From Behind the Camera

I found out at work today that our newest customer has requested bios and pictures of the project team. "Well, bummer," I thought, because we'd just had family pictures taken the night before for the church photo directory, and the photographer asked if we wanted individual photos of all of us, or just group shots. I thought, "school pictures are just around the corner, and I don't need a new picture of my husband for my desk..."

"Oh, we don't need any individual pictures," I said. "Not even of you and your husband?" asked the Helpful Photographer-slash-Sales Guy. "Oh, no. We'll be OK," I said, trying to be a little price-conscious. And self-conscious. Whoops. Is it a coincidence that the offer of a photo of myself and the need for a photo of myself are a day apart? I really need to start paying better attention to these signals.

Back at work, mulling over the idea of a head shot that's appropriate to share with a business prospect (even a customer!), I realized, I don't have any! At my first "real" job, the company put together a Who's Who book for employees - you received a book on your first day, with photos and trivial information about the other employees. New employees showed up at the photo studio a couple weeks after they started work, posed for a headshot, and a half-sheet photo/bio page was handed out to everyone about every quarter. A sizable expense, I'm sure, but a real nicety, especially for a new employee. I believe we'd talked about updating that photo book at some point during my tenure at that job, and even thought about putting it on the company Intranet. I believe we were hard-up for some content.

So, my last (first, and only) head shots are from 1994. It's one of my favorite pictures of me, but I don't match it anymore. Probably not a real option.

Back at my desk, I mentally flipped through recent pictures we'd taken - our trip to the Kennedy Space Center, the beach, DisneyWorld...what kind of impression would that give to this customer? I take a lot of vacations? I did toy with the idea of cropping the rest of the crew out of this picture and submitting this version of me. "I am out of this world!!" ;-)

But, this is also probably not appropriate for the customer. Other photos are of me making silly faces (those always seem to turn out better), or wearing silly hats. Again, probably not the right message to send to a business prospect. And really, to tell the truth, because I'm always behind the camera taking pictures of everyone else, there aren't that many pictures of me to pick from. Sigh.

So, this photo thing needs to go on my to-do list for the weekend. I'd do it tomorrow at work, but it's Wear Your Colors Day, so I'll be sporting my new UW shirt (a souvenir from the trip to Racine). I'll take in my camera. Maybe I can make it work. Go Big Red!

I'll keep you all posted with my progress.

Saturday Spring Cleaning

Well, I guess I can't call it Spring cleaning, because it's August. But, "August Cleaning" just doesn't roll off the tounge. ;-)

Today's cleaning was inspired by a) the fact that the house needs it and b) the impending visit from my parents and sister over Labor Day weekend. Plus, Kim's been asking if she can use the mop. This, mind you, is not a real mop she's interested in, but the Pledge floor care system - bottle of solution, absorbant scrubby pad that attaches to the bottom of their stick mop. Kind of the disposable razor version of a mop. So, she was asking about it, and I figured I'd let her try it out.

First off, of course, was all the pre-mopping stuff - sweeping, moving chairs, and so on. And while I was doing that, Kim was out investigating the mop and all its parts, chomping at the bit to start mopping. I finally swept up as much cat hair and cereal crumbles as I could, and got Kim set up to start mopping. Her favorite thing, the trigger on the mop handle that sprays the cleaning solution onto the floor. I've never had enough solution on the floor to make suds, but Kim got us there! Kate evidently got wind of the cleaning frenzy going on downstairs, and came down to check it out - she got a turn with the mop as well.

Here's the Bad Mommy part: I figured the kids had the mopping under control, and didn't want to stand over them making sure they got the whole floor. I figured I'd have to re-mop some parts anyway, especially after I saw Kim and the mop and the suds. So, I snuck off to work on the computer. (As part of last week's software search, I found my camera utilities, so I wanted to install them and fiddle. More on that in a minute...)

Next thing I know, Kim's in asking if we have any more stuff for the mop. "No," I said, "today we'll just mop the kitchen and back hall."

"No, Mom," she says. "We need more of the spray."

Yeah, that bottle was about half full, and the two girls managed to mop with all of it. I knew it would end this way. I was just hoping to get another 10 minutes out of it. Sigh.

Now, as promised, some of the results of my Bad Mommy Moments on the computer. On our trip to the Kennedy Space Center in May, I fiddled with the panorama setting on my camera. I couldn't ever put the panoramas together, because the software got eaten the last time we overhauled my computer. But, after finding the software CD, this is what I was able to put together:


Launch pad with Shuttle on the left, Vehicle Assembly Building on the right. And trees.




This shot shows both launch pads. And the tour bus. And Paul. Hi, Paul!

20 years plus one week

Well, it's been a little more than a week since my 20-year high school reunion. I'm glad I made the trip - it was great to catch up with my high school friends, and really interesting to go back to my hometown for the first time in almost 20 years. So much has changed, but so much has stayed the same - that applies to the people and the places, I think!

What was even more interesting, was sitting at our friends' dining room table last night, going through the list of must-haves for their high school senior! I knew Senior pictures had to be done early, but they also had the order form for the graduation announcements, party invitations, senior memory book and the cap and gown. Seems a little early for those things... oh, but the Senior Key and extra tassles, and engraved photo frames? Anybody still have theirs?

Side note - I don't think I had to purchase the gown - I think it was a rental? We did buy the cap and tassle - mine is still is in my cedar chest (which, after going through the archival material stashed in my yearbooks shouldn't surprise anyone), but I know if I'd had to buy the gown, I'd still have it. Case in point - my sister's graduation gown is still hanging in a closet at my parents' house (not quite 20 years later, but several moves later!! And it's a lovely shade of electric blue. Yikes!!).

Ok, for those that are curious - here's what I had stashed in my yearbooks: Graduation announcement, program from the graduation ceremony, my public library card, my permanent hall pass (bonus!!), all four years' worth of class schedules... Yeah. You'd be afraid to see what my house looks like. Where's that blog for living simply??

Sir Nils Olav the Penguin

Ok, this is funny!

High School Reunion - MasterCard version

Round trip airfare from Kentucky to Wisconsin: $250.00
One day plus 6 hours car rental: $150
(bonus: free upgrade to a Ford Mustang!!)

Two nights hotel: $150
Ticket to reunion: $65

Reuniting with BFFs from High School (you all know who you are!): Priceless!

And that's what reunions are all about! (No, not the Mustang! The BFF's!!)

Watering the Cat

Inspired partly by my brother-in-law's feline watering system (aka: fancy filtered water bowl), and partly by the grunge at the bottom of our cats' existing water bowl, I purchased a new watering system for the cats. It does not include a filter, but it does incorporate a pump, which leaves the water bubbling happily in the dish, instead of sitting there collecting dust. In their younger days, our cats enjoyed a fight with a drip from the sink faucet, so I figured if only for the entertainment value, a new bubbling water dish would be worth it.

The box arrived, and after a thorough inspection of the box and all it's claims, the girls and I unboxed and assembled the new water dish. Filled it up, waited for the water dish part to fill with water, and let it bubble. (Of course, both girls had to stick their fingers in the water and check out the bubbling. Hah!) One of the features that I liked when I chose this water system was the fact that the pump apparatus is not integrated into the water dish itself; there's about three feet of tubing between the pump and the dish, so the cats won't get freaked out by the humming of the electrical parts.

After the girls were in bed, the cats came out for the evening, and stopped by the kitchen for dinner and drinks. Well, I saw Buger downstairs checking things out - Dusty only operates under the cover of darkness. Anyway, Buger sat about a foot away from the bowl, staring at the bubbling water for a very long time. I don't know that she ever drank from the bowl, and I don't know if I'll ever catch her actually drinking. There is, however, proof that someone's been investigating - there are splashes all over the floor around the new bowl.

Next purchase: motion-activated low light spy camera. To see if the cats are drinking from the dish or just splashing.

First Day of School Photos

So, the girls started school last Friday. Really, it snuck up on all of us, because it was a really rough morning. Kim said she didn't sleep because her pillow fell out of bed. Kate did a better job getting ready - I think she was about to try and drive herself to school, she was so anxious to get on the road! Anyway, due to forces beyond our control, we did not get our acts together and get First Day of School Photos on Friday.

We did try to recapture the moment on Monday. And, to shake things up a bit, I had the girls pose by the new rose bush out front, instead of on the front porch. I think that's a change for the better (especially since the front door needs a coat of paint!) Our weather, by the way, is nothing like it should be for August. No sweltering humidity, no brown crunchy grass. Odd. (Hopefully, I've not jinxed all of Kentuckiana for the rest of August and September!)

Iron Maiden

My iron was dying. I bought a replacement as part of the back-to-school shopping trip (at Target, of course!). It's a Sunbeam with average features, but it's purple!! (I had some help in picking it out!) To tell the truth, a purple iron felt pretty frivolous, especially next to the dignified silver and white model next to it on the display. But, purple won the vote, so into the cart it went.

I got home with the new iron, and left it downstairs for a few weeks. Maybe my sensible old blue and white iron wasn't really dying, maybe I was just imagining things. So, my sensible old blue iron and I limped along for a bit, managing, somehow, to get enough wrinkles out that I looked presentable at work. Sometimes.

Yesterday, I got up in the morning and set out to iron my work clothes. I added water to my sensible old blue iron, ironed my clothes, and set off to work. When I got home, much like a new puppy left in the house alone too long, I found my iron sitting in a puddle on the ironing board. Oh, Iron. There was the proof. My sensible old blue iron had developed a leak, and should be replaced.

I sauntered downstairs to fetch the new purple iron. I unpacked it, and noticed the sleek lines and slightly translucent water reservoir. Ooh, and it came with a little pitcher, so you can add water without pouring it all over the front of the iron (and onto the ironing board!). I even detected a bit of a scent, something along the lines of "new car smell." This new iron might be fun. Not as frivolous as I'd thought.

I plugged in the iron, and turned it on. The heat selection dial was very ergonomic. And, I discovered the four steam settings. I cranked up the steam and pulled out one of my most challenging ironing projects - my khaki pants. The new purple iron got hot right away, and ironed those pants like nobody's business! I even set out to iron a dress shirt to wear with my khakis, and it came out smooth and crisp. Oh, I love this new iron. Who would have thought??

So, the moral of the story: Just because something is purple and flashy, that doesn't mean it won't function well! At least, not in this case! And now, I think my ironing board cover needs replacing, to match my iron.

Camp Caufield - Now Open for Business!

Check it out! I've got a blog! Woohoo! Sitting on my couch, watching beach volleyball at the Olympics, and blogging!

I guess I should add some substance - let's see, part of the reason I was inspired to start this Blog is to keep up with my friend Sharon. Who, by the way, needs to see this, as I think it explains what happened to her garden gnome, Olaf. Hee!

Olympic check - whoops! There's a commercial, which means it's time to swap the laundry. Guess that's it for the blogging tonight. Shouldn't there be a way to tell the programming board on my washer that it's time for a new load?