So I won't say I am disappointed, but the storm that was supposed to be crazy severe with 70-80mph winds really only amounted to this video. Some light to heavy rain. Some thunder. Some lightening. I do believe they had hail in the southwestern 'burbs, but E-Town seems to have been spared. We sent people home early from the office - shut everything down, pulling power plugs and preparing for crazy. It certainly made me think of my childhood tornado drills. Growing up in Kansas, you know what to do straight from the womb.
blown away
Have you downloaded the new VSCO Cam app? Holy smokes did they do an A M A Z I N G job with the design of this app. I used the previous version pretty much daily to process my photos - but not as a camera. Now that they have the ability to touch focus and expose from two points like the SmugMug Awesome Camera app, I am all in! 
I am seriously blown away by the amount of presets - almost too many to choose from! The user interface is so easy - with everything within reach even though there are a LOT of options! And it's fast! Super fast shooting. Super fast editing (if you know what you want to do) and great speed on saving to camera roll too!
I was slightly disappointed when I downloaded the new bundle of presets (you know I gotta have it all) that I wasn't seeing anything that looked like the presents in the original app. Then tonight when I was playing around, I decided to open the old app and compare. To my surprise, they gave previous users a bundle of presets for free that match the old Cam app line up - YAY!
I do have one tiny request future updates - please allow me to save the original shots as an album in my photo album on the phone so I don't have to export every time I snap a pic. Oh and if I could take a video and apply your presets I that would be truly dreamy!!!!!
Bravo VSCO team! Bravo!
the new flickr
Do you Flickr? What are your thoughts on the redesign?
I'm slightly on the fence. I do like the layout of my photostream. I do like the larger photos of my contacts, but ... it seems a little clunky to me. It is some kind of merge between Google Plus and Facebook. The social aspect - comments and such - is pretty much gone because the interface is awkward to actually comment on a photo. I have been a member for a long time and have seen very little change in the interface, so I like that they are forward thinking, but ... with all the other photo sharing sites that have come to the web since Flickr, they need something awesome. Flickr was really the first site of its kind. I loved the early days of Flickr. It was a real community, no funny business. Now, not so much. I continue to upload photos, but was blocked from "explore" years ago - so it's really only for me, but I have to admit I am not a regular like I used to be ... What are your thoughts on the redesign? 
P.S. I seem to have a thing for flowers ... Spring has gotten to me!
the all new loo!
Three weeks ago I started renovating the bathroom in my condo. It was supposed to only be a week, but as most construction projects go, it didn't quite play out that way. Thankfully, this weekend I was finally able to shower with a door (not a makeshift curtain) and repopulate the room with my "stuff." It finally feels like it's supposed to, though we have one more day of caulking, polishing and sealing the tile.
Here's the before and during... 
It probably doesn't look that bad in the "before" photo, but I didn't capture photos of the tile that was growing black mold or the door that would not close properly because it's no longer square in the frame, or the chips in the 4x4 floor tile from who knows what. I had a choice to make - repair all of these things and live with the cheaper model or go in for the upgrade. I went for the latter - surely I will get my money's worth out of it when (if) I sell, right!?!
And now for the beautiful after...
I am really, really pleased how it all came out. There is still work to be done - I have not changed out the mirror, sink and countertop - but wanted to see how all the other finishes came out before picking a stone for the countertop. Now that it's all together, I'm still not sure what stone I should go with ...
I am a designer. And as such, I am sometimes paralyzed by the amount of possibilities. I like so many different styles. For example, I thought I would have an all white bathroom going into this whole project. And as you can see, when it came right down to it, I didn't go that route.
Decisions. Decisions.
Choosing the tile was the easy part - well the wall and floor. But then there was the baseboard (tile or wood) and how to cover the edges of the ceramic tile (I chose a marble pencil tile) and the threshold where the shower door sits - how wide, solid marble slab vs tile and what color grout and so on.
The biggest of decisions was the ceiling inside the shower. Most people just have drywall up there, but the owners prior to me had some kind of hard surface (Corian or similar) and I rather liked that approach. Plus, it's a very compressed space - so not much height for the steam to escape. So after much thought (and pricing) I decided on a custom piece of backpainted glass. It was the most expensive option by far, but is for sure the best solution.
I changed all the plugs and switches - love the clean snap on plate to conceal the hardware. I purchased these at Lowes and my electrician tells me that Home Depot has better electrical fixtures. Well heck, how am I supposed to know that?
Then there was the fan - every bathroom needs a fan and mine old one was on the fritz. There are lots to choose from, but most electricians will tell you to purchase from a supply store and not HD, Lowes or Menards. I chose a Panasonic whisper quite model and am happy with it so far. It is a little more expensive than those you see in the big box retail stores, but not much.
So... shower heads. Holy smokes are there a lot to choose from! And you have to visit a showroom that has them set up with running water to even be able to see what the water pressure will be like. I chose to go with the Speakman Anystream, though I was intrigued by the Kohler Moxie (speaker in the shower head - awesome!) but the water pressure out of that thing was pitiful. The Speakman is 2.5 GPM, and most of the others don't even come close to that! (1.8-2.0)
And then shower drain strainers ... bet you've never given a minute of thought to these guys. Well, let me tell you, they are hard to find. Most of the drains come standard with a strainer - mostly brushed nickel over brass with really open weave. I found some really cool ones, but all required some kind of retrofit of my current drain (which I did not want to do), so I did manage to find a nice polished one (in the photo above) on Amazon - you will NOT find these at your local hardware store.
Who knew there were so many tiny decisions to be made for a tiny little project?
california bloomin
Some lovelies soaking in the Sonoma sun.
watercolor map on demand
This is a seriously cool map interface. Type in a location and boom! You have a custom watercolor map image that you can download! Super cool stuff! Go make yours here!
Chicago, IL (above) Lawrence, KS (below)
sonoma
We spent our second day in wine country in Sonoma. I had heard it is far more laid back, but didn't really know what that meant till I got there. It is far more casual, smaller wineries, less manicured, but just as good! We shopped in Sonoma Square - adorable shops and tasting rooms all along the square. Shop. Taste. Chocolate. Shop. Taste. Lunched at the Red Grape (yummy pizza!) and then over to Ravenswood for another tasting. And finished with dinner at The Girl and the Fig. Perfectly lovely day! 
napa
Finally got to editing some photos from my napa trip. I didn't take anywhere near what I would have liked to, but sometimes you just need to stay focused on things without a lens in between, you know. We spent our first day in Napa - started at Opus One for a tour of their facility - upon arrival it seemed a little stuffy, but our guide was really great and down to earth. We learned a lot and are completely inspired to come back during harvest. Would be completely amazing to see all those grapes in motion! Totally amazed by how much of the work is still done by hand! And enjoyed two glasses of their wine 2009 vintage of Opus One and their lower level Overture, both very good. 
From there we headed over to Oakville Grocery - perfect place to pick up gourmet snackin's and they have a great wine selection too! Stop there for lunch - They have picnic tables outside so you can sit among the vines and enjoy.
Then it was over to Domaine Chandon for bubbles! It was crazy busy in the tasting room, so we bought a bottle and sat on the patio enjoying the day... and some chocolate covered strawberries! I loved the reserve so much, I bought a bottle to bring home with me! Ohhh I do love bubbles! 
We ended the day with dinner at Tra Vigne - their mozzarella is made in house and is ridiculous good! Let me just say ... one day in Napa is not even close to enough time. I wish I lived closer so I could just pop in for the day and do a couple of new places each time. And be able to take photos of the beautiful vineyards. ... Will have to go back!
this is water : superb video
This is really great. I like the little reality check this guy offers in his commencement speech. So much of collegiate life is about cultivating creativity and free thinking - no barriers. But that is not reality once you enter the workforce. There are routines and rules and those things can be a big 'ol drag. But... it i all in how you look at things. It's your choice to make the most of every opportunity in your every day - even if it isn't all it unicorns and rainbows. THIS IS WATER - YouTube.
building my beehive
Renovation of the "loo" part one has begun. I cannot wait to have my beautiful new bathroom all put together! Still a lot of work ahead...
