HE'S BACK!

Been laying low blog-wise while I try to learn more "stuff". Did the Camtasia video training this spring,which I unfortunately let lapse and now need a refresher course. This summer we migrated to new software and e-mail, so I had to get training for those as well. We had a "regime change" as well with a new boss from Iowa. I started working in our Historical Collections Archive for a couple hours 3 days a week doing a variety of things. Started out slow with filing newsclippings , then some moving and storing before getting to the good stuff- they are teaching to use Photoshop software and an electronic scanner. I have already learned how to scan some old pictures (glass slides no less from the 1920s), and am currently scanning a manuscript page. I am on tap to help with the digitization of our historical articles collection-which is different from the Archive office- and they even want me to spend more time there. I am OK with some time but not half-time like they mentioned.
My Facebook account is finally paying off. In the last week I have been found by 2 of my old high-school buddies!
The Project continues apace. Still finding lots to dig up on Germans fighting for Poland and Poles fighting in Western Europe in the 1600s. A lot of Polish bigwigs and engineers and artillerists especially found themselves in the West fighting under the likes of the Great Conde and Turenne. The love affair between the Polish kings and the Habsburg Emperors (lots of intermarriages) began to die in the 1640s. The Poles had spent most of the 30 Year's War allowing the Habs to recruit troops, with the Polish Cossacks making an especially frightful reputation for themselves; from the days of taking the Transyklvanians besieging Vienna in the rear(1619) to the Palatinate (1620's), invading France (1630s) , and crushing rebellion in Catalonia(1640s). Then the Poles started cozying up to the French as part of a marriage as King Ladisals(Wladyslaw) around 1645, when he nailed Marie Louise Gonzaga de Nevers. In return he allowed recruiting of a couple of regiments which helped capture Dunkirk from the Spanish in 1646. When she arrived in Poland she found she had to switch her name around as the locals thought it was sacrilege to try to one-up the Mother of Jesus with the first name Mary. A sort of "EWW!" moment occurred a few years later(1648) when Hubby died and she ended up having to marry his brother when he took over. The French connection was kept up when the future King Jan Sobieski married one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting, Marie d'Arquien "Marysienka" which was a scandal in its day.
Am still bravely slogging through Polish, Italian, Rumanian, and Hungarian sources fleshing out info. Nailing down details on people like Jan (Johann) Weiher, who led a regiment of German mercenaries for the Poles in Sweden (1593), then Hungary for the Emperor against the Turks(1594), andfor the Poles again in Moldavia (1595) and Sweden redux (1598).
Just last night doing some research on the Long War vs the Turks(1593-1606) I finally found out the back story of the Transylvanian Trabant(Drabant) regiments, mounted outfits which were color-coded for Hungarians, Szeklers, and Saxons(Germans); the 3 major recognized population groups( the Romanian or Vlach-speakers got no such love).
This summer I had to take extra time off because the bosses said I would lose vacation time otherwise. Go ahead, break my heart! For a while there I "had" to take Fridays off. I also got to go to the coast for a business conference with a co-worker. Got an expense-paid stay at Newport. Got one of my rare 2-week vacations the first half of August. Made sure to get out of the house at least once a day and roam around. Played Mall Rat a little bit. Some banger cranked off a few rounds a couple doors down from my place but didn't hit anybody thank goodness. That is the first bit of foolishness where I live in a long time.., Got to see the Red Bull Flugtag which was a blast. All the frat boys and engineering nerds got together to make "airplanes" which they would push up to a huge stage erected over the River, where they would do a chorus line dance for the crowd before pushing their contraptions off the stage to plummet to a watery doom. About 60,000 people were there! I liked the Conestoga wagon with "Oregon or Bust" on it best.

BREATHLESS

Almost too much to handle for one brain. I now have more projects using the Camtasia software. Stumbling on some basic stuff. Been mucking about aimlessly trying to figure out getting my Excel project into a Word doc. I was successful, but there has to be an easier way to go about it.
The summer conference registration is done. One of the workshops I'll be attending will actually be about the bells and whistles for this blogging stuff. Did my Digital TV conversion with George's help and am loving the clarity. Finally am getting to actually SEE all the channels I have supposedly been getting all these years!
Been updating the old CV for the new Boss who comes in this summer. Been wracking my brains for anything and everything that could show my best foot forward. It actually sounds pretty good! I used to leave the "Extracurricular Activities" section blank til I realized that I HAVE done all the "Bougie" things like Little League, Scouting, Learning the Clarinet, Model and Stamp collecting, Debate, Writing for the School Paper, Debate, G.E. College Bowl, etc etc etc. Just wasn't very good at any of it, that's all!

EXCELSIOR !

Learning curve going up once again as I endeavor to learn new things. Been creating more docs for work projects, and with the new "regime change" pending am busy gathering statistics up the wazoo to justify my existence. Live and Die by the numbers.....
As a reward for my doggedness in the Lib Web 2.0 classes the organizers have awarded me my own 1 gigabyte thumb drive! I promptly put that to work last week in an afternoon seminar called "Camtasia", which taught us the fundamentals of screencasting. So now I can honestly say that I have "done a video" by creating a mock-up of a training segment for the library.
Just got the sign-up info for the Library Support Staff Seminar to be held in Newport this July, so it looks like I will be going for a night out on the coast. Been a couple years since my buddy George and I took a trip to see the Hatfield Acquarium and the Air Museum up the coast. I still smile thinking about how the sea lions like to cruise through the water on their backs!
Had good fortune recently. My storage rental came due in the middle of the week(July 8) and I spaced it out totally. I usually sign up for several months at a time. So I figure that maybe now is the time for me to hit George up for a trip to storage with his truck and just get the hell out. In any case I was going to go up there on the 12th one way or another. So that Saturday I get a call from James and Shirley that George is there and this might be the time to go for broke (instead of going broke paying ro the rental) and yank the stuff. He was willing and we were done in an hour and a half max. Didn't even have to pay any late fees. They just said either pay for another month or get out, so I said OUT!
My studies continue apace. Cruising through the 30 Year's War looking for my Polish boys.Sometimes they are fighting in the big battles, like Ernst Donhoff at Lutzen 1632, while others are fighting for the French farther west, like the Rosens who came over with Bernard of Saxe-Weimar in 1635 and settled in Alsace One of them, Conrad, was KIA in Ireland 1690 as Lt. General of the Jacobite forces. Trying to think of a scaled down version of "The Project" that can be published in bits and pieces.

Glory Be!

 

 

3-14-08 Trying something new. Just had to migrate to the MS Office 2007 software yesterday and am experimenting with a new feature which will let me post to my blog via my Office documents. About to wrap up my Library 2.0 class which got me started with this blog in the 1^st place. Think I'll trash my LinkedIn account as I see no reason for it when I have Facebook with my blog incorporated into it. Also thinking of taking off my JSTOR application since my library only is affiliated with it in some titles which are no good for my research purposes. Will still have to use ILL to access any Journal articles which I need. But I still can learn to add those cites to my new Refworks account. I have been going great guns creating a bib for my 17^th century history project. Also had to figure something out in a jiffy on how to save stuff because I had to purge my hard drive for the migration. Had to use 8 CDs to transfer files! Now I use Refworks for the bib cites, put the smaller text files in my Google Docs and larger stuff like E-books into Google My Library.

I am also using Facebook to join some more work-related library groups and a local Portland regional network. That's about as far as I have gotten in my "reach-out-and-touch-someone" efforts . I also opted for a Searching European libraries application which looks promising. Got an on-line to-do list via Ta-da! Time will tell its usability.

Am finally trying to get serious with my much-needed exercise regimen. Psyching myself up for actually going walking around the track at the park across the street from my apartment complex. Bought a 3lb hand weight to get some tone in my arms, which I am getting better about doing on a regular basis. My diet needs tweaking. My salad making has ground to a halt the last couple of weeks, which is not good. Since I usually don't get home until after 9pm, I am more inclined to focus on the main course instead. Cutting down my sugar intake is still on the menu. I have had about 4 liters of pop (Orange Fanta, Dr. Pepper, etc) sitting on my pantry shelf for about 4 months now, but I am still fighting my Ginger Ale jones. Am trying to substitute sugarless soda water for my carbonation fix when adding it to my juice. Managed to get to a outlet store out near Jantzen Beach where I scored a rack of that stuff for cheap ( 21 liters). I have taken to getting larger amounts of my meat at the discount stores I go to regularly now, and freeze most of it. Got chicken, Pork chops, steak and burger, as well as a nice pork roast. I snag roasts now when I see a good deal, which I never used to do. Forcing myself to get into the fresh fruits again so I can cut down on the juice. I have noticed that I drink a lot more fluid when it is in the form of juice & soda than water. I still have a rack of water, which I should probably steel myself to use-hell, even tap water- and save the juice-soda thing as occasional rewards. Been able to kick the candy habit pretty much. Got stuff that's been around for months- better toss it. Chips too, unless wheat thins ( whole grain ) which I put avocado on.

Been writing buddy John in Hawaii and have been trying out my new-fangled talents cutting and pasting pics from the web or my flickr account. Had a "Duh!" moment when I finally out a good way to research some of my boys directly from the Polish Wikipedia site. They give a lot more info, including their children and spouses than the English version. I should try the Hungarian version for my Magyars. I already use the German version frequently.

Softly, softly, catchee monkee....

Things slowing down a bit as I try to absorb some of the things I have been learning. Added some family pics to the blog and a map of states I have been to. Have been interacting with posts to IMDB more often. Am going to open a thread on foreign war movies. Tried doing a mashup for class that was supposed to work but the software betrayed me.... But I did succeed with GPS software to find my apartment complex here in town and gaze down from space on my friends' car. THAT was impressive.
Came across an awesome source for my 17th century studies project. Currently working on foreigners serving with Polish army, got my hands on a book detailing the composition and organization of the Royal Guards formations. The scales falleth from mine eyes.... Most all "my boys" are there and then some.....

statemap

statemap
Originally uploaded by colby.jeff

States I have visited.

Hortense Martin Bowden 1916

Hortense Martin Bowden 1916
Originally uploaded by colby.jeff

Mother of my mom's Dad. She doted on me. Very status-conscious. Always wore furs and drove a cherry-red Lincoln Continental.

Emily Bradford Secrist Grandmother

Emily Bradford Secrist Grandmother
Originally uploaded by colby.jeff

Emily was my mother's mom. She died tragically when my mother was only 12 from meningitis.

WHEW!

Things get more complicated all the time! I have been cross-referencing items to and fro, from here to Facebook, LinkedIn, and Flickr. Got an account on Booksie to post some stuff and get my Author Hambone on. Nice friendly group. Half a dozen folks dropped in to say howdy before I even wrote my profile, much less post anything.... Finally got an old poem on and am gearing up for a short story I have been wanting to do for literally YEARS. But the URL they gave me did not translate so it doesn't show on the other sites yet. Am working on that. Just got a pic from my flickr account here on the blog.
Trying to work on the Mom and Beach projects but will need to scan them, as just taking pics of pics did not go so well. Something more to learn... but am also trying to get an old pic to transfer to the catalog group, and I think the picture I found will upload well enough to get the point across. Also have a Google Docs thing started, and am investigating getting my History Freak going and write some articles on Military History Online.
For work I have to sign up for some Excell classes. I might even being going to the Coast this summer on a work-related seminar! Woo-hoo! Also have been mouthing off more on IMDB and intend to start some threads on foreign war movies I have seen over the last couple years. Ready to Rumble!

100_0033

100_0033
Originally uploaded by colby.jeff

experimenting again!

EUREKA!

Lord am I a busy bee... Among other things I have been figuring out how to create accounts on Facebook and LinkedIn and have been adding photos and personal info there. Have also been adding groups to my Flickr account and editing my now all-boring-but -original photos as I slowly get a handle on my digital camera. Had to replace the Lithium batteries and deleted all but the most recent stuff so I can focus on my Mom and Beach House projects. Recently dug up a photo of me at the de-commissioning ceremony of the OHSU Library Card Catalog back in 1989 when we went on-line. I am in full Hippie mode with long hair and beard. I will be posting that to a site on Flickr specifically dedicated to card catalogs. Talk about a niche!
Have not been neglecting my history project on cultural confrontation with the Muslim world in 17th century Europe. Been trying to get more and more info on German regimental commanders DEFENDING Poland rather than INVADING it. The data base is growing, but as it is in Polish, it is for leisurely Sunday and Holiday translation down time. My new Polish dictionary is getting a work-out, along with my existing German, French, and Hungarian.
Just bought and Italian dictionary as well. This will help me with data I have been finding about Italian commanders fighting the Turks in Hungary. The Pope sent 3 expeditionary forces to help Kaiser Rudolf against the Turks there during what was called the "Long War"(1593-1606), in 1595, 1597, and 1601. All the commanders seemed to the be the nephew of some Pope past or present. They all spent the last 20 years fighting religious wars against Turks, North African corsairs, or Dutch and French Protestants.
Got a new doozy of a factoid in the How-in-the-heck did-he-find- THAT? corner. Some of this stuff just comes whizzing out of left field so to speak. Like about 6 months ago I was trying and trying to dig up something on the commander of the Courbon Dragoons fighting Turks in Greece for Venice c. 1687. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Then all of a sudden I got a hit in a history of Venetian Opera, of all places. Way, way down in the small print is a dedication of an operatic piece to one Nicolas Grimaldi, Marchese de Courbon, Lt. General of All Light Cavalry of the Most Serene Republic of Venice. That's the family that runs Monaco.
Today's masterpiece of What-the Heck concerns a Scottish mercenary by the name of Andrew Goldie-Gowdy, who was running amok in Hungary and Poland in the 1650s. After fascinating little tidbits here and there, which had his name spelled variously Andreas von Gaudi by the Germans or Andras Gaude by the Hungarians, I finally got his back story where? In a history of Certified Public Accountants!! Zounds! That's it for now. Duty calls.....

Forward, March!

Trying to get a handle on flickr and posting photos, which in turn is getting more into my own (still infant) photography skills. since flickr is supposed to be for original photography and all I had were practice photos for class, i am trying to get some original work to post. spent Xmas snapping away at a friends house and my own new apartment, and learning to upload/download from the camera to my computer and thence to my flickr page. so far, so good.
This has led me to try to be a bit more ambitious, which is having mixed results. am trying to have a go at making a memorial poster of my Mom, who passed about 5 years back. trying for an arc of photos, a life's progress, from infancy to old age concept. just working out the kinks now. am also trying to get a folder of photos from the old family homestead on Balboa Island CA, where I grew up in the late '50s. will be sending them to the local historical society there, since I have scraped up a number of stills from early family time from c. 1913-60.