the final swan song

I have some Apple Mac Computers.
My old iBook G3 from 2002 (presently only used as a DVD reader on my TV at the cottage), my Imac 1.8 GHz Power PC G5 (not in daily use), my MacBook Pro Core 2 Duo 15" and (my wife´s) MacBook Pro 13" unibody.
Up till last week Mac OS X (Leopard) has been the operating system for all these units. Although we started on the oldest with 10.2 the Jaguar, then 10.4 Tiger before 10.5 Leopard, the compatibility downwards has always given us the same operating system to relate to.

On Friday I upgraded to the latest MAC OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard on my Intel Machines (the Pros).In his article in in SlashGear Michael Galtenberg writes:

I’ve been testing Snow Leopard on a variety of machines over the last few weeks, and so far I’m impressed. Apple has evolved the OS in ways that change core infrastructure while preserving and refining the experience that has differentiated the platform over the years. The result is an elegant, modern OS with some new features that help it retain the status of best of breed in personal computing.

But he also states:

Snow Leopard is a full 64-bit OS and has the caveat that it works with Intel Macs only. This is the OS release that spells the final swan song for Power PC. Not a surprise and let’s face it, if you’re not on an Intel Mac, it’s time to move on.

The Swan song has also reference to Socrates and his last words before being put to death in 399 BC: "You think I cannot see as far ahead as a swan. You know that when swans feel the approach of death they sing, and they sing sweeter and louder on the last days of their lives because they are going back to that God whom they serve." (Plato)

I am not yet ready to let my "old" Macs go back to their god, and will try to find alternative use for the iMac. My 50GB space can be filled up with lots of music, films (from iTunes) and photos and play a slave role in my wireless computing home.
The end of my iMac with Leopard is not yet written, but we are moving on.

Painting Summer and Memories

Painting or other forms of performing art needs practice, practice and even more training by doing. Of course is it important to get some understanding of basic principles, but it is only by doing quality can improve and develop.
Competence = (Knowledge + Skills) x Attitude.

Helene has understood that. She knows by being told (and probably by seeing) that the Rainbow consists of Red (rød), Orange (oransje), Yellow (gul), Green (grøn), Blue (blå), Indigo (indigo) and Violet (fiolett). ROGGBIF we say in Norwegian and help ourself (and children) to remember the sequence. What they do in English speaking countries, I don´t know. They even drop the Indigo. The understanding of colors in nature where the sky is grey or pink (not always blue) and that the sun is necessary for the rainbow to let us see the Visible Spectrum, has already been part of Helene´s competence. The understanding of not mixing colors through used and "dirty" brushes became a quick-fix through making, and even easier when granddad has many of these tools.

Mixing colors (Magenta + white = Pink, and Black + white = Grey) and develop shades through the same process became new knowledge, and developing skill by doing. When finishing her work, it gave a wonderful satisfying return and attitude in her mind. "I have done this Painting - Painting is fun".

The summer holiday for our family living in Wales are soon over. Helene will return to her school, Henrik to his playgroup and the parents back to normal life in the Academic Society.

Thanks for the time spent on "Mormor" and "Bestefar". Hope to se you soon. Take care.

Leading up to 090909

Thursday, August 18 I posted that "the (Apple) event held in San Francisco–most likely at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, where it has occurred in years past, will not involve any discussion whatsoever of the tablet Apple".
However, do we have any other Dreams come true on this magic date?

On August 18 2009 TechCrunch writes

The Beatles are definitely releasing their music in video game form for a new Rock Band game. That’s a first for them, branching out of traditional music distribution. This game is launching on 9/9/09, which happens to be the same day as the rumored next Apple event.

and previously on Cnet March 5 2009

The date (090909) is awfully cute, considering the Beatles' formally self-titled "White Album" contains that song called "Revolution 9," which consists largely of a repetition of the phrase "number nine, number nine, number nine." Conspiracy theorists say that if you play it backward it sounds like "turn me on, dead man" and is hence one of the clues that adds up to reveal that Paul McCartney died and was replaced by a lookalike early in the band's career.

It all started in November 15 2007 when Sir Paul told:

digital distribution of the Beatles back catalog is happening in 2008, and that the legal hurdles were already mostly cleared.

In Cnet´s News Blog on March 9 2008 we could read :"McCartney has given his approval to make The Beatles' song catalog available on Apple's iTunes in the coming months",

and on April 7 2009 we got the Breaking News from EMI

the release of the original Beatles catalogue, which has been digitally re-mastered for the first time, for worldwide CD release on Wednesday, September 9, 2009 (9-9-09), the same date as the release of the widely anticipated “The Beatles: Rock Band” video game. Each of the CDs is packaged with replicated original UK album art, including expanded booklets containing original and newly written liner notes and rare photos. For a limited period, each CD will also be embedded with a brief documentary film about the album. On the same date, two new Beatles boxed CD collections will also be released,

and yesterday Amazon.com clarifies availability of box sets.

We are ready to listen to Steve Jobs keynote announcing The Beatles on iTune.
I am joining the Countdown 11 days ahead. The ipod / iPhone and "iTablet" format is obviously.

.... but mostly introducing Hazel Dooney

I am still working with Colors and Canvas by using Acrylic and Water. The result of today´s process gave this painting which I chose to call "Farm Houses".

However, amateur paintings (my hobby) is nothing compared to my newly discovery of Hazel Dooney.

Her artworks are spectacular, very intriguing and, if my recommendation counts: for every visitor on my blog: a MUST to see.
According to the Australian Financial Review, she "walks the razor's edge between respect and celebrity in today's art-world" (September, 2006).

She says that her blog is about:"What I Think About When I Am Not Making Art", and that recipe should many of the persons calling themselves ."Photo-bloggers" bring into their heart and express through their posts. Her statement (sub-header to the Self vs Self blog) can I copy and hopefully some of you regularly visiting my blog see both the process and the final results.
I "steal" one of Hazels painting to give you an example of her art.
Click on her name if you want to see more of Hazel Dooneys works

F = Fruit Cake - Budget Prize

The Apple and Plum season is here and in addition to eating organic Fruit directly from the trees, Fruit Cakes are made for dessert and light meals. Many versions of Apple cakes can be found in recipe books. Every Chef has his or her own speciality. We have ours.Based upon the small budgets in the Norwegian school system,
(next year with the present left-wing government, schools have no money to buy ingredients and bake cakes - children have to draw them)

here is our budget Apple Cake recipe:

75 gr margarin
1 dl sugar
---- to be stirred white
3 dl flour
1 ts vanilla sugar
1 dl milk
1 egg
1 ts baking powder
---- to be stirred into the cream

---- put it into a lubricated cake tin
add apple pieces , cinnamon ( and sugar)
---- Bake at 200 C for 30 - 40 min

To be served with vanilla sauce and / or Ice cream
Yummy, Yummy, and there are loads of Apples in the garden
For the home of ABC Wednesday, go to Mrs Nesbitt's Place.

Waiting for the reds and yellows

I have many times earlier posted some of the photos my friend Asbjørn sends to me after his sunday tracking in the mountains close to his home.
Today´s photo is taken to the south east off Rikshemdalen in Sykkylven District
The beauty is there and still we wait for the color to explode.

Walking in the mountains are a typical summer /early autumns activity in Norway. My sister who always have a week of her summer vacations in the mountain has extended her tracking to areas in other parts of the world with her latest summit Machu Piccu last Easter.

I will come back to our next tour to the mountains this year within three weeks if the weather conditions give us access outside the living facilities at Norefjell. For now you will find some of our tracking examples HERE

However if you want to learn more of the area "Sunnmør-alps" it is a start to click on and look at the map showing where the first photo of this post is taken.

Family weekend

This weekend the family (here represented by Helene and Maja) has been together for lunch both Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday we had a nice time at Aker Brygge with Danish Breakfast, Moules Frites, Fresh Shrimps, Sorgenfri Chicken Salad and Wiener-sausages for the children accompanied with suitable drinks.On Sunday we gathered at Turid´s home and received the usual hospitality from the lunch-party hostess.
Thanks Turid!

The Door to Assume vivid / astro focus

On Thursday David in Australia presented an open mouth as his contribution to his "The door" meme.
I Promise To Tell The Tooth, The Whole Tooth - And Nuthin' But The Tooth
was his heading for the post. Today I copy his promise.
An exhibition at the National Gallery here in Oslo called Assume vivid or Astro focus, is open at "Tullinsløkka" until September 13th. I think the door to the installations inside, with the teeth where the children played is almost identical to David´s truth.
Inside I cannot copy almost anything because the process of entering and being there must be the artist´s intention. However a few photo shots are presented.
Do not hesitate to make your own decision of what you see.
T became dizzy and I left without any real need to return.
For earlier posts in this series, check out The Doors Archive. and find others The Doors on the web.

In London with Ruth Rendell and Google Map

In the last days I have been in London.
In the area within and around Regent´s Park together with Baroness Rendell of Babergh, CBE, (born 17 February 1930) and Google Earth / Google Map.However, my trip to London has not been performed through physical transit, and have been almost free of costs.
Ruth Rendell´s novel from 1996, The Keys to the Street (Nøglerne til Gaden, in Danish) was bought at a secondhand book market in Copenhagen some weeks ago, and the Google Earth software is of course part of my Macbook Pro and iPhone which you can download free.
The novel takes place in and around the fashionable Regent´s Park with the inner and outer circle, bridges and playgrounds for dogs. We stay in the neighborhood of London Central Mosque, London Business School, Baker Street, and Madame Tussauds to the south-west and the area around Albany Street with townhouses like those in Park Village West to the north-east.In this part of London (Westminster NW1), we meet John Dominic Cahill, Victor Clancy, David George Kneller in addition to Mary Jago, Carl and Leo Nash, Roman Ashton, Harvey Owen Bennet, Mr. Barker-Pryce, the Blackburn-Norris´and many other figures.

We have to be interested in the odd persons connected to the ares´s streets and shadow-sides. The homeless, beggars, drug dealers and fallen out, play a central role and in contrast to the posh people living almost next door. We learn about Bone Marrow Transplantation , and weird development of relations between donor and receiver, but mostly we learn about the passages, bridges and streets in this area, making it impossible not to have the online map by my side when reading.
When reading, or at least after finishing, I am sure you will want to return to previous pages for checking out details and parts that you read but did not see the fully consequences of.

The book is (maybe) a criminal novel, or a travel book, but the right classification may better be a Psychological Thriller
If you are going to London this autumn, read the novel, bring your street map and visit the the real Regent´s Park area at day time. During the night it may be dangerous.

I will most probably search for more literature by Ruth Rendell.

Not 090909 but every positive comments to my gardening Appreciated!

What was expected to happen on 090909?

Launching-time of the Mac iTablet has for some time now been under debate in a variety of Computer-sites. Some sources have meant that the uniqueness of the number 090909 or September 9. 2009 would be the right PR-time for this spectacular 9+ inches Iphone/Ipod/iTablet, but according to some of the most reputable rumor sites, Apple Inc.(AAPL) sources insist the event held in San Francisco–most likely at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, where it has occurred in years past, will not involve any discussion whatsoever of the tablet Apple is reportedly developing.

Too bad. It’s looking more and more like we’ll have to wait until 2010 for that. However:

“According to reliable information, Apple will not follow the current market trend (by producing netbooks with screens about 10.2 or 10.1 inches in diagonal length.) Instead, Apple will produce screens with about 9.7 inches in diagonal length. Touch screen will be installed. Wintek will be the main manufacturer of the touch screen.”

So, Instead of blogging about these new interesting possibilities to a prize of ab. 5000 nok, I and my wife have been working in our garden the whole day, preparing for next raspberry season.Now the old bushes carrying this year delicious red raspberries (about 20kg), have been removed. The plant´s new shoots are put in order after thinning, and tied up so the snow and frost will not break and destroy the bushes during wintertime.

It is hard to be a farmer some time of the year. The work took about 6 hours (x2) including the weekly cutting and raking of the grass at the lawn. I do not believe I need to tell you that a cold beer tasted delicious after that.And when having published this post I will start the process of making dinner as described in July.

Alexander Rybak and the Belarusian Flag

Аляксандр Рыбак represented Norway in the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest in Moscow, Russia, and became the winner of the contest with 387 points (the highest tally any country has achieved in the history of Eurovision)

He was born May 13 in Minsk, which at the time was in the Belarusian SSR in the Soviet Union.

When he was 4 years old, he and his family moved to Norway. At the age of five, Rybak began to play the piano. His parents are Natallia Valiantsinauna Rybak, a classical pianist, and Igor Aliaksandravich Rybak, a well-known classical violinist who performs alongside Pinchas Zukerman.
I start this post with Alyaksandr because my latest new visitor represents the Belarusian national Flag from June 7 1995.

The national flag is a rectangular cloth consisting of two longitudinal stripes: red upper stripe and green lower stripe that are two-thirds and one-third of the flag width respectively. A vertical red-on-white Belarusian decorative pattern, which occupies one-ninth of the flag's length, is placed against the flagstaff.

The flag does not differ significantly from the flag of the Byelorussian SSR, other than the removal of the hammer and sickle and the red star, and the reversal of red and white in the hoist pattern.
The red color of the flag signifies the past history of Belarus, as the color used by the Belarusian forces at the Battle of Grunwald, and of the Red Army when they were fighting Nazi Germany during World War II. Green stands for aspirations about the future, and also represents the many forests located in the country.

The Country´s name "Belarus" derives from the term White Rus, which first appeared in German and Latin medieval literature. The Latin term for the area was Alba Ruthenia. Historically, the country was referred to in English as White Ruthenia. It is also claimed by some people that describes the area of Eastern Europe populated by Slavic people or the states that occupied the area. The first known use of White Russia to refer to Belarus was in the late-16th century by Englishman Sir Jerome Horsey. During the 17th century, Russian tsars used White Rus', asserting that they were trying to recapture their heritage from the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.

Camera Critters, Today Flowers and Oslo Jazz Festival

Urban Saturday Life in Oslo gives a variety of experiences. First of all I can get motives for the Camera Critter meme.These animals may not be called Critters if we follow the dictionary for living creature, but The Elephant and the Arabian camel (Dromedary), guarding the entrance or the Mela Festival at the City Hall Square in Oslo, are for me an intriguing example of how our "new countrymen´s" creativity shows their own culture (south east Asian) to us.

Check out the rules at Camera Critters or go to Misty Dawn.

However, another meme worth following during the weekend, are the Today's Flowers.

The flower beds at "the King´s Terrace" will represent me in this meme this weekend.
Urban life in Oslo give free access to another high promoted happening in Oslo these days, is the Oslo Jazz Festival. The Saturday Parade will take place at 1 pm together with Kampen Janitsjar.
This photo from the restaurant Sara close to the Parliament shows Old Sandvika Big Band in action. The band is a complete and hard swinging big band mainly made up of former members of the well-known Norwegian big band Sandvika Storband. The band was re-established in 1999 and has been active ever since.
Either here at Sara or later in Hanibal´s Hybel at Aker Brygge my wife can relax with a glass of white wine, and be happy in the sunshine. The summer has not yet left us or the indian summer is here to stay.

Terje Fagermo once more

Sometimes I want to pursue a previous subject in my blog; the Norwegian painter Terje Fagermo. He is as you may have seen through many of my posts, one of my greatest favorites among the living artists in Norway. His works are still reasonable prized, and in many way of a quality that should vouch for top galleries and highest rating among contemporary painters.

The photo above is from his studio in Ålesund.

On this Sky Watch Friday I will present some of his oil on canvas paintings just to let you understand that modern art in Norway is much more than those famous names you can find in catalogues and museums. Terje Fagermo´s painting are well represented in companies and private collections both in his own country and abroad.

Wake up World, it is time to get your T.F.

For other participants in Dot’s concept, go to Sky Watch HQ.

Will return after the Break

While my rosebuds strive to come out in full blossom, I need to take a break from photo hunting and farming activities. I therefore use some time to surf the net without any particular purpose. When surfing the net yesterday, I discovered some interesting information well worth submitting to other blogfriends. The next photo is not potatoes.
The Animation of Armageddon as an artist made, based on NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope findings, give evidence that a high-speed collision of this sort occurred a few thousand years ago around a young star, called HD 172555, still in the early stages of planet formation. The star is about 100 light-years from Earth.
Take a break from your own blogging activity and see this artist's concept which shows a celestial body about the size of our moon slamming at great speed into a body the size of Mercury. The Press release from NASA can be found here

If finding this video frightening, do not hesitate to return to my roses.
Tomorrow it is Sky Watch Friday so look up. May be you too can discover something exciting out there.