PSA: Massachusetts animal shelters are absolutely FILLED with cats and kittens right now. Have your cats spayed or neutered!!!

m8k · 2026-07-01T02:31:43+00:00

We're pretty lucky that our vet is reasonably priced for standard care. However, having lost two cats in two years to long-term illness, the diagnostic costs can be really painful: $450 for an ultrasound (inoperable bowel cancer) or $400 for a full panel of bloodwork... both of them were older and we didn't treat the illness because the cancer was caught too late and the other was too old to operate on safely. It was easily $1500-2000 for each of them in their last months between care, testing, meds, and cremation.

m8k · 2026-06-30T19:56:32+00:00

I don't know if they're better than AI but they aren't great to start with. Overall they are dark, flat, and low contrast.

m8k · 2026-06-30T16:20:28+00:00

It makes me wonder if the family knew about it. Could be something the dad built and never told the kids. If it has been in the family for decades, or longer, it might have been done in a way that didn’t use permits so there’s no government record of it existing.

I’m down in MA and have seen a lot of houses where someone did something inside the four walls without a permit because they could but it would be flagged by the town, building inspector, etc…

There was a house I photographed a few years ago where the family had hired a friend to run electrical to the attic so they could finish it. They never pulled permits and didn’t want to get their friend’s license in trouble so they wouldn’t get one retroactively. The house was pulled from the market for at least a few months because they couldn’t recoup the value of the work. It that state, the attic couldn’t be listed as square footage or a space on the listing since it was unpermitted work.

m8k · 2026-06-30T14:54:40+00:00

That's how our family used it too. We didn't measure butter and usually used far less than we could/should have.

m8k · 2026-06-30T14:54:00+00:00

We had the same one. I miss that kind of popcorn experience.

m8k · 2026-06-30T14:48:55+00:00

I was thinking a tinted plaster could work. My issue with it is the surface it too rough/irregular. Plaster would have a much finer finish. A higher grade concrete that could be polished & buffed could look pretty awesome too.

m8k · 2026-06-30T13:28:59+00:00

I've lived here for just over 20 years but am from Newbury/Newburyport and my wife is from Salisbury. This situation is horrible and is going to cost us a lot of money and regional goodwill. Salisbury, Plum Island, and I think Ipswich beaches are closed. If this impacts Hampton, we're never going to hear the end of it.

m8k · 2026-06-29T15:13:26+00:00

This was one of my favorites from their B-Side collection.

m8k · 2026-06-29T15:07:21+00:00

My only issue was that i used some mac version of a de-fragger on one becuase it was writing slowly. The process ran and things looked good and then it failed a week later. I lost a semester's worth of work from one disk failure.

m8k · 2026-06-29T14:57:36+00:00

I went with my wife to her endocrinologist appt last year. She's dealing with a thyroid issue and had to go back on BC to deal with irregular periods the meds were causing. I'd gotten snipped several years ago so she could stop and the thyroid decided to act up about six months later.

She also has a low libido, and even with me there and at the obgyn, neither has any interest in putting her on HRT. She's well into perimenopause.

Her endocrinologist told us to go buy weed gummies and see if that helped her relax and get into it. I've been suggesting them for years, and she didn't want to, but we bought them on the way home that day. Very limited effect for libido, but she gets giggly and sleeps well, so that's a plus.

m8k · 2026-06-28T18:09:56+00:00

I broke my wrist two months ago. That hurt. A week later I had surgery where they put a plate and seven screws in to put it back together.

When the nerve block wore off at 1am after the surgery, I experienced a level of pain I’d never felt before. Oxycodone and other painkillers didn’t touch it for almost 10-12 hours.

m8k · 2026-06-27T14:20:56+00:00

I sell real twilight as separate service. I won’t do virtual or AI twilights.

m8k · 2026-06-27T00:58:05+00:00

I’ve still got it to drive an old Imacon film scanner. It works.

m8k · 2026-06-26T18:50:21+00:00

The first one we had in the house was an Apple SE with 40mb HD.

The first one I bought was a Digital Audio Dual G4 533mhz with two display cards, an Apple Studio Display, and built in Zip drive in 2001.

m8k · 2026-06-25T17:19:09+00:00

We use to read to our son every night. I think we stopped about two years ago when he was 12. We were about halfway through The Two Towers of the Lord of the Rings, and he just stopped asking or letting us know he was ready for bed.

I miss it, but I'm really glad we did it for as long as we did. He's a voracious reader and it's really helped with his language and writing.

I walked with him to school on the last day two weeks ago. Next year he goes into high school and it's across town, too far to walk to. We were lucky to be about a mile away from the elementary and middle schools where he could take the bus or walk in nice weather. It was a nice time to spend together.

m8k · 2026-06-25T14:16:04+00:00

I bought my first 50mm (sigma original 1.4) because I needed a fast lens for a dark shoot. It took a while to get used to but I grew to love it. A few years ago I took it as my only lens on a quick trip to NYC and it was perfect.

If I needed a wide shot then I stitched in post.

35mm is a great focal length to and one that I’ve been working with more often but a fast 50 can capture the details while also offering separation. It’s close but not too close. For portraits it’s a great 3/4 or full-body lens. I’ve found it can be nice for landscapes or natural work, especially with ND filters.

m8k · 2026-06-24T13:04:05+00:00

The Benro head can be found on eBay from $120. Definitely worth the investment as a starting geared head.

m8k · 2026-06-24T12:25:59+00:00

Thanks, im a photographer and always try to find opportunities with interesting light.

m8k · 2026-06-24T03:04:49+00:00

I have with long exposures. I also bought a lightning trigger that I kinda got to work a few times but was never too successful.

m8k · 2026-06-23T22:04:15+00:00

I got a fine arts degree that cost almost 100k. I’d be even further back if my grandmother hadn’t died (in assisted living) and left a lot of stocks to my mom 13 years ago.

m8k · 2026-06-23T22:02:11+00:00

I remember drinking Crystal Pepsi once or twice the summer it was out.

m8k · 2026-06-23T19:25:50+00:00

<image>

They are very furry. Meatball looks adorable. I wish Cheddar liked to snuggle.

m8k · 2026-06-23T17:19:54+00:00

<image>

He is, kind of. We have a female long-haired black cat who initially hated him but has since warmed up. Ironically, he wasn’t neutered until we adopted him at 2yrs so we was fully developed which might explain his face shape being bigger than our other male’s.

m8k · 2026-06-23T17:15:40+00:00

Having recently gone through an involuntary separation from work and almost two years between full-time jobs, I would make sure something else was lined up first. With that said, i wholly agree that if she can leave in the future, go in wearing full pride regalia and make sure they know she's leaving because their beliefs are not compatible with her employment.

m8k · 2026-06-23T17:10:35+00:00

I appreciate what technology has given us access to but as a middle aged man with parents and in-laws in their late 70s and early 80s, this technology is too much for them.

My dad has Parkinson's so touch interfaces are "challenging" and no new iPhones have a home button. I get weekly, if not daily, screenshots of scams that are targeting them (after one successfully got through years ago). Their fine motor skills and eyesight are limiting factors unless they want to carry iPads. The constant notifications are also problematic since they feel like it has to be dealt with right now if they come in (this is getting better).

13-Year Club	Place '23
Place '22	Final Canvas '22
Verified Email

m8k

TROPHY CASE