JWilsonphoto wrote:
We were designed to appreciate beautiful things, creatures, people, denying beauty is just dumb. Another oxymoron of our lives today....do you think the billions spent on make up, scents, cosmetic surgery, etc. are spent so no one will notice? Come on, just another pendulum that has swung too far. I was in Target the other day and they had huge posters of very overweight females in spandex and underwear, it was painful to look view. I suppose this display was along the lines of "wokeness", equality and all of that. I don't think anyone should be shamed or bullied because they aren't "perfection", but we don't need 40x60" posters of it either. ...Show more →
I use to do a lot of cycling, riding 25+ mile routes. Did the MS 150 too. It was all fun. We would ride in teams of 10-20 riders. One this particular ride I began in the lead. After several miles the lead switches off and falls to the rear to give the next rider the lead. Your front tire is closer than 12 to 18 inches from the rider's rear tire in front of you. I got to the rear and looked up after I was in position and there was the south end of a north bound rear attached to a 250+lb butt crack. The thread on his lycra spandex bike shorts appeared to be stressed beyond their limits and unweaving revealing his bare crack. True story. I pulled out of the pack and rode home, put my bike on the hanger in the garage, went in the house and threw out all my cycle shorts and never rode the bike again. Riding the bike in a team is "fun" they said, that wasn't fun!
Oh man Ray! I was all set for that story to go a completely different direction.......... As they say, there are some things that you just can't unsee...........
JWilsonphoto wrote:
We were designed to appreciate beautiful things, creatures, people, denying beauty is just dumb. Another oxymoron of our lives today....I was in Target the other day and they had huge posters...
Man, I spend some time away and I come back to Jim wandering through lingerie departments....
Ray, I'm now that 250 lb cyclist. Well, hopefully not exactly, but in the last few months I have picked up cycling. I've been riding about 200 miles/month, even now that it's cold. I can manage temps in the mid-20's, lower than that and my hands and feet get too cold. No group rides though, all solo.
I haven't been dealing with things very well lately. Way too much stress at work (which is still mostly work from home), although a lot of it is self-induced. I needed to find a way to exercise and blow off some steam. I used to run, but I'm enjoying cycling a lot more.
On the photography front, I recently upgraded to an R5, bought used off B&S here. Seller was local so I was able to meet up with him. Jim, I've been following your R5/R3 decision. In my case, the R5 has been a great upgrade from a 5D MkIV. Interestingly the guy I bought it from was selling because he had just received an R3. So far I'm finding the AF amazing. Haven't had the loss of focus issue, but I also haven't tried shooting much more than hockey and basketball. Will try to get out and find some snowy owls later this week (taking the week off).
Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, and let's hope 2022 is way better than 2021.
msalvetti wrote:
Man, I spend some time away and I come back to Jim wandering through lingerie departments....
Ray, I'm now that 250 lb cyclist. Well, hopefully not exactly, but in the last few months I have picked up cycling. I've been riding about 200 miles/month, even now that it's cold. I can manage temps in the mid-20's, lower than that and my hands and feet get too cold.
I haven't been dealing with things very well lately. Way too much stress at work (which is still mostly work from home), although a lot of it is self-induced. I needed to find a way to exercise and blow off some steam. I used to run, but I'm enjoying cycling a lot more.
Mark, work stress is exactly why I took up running and cycling back then. There is nothing wrong with a 250 lb guy riding a bicycle. What is wrong is a 250 lb guy wearing lycra spandex cycling shorts that are too small and too used and the fabric is stressed. When I can see hair, it is time to head home. I respect people working out, however, most people are properly dressed. This guy was worse than:
"Pants on the ground
Pants on the ground
Lookin’ like a fool with yo pants on the ground."
Oh, my apologies Ray. I wasn't taking offense or criticizing you. I knew what you meant. So far I think I manage to keep my shorts up, even without bibs. And I wear a long shirt just in case.
Good to hear from you! Sorry you are stressed out, don't feel like you are alone, many of us are finding ourselves on the ledge. So much of our daily routines and what we have hung our hats on as "true" has been bludgeoned over the past two years that it has us all back on our heels. The number of times I have stopped for a second and thought, "who am I and what has happened to my emotional anchors?" has been more than a little scary. One thing is very clear, life and our lives are a lot more fragile than we would like to believe. We have taken a lot of punches over the last two years and for me personally, it's shaken me to my core, even down to the bedrock of my faith. Every day, no, every hour, is an exercise in trying to assess what is happening, what is true, what I believe, and how best to navigate it. Generally in life it's balancing act with most things being pretty good, but dealing with the occasional challenge, the last two years has been one gut such after another mixed with an occasional glimpse of what used to be, it's very disorienting.
I think our Brother Tony would concur with the opinion that there are a huge number of people who need some help navigating their lives today as they try to keep putting one foot in front of the other. My general perspective is that things will always get better if one can just "deal" and hold on for the skies to clear, but it almost seems that there are forces in our lives today that don't want us to get a glimpse of what once was and what might be again. I've never been much of a conspiracy theorist, but I'm beginning to rethink that position. I feel guilty that with all the Blessings that I have, sometimes all I can see is darkness, very unlike me and extremely unsettling.
Hang in there Mark, it's all that we can do at this point, just know that you are not alone.
msalvetti wrote:
Oh, my apologies Ray. I wasn't taking offense or criticizing you. I knew what you meant. So far I think I manage to keep my shorts up, even without bibs. And I wear a long shirt just in case.
Mark
Mark, many of us go day by day. Me included. I try to deal with it but in most cases I am "behind the 8 ball"!
Jim's comments are sound.
Those pants/shorts hanging to the ground might be filled with the blood flowing "downhill" or maybe even body waste products missing the right place for proper discharge!
Dan
On the subject of the R5, I would guess that you’ll run into the focus hunting problem when you go out birding, but you will deal with it like we all do. The guy you bought it from is most likely going to have some sellers remorse when he starts working with the smaller files. The R3 is an incredible camera, but so is the R5 and there is something else coming down the pike. Your R5 will be great for your hockey work! Looking forward to seeing some “Salvetti’s”.
JWilsonphoto wrote:
Hang in there Mark, it's all that we can do at this point, just know that you are not alone.
JW
Jim and Dan,
Thanks for the encouragement! Not sure what it is. Part of it is missing my co-workers, part of it is not being able to disengage and shut down. Since I don't have to commute, I don't have to shut off my laptop. Too often I let myself work late into the night and not take a break.
Then there are all those outside influences that the last couple of years have brought. Jim, you captured those feelings really well. So much has been upended. I used to think I understood things, but the last few years have proven that I don't and probably never will. That's a bit unsettling.
But I really appreciate hearing that many of you are day-to-day.
Hey Mark, take care of yourself buddy. Build in a brake at some point.
A lot of work isn't that bad, but denying a break is I know that all to well.
Get a cup of coffee, tea and maybe a little walk for a couple of minutes but something tells me that you have sometimes a lot of snow were you live so that walk could be not that easy
All the best for the new year... greetings from a rainy Holland.
Jan-Arie wrote:
Hey Mark, take care of yourself buddy. Build in a brake at some point.
A lot of work isn't that bad, but denying a break is I know that all to well.
Get a cup of coffee, tea and maybe a little walk for a couple of minutes but something tells me that you have sometimes a lot of snow were you live so that walk could be not that easy
All the best for the new year... greetings from a rainy Holland.
Yes take care of YOU..lest you become a patient brother!
I have been a caregiver for over 3 months and I often feel very selfish if I take a breather, get some fresh air, take a detour to my burger place while at the Rx or food store when I shouldn't.
We need a break also!
Hang in there my friend! You are not alone!
Dan
In case you guys missed it, Canon announced today that the 1DXIII would be it's last DSLR flagship camera. Not really a big surprise..................bring on the R1!
Some of you may have seen a recent post of mine on the Canon board (I know Ray did). A couple of weeks ago I was shooting a hockey game at Salem State. They had a work study student (Emily) also shooting, and I always let her choose which hole through the glass to shoot through. At this game I was shooting through the glass near her, when a puck hit her 70-200 dead on. Front element shattered, and she was in tears. At first I thought she was hurt, but it turned out it was her lens, not the school's. Only 6 months old.
I told her Canon could fix it, and I worked with the school to send it to CPS on my account. The school agreed to ship and pay for the repair.
I thought this would be a nice ending, but I was wrong. Canon sent the lens back today as unrepairable. I called them and they said it wasn't economical to repair. This was the first time I was able to closely inspect the lens, and I think the problem is that the impact was so hard that some of the glass was pulverized. There is a lot of fine glass dust inside the barrel. The body and front threads of the lens are perfect, but probably a lot of labor to take it all apart, and as someone speculated on the Canon board, maybe too much for Canon to be willing to guarantee a repair.
Canon offered 15% off a new lens, so about $1,785 with free shipping. I'm going to suggest she take that, hopefully the school will pay. No refurbs in stock.
I'm also waiting for a quote from Midwest Camera Repair, but who knows how long that would take and if they would even be willing to take this on.
Some of you may have seen a recent post of mine on the Canon board (I know Ray did). A couple of weeks ago I was shooting a hockey game at Salem State. They had a work study student (Emily) also shooting, and I always let her choose which hole through the glass to shoot through. At this game I was shooting through the glass near her, when a puck hit her 70-200 dead on. Front element shattered, and she was in tears. At first I thought she was hurt, but it turned out it was her lens, not the school's. Only 6 months old.
I told her Canon could fix it, and I worked with the school to send it to CPS on my account. The school agreed to ship and pay for the repair.
I thought this would be a nice ending, but I was wrong. Canon sent the lens back today as unrepairable. I called them and they said it wasn't economical to repair. This was the first time I was able to closely inspect the lens, and I think the problem is that the impact was so hard that some of the glass was pulverized. There is a lot of fine glass dust inside the barrel. The body and front threads of the lens are perfect, but probably a lot of labor to take it all apart, and as someone speculated on the Canon board, maybe too much for Canon to be willing to guarantee a repair.
Canon offered 15% off a new lens, so about $1,785 with free shipping. I'm going to suggest she take that, hopefully the school will pay. No refurbs in stock.
I'm also waiting for a quote from Midwest Camera Repair, but who knows how long that would take and if they would even be willing to take this on.
We need a "YUK" button! You are very kind to try to help Emily Mark. Unfortunately, sometimes you get backed into a corner. At least you tried to help. Kudos to you! You are a true MATA ambassador!
Thanks Ray. Sweet kid, she was devastated and I felt terrible for her. Came all the way from Kodiak, Alaska to attend this small state school in Massachusetts. I'm going to hate having to tell her that they couldn't fix it.
Hopefully the school will step up and at least pay for part of the cost of replacement, if not the whole thing.
, no kidding...Put the beer down and get in shape...Bong too-
