Before the Internet, my international news and cultural information mainly arrived via shortwave radio. Back then, many global stations would send to listeners who asked stickers and other memorabilia. Few days ago, my wife dusted […]
Tag: teampixel
Gatto Basket
The folks over at Tuft + Paw saw my “Cats of University Heights” series and asked about my interest in some of their products and “to collaborate with you on a story. We have a talented team of cat behavior experts, designers, and engineers”. In looking over the outfit’s website, the understated designs of the feline furniture and accessories greatly appealed, but not the pricing, which I felt fell into a niche of well-to-do shoppers. Finally, on December 2nd, I seriously responded to founder Jackson Cunningham’s request (it has been a hectic autumn).
The $129, all-wool, Gatto Basket arrived this afternoon (my formal review, with tidbits about the company’s notorious beta tester, appears on BetaNews). Baskets are abundant inside our apartment. My wife loves them. As such, I unpacked the Gatto with great trepidation, wondering: “Why would any cat take to this?” We have so many others inside which our kitties can play, but for the most part neither does. A basket is a basket, right? Apparently, not. I plopped the thing onto the living room floor, and Cali settled inside quite nicely. Immediately, in fact, and she is finicky.
The Cats of University Heights: Stark
Meet Stark, who earns his (or her) nickname for my mood while writing (see next paragraph) and ambience of the Featured Image, which I captured using Google Pixel 3 XL on Nov. 18, 2018. The tiger tabby presented for portrait near where Monroe and North avenues meet. Vitals: f/1.8, ISO 58, 1/3906 sec, 4.44mm; 3:19 p.m. PST.
This post has the distinction of being my first composed using WordPress 5.0’s so-called Gutenberg editor. I’m not loving it, in the least. Compatibility and reliability top my list of blogging software priorities—and neither is consistent composing with the radically new WP incarnation, using a theme from a reliable designer that supports the new editor. Some other theme authors have sent email warnings recommending against Gutenberg, to which my webhost auto-updated this site middle of last week.
The Cats of University Heights: Tocino
On the morning of Nov. 1, 2018, as I approached Polk from Georgia, a lithe, tiger-tabby strutted up the sidewalk. I wasn’t the kitty’s interest, but a black-and-white shorthair looking out the window of a house. Unfortunately, there wasn’t enough interior light for a good shot of that animal. Even so, I chose the Featured Image because it’s the street shoot’s story: Tocino staring up at the unseen beastie inside. Vitals: f/1.8, ISO 73, 1/1020 sec, 4.44mm; 9:54 a.m. PDT.
The second portrait, taken two minutes earlier, captures Tocino at our first meeting, just before greeting and opportunity for me to read the name tag. Tocino is Spanish for bacon, and it is also a surname. Vitals: f/1.8, ISO 56, 1/903 sec, 4.44mm.
The Christmas House
A few years ago, when my daughter shared an apartment in Point Loma, Calif., I drove up Garrison on the way home from her neighborhood. Houses along the way decked out big time for Christmas, such that traffic snarled as drivers slowed to gawk, others searched for parking, and pedestrians admired the decorations. My wife and I visited the street this evening, previewing what’s expected to come. Only one house had spiffed up for the Holiday—and in unbelievably magnificent fashion. The Featured Image and three companions are but a glimpse of the fabulously adorned property.
I captured the set using Google Pixel 3 XL, which proved to be more than a low-light performer. It’s a charmer. I am rather surprised to see character and dimension in these quick snaps. I cropped all four 3:2 and straightened two, but did not otherwise edit. Vitals for the first: f/1.8, ISO 176, 1/24 sec, 4.4mm; 5:35 p.m. PST (about 55 minutes after sunset).
What a Pair
This portrait has a pleasing 3-dimensional quality that I would expect more from a professional camera than a smartphone. I shot the Featured Image, of our cats Cali and Neko, yesterday morning at 7:55 a.m. […]
I Sure Hope Santa Doesn’t Drink and Drive
I can’t fathom what terribly hidden, or overt, meaning this Christmas matchup conveys. Is it about bringing Holiday cheer, quite literally with intoxicating beverages? Will Santa bring good boys and girls—of legal drinking age—brew presents? […]
Happy Thanksgiving!
San Diegans welcomed Turkey Day (gobble, gobble) with much-needed rain overnight. Clouds threaten more downpour even now. This morning, I aborted two separate walks because of weather—but not before capturing a moment suitable to the […]
Fido Confections
Among the stereotypes that cling to Californians: Their love of—no obsession with—dogs. Take a peek into this window of a local dog bakery. I could understand meat pie. But cake? Welcome to SoCal, where residents primp tail-waggers and fawn incessantly over them. I am aghast how the fussy folk here let their beasts pee and poop everywhere. Sure, most dog walkers carry baggies to clean up the hard deposits. But the liquid soils sidewalks and anything along them; considering how rarely rain falls, this crap clinging to shoes and dust that becomes airborne can’t be healthy. So why in a state where residents also are lifestyle-profiled as being health-obsessed is there such contradiction?
In County cities Carlsbad, Del Mar, Encinitas, San Diego, Santee, and Solana Beach, there are about 162,000 licensed dogs, according to official statistics. Human population for the same locales is about 2.15 million, says the Department of Animal Services. FYI: San Diego Humane Society assumed responsibility for providing county animal services to these communities during second quarter of this year. If you’re local, and interested in domestic or wild beasties, SDH’s annual report is informative reading.
Don’t Fall Off!
More posting catch up: On Friday Oct. 19, 2018, Cali climbed up on the bathroom medicine cabinet—as she sometimes does. But on this evening, the Tortoiseshell put on a little show that I had to […]
Android Zombie
It’s catch-up time for small photos and, in some instances, accompanying stories. Many of them are weeks overdue, like arrival of Android Mini “Zombie Process“, a collectible released on Oct. 29, 2018 that I ordered […]
The Cats of University Heights: Serenity
During the same Nov. 4, 2018 afternoon that I encountered Usher, several blocks away, along Mission Avenue between Mississippi and Alabama, another Tuxedo presented for portrait. I shot the Featured Image, using Pixel 3 XL, at 3:57 p.m. PST. Vitals: f/1.8, ISO 55, 1/313 sec. 4.4mm. Serenity seems like the most appropriate nickname, and so it is given.
Two days earlier, the smartphone slipped from my fingers and fell face down on the sidewalk, shattering the screen. I got my first cellular handset more than 20 years ago, never once damaging one in any way. Until that fateful drop. As I write, due to a monumental Google Store screw up, the Pixel 3 XL has yet to be repaired or replaced.