SanDisk, Apple and IpadPro No Go

We have several apple devices - iPhones, ipads, minis, pros. I wanted to put all of the photos that are on the phones - especially the really old phones - as well as the photos on a few thumb drives - on to a single item. So I got a SanDisk drive to do just that and spent a LOT of time getting all the photos moved over to it. I’m not the most technically capable person, but thought this was a great option to save - in particular -our overseas trip pictures. Aside from this arrangement I now save current photos to amazon prime. I’m still having difficulty understanding the Apple Icloud option. So I wanted to view my old photos that are now on the SanDisk thumb drive on my new iPad Pro. It’s a larger device and I can download items directly to it if I need to. I could also mirror the photos using Apple TV if I just wanted to look at them on an even larger screen, but that doesn’t solve my problem. So I searched around the Apple website for a connector/adapter and couldn’t find anything. During our morning walk at the Mall this morning we stopped at the Apple store to get some hands on advice. But, this didn’t work either. They said what they have may not be compatible with the SanDusk thumb drive but I could buy one and return it if it didn’t work. I’m not really sure why it wouldn’t but decided not to bother. I do have a work around but it is annoying. I really like my iPad Pro and Apple Pencil, but I really hate the connection port. So I’ll spend more time searching for a solution. There’s got to be something out there that works? Any thoughts?

Constipation - An Unpleasant But all Too Common Problem

You could say I inherited it from my mother. Or, you could say it’s caused from having abdominal surgery. Or, you could say having estrogen eliminated from my daily medication regimen and taking blood pressure pills for forty years caused it. Or maybe taking calcium pills is the culprit. Whatever the reason, having constipation is dreadful. No, it’s not a life threatening disease, but it gets to the point where you have to plan your life around it - and it’s very uncomfortable. The medicine drawer is packed with so much prescription junk no wonder your system gets messed up. And it doesn’t matter how much I walk every day, or exercise, or eat fruit, or drink water. So my arsenal includes softeners, stimulants, pills, and suppositories. An every sixth day diuretic helps sometimes but can’t be depended upon - and every hour trips to the bathroom make it hard to plan anything on those days. So the latest addition to the mix is Miralax. It’s a recently made non prescription powder that can be added to any drink. I’ve tried it here and there and it seems to be effective, but I’m never sure when and how often to take it. When I was younger we had to plan our trips around my monthly curse because it was so debilitating. Now in my senior years it’s just another nuisance. I used to be astounded by the size of my mother’s medication bag whenever she came to visit. Now I know why. But I am so very thankful because I know that things could be so much worse. No wonder there are so many ads on TV about it! 

Apple IPad Pro with Pencil

I’m not sure how old my iPad is, but I’ve been using it primarily to paint custom pet portraits using the sketchbook pro app. The sad thing is is that the sketchbook pro app is no longer supported on the updated operating systems, so I’m forced to keep it on a lower level system to preserve the app so I can use it. I was self taught on the sketch book pro app and it took a couple of years to perfect it. But my iPad became useless for other things that required updates to function. So I started thinking about a workaround. It’s been a while since I researched iPads and I was intrigued with the new iPad Pro that works with the Apple Pencil. I tried to learn the new sketch book pro app but found it quite difficult. I stumbled upon the Procreate app and read more about it. Since it was designed primarily for iPad use, maybe I could learn how to use it. So I ordered the latest iPad Pro and pencil and we went to the Apple store to pick it up. The Apple store is magical to me - kind of like art stores or container stores. I’ve always loved gadgets and was the first in line to get the first generation iPad. That’s when I started to paint again. Well, I’ve spent the last few weeks trying to learn about not only the new iPad and Pencil, but also Procreate. I downloaded the manuals for each and tried to learn a little bit every day. I like the larger iPad and use it for everything. My overall art style is changing from more precise to “impressionistic” watercolors - which is what I always preferred. The brushes and styles are very different - to me - from Sketchbook pro. Since I’m not a professional artist, I don’t know or need the functions that are available on the app. I probably use 10% of what’s out there. I’m not quite satisfied with my progress, but I tried doing our grandson’s Vizsla and even figured out the transparent background. I posted the image on Redbubble and Amazon Merch and ordered him a T-shirt with her painting on it. I’m practicing on a bunch of Persian art type things too - it’s one of the most frequently searched key words in my Etsy shop. At least I now have two options - I’ll use the old iPad for custom pet orders until I feel confident enough about my Procreate skills. Otherwise I’m having fun painting things I think look good. Thank goodness it’s a hobby! 

LLBean Fleece Jacket - Three Times a Charm?

My husband rarely says he needs an item of clothing. So when he does it means it is beyond wearable. Such was the case when he mentioned he might need a fleece jacket to wear around the house when the temps fall. It just so happened we got a postcard in the mail about 20% off if you use your LlBean MasterCard. We went to the store on Wednesday, found the perfect fleece, went to the counter to pay, but no one knew what we were talking about - and of course, I didn’t bring the card with me. So we went home and I checked the card again and realized the sale was for three days only starting on Friday. So I thought I could just order it on line using the code and my leftover bean points. Friday came, I found the same fleece in the right size, and I tried to check out using the code and the bean points. Nothing worked. So we decided to go back to the store, but the item was no longer available in his size. But they said they could order it on line in the store and would appl the discount. So we went to the counter, asked to have the fleece ordered, and to use the discount and the bean points. The website was giving the sales person a hassle too. But by the end, it was finally ordered and the discount was applied. But she forgot to add in the bean points. Rather than go back - again - we decided to leave things as they were. We’d use the points another time. I’m not sure when that will be! 

Jack’s Houseplant Special Food from Gingko’s

When we moved to our new home in northern Virginia, we no longer had a patio garden. So we created an indoor garden in the dining room by adding a white distressed wood two level console table, several pots, and a variety of house plants. It also provided a place to put a couple of other decorative items we already had from our Capitol Hill condo - a watering can, a few wooden birds, and a metal spider. When we got an orchid as a housewarming gift, it added a flowering element to the mix. As with anything else, plants require care and attention. So we got some water globes to help with watering if and when we are away a few days. Then we thought the plants should have nourishment, and any orchid always requires special care. So we took a ride to Gingko’s to see what we should do. We decided to get Jack’s classic houseplant special food. Unfortunately we probably won’t need such a large amount because we rarely need a gallon of water to manage our plants. At least they were able to break down the big bag of orchid potting mix so we could get the amount we needed. And of course, the orchid needed it’s own plant food. I suppose you could say it might be easier to “just get another one” if the plant doesn’t do well. But we prefer to care for the plants we have so they flourish and thrive, and it takes more than just water. 

The Crate and Barrel Chair Fix

The living room chair was rocking - but it wasn’t supposed to. It’s a swivel chair from Crate and Barrel. It’s taken a bit of abuse over the last ten years. When we flipped it over we figured out the problem immediately. Of the four screws used to tighten the pieces together, one fell off and a second was missing. We couldn’t quite get the screw back on because the space was so tight. So we used some wire and fish line to tie it in place and at least stabilize the chair. Yesterday we went to the hardware store to get two screws, a wrench, and real wire before we tried to tackle the project again. So we flipped the chair over, cut off the line we had just put on, and tried to get the screw in place. We used our surgical  instruments, fingers, and finally decided to just get the back of the screw on and screw it in from the front. Once that was done we had another one to go. Luckily we had success - and it really is a huge feeling of accomplishment. I really wasn’t in the mood to go furniture shopping right now. We probably should, but we don’t know what we even want. So for now the chair is in one piece. Let’s hope it lasts another ten years. 

Redbubble Vizsla Pup T-shirt for a Special Someone

I’ve been painting digitalart pet portraits for the last seven years on my iPad. I’ve been using a program that is no longer supported with any system updates. So I got a new iPad Pro with an Apple Pencil a few weeks back and an trying to learn another art program but am keeping my old iPad for “real work.” One of the first subjects to practice on was our fur grand daughter Vizsla. It’s a lot different style than I’m used to doing - more water color than tried and true. But I liked how it turned out - well enough to post it on my Redbubble, Amazon Merch, Pixels/Fine Art America, and Zazzle shops. But then I thought I’d surprise our grandson with a T-shirt that had a small rendering of the pooch in the upper right corner. I ordered the shirt from Redbubble because it had this option. But the baseball raglan shirt with a full image on the front was also tempting. Anyway, the shirt was delivered yesterday and I got the nicest text from our just turned 16 year old grandson last evening - in spite of the fact that he is otherwise occupied with the first week of school. It was very thoughtful and sweet. If he thinks his pooch looks beautiful, that’s all I care about. But even better was the fact that he thought about it.