Being northerly & busy, Sin City and Pancho Villa's.

[zotz]

Edinburgh, one week before the solstice. 11 at night. The sky over Fife is a pale blue a few degrees above the horizon, and a pale pink closer to it. It's really good being so far North.

A busy day at work today, and not just because I've been off for two either. All the Novell clients had to get taken off the PCs because the Novell server's being retired and replaced, so I had to log the Computing Services people in . . . repeatedly. This reminded me that nobody can remember the Administrator password for one of them. I have to remedy this, and also be more of a fascist as concerns the machines generally. They were very impressed by the microscopes, even though I didn't tell them how much they cost. I also got to play with one of the scopes for a bit, which doesn't happen often enough.

I just saw Sin City with gingiber and anonymous_seth. We bumped into Ian McLennan on the way over, saw the film (on the really big screen at the UGC) and came back again, bumping into Ian at the same point on the return journey. The film was mostly very good, although Bruce Willis was excellent. I don't think I've seen him that good since 12 Monkeys. Suffering suits him (and I mean that in a good way). I can see why it got bad reviews as well, though. It's never going to be accused of being a well-rounded film. But there you go - the things I didn't like are the things I don't like about Frank Miller's stuff generally, so I guess it was indeed a very faithful adaptation.

Got home, checked who it was that was that was at school with who . . . OK, I'm impressed.

It was a lovely day today, which made a nice change from yesterday, which was a little chilly (i.e. extremely chilly for June). I got up, got ready for work after my day off ill, and then realised that it would still be a bad idea to venture too far from a toilet. Ho Hum. Mailed my boss, who mailed me back to wish me well and point out that he's got slight pneumonia. I can't even be best at being ill round these parts.

Later, when I was feeling rather more together, I went to Pancho Villa's with gingiber, anonymous_seth and Victoria WINOLJTTBOMK. BWHI. I got to play with L&S's new E-300, and even take a couple of quick snaps with it. Rather nice, and much smaller than the other DSLRs I've handled. Still vastly larger than an OM, though, and while the lens is a superzoom, I'm not sure about getting a camera with nothing faster than a 3.5 . Food, company and surroundings excellent, although the next table had a whole shedload of blokes chatting, and therefore making more noise than I'd usually expect from the place. Very nice Dia del Muerte poster on the wall. I should have taken a picture of that, actually, while I had a camera in my hand.

Comments

[ex-weedysead893.livejournal.com]

I love the late nights too!

[zotz]

It surprising how much the difference is compared with Cambridge. In winter, too. I'd come back up around Christmas, it would be getting dark in mid-afternoon and it felt wonderful.

[zotz]

No problem. Any excuse to go there, really.

[gingiber.livejournal.com]

It was nice to meet your misses. Hopefully meet you soon too :)

[gingiber.livejournal.com]

WINOLJTTBOMK. BWHI.

you what. Have spent all of 30 seconds on trying to work this out and have given up in frustation.

BHSI Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute
BHSI British Horse Society Instructress

Huh?

[zotz]

BWHI.

"But Whose Husband Is".

[gingiber.livejournal.com]

you just make these things up don't you :) What is the other one? Without a LJ something something something

[zotz]

you just make these things up don't you

Yes. If I think they'll be obvious (or could be worked out) from context.

What is the other one? Without a LJ something something something

WINOLJ - Who Is Not On LJ. Shouldn't be confused with winolj.

TTBOMK - To The Best Of My Knowledge. Actually, I use this one fairly regularly.

[gingiber.livejournal.com]

Ah right. The running of those two together rather flumoxed me :)

[shermarama]

My best guess for that second bit was 'til the burning of Milton Keynes.'

[zotz]

'til the burning of Milton Keynes.'

What a lovely thought.

[shermarama]

Sort of a quest, like.

"By my sword, I pledge that I will not be on LJ until Milton Keynes perisheth in flame!"

[zotz]

Or like a gentile version of "Next year in Jerusalem".

Somewhat puzzled.

[shermarama]

I wonder why it does make such a big difference? I'm in Brighton at a bit under 51 degrees and you're at, what, 56? And I read that post of yours only a few minutes after you made it and there was definitely not any sort of glow anywhere in the sky down here.

*consults Heavens-above.com*

Brighton:
Astronomical twilight starts: --:--
Nautical twilight starts: 02:50
Civil twilight starts: 04:00
Sunrise: 04:46
Sunset: 21:16
Civil twilight ends: 22:02
Nautical twilight ends: 23:12
Astronomical twilight ends: --:--

Edinburgh:
Astronomical twilight starts: --:--
Nautical twilight starts: --:--
Civil twilight starts: 03:23
Sunrise: 04:25
Sunset: 22:01
Civil twilight ends: 23:03
Nautical twilight ends: --:--
Astronomical twilight ends: --:--

That's sunrise 21 minutes earlier, sunset 45 minutes later, and a whole three and a half hours of nautical night (I think it's defined as the sun being 12 degrees below the horizon) that you never reach at all.

I can't visualise what's making the difference so large, in terms of spinny globes and planes of light and stuff.

Re: Somewhat puzzled.

[zotz]

At this time of year, what matters (I guess) is not so much how far you are from the pole, but how far from the Arctic circle. I'm only about 10.5 degrees south of it, while you're 15.5 away.

[(Anonymous)]

Still vastly larger than an OM, though, and while the lens is a superzoom, I'm not sure about getting a camera with nothing faster than a 3.5

that's just the cheapo lens that we got with the camera. there are a few others (but not many, as the 4/3 thing is a bit new), and some are about F2. there's also a 7-14mm thing out there (14-28mm eq) that i really want - but at £1200, it's a bit over my budget at the mo.

you can get an adapter that allows you to run old OM lenses on it. the quality seems okish when you use them, but it got me thinking about finding the oldest, gnarliest, grottiest lens i can find, getting a whatever-mount-it-is -> OM convertor, and then slapping it onto the e300 :)

anonymouseth
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[zotz]

They've got a couple of f/2 lenses coming out this year. Isn't the 14-28 an f/3ish beast also? This probably isn't as much of a handicap as when you're stuck with one film speed, but still - you can never have enough light. Unless, of course, you can't get the bathroom door closed.

What does the converter do to the aperture? What would it do if you begged, borrowed or stole a 50 or 55mm 1.2?

[(Anonymous)]

they're already out:

http://www.fotosense.co.uk/shop_details.asp?productID=774
http://www.fotosense.co.uk/shop_details.asp?productID=772

f3.5 on a wideangle isnt bad - my 17mm is only f3.5 and there's never any trouble with it. i only really wanna use it for QTVR anyway. most of the subjects for that stay pretty still.

as for what happens if you stick an OM lens on a 4/3 body, this link has some info.

http://www.wrotniak.net/photo/oly-e/e300-omz.html

looks like a bit of fankling will be necessary, but it'll be interesting to try 'em.

anonymouseth
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[darkstones.livejournal.com]

I was actually driving through Fife last night and noticed the same thing, only there was probably more blue sky, due to me being slightly further north. I even stopped the car and got out to admire it for a while.

When I lived in Fife there were occasions when there was a reasonable display of the northern lights.