Thanks! On the B/W vs. color versions -- I'm torn as to which I like better, which is (1) why I fiddled with making some B/W, to see what I got, and (2) why I posted both color and B/W of the same photos.

The more photos I take, the more I'm reminded that cropping is your friend, in the sense of less-is-more/focus on a small area, not a large area. (Except, of course, when you want a large open vista, and then cropping is of the devil.)

Was it as icy on the ground?

Nothing on the ground -- the tree/shrub is in a sheltered area (possibly under the neighbor's drippy gutters), so the low temps froze the ice in that area but nothing was on the ground.

God doesn't choose people's destinies; they use their free will to accept grace or not, and he just knows about it ahead of time

Interesting.

{{{brenda}}} {{{Lu}}} Decisions like this are the hardest, most heartbreaking part of having a pet. She's lucky to have you, your love and kindness, and you're both so fortunate to have had each other all these years--but this still sucks, brutally. I'm so sorry, and I'm vibing all possible peace to you and Lu.

ita, I'm glad you've got less pain and more range of motion; you still deserve more and more and more bodily goodness, but that's not bad for a start.

And now I'm crawling off to the couch to zone out in front of Totoro. A full day of circus class and following Matilda up and down eleventy-billion flights of stairs all over Golden Gate Park has frazzled me out. Time to stare stupidly at a Zen cartoon and munch cheesy poofs.

See, to me, the B/W don't seem grim so much as they almost seem surreal. They're an accurate representation of what they are, but at the same time, the lack of color lets the eye interpret it in multiple ways, I think.

Plus- whore for B/W pics.

And ION, I believe this would be called "Karma, she is a big bitch."

Somali pirates drown as they flee with ransom

Somali pirates drown as they flee with ransom

My reaction to that story was "Poor baby." The version I read seemed to make a point of repeating the identification of the dead as "pirate", as if to say "Yeah, some folks died at sea. Pity about the PIRACY and the fact they were escaping with the booty from PIRACY and that they were running away from PIRATE patrols."

Though I'm wondering how many reporters are still giggling discreetly and going "Arr" to themselves.

Love the pics, Teppy.

I have a new hair color. [link] I like it, but it is much darker.

(There are also pictures of Ozzie doing his YED impression)

ita, I'm pleased for you at the improvement. May it continue.

I like the B/W version, too, Teppy. We used to have a fairly expensive SLR with a fabulous standard lens, plus telephoto, and we took some awesome pictures with it. But it required knowledge and much trial and error, and the great shots were usually happy accidents in the middle of a roll of drek. The digital has made decent pictures attainable for me. Digital plus Photoshop? I'm a GEEnyus photographer.

Just for contrast, over the holidays I took duplicate shots of things with and without flash. The ones without came up uniformly dark, until I played with the brightness and contrast, and then they were so.much.better than the flash versions. More detail, more realistic color and shadow, and without that whiteout effect flash often gives.

I have been an adult all day! With the cleaning. And the laundry. And the paperwork. And trudging through the snowpocalypse to take out the garbage.

I think that means I get to make bacon and eggs for dinner and watch movies all night.

I have to pee, but I don't want to miss the dinner reservations lady. That's the extent of my current difficulties.... eta: problem solved....

I have to tidy up the place. Polgara is coming for dinner, I made beef stew in the crock pot and some sort of apple tart concoction I think may turn out like crap which is in the oven, now.

I filled out a mountain of paperwork for tomorrow. Kristen and I are trying to adopt a dog. Her name is Mona, and she's about three years old. She's some sort of Doxie mix with floppy ears and huge brown eyes.

She's visiting another family before us, and Mona goes to whichever family she likes the best. I have no idea how I'll feel about getting rejected by a shelter dog.

She was dropped at a shelter, pregnant. She and the pups were going to be euthanized, but apparently her disposition was so sweet they thought she would be a good candidate for adoption.

I'm hoping she digs us, we'd really love to give her a good home.