things Battlestar Galactica, CSI, and Lost.  But I do have the mindless popcorn like Eureka and How I Met Your Mother.  I’m not sure where to put Heroes on the scale these days, but I think its falling in mindless popcorn.  I still love to read, but I manage to only really do it on the commuter train or just before bed as long as Sarah is okay with me leaving the light on.  The video games, those have really suffered, but I’m trying to make up for it now.

Bonus fact so that I cannot be accused of ignoring my wife: I was asking Sarah for some ideas for this post, and she gave me “I like to uphold family traditions.“  I don’t really see that in my indentity when I think about myself, but looking at past actions and what I like to do with the kids, I can agree with this.  From eating under the tree at Field’s Macy’s at Christmas time to vacations in the same spots I went as a kid, this certainly appears to be true.

Okay, so next up I have to call out seven people:

• Jason Lindquist, because I know Linky will have something good
• Dan Woolley, if only because he’s been neglicting Tzetze Fly while in start up mode
• Saul Pwanson, again due to blog neglect
• Byron Faber, because I’m really curious as to what he’ll come up with
• Jon Roma, because he was named in this post
• Heather Norton, cuz she’s a meme magnet
• Mark Notarus, if only because this will annoy him

To quote Evo who tagged me: “I subscribe to all of your blogs, so I’ll know if you didn’t do it…”

Oh yeah, the rules part:  Do not talk about meme club…er.. wait

1. Link your original tagger(s) and list these rules in your post.
2. Share seven facts about yourself in the post.
3. Tag seven people at the end of your post by leaving their names and the links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they’ve been tagged.

If you look at this image closely, you’ll see the size for this costume is for 8 to 10 year olds.  And maybe I’m just become a grumpy old man, but should an 8 to 10 year old really be dressing as a pimp?  Don’t get me wrong, my pimp hand is strong, but I am not 8 to 10 years old.