In Memorium
Tiger Stripe Agafitei
1986 - 2006
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Photo Cropped in Pixer
The top photo is the original, taken at my niece Courtney's wedding in Alabama.
The bottom photo was cropped in Pixer to remove some excess background clutter.
Standing (left to right): my son Vic, me, cousin Rick, Rick's daughter Christine, my dad Bob, my husband Rick. Seated: Cousin Rick's wife Sue.
Friday, September 28, 2007
My Trading Card
Here is my trading card created with fd's Flickr Toys. The photo was taken at Wunderlich Farm, part of the Klein History Museum. The subject of the photo represents a big part of one of my "past lives." Click on the card to read more.
Monday, September 24, 2007
More on the Mural Project
Another feature of the Rogers/Rawlings mural at the Barbara Bush Library will be animals and plants from the Cypress Creek area, like this egret I photographed one weekend. Pat Rawlings works a lot from photographs, and transcribes them into digital images for the mural. It has given me a good excuse to get out in the fresh air with my camera.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
A New Mural Project
We are currently collaborating on a new mural for the Children's Area of the library. The mural, being created by artist Pat Rawlings, has been donated in memory of Kathleen "Niki" Rogers, a former library employee, Friend of the Library, and volunteer. Part of the mural will include important historical elements in our community such as the old Wunderlich house built in 1891 (below); the Goodyear blimp; the Champions "golf ball" water tower; oxen pulling logs from the old saw mill; bushel baskets of vegetables from the truck farms; and jets from the Hooks airport. The mural will be unveiled and dedicated on December 1.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
Powerful and Dangerous
The Internet is surely the most powerful information tool that has ever existed. I am glad I live in this age where so much knowledge is available at my fingertips at any hour of the day.
Like any source of power, though, it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. News of the misuse of this power is everywhere and makes us cautious.
Thomas Friedman (author of "The World is Flat") is on TV as I write this. He is commenting on the fact that babies born today will leave digital footprints throughout their life times. Anything put out on the Internet will stay out there "forever." There is no good defense against the false information that anyone can put out there about you or others. Friedman recommends searching "MySpace Lawsuits" in Google to be aware of the abuses that have occurred.
A feature story in last week's magazine section of the "Houston Chronicle" also focused on privacy. It pointed out that the sources for getting information on people extend well beyond the Internet: cell phone logs track your calls; grocery store "discount" cards track your purchases; EZ Tags show where you have driven; GPS locators pinpoint your exact location at any moment in time; MapQuest provides driving directions to your house; the Appraisal District gives details about your home; voter databases reveal your age, etc.
Don't let fear of the abuses of the Internet keep you from taking advantage of its life-changing power. Electricity is power that can kill, but that doesn't stop anyone from turning on the switch. Just be careful and use your common-sense.
Like any source of power, though, it can be dangerous if used incorrectly. News of the misuse of this power is everywhere and makes us cautious.
Thomas Friedman (author of "The World is Flat") is on TV as I write this. He is commenting on the fact that babies born today will leave digital footprints throughout their life times. Anything put out on the Internet will stay out there "forever." There is no good defense against the false information that anyone can put out there about you or others. Friedman recommends searching "MySpace Lawsuits" in Google to be aware of the abuses that have occurred.
A feature story in last week's magazine section of the "Houston Chronicle" also focused on privacy. It pointed out that the sources for getting information on people extend well beyond the Internet: cell phone logs track your calls; grocery store "discount" cards track your purchases; EZ Tags show where you have driven; GPS locators pinpoint your exact location at any moment in time; MapQuest provides driving directions to your house; the Appraisal District gives details about your home; voter databases reveal your age, etc.
Don't let fear of the abuses of the Internet keep you from taking advantage of its life-changing power. Electricity is power that can kill, but that doesn't stop anyone from turning on the switch. Just be careful and use your common-sense.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Why "Dinosaur Tracks"?
No matter that I am in a field where I use the Internet every day. No matter that being on the web with my laptop is my hobby. I still feel like a dinosaur as I watch my son and his friends text message each other on their phones at the speed of light, or as I view their MySpace pages with revolving photos, videos, and background sound tracks. I want to know more, and the 23 Things exercise will track the progress of this dinosaur as I evolve. This blog is one of my electronic footprints.
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