10/8/00

Yes, it's me. It really is.

Anne's Journal of Minutiae

October, 2000

10/8/00

Yes, I've been bad. Very bad. Only four measly entries last month. But I have good excuses -- none of which include laziness. My head has been spinning (not a plug for the re-release of The Exorcist, of course) from all the courses I've been taking -- I'm even having feverdreams about layers, motion and shape tweening, vector drawing, call functions, various and sundry HTML tag modifiers. The good thing is that I've actually got something to show for it all. I have been systematically redoing (aka "de-FrontPaging") my pages -- as well as re-sizing images in Photoshop (I've still more to go...sigh) for faster downloading. You can thank me later. For those of you who angrily hit the back button whilst trying to download the 6/28/00 entry, you'll be pleased to know that I have reduced the "hand" JPEG to a comfortable 11k. Yup, I know that was a huge sucker.

I've been making pretty good progress with Photoshop -- although, I've had to practice "masking layers" more than a few times. But I'm becoming a Text Tool Maven, though (ermm, that sounds rather...well...hmmmm). The more I use Photoshop, the more I love it -- I'm becoming more comfortable with it. I haven't touched Paint Shop Pro in a month. I've just pre-ordered the Photoshop 6 upgrade after perusing the latest addition. Woo-hoo, lotsa neat stuff in there.

Dreamweaver 3 seems to be my strongest class -- mainly because I was already familiar with Web editor applications and HTML code. I'm just amazed at how versatile this program is -- no wonder it's one of the "industry standard" Web editing programs. If you're serious about Web design, I heartily recommend this program -- the learning curve is higher than FrontPage, but there's almost nothing it can't do. I love the layers-to-tables feature -- great for planning layouts.

I'm determined to learn Flash inside and out. Dammit. I'm gonna flog that program into submission, by golly. I don't know if I'll ever be as good as these guys* -- but if I can at least create something reasonably serviceable, I'll be quite happy. So, just for the heck of it -- my latest offerings. Bear in mind that I'm only just getting the hang of motion and shape tweening. Jeez, I've got a long way to go...

I witnessed last Saturday night what happens when two drivers fail to make a complete stop at a STOP sign. I had taken my mom to Vons for grocery shopping (yeah, I lead an exciting life) and parked in a corner pocket right in front of the boulevard stop. (BTW, my mom doesn't drive. Just thought I'd clear that one up right away.) Now, mind you, just because the STOP signs are planted in a supermarket parking lot doesn't mean that the vehicle code doth not apply. Oh yes it does. I don't care if NO OTHER VEHICLES are even approaching the the intersection, YOU MUST STILL STOP. And "rolling stops" don't count. I always STOP. Always.

So I watched an old Honda Accord and a fairly new Nissan Maxima learn this important lesson. Oh yes. It was quite a show -- and right in front of me, too! The Honda lost its front end, along with sustaining a tented hood and a smooshed radiator (the girl driving the car couldn't get the thing started). The Maxima got its left driver and passenger doors massively dented. Both cars had to be towed. I hate to say it, but the two drivers got what they deserved. Bet they'll be making complete stops at STOP signs from now on, huh? Well...at least for a while.

Big Brother haters can skip this entry. Just thought I'd warn you. But hey, at least the show is over. For now, anyway.

I have to give an "atta boy" to Eddie McGee -- I had a feeling that he'd be the one to snag the $500k in the end. He seemed to be someone who really was more interested in the "game" aspect of the show. I was also glad that Josh got the $100k and Curtis (who seemed quite surprised that he'd lasted so long) won the $50k prize. And even though I wasn't a "Chicken George" fan, I'm glad that the University of Vermont is offering both of George's daughters a complete scholarship once they graduate from high school. George seemed genuinely moved by the gift.

And now Jamie (aka "Hollywood") is free to pursue a career in acting. We'll see how far it goes for her -- my bet is on Brittany getting an acting gig first. Hmmm, might make for an interesting competition. Grist for a new show, perhaps? Oh jeez, I shouldn't be giving anyone any ideas.

*You'll need the free Flash and Shockwave players to view this Silly Shit. You can download and install at the same time through the browser.