Was going to plug it into the laptop so it will be a bit more direct. Just need to fiddle around with some DAWs to see if I can make it a little easier than a whole lot of tech mumbo jumbo.
A UV pen and UV flashlight are on my Amazon wishlist... (The latter to replace the one I left on another continent.)
Instant Pot Pressure Cooker -- so far only made rice, steel-cut oatmeal and hard-boiled eggs, all of which turned out fine -- I work into new things gradually, but it seems so easy and promises to do so much.
[Add to that, a home without books is a home without a soul. Books are the window into worlds we would otherwise never be able to grasp, from the reality of our own past to imagined futures. Books shed light on who we really are.[/QUOTE] I'm not so sure about that anymore, and this is from an inveterate reader whose father had a wonderful personal library and who tried himself to create his own. I find myself wondering if I really need to own them, certainly not the ones I read once and can't see myself ever reading again. I can't remember the last time any visitor to my home was interested in my library. I've been giving them away, to people who do want to own them. With good modern libraries and audio books I don't see any need to be hoarding my own personal copies. Maybe it's an age thing, I'm doing a lot of minimizing possessions. On the other hand, my autistic son collects dictionaries, so the library's used book sales are great for him. All sorts, from the Oxford American to kids's dictionaries, he reads them carefully and even goes to sleep with one by his side. His twin sister, a recent college graduate, says she likes books but has rarely showed any interest in any of mine. So. . . . I still think my home has a soul, despite the my growing dearth of physical books. I read a lot, and I don't think my increasingly empty shelves indicates I'm not growing intellectually. To me now, buying a book to put it on a shelf is like capturing a wild bird and putting it in a cage to show it off. I no longer see a connection between owning a book and appreciating literature and ideas.
I little time ago I had a problem. It was a bit hard to train video shooting with my tripod. So I decided that I need a video tripod. I asked from those who know about things like this. They told what's good, what's not and partly why. I counted how much a good video tripod + good head to it would cost. The answer was "too much just now". I decided to buy only a very cheap but decent video head (Manfrotto MVH502AH) and stuff it to my cheap but decent tripod (Velbon Sherpa Pro CF 630). It works. It's not what I would like to have, but it works.
The "Manga Pens" tickled something in me. And started this nag at the back of my head "Buy some. Buuuyyy soooommee..." "But I do not need them..." "Who cares? Buuuuuyyyyy...." So I caved when I found Faber-Castell Ecco Pigment pens, and bought a whole set with 8 different sizes, down to 0.05 mm diameter. Fantastic pens! Awesome ink!
I just didn't know what else to call them at the time. -Wolf's Rain Bluray set -More sewing needles -Spools of thread
Books.... The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr and E. B. White. Barron's Pocket Dictionary & Thesaurus. Can't go without this one.... Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk, though I brought that about three days ago. Found an old hardcover version for 8 dollars in perfect condition. Lucky me. Today I purchased his classic Fight Club. Seen the movie a bunch of times, but I imagine the book will differ in someways.
An Olympus E-M5 mark 3, Zuiko Pro 12-40 f/2.8, Panasonic 7-14 f/4.0 . A refurbed Kindle Voyage. My life is now complete
Some engineering and math textbooks. I'm okay with vector calculus, but I need a serious review of linear algebra, especially eigenstuff. There are some cool Youtube videos on this, but I like books too. Also, some William Golding novels. For some silly reason, I've never read Lord of the Flies. Everyone I knew who went to other schools had to read it for school, but my school didn't require it, so I never read it. I saw the movie decades ago, and it made me mad because at the time I strongly disagreed with Golding's central idea that we're inevitably drawn to savagery, but I see that issue in a lot of shades of gray these days and I want to understand Golding's thinking better than the movie presented. Besides, I want to read something kind of literary and dark. Also, I got a collection of Joan Didion's nonfiction. I'm not really interested in the subjects of her essays, but she writes a magnificent prose style, and I admire great craftsmanship. She has it in spades.
Shitty, old tripod for our kids. Manfrotto 190 + #200 video head. 50€. Cheap price, but that combo is absolutely not worth nothing more - if even that. It is in awful condition. Kids like it.
Sigma 20mm/1.8 EX DG. 150€. It's not what I would want but it's what I could afford and get. I really hate the physical connection between focusing ring and focusing motor & it's plastic gears. But I can use this until I have earned money for what I really want and need. It's not good, but it's good enough.
You do that lens a disservice, I think. From everything I've read, it's pretty sharp at f/2.8 and f/3.5 ( a much higher "sweet spot" than most). A little prone to flare, but a lens hood and not aiming it at the light source should keep that at bay. Sounds perfect for weddings and video.
