WHEN YOUR CAMERA DOES THIS...

...It Can't Be A Good Thing...

My little Canon 'Powershot' camera has been a really good little soldier; managing to take some great-looking photos in spite of the fact that I am probably always trying to get the Camera to do more than it is capable of. You might have seen my recent post with the little Baby Sea-Lion, among other ocean-oriented views. When I got the camera home that night, and turned it on to upload photos, I saw THIS on the camera's screen and thot, "What The (CENSORED)?"

It could still TAKE photos and upload 'em, but it couldn't display them. I have no idea how this happened. I was told something in the screen got broken. But unless I accidentally sat on the camera (which is possible, I guess), it's a mystery to me how it fizzed out on me like this. I must be an unconscious Camera Abuser, which is all the worse because I don't know when I'm mistreating the camera while I'm mistreating it. So you're wondering, "how did you get a photo of your camera?" Well, Payday arrived, and I just went out and got another one. I wear a sweater-coat with deep pockets where I place the camera when I'm not using it on beach walks, and it's entirely possible I sat on my coat (and camera) at one point. It worked right after I took that Seal photo, 'cos I could see it on the display screen, but nothing, nada, zilch, zip, when I got the camera home. But, anyway, I put my new camera to work today...

At above left, you can see a shot of Coos Bay, with the Tioga Hotel which dominates the city's skyline. I'll bet the Tioga is one of the tallest, if not The Tallest, buildings in this part of the state. The photo was taken from high atop Telegraph Hill (yep, we've got one of those, too, San Francisco!), and the photo at right is the Tioga from a closer point of view. It's an old building, probably dating from 1910 or thereabouts.

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And now that you've seen some photos, here are some OTHER PHOTOS:

That isn't a lake you see here; it's both sides of Coos Bay, which is a big estuary where salt and fresh water meet. At left, you can see a couple of boats hanging out on the East Shore of the eastern portion of the bay, and at right, you can see East shore of the West portion of the bay. Like San Francisco, North Bend and Coos Bay pretty-much occupy a peninsula with water on either side. And you know something? When the Sun's out, it's Almost Like Heaven here. That's when the sun is out, and hopefully we're moving out of the cloudy/rainy season as I type this.

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Some Updates On Other Stuff:

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*COFFEE DRINKING: I posted recently that I was Quitting Caffeine. Unfortunately, Caffeine wouldn't let me. But, other than the weak coffee I have every morning, I am no longer drinking Pepsi or any other caffeinated sodas. I need my carbonation, so I'm doing Root Beer or Creme Soda. It's been a week now since I initiated my Caffein Reduction, and I'm feeling a little more relaxed, and actually tired, in the evenings, which I see as progress. That is, as long as I don't fall asleep mid-song when I'm playing guitar. Basically, I'm nowhere as jittery as I've been, which hopefully will help me in social situations. I had to do something. And hopefully things will get even better as time goes on. I couldn't quit caffeine 'cold turkey', but I've cut it waaay back. So far, it seems to be working.

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*SEATTLE MARINERS: They say You Can Never Go Home Again. But Ken Griffey, Jr. has come back to Seattle, and has pretty-much picked up where he left off. He hit his 400th Seattle Mariner home-run, and I hope all his team-mates, Ichiro included, appreciate what it's like to be on the same team as one of Baseball's Great Players. Speaking of Ichiro...he hit a Grand Slam tonight. Maybe Ichiro will turn on the Consistent Home Run Power he's supposed to have now that Griffey's on the Team. One 'jinx' pitcher from last year's devastating season, Miguel Batista, gave up a bunch of hits and runs, and manager Don Yakamutso actually took Batista OUT before any more damage was done. I'm gonna have to get Used To This. Good managerial decisions? Cohesive hitting? And Even Enthusiasm? Heart, be still....I CAN'T CONTAIN MYSELF!!! THE MARINERS HAVE WON SIX IN A ROW! THEY'RE IN FIRST PLACE!!! WHEEEEEEE!!!!!!

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*MADDENING COMMERCIALS: One of the Major Pain-Medication outfits (can't remember the brand) is sporting a couple of TV commercials that really bug me. In one, a 40-ish lady who plays Badminton (who the hell plays THAT anymore?) had knee pain, and her doctor advised her to quit playing, but she didn't want to hear that. So she disobeyed her doctor, and she takes her Pain-Meds and all is well. She can now play 27 games of Badminton in a Single Day! In another commercial, a weird-looking guy who sez he's Bowled for Eons says the Pain-Med takes away all his pain. Hallelujah. What's rather wrongheaded about these commercials, is that while the Pain-Meds may indeed be effective, that doesn't mean their joints aren't still getting damaged by repetitive motion. The Pain-Meds just 'postpone' the pain, 'tis all. The joint damage is Still Continuing; you just don't feel the pain. I mean, if the dentist injects enough Novocaine, you could eat NAILS and not feel any gum pain. I used to be a runner who would pre-medicate before runs. I ran my joints into the ground over the years. I would advise these people to either play their sports in Moderation, and maybe not do those sports at all if X-rays show significant joint damage. If I had it to do all over again, I would've run less often and would've run shorter distances more often. Oh well. I can still walk.

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I'M STILL STUCK WITH SMALL TYPE: Evidently, "Blogger.com", the God of Internet Blogging, is going to do some much-needed maintenance soon. I HOPE SO! I still can't type headlines in type larger than what you're reading now, although I can still type in 'bold' if I need to. Well, you get what you paid for, right? And "Blogger.com" is free. So you know what that's worth. If and when it gets fixed, I'll re-type the Subject Lines in a larger size. And my advice to "Blogger.Com"? "GET WITH IT, YOU GUYS!!!"

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I THINK I KNOW HOW SMOKERS GET HOOKED: Sometimes, after I remove my dentures for the night, my mouth feels kinda Gunky. (Too much information, right?) To relieve that, I've taken to using Mint Lozenges so my mouth won't taste like Pond Sludge. The Menthol in the Mints works wonders. And I think I'm getting hooked. It's that Menthol thing. I remember my parents smoking Menthol cigarettes for The Aroma, The Taste, The Low Tar and Nicotine, the freshness and zestiness of mounting your steed in Marlboro Country, sucking in that cigarette smoke and Tasting The Great Outdoors, and all the other propaganda which the Cigarette Manufacturers still spout to this day in whatever form they can get away with. So is there a chapter of "Minteaters Anonymous" where I can attend meetings? Help! I'm addicted!

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LIVE LONG AND PROSPER...OR NOT: I read something in the newspaper a couple of weeks ago that I'm still Attempting To Process. It was an article that basically said Americans who live to be a ripe old age are actually tasking the system, by needing all kinds of health-care after they've long outlived their usefulness. Huh? What? Aren't we supposed to take care of ourselves so we can survive? Does this mean now that we all should patriotically Die Early for our country, leaving health care for younger people, who maybe can contribute again after they become infirmed? The article was based on all kinds of surveys. I thought the idea was to Live As Long As One Can. Gosh, far be it for me to be Old and In The Way. This just goes to show that there Really Are Two (or more) sides to Each Issue, and that a lot more Things are Issues than we think. I'll betcha some Yuppie put that article together.

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Can I stop now? Have I written enough? Looking back over all of this, there's enough for 2 or 3 separate posts, but hey, what can I say, I was on a roll. Most blogs strive for quality; heck, sheer quantity is enough for me. Obviously.