I’ve uploaded my Chicago pictures to Flickr. I’m still tagging them and whatnot, but all the pics are there.

It inflates my ego to announce that my photo was indeed chosen!

Check it out here.

Anybody heard of Schmap?

Yeah? Well I had not. They’re a publisher of digital travel guides. I got a Flickr message yesterday that one of my photos (shown above) has been “shortlisted” for possible use in their upcoming San Francisco guide, and asking if I would grant permission to use it if selected. Of course I granted permission.

Cool, no?

EDIT: I made a final tweak and added the skyline. This brought a little of the red back into the page, and I think I’m happy with it.

For those of you hoopy froods in possession of an iTelephone (and firmware version 1.1.3), I’ve created a WebClip Bookmark Icon so that you can park a link to my humble site right there on your home screen. Remember, your site can’t be cool if you don’t have one!

Do me a favor and go have a gander at my Fourth of July fireworks pictures. I’m really happy with how they turned out.

You may recall a little experiment I mentioned way back in July. For those of you too lazy to click the link, the short version is that some friends and I recorded an MST3K-style DVD commentary, intended to be played along as you watch a movie.

Well, I finally got around to doing the work and getting the thing ready, and I’ve posted some clips from the second attempt. Unfortunately the recording as a whole is still unusable, but there was enough to get a nice sampling. (Also, a special thanks to my pal, Kevin, for editing the audio. I’m the one who spliced it in with the movie, however, so if it sounds bad, blame me, not him.)

Anyway, without further ado, I bring you The Island.

You can view all seven of the clips here. Please have a look and let me know what you think (comment or use the “Contact” link over to the right). We’ve been doing more, and we hope to actually release them to the public sometime in 2007. If you like it, by all means, tell your friends.

I’ll know I’ve “arrived” when I get my first “cease and desist” letter.

Good for the work ethic and all that…

Not too much pressure or anything. If I miss a day, I miss one, no big deal. But it’s a goal to shoot for.

And goals are a good thing, right?

I get the impression, although I can’t quantify it, that the instructor knows his stuff. He just doesn’t communicate it well. It seems very much like he’s just winging it in every class, and I’d swear he makes up the homework assignments right on the spot. He misspeaks often and doesn’t correct himself, and the technophobes in class simply can’t follow along, and are too sheepish to speak up about it.

My confidence was shaken during the very first class, when he had trouble connecting a DVD player to a TV, and I ended up doing it for him. He was a little defensive about not knowing how, but part of being a tech support nerd is knowing how to be diplomatic, so I prevailed.

Still, I’m learning enough that I’d like to take more classes. However, what I’m learning most of all is that I’m no longer satisfied with my point-and-shoot camera. I will no longer be happy with anything less than a DSLR, which of course means I’ll probably have to turn to a life of crime in order to finance it.

It doesn’t help that at least one student has about $2000 worth of camera and barely knows which end to hold. But she’s taking the initiative by taking a class at all, so I can’t really be critical.

Honestly, though, I don’t know if the point-and-shoot will cut it in the more advanced classes. I’m already getting assignments that I can’t complete with my equipment, and that’s from an instructor who’s not even that good.

We’re going on a photo outing this weekend. Should be interesting…

Well, that’s not entirely correct. I was the line, being that I was the only one in it.

I waited.

Eventually, the girl noticed me. She looked for all the world like a female version of “Jay” from those Kevin Smith movies. Yet she was cute anyway, as contradictory as that sounds.

Her voice… I wouldn’t call it nasal… let’s just say it sounded like somebody had a firm grip on the bridge of her nose.

“Can I help you?”