Let's Make Some Art, Dammit

November 29, 2014. A day of running around, catching up on emails, and going to see the first part of a Hunger Games movie. I saw this branch in our front yard on the way home and thought it deserved its own photo. from Flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/stephen_downes/15287549464

November 28, 2014. Winter has arfrived in Moncton, early again this year, with a good deposit of heavy wet snow (look at our poor spruce tree struggling under the weight). I had to shovel the car out from under this at 1:00 a.m. this morning after getting home from Boucherville. Another photo from my new Galaxy Note - I'm really pleased with the camera in this device. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1y15MTK

November 27, 2014. Di Jiang demonstrates the technique, then I spent some time practising my skills as a neurosurgeon using this device. This is at the NRC medical devices lab in Boucherville, Quebec. The glasses give me a 3D view, the tools are real, and when I touch the surface of the brain (in my case, to remove a tumour) I can feel the resistance of the flesh. It turns out, I'm a pretty good brain surgeon. And this type of application is a pretty good addition to our LPSS program. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1pu0a2r

November 26, 2014. Another day at NRC in Ottawa, then dropped some colleagues off at the NRC building at the Ottawa airport - one of our buildings includes this large wind tunnel at the airport - even though the large NRC-CNRC logo has been removed (or painted over), it's still an NRC property. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1vPOxFe

November 25, 2014. Another very busy day in Ottawa with no time for photos except at the very end of the day, when I was able to take this nice snap of my room at the Albert at Bay Hotel in Ottawa. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1vPOvxa

November 24, 2014. Back in Ottawa. Had a very nice albeit expensive dinner at the Courtyard Restaurant at the BywardMarket on George Street. I'm in the city for TechX, an internal NRC event to share information about programs. This was taken with my new Samsung Galaxy Note 4. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1vJEGAU

November 23, 2014. Basketball game this afternoon and it was not a good effort by the Miracles, with a predictable result. They don't look like they're in shape - they have nothing left in the second half - and they're pretty badly outcoached. Evening flight to Ottawa. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1rgkv79

November 22, 2014. Today was a mall day. I needed new luggage - the old suitcase has given up the ghost. Also a new coffee maker, because the old one stopped working in Yerevan. And some gloves because it's cold. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1xEQRyf

November 21, 2014. The theme this week in the Moncton Photography group is 'industrial' so I drove out to the cement plant on Gorge Road and snapped this shop - I think the dead grass and grim clouds in the background add to the industrial feel. Wwbsite migration is almost done and I think my short period of relative ease is almost over. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1r5vvEh

November 20, 2014. Today was an indoor day. I worked on my server migration, did some office work, caught up on email, and took this photo of books on the bookshelf I built a few years ago. I would feel guilty having a few slow days like this, but I know how busy it has been, and will be, so I'm just enjoying coasting for a bit. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1uFTptF

November 19, 2014. I got a longstanding piece of work completed, then spin, then to the Miracles game this evening. We lost in overtime, but it was good fun. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1HnRdNS

November 17, 2014. The rains came and melted the snow, leaving flattened leaves behind. Work day, nothing special. Spin class in the evening (new personal best time holding the plank). from Flickr http://ift.tt/1zBeZRx

November 18, 2014. The bad thing about this time of year is how early the darkness fall. Today it came with a blast of cold air. Pretty quiet day at the office today, mostly puttering, thinking about nbext year's budget, and starting my website migration. Feeling seasonal affective disorder already. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1Afovge

November 16, 2014. I spent the day cleaning - just like Lexi here! - and getting caught up on some work. At the last moment of the day (literally) I remembered to capture a photo for the day, this with my S3 phone (the camera is the weakest part of the phone, IMO). from Flickr http://ift.tt/1vi2HiW

November 15, 2014. Leatherworker Ashley Brown of Hammerthreads demonstrates her craft on a mostly unwatched stage at the Magic Hands craft show at the Casino this afternoon - I rerally like the masks she has been making this year. After the show we got me some spare workout pants, and then we took a trip to the hospital to repair Andrea's finger, which she caught in the car door. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1sUoiqh

November 14, 2014. First snow of the year. Sigh. Summer is over. Fall is over. And I have no extended visits to tropical regions planned. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1zq7ZqG

November 13, 2013. No bikes left at spin class today so I had to go to Costco instead. Woe is me. Nice night shot of the tire-change area though. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1pWV5jD

November 12, 2014. I won this last summer during the Highland Games . MAGMA stands for the Multicultural Association of the Greater Moncton Area and they gave me this and other prizes for naming each of something like a hundred flags they had on display (they were giving one prize for each correct answer but had to improvise with me). It has been my go-to water bottle since and has accompanied me through hundreds of kilometers of bike rides. When not cycling it sits in the front seat console of my car as I take it in for spin class. That's where it was when I took the car in for cleaning yesterday. I thought I'd find it in the trunk with everything else, but no - I eventually found it in the glove compartment. Whatever they do to clean the car, it involves something very hot - so hot that my MAGMA water bottle, made of thick durable plastic, now has a permanent tilt. I think it leaks around the lid, too. So I need a new water bottle. Meanwhile I'm going to take this on...

November 11, 2014. Another stay-at-home day nursing a post-travel cold. Hence the cat picture (where would photo-a-day be without them). This is Lexi, who lives her life in a perpetual state of wonder. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1pQquUT

November 10, 2014. The day started and ended at the Honda dealership today as I got the car serviced, put on winter tires, and got it cleaned. In between it was bach-to-back-to-back meetings. But we're getting stuff done, so it's good. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1xg6ptm

November 9, 2014. A fall day, a day mostly indoors, a day to take a quick trip to the store and watch a movie in the evening (Interstellar, which turned out to be so-so). from Flickr http://ift.tt/142q1Fe

November 8, 2014. Today was an indoor day to rest and relax after a long busy period. The cats love it when I'm home all day. One after another took his or her place in front of my keyboard. This is Bart on the living room carpet watching me closely as I work on the computer. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1pCwL6u

November 7, 2014. Back to the basketball game today. There are two things to note about this picture. First is the foul number 12 of Halifax, in the blue, has just committed, pulling Trayvon Lathan's arm down and in. We would score two on the foul shots. Second is the changed trajectory of the ball, which you can't really see because it is headed straight for the camera. I took the ball square in the nose getting this shot; I didn't even see it coming and now it's swollen and bruised. But hey, we won the game and I got a pretty nice photo for today. from Flickr http://ift.tt/10GwPq5

November 6, 2014. The wonderful team at Kasa in Armenia came out to give us a sendoff early in the morning at the airport. These were truly wonderful people to work with and I hope to be able to see them all again, as I became quite fond of them while I was in Yerevan. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1vW52u8

November 7, 2014. Back to the basketball game today. There are two things to note about this picture. First is the foul number 12 of Halifax, in the blue, has just committed, pulling Trayvon Lathan's arm down and in. We would score two on the foul shots. Second is the changed trajectory of the ball, which you can't really see because it is headed straight for the camera. I took the ball square in the nose getting this shot; I didn't even see it coming and now it's swollen and bruised. But hey, we won the game and I got a pretty nice photo for today. from Flickr http://ift.tt/10GwPq5

November 6, 2014. The wonderful team at Kasa in Armenia came out to give us a sendoff early in the morning at the airport. These were truly wonderful people to work with and I hope to be able to see them all again, as I became quite fond of them while I was in Yerevan. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1vW52u8

November 5, 2014. I did a workshop this morning, had another media interview at noon, and then we took a short drive up into the mountains to see Lake Sevan (and the city of Sevan). It was cold and snowy and we didn't stay outside long. We had a nice dinner with the Swiss ambassador in the evening (Swutzerland funds and supports the Kasa Foundation which brought me here to Armenia). from Flickr http://ift.tt/1zwFXMU

November 4, 2014. This is the Khor Virap monastery as seen etched against Mount Ararat in the background. After my return from Tbilisi I was too tired to go far, but this was about an hour from the city and made a nice afternoon trip. Truth be told, however, for the best photos, you want to see it in the morning. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1tdiOXk

Novemnber 3, 2014. I haad three minutes to decide, but it didn't take that long, so after my second talk I was whisked to the train station for a mad dash to Tbilisi, Georgia. It was overning, 10 1/2 hours each way, which gave me 12 hours to wander all around the city, which I did. It is a fascinating experience that gave me a great insight into the city and the country. Wore me right out though. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1se1UZv

November 2, 2014. From the lobby of the Tiumo Center, in Yerevan, where I gave my keynote this morning and a workshop in the afternoon. A non-stop day, as you can imagine. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1GlHd7m

November 1, 2014. Third day in Armenia. Today I went up a vaalley to the ancient monastery of Geghard , founded in the 4th century by Gregory the Illumator around a spring in a cave - I drank some water from that very spring. I also visted the restored Hellenic site of Garni and walked around Yerevan some more. Now my slides are done and I'm ready for my talk. from Flickr http://ift.tt/1sZqV9N