Look what grew in our yard! I’d really like to have a lush garden in any future homes of mine. They bring so much joy and learning, as well as a sense of peace and well-being. How cool is it that these eggplants grew without us intending them to?
Technological pains
laelene Post in general blog，Tags: opinion, technology
16
September
2011
My greatest pet peeve about technology is that it often doesn’t take change well. I wish it was easy to put multiple accounts together, and to weed out any duplicates that occur in the process. Take contact lists, for example. Why is it that when I try to sync my Google contacts with my phone, I end up getting a whole lot of the same entries, instead of a clean list? I understand if they need to ask me about the merge if different versions of the contacts contain different information (such as one only has email and the other only has phone number, or the listed contact information doesn’t match). However, it’s just not that easy and I’ve had to manually go through and sort through the listings to correct them, which is quite tedious.
Another thing that totally baffled me recently is Apple IDs. They don’t always make it clear when you are making a new one, so I somehow ended up with two even though I meant to change my primary email address for my account. I did some research and they make it very clear that they do not merge accounts, so I had to figure out which account to keep as my main one. Why it is that they can’t combine your accounts with a data migration is beyond me. Perhaps I don’t understand enough of the coding, but nevertheless, this is a common issue that people have and I feel that it’s worth any trouble to create a good system to do so.
I also don’t see why user IDs can’t be easily updated as we wish, so we can change our minds as often as we want. After all, we go through life changes all the time, sometimes wanting a fun screen name, sometimes wanting a professional one, and sometimes just wanting one other than what we have. Why create an entire account just because of that? It would make so much more sense to keep all the information that has been associated with an account and just change the username you log in with or share with others.
It’s amazing that it has been so long and still these improvements that would allow us so much more control over our accounts are not something we can expect from any form of technology we choose to use. The pains of trying to get around it or fix it almost don’t even make it worth it either. Whatever happened to technology being able to make your life easier? It seems to be causing me a whole lot of (time-consuming) problems instead!
Toilet water
laelene Post in photo blog，Tags: animals, behavior, cats, pictures
14
September
2011
I’ve never seen Molly drink water and now I know why…
Two-toed slothness
laelene Post in video blog，Tags: animals, videos
13
September
2011
The life of a creature upside down and ten times slower.
Remembrance
laelene Post in general blog，Tags: 9/11, memories, opinion
11
September
2011
My, how 10 years have gone by. It’s hard to believe that it has been so long, yet it went so quickly. Before we know it, we’ll be another decade along. And while we will never forget 9/11 and the effects of terrorism have forever changed the course of history here in the US, the world must go on and so too, will we.
It’s so strange to look back. I feel like the 15-year-old sitting in math class that morning has nearly become someone else entirely. I even moved clear across the country in the year following 9/11. For the first three years of coming to California, the horror and memories of the footage we saw that day were fresh. Each anniversary, I’d show up to class dressed so patriotically it was silly. Those years I yearned for my old life in New York state and still identified as a New Yorker. I wanted to represent all who I knew were affected by the tragedy and show that I hadn’t forgotten, either.
As time went on, my identity as a Californian, an Angeleno, solidified and the thoughts of what happened in New York got filed away into my memory banks. Anniversaries were easier to handle and I didn’t always cry on the day anymore. This year I spent a quiet day with loved ones and since I don’t have a TV, have no idea what kind of coverage there was. I hope there was a lot though.
I’ll never forget the confusion our class felt as we heard the news, nor will I forget the look on my teacher’s face when she was told. It took us awhile of sitting around talking amongst ourselves to fully grasp the situation. When the school decided to let us go home for the day (which was only half through), I went home to sit in front of the TV with goosebumps as I watched again and again the terrible images.
I hope that we’ve learned enough as a country to prevent this kind of thing from happening again. I’m glad that we were able to get to Osama before today, for that can at least close one chapter of this saga. However, there is still so much to do and I hope we pull out of our struggles victorious and humbled.
Cop boots
laelene Post in photo blog，Tags: cars, observation, pictures, police
10
September
2011
If you’re observant, you might notice something interesting about this shot.
There's something about those boots that I find fascinating. I'd want to be motorcycle cop just to wear'em!
A stubborn victory
laelene Post in general blog，Tags: behavior, pictures, products, story, storytelling
09
September
2011
It’s been months and I’ve been looking for this hairbrush every time I go home. I knew that I had taken it out to use when I was here and though I searched high and low without success, I refused to give up. I like how it has wide teeth and is made of a fragrant wood. It’s also glossed and I think is even anti-static. Perfect for a quick brush-up in the middle of the day. I used to keep it in my purse, but then one weekend when I was hanging out at home, I lost track of it. Ever since then, I’ve been on the hunt.
Tonight I asked my mom about it again and she said she actually found a wooden comb while cleaning up. Unfortunately, she couldn’t remember where she had put it, so this sent us on a house-wide search for the elusive thing. As it turns out, she was referring to a smaller comb (the kind they give at hotels), which was sitting on the desk. Since I had already searched almost all of the house, I decided to keep going and flipped just about everything around. Then, I thought that I should check the pile of blankets and pillows on the bed upstairs, which I had used for awhile a couple of months ago.
Lo and behold, after lifting up a couple of blankets, I found it lying there, neatly hidden away! I’m really glad to have it back and will make sure to store it safely in my purse again. Yup, being stubborn does get me results.
Racing planes
laelene Post in video blog，Tags: cars, driving, experiences, lax, los angeles, planes, travel, videos
08
September
2011
Our shuttle to the satellite terminals at LAX had a little head-to-head with the planes on the runway. 😉
Floating pandas
laelene Post in photo blog，Tags: animals, observation, toys
07
September
2011
So cute! It's raining cherry blossom pandas!
Restaurants with bread
laelene Post in general blog，Tags: food, opinion, philosopher
06
September
2011
I believe that all proper restaurant establishments should serve bread (or some sort of snack/finger food). During my road trip with Philosopher this past week, I found that I would get antsy and slip into impatience as we waited for our food, if there wasn’t something to occupy my hands and mouth. It doesn’t cost much to offer, but the feel of a place improves so much when they provide me with bread!
It’s a similar thing for hotels with free wifi. I’m amazed at how many still charge for the service when it really has become more of a necessity, much like having towels and toiletries. Just because you can get away with charging for it doesn’t mean you should. In fact, by offering a connection for free, the value of your brand is elevated and consumers are much more likely to want to book with you rather than the place down the street where they charge per day or even hour.
When it comes down to it, wouldn’t you rather get that extra booking than lose it and charge a current customer for their internet? What costs more? Obviously you earn more with each room that is booked! Ah, but I digress. Back to bread.
Now while the bread won’t necessarily be a deal-breaker, it does make an impact on the perceived value of your restaurant. The higher the perceived value, the more you can charge and still have happy customers who feel their money was well-spent. So why not spend pennies to provide bread so you can earn dollars more per meal in the long run? Companies often seem so short-sighted, only caring about turning a profit, NOW. But that’s not how to build a sustainable brand!
