View allAll Photos Tagged thinker
This rather leafy moss was growing with other types on the side of a log. I thought it might be a liverwort, but it does appear to be a moss.
Update:
Plagiomnium species
ID at:
Tim Brown, the CEO of product design firm IDEO, hosted a MLab Experimentation Jam today.
“The fastest way to learn is to build it. We build to think. We prototype to learn.”
while in a focus group with surgeons, they grabbed what they could and cobbled together a prototype… and quickly learned what would be cumbersome and what would work for a nasal router of sorts.
“Management often picks from a set of choices. In design, we try to create choices.”
“How can we look out at the world for inspiration, not answers?”
Role Play. Improv.
Side survey: 70% Macs and 60% “non right-handed” people at IDEO.
Gary Hamel, on right, opened with “stupidity is contagious.”
I think this palm tree had one to many drinks at Margaritaville as it was contorted in an unsual shape. It cannot even stand up straight! :P But I thought it made for an interesting perspective for a photograph...
Photograph © 2009 White Shadow Photography. All Rights Reserved. This photograph should not be used on websites, blogs or anywhere for that matter without my explicit written permission. Please don't steal my photos, it isn't nice!
I think my favorite part about this picture is the church with the hockey rinks. In the winter where I live, pick-up hockey games are played with religious devotion. Teams divide up based on what jersey they wore that day and kids and parents lug gear bags and snow shovels to lace up and clear rinks.
I have a snow day today since our roads are covered in ice, so expect a fair amount of uploading from my backlog of pictures.
"I should've know better
I should've hung around
I should've know better
I should've hung around
I had my head out of the window
Big beat on the ground
I'm gonna run
Run back to your side
I'm gonna run
Run back to your side
You know that I miss you
Can't be satisfied"
-Eric Clapton
August 2008
Let us clear our throats...cough3, gag3, ralf3 n all yo evil peepoz faces... ;) heh heh heh
August 1st
Alexis Collins - 11yrs old
MySpace Jim Kikuchi I think Happy Bday
Larry Vasquez Happy Bday
August 2nd
Chassidy Nee - 15yrs old
Chad Amononce 21 yrs old ;)
August 4th
Kiani Lilly bday aka Zary "Baldogo" N Eddie Lillyz Dtr N Federal Way Washington
Adam May bday
barack obama 08.04.61 bday
my.barackobama.com/page/content/semr?source=SEM-register-...
Jeff Gordon 08.04.71 bday
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Gordon
August 6th
Ring n eh oloz wed'n 2000 n 2006 ;) aye Cleo McKeague and Na Kama at gorden beez...huz ohana sat at our table after eye left again cleo? hhhmmm wm k voz? heh heh heh...cheerleaderz....chee hee wit all dem soulJAHz!!!
Kuzn Noelle Dagdaganz 7th Bday muah ={) nyse c'n u allz this past Sunday, August 10th at D Ykele Clubhouse...go Waipio Little Leaguerz!!! Show them all wut u gots!!!
August 8th
Melissa (Wakilina) Maile "Mok" Banglos bday 87 grad Waipahu hi
Drew Lachey 08.08.76 chee hee...
watched on 68 aka Lifetime "I Do (But I Don't)" Denise Richards and Dean Cain =) Relesed 13 September 2004 (USA) Denise Richards plays Lauren, (seperated from her estranged husband not divorced) wedding-planner who falls for the groom-to-be NICK Dean Cain who was never engaged n that movie until at the very end 2 Lauren =). It was his kah yute brother =) James Nicholas Carino Brother wuz its? 3 of them...soh gorgeous ;) Almost like the "wedding planner" with Jennifer Lopez and Matthew McConaughey (2001). =)
August 9th
u got meye text 102.7 da bomb baby morning crew...chee hu ;)
Chris Robb Leilehua High School Grad 1988 and 4mer ARA Leisure Service Worker aka Aloha Stadium and on HomeGrownHawaii.com
August 10th
Leonard A Tabuyo - Gaurdian Angel
Waipio Little Leaguers Supporters at the Ykele Golf Clubhouse 3-8pm Waipio Hawai'i 4, Nevada 3 !!GREAT JOB ALL!! Awesome Gift!!!
August 11th
cruz'n wit Jenn...Pearl City Wal*Mart n Hi again Fats =) Aloha 2 all D McKeagues n Wal*Mart Crew 4 me thanx =)....then Pearl City Longs Drugs...kah yute coca cola dude n der ;) heh heh heh....pearl highlands food court 4 lunch...sneezing up aye storm...thanx 4 lunch jenn chinese food...then off 2 Pricebusters...then dinner n waipio like always...thanx 4 las weeks din din kal bi n shirmp n tuh knight was spageti n chilis..thanx =) then vent about meye dramahz n meye stalker leyef...all that eye've been thru...angels watching ovah me, thank God eyem aleyev tuh day...heh heh heh thanx meye na anela!!! home at 1045pm ...zzzzzzz n thanx again Jenn N Jerr...next monday? n thanx 4 ur calls again peepoz...selective...sorreh...das meye ship...heh heh heh
August 12th
Sir Mix aye "baby got back" Lot 45yo
August 13th
Don Ho's 78th - Guardian Angel
thanx 102.7 da bomb baby!!
August 15th
Admissions Day...NO SCHOOL!!
Waipio Little Leaguers (3) vs. Shelton National, Conn. (1), noon, ESPN2 3pm ESPN !!GOOD LUCK and show D world wut u all gots!!
District 7 Waipio All Stars aka "West" Waipahu Hawai'i
at Little League World Series 2008 Williamsport, Pennsylvania
Friday, Aug. 15— Hawaii (4) vs. Shelton National, Conn. (3), noon Hawai'i Time, ESPN2
August 16th
Colt Brennan - Bday Washington redskins #5
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colt_Brennan
Dr Phil - Bday
Elvis Presley D Annie - Gaurdian Angel
Aloha Stadium 11am - 1pm 4 our Hawn US Troopers Ceremony who will all be deployed overseas =( JAH Bless n B witu allz!!!
www.hawaiireporter.com/storyPrint.aspx?03b81a82-b851-402f...
Aloha Stadium Deployment Ceremony Set for 1,700 Soldiers
29th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) will attempt to set the Guinness World Record for the largest group hug
August 17th
MySpace Shawna-get choke shawnaz on meye meye space lol
Waipio Little Leaguers (10) vs. Citrus Park, Tampa, Fla. (2), 2 p.m., ESPN2
Come One, Come All, Tell One, Tell All!! Supporters show your support 4 our Hawai'i Team at
The Shack Mililani (808) 627-1561
95-221 Kipapa Drive
1pm - weneverz...
remind me vicari ohana...brainfarts...thanx
c u all then =) Go Hawai'i!!!!
August 18th
MySpace LA New Space bday
MySpace Libby Holiday bday
August 19th
Arnold Respico - Campbell 87 Grad bday
Michele Calderon Pascual from Waialua now San Jose bday
Travis Anguay - Ewa/Parents: Joanne N Joe bday
August 20
!!Happy Bday Khade Paris!! of D
District 7 Waipio All Stars aka "West" Waipahu Hawai'i
Wed., Aug. 20, 8 p.m. Eastern Time/2 p.m Hawaii Time
ESPN/ESPN360.com U.S. Semifinal -- First Place B "West" Waipahu Hawai'i (9) vs. Second Place A "Northwest" Mill Creek, Wash. (4)
2 p.m Hawaii Time
Family N Supporters @ Big City Diner N Waipio; 94-800 Ukee St. Waipahu Hawai'i (808) 678-8868
August 21st
Hawaii was admit'd 2 d union as our 50th State !!Happy Bday Hawai'i!!
Niko Papasideris Happy Bday
August 22nd
Alessandra Echauri - 7yrs old San Jose California Parents Jenn/Alfredo n 2 brothers n me 4got ur wed'n date 2002 wen chas n eye danced 4 all yallz at d ko'olau golf n countreh club...me bad...brain otots.... ;)
August 23rd
Braddah Jessie bday 87 grad Waipahu hi "Balut Mastah" Coloma of Halelehua O'ahu Hud ;) Fix my my space muzak...u wen sabatage um again ah...pos tuh p "hell fire" ooklah the moc !!!! ;) Say Hi 2 all n dah hud fo me...tanx ah!!!
Saturday, Aug. 23
International 6:30am Hawai'i Time, Japan (4) vs. tba Mexico (5) 12:30PM ET Lamade Stadium
U.S. championships U.S. championships 3:30 p.m. ET
District 7 Waipio All Stars aka "West" Waipahu Hawai'i (4-0) "7" vs.
"Southwest" South Lake Charles Lake Charles, Louisiana (3-2) "5", 9:00 a.m., ABC
Family N Supporters @ Mililani Golf Club (808) 623-2222, 95-176 Kuahelani Ave Mililani Hawai'i
August 24th
MySpace Rajahdat bday
Duke Paoa Kahinumokoehulikohola Kahanamoku - Gaurdian Angel bday
Sunday, Aug. 24—2008 Little League World Series 2008 @ Williamsport, Pennsylvaniachampionship, 9:00 a.m. ABC Hawai'i Time
!!G00D Luck all! n show dem all wut u gots!!!!
World Series championship, 9:00 a.m. ABC Hawai'i Time
3:30 PM ET Lamade Stadium World Series Championship Game
Mexico (5-0) "3" vs. District 7 Waipio All Stars aka "West" Waipahu Hawai'i (5-0) "12"
Family N Supporters @ Mililani Golf Club (808) 623-2222, 95-176 Kuahelani Ave Mililani Hawai'i
Waipi'o Hawaii celebrates its LLWS championship triumph 2008
Waipio Major's Little League Day
heh heh heh rca ;) n stevens Ohana ;)
sports.espn.go.com/sports/llws08/index
www.flickr.com/photos/29157652@N04/
www.flickr.com/photos/29761054@N03/
www.littleleague.org/series/2008divisions/llbb/series.htm
August 25th
Aaliya D Annie 2001 - Gaurdian Angel
Dexter and Michelle Wed'n Annie 2001
Steven N Makiko Choy Wed'n Annie 2002
Cecile N Jhun Tiotio Wed'n Annie 2007 - Canada Kuznz
MySpace Anna Fabia Bday- C/O 88 Ypahu Grad
Rachel Rays 40th Bday
August 26th 2006
Justin Cruz Bday ;) Rumours?
Wed'n Annie Faustina "Tina" and Christopher Laguit 2 Lagit 2 quit...u all remember dat meye space bs? heh heh heh eye know...d lost www misses meh...heh heh heh....me b bak wen sum booh tay get REAL oloz..n nutts pah lastik leyek on July 21, 2007...dramah stunt Mario of Kakaako....speaking of Drama Stunts...scroll down 2 August 31, 2007
August 30th
Armandoz going away BBQ =( 4pm
Pacheco Twins 1st Bday Party =)
August 31st
Shawna and Danny's Pacheco Twins bday
Shaydan N Shadan 1yr old - Hilo Hawai'i....if I'm not mistaken....but party IZ here N Honolulu O'ahu...Saturday or Sunday Marj? planz changed...soh sorreh...
Twin Baby Shower 4 Helen Sadora Aoki
Dramah Stunt Mario of Ka'kaako calling meye cell fone n mek jibberish...so beat aroun dah hau bush pete n Cpl Lei aye? Get 2 dah point!!!! how long u been living n town..."owh aye wheyel..." so pukah panteh ansah =p heh heh heh...u grew up yet? lemeno..tanx ah...until den...sum booh tay going still treye touch meye booh tay...get it? got it? GREAT! Butt we show dah dramah stunt mastah aye Brian rub against meh n fashion 45 and boxah fred...so gorgeous...muah ={) hope eye didnt get u guyz busted if u all married or get gfrenz....heh heh heh....owh lowie boy, wen can eye post his demon sending eml from hiz pakalolo account...p me off samoa pah leez...n eye will....jus fyi ;)
(Negative Veyeb...eye GOTCHA...we shall PASS!!!) Level 4 Night Club N D Royal Hawaiian Shopping Center was it? V I P Leyen adults? thanx =) 4 d 411...pass gass...thanx =)
Haffeh Burfdei 2 yeoo!!! woowh!!!
Yeoo live N Duh Zeoo!!! woowh!!!
U L@@K like Juan Monkeh!!!! woowh!!!
N yeoo shmell like Juan Toe!!! woowh!!!
Jus Kidding, Haffah good Juan wit all yo family and frenz...n let dem all b positive Y 10-Q
As 4 all that who has passed....respect the passed, therefore, never b 4goten!!!!
SoulJAH Auntie/Mommy Lourdes Saludes Madriaga
P.S. n meye supahman belated Bday Dean Cain ;) 42 yesterday 7.31.2008...chee hu!!!
N eh booh tay eye missed? so sorreh...pah leez 4give me...tanx ah...
peace out!!!
I think therefore I was? No, I think there for I think? No, I think there for I forget, wait, I think therefore I.. I ... Lets see, two letters.. I think, therefore I .. Im not sure ...
I am
There's a pile of rocks on our property.
I like to sit on one of them and contemplate life sometimes.
I guess it's kind of like Steve's Thinking Chair?
I should probably get a Handy-Dandy Notebook.
Pay no mind to the weeds and deer poop; that's just how it is in Texas.
I know Davy was the shortest Monkee, but I didn't think he'd have the shortest life.
I think I'll tell you my whole Davy story.
When I was younger, I thought The Monkees were better than The Beatles. Then I realized the Beatles actually wrote their own stuff and that they were kind of cute, too. This was when I decided The Beatles were better and I would completely disassociate myself from The Monkees. Forever. There couldn't be anything The Monkees could offer me that the Beatles hadn't done better.
Fast forward ten years to the moment God led me to find a videotape in my crawlspace; it was dusty, the footage was blurry, bad quality. I had to find a VCR to play it, too, and on top of all that, I was actually too embarrassed to watch it with anybody else. Who knew what this was going to be. I was older, but I still wondered why I had liked them so much for all that time. I couldn't remember their faces or names or any of the reasons they had made me laugh. I mean, I was only about five or six when this seemed like the greatest show on earth (it was kind of a circus). Was it possible it could be even a tiny bit funny to me now?
On that tape were four episodes of The Monkees: Monkee vs. Machine, Hitting the High Seas, Fairy Tale and Mijacogeo. There was one episode from the first season and the other three from the second. These were the only four episodes I'd watched over and over as a kid (and on that same tape, too). Sometimes, as I watched them, I could remember a line or someone mugging, definitely that time when the plastic pie explodes ...
I'd wanted to enjoy the show but when I sat down to watch it, I thought that would be hard work. The whole thing hit me over the head: I didn't even have to try. They were having fun; I was having fun. For real? Was it possible that some show from the 60s was actually entertaining me? I'd never watched old television! Why was I laughing so much? What was going on?! These ridiculous boys - truly, just the most absurd mix of personalities - just ran around surrounded in bizarre shenanigans and witty banter, all at the same time singing and "Want to read my palm?" "No, I'll wait 'til they make it into a movie." They weren't swearing or smoking and all we ever saw them drink was milk. They were in the middle of the 1968 craze of "love" (sex) and "peace" (political unrest), and whatever happened off screen, I'll never know. But to me? When you put them all together, I just saw four good-natured, lovable and unreasonably hilarious boys. They were funny! So funny!
That was when I realized: I could have both. The Beatles and The Monkees. OBVIOUSLY!
Micky was my favorite when I was little. Micky and Davy are soo tied for first.
But you guys - Davy Jones isn't very difficult to fall in love with, especially since that's what they wanted to happen. Obviously, he was the cute one, but there was more than that because he was the performer. He was the one who was there and knew what he'd signed up for. This little guy with this huge personality and this glow and, of course, his british accent. Davy Jones...
I got the seasons - the first for my birthday, the second for Christmas - and after
I'd seen all the episodes, their music defined my summer.
Then, a year and a half ago, I got to see Davy in concert. Nerves. For one reason or another, I was terrified, maybe because we had third row seats and I wasn't sure I could handle it. But did you know that when he was younger, he was on broadway in Oliver! and played the Artful Dodger? It just so happens that the Artful Dodger is my favorite Oliver! character, and his character's big song is called, "Consider Yourself". When Davy Jones walked out on stage and started talking, he welcomed everybody and then started singing that song. The air conditioner was broken in the theater he was performing at, and on a June night outside Chicago, everywhere was pretty humid. But when I think back on that concert, it doesn't seem like anything could have gone better.
Once, during the concert, a hysterical fan in the balcony screeched, "I LOVE YOU, DAVY" and there was a second of silence while he squinted up there. And then, Davy said, "Ahh, well. Looks like my sister's here again."
A week ago, a little after 12:30 pm, everything changed for me again. While I was curling my hair or sitting in French class, Davy was having a heart attack. And at some point during my regular Wednesday routine - stapling papers, filling in vocab blanks - he just went.
There's this moment in the show that keeps popping into my head. The episode's called "Friendly Neighborhood Kidnappers" - the fourth episode of the first season. They still matched their outfits, no one was famous, they were just starting out. This is how I always think of them. So, imagine: there's the four boys in their scarce, high-ceilinged beach house. Mike's jumping around on a pogo stick, Peter's shaking a soapy drink tumbler (which, to him, is just a device in which you wash your socks), Micky's impersonating Groucho Marx, and Davy - Davy's on an armchair balancing on his head. A scheming publicist walks in, trying to get on their good side so that he can walk all over them. And then, the publicist asks them, "Don't you want to be famous? The idol of millions?" And then Davy, still balancing on his head, simply replies, "No. We just want to be revered by a small minority."
"No. We just want to be revered by a small minority."
I'm happy to be part of that minority. I'm happy for all the people that they have made laugh, once or a thousand times, and for the people who can see the joy in their humor. That we get to love them, not idolize them. We get to laugh with them. They're still the underdog.
----
There's another episode in the first six episodes aired on TV. It's called Success Story, and it's about how the boys had to lie to Davy's grandpa; Davy had told him that he was rich and famous. Davy wasn't. When all is said and done, his grandpa calls their bluff and tries to take Davy back to England with him. At the foot of the spiral staircase, the boys all stand there to see Davy off. That's when Davy said it: "I hate good-byes."
He is still such a part of my life and I know he will continue to be.
Davy: "I hate good-byes."
Micky: "Okay. Welcome to America, Davy."
Some seem to think that bird photography for me is just a matter of point and shoot. I have posted this photo to show the conditions that I am out in. Today's temperature was -17 degrees with wind gusts of 40-50 kilometers per hour. Late afternoon out in the open shooting in these conditions is feaking brutal. Hands get frozen, camera slows down, battery dies quickly, and half the time you can't see where the birds are. But, I persue my quest for the "ultimate image". BTW, that is a road with 10' snowbanks.
An immitation of the famous sculpture by Rodin.
Placed near casino, probably reminds you of how you would look (naked and thinking) after getting broke by the house.
1. Twin Bunny pouches in the morning light, 2. Lisa-Marie ; A Slightly Melancholy Cat, 3. pink_orange_flower_detail2, 4. pink flower, 5. sunset rag rug, 6. www.flickr.com/photos/trishabrinkdesign/5515371931/in/fav..., 7. Spring dream, 8. PINK BUTTONS, 9. Think Pink..., 10. Repurposed fabric felt flower heart ornament, 11. Selina Lake - Flea Market Boudior, 12. pink things, 13. Pink Light Pads, 14. Nursery Idea, 15. pillowcase stack..., 16. bigbow4
Created with fd's Flickr Toys
an early map i made to try to understand visual thinking & visual communication process. similar to dan roam's look, see, imagine, show from the back of the napkin.
tried to understand how abstraction fitted in with graphic design
Introducing Benjamas 'Fuse" Fuse is her nickname as she told me. her father gave it to her as a child. He is an Electrician. If u ask me a think it is pretty cool that a father gives a daughter a nickname.
working with her was fun. and when she smiles, the whole world lights up!
Please enjoy her collection as i would be updating from time to time.
In as much as i appreciate all ur comments, please show respect to the model in this Photo. thank you for understanding :)
Just having a play around with my new speedlite flash gun, cheapo, and various diffusers, angles, lighting, bouncing off ceilings etc. This is a household ornament, a copy of ancient cycladic art sculptures
These enigmatic Cycladic figurines, abstract figures found in the Cyclades islands, Greece, have had enormous influence on modern art. They first came to notice at the same time as modern art was beginning to go abstract, and their stark abbreviated geometric forms persuaded modern artists to do likewise.
"Weg mit den Fremdwörtern! Denke deutsch! Rede deutsch! Schreibe deutsch! Sei stolz darauf, daß du ein Deutscher bist!"
'Get rid of the foreign words! Think German! Speak German! Write in German! Be proud to be a German!'
A nationialist postcard of the Austrian Deutscher Schulverein. Mailed as Austrian Feldpost in 1916.
Ærø - Denmark-
A spokesman for the business and tourism association on the Danish island of Ærø told Børsen: "In an island society electric cars are an obvious transport solution, and we want to be among the first. The environmental protection signal that an electric car sends, is one that we want to support."
A full tour around Ærø is comfortably within the range of the electric cars offered to visitors, which can cover around 80 km on a full charge. The vehicles can be rented by the day or half-day, for respectively DKK 500 (USD 96) and DKK 250 (USD 48).
Think Global is an electric car company located in Aurskog, Norway.
Making ATC's has become officially my newest addiction. Thank God we do not pay taxes for it ;)
I reversed the tree of one Xmas set to get this dude and the branches in the side are also part of a large branch from another Xmas set.
Thanks for looking!
Supplies:
- White cardstock
- Stamps: Hero Arts S5208, CL357 (tree), CL238 (branch), CL266 (tiny speech bubble). Basic Grey sentiment.
- Ink: Distress Inks (Shabby Shutters, Aged Mahogany, Peeled Paint).
- Paper: Basic Grey
- Googly eyes
- Jute string
- Dew drops
- Dimensional foam adhesive
- Paper distresser
Original: lifehacker.com/5831306/how-i-got-in-shape-with-the-help-o...
How I Got in Shape with the Help of Technology
It's tempting to think dropping cash on a clever exercise-/fitness-/weight-/food-tracking gadget or app is the only thing standing between you and those six-pack abs you're still convinced you want, but simply owning a new exercise gadget isn't going to get you in better shape. Unfortunately when it comes to your fitness, there's no magic bullet beyond actually eating better and exercising. That doesn't mean fitness tech is useless, though. I spent the last eight months testing out some of the more popular fitness tools on the market; some were great, others not so great. Here's a look at my favorite fitness gadgets and apps, and a look at how I got in better shape this year with the help of tech.
First, a note: I'm not a doctor, not a dietician, and I'm not in terrible shape. I've always been at least somewhat athletic, and I like staying active, but like most people, I've occasionally let stress, time, and yes, laziness get in the way of health and fitness. At the beginning of this year I decided, puffy-faced after a holiday season of binging, that I needed to get in better shape. I'd been reading raves about gadgets like the FitBit, so I decided to give these tools a try to see if they actually worked.
As it turned out, they did. Some worked better than others, but I dropped the 10 or so pounds I was looking to leave behind (like I said, I wasn't in terrible shape to begin with) and have kept it off. It would probably be more impressive if I'd lost 50 pounds, but there's no reason the same tools can't accomplish a larger goal.
The Contestants
I tried most of the fitness gadgets I could get my hands on, trying to tackle as much variety I could in terms of types of fitness tech. If you feel don't like reading about each piece of tech, just jump down to what ended up working best for me. The gadgets and apps I tried include:
The BodyMedia Fit ($180-$260 + monthly subscription): Great Data, Bulky Device
What It Is: The Fit a tracking arm band that tracks your caloric output by measuring things like body heat, sweat, heat flux (the rate at which heat is dissipated from your body), and your activity, as in motion. It does the latter with a built-in accelerometer—the same thing the detects movements in a Wiimote or your smartphone. As an added bonus, it also measures and analyzes your sleep if you wear it to bed and tracks your calories consumed—if you're willing to enter everything you eat into their webapp. You can read more details regarding how it works here.
Pros: The Fit is rich with data, and among all the tools I tested, it clearly does the most, it presents it all in a friendly dashboard, and one charge lasts for days, so you don't need to worry about charging it all the time. Most of that data is tracked automatically, so all you have to do is wear the arm band. The only thing you have to manually enter into the web site is your calories consumed, which you do through a Weight-Watchers-like food database, and your weight.
Cons: You have to wear an armband around all the time. I wore the Fit around for a good six weeks, and frankly, I found wearing it kind of gross. My arm would feel a little sweaty, so I'd pull the rubber-y elastic band away from my arm to get a little air in there like you would if you were wearing tight, poorly breathing underwear. The $180 version I tested also had to be plugged into your computer to sync, which, in a world where wireless is the expectation, felt really tedious. Since I tested it, BodyMedia has released a $250 Bluetooth-capable version that, I believe, can sync wirelessly to your Android or iPhone. The gadget itself doesn't have any display, so you can't get any on-the-fly statistics unless you've synced it—in which case you'll have to visit the webapp or open the Fit app on your smartphone.
Verdict: The Fit was the best tracker I tested in terms of accuracy and breadth of information. Unfortunately I'm not a convict, and unless required by law, I, like most people, find wearing a bulky armband every day to be overkill. In the winter, it bulged under long-sleeve shirts like I had severely over-exercised one arm. In short-sleeve weather, several people assumed I had some sort of blood disease that needed constant monitoring (not kidding). I'd consider using the Fit full time if it weren't such a socially awkward commitment—that is, if it were smaller and could live in my pocket.
Fitbit ($100): Unobtrusive Tracker, Low Price
What It Is: The Fitbit is a small, key fob-sized pedometer that fits in your pocket and uses an accelerometer to track steps taken, distance walked, and calories burned in a day. Like the BodyMedia Fit, the Fitbit web site allows you to view your activity and (manually) log your caloric intake. The point is to see your calories in vs. calories out to get a sense of how you're doing in the weight loss department. As an afterthought, Fitbit also has a sleep tracking element.
Pros: Fitbit is small, fits easily into your pocket (or wherever you want to clip it on—most of the time I preferred to wear mine in my otherwise unused watch pocket), and syncs wirelessly to a USB dongle-plus-charger that plugs into your computer. It's easy to set up, easy to use, and the Fitbit interface is attractive and easy to navigate. The pint-sized gadget syncs wirelessly whenever you're in range of the (likewise small) USB base station, and the device's onscreen display gives you on-the-fly stats, displaying steps taken, distance walked, and a surprisingly effective flower that grows taller the more you're walking. (I was always disappointed in myself when I didn't max out that flower height.)
Cons: The Fitbit's battery life is a little on the weak side, but it's not a dealbreaker. If you want to track your sleep with the Fitbit, you have to wear it on a wristband, which suffers the same problems as the Fit: Namely, it sucks to wear an uncomfortable band to sleep.
Verdict: The Fitbit isn't nearly as full-featured as the Fit, but it makes up for that with convenience. Its wireless activity sync, on-device stats, and small size make it an addictive gadget to carry around in your pocket. I found myself regularly checking (and actually caring about) my daily steps taken. You still need to remember to swap pockets every day, and it can be frustrating when you forget, but you get in the habit of keeping it with you like you get in the habit of remembering your keys. Lastly, my primary activity is jogging, and while Fitbit does have a special "activity" mode, it's much more of a walker's device.
Withings WiFi Body Scale ($160): Dead-Simple Tracking, Easily Understandable Data
What It Is: The Withings WiFi Body Scale is what it sounds like: A scale that connects to your home Wi-Fi network. Aside from measuring your weight, it also measures your body mass index (BMI) and body fat percentage. It syncs the results to the Withings web site, where you can track you weight over time. Withings works with multiple users, so every person in your household can track their weight using the device.
Pros: You won't find anything much simpler to use than the attractive Withings scale. After you've set it up with your network, associated it with your MyWithings account, and added yourself as a user, you just stand on the scale whenever you want to use it. It weighs you and measures your BMI and body fat percentage. It automatically syncs the results to the web. There's nothing easier than stepping on a scale when you get out of the shower, so Withings has the lowest hassle to adoption. The weight change over time is, for me, effective. Rather than having a vague idea that I've gained or lost weight, I know exactly how much I've gained or lost, and even though it doesn't have any way of tracking your caloric intake/output, normally I have a pretty good idea of when and why it's happening. As an added bonus, Withings can incorporate its data with third-party fitness tools—including RunKeeper (see below).
Cons: The Withings scale can't track the same data as the Fit or Fitbit for obvious reasons. It's limited to the three weight measurements.
Verdict: I really like the Withings scale. Incorporating gadgets like the Fit or Fitbit into your life is a big commitment, but there's nothing to using a scale. You just stand on it. Everyone understands that, and beyond the initial setup, that's all there is to it. A good weight history is, for me, really powerful. It's hard data saying, "Adam, you're getting a little on the heavy side for you. Time to shape up."
RunKeeper (Free app, $20/year for the Elite service); Low Price, Great for Runners
What It Is: RunKeeper is an Android, iPhone, and Windows Phone 7 app that uses your smartphone's GPS to track your runs, hikes, walks, skis, and pretty much every other distance- and motion-based activity. It tracks distance, duration, pace, speed, elevation, and calories burned. When you finish a workout, the RunKeeper app syncs the results to RunKeeper.com, where you can track your activity history. It's far from the only app of its kind, but it is the only one I know of with strong, cross-platform support. (I like to know I can switch between an Android or iPhone and still use the same tracking app.) Other good tracking alternatives include RunStar Runmeter and Nike+. The same pros and cons of of RunKeeper will mostly apply to other apps of its ilk.
Pros: I like listening to music or podcasts when I jog, so I'm taking my phone with me anyway. RunKeeper works well (as long as your phone's GPS doesn't suck; when I had the abomination of an Android phone that is the Samsung Captivate, the GPS tracking was all over the place) and does exactly what it advertises. The app is customizable, allowing you to set time- or distance-based announcements for your distance and pace, place specific playlists, and so on. The feature that really blew my mind was the Coaching feature, which allows you to create your own workouts with specific time- or distance-based intervals. (E.g., run fast for .25 miles, then slow for 1 minute; rinse and repeat as often as you like). Once I discovered coaching, I was hooked.
Cons: As I mentioned, RunKeeper is only as good as your device's GPS. This isn't really RunKeeper's fault, but it is an important factor to keep in mind. The RunKeeper app is free, but some really nice advanced features are only available once you've signed up for the $20/year RunKeeper Elite. I'm motivated by personal bests, so the main benefit of the subscription is the full-featured Personal Records and Trends. (I run the most, by far, on Tuesdays.) I count the Elite requirement as a con in the context of a free app, but it's also pretty cheap relative to buying any of the gadgets above.
Verdict: If you're a jogger, RunKeeper (or other tracking apps like RunKeeper) is incredibly useful. You get all the tracking information you want for your exercise, and you don't have to carry yet another gadget around with you everywhere you go (assuming you already carry a smartphone).
What Worked Best for Me
I spent months using the devices above to get in better shape, and for starters, I should mention that it worked. All of the tools I included worked better for me than nothing by nature of what's involved. As soon as you start actively tracking this data, you can't help but become more aware of your fitness. That's a good thing, and any feedback loop is better than no feedback loop.
Still, I found that the less painful the path to adoption, the more likely I was to actually keep up with and pay attention to the results of the tool. Even if I started with the best intentions, I could never convince myself to log everything I eat, and for me, wearing a dedicated tracking device everywhere I went got annoying after a while. So while I enjoyed perusing all the data that devices like the Fit and Fitbit gave me, my sweet spot combined the Withings scale and RunKeeper.
As I mentioned above, I like to jog as my primary form of fitness, and RunKeeper is an excellent joggers companion. And while measuring caloric input and output does, in theory, narrow the feedback loop between eating and gaining five pounds, weight is a metric that everyone understands, without effort. So tracking my weight with Withings filled in some of the gaps between RunKeeper and the Fit/Fitbit.
Additionally, the Withings scale data can integrate with RunKeeper, which—while not that useful on its own—is a nice bonus.
What I'm Still Keeping an Eye Out For
Health and fitness tech is still in its infancy, and in the next few years, this kind of health-related quantified self technology will only improve. I'm still eagerly waiting to see what comes out of Massive Health, for example, a startup from the former creative lead at Firefox Aza Raskin.
Devices that I didn't mention (and that many of you may already be using) include gaming-integrated tools like the Wii Fit. In theory more and more of the better tech—like the Fit and Fitbit—will manage to shrink down and integrate directly into your smartphones so that you don't need to carry an extra gadget with you everywhere you go.
How About You?
Have you spent a lot of time with a fitness tracking tool, whether it's as old-school as Weight Watchers or as new as the tools above? Share your experience—including what's worked well and what hasn't—in the comments.
Or at least I do. This is my bit for breast cancer awareness. Yes, it is a somewhat cheesy set but a very serious cause.
Title: The Thinker
Creator: Knott, John Francis, 1878-1963
Date: August 10, 1945
Series: Series 17 - John Knott portrait drawings and cartoons; John Knott cartoons, Dallas Morning News
Description: This cartoon ran in the Dallas Morning News, August 10, 1945, section 2, Page 2.
Part Of: Belo records, 1842-2007
Physical Description: 1 drawing: 38 x 22.9 cm
File: a2010_0001_17_02_01_109_thinker_opt.jpg
Rights: Please cite DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University when using this file. A high-resolution version of this file may be obtained for a fee. For details see the sites.smu.edu/cul/degolyer/research/permissions/ web page. For other information, contact degolyer@smu.edu.
For more information and to view the image in high resolution, see: digitalcollections.smu.edu/cdm/ref/collection/bel/id/295
View John Knott's World War II Cartoons
So You Think You Can Dance Live Tour | Rockford Metrocentre | Rockford, IL
10.29.10
© ae photography 2010
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Think of me, think of me fondly,
when we've said goodbye.
Remember me once in awhile -
please promise me you'll try.
When you find, that, once again,
you long to take your heart back and be free -
If you ever find a moment,
spare a thought for me...
We never said our love
was evergreen,
or as unchanging as the sea -
but if you can still remember, stop and think of me...
Think of all the things
we've shared and seen -
don't think about the things which might have been...
Think of me, think of me waking,
silent and resigned.
Imagine me,
trying too hard to put you from my mind.
Recall those days
look back on all those times,
think of the things we'll never do -
there will never be a day,
when I won't think of you...
We never said our love was evergreen,
or as unchanging as the sea -
but please promise me,
that sometimes you will think of me!
Phantom of the Opera
Lyrics By: Charles Hart
Music By : Andrew Lloyd Weber
Additional Lyrics By: Richard Stilgoe
I can't remember why i decided to to Ufford; I think it was because it is in Simon's top ten of Suffolk churches. Of course everything is down to taste and perspective and what the day, light, or other factors at play when you visited.
I drove through the village three times looking for the church, but this was Upper Ufford; all golf clubs and easy access to the A12.
I tried to find the church on the sat nav, but that wanted me to go to Ipswich or Woodbridge, I then tried to find Church Lane, and hit the jackpot. Down through a modern housing estate, then down a narrow lane, left at the bottom and there at the end of a lane stood St Mary, or the tower of the church anyway.
In the house opposite, a young man paused doing physical jerks to stare at me as ai parked, but my eyes were on the church. What delights would I find inside?
The south wall of the church inside the porch is lined with some very nice tiles; I take a few pictures. Inside, your eye is taken to the wonderful font cover, several metres high, disappearing into the wooden beams high above. A fine rood beam stretched across the chancel arch, and is still decorated.
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Upper Ufford is a pleasant place, and known well enough in Suffolk. Pretty much an extension northwards of Woodbridge and Melton, it is a prosperous community, convenient without being suburban. Ufford Park Hotel is an enjoyable venue in to attend professional courses and conferences, and the former St Audrey's mental hospital grounds across the road are now picturesque with luxury flats and houses. And I am told that the Ufford Park golf course is good, too, for those who like that kind of thing.
But as I say, that Ufford is really just an extension of Melton. In fact, there is another Ufford. It is in the valley below, more than a mile away along narrow lanes and set in deep countryside beside the Deben, sits Lower Ufford. To reach it, you follow ways so rarely used that grass grows up the middle.
You pass old Melton church, redundant since the 19th century, but still in use for occasional exhibitions and performances, and once home to the seven sacrament font that is now in the plain 19th century building up in the main village. Eventually, the lane widens, and you come into the single street of a pretty, tiny hamlet, the church tower hidden from you by old cottages and houses.
In one direction, the lane to Bromeswell takes you past Lower Ufford's delicious little pub, the White Lion. A stalwart survivor among fast disappearing English country pubs, the beer still comes out of barrels and the bar is like a kitchen. I cannot think that a visit to Ufford should be undertaken without at least a pint there. And, at the other end of the street, set back in a close between cottages, sits the Assumption, its 14th century tower facing the street, a classic Suffolk moment.
The dedication was once that of hundreds of East Anglian churches, transformed to 'St Mary' by the Reformation and centuries of disuse before the 19th century revival, but revived both here and at Haughley near Stowmarket. In late medieval times, it coincided with the height of the harvest, and in those days East Anglia was Our Lady's Dowry, intensely Catholic, intimately Marian.
The Assumption was almost certainly not the original dedication of this church. There was a church here for centuries before the late middle ages, and although there are no traces of any pre-Conquest building, the apse of an early-Norman church has been discovered under the floor of the north side of the chancel. The current chancel has a late Norman doorway, although it has been substantially rebuilt since, and in any case the great glories of Ufford are all 15th century. Perhaps the most dramatic is the porch, one of Suffolk's best, covered in flushwork and intriguing carvings.
Ufford's graveyard is beautiful; wild and ancient. I wandered around for a while, spotting the curious blue crucifix to the east of the church, and reading old gravestones. One, to an early 19th century gardener at Ufford Hall, has his gardening equipment carved at the top. The church is secretive, hidden on all sides by venerable trees, difficult to photograph but lovely anyway. I stopped to look at it from the unfamiliar north-east; the Victorian schoolroom, now a vestry, juts out like a small cottage.
I walked back around to the south side, where the gorgeous porch is like a small palace against the body of the church. I knew the church would be open, because it is every day. And then, through the porch, and down into the north aisle, into the cool, dim, creamy light.
On the afternoon of Wednesday, 21st August 1644, Ufford had a famous visitor, a man who entered the church in exactly the same way, a man who recorded the events of that day in his journal. There were several differences between his visit and the one that I was making, one of them crucial; he found the church locked. He was the Commissioner to the Earl of Manchester for the Imposition in the Eastern Association of the Parliamentary Ordinance for the Demolishing of Monuments of Idolatry, and his name was William Dowsing.
Dowsing was a kind of 17th century political commissar, travelling the eastern counties and enforcing government legislation. He was checking that local officials had carried out what they were meant to do, and that they believed in what they were doing. In effect, he was getting them to work and think in the new ways that the central government required. It wasn't really a witch hunt, although God knows such things did exist in abundance at that time. It was more as if an arm of the state extended and worked its fingers into even the tiniest and most remote parishes. Anyone working in the public sector in Britain in the early years of the 21st century will have come across people like Dowsing.
As a part of his job, Dowsing was an iconoclast, charged with ensuring that idolatrous images were excised from the churches of the region. He is a man blamed for a lot. In fact, virtually all the Catholic imagery in English churches had been destroyed by the Anglican reformers almost a hundred years before Dowsing came along. All that survived was that which was difficult to destroy - angels in the roofs, gable crosses, and the like - and that which was inconvenient to replace - primarily, stained glass. Otherwise, in the late 1540s the statues had been burnt, the bench ends smashed, the wallpaintings whitewashed, the roods hauled down and the fonts plastered over. I have lost count of the times I have been told by churchwardens, or read in church guides, that the hatchet job on the bench ends or the font in their church was the work of 'William Dowsing' or 'Oliver Cromwell'. In fact, this destruction was from a century earlier than William Dowsing. Sometimes, I have even been told this at churches which Dowsing demonstrably did not visit.
Dowsing's main targets included stained glass, which the pragmatic Anglican reformers had left alone because of the expense of replacing it, and crosses and angels, and chancel steps. We can deduce from Dowsing's journal which medieval imagery had survived for him to see, and that which had already been hidden - not, I hasten to add, because people wanted to 'save' Catholic images, but rather because this was an expedient way of getting rid of them.
So, for example, Dowsing visited three churches during his progress through Suffolk which today have seven sacrament fonts, but Dowsing does not mention a single one of them in his journal; they had all been plastered over long ago.
In fact, Dowsing was not worried so much about medieval survivals. What concerned him more was overturning the reforms put in place by the ritualist Archbishop Laud in the 1630s. Laud had tried to restore the sacramental nature of the Church, primarily by putting the altar back in the chancel and building it up on raised steps. Laud had since been beheaded thanks to puritan popular opinion, but the evidence of his wickedness still filled the parish churches of England. The single order that Dowsing gave during his progress more than any other was that chancel steps should be levelled.
The 21st of August was a hot day, and Dowsing had much work to do. He had already visited the two Trimley churches, as well as Brightwell and Levington, that morning, and he had plans to reach Baylham on the other side of Ipswich before nightfall. Much to his frustration, he was delayed at Ufford for two hours by a dispute between the church wardens over whether or not to allow him access.
The thing was, he had been here before. Eight months earlier, as part of a routine visit, he had destroyed some Catholic images that were in stained glass, and prayer clauses in brass inscriptions, but had trusted the churchwardens to deal with a multitude of other sins, images that were beyond his reach without a ladder, or which would be too time-consuming. This was common practice - after all, the churchwardens of Suffolk were generally equally as puritan as Dowsing. It was assumed that people in such a position were supporters of the New Puritan project, especially in East Anglia. Dowsing rarely revisited churches. But, for some reason, he felt he had to come back here to make sure that his orders had been carried out.
Why was this? In retrospect, we can see that Ufford was one of less than half a dozen churches where the churchwardens were uncooperative. Elsewhere, at hundreds of other churches, the wardens welcomed Dowsing with open arms. And Dowsing only visited churches in the first place if it was thought there might be a problem, parishes with notorious 'scandalous ministers' - which is to say, theological liberals. Richard Lovekin, the Rector of Ufford, had been turned out of his living the previous year, although he survived to return when the Church of England was restored in 1660. But that was in the future. Something about his January visit told Dowsing that he needed to come back to Ufford.
Standing in the nave of the Assumption today, you can still see something that Dowsing saw, something which he must have seen in January, but which he doesn't mention until his second visit, in the entry in his journal for August 21st, which appears to be written in a passion. This is Ufford's most famous treasure, the great 15th century font cover.
It rises, six metres high, magnificent and stately, into the clerestory, enormous in its scale and presence. In all England, only the font cover at Southwold is taller. The cover is telescopic, and crocketting and arcading dances around it like waterfalls and forests. There are tiny niches, filled today with 19th century statues. At the top is a gilt pelican, plucking its breast.
Dowsing describes the font cover as glorious... like a pope's triple crown... but this is just anti-Catholic innuendo. The word glorious in the 17th century meant about the same as the word 'pretentious' means to us now - Dowsing was scoffing.
But that was no reason for him to be offended by it. The Anglicans had destroyed all the statues in the niches a century before, and all that remained was the pelican at the top, pecking its breast to feed its chicks. Dowsing would have known that this was a Catholic image of the Sacrifice of the Mass, and would have disapproved. But he did not order the font cover to be destroyed. After all, the rest of the cover was harmless enough, apart from being a waste of good firewood, and the awkwardness of the Ufford churchwardens seems to have put him off following through. He never went back.
Certainly, there can have been no theological reason for the churchwardens to protect their font cover. I like to think that they looked after it simply because they knew it to be beautiful, and that they also knew it had been constructed by ordinary workmen of their parish two hundred years before, under the direction of some European master designer. They protected it because of local pride, and amen to that. The contemporary font beneath is of a type more familiar in Norfolk than Suffolk, with quatrefoils alternating with shields, and heads beneath the bowl.
While the font cover is extraordinary, and of national importance, it is one of just several medieval survivals in the nave of the Assumption. All around it are 15th century benches, with superbly characterful and imaginative images on their ends. The best is the bench with St Margaret and St Catherine on it. This was recently on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum as part of the Gothic exhibition. Other bench end figures include a long haired, haloed woman seated on a throne, which may well be a representation of the Mother of God Enthroned, and another which may be the Coronation of the Queen of Heaven. There is also a praying woman in a butterfly headdress, once one of a pair, and a man wearing what appears to be a bowler hat, although I expect it is a helmet of some kind. His beard is magnificent. There are also a number of finely carved animals, both mythical and real.
High up in the chancel arch is an unusual survival, the crocketted rood beam that once supported the crucifix, flanked by the grieving Mary and John, with perhaps a tympanum behind depicting the last judgement. These are now all gone, of course, as is the rood loft that once stood in front of the beam and allowed access to it. But below, the dado of the screen survives, with twelve panels. Figures survive on the south side. They have not worn well. They are six female Saints: St Agnes, St Cecilia, St Agatha, St Faith, St Bridget and, uniquely in England, St Florence. Curiously, the head of this last has been, in recent years, surrounded by stars, in imitation of the later Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception. Presumably this was done in a fit of Anglo-catholic enthusiasm about a century ago. The arrangement is similar to the south side of the screen at Westhall, and it may even be that the artist was the same. While there is no liturgical reason for having the female Saints on one side and, presumably, male Saints on the other, a similar arrangement exists on several Norfolk screens in the Dereham area.
Much of the character of the church today comes from it embracing, in the early years of the 20th century, Anglo-catholicism in full flood. It is true to say that, the later a parish took on the tradition, the more militant and intensely expressed it was, and the more evidence there is likely to be surviving. As at Great Ryburgh in Norfolk, patronage here ensured that this work was carried out to the very highest specification under the eye of the young Ninian Comper. Comper is an enthusiast's enthusiast, but I think he is at his best on a small scale in East Anglia like here and Ryburgh. His is the extraordinary war memorial window and reredos in the south aisle chapel, dedicated to St Leonard.
The window depicts Christ carrying his cross on the via dolorosa, but he is aided by a soldier in WWI uniform and, behind him, a sailor. The use of blues is very striking, as is the grain on the wood of the cross which, incidentally, can also be seen to the same effect on Comper's reredos at Ryburgh. The elegant, gilt reredos here profides a lovely foil to the tremendous window above it.
Comper's other major window here is on the north side of the nave. This is a depiction of the Annunciationextraordinary. from 1901, although it is the figures above which are most They are two of the Ancient Greek sibyls, Erythrea and Cumana, who are associated with the foretelling of Christ. At the top is a stunning Holy Trinity in the East Anglian style. There are angels at the bottom, and all in all this window shows Comper at the height of his powers.
Stepping into the chancel, there is older glass - or, at least, what at first sight appears to be. Certainly, there are some curious roundels which are probably continental 17th century work, ironically from about the same time that Dowsing was here. They were probably acquired by collectors in the 19th century, and installed here by Victorians. The image of a woman seated among goats is curious, as though she might represent the season of spring or be an allegory of fertility, but she is usually identified as St Agnes. It is a pity this roundel has been spoiled by dripping cement or plaster. Another roundel depicts St Sebastian shot with arrows, and a third St Anthony praying to a cross in the desert.
The two angels in the glass on the opposite side of the chancel are perhaps more interesting. They are English, probably early 16th Century, and represent two of the nine Orders of Angels, Dominions and Powers. They carry banners written in English declaring their relationship to eartly kings (Dominions) and priests and religious (Virtues). They would have been just two of a set of nine, but as with the glass opposite it seems likely that they did not come from this church originally.
However, the images in 'medieval' glass in the east window are entirely modern, though done so well you might not know. A clue, of course, is that the main figures, St Mary Salome with the infants St James and St John on the left, and St Anne with the infant Virgin on the right, are wholly un-East Anglian in style. In fact, they are 19th century copies by Clayton & Bell of images at All Souls College, Oxford, installed here in the 1970s. I think that the images of heads below may also be modern, but the angel below St Anne is 15th century, and obviously East Anglian, as is St Stephen to the north.
High above, the ancient roofs with their sacred monograms are the ones that Dowsing saw, the ones that the 15th century builders gilt and painted to be beautiful to the glory of God - and, of course, to the glory of their patrons. Rich patronage survived the Reformation, and at the west end of the south aisle is the massive memorial to Sir Henry Wood, who died in 1671, eleven years after the end of the Commonwealth. It is monumental, the wreathed ox heads a severely classical motif. Wood, Mortlock tells us, was Treasurer to the Household of Queen Henrietta Maria.
There is so much to see in this wonderful church that, even visiting time and time again, there is always something new to see, or something old to see in a new way. It is, above all, a beautiful space, and, still maintaining a reasonably High worship tradition, it is is still kept in High liturgical style. It is at once a beautiful art object and a hallowed space, an organic touchstone, precious and powerful.
Simon Knott, June 2006, updated July 2010 and January 2017
You can just call me Spike! I think this was the remains of a coneflower...not sure. Am getting ready to go see the doctor, then to a seminar if I have time, then to work. It's going to be a ridiculously busy day but will catch up with everyone later. Thank you for all the comments, visits and support! Hugs!
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