Thursday thoughts - Of nothing in particular

In Sunny's opinion, grass is something to be thankful for.

The first round bale of the season is out, but none of the horses are interested yet.

A bit of warmth, and all of the past weekend's rain means that there's new grass poking up, and it's getting all their attention. Sure, they might snatch a mouthful of hay on the way up to water, but the bale is pretty much pristine at this point. Still, it's okay that it's there. This way they'll be used to having it available, and won't gorge themselves silly they way they might later when there isn't any greenery attracting their attention.

The forecast for this weekend is windy & warm (60's) - sweet! Good for grass, and better for fencing. We'll (fingers crossed) work on the front alley like I'd planned for last weekend. Wearing blaze orange, highly visible from the road... hopefully our presence will deter any idiotic road hunters before pheasant fever gets the best of them and they start blasting away across the pasture.

In other news - I picked out a new camera.

I was this close to buying another Nikon Coolpix like the one Sunny stepped on - but then I actually got my hands on a Coolpix L16 the other day. Unfortunately, in the multiple new editions since my trusty L6 came out, Nikon's moved the SD card slot from the side of the camera (where it's super easy to access), to the battery compartment. That's bad news in my book.

We have several of the more expensive Nikon digital SLRs at work. They're great cameras. But we've had to send them in numerous times to get the battery door hinges & latches replaced. The battery springs are too strong for the thin plastic catches on the doors, and they don't stand up well to frequent use. I've never used the cable that came with my camera for transferring pictures - I prefer popping the card out and using a card reader (that way I don't have to install any extra software on my computer). So with this design I'd be putting a lot of extra wear and tear on those flimsy little plastic catches. I just don't think they'd stand up to it. And replacing those doors isn't cheap. :(

Glad I discovered the Coolpix are now made that way before I ordered one.

So I explored the alternatives, and found one made by Canon. A Powershot A590. The reviews on CNET and elsewhere were mostly positive, so hopefully I'll like it when it arrives, which it's supposed to do tomorrow!

I'll keep using the Nikon at the farm, though - I just won't have to worry so much about it getting smashed! (Does anyone else experience camera withdrawal when your batteries go dead or you forget to bring it along? I guess there are worse things to be hooked on though - lol!)