Wedding photo slideshow

The slideshow of our wedding videos is still on our photographer's (Mike Larson Photography) website... yay!!

http://www.mikelarson.com/slideshows/Tildenpark/

iMac G5 17 inch with iSight

A couple of weeks ago, a vertical purple line appeared about one-third from the right side of the screen on my iMac. Two days later, a vertical yellow line appeared about half an inch from the right side of my screen. I read some forums about the vertical lines, but didn't find any answers. Most of the postings on the forums just said that once you get one, lots more will follow. Here is an image of a similar line in the iMac screen that I found.

I ended up making an appointment with the genius bar at the Apple store in South Coast Plaza. They replaced my LCD screen for free :) I purchased my iMac late in 2005 and the appearance of vertical lines on the screen were covered under some speacial manufacturing problem replacement program. If you go in and they tell you it isn't covered, tell them that it may have gotten cut off of the pdf. I think someone named Dane was helping me and found the missing model number. Apple had my computer for about a week, but at least my screen is bright and new!

How to change oil for Nissan Pathfinder

1. Partially remove plastic splash under front of car. Remove the first 5 bolts on the passenger side of car. I used to take the whole thing off, but I’ve gotten lazy, since I can just peel it back and access the oil filter.

2. Have container to catch oil ready.

3. Unscrew bolt a little at oil tank located approximately under passenger side of dash.

4. Remove oil cap under hood. Unscrew bolt at oil tank completely and drain oil tank.

5. Pull back plastic splash and locate the oil filter, slide oil catcher under oil filter to catch any oil still in the filter and unscrew the old oil filter. It is slightly to the passenger side pointing forward and down.
6. Fill new oil filter with new oil, rub oil around rubber washer and screw on new filter.

7. Screw bolt back onto oil tank.
8. Add 5 1/8 quarts oil.
9. Screw oil cap back on and check oil level with dipstick.
10. Screw in bolts for plastic splash.

Elmore Toyota

Daniel and I recently bought a used 2002 Toyota Prius for commuting. We needed to get the inverter coolant changed and went to Elmore Toyota. Daniel called ahead and got a quote of $129. When I brought the car in, I met with David Fleischman, one of the assistant service managers. I asked if they could do a free diagnostic check. He said that they do have a free brief diagnostic check. They would have to charge for a more thorough one. As I was checking in, David checked the maintenance history of the car for me without me having to even ask.

I also mentioned that the ventilation was making a strange sound like the sound a Jetson's car would make and he said that they would check it out. The coolant change took about an hour and they really tried to blow out whatever was making the noise in the ventilation for another 45 minutes, but said that they would have to take it apart to get at the actual fan to get whatever was stuck out.

The change and attempted blowing out the ventilation ended up costing $119 plus tax. David applied a coupon for us. While I was waiting for the car to be washed, I saw David valet a car from the pick up lot for a waiting customer because the regular valet person was taking a car to be washed.

Overall, my experience with Elmore Toyota was very good. They made the effort to perform up to their motto. They don't try to be the biggest, just the best.

Elmore Toyota contact info ask for David:
15300 Beach Blvd.Westminster, CA 92683
Tele: 800-643-2999
Fax: 714-894-3360

Inca Trail Guide Francis Casapino

Daniel and I went to Peru to hike the Inca Trail and to see Machu Picchu in May. We booked our trip through REI Adventures and the guide (from Trek Peru), Francis Casapino was great! He was knowledgeable about both the physical nature of our trek and the cultural history of Peruvians making our vacation fun and informative. There is no better guide. None.

On our third day, we met Francis. During our first meeting, while sipping on coca tea, he asked us how we were acclimating and how we would feel about a mini hike around Sacsaywaman and down an Inca Trail through the Cusco. Since the group was feeling pretty good, he advised that we continue to minimize alcohol consumption and eating heavy foods until after our hike to Machu Picchu to avoid stomach problems. His advice was very effective; all of us enjoyed a smooth hike through the Andes to Machu Picchu.

On our fourth day, Francis took us to a local market, on an off-road ride through the countryside and through a small town called Maras on our way to the salt pans. In Maras, Francis told us that the plastic bags on a stick outside some homes meant that the household has prepared corn beer and is available for purchase. He spoke to the woman of the house, Juana, and we were able to take a rare tour of their courtyard home.

The grandmother was eager to show off her cow and goats grazing in the tiny courtyard. The grandfather waved me into their kitchen that had guinea pigs scuttling around on the dirt floor. This was an extremely unexpected treat to see a functioning Peruvian Andes home.

On the fifth day, we began our 4 day hike on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. Francis offered anthropological insights about Inca life based on the landscape we were walking through. He led us off the main trail so that we could visit additional ruins. We were free to explore the trail on our own and at our own paces while Francis ran up and down the passes to let the teams ahead know which fork to take and down to the last teams to make sure they were doing ok.

It was sad to leave Francis. He was entertaining, knowledgable and exciting and I'm sure, made the trip 500 times better than it would have been with any other guide.

Target's Bullseye in Machu Picchu Peru

I brought my little Bullseye dog with me to Machu Picchu. Here is the view of Machu Picchu from the top of Wayna Picchu.

We rushed to the line at the bottom of Wayna Picchu at 5:30 am in the morning for tickets. They only let the first 200 people onto the mountain. We were numbers 152 and 153. We waited until about 8:00 am before they let us start climbing. I was a little apprehensive about the climb because we had been climbing for the past four days and this was the most vertical climb of the whole trip. It was completely worth the 1,000 ft ascent!!

We climbed up the sunny side of the peak in the photo below. It's hard to believe that the Incas put winding stairs all the way up!

The Great Park Orange Balloon Ride

To celebrate our anniversary, Daniel and I wanted to do something other than just go out to eat. We decided to go to the Great Park in Irvine to ride the GIANT ORANGE BALLOON!!! I drive by the balloon every day on the 405 and have been wanting to visit it because it reminds me of the book James and the Giant Peach.

The balloon is 72 feet in diameter and filled with 5,500 cubic feet of helium. The ride is free for now and open to the public on a first come first serve basis.

You can go to the park, get a ticket, sign a waiver and head over to the balloon ride. From Orange County Airport, take the 405 South, exit Sand Canyon and make a left. Head east on Sand Canyon and just after you drive under the 5 freeway, make a right on Marina Way and follow the signs to the Great Park.

There are tents under which to wait near the ride and a pilot will collect your ticket. It was already 84 degrees when we got there today so the tents were a nice relief from the heat. They let 8 people on per trip today. The trips last about 10-15 minutes and depend on wind conditions. We went around 10 a.m. which, according to the website, is during the best times for wind conditions.

The balloon is tethered to the ground by a cable that is controlled by a winch.

The pilot said that we rose about 500 feet in the air to see a 360 degree view of Irvine.

When the wind picked up, the cable holding the balloon to the ground was pulled to an angle. The wind had picked up so much that the group after us had to wait awhile. The balloon was still on the ground when we exited the park.

Where's north? There's north.

Earth from above Orange County.

negotiating - nikon 50mm f/1.4G auto focus

I have always loved to take photos. Recently, my best friend had a baby and I used her camera and protrait lens to take photos of her baby and I fell in love love love with the portrait lens. She has a Canon digital SLR and bought the Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II Camera Lens for around $80. It is a great little lens for getting the bokeh effect that makes babies and kids look so cute. Here's a sample photo of the Canon lens (not full resolution).


I have a Nikon D40X and unfortunately, a lens as affordable as the Canon lens was not available, so took a look at the handful of Nikon friendly portrait lenses out there.

1. Nikon 50mm f/1.8D AF - not enough bokeh for me, but affordable about $135

2. Nikon 50mm f/1.4D - manual focus only for Nikon D40X, can autofocus for higher end Nikons about $339

3. Nikon 50mm f/1.4G - autofocus for Nikon D40X, but about $130 more than the 1.4D. Hmmm... am I willing to give up autofocus for $130?

4. Sigma 50mm f/1.4 EX DG HSM - I read great reviews about this lens, but it's 1.1lbs! (vs 9.9 ounce Nikon f/1.4G and 8 ounce f/1.4D) The online price was about the same as the Nikon f/1.4G

5. Nikon 50mm f/1.2 Nikkor AI-S Manual Focus - way out of my price range at $614

I decided that the Nikon 50mm f/1.4D was what I was looking for and in my price range. The only disadvantage was that it does not autofocus with my Nikon D40X. I wanted the lens asap because my other friend just had a baby and I had to get those early shots before she started growing so I called all of the local camera and electronics stores to ask if they had the lens in stock. I also wanted to avoid the 1% increase in sales tax here in California. Unfortunately, they all said that they would have to special order it for me. One store said that they had the Nikon 50mm f/1.4G lens in stock. I decided to go to the store to take a look. This lens is the newer version of the f/1.4D lens.

I tried the lens at the store and the autofocus feature was super nice. I also tried an f/1.4D lens that was on hold for for someone... also super nice. The store was offering the 1.4G lens at $499 online. The 1.4D was $339. Both lenses had the nice blurry background effect that I like and both were about the same weight (photographing babies takes a lot of patience... meaning a lot of time holding the camera).

I decided to see what the store could offer me in the form of a discount on the 1.4G. I did my research on prices of the f/1.4 lenses before I went to the store and had the lowest prices available online in mind. I had already decided that if I would be willing to pay $450 all in for the f/1.4G lens and if I couldn't get the f/1.4G, I would be happy ordering the f/1.4D lens without the autofocus for $300.

At first, the salesman threw out $439 for the f/1.4G and kept emphasizing that this price was $60 off the online price. This WAS cheaper than the lowest online price I found of $485 new, $469 used and $455 on ebay, but it was still over $110 more than the cheapest f/1.4D lens I found online. I always get really flushed when I negotiate, but I do it because I am always more satisfied with whatever I end up getting when I know that I have at least tried to negotiate. FYI - offering to pay cash did not make a difference probably because the store is a local chain. At this point, I reminded myself that it was the end of the month and if these guys work on commission, he might be willing to go even lower. The $439 also didn't get me below the $450 all in that I had already decided that I was willing to pay for the f/1.4G.

I held out a little longer and the salesman went to the computer and punched a few numbers and came up with $419 plus tax. On the outside I thanked him and said ok, I can do $419 (with tax, it came out to $452.50). On the inside, I was so excited!!! I basically paid $90 more for the autofocus feature and to get it right away, no shipping, no extra California sales tax and pretty close to what I decided I would pay.

I have tried out the lens and it is just wonderful. My friend's new little spork baby looks so sweet in the photos.

which spork?

I am trying to pick a spork pattern for my etsy shop, thepanthatcan.etsy.com. These were inspired by my friend (whose last name means spoon in Tagalog) who just gave birth to a baby spork. Please make a comment on your favorite. Thanks!

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china eastern airlines review

Our China Eastern Airlines flights were surprisingly comfortable. The flights cost $815 each through a travel agent. We were supposed to fly out on a Wednesday, but our flight was cancelled and we had to fly out on Tuesday instead. We're guessing that there weren't enough passengers on the Wednesday flight.

We arrived at LAX around 10:45 am and for the 1:30 p.m. flight from LAX on a Tuesday and arrived in Shanghai at around 6:30 p.m. Wednesday evening Shanghai time. The flight was nonstop from LAX to Shanghai. Each seat had a power outlet (red dot under the white headrest cover) and a cup holder that could hold a cup without folding down the entire tray table. The power outlet let me keep my laptop on during the whole flight for entertainment.
On the flight, we received two meals and one snack. For lunch we were given a choice of beef noodle or chicken and rice. I chose beef noodle.
For our snack, we got two cha shu baos (bbq pork buns).
For the second meal, we got a choice of beef and rice or veggies and rice. Beef and rice seen below.
We sat right in front of the lavatories. While this was convenient, we smelled someone smoking in the lavatory a few times during the flight.

When flying from Shanghai back to LAX, we were not allowed to bring carry-on luggage that weighed more than 10kg each, so we ended up checking one roller bag. The bag made it back to LAX so all was good.

Our return flight left a little late at 3:30 p.m. instead of 2:50 p.m. from Shanghai on Sunday and arrived at LAX at around noon on Sunday. Gaining a few hours was pretty cool. We were served beef noodles or fish and rice for dinner, another cha shu bao for a snack and for breakfast, we had a choice of an omelet or beef and rice.

About an hour before we landed, there was a stretching exercise video played on the center drop down video screens.
The plane had two seats on the left, three or four in the middle and two on the right. Daniel and I sat in two seats on the right for both flights. A couple of friends of ours asked for an entire middle row on the way back to LAX and got it because the flight was not very full. We did not think of that when we were checking in. Darn! But overall, it was a good flight and the convenience of flying nonstop was great!