Sunsets, Stars, West, Wind
Three out of Five Stars
My husband and I have separate Netflix queues (and have for years). This DVD came in the mail Saturday so we popped it in the player for Saturday evening entertainment. Who can resist a Jackie Chan action movie? Not me. The Turkish bath fight sequence brought a smile to my face. The plot was hardly believable, but I really didn’t care. It’s too much fun watching Jackie pretend to play the spy game.
Three out of Five Stars
While searching for new Netflix titles to add to my queue, I stumbled across this movie, available for immediate streaming. My husband and I watch quite a few shows on the Food Network channel, so we thought it might be a good fit. I had hoped it would be similar to 2007’s No Reservations which I thoroughly enjoyed. Sadly, Love’s Kitchen fell a wee bit flat. We laughed occasionally, but did not feel the romance at all. I did, however, really want to taste that Trifle dessert that everyone in the movie thought was divine.
Just in case you missed the sunrise this morning, here it is:
To see the rest of the photos I took this morning, click this link. Or if you prefer a slideshow, follow this link.
‘Twas the week before Christmas, and all through the house,
Not a Rottweiler was stirring, nor even a mouse
The stockings were packed in the basement with care,
Along with the tree and decorations to spare
This time last year, we were in Texas celebrating our son’s graduation from SMU. In fact, I mailed my Christmas cards out as soon as I returned from our second North Texas Thanksgiving and wrote my annual Moss Family Christmas letter very early in December 2010 (publishing it electronically via this blog). I sent out fewer cards this year and waited until now to finish writing this year’s letter. I also opted not to print and mail the letter. I’m sharing it here for family, friends, and anyone else who stops by.
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow. And boy did it ever! The first two months of this year dumped more snow, that I had to shovel without the assistance of my son (who fled south in 2009 to Texas to finish college and settle into a warmer climate). I spent most of Ground Hog day either shoveling the driveway or baking bread. At least I didn’t have to drive in it, since I had joined a vanpool in the Summer of 2010.
Rachelle visited us in January and grouted our entryway tile floor. Except for live streaming concerts broadcast by her college (UNT College of Music), I didn’t see her in person until Thanksgiving last month. She opted to endure more than one hundred days of one hundred degree heat in one of the driest and hottest Texas summers on record. But I’m jumping ahead.
My home state, Kansas, turned 150 years old in January.
Terry and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary at a flooded Table Rock Lake resort. No, we didn’t take in any shows in Branson. We did see evidence of flooding in the area, but nothing that interfered with our stay (since we didn’t plan to water ski or tour the lake by boat).
We enjoyed surprise visits from my uncle Ron and son Derek and his wife Royna near the 4th of July weekend. We spent hours visiting and enjoying the cool air from my newly installed and updated central air unit (well, newly installed in December, but not tested until the heat arrived in June).
Home renovation began with the roof, followed by the driveway and then the fireplace. Our experience with the roofers left us euphoric, while the driveway contractor caused us ulcers. The first torrential rain waited weeks to arrive, and when it did, we still had a leak next to our fireplace. Every roofing contractor we had bid on our roof assured us the leak would be sealed by the new roof. Unfortunately, while the extra care taken by the roofers to seal around our fireplace did not fix the broken cap and mortar none of us had noticed. We found a highly recommend chimney repair contractor who replaced our cap, some firebrick and the mortar. We are happy to report that the recent rains (before and after Thanksgiving) did not result in any new fireplace leaks. We did discover our gutter draining into a basement window well, but we’ve solved that minor water mishap with some weaterproofing and gutter run-off upgrades.
On the 1st day of August, I celebrated my 15th anniversary with my employer.
We attended one of the largest SF conventions (the infamous Dragon*Con) in the country in Atlanta, Georgia (the last state of the lower 48 that I needed to visit). We won’t be returning to the venue, as the sheer number of people crowded into five huge hotels in downtown Atlanta blunted our enthusiasm for the events. I did get to meet three of my favorite artists: Don Maitz, Janny Wurts and Michael Whelan. We spent a pleasant evening with Don and Janny at a local steak restaurant.
A first for me (but probably not the last) attending a funeral on my birthday.
The Third Annual North Texas Thanksgiving gathered in Derek and Royna’s apartment in the Colony, Texas. A strange name for a community (or maybe not so strange) but a very nice place to live.
December started with a ‘changing of the guard’ with respect to my vanpool. I became the sole driver. I managed to find three new willing riders, in addition to the remaining Hallmark rider. We finished our second full week together and we’re settling into a routine, just as we approach the holidays. I’m praying for good weather, not just because I’ll be the one that has to navigate the ice and snow, but also so my kids can travel safely home next week. Derek and Royna are driving up from North Texas on Christmas Eve and Rachelle is flying in on the Tuesday after Christmas.
While I’m looking forward to seeing Derek, Royna and Rachelle again, I’m also concerned about my husband’s health. As I mentioned last week in my request for prayers, something new has cropped up to dampen our festive moods. He did see a specialist last week and a biopsy is scheduled for three days before Christmas (so please keep those prayers flowing!).
No matter what the storms of life may bring, though, I will take time to ponder the wonder, the pure joy, of the greatest gift of love ever bestowed on such an unworthy world.
For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given,
and the government shall be upon His shoulder;
and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor,
The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
— Chorus, Handel’s Messiah
During the drive in to work today I heard one of my favorite Baroque music pieces, albeit not in performed as originally written or arranged. A piece of music history that lay forgotten for centuries and only a single original manuscript copy survives to this day. Rediscovered in the early 20th century, it’s popularity remains undimmed nearly another century later. I’m speaking of Pachelbel‘s Canon.
The version I heard this morning via KLOVE had been massaged by the Trans Siberian Orchestra and transformed into a ‘Christmas Canon Rock.’
I can’t explain my reaction to this music. Just three notes into this song and my chest tightens, I have trouble breathing and my eyes tear up. No wonder this piece is wildly popular at weddings. And it doesn’t matter what form or genre morphs this music. The original genius and simple beauty always shines through.
My tiny bit of research this morning yielded an entire site devoted to this piece of music and how often it shows up in modern music. Admittedly, the chord progression contained in the Canon in D is very common (I -V-vi-iii-IV-I-ii-V). A few of the modern songs that caught my eye were:
And I’m glad I clicked on the videos link there or I would have never watched this comedian’s rant on his cross to bear in Pachelbel’s Canon in D:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdxkVQy7QLM]
While I enjoyed TSO’s ‘Christmas Canon Rock’ version, I think, at the end of the day, what really puts a smile on my face and a zing in my spring, would be the ‘Ultimate Canon Rock’ as seen here:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMWl_5NujBw]
I follow a blog devoted to finding inexpensive and often free ebooks for Nook Color owners called The Cheap. This morning they blogged about a unique edition of a classic and beloved Christmas story:
A Christmas Carol: Enhanced Edition by Charles Dickens, read by Monica Dickens – $1.65!.
I had already planned to re-read this classic tale, but traded in my old ebook version for this new ‘enhanced’ one. I even sent it as a gift to a family member (who also owns a Nook Color) as an early Christmas gift. I wanted to test out the new ‘Buy as a Gift’ feature at Barnes & Noble as I plan to do some last minute Christmas shopping over the next few days.
Once I read (and listen) to this version of A Christmas Carol, I will post a review of the experience here.
I got a strange call this afternoon from my daughter’s boyfriend. I let it go to my voice-mail because I happened to be in the middle of a meeting at that time. When I got a chance to listen to his voice-mail, I nearly laughed out loud. I always fear the worst when I get calls out-of-the-blue from my kids (or their significant others), but this time he just wanted to let me know he had heard a blurb on NPR about the peak viewing opportunity tonight for the annual Geminid meteor shower. I called him back to thank him for the heads up, but I already had at least four other feeds (from various astronomy magazines, clubs and websites) keeping me up-to-date on all things astronomincal. My biggest hurdle to viewing anything in the night sky this week is the non-stop rain and overcast huddled over Kansas. Check out tonight’s hourly forecast for my viewing area:
So just like what happened last month with the Leonids, I guess I’ll be missing the Geminids this year. I sure hope 2012 allows me better viewing opportunities for meteor shows, comets and the planets. I remember May being especially disappointing with overcast skies nearly every weekend. I finally gave up in August and stored the telescope in the basement because the weather just wouldn’t cooperate with my observing goals and schedule. I almost retrieved it for last weekend’s lunar eclipse, but since the eclipse coincided with moonset and sunrise, I decided looking through the hazy atmosphere with my camera’s telephoto lens would be sufficient.
Last week I reported my home town Public Works Department had installed a ‘no parking’ sign in my court (and twelve other cul-de-sacs spread across the city). This afternoon when I turned into my driveway, I noticed the sign had been removed from the pole. Terry will need to let the band members know they can park in the usual locations for tomorrow night’s weekly rehearsal. I’m just happy I won’t be juggling cars tomorrow or worrying about where to put them, especially since the wet yard would rut if I had to park some of them off the street. I doubt my previous blog post could have caused so much fervor that it necessitated the complete removal of the sign by the City. I know they planned to add an addendum to the ‘no parking’ sign to indicate only during snow, but I assumed a second sign would be attached below the first one. Apparently, something else is planned and I will keep an eye on the sign post for the next few days to see what develops.
I continue to experiment and enjoy the enhancements of the Nook Color software update 1.4.1 released yesterday. I encountered some diminished functionality from a couple of websites I frequented. After trying the usual things (clearing cache, cookies and history and powering the device off), I chatted with a customer service representative at Barnes & Noble. I didn’t agree with his proposed solution and while he went seeking advice from a higher power (second tier tech support), I stumbled upon a solution. I updated yesterday’s blog post to include my findings.
My husband saw the specialist today and a biopsy is scheduled for three days before Christmas. Your continued prayers for healing, strength, understanding and patience are greatly appreciated.
About four hours ago, I received notice (several of them actually from various different venues and feeds) of the highly anticipated software update from Barnes & Noble for the Nook Color (specifically update 1.4.1). When the Nook Tablet was announced last month, B&N also mentioned this software update, probably as a carrot to current owners of the Nook Color. Since I’m a geek by nature and can’t stand to let an update languish, I dived right in and manually installed the update.
I barely glanced at the instructions. I read just enough to confirm that the process for 1.4.1 seemed essentially identical to the last three software updates. I actually didn’t get a chance to manually install 1.3 as it happened ‘automatically’ overnight while I was sleeping. I did manually download and install 1.2 though, but that was back in May when I first received my Nook Color.
Basically, I downloaded the 208 MB file. I made sure I had at least 20 percent battery life left (I had 65 percent), then I connected my Nook Color to my laptop. I copied the downloaded file to the root of the Nook Color’s internal storage area (not the root of my microSD card). I safely disconnected my Nook Color and left it alone for the next couple of hours (I had other things I needed to attend to). The Nook Color will automatically ‘see’ the file, uncompress it and install the software update.
The following is copied directly from the Nook Color Software Updates page:
The NOOK Color Ver 1.4.1 update contains new features and enhancements, including:
I tested out as many of the enhancements as I could find over lunch. I read an ebook in portrait and landscape mode (the latter was not previously an option). The ereader reacted faster to my touch gestures as well. I really like the updated ereader interface, including the progress bar that shows me how many pages are left to read in the current chapter and the ability to lookup a highlighted phrase via Google or Wikipedia.
I checked out the new home for Nook Color apps (relocated to the Library section). The Library got a small overhaul, but nothing that jumps out and grabs me. The new non-beta version of Nook Friends lets you import contacts from Facebook in addition to the other sources previously supported. I connected to my NetFlix account and tested video streaming. The music player didn’t lose my music or my playlists or my audiobooks and the Pandora app still streamed music. All my photos and non-B&N ebooks remained intact and readily available.
The only app I had any trouble with was the GoodReads one.* I contacted them via their Feedback forum as I’m probably one of the first to update the Nook Color and attempt to use their application. I was able to access GoodReads, however, via the web browser.
My initial thoughts on the update are positive. I like what I see, especially in the updated ereader interface. I also like having my Netflix streaming available literally in the palm of my hand (so if I don’t feel like reading at lunch, I can instead watch old Star Trek episodes). The software update will be pushed via wifi starting next week, but if you don’t mind getting your hands a little tech-dirty, I’d recommend you download the update and enjoy the benefits at your earliest convenience. This update takes some of the sting out of not waiting until Christmas to purchase an ereader. If I’d had the patience back in May to wait just six months, I could have had a dual-core processor version in the Nook Tablet. At least now I can enjoy most of the benefits of the software, without the hardware upgrade.
After nearly a full day of use, I’ve found a couple of strange web browser issues that Barnes & Noble customer service wanted to fix with a sledge hammer (i.e., they wanted me to de-register and re-register my Nook Color). I refused and asked for a different less ‘scorched earth’ resolution. By the time I started chatting with them, I’d already cleared my cache, cookies and history and powered off the device twice. The customer service representative asked me to wait a few minutes while he consulted the next tier of support. He came back and asked the I set the browser to ‘default’ mode. I countered asking if he meant the option under Advanced Settings that resets the browser to ‘factory’ defaults. He wasn’t completely sure so while I waited for him to get confirmation, I reset my Browser Mode setting from ‘Mobile Browser Mode‘ (where I had been for months if not from the beginning) to ‘Desktop Browser Mode‘ and returned to my web page. Now, I was able to navigate to my Yahoo Mail mobile web site and the Google Reader page included all the options (some where missing before switching modes).
I still use mobile sites when I can (and had to edit my bookmarks or re-bookmark the mobile versions of my favorites) because I prefer the streamlined interface on the smaller screen. So I’m back to being happy with my Nook Color and still exploring all the new and enhanced features. If I find any more tweaks or tips this week, I’ll continue to add them to this post.
* Update 12/15/2011: GoodReads fixed the application within 48 hours of my initial post to their Feedback forum and last night I downloaded the updated app (press the ‘Check for Updates’ link in the Apps section of the Library) to my Nook Color. The About page displays version 1.7.3 as the currently installed version. I tested the app and determined all the features I’ve come to know and love were again functioning as expected. A DropBox update presented itself simultaneously with the GoodReads update, so I downloaded it as well. The About section of the Settings show version 1.2.7 installed. The application appears to be functioning normally.
I felt a bit overwhelmed this week so I sought solace from an old friend (or rather friends). Being the third week of Advent, I knew the focus at most local churches would be on Mary (represented by the pink candle in the Advent Wreath). Talk about a woman who overcame overwhelmingness!
I ventured to a church just down the hill from me (Crossroads UMC). It was good to see so many familiar faces. An island of calm and comfort amid my recent stormy seas. Halfway through the service, after the reading of the Magnificat (also known as the Song of Mary or the Canticle of Mary), I realized the absence of the regular pastor. Instead of what I’m sure would have been a sermon based on Luke 1:46-55, the Worship Leader gave a testimonial and short lesson (and an announcement to the congregation about his stepping back), followed by a video tour and teaching by Adam Hamilton of present day Bethlehem. After the video, another church member read the poem “The Soldier’s Night Before Christmas” (which he named ‘Standing Guard’ – Follow the link for the text of the poem and more information about it’s non-anonymous authorship).
The final hymn listed in the bulletin, sung just before the Benediction, happened to be one of my favorite carols. As usual, I could only sing the first three and a half verses. By the time I reached the line “But His mother only, in her maiden bliss, Worshipped the beloved with a kiss.” I could no longer sing for the tears. I whispered the final verse, blurred beyond readability, but indelibly etched upon my heart.
Words by Christina Rosetti (1872)
In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.
Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ.
Enough for Him, whom cherubim, worship night and day,
Breastful of milk, and a mangerful of hay;
Enough for Him, whom angels fall before,
The ox and ass and camel which adore.
Angels and archangels may have gathered there,
Cherubim and seraphim thronged the air;
But His mother only, in her maiden bliss,
Worshipped the beloved with a kiss.
What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.
I almost overslept this morning. Saturday mornings are like that. Especially when you stay up late to watch a DVD. But something snapped me awake at 5:45 a.m. Probably my daily weather alert text message. I jumped out of bed, ran downstairs and yanked open the patio door. A full moon shone brightly through the bare branches of my backyard silver maple. Good, I still had time to get dressed, steep some tea and throw the tripod and camera in the car. Too bad I forgot my coat, scarf and gloves since the temperature hovered just below or around twenty degrees.
I drove west from my house, watching the moon dip slowly closer to the western horizon. I could still see the brightest stars and Jupiter, but the eastern horizon showed signs of the impending dawn. I continued north along Desoto Road and again west on Eisenhower until I approached an industrial business park. I drove down to the end of the street, but didn’t like the look of the western horizon because the cul-de-sac turnaround had lowered in elevation from Eisenhower Road and trees grew to the west, blocking my line-of-site to the horizon. I retraced my route back to Eisenhower and continued west to 20th street. I found a west facing driveway that dead ended in a clear field with no trees to the west (just a new housing development huddled on the horizon). I setup the tripod and took a few preliminary shots to dial in the camera and decide what settings to use (AWB, shutter, aperture, delayed shutter to minimize shake, etc.)
I got settled down a couple of minutes before the official start of the eclipse. According to the Earthsky post on the lunar eclipse, the official beginning of the event started at 12:46 UTC (that’s 6:46 am Central time for me). The total eclipse would occur at 14:57 UTC (or 8:57 a.m. Central) which unfortunately for me was ninety minutes after the moon set. According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac site (which I checked before leaving the house), moonset would occur at 7:29 a.m. Interestingly, the sunrise would occur one minute before moonset, an indication that we are very close to the Winter Solstice (within ten to eleven days to be precise).
I spent the next forty-five minutes snapping photos every five or ten minutes. My dad called me just before seven o’clock, asking me if I’d found a spot. I told him where I was and sheepishly admitted I had forgotten appropriate attire for the cold conditions. Of course, I sat snugly in my car with the motor running and the heater cranked to eighty degrees while sipping my piping-hot tea.
Just a couple of minutes before the mostly eclipsed moon kissed the western horizon, my dad drove up and brought me a jacket and a pair of gloves. To be honest, I hadn’t noticed the cold in my excitement to capture the last few minutes of the eclipse. We chatted for a few minutes, then loaded up the photographic equipment into my car. I returned the jacket and gloves to my dad and we parted ways. He headed north on 20th street, and I returned south to Lansing. I promised Dad I’d upload the photos once I got home. (Follow this link to the raw/uncut/unedited photos I took this morning of the lunar eclipse).
I’ll leave you with what I judge to be the best of the bunch. I only cropped them. I decided against adjusting for brightness or contrast as I don’t have any photo editing software (beyond what comes with Windows 7 and Office 2010). I hope you enjoy them. I’m off to run some errands. Enjoy!
