This one could be a drop of molten copper - almost. Am pleased with how it turned out.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Finally having time to do a bit more work on one of the pages that I look after (its getting a face-lift). This week has been pretty crazy and its been good to have a bit of time to "catch up".
The pattern reminded me of a series of textured steps. Hence the name.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: That the "conservation games" we played in Biology were a success. It was nice to get the students to do something a bit less structured than our usual lesson and they appeared to learn a lot. Although hearing one student describe a "niche" as something that "sounds French that rhymes with quiche" was rather unexpected.
This year, I thought the celebrations might be a bit on the "extreme" side.
The extremely large version can be downloaded at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Being warm and dry. Its started raining again and its really nice to be staying "in" tonight.
The Hebrew writing at the top of this image is the "Mourner's Kaddish". Special thanks to my friend Mazal and Zeev for patiently proof reading this one.
The very large version is available at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: That I've been asked to go to Tiritiri Matangi all three days next week. I've been looking forward to this trip for quite a while and getting to go three times means that the chance of seeing rare birds at some point is quite good.
This wallpaper comes complete with a desktop calculator (sort of).
The wallpaper version is available at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: That the Trivial Pursuits fundraiser I went to this evening was really fun - my team did not win, but we did not lose either, so its all good.
To a simpler time.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Discovering how to create rounded corners without using images. Lots to still learn but this is a very handy trick. I probably should implement the JavaScript bit of this, as its a lot more flexible that the stand-alone CSS (and probably more "standard" as well).
Presenting my ANZAC Day image. I was not going to create anything this year but got inspired last week by a display of (coloured) T-Shirts in a store window on my morning walk.
The huge version (?? for printing) is available at the preceding link. The white text on the T-Shirts says "Made in New Zealand".
Today's Gratitude Item: Remembering to blog my ANZAC image today. Forgetting would have been deeply ironic and most annoying. Even better, it looks like the rain forecast for tomorrow won't eventuate which means people going to ANZAC ceremonies won't get soggy.
If you can!
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Finally managing to create a penrose triangle. It was surprisingly time consuming but it looks good now.
As in one who tosses a ball.
The wallpaper version is available at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: A five coin day! In my travels I found three 10c coins (in different locations), a 50c coin and a 1 Yuan coin. One of the 10's, the 50 and the Yuan were all in very close proximity to each other which was slightly surreal. Finding five coins in one day is a new record for me - and it counts. Even though one of them is not legal tender in this country.
Like last year's image featuring a Yellow Badge, the names on this graphic were taken from the Central Database of Shoah Victims' Names. This image remembers just a few of the 1.5 million children who perished in the Shoah. All the names on this image are those of children aged 12 or less. The six yellow stars in the wheels of the train represent the 6 million Jews who died as a result of the Holocaust.
*This image is one day late - being on vacation can make one lose track of time.
The extremely large version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: That New Zealand is boycotting the UN's "Racism Conference" (perhaps it should have been correctly titled, a "Racist Conference"). Even better, sanity may have prevailed as every European Union country representative walked out during Ahmadinejad's tirade (I'd call it a speech, but it was an anti-Zionist tirade). On a less positive note, it is deeply ironic that a conference that theoretically aims to increase tolerance and acceptance of all cultures has been hijacked in this way. Some days it feels like the world really has been turned on its head.
This one looks like its a bit too large to be caught :)
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Being *mostly* ready for school next Monday :) The great thing about teaching 6th and 8th grade Science is that some of the topics are the same which means that at least some of my resources can be recycled. Of course the 8th grade content is more in-depth and sophisticated than the 6th grade stuff, but its still easier than having to start from scratch.
Dedicated to all those rugby fans out there. You can tell this guy is an "all black" because he is literally "all black".
For those who are not rugby mad kiwis, the "All Blacks" are the New Zealand team.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Winning a bet with my dad :) That pretty much never happens, partly because we don't bet often and mostly because he is usually right. He paid the requisite 10c with good grace.
Does this count as poetry in motion?
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Being *artistically* inspired by something as simple as a T-Shirt display in a store window on this morning's work. Sometimes it goes like that.
Turns out that running on fractal backgrounds is thirsty work - hence its a good idea to carry a water bottle.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: My ipod cover arrived less than 24 hours after I bought it on trademe. Its nice to finally be able to easily protect said ipod.
As in some balls were made "just for kicks".
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Getting both a memory stick / USB for my new camera phone and a cover for my ipod. The cover was found over at trademe and cost $6.00 (inc $2.00 postage) - which is not bad, when the same item would cost $13.00 at most stores. The frustrating thing is that these silicone covers are sold for 56c (US) per unit when bought at their source. Even with the high postage cost, the stores must be making massive profits from selling ipod accessories. Some profit is reasonable, but when an item costs 56c (wholesale), selling it for $13.00 is highway robbery - even given the US / Kiwi conversion and postage costs.
Work hard - play hard. Sometimes its good when things become "intense".
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Finding a way to convert .pdf files into .doc files. This opens up a world of possibilities and may make me very popular at work - depending on how effective the converter is.
Lovely to play, lovely to watch and very lovely to photograph / illustrate. Soccer is not as violent as rugby which might explain why I don't mind it as much.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: That getting my one tyre fixed was really straight forward. It had a slow leak thanks to a nail. The tyre place was super efficient and getting it fixed took less than 20 mins).
If you leave your heart on the floor, don't be surprised when someone stomps on it!
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: That the image above was not inspired by real life events.
Turns out that real soccer players don't always wait for the field to dry out. Perhaps getting muddy is part of the attraction.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: The "translate" function in Google. A friend sent through a link to an article about himself written in Hebrew. The only way I could figure out what it was about was to get Google to do the hard work for me. Machine translation is very far from perfect but I still got the gist of the piece. Trying to figure out meaning behind the mangled English was rather fun :)
Looks good - but sleeping in has greater appeal.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Having easy access to native Hebrew speakers who *hopefully* don't mind proof reading my graphics.
This is the fourth in my "Goshen Gazette" series. For the first three issues (blood, frogs and gnats) please look at my "Jewish" set. Fly Cemetery biscuits are also called Garibaldi Biscuits. They really do taste quite good!
The massive version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: That at least one of my students is working on their Science Fair project during the vacation. I know they are working because they emailed through some questions - which is exactly what they are meant to do when they need help. Gotta love teaching in the Internet age.
I wish this one was real. File under things that are pretty.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Having the time to properly tag most of the art in my flickr stream. Now when I need to find a particular wallpaper quickly, it should be that much easier.
I wonder if the fish bite more once the sun goes down? That could explain a lot about this image.
The wallpaper version is available at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Home-made matzos. Store bought matzos cost $10.00 for a 500g box which is insane (to be fair, if we'd bought it at the shul shop it would have been far more reasonable at $8.50 per box). Long story short, we decided to make our own. Recipe is simple, water, flour and less than 18 minutes. The result was amazing - in part because we used the pasta maker to roll out the dough. There is nothing quite as good as still warm matzos with a touch of margarine melted on to it and a sprinkling of salt. Bring on Pesach!
We humans will do some pretty strange things to snag fish (aka dinner). I'm not "into" fishing, but I am certainly into cooking and eating the results.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Not needing to make extra clip art to illustrate documents for our upcoming Science topics. I could find everything that I needed in previously created files.
Background started life as a traditional brick wall - computers can be fun. Silhouette is my Jerusalem skyline which has been recycled.
The wallpaper version can be seen at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Getting a *free* camera phone. My dad had to switch phone plans and part of the deal was a new free phone. Only problem is that the "new" phone buttons are too small for him, and the new phone is heavier than his own phone. Which means he was all too happy to donate it to me. I love the new phone as it has a 2 mega pixel camera which should be useful for taking reference shots. All too often I'll see something that I'd like to shoot but won't have taken my regular (read heavy) point and click camera. Now all I need is a memory card for the new phone and I'll be sorted. Life is good.
Ever felt as if your back is literally against the wall - this guy certainly has that problem. Of course his wall is pretty cool!
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: Three weeks of holiday!! I'm so happy. I get to sleep in which is great as winter is fast approaching and cold, dark mornings are not that appealing.
This floor is made of stone - sort of. It began life as a photo of a stone wall that was post processed within an inch of its life. Suffice it to say, the original stone wall was not nearly as pretty as the "recycled" stone floor.
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: A working watch! My batteries "died" and have now been replaced. After two timeless days, its great to have my trusty watch back.
We dancers love sprung wooden floors - especially ones that are as pretty as this (if only it was real)!
The wallpaper version is at the preceding link.
Today's Gratitude Item: That a "plastic" eraser can get rid of "permanent marker" on CD's. I'd labeled a blank CD and then did not need to use it. Being able to relabel so easily is a good thing.
