Photos taken by Ms. Jen with a Nokia N97.

Tues 03.02.10 - Photo taken on my morning walk with Scruffy McDoglet, the sky was heavy with storm clouds over the land, but clearing up out near Catalina Island, so if you look closely the big, tall automobile carrier ship out in the bay has sunlight glinting off of it.

Photo by Ms. Jen with a Nokia N97.

Sun 02.07.10 - For some folks this may have been the day of men in lots of plastic armor running up against each other in some sort of bowl type object, for other folks, particularly the ones in Southern California today was a truly lovely, sunny, clear day after another good rain storm.

As the first Sunday in February, today did a very good job in the sunny, kinda warm, but lots of flowers department. The local ornamental pear trees have been blooming for the last week and they are in full bloom now.

As for the men in plastic armor assaulting each other today for some sort of trophy, well, I am sure some of them won and others did not. I didn't watch them. Instead, I walked the dogs, went to the Long Beach Marina farmers market, took photos, baked a chicken and some root vegetables, and otherwise enjoyed a fine fine Sunday.

I owe y'all my wrap up post about the Nokia Booklet 3G, which I can summarize here: Ubuntu works as a dual book when installed via Wubi, although as of right now, the proper screen resolution does not work reliably; I tried to install Jolicloud last week but it would never download all the way but would stall about 1/4 into the download; and last but not least, I actually found a use for the Windows side of the Booklet, which was to update various Nokia devices with Ovi Suite, until Ovi Suite decided to go dicey on me and stop.

Tomorrow is a big work day but after I have tied up all the little code ends for the final client wrap up on Tuesday, I hope to do a proper write up about the Booklet Day 14.

1.43 inches of rain in less than half a day. Tornado warning. Sirens, emergency announcements. Flooding of Electric Ave. Tornado touches down 1 mile south at PCH and Anderson Street. Storm moves southeast quickly. Big winds, waves, and sun in wake.

I will let the video I took with the Nokia N97 tell the story. The first two were taken around 8am this morning on the berm in the southern most part of the Seal Beach. The second two while the emergency sirens were going off at 12:52 - 1:02pm, Electric Ave was flooding, and the tornado/waterspout was coming ashore. The thrid two were in the 3pm hour after the crazy clouds had moved out.

Photo taken by Ms. Jen with a Nokia N97.

Wed 01.06.09 - Merry Christmas to the folks who celebrate it today as a apart of the Orthodox tradition. Happy Epiphany to others. Happy I am Overwhelmed with Work Day to me.

The Week 1 of the Project52 post coming tomorrow, still doing a bit of research to make sure my info is correct.

Photos taken by Ms. Jen on Sat 01.02.10 with a Nokia N97.

Sat 01.02.09 - The thing that is either most wonderful or most baffling about Southern California, 32º to 35º latitude north, is that we don't really have a real winter, but in the time period of December and January when the rest of the northern hemisphere is socked in with snow and cold, we are having a mixed fall | spring.

January in SoCal has some trees are still shedding their yellow and red leaves just as some trees, bushes and flowers are just starting their spring blooming cycle. For years, I found this maddening, as I wanted a real fall with a real winter and then after time a real spring, not all three mashed up layered over each other in a course of 4-6 weeks.

This day after New Years Day trip to the Huntington with Erika and Julie Wanda showed me again, through the lens of the Nikon, how delightful the overlapping of autumn and spring can be when experienced in California's mixed up mediterranean climate.

Photo taken by Ms. Jen with a Nokia N97.

Tues 12.29.09 - Otherwise entitled, "The Tide is High, and I'm Gonna...".

Sun 12.27.09 - While I continue to work away in on a web app, I offer to you a video from this morning's walk. Yes, I am as tired and stuffed up as I sound in the video.

Happy end of Christmas weekend, I hope you had a restful and lovely one.

Winter Solstice, where the Northern Hemisphere has the longest night and shortest day of the year, happened today at 9:47am PST / 17:47 UTC.

Today ushers in my favorite season of the year: Winter.

I love it. I love the chill. I love being outside at night while snow is falling. I love skiing. I love walking in the winter. I love wearing more clothes. I love the lack of sun and heat. Love it.

My greatest disappointment in living in Southern California is the lack of snow.

I realize that the reason that everyone else, all the other 16-19 million folks who share this metro area with me, lives here is the utter lack of the snow. Saturday's weather is the real reason they live here: 80F at the beach.

I can have my fantasies. Yes, I can. The last few days I have watching my European, British, and East Coast friends' Flickrstreams for photos of snow falling in the night.

Here are a few of the truly lovely winter scenes from various locales that are not SoCal from the last 48 or so hours:

All photos from friends on Flickr, please click on the photo for the larger version.

Wed 12.09.09 - The surf swell that hit Hawaii's north shores early this week has migrated to California beaches today and will be bigger tomorrow. I went out this morning to try and take photos/video, but as you can see, no one should allow me to video before my morning caffeine... ;o)

In case you are wondering, I have had kinetic Essential Tremor since I was 13 and I rarely notice my hands shaking but others do and so does my video camera. Oops.

Photos taken by Ms. Jen with a Nikon D70s.

Tues 11.24.09 - How close can I get to my front stoop climbing rose with Thomas's Nikon D70 with a Nikkor 50mm f1.8 lens set at 1.8 f-stop before I loose all focus? That was today's experiment: how to balance up close while keeping a small area of focus and getting a lovely bokeh in the rest of the frame.

Turned out nice and dreamy.

Photo of Earl and the wild pig prosciutto taken by Ms. Jen with a Nokia N97.

Fri 11.20.09 - Today, neighbor Earl and I decided it was time to take down one of the two pig legs that have been hanging to cure in his garage to see if they were ready to be eaten yet. Earl was the guinea pig to see if it was good and not moldy/botulism-y/etc and he determined it was ready to be eaten without harm, the point that his sister and friend both had slices.

My brother and his friends went hunting up at Tejon Ranch in February of 2009 and bagged two wild pigs*. I requested and received two of the legs so that I could see if I could make prosciutto.

Wild, organic, slow food experiment = successful.

I plan on taking the other leg down around Christmas time.

*****

* Wild pigs or boars in North America are not native, but are escapees from farms. Most of California's boar / wild pig population are domestic pigs that escaped from Central Valley farms from the 1880s -1920s. Unfortunately, they are a menace to wild landscapes and are environmentally unsound to native ecosystems, so California has a 365 day 24/7 hunting season open on wild pigs to help restore the native wild space and keep the pig population down.

Photo by Ms. Jen with a Nokia N97.

Thur 11.18.09 - Now that the hot, dry SoCal summer (July - Oct) is behind us, the roses are in full busting out all over bloom. Southern California has two good growing seasons, one from February to June and the other from October to December, and if you are within a few miles of the ocean December and January are very kind to one's plants. Go a few miles inland and there will be the occasional frost in December that will piss off the basil and flowers. Go many miles inland and Nov. 15th to Feb. 15th is frost time.

Here in Seal Beach, where we are on the Pacific Ocean, the local roses, camellias, and other spring flowers like pansies, violets, and snap dragons are having their second big bloom of the year after being seared into non-blooming compliance during the hot, dry months.

From now, mid-late November, until April are my favorite months of the year in SoCal. From late April to early November, I would rather live quite a bit north of here, like the 50-54th parallel line. ;o)

Photo taken by Ms. Jen with a Nokia N97.

Sat 11.07.09 - To all of you who know me in person, know that my car's license plate is BLKPHBE and that my Prius' name is 'Black Phoebe'. Not named after this website, but named after the bird that this website is named after.

For those of you who don't know me in person, or who don't know about my lifelong passion for native song birds, here are some reference pages on my all time favorite SoCal bird, the black phoebe:

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/black_phoebe/id
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Phoebe
http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i4580id.html

Why does this come up today? Because recently I had the third comment where someone who doesn't know me or a neighbor who I only know in passing has said, "Black Phobe? What are you racist?"

The first time someone asked this I was so surprised. Each of the three times it has happened I have said, "No, it is black phoebe, it is a local bird." I then go on to describe a black phoebe and its habits, some of which are very unique to flycatchers. The first two inquirers knew exactly what bird it was and were a more than a bit baffled that I would name my car after a bird. The third one, a retired neighbor, asked a couple of days ago and kept asking me to describe the bird, as it was obvious he didn't believe me.

I find this baffling. Why would I have a license plate named 'black phobe'?

Photos taken today by Ms. Jen with a Nokia N97 camera phone.

Wed 11.04.09 - Today I am combining my photo post with my text post, as I have received a trial Nokia N97 from WOM World to be an alpha tester for the new Carl Zeiss mobile application. Given that there is no Lifeblog on the N97 and I have been working deep in the PHP Salt Mines, I have not had time to set up the trial N97 for moblogging, so today's photos were uploaded from my MT install.

As I stated yesterday, I repent of most of what I said in my March & August reviews of the Nokia n97, as the recent October firmware update has solved about 98% of my complaints. It is now a device that is fun to use and is not a struggle, this is the version that should have been released back in July, not three months later as an update.

Upon receiving the Nokia N97 yesterday, I was able to set it up about 80% to my satisfaction within the first 15 minutes. I did not attempt to set up moblogging or email, as setting up a POP email account is what made my blood pressure raise so high in July. Today, I did install the Gmail app very quickly, but have not installed PixelPipe* to Share Online.

What I am most satisfied with the new N97 firmware is the to the responsiveness of the touchscreen - fast scrolling / flicking - w00t!, and more refined camera functionality. Scrolling/flicking aside, it is the ability of the camera to now get clear, sharp shots, close-ups, and good color that makes me happy.

The last two days the inland parts of the greater LA area have been quite warm but at the beach we have had pea soup fog most of the day. When I went to walk the dogs this morning the fog made visibility low and all surfaces wet. Even though the air was gray & murky with water droplets, the Nokia N97 was able to take a good photo of the building of the annual winter sand berm.

As we ended our walk, I noticed an unusual worm with a flat triangle head crossing the sidewalk, I was able to crouch down, set the Nokia N97 to close-up mode and get the camera lens within 5 inches of the worm and still get a good, clear shot of the worm, its colors, and bizarre head. Before the October firmware update, I would not have been able to get the clarity and sharpness of the worm at 5-6 inches away.

More on the Carl Zeiss app tomorrow.

-----
* PixelPipe, please release a stand-alone app for Symbian that is like your delicious PixelPipe Pro for Android.

Photo of taken by Ms. Jen on 10.31.09 with her Nokia N95.

Sun 11.01.09 - Ruben McChancey in his Dias de Los Muertos outfit last night at Alex's Halloween Party.

Photo by Ms. Jen with her Nokia N95.

Sat 10.24.09 - The best part of today was hearing the rumor from Terri Callis and Bird that a PIG has moved into the neighborhood and then walking over to meet him. Bubba is amazing. His family is also super cool and talked to us for about 20 minutes answering all of Terri and I's questions about Bubba living at the beach in an apartment with a small yard. Both Terri and I were completely smitten and I think her next pet is a micro-pig*.

Apparently, Bubba's family got him before then moved into their apartment, which is less than a block from the beach, and when they told their future landlord that they had a 120 lb Alastian Shepherd dog and a pig, the landlord was thrilled about a pig.

Bubba is cute, smart, charming, and well-trained. He was apparently very easy to train to a leash & harness, he takes regular baths, sleeps in bed with his family, and came potty trained (has his own spot in the yard). Bubba is a vegetarian and eats sparingly so that he does not get fat or slows down. He also no longer needs his leash and harness but follows his family around town as they walk the dog.

I am also smitten with Bubba.

I love the idea of a pig as a pet and not just a farm animal. I love the idea of nature in the city. I love the fact that we have raccoons, rabbits, and coyotes in our neighborhood, not a neighborhood on the verge of the hills or wild lands, but a neighborhood bounded by a big city to the north (Long Beach and then LA), a big ocean to the west (the Pacific), and a big Naval Station with wetlands and open space to the east and south (Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station). It reminds me of the band that named themselves, "I See Hawks in LA."

If you are also smitten and your landlord doesn't mind a cute, smart, clean small pet, the nice folk at Ham and Eggs Ranch in Norco can possibly help you out with one of Bubba's brothers or sisters.

* Micro pot bellied pigs are less than 35 lbs at full, adult growth.

Photo taken by Ms. Jen with her Nokia N95.

Wed 09.09.09 - Photo of Billy Burke's barber station taken at Salon Pop and Barber Shop in Long Beach.

Photo taken by Ms. Jen with her Nokia N95.

Mon 08.31.09 - That mushroom cloud is not a thunderhead, nor is it an atomic cloud, but is the singular cloud of the Station Fire as seen from the distance in Huntington Beach.

If anyone needs a really smart, bright, idea factory of a designer/developer and you have a job open in London or North Europe, please let me know.

Really. I don't deal with Southern California late summer / early autumn's well. Too. Damned. Hot.

My ideal temperatures are between -5-15C (25-60F). Please someone help me, I will trade you my spot in all too sunny & hot SoCal for your spot in London or the like.

97F in Tustin on Thursday. 95F at the 405 fwy & Seal Beach Blvd. 88F at the beach near my house. Yesterday and today similar. Also tomorrow.

((o.O))

Photo taken by Ms. Jen with her Nokia N95.

Wed 08.26.09 - A fun summer beach bonfire with the Channel Three folk and friends at Bolsa Chica State Beach.

Photo taken by Ms. Jen with her Nokia N95.

Mon 08.03.09 - Also, two sets of Mom and Baby dolphins were seen frolicking in the waves.

A few months ago, I was talking to Nicole at Salon Pop about the recession and I asked her what she thought we should be doing.

"Frequent local businesses," was Nicole's reply. And she is right. So, in the spirit of supporting local small businesses, I am going to start an occasional series here called "Local Places I Like". This will be my opinion about places I frequent. This series will not be supported nor will I receive free goods and services to write about local places, but merely me talking about local businesses I like.

As I have written about before, I have a migraine problem. They are usually triggered by mistaken ingestion of food I am allergic to, or sleeping on my neck wrong, or by fluorescent lights, or a combo thereof. Usually when I migraine arrives, I write a tweet to the effect of "Le Sigh," take some of migraine meds, put myself to bed with my eye mask on and pray that I am not still there two days later.

A few times, after the migraine is over and when my neck/back has seized up, I go and get a massage at Wellsprings to help release the tension and not have a repeat migraine. This usually is a great help.

Last Friday, while at Dog Beach watching the Big Waves, I noticed that my neck was stiff and not really turning well. When I turned it too fast, I would get a shooting headache pain. Oh oh.

I woke up on Saturday morning with the "Oh, shit, not again" feeling as my neck was in a lot of pain, I had a burning sensation on the right side of my throat, and the right side of my face was in pain. I made it to about noon and it became obvious that I really needed to put my self to bed with my eye mask and meds, when my Mom suggested that I go get a massage at my massage place. I didn't think I could get in so fast on a Saturday, but called at my Mom's urging.

Wellsprings was able to fit me in at 2:30pm that day with massage therapist, Sheila Laughlin. What a blessing. Sheila asked some really good questions before she started and I honestly told her that I was trying to fend off the onset of a full migraine due to neck and back stiffness. She did a miracle modified Swedish massage on my face, head, neck and back that loosed up my muscles. By the time I left an hour later, I felt about half way better with much looser muscles, within another hour all the migraine onset pain was gone and I felt almost all the way better.

Big thanks to Sheila and Wellsprings!

Wellsprings
550 Pacific Coast Hwy # 207,
Seal Beach, CA‎90740
562-594-1158‎

Wed 07.15.09 - Photo by Sue Hahn (aka My Mom) with my Nokia N95. It was dreadfully hot in Bishop (97F/36C) and so we went up to about 8,000ft/2,438m to the DWP's Bishop Creek Intake #1 Pond which is used to store water for the hydropower dam. The pond is stocked with trout and there were quite a few fishermen wandering around the lake in their blow up fishing intertubes. We were the only non-fisherfolk enjoying the lake.

Scruffy enjoyed his kayak ride. I was afraid he was going to try and jump out and I would have to capsize the kayak to get him back, but instead he was very calm and seemed to have fun.

Tomorrow starts the Bishop Livestock Fair & Auction, which is why I came. My Mom and I hope to come away with two pigs (organic), 1/2 a grass fed steer, and 2 grass fed lambs to deep freeze and have as our meat for the year. I also plan to make one more prosciutto, some pancetta, and a bit of sausage.