Category: I hate computers

Art Language is Easy, Computer Language, Not so Much

Navigating to a new blogging platform is becoming a “thing.” There’s new language to learn, first off, and working is ridiculously difficult if you speak English and “they” speak Swahili, if you catch my drift.

Greek Dish, 9×10 Watercolor ©Dora Sislian Themelis

Managing this present blog is easy. However, the look of the new site is much nicer, and a bit more professional. If I could figure it out I’d be golden. It’s going to take some time. Learning a new language isn’t as easy as they say it is.

The language of art comes naturally to me. Thank goodness, or I’d be toast. The vocabulary I need to learn are the words that will kick out Mr. Resistance from my space.

Now that’s a tough cookie.

Knitting my Way Out

Painting is just not happening here, guys. Mr. Resistance and Mrs. Distraction, yes I decided distraction is female, have taken up spots on the couch and aren’t even thinking of leaving soon.

So I’m knitting.

Big Rib Hand Knit Cowl ©Dora Sislian Themelis
Well, not just knitting, but photographing the finished products, and uploading them to my Etsy shop. You’re welcome to go and browse, if you like. No pressure to shop, don’t worry.
Besides knitting, I’m working on a new project. I’ve taken the plunge and ordered my own domain name. Yeah, now I’m a “dot com.” Don’t ask too many questions, because I really don’t have many answers. Seems it’s the thing to do, but Man, is it a difficult trek through uncharted waters.
Learning curve is steep, deep, thick, and hard work.
In “dot com” land the language isn’t English. Yes, I read the explanation of whatever, it seems to make sense, but the words do not mean the thing I’m thinking they mean. And no where is there any idea what they are talking about. 
Huh?
Like I said, don’t ask. A friend said she’s going to find a WordPress for Dummies book. Sounds like a good idea to me. 

I Still Hate Computers

Why do I always have to encounter problems at the computer?  Huh? Why me?  I’m going along my merry way, checking my pages, shop, blogs, surfing around reading interesting things, and when I’m ready to write up my blog post BAM! I can’t upload photos.  Nope.  Not happening.  Why why why?!

(Stomping my feet and holding my breath).

It’s okay, what can I do about it?  Absolutely nothing.  Just like the weather, all you can do is talk about it.    So that’s what I’m going to do, because I can’t upload to this blog now.  Lovely Blogger is disabling uploads for two hours due to maintenance issues.  It’s supposed to begin at 5PM Pacific Daylight Time.  What’s that got to do with little old me here in New York?  Am I wrong, but isn’t it 5PM here before it becomes 5PM over there on the west coast?  Huh?  Is it me?  What?

Besides the weather turning cloudy and cold, my day was pretty quiet.  Couple of small things on the list. Like yesterday, I decided to add ‘Paint for 20 minutes’ at the end of the list and that’s what I wanted to do.  It felt so good yesterday I thought about painting all day today.

Again, I had a plan and followed through.  Pretty good for me!  Had my leaves, my rocks, added my apple and set the timer for 20 minutes.  When I was done I took a couple of photos to upload here.  No luck.  Server rejected.  Waaaahhhhh!  I tried again, and again the same notification.  Now, I think I’m in time before the maintenance thing begins, but no, it won’t work.  Blah.

Just take my word for it, my little watercolor painting came out nicely.  I feel good about it, but I can’t show it to you.  One more time for good measure….nope, no good.

I’m sorry.  I was so happy I painted something and finished it.  Maybe I gave myself the evil eye, a jinx, a canary?  I will try again tomorrow.  Get back to you then…

Painting in the Wild vs the Studio

This new computer stuff is just taking up alot of time that I could be doing other things.  I visited the Apple Store yesterday and asked a few questions about the iphoto thing.  The wacky salesman, yes he was wacky and all over the place..very upbeat, high energy guy, went to a computer station and tried a few things.  He said he really wasn’t that informed about specifics with iphoto.  I watched in rapt awe as he brought up a photo and per my thoughts, resized it.  Amazing.

At the time of purchase our sales person asked if we wanted to add lessons.  I didn’t think it would be something I’d have time for so we opted out.  Of course, Son #2 has it all down already. Kids!  Now I’m thinking maybe lessons would have been a good idea.  But when?  I’ve got enough on my plate as it is, but then, if I knew what I was doing all this wouldn’t take all the time I do have.

It’s a dilemma.

I came home and tried to copy what the high energy crazy salesman did in the store and I did figure it out.  It just took me a while.  So maybe that’s what it will take, a while.

Later on I visited the watercolor of the hydrangea on my desk and got to work on it.  I don’t know how I feel about it.  Painting from life at the beach is so different from painting in the studio.  I think I like the life painting better.  I can’t be sure what it is about the out-of-studio painting.  It could be that I’m outside.  It could be that I’m working live and don’t have all day so I have to be quick. Maybe it’s that working from life leaves out the possibility of going into too much detail.  If I work from my photographs I see too much detail and paint too tight.  Working in the ‘wild’ I paint more freely, only adding enough detail to tell the story.  We’ve been down this road before, I know, I know.

Maybe it’s good to have different styles of painting?  Maybe I should just paint and keep quiet?

If I find that I’m really a plein air painter, winter is going to be a tough time!  I can’t even think about it from now.  Back to the easel!

Meet my Friend iMac

Meet my new friend iMac.  We’ve known each other for a couple of weeks and we’re still trying to figure out what kind of relationship we have.  I mean, we’re really not friends yet, sort of acquaintances. I think it’s going to take some time getting used to our likes, dislikes and quirks.

For the most part iMac is cool.  I like the fact that it’s so compact.  There’s no tower thing, the guts of the computer is in the monitor.  The keyboard is smaller than I’m used to, but the keys make a nice comfy sound when I type on it.  Plus which, it’s wireless, as is the mouse, eliminating all those pesky wires that would be all bunched up and tangled under the desk.

Working on it is a little bit confusing.  What was on the right on a PC is on the left on the iMac.  So my brain needs to remember things like that.  Cutting and pasting is different.  The applications for photos and word processing is new too.  Since I use photos alot I have to learn how to use that program.  I’m still trying to figure out how to size my photos up or down.  Maybe I just have to add my stuff to Flickr where I’m familiar with resizing.  And forget the website I needed to access for The Mr.’s business.  I called their help desk and they informed me that the site doesn’t support Mac products.  That blows.  So they’re just going to have to do more work from the location instead of my having to do it.  Now they need to hook up their printer and move on.  I’m off the hook with that.  Great!

All this learning makes me tired.  It’s fun, but okay, I have things I need to do and it just takes so much more time to do them.  All right already!  Enough with the learning!

So, iMac and I are in the ‘nice to meet you’ stage of our relationship.  I am waiting for the day that we have moved on to the ‘meet you for coffee at the nearest Starbucks so we can dish’ stage.  I think it’s going to take some time before that happens.


Fun Friday, or Not

Well, I bit the bullet and bought the iMac.  It’s a beautiful machine.  Have I got alot to learn?  You betcha.  But it’s real pretty.

I hope it gets to be fun, or I’ll be throwing my shoe at this computer too.  Hope I make it through the weekend with my head still attached to my neck.  I’ll let you know.   Wish me luck because I’m gonna need it.

And the Word for Wednesday is…

….shilly-shally.

shilly-shally

verb

To be irresolute in acting or doing: dither, falter, halt, hesitate, pause, stagger, vacillate, waver, wobble. See decide

adjective

Given to or exhibiting hesitation: halting, hesitant, indecisive, irresolute, pendulous, tentative, timid, vacillant, vacillatory. See decide

noun

The act of hesitating or state of being hesitant: hesitancy, hesitation, indecision, indecisiveness, irresoluteness, irresolution, pause, tentativeness, timidity, timidness, to-and-fro, vacillation. See decide

Need More Batteries?

Yesterday flew by and I never got a chance to visit the electronics stores.  But today is a different story.  After I post here I’m going straight there.  It’s a must, although I’d much rather be at the beach.  It’s going to be a hot one today.  Tempting as it is, I need to do something about the dead computer.

I can remember when there weren’t any computers to be fooling around with.  The thing is, there was always something that we couldn’t do without after having used said thing.  Computers, cell phones, cordless phones, TV remotes, DVR, CD’s, food processors, blenders, microwaves, what else?

Remember pencil and paper?  Forget it.  Low technology is out.  People today don’t even need to hold a book to read one.  Just open up your Kindle or iPad thing.  Make sure the batteries are charged up or forget reading a book!  Anyone remember grating walnuts with a Moulix?  How about beating eggs with a hand held rotory beater in a bowl?  And no batteries or electricity needed.

I don’t know about most people, but I like putting pen to paper or holding a heavy book and flipping the pages as I read.  Just think of the exercise we’re missing out on by not getting up off the couch to change TV channels.

OK, well if I can get myself together and figure out what I’m going to do about my computer I’ll be posting some photos soon.  I know some people are going to want to see what a Moulix and a hand beater looks like.

Ding Dong the Witch is Dead

I’m sorry to have to say it, but my computer went kaput the other day.  I turned it on and nothing happened beyond the first blink of lights.

I tried pressing the ON button again.  Again, lights flickered on the monitor and then nothing.  “No signal” was all I could see before the screen quickly went dark.  Now what?

Luckily my mom lives nearby and has a computer.  (She hates computers worse than me.) That’s where I’m posting from for the time being.  Let me tell you how I just could not access the internet or printer from here and this computer is fairly new.  Why?  Who knows. 

Computers are worse than bad mannered children.  I have to iron out the bugs on her computer before she uses it and flips out.  What I know technology-wise, she knows even less.  “When you push the button and turn it on it better work right otherwise who needs it?” is her philosophy.  She’s funny.

This is one adventure I’m just not prepared to begin.  My next stop today will be to the big electronics store to pick some brains.  My sons say to just give it up and get a MAC.  That means big dollar bills.  I’d prefer to just fix the old PC, but that could also lead to big dollar bills out the window.  No keeping the cash stash intact, I guess.  Why are these things so expensive anyway?  Don’t these people know there’s a depression around the corner?

I’m so not happy right now.  Blech..

Wordless on Wednesday–Except for Arggggg!

So I complained about my computer yesterday, did that mean other things had to jump on his bandwagon and go crazy too?  I didn’t think so, but that’s what happened.  Here I was, all into having a great Tuesday and the main drainpipe to the street clogged up.  That is no fun at all, not to mention the clean up.  Argggg!  Is that how I wanted to spend my day?  No, but doesn’t it just figure?  I swear, pipes and machines must talk to each other behind my back.