i read comic books

I don't remember my brothers reading comic books. They are older than us girls so maybe they outgrew them. Though dad tells stories of Steve getting caught with them at school.

Nancy and I only read comics in Brighton when we stayed at the cottage for the summer. We had to go into town to use the laundromat. Next door was Uber's Drugs. Mom would get a book or magazine, we got comic books. We chose Archie or Richie Rich or Casper The Friendly Ghost. 

As we got older, we chose crossword puzzles or teen magazines. 

I learned of Sandman by Neil Gaiman. I really liked his conventional books, maybe I should try his graphic novel? I looked for Sandman at Barnes & Noble. I wanted to look at it before I spent the money. Twenty dollars seemed like a lot for a comic book, or graphic novel. I had an iPad and tried Comixology. I tried a few issues of Sandman. I was confused. It more complex than I expected. It didn't hook me. 

Merlin Mann convinced me to try again with Saga, Locke & Key then Hawkeye. Soon I was trying The Avengers, Batman and Robin. I tried to stick with the series that were new so I could start fresh and know what was going on. But Merlin said he liked House of M and I said OK. I really fell in deep with House of M. I wanted to read all the tie-ins. I wanted to know everything. 

New comics are about $3.99 an issue. Older issues are usually reduced to $1.99. but there was so much to read and I can easily read several comics a day. I had to stop. I decided to try Marvel Unlimited. It is a bit like Netflix for Marvel Comics. And most of what I read is from Marvel. For $9.99 a month, I can read most the older issues. In two days, I have already read 16 comics. Some of these weren't even available on Comixology. 

Marvel Unlimited is not a great app on the iPad. I don't know why they don't use the same software they use for the regular Marvel app with the smart panels. I hope to read all I want in a few months and catch up. Then I will go back to getting just new issues as they are released. A budget would be good too.

I do find it odd that my boys don't get into them. Occasionally they will read The Simpsons but that is as far as it goes.

brand loyalty

Being brand loyal can makes shopping easy. When I need something, I look at those favorite brands first. It saves me time comparing products and prices. Just give me the stuff I know will work.

My loyalty started with Neutrogena. I used their products for over 2 decades. I only stopped using their products when they didn't seem to be as effective and I learned that they weren't the safe and natural products I thought they were.

These days, I use Dr. Bronner's. I use their soaps and conditioners and the boys use their shave cream. If they made facial moisturizers, I would use them as well.

The same loyalty holds true for computers and electronics, I choose Apple For clothing I choose Lands' End and for luggage and backpacks I choose LL Bean.

at the pool

A portion of the pool is closed off. There is a depression in the bottom though there is no apparent crack. I hope they can hold off on repairing it for another week. The boys will be in school and won't be upset by the interruption. 

Two women walk into the pool area. One looks to be in her 40s and the other is most likely her mother. The mother walks so straight and regal. I can tell she is foreign. Both women get in the pool. They are  both wearing bikinis. Both are trim but not in great shape. The mother looks better than me but I would not have the courage to wear a bikini. 

They stay in the warm water for about 10 minutes then get out and lay on the lounge chairs. They slather on the generic baby oil. After 20 minutes, they come back in the water still shining from the oil. They speak a foreign tongue. It is something Slavic, eastern European. 

A middle aged couple comes in. They claim two lounge chairs. She spreads her towel while he opens the mesh float and blows up the surrounding tube. He finishes and gets into the pool. He does not help her with her tube. When she finally done blowing up her float, she leaves it and lies down on the lounge chair. 

do not disappoint

On Sunday morning, I got up and walked. I didn't do it because I wanted to, I did it because I told Andy that I would.

I usually walk Saturday mornings then wash my work out clothes on the delicate cycle. I didn't walk on Saturday and didn't wash my clothes. Andy noticed and questioned me. I could see that it bothered him. I told him that I would walk on Sunday and wash my clothes afterwards. This made him smile and say that he would eat the bagels. Huh?

On Saturday mornings, I toast 4 bagels for Andy. He eats them throughout the morning. Even when they are cold. He had eaten 3 of the bagels when he noticed that I hadn't washed my workout clothes. Once a compromise was met, he finished the bagels. It is silly but it is how Andy deals with situations he cannot control. Instead of getting upset and pouting, crying or having a tantrum, he withholds something of his own. Sometimes he will not allow himself to watch a favorite video. Ryan has known to do similar things as well. They would rather cancel everything or go without that change the routine.

When Sunday morning came, I did not want to get up. I did not want to walk. But I did get up. Because I did not want to disappoint Andy after I told him I would walk. The walk was OK. I have been feeling lethargic and out of sync. I didn't feel better after I was done. I felt relieved like a chore completed. I showered and put my clothes in the washer. Andy was there to see me select delicates. His smile is what made me feel better.

Why is OK to disappoint ourselves but not OK to disappoint others?

time for a break

A sedentary life can shorten your lifespan. Our ancestors moved a lot more than we did. They didn't need special exercises to remain active. Very few people had jobs that required them to sit at a desk for 8 hours or more at a time.

Years ago, most people who worked in offices usually found some reason or another to get up from their desks from time to time. One might need some coffee, or to make a copy. Or maybe one needed to deliver a memo in the days before email and instant messaging. Do they people in Mad Men ever sit and just work? Many people now work from home and can do most tasks with barely stretching an arm. Those at home don't have the water cooler to walk to and chat for a few minutes. Instead of small glasses that need to be refilled every hour or two, we get insulated cups which hold 20, 32 or more ounces. Except for bathroom breaks, we can sit in our $800 designer chairs for hours. Chairs that are too comfortable that we never need to move.

The way we watch television is also a factor. We used to watch live broadcasting and use the commercial breaks to get up go to the bathroom, or get a snack. Now we can sit and watch endless episodes without commercial breaks. Bathroom break? We only need to pause. But what happens if you have everything you need? You sit and watch, and sit and watch. We can continue watching and sitting for a long time. Too long. We used to have one phone attached to wall. Now we have then in our pockets.

Research suggests that we get up from out desks every twenty minutes. We only need to to stand up, stretch our muscles and we are good to go for another twenty minutes. 

What happens when you are in *the zone?* You aren't watching the clock and time has no meaning. You can set and alarm in our smart phone, or a stop watch if you are old school. Or you can get an app made just for this purpose. 

I purchased BreakTime for my desktop computer. It is easy to use. The default is set at 20 minutes with a two minute break. The sliders made it easy to change. The menu bar icon is a clock face that fills as the allotted time goes by. When there is less than 10 seconds left, a notification box shows up near the menu bar. When the allotted time is up, your screen darkens a bit and a dialogue box appears. You can choose to "snooze" and ask for a minute or two or click OK and begin your break. You cannot do anything on your computer until you make a choice to move or stay.

A timer begins while you are on break with a countdown to when you should return to work. A low beep sounds if you fail to return to work. I can imagine that employers might like this feature. 

You get back to work and begin the cycle over again.

BreakTime is available in the Mac App Store for $4.99 but there is a free trial available at the developer's site. BreakTime is available for iOS. I have it installed though I haven't tried it yet.

I like that this reminds me to move. And I like knowing I have just two minutes to stretch, take a break or do a quick task. Being at home most of the day, I have loads of little tasks that can be done in less than two minutes. Putting away a book may seem trivial but I am moving, and working to clear the clutter. 

iPhone photos and storage

What do you do with the photos on your iPhone?

We all take photos with our iPhones. I use mine a lot more than I thought I would. It's great for those quick shots you want to share or just keep for reference. What do you do with the photos once you have shared them? Do they accumulate on your phone until your phone is full? Do you back them up?

Photo Stream is a great first step to saving those photos you want to keep. But it is not prefect. First off, you need to make sure you an an iCloud account. iCloud is free but needs to be set up on your devices and computers. Next, you need to know that Photo Stream only keeps the last 1000 photos that you have taken. If you rely on Photo Stream to keep all your photos, you will be losing them as you take more photos.

There are many ways to back up and store your photos. iMore just posted some iPhone storage options and compared them. Read the article and take your pick. Whatever you choose, be sure to maintain it. You can put a repeating task on your to-do list or set a reminder.

Once a month, I open iPhoto and import my Photo Stream photos. Because I use the same iCloud account on my iPhone, my dad's iPhone, and my boys' iPods, all of their photos are in the stream. (They stay in the stream unless they are specifically deleted.) At this point, I could label and add keywords to photos. Perhaps delete the truly bad photos. However, I only use iPhoto as an easy way to back up my Photo Stream. I use Adobe Lightroom to store and maintain my photos. I am working on a post about my Lightroom workflow.

One problem with Lightroom is that it does not import png files. Screenshots you take with your iPhone are saved in png format. In the past, I have opened these files in Snapseed  and saved them which converts them to jpg format. Another way is to use Image Capture which is a native MacOS app. You can choose where the images will go and delete them from your device with just one click.

I try not to keep many photos in my iPhone Camera Roll. Currently there are 48 which is too many for me. I do not like to scroll through to find what I am looking for. I prefer to take the time to set up albums. You can do this on the phone but is time consuming. An easier way is to set up folders on your computer. I have a folder called iPad photos. You can name this anything you want. I know these photos have been saved at 1024x1024 which is optimum viewing on my iPad 1. Then I set up folders for whatever I want to reference on my devices. I have family photos I love, some digital cards and layouts I have created, my recent Lego photos. Then I go to iTunes and, click on my device then over to Photos. I click the box Sync Photos from and Choose Folder and browse for iPad Photos. Then I can choose which albums on want on each device. I save my scrapbook layouts to my iPad since they are easy to view there. I save less on my iPhone since I have less room for storage. My photos are organized and I can easily find and share them.

However you do it, remember to backup and your iPhone photos.

now what?

I read a comic which asked the question, "What would you want to do if money were not an issue?" It is a great question. And I wish I was asked this before I made any career choices.

I want to make art. 

What kind of art? I like photography and graphic design and lettering.

I have always liked art and drawing. When I was younger and thinking of careers, I knew art would be a struggle to make a living. I thought architecture would be a good compromise. 

I was wrong. Very few architects get to make anything resembling art. Architects are problem solvers. I am good at problem solver. Though I do not like the methods and bureaucracy involved with architecture. 

I made the decision to become an architect when I was 10 years old. It has taken me 38 years to realize it might not have been the right decision. I don't regret becoming an architect, I have had some great experiences and learned some valuable things. I wonder what life would have been like if I had followed a more artistic path.

Now I wonder if it is too late?

I know it is never too late but I feel like I wasted many years and resources I had looking for a hobby.

Where do I go from here?

tangerine keeps me walking

A friend told me about potionfactory years ago. It wasn't something I needed then. I decided to try it out last summer when I found listening to podcasts while walking wasn't working out.

I like listening to podcasts but it doesn't help with my pace. It does help if the podcast is funny and I laugh while I walk. I get the walk and an ab workout at the same time. Never mind any funny looks I get from laughing by myself.

One of my favorite podcasts is All Songs Considered. The podcast is only weekly and I like listening to music while I walk. I find myself walking to the beat. If the song has a fast tempo, this is good. If the song has a slow tempo, it is not so good.

I downloaded the trial of Tangerine and got to work making a playlist. Some songs were too fast and some were too slow. I adjusted the requirements and found a list that made me walk faster but not too fast. There are several training samples such as interval training to help you get out of a rut and improve.

I like that I can add more rules to allow for only the songs I rated 3 stars or greater, and songs that haven't been played lately. When I come back from a walk, I move the songs that work the best for walking into another playlist called walkings faves.

I was falling behind in my podcasts so I went back to listening to them. There are some podcasts which offend my dad. But when I found myself slowing down again and I decided to try it again.

I have been using Tangerine again for a few weeks now. I have find that my average pace has increased. This is mostly because of intervals. One morning my playlist started with a fast song. I wasn't quite ready for it but found the pace and stuck with it. I know that the body prefers to be at stasis. Especially mine. Walking at the same pace will get easier and results will wane. Intervals make the body react and do more work and improve.

Listening to music lets my mind wander and I find myself thinking of the eclectic selection of songs. I use shuffle so I never know what song will be next. Some of these songs, I don't remember ever hearing let alone buying.

Say You Love Me Fleetwood Mac Greatest Hits
Crystalised The xx Crystalised
C'mon Guster Ganging Up On the Sun Rock
Mercy Matt Nathanson Modern Love
Taste the Summer Duran Duran Astronaut
Paperback Head Tegan and Sara Sainthood
Water In The Well Spirit Of The West Save This House
Postage Stamp World Rogue Wave Out of the Shadow

I don't know who Matt Nathanson is. Was this a free song I never listened to? Taste the Summer is something that I usually skip but the beat works well for walking. Paperback Head is a little difficult to find the right rhythm. Artists make sone for interest, not for walking. Water in the Well? I have 3 albums from Spirit of the West that I got in the 1990's. I don't think I have listened to them since I ripped the CDs into iTunes.

Love Song Sara Bareilles Love Song
Rollin' And Tumblin' Eric Clapton Unplugged
Perfectly Good Guitar John Hiatt Perfectly Good Guitar
Summer Sunshine The Corrs Borrowed Heaven
Wouldn't It Be Nice (Stereo Mix) The Beach Boys Pet Sounds
You Will Pay Tomorrow Terence Trent D'Arby Neither Fish Nor Flesh
Outrageous Paul Simon Surprise
Let's Stick Together Bryan Ferry & Roxy Music Street Life

Tangerine is really working for me this time. My walks are getting better and I am listening to more of my music.

picky eaters & other quirks

My boys are picky eaters. This is typical with kids with autism. It is one of those things that you learn to work around. The boys were good eaters until the toddler years. All kids go through that. My kids never stopped. In some ways they have gotten worse. 

I understand some of their issues. I am a picky eater too. I do not like steak but I love hamburgers. It is a texture thing. I love tomatoes but hate ketchup. I don't dip fries into ketchup. My boys never learned to dip.  But I know when I have to give in. I once at ate chicken livers when I was in Poland. We hadn't had a decent meal in a couple of days and were out of options. Kids with autism will not give in. They will starve before they give in. 

Some of their food routines... 

Breakfast

Last year, I used to fix Lenders Cinnamon Raisin bagels. I toasted 4 bagels. Andy ate them all. Maybe once a month, Ryan ate 1/2 bagel. On school days, Andy didn't eat much before he left. But he would eat the leftovers when he gets home. They were cold and stale and he would eat them. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I fixed the leftover sausage from Sunday. I used to fix biscuits but Andy stopped eating them so then I just toasted a couple of bagels to go along with the sausage. Andy would eat the sausage but skip the bagels until he got home. 

Then Andy started high school. School starts at 7:30. He has to get up at 6 and catch the bus at 6:50. Andy is not a morning person. He would eat his sausage on Tuesdays and Thursdays but nothing the other days. Andy's lunch doesn't begin until 12:10. It is a long time to go without food. I asked Andy if he would eat sausage if I made every week day. He was excited with that idea. Monday and Tuesday, Andy eats the leftovers from Sundays. I cook up a fresh batch on Wednesday and Andy eats that the next three days. On Saturdays, Andy eats 4 toasted bagels. It takes him all morning the way he grazes. 

On Sundays, we have waffles and sausage. Andy eats 2 waffles and 5 sausages. It is routine. He cannot deviate, unless he is sick.

Ryan usually eats cookies or donut holes. And chocolate milk. Lots of chocolate milk. Ryan will nibble the edges of the cold, plain waffles but nothing else. 

Lunch

At home I fix grilled cheese. Only Andy will eat this. Years ago, when Ryan ate as well, he used to leave the crust. Andy picked up this habit and won't stop. 

When we go out to eat, we do drive thru through two different places. Andy prefers Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets and fries. Ryan will only eat fries from McDonald's. We stop at McDonald's first where Ryan gets medium fries and Andy gets small fries. Then we go to Chick-Fil-A. For years, Ryan's preference was Wendy's until they switched their fries. And there was a time when Ryan preferred Arby's home style fries until they stopped carrying them. Chick-Fil-A is closed on Sundays so Andy used to hot dogs until he got tired of them. He started eating McDonald's chicken selects until they stopped making the Chicken Selects. I make grilled cheese for Andy. One Sunday, I stopped at Target and got a Pizza Hut Personal Pan Pizza for Andy. He really liked that. But I cannot stop there each week. I told him I will get him pizza every other week. He is OK with that. 

Lunch at School

For Andy's lunch: 1/2 cup Multi-Grain Cheerios, 5 club crackers, 1 cup Whole Grain Goldfish crackers. He usually eats the Goldfish and the cereal, the Club crackers are eaten last. He drinks a thermos os Juicy Juice.

For Ryan's lunch: 1/2 cup Chocolate Cheerios, 5 Club Crackers. He always eats the crackers and about 1/3 of the Cheerios. Ryan drink Capri Sun. It is the only time he will drink juice.

Dinner

Andy eats Tyson Southern Style Chicken Nuggets. Every night. Nothing else. Sometimes Ryan will eat one nugget. Most days, Andy eats the whole box. We rarely eat out for dinner.

Snacks

Ryan eats his cookies and donut holes and chocolate milk. Ryan does not differentiate from snack and meal. Ryan is my chocolate boy. He used to eat plain Hershey Kisses. I had gotten a bag of Dark Chocolate Kisses for me. I noticed the bag on the floor, empty. He ate the whole thing and did not get sick! We moved to caramel kisses and kept them in the refrigerator. I used to keep them on a high shelf then Ryan got tall and smart. I cannot find these locally anymore. I have to go to another Target.  

Andy will eat Entenmann's Pop'Ems if he is hungry between meals. Or Club Crackers. 

Special Meals

Andy likes pizza. He prefers Papa John's thin crust with cheese only. Andy will eat half of a large pizza. He will not eat leftover pizza. Ryan has not eaten pizza since he was 5 years old. 

Foods they used to eat

Chips: Ryan used to bring home snack bags of chips. He got them from his teacher for being good. He used to eat them. He preferred the rippled kind. Then he stopped eating them. Andy used to love Pringles in his lunch but he stopped eating them. 

Cookies: Ryan has always been my sweet eater. And he would try different cookies. Especially if he picked them out at the grocery store. He loved Oreo Uh-ohs. He liked chocolate chip cookies. He even tried Keebler Fudge Stripe cookies. He won't eat any of these anymore.

Candy: Andy has never liked candy. His teacher used to use it for rewards. Some kids used to try to sneak it. She started putting it by Andy because he wouldn't eat it not would he let the other kids eat it. Ryan used to use m&m's. He is the only kid who got messy eating them.

Packaging

The boys don't like change. 

Manufacturers love to change the design of the packages. This was always a problem. I had to show the kids it was the same and they were OK. Mostly. Then Keebler changed the cookie! Andy used to eat EL Fudge cookies. The front of the cookie is the front of the elf. The back of the cookie, was the back of the elf. Then they changed the back to some words. Andy would not eat them anymore.

Other Quirks

Ryan does not like to sit inside restaurants. The exception is  McDonald's at DisneyWorld where they show old Disney cartoons. Andy likes to eat inside. We eat inside when Ryan is not with us. 

tools

I think the thing that really got me to start writing in my journals again is listening to podcasts and reading blogs about pens and paper. I love pens and paper. I have always been drawn to stationary stores and even their small sections in larger stores. I would go to the neighborhood drug store not to buy snacks or comic books but to gaze at the pens, pencils and other tools available on the 6 foot length of aisle. My first shoplifting was a 6" ruler. Who steals a ruler?

I know that tools don't matter. I have heard the arguments of photographers and their cameras. It is how you wield the weapon is what results you can expect. But I still listen to the Pen Addict Podcast and look at what new pen or journal they are talking about. Many pen aficionados talk about fountain pens. I had one once. I bought it because I liked the design of the pen. It was from Shaeffer and had a jungle scene with a lion and a rainbow. I was a tween, of course I love rainbows. This pen used disposable cartridges of ink. I don't remember anything about the writing experience.

I understand that using a fountain pen can be a wonderful experience. But I also know they need to be maintained. I grumble when I have to change the refill on my roller ball pen, I do not want to think about ink, eye droppers and cleaning nibs. My years in architecture have taught me that cleaning pens is a hassle and not worth the effort. Yes, I know cleaning fountain pens is much easier than cleaning drafting pens with their minuscule needles, but I just want to get the writing done with minimal effort. I use mechanical pencils so I don't have to stop and sharpen them.

Regarding paper, my first journals were purchased because of the cloth covers. I just liked the way they looked. The paper didn't matter to me. When I moved to a digital planner, I no longer had extra pages for journaling and I jumped on the Moleskine bandwagon. I like the look of the books and the paper is once to write on. I have purchased a number of Field Notes but am not a collector. I am not a [Field Addict] (http://www.70decibels.com/thepenaddict/2013/4/23/episode-51-the-things-that-people-love-the-most-are-wrong.html). They are good to have when you need to write something quickly and don't take up a lot of space in your bag. I had purchased a Rhodia notebook back in 2011. I started using it again and love the dotted grid. If Moleskine had a dotted grid, I would not switch. The Rhodia covers feel like buttery smooth leather and the paper is a dream to write on. They are not ubiquitous like Moleskine so they are not as cheap.

Will a better pen or a better notebook make me a better writer? No, but I might enjoy the process more and therefore write more. Like some bloggers prefer a clicky keyboard, I love the feel of smooth paper and pens that glide without effort. Only writing a lot will make me a better writer.