That is, ergo, the lengths I will go to, to get internet access. Right now I’m sitting in the hospital parking lot (about to visit my dad) when I discovered I’m in a wifi hotspot. I’m sitting with the Macbook on my lap against the steering wheel. It’s hilarious.
Oh I’ll catch you all again when I have half a minute, and a DECENT Connection. This is driving me nuts. (Get it. Driving. Me nuts.)
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Yes, alas friends, here I sit enjoying hazelnut latte once again, and free wifi minutes.
Have I told you how much I LOATHE internet services in this country for being SO expensive. Worse than expensive they lock you into horrible 24 month contracts so once you’re on, you’re bloody STUCK. Ours is up in July, and of course we’re not signing up for anything new while we’re stuck on one, plus we’re certainly not still going to be here in 24 months time, so blech. Not sure where I was going with this, but anyway.
Here are some Christmassy photo edits to keep amused with. At least I amused myself with them, hope you enjoy them.
Here’s a pretty ordinary, if slightly out of focus shot of Skippy, holding Barney, in front of the Christmas Tree. So let’s work with it a little.
Whoa Christmas Tree Explosion! Sharpened up Skippy and Barney. But hmmm, that green blanket behind Skipmeister is annoying me…let’s just fiddle with that till it’s a little less obvious.
Okay, not the cleanest scoop out and remove I’ve ever done, but it’s do for now. Just looks like Skip has a toga of some sort on. Oh well. Kids. But…that Christmas tree thing. Somehow it’s not feeling right.
So I told Skippy he didn’t have to keep holding so still and could go off and play, and I hauled out my tri-pod and started experimenting.
I did the ‘very popular right now Christmas tree light bokeh’ thing that everyone is into right now.
So what the heck is Bokeh?
Well, you know when you focus on someone up close (usually with a very open aperture – anything below F4.0 is quite open) it gives you a nice blurry background? (That’s called bokeh)
Well that works a treat with Christmas tree lights. So I focussed my camera on something up close (my fingernails in this case) and remember my camera was on my tripod so I could do this easily.
Then you press your focus button down halfway, and now I can go absolutely wild and actually take my fingers out of the picture completely and I’m left with a full frame shot of beautiful blurry Christmas tree lights.
Taking these two shots into Photoshop, I simply cloned (copied) the big colourful bokeh into the background behind Skippy. Now while I admit it’s not the most realistic shot, it’s not meant to be, it’s just some Christmas time fun!
I just think that Skip looks like he’s posing for one of those royal portraits. Barney should just be a greyhound, and Skip just needs like one of those Shakespearean ruffle things around his neck and voila. Yes I’m an aquarian and my imagination is *way* into overdrive most of the time. If you don’t see what I’m saying, just go back to your chess game 
__________
Well, there may be major job losses out there in the market place, but geeks are destined to inherit the earth, because there seem to be no shortage of programmer jobs out there. At least that’s what I’m seeing when the hubby and I do our job searches overseas.
Anyhoo, hope everyone else out there is not having internet problems!
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As many of you know, I’ve been on this awesome internet quest to find ways to make money online.
Now if there’s one thing I absolutely LOATHE with a passion, it’s the type of thing you find all the time, where people promise you instant cash, or buy this and it’s our secret programme which is guaranteed to work etc. Hate it. Hate it. HATE IT. Why? Because it’s usually a load of CRAPOLA.
I have literally evaluated nearly 100′s marketing programmes and well, there are actually some pretty good ones out there.
I found one this morning that I really like. Now what does it have to be, in order for me to like it?
Well for starters it’s free. It’s available to South Africans, and it’s easy to use.
It’s also incentivises you to monetize your site, and if you make your first goal, they reward you with either cold hard cash, or a Canon DSLR, or say, an iPhone. HELLO MAMMA. Take a little look see at my cluster ads top right. There should be a 125×125 button advertising ringtones. That’s one of their ads. So if anyone in the US clicks that, and signs up for some awesome ring tones, it counts towards my total, and I get paid for it. They even have ads targeted at South Africa. LIke this one, for example.
See? A local alternative! I’m so sick of programmes that are only targeted overseas. I mean heck, SA has bloggers too right?
The cool thing with this one particular programme, is that not only do they pay you for advertising for them (there are varying degrees of what is required – ie sometimes it’s a pay per click (on ad) or sometimes the ‘clicker’ is required to sign up for an offer etc.
Of course any internet marketing offer would not be complete without it’s own affiliate programme. For example, I’m advertising their services to you – as well as displaying ads from their huge pool of available offers, if any of YOU wish to sign up to display ads (remember it’s totally free, easy to use, and all you have to do is copy and paste code from their website into yours) you are in complete control of what you display and when.
I mean how hard would it be to stick a small button at the end of a post? I mean seriously? If it could make you some money? Really? Why would you NOT do it? The buttons can be as small as…
There are even options for each advertising opportunity, for the appearance of the button, so you can pick one to match the look and feel of your blog.
If you’re interested in a truly great opportunity to monetize your blog then this is one not to be missed.
Go and check out NET PARTNER and don’t forget to tell them I sent you!
Remember money earned online, could pay for an education online!
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Hey there everyone. Can you tell I’ve been trying to post more photographs? I just decided that my blog would actually be more interesting to folks if I had something for them to look at, as well as read. Because, well gosh darn it, my writing skills can’t be *that* gripping all the time!
This was a photo I took about two weeks ago, when it was MIL and FIL’s last day and we visited that Wine Estate. This was Skippy standing in the river, at that point checking out his feet under water, but we’d gone down to the waters edge to check out the ducks. At least the ducks that were swimming serenely on the waters, and not the aggressive ones, raiding the peaceful picnickers!
Hubby was standing just out of my shot (to the left of the photo) having just been admonished by me to “Make sure you stay close by! You need to grab him in case there’s a flash flood! Watch out make sure he doesn’t trip and fall into deeper, faster moving water!! But Keep your arm out of my shot!”
I’m helpful like that.
It was also a great opportunity to play with my new polarizing filter. FIL bought it for me just before they came out from the UK, and frankly I’ve always wanted one, and just never ‘splurged’. They’re best utilized with water shots, and cloudy, sky shots. Amazingly, this may well have been the first well and truly thoughtful gifts that MIL and FIL have ever bought. They are *notoriously* bizarre gift givers.
Look mom! A duck!
Honestly, having never used one before I can’t describe the effects of opening and closing it – but I can show you! I’ll still look at it more in depth, and do a proper post on (use mega voice) “THE MERITS OF THE POLARIZING FILTER”, but for now, I’m happy just to share photos. See just by reading that you already know that polarizing filters can be adjusted to ‘more’ or ‘less’. (OO!) – Awed reverence.
Shot number one – with the filter turned all the way one way (see I can’t even tell you which way yet because with 2 kid under three in my house, I don’t get to do *any* kind of research on topics that interest ME.
Here ducky ducky ducky.
Hey is that a goose?
IS THERE AN ORNITHOLOGIST IN THE HOUSE?
…and shot number two…
Clearly we can see that the filter has the greatest effect on the water, or rather the appearance of the water, the level of glare and reflection. Which one you prefer, naturally is up to you.
I reckon that this filter would be absolutely ACE in capturing a beautiful sunset over the sea – with out getting that nasty glare blaring out your shot. Or a shot of some beautiful thunderclouds, with the sun behind it – so that you get that incredible silver lining effect. As you know – I’m all about the silver linings!
Lastly, I thought I’d mention that I’ve added a basic edge burn to all these photos. There seems to be some controversy raging (pfft, I just said ‘raging’ whilst referring to a photographic technique) in photography circles about the use of the ‘edge burn’ or the ‘vignette’ as it is sometimes called. The reason for this is that the purists say it is merely reproducing a technique that was considered a fault in older cameras, and that unless a shot is actually taken with an older camera it is to be considered undesirable. BAH! (I say in the style of Dogbert!)
I personally can’t get enough of it. I feel like it helps to frame my compositions beautifully. It doesn’t have to be heavy handed, sometimes it can be done so subtly that you hardly notice it’s there. Maybe in a year I’ll look back and say to myself, “Hee hee, look how my photography as developed, and (snigger) – oh yes there was that time I was *so* into edge burns! Then laugh it off the way I do when I look back at photographs of myself taken during the 80′s.
Hmmm, this post was fun! I think I’ll make a point of actually trying to post marginally helpful photographic stuff now and then, because gosh darn it (haven’t stopped saying stuff like that since I became acquainted with a certain politician called Sarah Palin) I like to share!
Okay, now I’m off to down some Slimquick Cleanse before another days eating commences – and then I’m going to swim in our sparkling blue pool, at 8h10am because it’s already Africa hot!
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The Eating.
At this time of year.
The stupid thought takes hold that it’s ‘okay to put whatever you want in your mouth because it doesn’t count at this time of year.’
I suppose the one way that we southern hemisphereans are lucky is that it’s also Summertime, so we tend to be outside a lot, kicking ball around, swimmng, playing swingball and it helps to keep the pounds off. Our family in itself doesn’t go the traditional route either. Rather, we enjoy a slighter lighter roast than turkey, a leg of lamb with mint sauce. Roast or baked potatoes (with criminal amounts of butter), peas and carrots. It is a simple, but colorful and delicious meal.
Then of course there’s the ice cream. The chocolate. The Wine!
The ice cream is even eaten while sitting in the pool. Chocolate eaten pretty much anywhere and any time.
I joined a group on the net called Wii Fit Mommies, so that I can stay motivated on the Wii Fit that I’ve been doing so diligently the past two weeks (it totally works btw). It’s like the best diet pills ever! Knowing that I’m going to be weighed in the morning is also motivation to not go totally out of control. Or at least if I do, then I force myself to do an extra 10 minutes activities or more depending on how much I over indulged.
I just love the way it adds up your ‘time’ so you know exactly how much you’ve put in real exercise.
Anyway, the first chocolate (a small one – only 5 extra minutes of stepping) is calling!
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