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JimmyC
Greetings from Monaco. This is a beautiful country. Tiny, clean and royal. Everybody looks like a movie star (maybe they are) yachts the size of cruise ships, cars as fast as jets with names like ferrari, lambrogini, bently, porshe, and everything else is a benz or fiat. We are staying on my company’s dime so we are at the 5 star Metropole. Saw the palace, gardens, went to Eze, San Remo, ate many very expensive meals.even saw the chef here make one. Today we will walk around and see some more sights and go shopping. (Posted via my BlackBerry)
We spent the day at the Botanical Gardens
Gotta love a warm summer afternoon and wonderful kids!
Update - to my post: 2008 Hike - in Google Maps @ i-rant
We did go out this week and it was fantastic!
This is the view from the top of Rocky Bald
I have more pictures in my Web Gallery. Movie to come…. yes - I lugged my HD Vid Cam.
Shout out to Tim, our new friend from Wisconsin!
Google Maps - these are the waypoints on our hike in June, 2008:
This year we are hiking from Rock Gap to the NOC - Nantahala Outdoor Center - US 19 and the River in Wesser, NC.
We will arrive Wednesday June 11 around 9:00AM and park our car at the Store and then get shuttled to Rock Gap. From Rock Gap - here is the breakdown:
OR - Alternate Route:
NOC: Since 1972, NOC has shared the outdoors with millions of guests on white water river rafting trips, with all varieties of kayak and canoe instruction, on mountain bikes and around the world with our adventure travel trips. Located in western North Carolina near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, NOC is within easy driving distance of Atlanta, Charlotte and Knoxville. Our world-class staff leads whitewater (some say white water!) rafting trips on nine of the East’s best rivers, including the Chattooga, Cheoah, French Broad, Nantahala, Nolichucky, Ocoee, Gauley, New and Pigeon. Learn to whitewater paddle from the pros in our renowned canoe and kayak Paddling School. We also offer group programs, ropes courses, flat water kayaking, flyfishing and hiking.
This is a terrific laundry list of stuff to take/have for Family Camping. A bit more then I use but a good place to start
For those of you who love photography and SLR’s - here is a good option. Leica has a fantastic camera that acts like an SLR with removable lenses. The Leica V-Lux 1 is an amazing camera that has a tremendous 12x zoom (equivalent to 35mm to 420mm on a 35mm film camera). What is more you can shoot video which my wonderful D200 cannot. Its a great compromise for those who want SLR quality but not the hassle of changing lenses and the limitations of shooting video. Don’t get me wrong - it won’t do what my D200 will do but it is a great camera. http://en.leica-camera.com/photography/compact_cameras/v-lux_1/
But wait, there is more. Don’t spend the money on a Leica branded camera. Get the Exact same camera from Panasonic - with the Leica lens. The Panasonic’s Lumix DMC-FZ50 is the same camera for half the price (well, maybe not half but hundreds less Yes - Leica purists will say its not the same due to quality control but the Panasonic is an amazing camera. My Mom and Pop got one and took it on a Safari in Africa - amazing shots. More at http://panasonic.co.jp/pavc/global/lumix/fz50/index.html
Daniel is computer animation.  Took a class this summer in camp. He also wants to use his Lego Bionicles to do it.  I told him about stop motion and his friend has done it with a small camera.  I found JoJo’s website and this might do the trick for him.   Photojojo » How to Make Stop-Motion Video Shorts with Your Digital CameraIt gets better - with my nikon and my new mac-pro this will be a breeze.  I have Final Cut Express and it has Blue and Green screen filters built in.  As described on Final Cut Pro QuickTips via Digital Media Online this is very possible to do. We can do the stop motion as JoJo suggests but on a green screen and have it on any background we like.  Here is a cool site from a DIY site that describes a low-budget way to make backdrops. And another Down and Dirty Greenscreen. Researching paint color to just paint a wall revealed you just want to get as close to true green or blue (like on the test pattern on the TV).Â
This Garden Is Illegal - A Garden Blog
is a great resource for information on gardening and related activities. As the writer states, gardening is an obsession; which is pretty much the way I’ve been running lately.
