oofda

my body is not happy with the things my mind is making it do.

so. tired.

I got around 5 hours of sleep all weekend, recovered, got 2 hours on the plane over here... and now... oofda.

bedtime.

legendary

las vegas was great. the end.

oh, and we had a nice room with a good view.

I've neglected you.

plans plans plans.

I like having them so that I don't have to follow them, but I can if I want.

I am going to have a very long weekend. I will see money, food, drink, boobs and basketball. Sin City. final four. Bachelor party.

Then I am going to tromp around europe for a while, maybe take some pictures.

as for the jury thing - long story short (maybe the full version some day)... they settled and released us, I haven't received my check yet.

done. settled.

I am switching banks. I have had 6 personal checking accounts. The only one I was happy with got bought out and changed their rules. I am now with Greenpoint Bank-I mean North Fuck- I mean North Fork... I spend over 100 dollars a year on fines. easily. they are fired. done.

I started asking my friends, "what bank do you use, do you like it?"

People like Washington Mutual. I thought it was just a clever marketing campaign. I sort of made up my mind after visiting their site... but then... BUT THEN... I called (the national number on the website) to ask what I needed to bring with me to start a new account... and a human immediatly answered the phone.

Think about that.

When was the last time you called a toll free number and a person answered? I was shocked. I was all ready to start pressing 1 for english and yelling, "OPERATOR!" over and over into my phone with very good diction. I'm joining the revolution. done.

WaMu forever.

side note

the moon is pretty cool.

I'll get back to the jury thing soon.

Chad Nicholon Photography

The new beta website is up.

Chad Nicholson Photography 0.2



I'll be very excited to get an HTML programmer to do it for real.

epic battle, part one

Jury duty.

It started with a notice. I responded. I received a second notice telling me to call a number the after 5pm on the day before the 2nd of March, 2006. I called and the recorded message told me that all jurors were required to come to the courthouse at 8:45am on the 2nd.

A very groggy chad shows up at the courthouse. I find the right room - it is a gigantic church like room - about 40 pews deep and 6 wide. Each pew can fit about 8 people scrunched in. people were not scrunched they were in molecule spacing.*

*I call it "molecule spacing" because of an example from sixth grade science, taught by Mrs. Edmuson (mrs. ed). We were all told to equally spread ourselves out in the room and stand still... this was an element or compound at its liquid state. We were told to "get cold" and all scrunch together (solid) and to "heat up" by run and bounce around the room (gas). I see people sit in the liquid state whenever they are surrounded by strangers -such as in the train (always a chair in between, some people choose to stand rather than sit between two people) and at urinals and the like.

This is when I realized that everyone in the room was a stranger, hundreds of strangers - people were automatically even and then, just as fast, created a society of strangers, all with their jobs and places. Talker, Joker, Reader, Fancy Dresser, Gigantic Painted Fingernails, Suit Guy, Helpless Non-English Speaker, Thug, etc...

We were then given out instructions to fill out our card that were were specifically told to fill out before arriving to court. Twice. We were told every thing twice. Sometimes three times, two or three times, we were told. Things were explained twice.

I was one of the very few 20 - 40 year-old white males.

We were told that there was another room that we could hang out in... in which we could hang out... in which our hanging out could be... anyway, I checked it out, there were better chairs and a window. At this point we were told to wait until we heard our name.

We were given a lunch break from 2-3. My choices were pizza, mcdonalds, burger king, sketchy burritos, and Friendly's. I chose friendly's. I chose poorly. you don't need any more details.

Like animals, we went back to our staked out temporary homes in the courthouse... because the humans go to what they know is safe.

My name was called and I went into a holding area for role call. We then followed the group to another room for jury selection. I followed in the rear... I am usually in the front or back of large groups - like tours, always in the front in tours - it is the best place to hear from. Because I was observing the back was the best place to view. However when we entered the Courtroom I sat in the front side, better view of all of the characters. They called more names.

My name was called sixth. I knew it would be called, I don't know why, I think I just wanted to be called.

We went to the jury box. I sat next to the fancy fingernail lady. She was phone receptionist for an insurance company, but I only found that out in a few moments.

widdaw bwuddah

he was born today.



you can send him an email.

you can visit his flickr.

you can see his blog.


Learn about lil' brudder via Strong Bad... he's got the heart of a champion.

SciFi Heaven

Some of you may not know, but I am a bit of a dork... nerd even. I'm ok with that. It started with the back to back marathons of Star Wars on TBS back in the days of the late 80's early 90's.

Today is friday, and nerds know that friday is our sabbath. The SciFi Channel has all of its programs today. Not only is there a 90 minute battlestar galactica season finally, but there is a Firefly marathon in the afternoon.

I love DVR, I needn't watch any of it at its allotted time, rather, I can play today and watch at my shows later. They are very good shows. if you have netflix, itunes, or DVR watch the shows from the beginning.

join us.

calendar

Usually my calendar looks empty up until a week before. Now I am booked for the next month. I have jury duty mon - thurs for the next two weeks or so (it can't go any longer than that, I say so) and then I have a bachelor party over a weekend and then I am off to Europe.

It is a family trip to Italy - Tuscany and Florence. Then I am thinking of traveling on my own for a while (I mean, I'm over there anyway, ya got to) So I think I will go to Ljubljan, Slovenia then Vienna, Austria then Prague, Czech Republic.

Then it will be the middle of april. weird.

jury duty in a few hours... I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow night.

sad.

the first name I learned in baseball was Kirby Puckett. He was the team leader in two world serieses. The man ended a world series with a home run. he then got glaucoma and had to retire early.

"His .318 lifetime batting average ranked as the highest for any right-handed batter since World War II, according to the site BaseballLibrary.com."

"Baseball Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett, who helped lead the Minnesota Twins to World Series titles in 1987 and 1991, died Monday after suffering a stroke over the weekend, the team announced. He was 45. In a statement posted on the Twins Web site, owner Carl Pohlad said it was "a sad day for the Minnesota Twins, Major League Baseball and baseball fans everywhere.""

He was a reason to watch baseball, collect cards, and want to play center field. I am not a huge sports watcher, but he was a true Minnesota legend.

oh frack.

Governor Mike Rounds on Monday signed legislation banning almost all abortions in South Dakota. The law will make it a crime for doctors to perform an abortion unless the procedure was necessary to save the woman's life -- but there are no exceptions for cases of rape or incest.

name change... again...

you can now call me "Juror number five".

So far the experience is hilarious and satisfying. details, as I legally can, soon.

I have to nap before listening to classical music or I may pass out during the concert.

mom and sis in town

... and I have to go to juror selection... I'll let you know how it turns out.

blog entry title.

sorry, I've been busy.

shooting portraits


plays


music


and more plays tonight. But, if I have to buy a new iPod soon will someone buy my old one?

Apple has issued a vaguely worded invitation to reporters and analysts, to "come see some fun new products" at Apple's Cupertino headquarters today. And, not surprisingly, the missive has kicked up a whirlwind of rumors.

oh, and one last tidbit... great idea for a kids movie, based on real life - a bad karate teacher tries to steal from his students, only to be foiled by his own teachings. brand new, never before done.

give me a break

sometimes it is the little treats that you give yourself that just make a day that much better.

today, Hershey's took away that joy, rather than give. I just wanted that satisfying mouth pop associated with the "kitkat" candy bar. no such luck.

Name Change

Back in 1994 when the internet was new we all tried to have original and slightly anonymous handles (or names). I was given "cnich" by my school, and I sort of liked that. It was taken... damn you AOL IM! So, I got "creative" and turned the C into "sea"... hence - sea - nich.

I have always pronounced it "see - nich". I realized people were pronouncing it "see-nick" (which is fine) and unfortunately "shawn-itch" or even referring to me as "sean". This was unacceptable. I don't get along with Shawns or Seans very well for some reason. The only other name that I have been called more than once is Todd. Though I have an uncle named Todd non-family members have even called me Todd before... weird... anyway...

So, my new internet handle thing is icopythat or I copy that. It was born because "copythat" was already taken so I tossed the less used "i" in front - bingo. Now I just have to buy the domain.

there you go, boring name change story (most of you won't even notice, it's just for my flickr account, but a big mental change - 12 years) We all must learn to brand ourselves, how annoying.

have some sea.

no nich for now.

IE cell phone mission

the second event I photographed yesterday was an Improv Everywhere Mission - Cell Phone Symphony. 100 uninformed Agents arrived with a ba g and cell phone. They were split into groups by phone make. They exchanged numbers and 50 went to S t r an d Boo k s tore. (no googling here) and 50 stayed back to call in a musical fashion once the ba gs were checked.

see my photo set here.

My first of three events

I'm photgraphing three different things today - here is the first:

poetry and curling

so, I was searching for pictures of patrick stewart's current girlfriend which lead me to this site and this picture. (below isn't the girlfriend)allow me to tell you a bit about her...

I have been writing poetry for eleven years. I am an active member of The International Society of Poets. I enjoy country dancing, drawing and writing. I have a wonderful husband and also enjoy living in the mountains... My hope is that through my poetry that I might be able to help someone who may need a little experience, strength and hope.

and her poetry...

The Coin In My Pocket

When I'm feeling down and afraid, I look to you and realize that it was not too long ago that my life was a charade.

When I see you I see hope that I haven't seen before. Many times I tend to remember the bad instead of the good, I endure the pain and feel alone once more.

I don't really trust. Many people have let me down and I finally found someone to believe in. I know now that believing in God is a must.

I used to envy those little girls who had the golden hearts with the locket. But I have something more precious than I've ever had before, and I think of it every time I feel the coin in my pocket.

have a nice weekend.



p.s. I am totally in love with the minnesotan curling twins on the olympics... so cute.

second - love

I have internet crushes. I like blogs, lots of blogs...and we aren't going to talk about friendster, myspace, or facebook and definitely don't get me started on Flickr... oh, pictures, you are so good to me. This Valentine's day I'll tell you a bit about a few of my virtual visiting grounds... my virtual neighborhood, if you will. Most of my neighbors are people I have met, sometimes after I have visited their blog.

We'll start chronologically... though, like the internet, it won't stay that way for long.

The first time I heard of blogs they were called web journals - livejournal and the like, way back in 2001. The first I remember reading was of a troubled and insecure college student. I found her link on a quirky "hot or not: Meet me" photo. (side note: I was living in a state where I didn't know anyone but my two bosses, their cats, and the cute blockbuster girl - please forgive the "hot or not" reference).

The next blog I was introduced to was written by Dave. This was around the same time TaTu had its moment of fame - I remember because he told me of these girls who would make out on stage. Thanks Mr. Moldawer. I see him 2 or 3 times a month. He retired from his blog and past the torch to someone I only knew as "sure thing". I was a hesitant reader at first. Then I met her at a Greenestreet Salon, and she wasn't so bad... and she turned into a pretty darn good blogger. I see her once every 4 - 6 months.

I started reading christian's blog following a link from Fancy Robot. I read his blog and he reads mine. I am sure he is a fantastic teacher, and though I have only met him once, I'm sure he's a fantastic person too.

One of the people who ran said Salon (now retired though it is still linked on the side... maybe I have hope...) is Mike Arauz. Though he doesn't have a blog, per se, he does have the best artistic taste of any person I know. I see him an inconsistent 3 times a month. He introduced me to Erin who has a friend named Amanda who has a humorous and honest blog. I've only met Amanda once at a wine tasting party. Erin also showed me the joy of Andy Milonakis whose blog recently died. It, like him, is/was funny. I've seen him perform once.

Mike also introduced me to Charlie Todd of Improv Everywhere. He, a funny and original person, knows a lot of funny and original people. I only see him when I take pictures for him, though I probably should just hang out too. He knows Kate and Kula. I see them on some missions.

Mike was in an improv group with the Brian and Eliza who date Robyn and Will, respectively. Robyn's blog is young - give her encouragement. Will runs a fantastic site - Channel 102, which I explained earlier. I see robyn and brian a few times a month. Will... well, we haven't hit the hug stage yet, but I think it might be there soon at the end of this month... though I may have to force it a bit.

My friend Kate and I are cutting out the middle man (the people that introduced us) and getting straight to the rockin'. Her blog is new, visit, link, love and then watch as we destroy the internet together.

Then I have a college friend or two - both live out of town and have not kept up their blogs.

A brother and a mom, also not so good with keeping up their blogs- bet very faithful readers.

A stranger, funny, talented... don't know how I found his page.

The roommate and his "makes a living from my blog" brother.

The uncategorizable Meljo. She is in philly... one day she will be closer.

One of my earliest readers from over the pond.

Then my flickr friends, Gene - who I met once at a meet up... I really should go to more of those, dorks must stick together. BrianVan, we have been at the same events and didn't even know it, is killing one of his blogs. The other brian has some very dense insightful entries. He lives in CA for now. Lauren is the person I know best for never meeting, though I haven't heard from her lately... computer problems and whatnot.

So, those are some of my blogging, talented friends. I have blog-crushes on you all. Happy Valentine's Day.

first - hate.

Dear Time Warner:

Remember our good times - when "Da' Best" package really was just that? Remember when RoadRunner Internet really was fast? What happened? ... Xanadu just needed to keep up with the times...

We bought a new LCD HD TV. she is a beaut. We asked you to come and install your highly (through self promotion) praised "HDTV Box". We waited a week. You installed the wrong box, we were promised DVR as well... you did not bring me the DVR, and this is where we began to part.

A week later, after installing our NYCTWC HDTVDVR Box our internet stopped working. We had to wait a week, until today, for you to show up and fix it. 10-2 is what you promised.

You broke your promise. When I called someone named "josh" answered and told me that you, "Canceled the visit at the door"... WHAT??? You came to my door, didn't ring the buzzer and chose to cancel the appointment?

"Josh" called me back, saying we could schedule another appointment. I'm addicted to you, RoadRunner, though I may hate NYTWC right now... I need you. I spoke strong words to "Josh", he said that his supervisor was working on getting me an earlier slot and that you would call me back.

You still haven't called. I'm very sad and angry. At the same time, I know that you are the only one for me. Satellite just doesn't do it for me. I know I spend too much on you, but you are the best. You have a monopoly on my digital world... and I hate you for it.

sincerely,

chad

and
Xanadu

PS we aren't even getting into how annoying it was to pay your bill or how you won't let me change my name from my other roommate. damn you.

I miss internet.

I can steal a little internet now and then from the neighbors, but mostly I have been watching the olympics on HD... it's pretty... and I can fast forward all of the commercials - except the coke ones with Ptolemy in them (he's the coach with the group of guys cheering).

the newest olympic sport- urban poodle skiing.

Internet is dead

ok... MY internet is dead. Until Tuesday, don't expect much from icopythat until then, sorry.

heart,

chad

p.s. I'm freaking out. I am addicted to the internet... at least I have HD DVR to entertain me.