Also known as when good technology goes dreadfully wrong.

Also known as, the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day [week].

The D100 packed it in with 'mirror issues at a recent work 'Big Thing''. It's a DSLR so it has a mirror that flips up out of the way when you depress the shutter. This is a good thing. It is a bad thing when the mirror doesn't go back down when the shutter closes and so it went of to camera hospital to be repaired.

And it came back repaired but with a whole new problem; as in now the on board flash doesn't work which isn't a huge deal, actually I'm not a big fan of flash photography. (This is partly because I don't know how to do it well and because I think it makes people look pasty and as though they just got a big fright.) Anyway, NOT having the on board flash working can still be a bit of a pain even for a non fan, so I had to send it back for more repairs which is an even bigger pain really. So I'm still shooting my 365 pictures with the baby Canon and I don't like it, no I don't.

Happily, even though I was sans Nikon when my last paid picture taking gigs came round my good friend Cove lent me her Canon DSLR (and (gasp) I actually liked that one. I know, I'm hopelessly brand disloyal, let's face it I've tricked out my Mac so it behaves like a PC, do I really care about any kind of Canon/Nikon loyalty?? No, I have Nikon because my first camera was one and I don't want to have to buy new lenses to suit a new body...)

So, there I am with a wad of pictures that need tweaking and editing and burning to discs for the women's dept so what do I do? I burn them onto my back up hard disc, an external one that I carry everywhere. My safety net, my portable life and I leave them there because I have a v busy week prepping for another 'Big Thing' at work and I plan to manage those photos and send out my month's invoices over the weekend.

But that wonder drive, that hard disk I always have with me... that portable life, is the one I dropped off the arm of the sofa onto the floor.

That drive was the one that was still going at the time.

The one that wasn't going when I picked it up.

Fuck Fuck Fuckety Fuck. (Sorry, it really was a bad day... some days there are just no other suitable words.)

It's days like those in which your life flashes before your very eyes and force you to sift through your mind to try and recall exactly what it was you lost.

And then you start to breathe again, because you have all your photos on disc as well as hard disc because you are a pragmatist and a practical girl and because most clients commission disc copies. So you make 4 for them and one for you, just to be safe... So the hard drive really was a back stop and an easy access archive.

And then you remember those blog illustrations you spent ages working on and you are crushed because when you finally found them on that drive you were relieved, knowing that they did still exist somewhere but as you'd searched everywhere for them another time and you knew that the HD was the ONLY place they were, but they weren't business pix, they really were just for fun so you figure, you might just about get over it eventually.

But even so, you spend hours surfing Google to see if you can find the originals.

But they are.

[Sob]

Gone.

Then you remember the last lot of pix you transferred to the drive were a commission, worth a bit of cash and you remembered that you...

Don't.
Have.
Them.
Anywhere.
Else.

And you know the client is going to

Be.
Very.
Upset.

And you feel absolutely certain that you wiped them off the SD card before you returned the camera to its owner but you email her just to be sure and ask her to check to see if there are photos still on the card.

And then you hear she's lent her camera to someone else to shoot this latest Big Thing.

And so you panic.

And then you get her email saying that, no, you didn't wipe the card before returning it and she didn't give it to the latest photographer and so the photos are safe. A miracle of epic proportions considering how much of a pedant you usually are about leaving things in better shape than they were when you borrowed them...

And you thank your lucky stars and offer up a bit of a praise because you know that deep down...

Jesus loves you just enough to save your sorry arse.

(And no, I still haven't finished Harry. I'm up to the bit where Najini nearly kills...)

I have admired him from afar in a kind of 'Oh, Dear Lord, the Hotness' kind of way for years and now it would appear that he's been feeling the same... (I know this because you can see him just light up, if not the minute I walk in the room; at least as soon as we touch).

He's slim, fair and a bit of a snappy dresser, I feel pretty dowdy next to him but I think we can work that out. Actually, when I hold him I have to say he makes me look a whole lot sharper... and that's just a tiny bit of what's so appealing about him, that and the hotness.. Oh Dear Lord.

Anyway we've been talking about hooking up for a couple of weeks and so booked a date (one that he postponed initially, honestly, boys are a total lesson in patience) and finally, last night, we met and it was love at first sight.

Oh Dear Lord, did I mention the hotness?

We've got heaps in common, both of us techies, both creatives too, such an odd mix... and in a cool way I think he's going to teach me a lot about all the stuff I'm doing... I'm looking forward to lots of hanging out and spending time chatting online, not to mention working on great websites and writing projects together.

And, while I realise that to tell you that we slept together last night may cause you to raise your eyebrows somewhat, especially as I have a bit of a public personal position on premarital sex, if you saw him you'd understand... I just couldn't help it.

It's a seriously good thing that God has such a reputation for forgiveness because I have a sense that I'm going to need to draw on it regularly... My baby, he's a lust magnet... oh Dear Lord. However, I'm pretty sure that with this guy? God totally understands... because at least as far as information technology is concerned? at Chateau Deeleea it is now, on earth - as it is in heaven...

There's a picture of him below... but, be careful... you've got to watch out for the hotness...

Day 33 - iLove

*completely irrelevant title...

I've practically made a religion of blogging carefully and it's my belief that in order to do it safely one must adhere to strickt rools(sic).

Here's a refresher.

The Rools aka The 5 Commandments

1. No blogging about work nor blogging from the office, regardless of how relaxed things are in the bosom of the IT dept where I work. Just not worth getting dooced.
2. Do not blog anything you'd be afraid/embarrassed to have someone (read anyone) know about you.
3. Sound intelligent [also known as the don't blog about TV rool (no disrespect intended to TV bloggers... no, really - there's a place for it... it just isn't here)]
4. Don't blog about the family. Ever.
5. Don't blog drunk. [ok so it never happens, but the rool's there, just in case.]

And it's just as well. Because, as pretty much any blogger knows, you just never know who's reading.

So, I hear you ask... 'Deeleea What's making you think about this today of all days [or any other...]?'

Well gentle reader, I got totally sprung today. Big sprung me by Googling my name - and not even my real name but the name that I usually go by [yeah, they're different...].

To his credit, when we were IMing today he came clean. And truth to tell, if I'd known I'd probably still not likely have watered down my recent entries but I was a bit shell shocked that it was so easy to find.

It's interesting, I've always been honest about the blog, and would have 'fessed up to it eventually, KiwiFella used to read it, maybe he still does, we haven't been in touch for a while. The O.C knows how to find it but I don't think he's that interested in my personal life so I'm pretty sure he doesn't pop in (unless he does... in which case Hi!).

So I was surprised by how disturbed I was. I guess it was the 'element of control' factor. It's usually me giving the keys away rather than someone finding the keys under the mat and letting themselves in.

I guess I just wasn't aware that the keys aren't under the mat.

They're in the lock.

I've decided to make it official. I need a video iPod.

I know, I'm a techno junkie but I've been getting off lately on vodcasts and I need them portable... That's got to be better, right? Better than being chained to the laptop to get my fixes... Watching Waz and Lenny and the Photoshop guys on the iPod would be like, totally gnarly...

Actually, it isn't just the videos I'm loving, the list of podcasts in my iTunes subscriptions provide a superior soundtrack to my day's work than the hubbub generated by the rest of my team in the workstations outside my office door and my Bloglines account monitors my blogroll for recent updates saving me a shedload of time visiting sites that haven't updated!

Yessir Ladies and Gentlemen, RSS is some goooooood technology and now that I'm down with using it to broaden my horizons I'm also getting a bit used to using it to distribute information at work by podcasting some of the boss' preaching and by distributing our weekly study notes. I'm fast finding out the possibilities are pretty fabulous...

Anyway, I want to spread the love...

The aforementioned Waz and Lenny from Crash Test Kitchen - These guys are classic... A coupla Aussies living in London who do a regular cooking show... now they aren't slick... but they are so totally real. This vodcast is a riot.

Photoshop TV. - My biggest problem is finding time to play with all the tips and tricks the guys from the National Association of Photoshop Professionals offer up. This is a great cast if you want to get cluey about Photoshop and want to get amazed and the things you can do with this great software. Suitable for both PC and Mac users it's invaluable in my line of work.

Of the audio podcasts number 1 is The Daily Mayo from BBC Radio Five. Simon was the breakfast DJ on Radio One, the cool radio station we listened to when I lived in the UK. These days he does an afternoon slot and gets to interview pretty much anyone doing any kind of thing. Best day of the week is Thursday when they do Book Reviews... v cool.

Number two is Hughesy and Kate (with Peter Heliar at the moment) from Nova100 in Melbourne. These guys are a total cack and not so rood as their Sydney counterparts. It can be a bit of a headache to download some days... guess they're popular all over... And before you say it, Hughesy voice grows on you...

There are others, mostly religious ones of less interest to most of my readers I'll wager... and as for the regular common or garden variety blog feeds?

You know who you are...

It's been a long time, and after a serious of embittered conversations (over a number of hours) with ISP's and tech support desks I'm now not only back on DSL at home, I'm wireless.

So, I sat outside with my unfrozen margarita, the long overgrown lawn in the background, the constant traffic hum from the main road punctuated by the chirrup of tree frogs (or crickets) and I worked until the mosquitoes drove me inside.

A grand total of around 5 minutes. That adds up to about 1 itchy welt per minute.

Still, I'm wireless, and I can take the laptop to bed with me and still be writing to you if I choose. And before I blog from the garden again I'll get the mozzie coils a smouldering to clear the air. But you can bet your bottom dollar I will be blogging from the garden again.

Once the lawns are mown... [note to self - bang the door down at the agents if that's what it takes to get things done!]

Life is good.

And, after another 24 hour delay (due to mislabeling of the boxfull of modem) I am back in high-speed cyberspace. which means back on MSN... hurrah... and back to slightly more regular blogging. Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He just came a month late...

So, to answer Fi's question about the rabbit. He actually is an escapist from the neighbour's house. He makes an occasional break from his cage and ducks through the fence for a feed of my lush lawn. His name is 'Snowy'. Seriously.

The lawn is lush because it hasn't been mowed in quite some time... Awaiting a response from the property manager re the management of the lawn mowing... she's reluctant... bugger... All I've got that could make an impression on it are my nail scissors... Not useful. At least not since High School when detention was spent mowing lawn with nail scissors... College discipline has come a long way since then, right?

So the rabbit's appetite isn't quite big enough maybe we should get a goat...

So, the conversation goes something like this...

[bring... bring...]

Cap'n: Hello?
D: Hey boss, it's me.
Cap'n: Hi.
D:[irrelevant small talk][/irrelevant small talk]
Cap'n:[irrelevant small talk][/irrelevant small talk]
D: Boss, you know all that money you're planning on spending on me regarding learning to code CSS & Web Standards etc. yada, yada, yada? I have a plan to learn it all in 3 days... can I have the rest of the week off please?
Cap'n:Hmmmmm
Dee:[gratuitous sucking up and explanations][/gratuitous sucking up and explanations]
Cap'n:OK.

Happily the learning thereof isn't costing me anything... It's costing my new client a fortune... Cha Ching (Christmas paid for 3x over...) and if you could keep the fact I haven't much of a clue what I'm doing on the QT that'd be excellent...

I'll be out of office the rest of the week... in tech heaven.

Have a good one!

Will you forgive me for feeling just a little bit proud of myself this afternoon? I think I've excelled myself today and am feeling just a little bit chuffed...

I'm fortunate in my job to be blessed with both an accommodating Captain and access to a great variety of technological assets that I can use both for work and personal applications. Such flexibility is probably partly because (while I'm well aware that I am by no means indispensable) I do a lot of work that few people with my skills would do for the amount of my salary and partly because the opportunity to increase my skills makes me more valuable to the company. It's a win/win situation.

So here we are... Dino-boy is turning 3 next week and for me, gone are the days of home-made little woollen jumpers for birthday presents... Auntie Dee has gone high-tech. (By the way... I could do the woollen jumpers... some of the old skills still remain...). However, for this birthday, I made good use of my boss's flexibility (actually he wasn't in today...) and some fancy applications and made my nephews birthday present.

It's a DVD.

I know... a home-made DVD... how cool is that? The videos on it are simple clips of me reading story books and as Sis has been pretty religious about sending me photos over the years I also had the means to make a video slide show of Dino-boy from birth to now... 3 whole years, complete with groovy jazz soundtrack (indoctrinating early...).

I'm pretty intent on the kids in our family growing up with some kind of relationship with me, even living across the ocean as I do. We had cousins in Australia that we barely know and I while I know that it still rankles sometimes that I live here and the kids are growing up without me I make a pretty good effort to take an interest in them and spend quality time with them while I'm in the country and when we're on the phone. So, while I've been sending over the occasional video, Sis' dial-up connection has been preventing me from getting too carried away.

Enter Adobe Encore and a day's worth of tinkering.

I won't go into the technological details of how it all worked but I think the biggest pleasure about the day was the fact that I had to learn a whole new programme to make this present do all the things I wanted to. That's the buzz for me, learning the skills, solving the problems, exercising my intellect and reasoning to fix the issues. And while there are many who are in the know would be scandalised at how long it took me to get my DVD working I couldn't be happier that I made the puppy work and that this birthday present is a one of a kind!

I'm pretty lucky.