And it only took 6 years

6+ years and two surgeries on me, and my attempting but failing to maintain the front and back yards, Wing has finally agreed to get a gardener to come out, clear out the weeds, and then maintain it once a month.

I guess my need to wear splints because of carpal tunnel on top of my back not being able to handle too much lifting, and the nausea/wanting to vomit when I stayed bent over (to pull weeds, pick up lemons that fell off the tree etc) finally got through. He won't help because (and he admitted this) doesn't like to get his hands dirty, but agrees it's not fair that it be left to me to keep up the weeding, the mulching, the cleaning/clearing etc.

You know you're well known by the AusPost

The wrist splint order from Amazon arrived today. Blessed carpal tunnel relief for both the left and right hand. But when the young man who is the regular delivery guy saw me, he asked "Photo shoot weekend?"

Me "Yes, how did you know."

Him "You look exhausted and sore."

Well, yeah. hehehehe

Pinnacles Photoshoot

Spent Saturday and Sunday at The Pinnacles, Nambung National Park

Part of the photos shoot were at the sand dunes.



Then we waited until full dark, and headed to the Pinnacles to do long exposures. Star Trails, FX using light poi, and hand held flash.



Then after getting to bed after 1am, we got up at 4 to get pre-dawn and sunrise photos at the Pinnacles.







There are many more but not going to flood the page. :)

A bit of denial on the part of CNN

According to CNN:

Poll: Edge goes to Obama: It was close, but Obama won the night with an aggressive performance and a couple of zingers.


The Quick Poll on the same page, just under this 'headline'



This is their definition of close? Or just truth challenged?

The one statement that spotlights why Romney is NOT Presidential material.

Mr Romney stated that the US Navy has the fewest ships it's ever had since 1916. Below is President Obama's rebuttal.

"I think Governor Romney maybe hasn't spent enough time looking at how our military works," President Obama said. "You mentioned the navy, for example, and that we have fewer ships than we did in 1916. Well, governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets because the nature of our military's changed," he said.

"We have these things called aircraft carriers where planes land on them. We have these ships that go underwater, nuclear submarines," he continued. "So the question is not a game of Battleship where we're counting ships. It's: 'What are our capabilities?'" - President Barak Obama Oct 22, 2012

I have Carpal Tunnel

It's annoying, but easily dealt with via a wrist splint, ice, and ibuprofen. What is annoying is getting the proper wrist splint. I tried a 'thermoskin', but the velcro abraded my arm, and the material made me itch.

I did find a great one, Futuro Deluxe splint. It's comfortable, gives me full flex of my fingers and thumbs. But I need a 2nd one for when it needs to be cleaned/washed. Every pharmacy I went to no longer had the this one. I picked up a different one from same maker because the pharmacist said it could be that the one I wanted has been discontinued. I tried it for a week, but it doesn't give the same support.

So, I hopped onto the net. I checked their website, and the product hasn't been discontinued. Decided to shop online. Again, I was aghast at the price disparity. Here, in Australia: one splint costs $60 + shipping. I ordered two from Amazon. Their cost, including shipping: $45. If I had gotten one, it would have been $26. I'm willing to wait two weeks to save over 50%. Who wouldn't be?

I hate waiting for a delivery

I know it's coming. I checked the tracking and it's 'at the Perth Courier', and has been since 8am this morning. But I have things that need to be done, so Alan manned the waiting room (living room) while I got some errands done.

Hopped on my bike, first stop, Kardinya shops. Got new battery for my pendant watch, and repaired the broken chain. Then went into store and picked up a few needed items. Went to the pharmacy to see if I could wrangle up another wrist splint that didn't have the velcro digging into my arm. No joy. So got back on the bike, and headed to the South Street Pharmacy. The only one that was empty in the display was the one I was looking for. I discussed it with the pharmacist and she said that there's a good chance the reason I can't find the one I've been looking for for the past 2 weeks is that it was discontinued. So, I got it's replacement. Supposedly it's 'breathable'. What I want it for is when one splint is all sweaty from bike trip or other reason, I can take it off, put on another and wash it.

Came home to a slightly worried Alan. Because I decided to head to South Street Pharmacy, I was out longer than he expected. You have to remember, he has anxiety issues concerning bike riding. So, I've promised him that the next time I head to one place, and decide to go somewhere else, I will send him text message so there will be no panic involved. :)

Wow.. just two weeks.

On Sept 29th, I brought my 5DMkIII to Camera Electronic to be sent off to Canon Repair because of severe battery draining. Now, it couldn't be sent off until October 2nd. Wing called me today to tell me that Camera Electronic called and said my camera was back from Canon Repair. I don't know what the results are, but all I know is that batteries, when left in the camera for a week, would be totally drained. Here's hoping it's been seen to.

Yesterday, I tried to update the maps on my portable GPS. Downloaded the correct update file, and proceeded to installation. Started the GPS, and when I selected "Navigation", it would kick out a "Fatal Error". I tried downloading the update again, same fatal error. Tried with a different SD card. No joy. I posted on the GPS' brand forum, and faced the usual condescension. There are times, I'm tempted to create male personas on tech support forums, as it seems they can't get it through their heads that Female ≠ clueless! I ended up emailing the company, and after their totally ignoring the info in the email (I included model number, serial number, even included photo of the error message on the screen) I was asked what the model was... twice. But I got another email with a link to download the full program. Turns out that the update on their server was corrupt, and I was doing everything right. So, now my GPS is not only working, but updated also.

Made it this year!

I got all 5 of my entries in the CanonEOS Photo5

Here they are:

Open Brief - Wind



Portraiture - Spaghetti



Strong Color - Tissue Paper



Scale - Little People



Black and White - Fishing Wire




It was a challenge. Some of the items gave me fits trying to figure out what to do. One of them was especially difficult, because every time I tried to work with it, Ziggy would come out and try to play with it... the tissue paper. She was all "Ooooo MINE?" and shredded the pieces that World of EOS sent, sending me out to get some more. But overall, it really stretched my imagination.

Hey CNN? Have you become FAUX Noise?

CNN had a poll, asking viewers/visitors who won the VeePee Debate. CNN headlined that "Viewers say Ryan won at 48%, Biden at 44% (+/-5%)

Oh really? Quick Poll, taken on from their home page, screen capped several times, but with the same results.

According to CNNs own 'Quick Poll" V.P. Biden won



It's bad enough then FAUX News, a known GOP supporter, pulls this bull$hit all the time, but CNN was supposed to be above board. Note past tense.. was.

Got it done before it got too hot

Went for a bike ride today. Wasn't a very long one, not compared to what I typically do, but I decided to go the road more uphill. Felt good, but having to ride in a strong constant headwind is tiring. had my Helmetcam on and running.

I have three "Spaghetti" candidates for Canon Photo5. In one day I will tally the comments and upload the one that was chosen and/or commented on the most.

Don't feel quite right

Last night, I started having pain in my joints, my left arm especially. Woke up up at 1am, and I couldn't get back to sleep. Ended up taking some Mersyndol, and after 30 minutes, the pain was lessened enough for me to fall asleep. Next thing I'm being pestered by Loki around 8am. I guess he wasn't used to his human sleeping in so late. He even pulled the hair comb I had my hair bound up in to sleep in.

Got up, arm and other joints still sore, and I was still queasy, signally I was still dehydrated. Been drinking more than usual water, and the aches are easing.

Bets I had a bit of heat stroke yesterday?

Went to the Perth Royal Show

The heat almost got the better of me. Normally I like hot weather, but you typically have a gradual warm up, but no, not this time. Went from "OmigodINeedSweater" to "OmigodImsweating!". Wing said my face was sunburned when we were there, although I was wearing a wide brimmed hat keeping my face shaded. But I looked at my hands and they were fine. I started feeling nauseous and dizzy, even though I was drinking plenty of water. it was time to go.

Came home, and took off extremely soggy clothing and got into a tepid shower. 5 minute scrub/rinse with just cool water, and I felt 100% better. Looked at my face, and the 'sunburn' was gone. Wing is such a darling... he made a wonderful refreshing drink with freshly squeezed blood oranges, mixed with lemonade soda, and a splash of cloudy apple juice. Also quite a lot of ice! So nice.

Still, I feel as if I disappointed him by not being able to stay longer. *sigh*