A day at Disneyland , California

The day is winding down here at Disney. The place is packed solid this friday night and everyone is talking about the big premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean that takes place here tomorrow evening.
It’s been a fantastic adventure so far, we’ve done every major ride that is open , watched a cool show, parade, etc. The line ups in the morning were not bad at all which was a pleasant surprise. The afternoon became much busier yet the longest line up we’ve hit was space mountain which was 45 minutes.
There sure is a lot to do for all ages here. My son whom is 11 & myself are here with my sister & here 2 year old son as well a Grandma. We’ve all been busy and have had a lot of fun.
The fireworks are about to start and the street is filling up. The place is really magical at night 🙂
We’ve been trying out the camera on the iPad and I am going to give the movie camera a try for the fireworks. We’ll see how the shots turn out. Tomorrow I am bringing my digital camera with me to take some better shots and hopefully catch some nice ones of the premiere.
One thing I like about these theme parks is the all inclusive tickets. One pass works for both parks and all your rides. This is a nice change from the amusement parks and carnivals we’ve been to in canada. It seems we are always running to buy more tickets for rides and games or paying extra for the cool rides…
We did a bit of shopping at the main street located in between the two parks. There are some really cool shops and restaurants. I’ll be sure to post some links and pics of the whole adventure once we return.
It’s almost fireworks time , have a great weekend people and thank you so much for dropping by !
Namaste from Disney – William

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The perfect travel companion : ipad2

Photo above found at the Apple website Apple.com

I was delighted a few days ago when a fedex driver showed up at my doorstep a week early with my new ipad2 🙂 The timing was perfect as we are set to go on vacation next week and this gave me time to set up the device and become familiar with it.
So far my experience with Apples newest toy is amazing. Not to sound cliche but it truly is magical. Easy to use , versatile and so very portable, the iPad is a perfect travel companion.
I already own an iPhone so getting this set up and learning the basics was a breeze. The initial sync is time consuming depending on how much you are loading up onto it. I quickly filled the iPad’s memory to the brim and then went through and deleted apps and extras that I thought were better suited for just the iPhone. It’s a good idea to leave yourself a good chunk of available memory for the programs and media that you will undoubtedly add as you use it.
The app store on the iPad shows you which of your apps can be upgraded to the larger versions. It is really handy although I found that it didn’t quite find everything that it could have. A little browsing around quickly remedied the situation though. I am still using a number of iPhone apps on the iPad which fill a portion of the screen unless you hit the magnify button which enlarges the app. This is handy but results in some blurriness which is workable on some apps and not so much on others. Hopefully most apps will be available in both sizes quite quickly, the numbers seem to be growing rapidly 🙂
I have approximately 150 + apps loaded on the iPad at the moment ; and yes , I am an app addict hehe . This is my first post using WordPress on the iPad, it sure is much handier than the computer I find. The built in keyboard works like a charm and if you prefer the wireless keyboard from Apple is available. I have one set up with a dock and speaker. It took all of a minute to get it up and running which was nice and it’s great to have the option of using either input method.
I also tried a few other accessories such as the camera kit and hdmi adapter. The camera kit is easy to use and small enough to fit in any camera case easily . It’s great that so many companies are now using SD cards, the plethora of card readers in the past was getting insane. My son’s Wii, DSi and camera all use the SD cards as well as a Sony camcorder I picked up at Christmas time. The HDMI connector which allows you to hook up the iPad to a big screen tv is a lot of fun. Lego Harry Potter and Infinity Blade sure look cool on a 52″ LCD ! One drawback is that a long HDMI cable will cost as much as an Apple TV, so hopefully in the future Apple will add AirPlay functionality to apps like it does with movies and other iTunes media.
I put a screen protector on the iPad today , after learning my lesson from the iPhone. My poor phone gets quite a beating at work and without some sort of protection the glass gets completely destroyed after a while which is a very expensive fix. Of course with kids a screen protector also helps tremendously, especially when they are playing a game and have munchies at hand… Think peanut butter and / or Doritos 🙂 Of course we adults can be just as bad at times !
I was shopping around for a protective cover today. The local stores seemed to have plenty of iPad cases but mostly for the 1st version, it might be best to shop online for now until retailers catch up with this new device. There are tons of options available out there to suit every style and use. Some cases even come with built in keyboards for those who do a lot of typing.
I have been reading a lot of articles regarding the new iPad and how it marks the beginning of the post PC era. Personally I agree somewhat. If you sit down and list the types of things you’ve done on a computer in the last month, you’ll probably find that there is very little that can’t be done on this little touch screen. Around the house and at work , the iPad can be a great alternative to a big bulky desktop or rather expensive high powered laptop. Sure , I was drooling over the newest MacBook Pro when it was released but now that I think about it , do you really need one ? Don’t get me wrong, we haven’t quite reached the point where home computers are obsolete, my many photographer friends can attest to that. There are still a number of things that tablets such as this can’t do yet and that’s where a higher horsepower computer comes in handy . There is also the little problem of syncing all of these devices which is something you still need a computer for. Personally I think for home use, the perfect set up is an iPad for every day use, a Mac mini with a few external drives to act as a iTunes server and syncing device and an Apple TV to stream media to the home theatre. This is our present set up and it works beautifully . If I do decide to get back into professional Photography again one day then I will probably look at an iMac or MacBook but unless a person has a specific use in mine those computers seem more like overkill these days….
Well a few more days and we are off to Disneyland & Legoland 🙂 we can hardly wait to get away, it should be a blast ! We will be sure to be posting a few pics , videos and greetings during the trip .
Have a great weekend everyone ; best wishes , and don’t forget to keep smilin’ ( they’ll wonder what you’re up to hehe )
If you are looking at purchasing a new iPad and are curious about them here is the link to Apple website : http://www.apple.com/ca/ipad/
Namaste – William , thank you for stopping by , be sure to come again and stop by and say hi on twitter any time 🙂 twitter

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Spring Cleaning

Spring is here and the warm weather has set in finally 🙂 We’ve been hard at it this weekend spring cleaning both inside and out. It’s great setting up the yard with summer fun such as badminton, croquet, soccer net & the tent for little back yard camp outs. Our little Chihuahua has had a blast running around the yard, for such a little puppy she can sure move fast. Curious to see how she takes the remote-controlled 4×4 my son has.

Cheering on our favorite hockey team as the playoffs get off to a roaring start. The Vancouver Canucks have had an exciting start playing against the L.A. Kings. As long as they stay out of the penalty box they should be able to advance. Would love to see them go all the way this year… Go Canucks Go !!!!!

My son, David, just finished up youth bowling for the year and has Soccer starting this week, he is so excited and has been practicing and working out for the upcoming season. They won their division last year 🙂

My fiancée, Colleen has been really busy with her business lately, so great to see things taking off and going well. We have a very cool product in the works and hope to be posting it on her website soon. Packaging is something I have to look into and really don’t have a clue about yet. Time to do a little research.

Be sure to check out her website : Guardian Angels Consciously ; she has some really interesting courses and products. She really loves helping people and it really shines through the work she does.

I’ve been reading a lot of news recently about the iPad that Apple introduced recently. The worldwide launch is set for the end of May at the moment. I am really looking forward to picking one up. I’ve always been an Apple person ever since running a business with a little Apple 2 back in 1995. It never crashed once unlike the windows/IBM machines so popular back then. Apple has consistently pushed the bar and brought out new and exciting products that people love. Clean , stylish, easy to use and reliable. I presently have a Mac, iPhone, AppleTV and several iPods and have had very little problems ever.

The iPad is very exciting, I really would love to see text-book publishers go hard and take advantage of this great technology. Students of all levels will love it. A few Universities are giving away iPads to their students while other Schools are banishing it due to reasons such as bandwidth problems , etc. I hope the wrinkles get ironed out shortly, it is only version one so the best is yet to come 🙂 One thing I would love to see is someone to come up with a stylus that would work with this type of touch screen which would be a boon to creative pros working on artwork or photography where precision is paramount. Another very useful use would be the ability to sign documents such as pdf’s which would really cut down on paper for people such as realtors.   I have read that a camera might be in the works although today most people carry phones with cameras built-in or little digital cameras that conveniently fit in a pocket. A few people complained about the lack of a phone , but the thought of holding a ten inch cell up to your ear just seems silly. Steve Jobs keynote introducing the new device really explained the whole idea quite well. I hope to see some of the touch screen technology transfer over to other products such as the iMac and macbooks. I am really looking forward to reading on the iPad, graphic novels will be fantastic. Marvel comics is on the app store all ready, i hope to see Vertigo to follow suit , my favorite was the Sandman by Neil Gaiman 🙂 It will be handy to have around the house. It was great to see Apple port a few programs over for content creation such as iwork. A way to blog directly to iweb sites would be great although WordPress is a handy alternative.

In the news lately , I’ve noticed Mother Nature getting quite nasty, the quake in China killing so many people and leaving so many homeless, the Volcano wreaking havoc in Europe, etc. Albertans tend to complain about the severe weather here in the winter, but I would gladly take -40c over the tragedies throughout other areas of the globe.

I am calling it a night , hope all is well in your part of the world ~ take care , pleasant dreams ~ Namaste ~ william

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Working towards goals …

My son David (pictured above),  is a fantastic nine-year old boy so full of energy you could put him on a cross trainer and power a small town 🙂 Yes , he can tend to be a bit hyper at times at has a few issues he is working on , but his good points far outweigh his weaknesses. He is extremely outgoing , a straight A student and loves to help out and be Mr. independent. I love him dearly and try my best to be a good parent and give him the tools to make sound choices in life.

His teachers believe that he has mild ADHD among other things and I have been trying quite a few different things to help improve his condition. I have been very reluctant to use medications for a number of reasons, i would rather leave that as a last resort once we’ve exhausted all other avenues. I found an incredible website that provides natural ways to improve the effects of ADHD and ordered a book which explains a number of things a person can do to improve their life. Most of them are very common practices that we have tried with wonderful success.  Meditation such as Reiki & Yoga, nutrition & vitamins, proper exercise,family counseling and behavioral management, etc.

We are still working hard and continuing to introduce new methods into our lives and with luck and a bit of hard work things are looking up. One thing i have found that seems to work really well with David is setting goals to help keep him focused with a lot of positive reinforcement when he tries his best and does well. This week he has done so well after struggling quite a bit this year in a new school.   His birthday is coming up in a few weeks and his goal this week was to drastically improve his behavior during class time. Show patience , not to display anger towards others, deal with situations in a proper manner, etc. So far it’s been excellent and his reward for each day of great work is to be able to invite a friend to his bday party. He’s up to 3 and counting , if he makes it past the week , i will have my hands full come party time ~ hehe

If you would like some info about ADHD or the website i recommend here are some links :

wiki : ADHD – info on ADHD

www.treatadhdnaturally.com – recommended website on natural remedies

www.dad-blogs.com – a really cool parenting blog for a little bit of everything 🙂

A huge thankyou goes out to my incredible fiancée who is so fantastic with David and helps out in so many ways. ( Love you Colleen )

I hope everyone is having a great week so far , thanks for stopping by ~ Namaste ~ william

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Ski season is underway ; do you have the itch :)

With Whistler opening this weekend and Lake Louise opening earlier this month, ski season is officially underway. Even our little local hill in Edmonton opened it’s doors , which surprised me considering there is no snow in sight.

I’ve been an avid skier since my early youth. After my second year of college my instructor and I went on a ski trip to Sunshine Village in Banff , Alberta. I instantly fell in love with the mountains and at the end of the week , i quit a great job up north and moved to Lake Louise where I worked , skied , climbed mountains and studied Photography. Quite a change from the oil patch and I sure surprised a lot of people, but I was young and looking for adventure. It was a truly amazing experience that lasted five years and left me with many fantastic stories to tell my son and maybe grandkids in the future 🙂

One thing to remember when playing in the mountains is SAFETY ! Every year the winter is littered with stories of people loosing their lives or disabling themselves in horrible accidents. Many of these are caused by people attempting things completely out of their skill level or without proper training.  As an ex adrenaline junkie I know from experience how easy it is to make mistakes, but keep in mind that mother nature can be very unforgiving at times and downright deadly. Skiing within proper boundaries is a rule for a good reason as well as having trails marked with different skill levels. Don’t get me wrong , I am not trying to be preachy in any way , just a little advice from experience. I’ve done a fair bit of backcountry skiing and hiking and the rule of thumb is “be prepared” just like the old boy scout saying 🙂 There are great courses available which will give you the knowledge to travel into the abyss, it’s a matter of minimizing the risks with proper training just like the pros. With time and patience as well as a bit of style and grace , who knows, maybe you can make it into a Warren Miller film !

I’ve skied quite a number of places throughout British Columbia and Alberta , Canada and my top 3 without a doubt are :

Whistler/Blackcomb

Lake Louise

Mike Wiegele Heli skiing

The premier event this year is the Winter Olympics in Vancouver this year. I was blessed to be around for the Calgary Olympics in 1988 and even had the pleasure of having a bit of ski time with the Swiss team while they were training in Lake Louise. If you haven’t had a chance to go see a world class sporting event such as the Olympics I urge you to go , there is nothing else like it !

Vancouver 2010

For information on the Canadian Alpine Ski team check out their site : Alpine Ski Team and don’t forget to cheer them on this February !

One of the best websites for Canadian skiers of all ages is Ski and Snowboard Canada. There is tons of info as well as some fantastic deals for the kids, be sure to take a look 🙂

That’s all for tonight, take care , be safe and have a blast this winter !

Namaste ~ william

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