Charge me up before you go go

 Being a gadget girl has it's disadvantages.  Sure I can multitask in a single leap, make my way around the US like Lewis and Clark and keep up with family and friends with a touch of a button.  But without power, I am left in the dark, lost and no way to get a hold of anyone.  So power is of the utmost priority for me.  I am always in search of it and in my house, I am not the only one.

A common conversation in our house sounds like this:

Me:  "Anyone seen my iPhone chord?"

Daughter:  "Oh yeah, I took it because I left mine at _____ 's house."

Me:  "Well, let me have it back, please."

Daughter:  "But I haven't picked mine up yet"

Me: "Too bad...let me have it."

So we spend the next few days passing the cord back and forth. Until....she takes it to her friends house and forgets that one also. (sigh)

Then there is the second scenario.

Daughter: "Can _____ borrow your cord? She is spending the night but needs to get up for work in the morning?"  (note...we have alarm clocks in the house but no one uses them).

Me: "What about me?"

Daughter:  "Mom, she isn't going to take it and she is our guest." (sigh for me teaching her good manners)

Well this past holiday season, I decided enough was enough and I found these 4 way chargers from Brookstone.  I loved them so much that I bought one for each member of my family and my daughter's closest friends.  And as each one opened their gift, I told them to just keep this in your car/purse and you will never be powerless again.  I recently used it on a trip to Fort Worth.  You can charge pretty much any gadget with it and charge them in a variety of ways.  Which is great, since I have to charge my Iphone, my headset and my bluetooth keyboard.

The hotel conveniently had power outlets in the base of the lamps (no getting down on hands and knees and reaching behind the bed for a powersource...thank you Comfort Inn).  I just plugged the power into the base, connected the correct attachment and tada...I am charging.  

But I don't have to plug into an outlet, on the left you can see the car charger and to the right is the USB so that you can power via computer or other USB power source.  But that is not all.  Up to this point, it is pretty ho hum, right?  I mean sure, one gadget to charge several types of gadgets via several power sources, what is the big deal?

The big deal is the 9 volt batter you see in the picture.  You see, if you are not near any power source, can you say airport, beach or sight seeing on vacation, all you need is a 9 volt battery.  9 volt batteries can be found anywhere.  And if you have one, you have power for your gadgets?  Don't believe me?  Well just look.

This is my iPhone being charged by a 9 volt battery.  A 9 volt battery will fully charge your IPhone.  Ok, close you mouth. All of a sudden you know you need this thing.  I bought mine on QVC.  But you can buy it directly from  Brookstone.  

So if you are  a gadget girl (boy) and worried about being unplugged, you might like this gadget.  It does not charge my iPad. (booooo).  But I am ok with that.

So here is a question for you.  If you should lose your phone or it should lose charge, can you call someone?  Do you have any phone numbers memorized?  Are there any phone numbers you should have memorized that you don't?

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Paparrazi! Paparrazi!

Ok, call me addicted, but right now the flavor of the month, is researching anything photo/video.  Maybe it is my ADHD but I can focus, no pun intended, on a topic for days and consume as much information on the topic as possible. 

Last night I was listening to  Paperclipping Roundtable and Izzy mentioned photojournalism and Rangefinder cameras.  I had no idea these creatures even existed.  So what did I do?  I googled it and read more about it.  According to Digital Photography School a rangefinder camera is great for photojournalism because they allow you to be more stealth when taking a pictures in public or at an event.

Confused?  So was I!  So if you don't feel like you need all the little details of the rangefinder, here are some basic facts.

1. You use prime lenses only (so you don't zoom etc)
2. The view finder is not centered above the lens so what you see is not exactly what you capture.  (So don't use it for any closeups)
3. It has a mechanism on it that allows the user to measure distance between subject and camera.
4. But for me the best feature is that I can seem inconspicous at family events when I want to take candid pictures.
5. Ok, Ok....and I love the retro look.

However they are crazy crazy expensive so they don't even make the "want" list. They make my " in your dreams if you ever win lotto" list. 

However, on my journey to find an image for the GIF (iPhone tripod mount...not going into details about it...my excitement is what I have to say next.....

I found this iPhone Rangefinder!  It is an Iphone case that turns your Iphone (sorta) into a rangefinder phone.  You view through off center viewfinder, you can use lenses (you can buy case with lenses or without).  It has a place for straps so you can wear it around your neck.  The bottom has universal tripod mount thingy (ok...so I am still learning my terms). And it is just darn stinkin cute!



The iPhone Rangefinder at the Photojojo Store!

Wear around your neck!


The iPhone Rangefinder at the Photojojo Store!

Choose different covers!


The iPhone Rangefinder at the Photojojo Store!

Some of the other features are a Tripod mount on the bottom, magnetic lenses that attach to your lens, viewfinder and real shutter button.

Oh there is also an app at the app store called View Finder Classic that will calculate distance from subject.  It is 99 cents?  WHAT not free?  No, not free but close to it.

Now this will go on my want list! FYI....I have not been contacted by them or anything.  I just found this product and I wanted to share it.  If you have this, please leave a comment and let us know what you think of it? 

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W6D2 and the IPhone 3GS

So, I ran W6D2 yesterday. It was pretty uneventful. I must say, it is harder to run on my treadmill than it is to run anywhere else, including outside. I also realized I am looking forward to W6D3 because it is a straight run. Say what?!?!?! Yes, you read it right. I like getting into a rhythm and and just going. I don't want to start and stop. It is hard to get going again.



But this week and last week my thinking is kinda skewed. I am "squeezing" time to work out. Funny how I don't think I am squeezing time to brush my teeth or take a shower or watch Rate My Space. I don't want to lose my momentum. They say the busiest weeks at a gym are the first six weeks of a new year. People, trying to fulfill New Year's Resolutions, will usually stop after six weeks.



That is why I am glad I have all my online running friends, wonderful blogs to inspire me, my Nike + and my Polar F6. I am surrounded by motivation and encouragement.



But the best news, drum roll please, the new IPhone 3GS has Nike+ built in software. Yes, you read that right. If you run outside and like to use the Nike + but also like to carry your phone, now you can do both... in one device. That is right, apparently they saw my review of the Nike + and hating that it was not compatible with my Iphone and the acted immediately. I am kidding. But I am sure there are many Nike + users celebrating. Now if I can just convince my husband that a new IPhone is beneficial to my health and safety.

Nike also launched their new running site. I haven't played with it much but you can be sure that I will share any information that I can. Pin It

I just can't let go

Ok, here is why it irks me to lose it and run without it. Because I am a tracking freak. I want my Mini to show my last workout. You can't edit your workouts on Nike + so I can't go back and add it. It also won't show on my Goal ticker that I did the 2 miles. Two miles may not seem like much but for me it is a big deal.

Take a deep breath, let go and let God.

Ok so here is a review of the C25K application on Itunes. My bad, it is $2.99. It integrates with Facebook. By the way I am Rozette Peckham at Facebook. Search for me and add me as a friend. Just mention you came from SeeFluffyRun or Weight Watchers and I will let you in. So here are some of the Pros and Cons.

Pros

• You can make your own playlist
• It prompts you when to run/walk/cool down with a bell and voice
• It does a countdown for each interval (when doing 90 sec run, the screen will display a countdown from 90 secs)
• It gives you a halfway prompt (if you are running outside, this is a nice feature that tells you when to turn around)
• It keeps track of your runs
• If you need to start over, you can just reset and it will reset to W1D1
• If you were not able to complete a session you can edit that session as not done

Cons

• You cannot run another application, like MapMyRun so that you can track your distance
• It does not include GPS so it doesn't track your distance
• If you want to skip a song or need a power song to play, you can't control your music without turning off C25K, since you have to leave the application to get to Music
• The audible prompts do not get louder, so if you music is really really loud (and that is not good for your ears anyway) you may miss a prompt

Overall it is a great application to use if you want to use your own music. I am still waiting for that perfect application that does GPS and/or stride (like Nike +), has a chest band that keeps track of heart rate, that I can use C25K and allows me to play my own music. Until then, I am going to continue to look like the Bionic Woman with my HRM, my Nano for my Nike+ and my Iphone for safety and C25K and my personal playlist.

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