UpScale McDonald's?

I just watched a short video on yahoo about the new proposal/plan of McDonald's to upscale their restaurants. Apparently, they will be adding flatscreen tvs and changing the paint to a more muted palate. I don't know that I personally would care one way or another. The decor was not the driving factor for me to ever stop at a McDonald's. The times I have stopped, were always out of necessity. They went to a lot of trouble to enhance their menus some time ago, by adding really excellent salads with Newman's Own Salad dressings. Those are great. They taste good and are good for you. I know that I can go almost anywhere in the US and get something that is healthy and predictable for a low price. I find McDonald's to be very pleasant. It would be ok with me if they added those big screen TVs, but really, I don't go there to watch TV. I have a TV at home (or in my hotel room, if I am on the road.) I can get my meal to go. I'm not sure that what they are trying to do is really more than the routine face lift that all businesses go through to keep themselves looking trim and nice. You don't want your restaurant to look shabby and these days, a flat screen tv just isn't that expensive, especially if you are buying them in McDonald's bulk size purchases. Its ok for McDonald's to be aimed at the child's market. Thats fine. I think part of the appeal of Starbucks, is that there are very few children. Sometimes, you just don't want to deal with youngsters and I hope that McDonald's understands that their market is inherently different than Starbucks.

Chaos, the TV show

Sadly, it would appear that Chaos has been pulled from the air. Why??? Because the ratings weren't there? Its awfully soon to be judging a TV show for ratings when its only had a couple of episodes. It takes time to build a loyal viewership, guys! I loved that show, why you gotta be like this? Just run the episodes that have already been made, ok? I would love to see the rest of the show. The actors have done their jobs, the production value is there, the comedic writing is plentiful. Don't you guys get it, people really do like scripted shows! Its zany, cute, and a hoot to watch.

If they don't come back on CBS I really hope that someone like SYFY picks it up.

Orchid Fest Sacramento 2011

I went to the Orchid Festival at The Scottish Rite Center in Sacramento over the past weekend. Its a wonderful show with many photographic opportunities. Parking was free. Here is just a taste of what I was able to capture with my Canon 20D.

ABCs of Me

I saw this over at gingerbreadcake and I thought I would give it a go.

A. Age: too old for you to be asking.

B. Bed Size: Twin

C. Chore you hate: scrubbing toilets that really need it.

D. Dogs: I love dogs! If I lived alone, I would have one, but my folks are allergic.

E. Essential start to your day: Cardio, shower, and carbs, in that order.

F. Favorite Color: Bright yellow.

G. Gold or silver: Gold. (see above answer.)

H. Height: Not much, 5'2" I won't wear heels, thats not good for your posture!

I. Instruments you play: violin, piano. I studied classical music for 10 years, jazz and celtic folk music.

J. Job Title: Camera Operator, Owner.

K. Kids: Nope, don't have any. As Gingerbreadcake said, I would need a man first. Honestly, I don't see that happening any time soon.

L. Live: East of Folsom, rattlesnake country, rolling hills, ok, ferociously hard to run hills.

M. Mom's Name: Lola.

N. Nicknames: Sunshine. Mostly people just use my name.

O. Overnight hospital stays: None that I recall.

P. Pet peeve: people who leave the bathroom fan on all night, its a terrible noise.

Q. Quote from a movie: "That all depends upon your point of view." Obi Wan Kenobi tells Luke Skywalker in the forest during his training, trying to explain that Darth Vader is indeed Luke's father, even though Obi Wan had said that Aniken had been killed.

R. right or left: right.

S. Siblings: 5, want one? I will be giving them away in front of the grocery store in a brown cardboard box, the label will say Free to a good home.

T. time you wake up: when the sun is up.

U. Underwear: Of course, otherwise that would be gross. ewww.

V. Vegetables you disklike: licorice

W. What makes you run late: I don't. I'm early.

X. X-rays you've had: mostly feet due to breakage.

Y. Yummy food you make: bread pudding, gingersnaps, mac and cheese.

Z. Zoo favorite animal: I live in a zoo, I'm tired of the animals! Birds. I like birds outside, without the zoo.

Only one place

could produce such a hateful criminal, and I believe their king is Satan. This crime should not be on the bottom of the page. This deserves to be re-posted. If you believe in any kind of justice in the world, then pray for it. This 14 year old monster should never be allowed out. He should be tried as an adult and the sentence should be death. There are no two ways about it. That poor little girl did not deserve this. I don't know if he actually did it, but being found there is very damning evidence. DNA is likely to solve the case.

Cosumnes River Preserve

I went to the Cosumnes River Preserve today with my photography meetup. We enjoyed a foggy morning that soon became sunny with several different species of birds. Our hike was aptly lead by Jim Dunn.

"The Green Hornet"

It was a hoot! I really enjoyed the action scenes, they were very inventive. Kato is funny, clever and stole the show. I highly recommend that if you like comic book movies this is a complete roller coaster. The script is clever. I enjoyed the classy comedic performance by Cameron Diaz.

The only thing is the actor playing the hornet really reminds me of "The Ninja" on the podcast Talk to a ninja. Its the way he makes hand gestures. Is it the same guy? Anybody?