Linda’s Pet Peeve List

Hitting my Pet Peeve List just under Car Problems is Electronic Problems.  I believe I”ve mentioned this before, but my lap top took a dive about three months ago.  It would turn on, but I couldn’t get passed the first page of the 1980’s digital font on the “Something’s Wrong” page.  I couldn’t remember all that was stored on there… but I did know our D.C. trip and skiing pictures were only on the laptop.  There was also some of my writing on there too.  We found out we could recover the data for a mere $50 and then throw out the lap top.  This was the laptop that I faithfully watched Netflix movies on while I sewed Bags for Zaza.  I was missing my movies… the portable CD movie player that has a 7″ screen, just wasn’t the same.  Sigh. 

The good news:  seems my laptop just needed a three month nap.  It woke up and all is fine.  My dad copied all data and photos… but I’ve watched Miss Potter twice since my computer came back to me. “There’s something delicious about writing the first words of a story….”

On to current electronic challenges.  Well, 2007 is not current, but the resolution was.  Our video camera battery died.  We would charge it for 2 hours and it would produce 5 minutes of juice for our viewing pleasure.  Our entire video life is captured on 8mm tapes from 1993 to June 2007.  That was when we discovered that the battery needed is an antique… unavailable… not manufactured any more.  Bummer.  So, we asked for a video camera for Christmas because we definitely need to take one to Colombia to capture Zaza’s entrance into the wild and crazy Crosby family.

Fast forward to three nights ago when we had family video night… we decided to check eBay.  Low and behold, there was our prized possession of a battery for $11.49 and free shipping.  Hallelujah!  It’s on its way.

So, last night we are at my parent’s home and trying to take the annual family picture in front of the Christmas tree and the memory card is NOT in the camera.  Oh well.  I deleted some pictures of Larisa’s clay Stonehenge and Trixie sleeping under a laundry basket to make room on the internal storage.  THEN (insert sinister music here) I arrived home to upload the family pictures on the computer and the cord doesn’t work!  WHAAAAAT?  So, it’s onto eBay to find a new camera cord.  Will this ever end?

Rickey, Videographer Part 2: Whale Watching

Here is the scrapbook page from that fateful lame videographer outing… Whale Watching.  Our family was in San Diego on a homeschool/vacation and decided to take our chances on a three hour tour.  Sing it with me.. “A three hour tour…. the weather started getting rough…”  Ok, the weather was fabulous!  The Gray Whale migration path from Alaska to Baja, California passed by San Diego so we paid the money and jumped on the boat.  Within 20 minutes the captain spotted a beauty and we followed it for another two hours.  Incredible!  Why nature sightings get my adrenaline pumping… I’m not really certain.  Maybe because God did it all… for us to see.

Luckily Rick was videotaping the entire thrill-of-a-lifetime so we could re-live the sighting over and over with our grandchildren and their children.  Not so, as it turned out.  The sun was brightly shining making it difficult to read the teeny lit words in the eyepiece of the camera…. and somehow Rick, Master Videographer, got PAUSE confused with PLAY…. for the entire two hours of the Gray Whale sighting.  So we do have lots of footage, but the whale never made an appearance.  We have at least 45 minutes of Rick’s shoes as he held the camera in front of him as he walked and talked all over the boat.  For our viewing pleasure, he even stood over the garbage can so we could glimpse at sea trash.  Several times, maybe even 8 or 9 times, you hear the Captain on the intercom saying, “She’s just off the bow.  She getting ready to surface.  Her she comes… here she comes…” and just when the back of the whale is slightly visible under the water, the video camera shuts off… until the whale has again plunged beneath the surface, and Rick’s shoes return.  I’m telling you, it was comical.  You can also hear me comment once, “Rick, you’re sure you don’t have pause and play mixed up, right?”  He doesn’t answer, meaning ‘How could you ask such a stupid question.’ 

When we watched it for the first time in the hotel room that night, I couldn’t even see the screen for the tears blurring my vision from laughing so hard.  Thank the good Lord I had the camera so when we’re old and senile, we’ll at least have spouting whale photos to look at.

Rickey, Master Videographer, is available to record your life’s most important moments.  Cheap prices with reference to this blog.  Please call 1-800-RIX-FOTO.  :oP

www.LindaCrosby.com