A List of Stuff I'm Planning to Blog About...

... but not sure if I'll find time to make room for all of them.  Lol!  Why not one might ask? Well I've the following reasons.. or excuses.. Lol!

• I hate having to use Instagram each time and make it easier to post online.  I think I'm still the traditional photo blogger in that I want original copies of the images I shot then decide which media they get published on eventually, if they ever do.
• Because of the above, I still use either my smartphone, or my real camera to get shots.  Which means I'd still have to select, then transfer them to my computer so I can blog about it here.  That takes time and effort.  And I find I haven't really much time nor energy for that anymore I find.  I find I enjoy doing other things more.
• I'm not a Facebook junkie. And don't really enjoy having things published in several different places online.  I don't have time nor patience for that I'm afraid.  That just makes my supposedly leisure time blogging become a chore.
• I thought I'd make blogging easier by having bought the iPhone 6 Plus tablet when it first came out but promptly lost it about a month after buying it.  There goes that plan.  I didn't turn on the Find My iPhone option too 'cause I kind of value my privacy or at least am trying to be as smart about it as possible.   That phone was just too big I can't easily stuff it in my pockets and so it wound up getting misplaced/or forgotten about taking it with me (after laying it down somewhere since I can't easily stuff it in my bag or pockets) more than once while I had it, until finally I totally lost the thing.  *sigh*  Oh well.

So given the above, I was hoping to blog about the following or at least publish them elsewhere online like in Facebook.. But not sure if I ever will get to do so.  Here goes the list:

Weekend Wildlife

 male hummingbird near the fig tree, blurred squirrel in the foreground

One spring weekend while in the country.... we wake up to these furry and feather-y friends as viewed from the patio doors from the breakfast table.

 squirrel munching on seeds

 those tiny little paws and the mad munching.. Lol!

 she couldn't get enough!  Lol!

 red feather-y buddy.. A groesbeek (sp?) on the fig tree

 seems to be looking at me, or the lens, curiously

Run - Row

the baby lion by the machine

Now it's getting colder, I got a rowing machine last month for those times when it's just too cold to go out to run.  I also find I am seated a lot while watching TV (of course) and that's not exactly improving my physical wellbeing. :P  Lol.

And so... I found using a rowing machine as the solution.  I found the treadmill boring at the gym (I am just bored or lazy going to gyms or any exercise class) but at least with a rowing machine it's an all-body workout, not just the lower half and I can do it at home.  And it exercises one's core including the lower back and is lower impact than running.  Awesome!

I got it online, had it delivered at work.  And friends helped me bring the package home.  Can't carry the thing by myself.  hehe!  I use it for an hour each night or whenever possible, while watching TV.  I'm loving my machine.

After Soo Long

Finally got a taste of real coconut fruit and juice again.  Had it for my drink at lunch in a Vietnamese restaurant, with colleagues .  The white coconut inside, well, back home's still better 'cause it's softer.  It cost about the same as a tall Starbucks drink.  Bien.

Olympus EM10 Unboxing and Test Shot

Just a few shots.. The package arrived: one EM10 body only, and one Zuiko 25mm f1.8 lens.  Pancake lens 14-42 mm to follow in May.  Gah.  Oh well.

the warranty card

my curious pet by the package

test shot of the Portrait scene, awesome!

The Rainbow Fish

I just got a new pet.  And it's kind of a spur of the moment purchase.  Lol.  A friend and I were out shopping and dropped by a pet store because my friend wants to have fish as pets.  I ended up going home with one for myself.

Meet Harry, my new pet fish.

 just splendid!

That's him in these pics, a male half moon betta splendens fish.  Because he was an unplanned purchase that day, I ended up having to buy a small aquarium for him right away too.  The little tank would be temporary.  If he lasts two months, I'll get him a better-sized tank with heater, a filter, and possibly some new companions like neon tetras.

He was just so cute when I saw him because he wasn't a dark blue nor a red-colored fish.  He's like a turquoise, teal, or indigo fish.  Sometimes blue.  Or whatever color the light reflects on him.  Actually, his color's like the rainbow's.  Lol!  So cool.  So don't forget to click on the pics to see them in lightbox format and larger too.

 

 Harry in turquoise

Harry in other colors

 

the rainbow fish

So now he's just in his little tank.  I'm planning on changing the stones in his tank.  I got a couple of turquoise and frosted white glass stones meant for vases.  I've now put him in the kitchen and away from sunlight.  He goes crazy with sunlight reflecting himself on his tank walls.  Like any betta fish, he flares his fins and becomes quite territorial seeing another like-sized fish in his domain, even if it's just a reflection of himself.  lol.  Decided not to stress out the poor thing the whole day so now he's in the kitchen where I go when I get up, getting ready for work and when I come home from work.

Harry in his little tank

Lazy Day Off - Outtakes

Some pics of other things going on while working on my DIY outdoor pallet bench.

an antique chairback more than 100 years old from which 

used to be my friend's grand-uncle's chair

 stripping paint off the chair reveals better the 

cool design on this wood

 foggy day!

Timmy's..  after buying some other materials for the bench

the housepets

 a sweet 'ol German Shepherd dog

Lazy Day Off - Kinda

Spent part of a chilly day off putting on the finishing touches to a DIY outdoor bench made of pallets that a friend built for me.

I've been wanting patio furniture for my balcony for the warm months but find patio furniture being sold here quite generic-looking or bulky or just not with the design I have in mind (especially a low-seater design), and if otherwise, quite expensive for sure.  You wouldn't believe how expensive they sell such things here.  And to think I took the outdoor bamboo furniture I got back home for granted when it's quite inexpensive compared with the prices of such things here.  They'd be surprised if they knew.  That'd fetch quite some amount here for sure.  'Cause it's pretty good and sturdy bamboo furniture.   *shakes head*  I certainly haven't seen bamboo furniture here of the likes made back in the Philippines.  And one of the chairs has become my pet dog's chair even. lol. 

I just wanted an outdoor seating solution where I can cozy up/put my feet up on the seat as well, with my laptop, or a book maybe, outdoors at a corner of the balcony. Since a side of my balcony faces a park and the front is open sky, not another building or structure, it'd be nice to hang out there in the evenings especially.

I thought I found the right bench at the right price while browsing through the Internet. But, while browsing the Internet, I also saw some DIY pallet benches I liked. Actually, I preferred. However, no one sees pallet benches sold quite commercially. Not very common. If it were, it'd be probably by a really expensive furniture/design store I expect. And it'd be probably cost at least slightly more than an Apple iPad mini or iPhone, that's if you're lucky enough to find one. So I thought I'd settle for the commercial one online. But made of plastic. =(

Anyway I showed it to a friend and he suggested a bench made of pallets. Well, what do you know! He and I are on the same wavelength. Lol. Didn't think I'd know someone else here, especially a guy, who's into design/art, too. Also, it turns out the commercial one's length is longer than the side corner of my balcony where I plan on placing the bench anyway so ultimately I can't buy that bench for that side of my balcony.

What's even better was, my friend works for a company that gets delivered goods on pallets. A-ha! So long story short, I gave him my specifics in terms of dimension and how low I wanted the bench and voila, got my bench now.

readying to spray outdoor/exterior wood stain on the bench

Happy New Year 2013!

Just got back from a new year's eve party. Foggy roads on the way home, and up to now outside my window. Wow. I like foggy nights. It just brings a different sort of mood. There's no snow tonight too. Just freezing temperature.

So foggy that my camera had difficulty focusing right away.

I like the effect though.

Classic Disney Christmas Toons

Lol!  I love these.  They're classic.

My fave Disney character is actually Donald Duck.  He's so funny.  And these videos below are among my favorite Disney cartoons.  Watched these in my childhood and glad to see them again online.






This is another of my Christmas favorites, Pluto's Christmas tree.





Those chipmunks are annoying. I love Pluto. Lol. 

Party Mode

Our team just had our annual little Christmas buffet dinner at the pantry last night. Loved the food and the Christmas cracker best of all.  It's my first time to have one!  And of course I wore the paper crown thingie.  hehe!

table top and a Christmas cracker

 my heaping plate beside my Christmas cracker and 

the little toy/spinning top I got from it

 

 my Christmas cracker and little candy cane

      

a funny little note from the cracker

I have about 4 more parties to go to this holiday season.  Gah!!!

I Love Fall

It's fall and I love it!  Love the weather, love the leaves, etc.  It's sunny but not humid.  It's breezy.  It's perfect!  Even bought a cute autumn wreath to decorate my hallway.  Hehe!

Plus there's so many good fall shows.  Some old ones are back and several new ones look promising.  There are so many I just don't have time to watch all of them.  These are the shows on my PVR:

• The Amazing Race
• Project Runway
• Revolution
• Elementary
• World Without End
• Revenge
• Grey's Anatomy
• Parenthood
• Last Resort
• Scandal
• 666 Park Avenue
• Once Upon a Time
• The Good Wife
• Survivor Philippines
• American Horror Story

More than a dozen shows!  Gosh.  Some shows I can put off watching 'til the winter I guess.  The ones I like watching best from the above?

• World Without End
• The Amazing Race
• Project Runway
• Elementary
• Parenthood
• The Good Wife
• Survivor Philippines - because it's set in beautiful Philippines.  Lol.
• American Horror Story

And the shows I'm anticipating to see:

• The Walking Dead
• Downton Abbey
• Homeland

Happy Thanksgiving!  Gotta get ready for a friend's thanksgiving dinner tonight.  Ciao!

No Wind, No Rain, No Winter Storm

 

Chauvet Cave, France

http://instagr.am/p/JRyIpTFfX4/

a montage of 32,000-year-old Paleolithic paintings in a cave in a France... 

And I thought Lascaux Cave was the only one. Amazing art on stone.

Filmed with permission by the French Ministry of Culture, by Werner Herzog - Cave of Forgotten Dreams.