shady satin

ahhh, friday

2009-12-05T04:38:40Z

somewhere lost in tears
comforting the fallen soul
weary dreams remain

nachos at Tailgaters

The nachos were yummy!

I'm glad it's Friday night. :)

cold mornings

2009-12-04T04:18:47Z

sweep aside this veil
reveal reality's face
frail yet undaunted

It's been cold these past few mornings. For me, 30s & 40s is COLD. But I don't mind the brisk air. It's refreshing in its own way. ;)

hump day

2009-12-03T06:17:34Z

the darkness beckons
promising oblivion
just for the taking

Last week left side of my jaw was sore. I have no idea why. Now I hear an intermittant beating in my left ear. It's not constant, then it is. No pattern but it's starting to freakin' bug me. UGH!

My external hard drive is still refusing to work. I'm seriously trying to freak out but my websites are on it and I'll be SUPER FREAKED OUT if it never recovers. I shall be patient. Or something.

I'm thinking of writing a short Christmas themed romance. Don't ask me why. I don't know why.

I still love my Droid. It's a freakin' lovely phone. :) And it takes decent pictures. lol!

oh dear, december already

2009-12-02T04:11:54Z

bright and high above
the moon beams silver shadows
cooling the darkness

Where has the year gone? Here we are in December already. Goodness me!

I did NOT get to 50,000 words for National Novel Writing Month. :( I'm a little sad. I don't know if I just wasn't into it or if my story just totally sucked way early or I played too much Bejeweled Blitz. I only know that when I was writing, I was motoring through the words. Then I just tanked and couldn't get myself to write more. Ah well, maybe next year? Or maybe I should just freakin' write no matter what month it is! Yeah, that's it. lol!

Today was World AIDS Day and I wore red. I swear, I did not plan it that way. Hmmm.

monday it was

2009-12-01T05:41:36Z

are these broken dreams
cutting cold through falling tears
relentless and cruel

It wasn't such a bad day. I think I ate my last bit of turkey for awhile. lol

Can you see the moon?

Random shots during the workday

2009-12-01T02:19:51Z

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from valerie's posterous

ahhh, sunday night

2009-11-30T06:21:37Z

when the words have stopped
imagination is lost
vanished beyond reach

It's already Sunday night. I actually have to go to bed soon because it's back to the grind tomorrow. I think I could have had another day off. :)

a good day spent

2009-11-29T07:43:31Z

Wow, the wind is really gusting out there. Yowsa!

We went up to Sacramento to visit with family. I had a very nice time. I always love seeing my family. It's been awhile since we've seen a couple of my cousins, so it was great to hang out together.

There was food...

There was lots of catching up...

The babies were having fun...

All in all, a good way to spend a Saturday... :)

half these dreams are gone
stolen in the dead of night
burning in the dawn

Relaxing together

2009-11-28T07:49:32Z

Posted via email from valerie's posterous

middle of the long weekend

2009-11-28T03:45:43Z

I love this LONG weekend. One of the benefits of working for a school district has to be the days off, don't you think?

The Accidental Husband was a good movie. The hubby had to twist my arm to watch it, which is a shame on me because 1) I adore Jeffrey Dean Morgan and 2) I also adore Colin Firth. What the heck was I thinking by hedging on watching the movie? Shame on me! Also, it's a shame the movie didn't get a theatre release. I wouldn't have minded seeing it on the big screen. JDM was freakin' adorable in all kinds of ways. All my fellow JDM fans should definitely watch the movie. I apparently liked it so much that I had a dream about JDM. Neat! ;)

I have an external drive that has decided to stop working. I want to not stress about it but my music and photos are on it! Oh, and my websites!!! But like I said, I'm trying not to stress out about it. I can't do anything about it right now. UGH!

Oh, but I got the high score on Bejeweled Blitz! Nice.

turkey leftovers... mmmm

Leftovers rock! lol!

if I feel nothing
does that mean you are nothing
unworthy of thought

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-27T07:06:52Z

may this moment last
beyond memories and dreams
etched in forever

It was a good Thanksgiving for us. Lowkey and relaxing. :)

I am thankful for all the good things in my life. Even though times are a bit rough these days, I know that I am lucky to have a wonderful husband, a loving family, and great friends near and far. Thank you for letting me share a piece of my life with all of you and thank you for sharing a bit of yours with me...

We watched The Accidental Husband. Gosh, isn't that Jeffrey Dean Morgan wonderful? :)

here between these dreams

2009-11-26T08:43:20Z

here between these dreams
each breath a gift to savor
treasured with each beat

The Motorola Droid

2009-11-25T21:56:47Z

THE MOTOROLA DROID

I've had the phone over a week. I'm overdue with my review! LOL Here it is, unexpert and totally biased...

Bummers:

Can't send "big" files (videos) over 3G, only over wifi. Boo!

Yahoo mail set up a little tricky if account is not premium

Battery life is so-so but getting better (compared to a blackberry)

Market (aka App Store) is just okay

Woohoos:

Beautiful display

Nice quality photos

Use my own mp3s for ringtones

Low res vids send easily

User replaceable battery

Quick recharge of battery

Tough and sturdy (still works after being dropped)

User replaceable storage card

Physical keyboard

I wish I didn't have to compare the Droid to the iPhone but since I went from the iPhone 3G to the Droid, the comparisons are inevitable. So perhaps I should get those out of the way.

Yes, the Android App store does not have as many apps as the iPhone. Yes, the Droid's media player is not as pretty as the iPhone.

Hmm, I think that's all I really miss about the iPhone. Onward then!

Some reasons I wanted to switch phones...

I HATED the iPhone's battery. Perhaps, as it's been pointed out, I had a bad battery. But if I did the things suggested to optimize batter life (turn off the wifi, the bluetooth, the 3G), then the phone lasted a whole work day. The thing was that I didn't want to do any of those things. What's the use of the phone if I can't even use the 3G without worrying about the battery? The phone should last a workday. I wasn't even asking for it to last 12 hours without a charge. Just about 9. But by the middle of my workday, I had to put the sucker on the charger so that I would be good on the way home. And that was just freakin' annoying.

As gorgeous as the iPhone is, it felt a bit too delicate for me and I was compelled to always have it in a case. I'm clumsy and I drop things, especially my phones and goodness me if I dropped my iPhone! I'm sure it would have shattered the display to drop on my tile floors. Right? I had a nice case but it definitely subdued the physical beauty of the iPhone.

I like touchscreen phones, I do. But I also like physical keyboards. I also like having a choice.

I had been longing for another phone with better photo taking capabilities as well as video recording. The iPhone took decent photos but since I had the 3G (and was unwilling to jailbreak it to open up more features), I did not have video recording. I didn't really think it was a bit deal but again, I like having choices.

I don't really care for AT&T.

And those are my reasons for wanting to ditch the iPhone. I do eventually want to get an iPod Touch. It would be nice to watch movies and listen to music on it. I'm sure the battery is fine on it too. I noticed that if I didn't use the iPhone as a phone, it lasted a long time.

Ever since my Blackberry days, I said that I would only give up my Blackberry for an iPhone and vice versa. But when the Android OS came around, my interest was piqued. What was this new thing, this Android thing? I wanted to know. As different carriers began to carry devices running Android, I began to wonder more about it. Then along came word of the Motorola Droid. Just before the phone came out, I started reading reviews. Most of them were favorable. And I wanted to jump the AT&T ship and rejoin Verizon, which works really well out here.

Now I have the Droid (wow, I've really taken the long way with this, haven't I?). Do I like it? I LOVE IT!

The Droid takes lovely pictures. I do notice a bit of softening when the flash is used but all in all, the quality is great for a phone.

The Droid videos are pretty decent, especially with a steady hand. lol!

Phone quality - the most important aspect of a PHONE - is great. No dropped calls and calls are clear in my ear. Very important. lol!

The display is simply gorgeous. I don't know the numbers but suffice to say that even with tiny font at websites, it's still pretty readable. lol! Pictures look great on it and videos even better. It's a definitely pleasure watching Star Trek on my Droid. lol! The touchscreen is responsive and the accelerometer works without any noticeable lag. The display seems fingerprint prone but when the on it's not so noticeable.

The keyboard doesn't get a lot of love from the tech reviewers but I like it. Yes, the keys are a bit flushed but it's pretty slick and for someone with small fingers like me, it's a breeze to use. The weird navigational button thing on the right side is awkwardly placed and I always forget to use it. lol! Otherwise, I use the physical keyboard more than than the touchscreen one and it works just fine for me.

Battery life kinda sucked the first few days I had it. But I let it drain, charged until full, then did it all over again and now the phone lasts me throughout the workday without needing a charge. One day I almost made it to bedtime before I hit the red warning. Nice! I do plan on getting a spare battery in the future for those times when I know I won't have the luxury of a quick car or computer charge. Again, it's nice to have that choice. ;)

The Market aka App Store is a bit clunky and can only be accessed from the phone. I don't really care that it doesn't have as many apps as the Apple App Store but I do care about the quality of the apps. The Facebook one is almost useless and the best Twitter app is merely passable. Not a deal breaker at all for me though and I know that it can only get better. Of the apps I've downloaded (and I've been keeping to the free ones for now), the Google Sky Map one is freakin' awesome. If you know someone with the Droid, have them show you that app.

The phone can't voice dial, something I just learned the other day. But not because I use it but because I read about it in the comments section of some of the reviews. Again, not a deal breaker for me. I never did it with my iPhone (does it have that capability?) and maybe might have done it with my last Blackberry, the Storm. I personally don't think it's a big deal but perhaps other people do.

Email and messaging work great on the phone. Gmail is my webmail of choice, so of course I'm happy with the way it handles my email. Except, and this is weird, I can't download video attachments from the email app on the phone yet I can from the browser. Odd, eh? Oh, and I can't email high quality videos from my phone unless I'm connected via wifi. Booooo! But the low res videos can be sent easily enough. Annoying!

Web browsing is quick though perhaps not as pretty as Safari on the iPhone. And much is being made about multi-touch and the ability to "pinch and zoom." I don't find it's a big deal to zoom by double touching the screen. As I mentioned, the display is gorgeous and reading websites on it is a pleasure.

The phone is solid in the hand. I confess, I've dropped it a couple of times. On my tile floor. Yikes! But it's a sturdy piece of hardware and doesn't even have a scratch after my mishaps. It's a bit boxy with a weird little "chin" but it's thin, even with the keyboard and I can carry it comfortably in my pocket.

The media player is functional and not at all as nice as the iPhone one. But sound quality is great through the earphones and decent through the speakers. Video is GORGEOUS, especially with good quality files like my copy of Star Trek. Yowsa!

I'm sure I could go on. If you're thinking of getting a Droid, definitely read the different reviews out there, just as you would with any other device you might consider. Here are some pictures of the phone...

Do I like the Droid better than the iPhone? Yes, for me it just works better. Would I trade back for the iPhone? No, not at this point. The Droid is a better PHONE than the iPhone but the iPhone is probably a better mulitmedia device. For me, the Droid melds nicely the phone and multimedia.

Thank you for reading. :)

leave your worries behind

2009-11-25T04:31:28Z

waking without dreams
perhaps now the tides will turn
after tomorrow

My weekend has begun! FIVE whole days off from work. Most wonderful! :) I'm looking forward to the time off...

valeriejoy @ 2009-11-23T20:26:00

2009-11-24T04:26:09Z

tomorrow won't be mine
hope slipping through fallen tears
drowning in regret

me and Cadet McCoy

This is my third Karl as a character action figure. If I think about it too much, I realize that I'm a Karl fangirl. Or maybe I'm just loyal. lol!

already sunday night

2009-11-23T06:27:30Z

only lies seep through
twisting all good intentions
breaking promises

We went to Livermore this evening for dinner.

shrimp and chips

The restaurant used to be a Baker's Square and is now a Shari's. The pie wasn't as good as Baker's Square French Silk. Oh well.

lovely saturday

2009-11-22T06:01:03Z

stars above so still
catching dreams with every sigh
riding to the dawn

Decent day. I love cool days like these...

Dinner at Famous Dave's

2009-11-22T04:53:41Z

Mmmmm, good!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from valerie's posterous

and now the weekend

2009-11-21T03:34:33Z

tomorrow we leave
forward never looking back
without those regrets

Happy Friday! It was a good day wearing jeans at work. :)

my view

almost friday

2009-11-20T03:36:37Z

flying through the sky
shining stars just out of reach
cold against the night

Outside on break

2009-11-19T20:51:34Z

Enjoying the bits of autumn colors

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from valerie's posterous

My morning so far

2009-11-19T17:39:43Z

Tea and mini bagels. Yum!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from valerie's posterous

the hump day

2009-11-19T06:23:08Z

with every goodbye
why must something die inside
drained by the weeping

It was a decent day. I forgot to mention that in a rare bit of shopping last night, we bought Star Trek. I'm a geek (duh!) and bought the one that had the 4 lapels. I'll take a picture or two of them later. lol!

Random shots of the day

2009-11-19T04:14:26Z

Happy Hump Day!

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from valerie's posterous

so easily lost

2009-11-18T04:05:45Z

maybe the stars fall
shattering into soft dust
so easily lost

I still like my Droid.

I moved but it's kinda neat, eh?