Let's Make Some Art, Dammit

December 31, 2017. The last day of the year has come and gone, and I spent another pleasant day writing code. Other people paint, cook, do metalwork - I code. Next year: same as the last. Here's to photo-a-day 2018. http://ift.tt/2DGCPTN

December 30, 2017. I had a fun day coding, so fun I forgot to take a photo. So this is a late evening photo of Polly in the bedroom. The colour is off because the light is tinted a dark yellow. http://ift.tt/2lrcQJc

December 31, 2017. The last day of the year has come and gone, and I spent another pleasant day writing code. Other people paint, cook, do metalwork - I code. Next year: same as the last. Here's to photo-a-day 2018. http://ift.tt/2DGCPTN

December 30, 2017. I had a fun day coding, so fun I forgot to take a photo. So this is a late evening photo of Polly in the bedroom. The colour is off because the light is tinted a dark yellow. http://ift.tt/2lrcQJc

December 29, 2017. It was -20 or so today, so cold that even the Sun looks cold. This is Andrea dropping off the candies she made at my parents place. Sadly they weren't home so they'll have to thaw them before they eat them. No problem, though; the candies were made for cold weather. http://ift.tt/2Dww6LW

December 28, 2017. Today this building is known as the Aberdeen Pavilion, but for my entire time at Lansdowne Park it was known as the Cattle Castle, and that's how I think of it. This is the view from the movie theatre where we went to see Star Wars. It was OK, not as bad as I was expecting. http://ift.tt/2zIAUvD

December 27, 2017. Quiet day today. Did some coding on the gRSShopper editor. Why? Becuse it's fun. This is a weed I can see from the bathroom window. I've watched this weed grow up, flower and die in the snow. Circle of life. http://ift.tt/2pOrQWk

December 26, 2017. Beside my bed. Some cold medicine, because I'm still under the weather. Green gel for dry skin. Tim's mug for evening decaf. Light. Wood stand contains my CPap. Not shown is my mobile phone charger. http://ift.tt/2E2sLp9

December 25, 2017. One of the nice things about being back in the Ottawa region is being able to enjoy Christmas with family. So too again this year where we had a quiet, comfortable and warm holiday. http://ift.tt/2BER4rC

December 24, 2017. The first day of some relief from my sore throat, which cheered me up a lot. I spent the day working on gRSShopper forms. This is Alex at supper time watching my every move as I eat. http://ift.tt/2C81TpE

December 22, 2017. Day three of my miserable sore throat with no end in sight. Still puttering on the computer. This is the new pottery I bought at the craft show a few days ago. I did not place the sprig of broccoli in the centre, that's where it ended up after cooking. Nice warm comfort food. http://ift.tt/2BFibTk

December 22, 2017. Still struggling with a miserable sore throat. Strepsils and NeoCitran to the rescue. This is the view from my home office window. Snow. Cold. Bleah. Spent the day investigating Javascript frameworks. http://ift.tt/2pCY1Yr

December 21, 2017. One last look at the office for 2017, where I finished up by completing timesheets and updating code. And also dealing with a nasty sore throat that felt like I had swallowed gravel when I woke up this morning. http://ift.tt/2DRCKgV

December 20, 2017. The sun set today at 4:20 pm. This is after that. It's a 'false sunset' - an image of the sun that appears because of a refraction of the sun in ice crystals in the air. This tells me that tomorrow will be colder. It will also be the shortest day of the year. Today was spent puttering mostly with things related to the business intelligence project. http://ift.tt/2CQgvqa

December 20, 2017. The sun set today at 4:20 pm. This is after that. It's a 'false sunset' - an image of the sun that appears because of a refraction of the sun in ice crystals in the air. This tells me that tomorrow will be colder. It will also be the shortest day of the year. Today was spent puttering mostly with things related to the business intelligence project. http://ift.tt/2CQgvqa

December 19, 2017. I was in Gatineau today to do a workshop with the people at CSPS where we talked about business intelligence, data analytics, KPIs, and such. On the way out I spotted what was probably intended to be a reindeer but to me looked much more like a moose. http://ift.tt/2kSCjKG

December 18, 2017. This is the office as I left this evening (I work in the building on the left). Today I spent the day finishing my analysis of CSPS documentation, looking for entities and properties being used to describe their work and its outcomes. Yes, this is fun work for me. A lot less fun was the commute through pretty miserable conditions. http://ift.tt/2ktXD9F

December 17, 2017. I read a blog post today wondering about the role of pens in or digital world, and it inspired me to take this photo of the pens I collected at the recent Online Educa Berlin conference. Today was a working Sunday; I spent the day figuring out how to revamp the gRSShopper forms so they're responsive and yet still Ajax. zero lines of code written, but I learned stuff. http://ift.tt/2kQn4Sn

December 16, 2017. We went in to the EY Centre for the Christmas Craft Fair (*might not be its official name). We got some catnip toys for the cats and some pottery for me (so I can go back to having soups for supper, which I stopped doing when my last bowl broke). You'll see the pottery in a future photo, no doubt. This is the 3rd place winner in the gingerbread house competition, but it was the winner in my eyes. http://ift.tt/2Co3y6P

December 12, 2017. We're having a bit of a snow event, nothing major, but enough to slow the highways to a crawl and cause a dozen fender-benders. This is the scene on Anderson Road as I wait for traffic. http://ift.tt/2yifOTU

December 11, 2017. After a series of eleven photographs Alex has decided he's tired of posing. This is a yawn, not a roar. But it's also indicative of the way a cat will feign boredom to disguise interest. Cats are very dishonest. Unlike dogs. http://ift.tt/2Aw4Gc5

December 10, 2017. I woke to snow on the ground, but the geraniums are thriving, which makes me happy. I spent a quiet day reading stuff online, catching up on some email, and playing No Man's Sky. Another early night. I watched Titus's Special Unit along with some Walking Dead. http://ift.tt/2Asn9pT

December 9, 2017. Spotted in Berlin's Tegel Airport as I waited for my early morning flight. I looked it up and the Red Baron was shot down in early 1918, so this is close to the 100 year anniversary. I flew Eurowings to Brussels and thence on Air Canada to Montreal. Decent flights throughout, and I was home by 3 pm. Cue 16 hours of sleep. http://ift.tt/2yfAMmp

December 8, 2017. This was the best of the sessions I saw at the conference (my own excepted of course ;) ). Wilfred Rubens chaired a panel with Marc Prensky and David White on innovation and learning outcomes.Lucid, engaging discussion. I spent all of Friday at the conference, worked the trade show booths, did a couple of interviews, and had a number of informal conversations. Another early night because I had a bit of a stomach bug and because I had a 4 a.m. flight the next morning. http://ift.tt/2AsLOKW

December 7, 2017. Gave my Spotlight talk in the morning (I skipped the opening plenary so I'd be prepared), had lunch and then dashed out to KaDeWe to pick up something for Andrea (which turned out not to be in stock). I was feeling a bit under the weather after so I got an early night and was asleep by eight. No party for me this year. http://ift.tt/2yfyuDF

December 6, 2017. Today I was completely occupied with my workshop. I'm a bit disappointed that only 9 people came to it, but it was experimental and very tech-oriented, so I'm not overly surprised. My project top install gRSShopper on a Vagrant box and share it with participants was successful, mostly (the major cause of failure was administrative restrictions on corporate computers. Pictured is the speakers' reception in the evening, but I didn't stay long as I was pretty exhausted. http://ift.tt/2Au1Jcb

December 5, 2017. The day consisted mostly of a flight from Tunis-Carthage airport (where this photo was taken) to Berlin. I worked on my virtual box on the airplane. Then I went to the Christmas Market at the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church at Breitscheidplatz in Berlin (where I go every year I'm at Online Educa Berlin) to pay my respects and to have some Berliner currywurst. http://ift.tt/2BcYEwq

December 10, 2017. I woke to snow on the ground, but the geraniums are thriving, which makes me happy. I spent a quiet day reading stuff online, catching up on some email, and playing No Man's Sky. Another early night. I watched Titus's Special Unit along with some Walking Dead. http://ift.tt/2Asn9pT

December 9, 2017. Spotted in Berlin's Tegel Airport as I waited for my early morning flight. I looked it up and the Red Baron was shot down in early 1918, so this is close to the 100 year anniversary. I flew Eurowings to Brussels and thence on Air Canada to Montreal. Decent flights throughout, and I was home by 3 pm. Cue 16 hours of sleep. http://ift.tt/2yfAMmp

December 8, 2017. This was the best of the sessions I saw at the conference (my own excepted of course ;) ). Wilfred Rubens chaired a panel with Marc Prensky and David White on innovation and learning outcomes.Lucid, engaging discussion. I spent all of Friday at the conference, worked the trade show booths, did a couple of interviews, and had a number of informal conversations. Another early night because I had a bit of a stomach bug and because I had a 4 a.m. flight the next morning. http://ift.tt/2AsLOKW

December 7, 2017. Gave my Spotlight talk in the morning (I skipped the opening plenary so I'd be prepared), had lunch and then dashed out to KaDeWe to pick up something for Andrea (which turned out not to be in stock). I was feeling a bit under the weather after so I got an early night and was asleep by eight. No party for me this year. http://ift.tt/2yfyuDF

December 6, 2017. Today I was completely occupied with my workshop. I'm a bit disappointed that only 9 people came to it, but it was experimental and very tech-oriented, so I'm not overly surprised. My project top install gRSShopper on a Vagrant box and share it with participants was successful, mostly (the major cause of failure was administrative restrictions on corporate computers. Pictured is the speakers' reception in the evening, but I didn't stay long as I was pretty exhausted. http://ift.tt/2Au1Jcb

December 5, 2017. The day consisted mostly of a flight from Tunis-Carthage airport (where this photo was taken) to Berlin. I worked on my virtual box on the airplane. Then I went to the Christmas Market at the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church at Breitscheidplatz in Berlin (where I go every year I'm at Online Educa Berlin) to pay my respects and to have some Berliner currywurst. http://ift.tt/2BcYEwq

December 4, 2017. I spent the day working on gRSShopper in a box. This was my view of Tunis outside my window this morning, which was all I saw of the city. In the end, though, I made my code work - it felt so good at the end. http://ift.tt/2BHGNLF

December 3, 2017. Arrived in Tunis this afternoon, took a short walk around, and settled in to watch the last of the new Star Trek episodes. http://ift.tt/2kkaUo1

November 2, 2017. Final day of the conference in Hammamet, Tunisia. Attended the conference in the morning, then was witness to this arm wrestling match at lunch. With the conference closed, I spent the afternoon sleeping. Caught up on some Star Trek episodes in the evening. Then more sleep. The hotel is full of people today, not just from the conference, but as a result of people vacationing for the weekend. http://ift.tt/2idaoUN

November 2, 2017. Final day of the conference in Hammamet, Tunisia. Attended the conference in the morning, then was witness to this arm wrestling match at lunch. With the conference closed, I spent the afternoon sleeping. Caught up on some Star Trek episodes in the evening. Then more sleep. The hotel is full of people today, not just from the conference, but as a result of people vacationing for the weekend. http://ift.tt/2idaoUN

November 30, 2017. Conference day today all day in Hammamet. I attended talks in the morning, including this one by Papa Youga Dieng, from Senegal, from the OIF, who I've known for a number of years now. He was the motivator behind our MOOC in French on open educational resources in 2014. Accomplishments: - slides and audio for my talk Applications, Algorithms and Data: Open Educational Resources and the Next Generation of Virtual Learning http://ift.tt/2iwSPms

November 30, 2017. Conference day today all day in Hammamet. I attended talks in the morning, including this one by Papa Youga Dieng, from Senegal, from the OIF, who I've known for a number of years now. He was the motivator behind our MOOC in French on open educational resources in 2014. Accomplishments: - slides and audio for my talk Applications, Algorithms and Data: Open Educational Resources and the Next Generation of Virtual Learning http://ift.tt/2iwSPms

November 29, 2017. I got a lot of sleep and woke up around 3:30 a.m., which sets me up nicely for "jet lag day" for today and the conference starting tomorrow. My room faces east toward the sea so I was able to watch the sun rise over the Mediterranean this morning. It's off-season here so the hotel and the entire town are almost empty. It is odd being the only customer in the medina. http://ift.tt/2j2WYLG

November 28, 2017. During a layover in Frankfurt I was browsing around and surprised to see three angels setting up shop outside the Duty Free. I hung around to listen for a bit and take this photo. Arrived in Tunis on tome and after a shortish drive down the coast arrived in Hammamet. It's off-season for this resort so it's nearly empty. Now to go to sleep for 16 hours. http://ift.tt/2Bm7wfP

November 27, 2017. Departure. Drove to Montreal and got on the plane for Tunisia. That was basically my day, though I did a bunch of setting up (downloading files, preparing posts, etc) to prepare. This is a new (?) sculpture in Trudeau airport in Montreal. http://ift.tt/2AiWSJR

November 26, 2017. We drove into the city to do some errands before my departure, including getting our annual flu shots at the St. Laurant Shoppers (our regular Shoppers ran out of vaccines). http://ift.tt/2j2Bu1r

November 24, 2017. Today's photo is a blast from the past. Andrea was rooting through some old boxes and found this - it's my ID as a volunteer at the Canada Games in Brandon, Manitoba, in 1997. I love my access code - C.P.U. - which gave me entrance to the media room, rugby competition, and field hockey competition. I didn't do much in the rugby competition, where I was supposed to help with media (they did not want my help)) but I was the timekeeper for a large number of field hockey games. http://ift.tt/2AkzYSo

November 24, 2017. This is what it looks like when I leave the office these days. I like the way the little alcove looked lit up by the light and frames by the tree - I wanted to frame it a bit differently but shooting with a phone limits your options. I played around quite a bit with Jupyter Notebooks today, as well as the Python IDE. Good session playing No Man's Sky this evening (it is dramatically better than the first release). http://ift.tt/2hQt5xq

November 22, 2017. I was at the School of Publish Service today getting set up from a new research project and one person had these paper roses in her office. Nice! http://ift.tt/2A51X80

November 21, 2017. Had a couple of meetings today and puttered with Scrapy, a python aggregation platform. Back to Costco on the way home; this is a picture of the parking lot an bridge to the parking lot at the Brick. http://ift.tt/2mRymd7

November 20, 2017. The time changed while I was flying back from China with the result that now i see the sunrise when I get up in the morning (it's also dark when I drive home). Easy Monday; got a bunch of newsletter bounces cleared off the books, caught up on email, made some small contributions to IEEE groups, and wrote a short article. Accomplishments: - wrote A Quick Definition of Neo-Liberalism http://ift.tt/2iBIYZl

November 19, 2017. Where would we be without cat photos? Quiet Sunday indoors paying bills and catching up on paperwork. Snow and cold outside. This is Alex in the box in my office. http://ift.tt/2B00flA

November 18, 2017. It didn't take long for or indoor geraniums to throw out the first bloom. Nice inspiration as we're having a blast of winter weather this weekend. Managed email and played No Man's Sky for a while. Spent some time on the spin bike, first time in a while (have to get into the winter cycling routine so it's not such an uphill climb in the spring). http://ift.tt/2ja1UNY