Notes from the Basement

Impressive

Posted on March 17, 2016 by WorldWideWeber

“Riding the rocket”

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Om

Posted on February 5, 2016 by WorldWideWeber

Speaking of frogs (it appears we’re creating a subcategory to the Phone Photos category: Yard Fauna)—this taken in D.C. not far from home:

Meditating frog

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Disconnect

Posted on January 1, 2016 by WorldWideWeber

One hopes the neighbors have found a common language even if their yard sculptures have not.

Divided by more than a fence

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Hallowed

Posted on December 8, 2015 by WorldWideWeber

In a metropolitan area full of history and historical markers, two plaques in Arlington, Virginia—just across the river from Washington, DC—are easy to miss. They sit a block apart in the Rosslyn neighborhood, consisting of office buildings, high-rise apartments, and fast-food restaurants. I passed them many times as a bicycle commuter before I stopped to read what they said.

The first plaque commemorates the spot where “Deep Throat” met Bob Woodward, the Washington Post reporter who was investigating the Watergate break-in.

Corner of Wilson Blvd. and N. Nash St.

The second plaque pays homage to the relatively unknown group of engineers who worked on ARPANET, laying the foundation of what became that world-altering feature of modern life, the internet.

Corner of Wilson Blvd. and N. Oak St.

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Belief

Posted on November 6, 2012 by WorldWideWeber

I believe in America. That’s why I voted today for Barack Obama.

Yesterday Ana Marie Cox wrote that it wouldn’t be the end of the world if Romney wins. Nor if Obama wins, if your nightmares run in that direction. She also makes the “belief in America” argument, and I agree with her—up to a point. She notes the damage likely to occur in the former case, and frankly, I’d really, really like to avoid that.

I never thought Obama could walk on water, but it was shocking how much toxic sludge an ideologically crazed, monolithic Republican Party could pump into the political sphere. If this election breaks the implacable bloc that has refused to address the issues we face as negotiators in good faith—as problem solvers—that would be a great achievement. New Jersey governor Chris Christie has set the tone. Will any of his fellow Republicans follow suit during the second Obama term?

Posted in Agora | Tagged politics | Leave a comment

Fiery

Posted on October 17, 2012 by WorldWideWeber

Contrails and wires over Washington

Now we’ll post from the Kindle Fire. I’m sure it will work.

Another colleague who was trying to help in my absence today mentioned that the post was going into the caption. So I guess I need to add a photo and a caption.

Image uploading was a bit tetchy. I needed to add it to my media library—couldn’t just insert it into the post. An extra step—oh, well …

So, here is a photo, with a caption. We’ll see how it renders.

Posted in Random | Tagged photography, technology | 2 Comments

Tablitis

Posted on October 16, 2012 by WorldWideWeber

I’m hearing that a colleague is having problems posting to my day job’s WordPress site using a Galaxy tablet and the web interface. So here I am posting from my Galaxy S3 phone, using the native browser. Let’s see if it works …

Posted in Random | Tagged technology | 1 Comment

Equality

Posted on September 9, 2012 by WorldWideWeber

Political activism starts early here in Washington, D.C.:

stroller and scooter-car with gay rights sticker

Too young to drive, not too young to make a statement

Okay, okay, it’s the parents talking. Still, kinda cute.

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Ouch

Posted on August 14, 2012 by WorldWideWeber

How messed-up would you have to be to even consider taking advantage of the services offered here on Connecticut Avenue? Or am I being an insufferable snob?

A doctor on duty—really!

You simply must ask what the Blue Plate Special is.

For the record, this sign didn’t last long. Either the doctor(s) moved, or a better sign was made and installed in the arcade (entrance just to the right).

Posted in Random | Tagged medicine, phone, photography, Washington DC | Leave a comment

Phony

Posted on July 16, 2012 by WorldWideWeber

“The best camera is the one that’s with you.”

Thus spake Chase Jarvis. And nowadays, more often than not, that camera is your phone. For Jarvis, it’s an iPhone, and he made an app for called … Best Camera.

I have only owned Android phones, and I don’t particularly like applying cutesy filters before I don’t upload them to the cloud for all to enjoy. (You follow me?) I just take pictures to document the passing scene.

The previous entry contained two such shots and might serve as the beginning of an occasional feature here in the Basement: Phone Photos.

Here’s one from a visit to Texas (this post is post-dated). I love cicadas to begin with, and it struck me funny the way it parked itself on the huge frog’s nose. I kept imagining the lightning-quick flash of tongue and “bye-bye, bug” … But nothing happened—except the cicada flew away. So the second part came true, which is not exactly nothing.

The cicada and the frog

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