Christmas lights time-lapse, December 2010

Christmas lights time-lapse, originally uploaded by DC Products.

My first time-lapse! I've been dying to try this and decided that putting up the Christmas lights was as good a subject as any. Now I'm hooked.

It's 729 frames, at 2 seconds per exposure, taken every 10 seconds and put together at 18 frames per second. I doubled up (by 10) on a few frames (you'll notice them) for the heck of it.

But here's the lesson to learn: Be sure to check your photo applications thoroughly before buying software. I missed that Picasa -- the awesome free photo editing software -- has a "time lapse" setting in its movie maker and it allows for several speeds of frames per second. So I went and bought QuickTime Pro, which wasn't as flexible (or as easy to add music to). It was a not-cheap (but not outrageous) $30 (anything more and I wouldn't have bought it; if only it were $35). Oh well. Just gonna have to sell some things on eBay.

At least I'm happy with the end result.

"Shed in the snow," New Jersey, February 2010

Snow shed

Yeah, so we're having a little weather here today. I took these photos this afternoon, when my wife and I went out to shovel the 5-6 inches we had. I usually prefer to wait until the snow stops falling, but because that's projected to be tomorrow morning -- giving us pretty much 24 hours' worth of snowfall -- I figured our muscles and backs would be better off tomorrow if we tackled some of it today. In the five hours since then, we've had about another 4-5 inches. And there's more to come.

Day 362 of 365

Napping with a new friend

Spent the day shopping -- picking up various accessories for Christmas gifts we received, spending gift cards, getting a new cell phone. Ah yes, new phone. I was due for an upgrade and my current phone has a black eye. Well, now it's my previous phone. So by this time, I figured I'd go for the smartphone upgrade. I work for a web company, so having that mobile access does help me with my job. There's no way I'd go to an iPhone, because AT&T's coverage in New York City is horrendous (and their 3G network is not as good as Verizon's; notice that Luke Wilson never mentions "3G" when he's tossing postcards over the map), so I decided to give the Droid a whirl. So far, so good -- after 21 hours.

And so that brings to five the total number of cameras I've used to take pictures this year. There's my Konica-Minolta DSLR, my Canon Powershot used for most pics, my wife's point-and-shoot, my old Samsung and now the new Droid.

Day 353 of 365

Winter still life

Winter came down heavily today. Only two days after I heard we might get some snow this weekend, the flakes started falling lightly around 1 p.m. By 8 o'clock, street lights were obscured behind the white curtain and the roads melded with the curbs, the lawns, the sidewalks.

Every hour or so, Casey or I would peek at the view from a window to monitor the progress. No point in shoveling to keep ahead of it, I thought, because all that work would be erased by morning. Besides, I'm happy to give the two neighbors with snow blowers a chance to go an extra few feet to clear our sidewalks, as they've done in winters past without a request.

Winter has arrived in earnest a few days before it arrives on the calendar. The days may soon start getting longer, but spring has never seemed so far away.

Day 339 of 365

First snowfall

The first snowfall of the season started as large, fluffy flakes during a transition from an early afternoon of rain. It didn't make for the best photo, but as the ground chilled, the grass and yards soon were dusted with an inch or so of powder, and by evening the roads had a light coating as well.

"Home for the holidays," New Jersey, December 2007

Homemade wreath on the door

In our first Christmas with cats, we had to trim some of the lower branches of the tree to give it a bit of a higher clearance. The felines would lie beneath the tree and swat at the lower boughs. So to discourage the swatting and allow for more supervision when they disappeared beneath the pine, Casey cut some of the lower branches off. Instead of discarding them, she turned them into a homemade wreath.

Day 334 of 365

Framed by the porch

I allowed myself to put the lights up before Thanksgiving this year, just by one day. That day was Nov. 25 -- so 30 days before Christmas -- and I wanted the extended family coming to the house for Thanksgiving (some seeing our place for the first time) to get the full-on holiday experience.

And I wasn't the only one. The white tree in the middle distance and the lights at the end of the block were up before mine, and the closest neighbor turned his on today.

Day 330 of 365

Serving 12 this Thanksgiving

We had 12 people over for Thanksgiving this year, our biggest gathering yet. To fit everyone, we had to bring out the old table from the attic (the first two people on either side are at the smaller one) and we placed most of the food on the hutches on the left and in the back and let everyone serve themselves. It was a spirited, enjoyable way to spend the holiday.

Day 329 of 365

New arrangement on the gate

When I realized that Thanksgiving was Nov. 26, I decided that one month before Christmas was an acceptable first day to put up the lights. The main reason was that I wanted everyone who came over on Thanksgiving to see them -- and they loved 'em.

The blue light in the attic window is a new snowflake I bought this week.

Day 325 of 365

Sometimes, one chair isn't enough

The cats love the new dining chairs, curling up on the soft, velvet-like microfiber surfaces. But Harry recently realized that he doesn't have to limit himself to one chair at a time.

Day 324 of 365

Half the cats in the bag

Lenny crawled into this bag and laid low, springing into action when big brother Harry walked near.

Day 316 of 365

Thigh lover

Harry found the softness of Casey's fleece pants to be the perfect pillow.

Day 309 of 365

Open wide

Yes, another cat picture.

Day 308 of 365

10 bags o' leaves

My wife and I spent three hours raking leaves and filled up 10 bags' worth. Glad I had her, because it would've taken me about five hours on my own.

Day 302 of 365

Go back home across autumn America

"These Roads Don't Move,"
Jay Farrar and Ben Gibbard

There is no need to say another word
You'll be golden and eternal just like that
Something good will come of all things yet
Simple golden eternity blessing all

'Cause these roads don't move
You're the one that moves
'Cause these roads don't move
You're the one that moves

Now get my ticket and say goodbye
Leave San Francisco behind
Go back home across autumn America
And it'll be all like it was in the beginning


'Cause these roads don't move
You're the one that moves
'Cause these roads don't move
You're the one that moves

All the dark torture is a memory
I do see my star still shining
For all those years looking out of jail and ship windows
The irrational mortal loneliness is always crowned

'Cause these roads don't move
You're the one that moves
'Cause these roads don't move
You're the one that moves
'Cause these roads don't move
You're the one that moves

Day 287 of 365

Proper

Lenny stretches out on Casey's legs during a quiet night of TV watching.

Day 268 of 365

Kitty love

Cat and wife on a quiet Friday night at home.

Day 263 of 365

The ultimate Pittsburgh pennant

An original flag from Shea Stadium, flown back in the days when they used to fly the NL cities atop the ballpark. It's so large, this is really the only wall -- at least the only undecorated one -- in the house big enough on which to display it.

Day 262 of 365

Get that cursor!

Though he's jumped on the coffee table dozens of times, this was the first instance in which Harry noticed the mouse cursor on the screen and tried to get it.

This is a screengrab of the video:

Day 248 of 365

Gameday!

College football is back. Let's go Irish!