Saturday, March 20, 2010

Curses, Foiled Again!

Humpf!  Not only did I not get to the dojo with my video camera, it turns out my timing was way off. Seems it is "spring break" week for a lot of the schools  (2 weeks for some schools!), and the dojo is having "spring break karate camp" running.  So, the place is going to be full of kids making all kinds of racket, and not conducive in the least to capturing quality video with clear audio to record the forms.

The good news, however, is this:  I have learned that I am within pretty easy reach of my next belt level.  All I have to do is solidify my most recently learned 'pinan,' learn 3 more combinations, and I will be ready to test!  Woo-Hoo!  Gotta get that video done as soon as spring break is over!

Meanwhile, I do believe I will practice on the cats.  LOL  They always make interestisng subjects.  Although, being cats, they may not be in the mood to cooperate.  Just when I want to tape them playing, they will most likely decide it is nap time. 

When I say "practice," I don't mean how to make a video--I already have lots of experience with that.  What I need to learn and practice is the "today" method of burning one's finished movie to a DVD, or uploading it to You Tube.  I have a You Tube account activated and waiting, but at this point, it is sans content.

That's it for today, folks....I have to work today to make up for the fact that I'm playing hooky on Monday.  ;-)


Monday, March 15, 2010

A New Thing to Try...

Today is the day I dust off the video camera, install a new tape and freshly charged battery (ok, maybe not--mayble I'll just run it off the AC adapter)...and take some video.

My first project will be to take the camera to the dojo and capture all the forms with which my brain is struggling.  At my age, I'm finding that learning a new form is hard, because there are so many different moves in certain sequences, that practicing is next to impossible.  Why?  Because when I'm just learning a new one, it is like information overload, and I tend to forget most of it by the time I get home.  Serious bummer!  How can I practice what I do not remember!  UGH!  Getting old sucks!

So, I'm going to capture all the forms on tape, upload them to the computer, burn them to a DVD that I can play on the TV, and have something to practice with!  So there, brain!

My next project will most likely be to tape the cats' antics, and learn how to upload a video to You Tube. 

And what does any of this have to do with my crafts:  Just this:  once I've mastered that, you can probably look forward to seeing the occasional video here in my crafts blog.  Something to look at, as well as read! 

I'm off and running!  Catch you all on the flip side!

Cheers!

P.S.  ummm...welll..... time got away from me, daughter stopped by, had to go grocery shopping, so I suppose this 'adventure' is put off until... ummm...tomorrow??  That's karate class day, anyway..don't want to get in the way of class...Wed??  hmm.... appointments...Thurs....visiting other daughter, & will miss karate class...Fri.. no transportaion!  RATS!!!  Hate to wait a whole week! 


Sunday, March 14, 2010

Today, not crafty--just helping out a friend.

Hello!

  Thanks for stopping by.  Today, rather than write about crafts, I am trying to help out one of my Etsy buddies.  Her daughter is facing very serious surgery, and I'm sending you to her blog, ( click HERE ) for the full details.

  In a nutshell, she'd like to arrange for her daughter to receive a flood of postcards from all over the world while she is in the hospital following the surgery.

   She is not asking for any money or anything else..just the postcards. 
  
   I normally do not get involved in passing around 'sad stories' that I get via e-mail or see posted on FaceBook or anywhere, as 99% of the time, they are scams.  This time, however, the individual is known to me, the facts can be verified, and I am comfortable in assisting her with this request.

  Feel free to re-post this, and please, reference your original source, so it does not get tossed aside and discounted as 'another one of these fake sick kid stories.'  Thank you!

My Friend, Christine B.

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