I’m using a Pandigital Photo scanner (http://www.pandigital.net/search.asp?Mode=Product&TypeID=9&ProductID=26). It’s a simple little thing that scans normal-sized (photos 4″ tall or less, even panoramics) at 600 dpi. It can even scan negatives. Again, its a simple device and gets the job done quickly. So far, I’ve scanned about 2400 photos.

I’m using Photoshop Lightroom to organize the photos. If you aren’t using it already, stop whatever you’re doing (reading this, obviously), and GO GET IT! It’ll change your life.

The thing that makes this all worthwhile (and motivates me further), is all the awesome feedback and input I’m getting from family and those included in the photos. Many of them have not seen these photos in more than a decade (if not more, or if ever). I’m organizing and uploading them on Facebook, based on how I think they should be grouped (usually grouped by the format and subject matter of the original photos. The family who are responding are helping even further with the organizing effort by identifying what year the photos were taken and what’s happening in the photos. This allows me to tag, geotag, and group the photos accordingly. Fascinating.

Humiliated.

Deceived.

Ignored.

These seem to be the recurring themes of my life. The motifs of the story of my life. Today I was greatly and deliberately humiliated when I reached out for help in a desperate attempt to save my day. Now, here I am, yet another day lost to a rage that is barely controllable. Therefor, and thankfully, I been able to retire for the day with the weight of the world on my shoulders. I would love to take this opportunity to think of all the beautiful people that make me happy, but being so far isolated from my dearest of friends, some taken from me due to my own stupidity, others still with love for me, I find it difficult to find anything to think about to cheer my mood. Except for one thing. One distant sparkle of hope.

This sparkle is in truth a raging flame that I feel will be extinguished once exposed to this deep, dark pale of anger and conflict. I’ve always found it difficult to keep those who gravitate toward me due to an elusive promise of the future. I don’t want anything or anyone to make me happy. I just want to be left alone. Left alone to rot in my own humiliation. With no one close, there will be no one to harm.

I also got a filter kit for $3 off E-Bay. It included a fluorescent light filter, UV filter, polarizing filter, and lens hood. The 55-200 lens also came with a hood of its own, but it won’t fit on the 18-55 lens. Using some stale credit card rewards, I also ordered a 35mm f/1.8 Nikkor. Can’t wait to see what I can do with that!

Another cool thing that I ordered with those point was a Wifi enabled SD card that is capable of transmitting the photos directly to my computer using a wifi connection. It also has a 4gb internal storage capacity.

What’s sickening about this all is that CNN and other news agencies had huge stories about his death out only minutes after the announcement was made by Apple that Steve Jobs passed. WTF? This means that CNN had a long eulogy pre-written, and they were just waiting for him to die in order to be the first to have it out. Sick is the world we live in today.

I’ve lost a hero.

Elusive is my vision yet simple are my needs. I need to get away. I need a major change. I need to move forward without looking back. I’ve done it before. I know I can do it again and as many times as I have to.

Yes, at this time the Nintendo Game Boy did exist, and why my parents didn’t get me one until much later its not exactly clear, but it probably had something to do with my inherent tendency to destroy everything I touch. And with all the games and bulkiness of the Game Boy, I was sure to be rid of it quickly. Either way, waiting for me back home were the Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, and the original Nintendo Entertainment System.

Super Nintendo was definitely my favorite. The graphics were a little cleaner than the Sega, from what I remember. My mastery of NBA Jam TE, Street Fighter 2 Turbo, and Maximum Carnage consumed my childhood, and I don’t regret it for a moment. I was the king of the console from what I remember. If you remember otherwise, let me know. Actually, don’t. You’ll shatter my soul.

After the SNES, I didn’t actually own another console until the XBox, and meanwhile I was all about computer games like Doom, Duke Nukem 3D, Age of Empires, Diablo, Civilization 2, and Alpha Centauri. The XBox came out when I was a freshman in High School, followed by the XBox 360 when I was a freshman in college, and now I’ve got both, along with the PS3 and the Wii. I’m a die hard fan of the 360 tho, and the others have just turned to into my Blu-Ray player and Netflix machine.

So I tried it, and it worked! I kept my shades on my flight from IAH to LAX and no one bothered me at all. So to test the theory even further, I took my sunglasses off, turned, and locked about a second of eye contact with my neighbor. Lo and behold, not even 5 seconds after that, he asked me to get up to go use the lavatory. Coincidence? I think I’m just gonna keep my shades on.