Mark D's Blog Mark D's Blog Hi I'm Mark. This is my blog. I just blog about my life and my thoughts. Usually you can find things about recording, Disneyland, Lakers, NBA, Sports, my internship, Nintendo DS, movies i watch, TV stuff, and just random things Articles
Packing for San Francisco
2007-09-20 22:01:00 I'm preparing for San Franc isco . Actually it's Sacramento. I don't know what to expect from this trip. It's for a baptism, so I don't know if we'll be able to go around a lot. Either way, I'll be able to use my camera somewhere. I get to test it out. Right now, I'm trying to run the battery out so I can recharge it and be ready. I'm using the new time-lapse feature on my Canon G9. I don't know what to pack, so I'm packing one dressy, one warm, and one cold, and a couple back up underwear and socks - never know when a shart attack might happen. Just Kidding. That's nasty. It should be fun because I'm going with Maricel. It'll be cool. Literally. I looked up the weather and Thursday and Saturday = change of rain. Friday and Sunday = mostly sunny. I'll see how it goes, I'm excited. More About: Packing , Francis
More Canon G9 Trials
2007-09-18 21:37:00 I'm practicing with the Canon G9 more. Usually just my backyard. I want to go out somewhere and take pictures there - even a college campus or the Fullerton Arboretum, or maybe even Downtown Disney. The more I used it, the more I make mistakes,but I learn more. I realized that at the 80s party I went to, I should have used the P mode setting istead of Av mode. I thought that the Av mode would blur the background - which it did - but a lot of times, the focus was off because the subjects were moving, or I was moving. P mode is more of the "beginner" mode while giving you control. It's not quite "Auto", but it's better. It helps you out - especially for me because I'm a beginner. More About: Life , Trials , Anon
Canon G9 First Experience - Trial and Error
2007-09-17 09:39:00 Just a regular guy using his new camera. Keep in mind that I don't have experience with a DSLR. I'm coming from point-and-shoot cameras. I had a chunky Kodak in 2001, then a Canon Powershot Elph S230, then Canon Powershot Elph SD450, then finally now with my Canon G9. IT's a big jump. I haven't had too much experience with my Canon G9 yet. Well, I've taken a few pictures outside of my house, and after that I took pictures at an 80s party. The pictures I took outside my house were taken with a Circular Polarizer attached with the Lens Adapter. The pictures turned out pretty nice, but sometimes out of focus. I was using the wrong settings. It is hard for me to adjust to the fact that I should fiddle with settings. I'm used to "auto" and my adjustments would be "portrait mode", "landscape", and "macro". I don't know much about Av, Tv, and P modes. These modes are highly customizable. They cam make you do exactly what you want. Or they can confuse you. They confuse... More About: Life , Experience , Trial , Error
Amanda's 80s Party
2007-09-17 09:21:00 I had a lot of fun at Amanda 's 80s 21st birthday party. It was fun. A lot of people dressed up in 80s outfits. (I will post pictures soon) There were some people who didn't, but it's ok - they felt awkward and WISHED that they were in 80s clothes. We played games from the 1980s. We played old-school "pin the tail on the donkey", musical chairs, we just needed Twister. We also had a fashion show. My sister won, and so did Michael. I think an honorable mention goes to Ronald with his Richard Simmons outfit. Michael went hardcore with the hair. Pretty UGLY, but so eighties that he won. I guess looking back on the 80s, it was a pretty ugly era. And some people still dress like that! Francis had the 80s music playing on his laptop. It was radical! Then to top it off, we got moted when the police came and gave my uncle a pamphlet that said "Your offense is: 'Loud Party '". That's horrible. Well, on my Flava Flav clock, it said it was 9pm, but really it was 11:15pm. ... More About: Life
Happy 35 Months, Maricel!
2007-09-17 09:11:00 Happy 35 Month s Mari cel! I Love You! More About: Life , Happy
I Got My Canon G9
2007-09-15 03:39:00 I got my Canon Powershot G9. I opened it and my first inpression was that it's heavier than my small Canon Powershot SD450. I expected that. My second impression "WOW, there's a lot of buttons on there!" And third, there's no wrist strap - instead, there's a NECK strap. I quickly took it out of the box, and into my camera bag, and charged my battery so I can play with it. Then I'll post more about it after I have some experience. I expect: - it to be a really good camera - to not know how to use most things until at least a week of playing with it - have so many options that are relatively easy to use (compared to a DSLR) - to have fun I'll post more when I have more time to play with it. I'm going to my cousin's 80s-themed party that will give me many indoor and outift shot opportunities. I'm also going to San Francisco next weekend, and that will give me more opportunities (Baptism, and City, and 30th Birthday party shots). In a couple hours I will be getting ... More About: Life , Anon
Philippines Trip
2007-09-14 03:11:00 Baguio We went to Camp John Hay. It was really nice! It used to be a camp for all the military people, and they turned it into a tourist resort. There was music downstairs. We stayed on the first floor, and it was pretty cool. We only stayed there for one night. We went to the commissary. We went around to different places. We ate by some park where my dad used to be dropped off when he was a kid and they'd just hang out at the park. There used to be a lot of kids and it was safe. Now it changed. It seemed dirtier (but still "the cleanest place in the Philippines "). And it's crowded with cars and vans and tricycles. I liked it in Baguio because we got to actually go places and take pictures. Here are some pictures. Baguio Sky from the mall. The Mansion Keep Baguio Clean Baguio Church Baguio Outlook PMA - Philippine Military Acadamy More About: Life , Trip , Lippi , Hili
New Pictures Are Up.
2007-09-13 22:29:00 Eh not too many pictures, but half of September are up, sorry it takes long, but I do some post processing to make it look its best. pix.firsttogo.com More About: Pictures , Other
Remembering 9/11
2007-09-11 12:46:00 It's been 6 years since the horrible tragedy at the World Trade Center in New York. Do you remember where you were? For me, I remember I was still on summer vacation. My dad woke me up saying that "they knocked down the Twin Towers in New York." I didn't really understand what he was talking about. I giggled because he seemed to be talking crazy. I turned on the TV and I saw on the news what had happened. It was horrible. People were jumping out of buildings and they would zoom in to see it. The problem was that they kept repeating it over and over. By the time I woke up, both planes already hit, but one of the towers was still up. It was pretty bad. Then I had to go to work with my sister in Irvine. We worked at a restaurant at the time. When we were driving, we were listening to KIIS FM and they were reporting on it, and the second tower was falling. They reported that it was declared an "act of war". The announcer was freaking out. The radio stations took some... More About: Other , Remembering , 9/11 , Erin
My Blog's Search
2007-09-11 01:50:00 I was looking at the stats for my blog. and I found this. Click to view full sized image. it's interesting because no one read my blog until them. HAHA! More About: Other , Search
Canon G9 Battery
2007-09-10 23:45:00 Alright! My Canon G9 battery came in. It's about twice the size of my Canon SD450 battery. This canon G9 battery is NB-2LH (the H seems to man High Capacity). I'm excited to get my Canon G9 now. I have all the pieces I need. I have a tripod, and my battery, filters, and lens adapter have already come in. All I'm waiting for is my actual camera. I'm reading the guide and advance guide online from the Canon website. I'll post comparison pictures. Hopefully there's a big quality jump, or what's the point! haha. More About: Life , Battery , Anon
My Blog About Vanessa Anne Hudgens
2007-09-10 10:45:00 I blogged about Vanessa Anne Hudgens and her naughty pictures where she posed nude to send pictures to Zac Efron. I look at my search results every now and then, and it's been regular - the numbers that have called me and ended up being telemarketers. Also "bulletball" for some reason. But for some reason there have been A LOT of people searching for pictures or something about Vanessa Anne Hudgens and Zac Efron's reaction and everything. And WOW... A lot of people get to my blog from that. That means I have to try to keep up with the story and find out more. I'll be calling Vanessa Anne Hudgens as soon as she lands back in the US. I'll ask her what's up. More About: Life , Blog
Canon G9 from BHPhoto.com
2007-09-10 08:13:00 BHPhoto.com. I don't know what to say. I have to add to my Canon G7 and G9 journey. First it was Canon G7 at the scam artists at The Digital Nerds (thedigitalnerds.com) those damn bastards! Then I ordered it at Dell. But it would have costed me $532. Then I found the Canon G9 on Ritz Camera (ritzcamera.com) so I cancelled the Dell order, and ordered it from Ritz. $499.99 no tax and no shipping. That's cool. But it would have taken 2-4 weeks for them to get it in stock, THEN 7-10 days for my shipment to come. Then I saw BHPhoto.com. I cancelled my order. Then I ordered it at BHPhoto because they have it "in stock". It was $499.95, no tax, but plus shipping $7.95. It was still good because it was about $8 more for a sooner delivery. I read about BHPhoto.com and they are a very good camera place with good prices. I ordered the Canon G9 from BHPhoto.com at around 4am Saturday night/Sunday morning. Then when I woke up Sunday morning, I have already received an email sa... More About: Life , Anon
Search for Me
2007-09-08 13:26:00 Go on Google, then search "canon g9" and any store like target or sears or something, and see what comes up. I'm on the FIRST PAGE of GOOGLE search! More About: Other , Search
Wedding Pictures
2007-09-07 11:46:00 The Cynthia and Gary Wedding pictures are out! WOOHOO! I was excited to see what pictures I am in. Then I felt kind of sad when I don't really have any pictures with me in it. Well, there's one where my shoulder and elbow are shown. I thought at least since I read the Second Reading, I would have some nice picture. But I don't have any picture. Everyone who read something has a picture. Mine's somehow missing from there. I guess it's ok, because it's really Gary and Cynthia's day, and the pictures would be of them, the entourage, their parents and stuff. So it's not really MY day or anything. But I just thought I'd have a picture, but not really. The picture I'm in is when I'm gay dancing with Chris, and my nose and mouth is shown with my hands. Here's my only picture: This picture was taken from Pictage.com and is property of JATECSON Photography. More About: Pictures , Other
Lola's Coming "Home"
2007-09-06 12:50:00 So Lola 's coming home from the hospital. That's what the nurses tell her. What she doesn't know is that she'll probably have to stay at a nursing home. My dad, along with other relatives had to debate on what to do. She's either going to MY HOUSE or a NURSING HOME, because no one else wants to take care of her. If she stays at my house, my dad and I would be able to be home to take care of her (we have been doing that for years already), but we would have the 24/7 availability, nor the equipment or knowledge to assist her should anything happen. In a nursing home, she has the 24/7 care with very well trained nurses, that have the equipment and knowledge to help her right away. But she would hate being there. She would be mad at all of us because we are not the ones caring for her with all the sophisticated equipment. Next time, there might not be enough time to drive her to a hospital, so I think that the only choice we have is the nursing home, so ensure good care at ... More About: Other , Home , Ming
My Journey from Canon G7 to G9
2007-09-06 01:53:00 So I finally settled on a camera and a store. Before I graduated, I was thinking that if I get enough money in gifts, I would buy a nice camera for fun, and hobby. First, I went to the Philippines and took pictures, and realized that I would have better pictures with a better camera - A camera that had more capabilities. Then I saw the lunar eclipse and I tried to take pictures, but then my camera wasn't powerful enough, and the pictures turned out unsatisfactory. The moon looked like a blob of light - llike a picture of a lightbulb that's not clear. So I started actively looking for a camera, and I saw my cousin's - the Canon G7. I liked it, and it was the closest hting to a DSLR without being a DSLR. Also it has all those manual settings that you can just set and that would help take better pictures (assuming I'd learn what the settings do). I found a good deal! The MSRP for the Canon G7 was $599.99 (or $549.99), then I saw some place on Everyprice.com that was sellin... More About: Life , Journey , My Journey , Anon
Philippines Trip
2007-09-05 11:06:00 Cubao We went to Cubao, and it was weird. There was a red gate, then a few homes. It seemed like an apartment complex. I was scared because it was still within a couple days from when we got there. I was scared, and the smell was something that I can't describe. It was just a Philippines smell or something. Then we went in and met everyone, and introduced ourselves to Auntie Deling. It's sad because everyday we went there (which was every day we were in the city - all but 3 days), we had to re-introduce ourselves to Auntie Deling because the cancer has already deteriorated her brain and her body. It was hard to see her like that. It must have been harder for my mom and Michelle because they jsut saw her fine a few years ago. My sister and I saw her when we were too young to remember. But it was still sad. I didn't like seeing her like that - one of the low points of the trip - which happened everyday, but it was really nice and a very good feeling when she sat up ... More About: Life , Trip , Lippi , Hili
Visit To Lola
2007-09-04 09:00:00 I went to visit Lola today at the hospital in Torrance. I got scared becaues she wasn't moving and her mouth was just open and her eyes half way open. But she woke up, and it was "phew!". Then they tried to feed her, but she didn't even have the power to chew. It seemed like it sucked. But then after they fed her one macaroni, she started to chew all regular and she started to talk a lot. So I don't know if she was REALLY that weak, or if she was sleeping, or if it's just in her head. But then after a while, she started getting weak again, and started to just talk about random things - some that didn't make sense and some that did. It seems like she doesn't know what time it is (the clock is wrong), and she doesn't know when things happened. Sometimes she'd refer to something that happened before. Then she just went to sleep in a scary-looking way. I didn't like the nurse. She seems very incompetent! There was a beeping noise that goes off when there's sometin... More About: Life , Visit
It's HOT!
2007-09-02 20:11:00 It's too damn hot! The news people say it's not going to cool down until Tuesday! I'm going to complaing to the City of La Palma! More About: Other
Lola's Last Sacraments
2007-09-02 20:10:00 So Father Leo came to the hospital to go through the "Anointing of the Sick" Sacrament. She's in the hospital since the day after my birthday. On my birthday she seemed VERY tired and having trouble even breathing. Then the day after my birthday, she went to dialysis and during dialysis her levels went too low and she needed to be brought to the hospital, and now she's there. On Tuesday, her blood pressure level went down to 55 (instead of the regular 90-120 that I saw when I visited her), and she needed immediate help with the doctors. Then the doctor said that she doesn't have much time left, so everyone's visiting her. Then the doctor suggested that if she does make it out of the hospital, we should just bring her to a hospice until she's done. It's sad, but at the same time I don't feel too bad. Lola talked to me about stuff and it seems like it's her time. She said it's her turn because she's done with everything. She has been living in the room by mine for ... More About: Other , Amen , Cram
Damn Earthquake
2007-09-02 19:51:00 Did anyone else feel that earthquake Today (Sunday September 2, 2007) at around 10:32am? I watched TV and there was no news or anything, and I was wondering where the epicenter was and how strong it was. I woke up as it was happening, and I just laid still to see if it really was an earthquake, then the next step for me is to look at whatever's hanging from my ceiling (in this case is my damn PINK tassel from graduation). I'm still looing for information online and on TV, but none. More About: Earthquake , Other , Damn
Don't buy from thedigitalnerds.com!
2007-08-29 22:17:00 I thought I got a good deal when I saved A LOT of money on a camera. But I bought it from thedigitalnerds.com (aka J & J Digital Camera aka TheCameraWhiz, Inc aka theDigitalExpo.com aka 83 Avenue O, Brooklyn, NY 11204). They are a SCAM! They post low prices online and say it is in stock and you get a free tripod. After you order, you get a phone call, or an email instructing you to call and when you're talking to the guy with the middle eastern accent, he's VERY rude. He says that the battery that it comes with only lasts for 20 minutes, then you have to recharge it. So he offers you a battery that lasts 5 hours. I said NO because I already bought that long lasting battery from another store for $10.50. Then he said, that he'll cancel my order because the only package that's available is the one with the 5 hour battery, and it is $150 extra. That's more than 10 times the amount I paid for the extra battery on Amazon. So I said no, and he was so rude and just said, "I... More About: Other
A Discounted Gift
2007-08-29 12:28:00 ...so I bought myself my Graduation / Birthday Gift . I didn't evne debate I just went ahead and bought it - online. Well, it bought the MAIN thing, then some small things to go along with it. I don't know why. I just did. Now I have to SAVE SAVE SAVE money. But the good part is that it was supposed to be $784.79 total, but I saved a great deal. I still have to save money though. I hope I have fun with it. It makes some of my recent purchases useless because of this purchase. I don't really buy a lot of small useless crap. Instead of buying a lot of small things all the time, I buy one BIG thing, every LONG period of time. I guess that's my weakness. That's what I do. O well, I hope this one's worth it. More About: Life , Discount , Disc
Philippine Trip
2007-08-25 20:48:00 .. Last time I left off at the condo. We stayed at Uncle Papa and Auntie Yvette's condo in Makati. It was called Oriental Gardens Lotus Tower or something. The letters were missing - kinda ghetto, but the name makes up for it - that's how it was... ghetto but cool at the same time... upper class-ish The condo was cool. It was a little small for Michelle, My Sister, Uncle Robert, My Dad, and Me, but we managed. There was a small kitchen kind of attached to the living room, and one bedroom that was the size od the bed plus two feet in each direction. The sleeping arrangements were My Sister and Michelle on the bed, Uncle Robert and Me on one couch each, and My Dad on the floor (with an option to sleep on the inflatable matress). *There's missing wall panes on that building This is the view from the condo. The room was the size of my cousin's apartment in Long Beach. Probably the size of my living room. We stayed on the 19th floor. It was really HOT and HUMID and ... More About: Life , Trip , Lippi , Hili
Philippine Trip
2007-08-25 20:48:00 .. Last time I left off at the condo. We stayed at Uncle Papa and Auntie Yvette's condo in Makati. It was called Oriental Gardens Lotus Tower or something. The letters were missing - kinda ghetto, but the name makes up for it - that's how it was... ghetto but cool at the same time... upper class-ish The condo was cool. It was a little small for Michelle, My Sister, Uncle Robert, My Dad, and Me, but we managed. There was a small kitchen kind of attached to the living room, and one bedroom that was the size od the bed plus two feet in each direction. The sleeping arrangements were My Sister and Michelle on the bed, Uncle Robert and Me on one couch each, and My Dad on the floor (with an option to sleep on the inflatable matress). *There's missing wall panes on that building This is the view from the condo. The room was the size of my cousin's apartment in Long Beach. Probably the size of my living room. We stayed on the 19th floor. It was really HOT and HUMID and ... More About: Trip , Lippi , Hili
Jury Duty
2007-08-25 05:15:00 I got Jury Duty again. I did it in January, but they keep sending me Jury Summons. It's because I have TWO names. One at the DMV, and one at the Voter's Registration thing. I should have never registered to vote. Now I get TWO or more Jury Summons a year. It sucks, but hopefully this fixed it. I just returned the Jury Summons with my "correct" name and said I already served within 12 months. But at least it worked, and now I don't have to go... until they send me one within 5 months... watch... More About: Life
Jury Duty
2007-08-25 05:15:00 I got Jury Duty again. I did it in January, but they keep sending me Jury Summons. It's because I have TWO names. One at the DMV, and one at the Voter's Registration thing. I should have never registered to vote. Now I get TWO or more Jury Summons a year. It sucks, but hopefully this fixed it. I just returned the Jury Summons with my "correct" name and said I already served within 12 months. But at least it worked, and now I don't have to go... until they send me one within 5 months... watch...
Philippines Trip
2007-08-23 21:42:00 I left off when we landed... It was 5:45am in the Philippines . The first thing I notices was that the airport was NOT busy. It was easy to find out bags and quick. You can feel the heat and the nasty humidity! The cool thing is that there were a lot of people coming up to you who want to help you (for a little tip, might I add), but there are a lot of people that tag along hoping you'd mistakenly tip them too. We waited for Michelle's aunt, Auntie Lanel, to come and pick us up. When they came, I was wondering who that weird looking guy was - it was her driver. Everyone in the Philippines has a driver or IS a driver. I wouldn't suggest trying to drive in the Philippines. They drive crazy there. It is so packed on the streets - starting a 5am, and it seems like there is a car about 3 inches to 1 foot away from you at all times. They don't obey the rules of the lines. YOU NEED A DRIVER - do not evne try. We packed into the van with our luggage, and it wasn't comfort... More About: Life , Trip , Lippi , Hili
Philippines Trip
More articles from this author:2007-08-23 21:42:00 I left off when we landed... It was 5:45am in the Philippines . The first thing I notices was that the airport was NOT busy. It was easy to find out bags and quick. You can feel the heat and the nasty humidity! The cool thing is that there were a lot of people coming up to you who want to help you (for a little tip, might I add), but there are a lot of people that tag along hoping you'd mistakenly tip them too. We waited for Michelle's aunt, Auntie Lanel, to come and pick us up. When they came, I was wondering who that weird looking guy was - it was her driver. Everyone in the Philippines has a driver or IS a driver. I wouldn't suggest trying to drive in the Philippines. They drive crazy there. It is so packed on the streets - starting a 5am, and it seems like there is a car about 3 inches to 1 foot away from you at all times. They don't obey the rules of the lines. YOU NEED A DRIVER - do not evne try. We packed into the van with our luggage, and it wasn't comfort... More About: Trip , Lippi , Hili 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 |
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