I got an iPad. (Thanks, Mom.)
I realize I’m behind the curve on this iPad thing. It took me a while to understand the point. What do I need with a weird in-between machine that is neither phone nor laptop? Or so I initially thought. But I get it now. I won’t try to explain it here. If you have an iPad, you already know. If you don’t have an iPad, well…I’m sorry but you won’t understand until you’re lucky enough to get one.
I’ve only had the iPad about a week and I’ve hardly scratched the surface of its usefulness, nor its ability to waste my time. I have much to learn yet, but one of my biggest iPad discoveries so far (on both the usefulness and time-wasting fronts) is Instagram. I installed Instagram on my iPad three days ago and have been obsessed with it ever since.
The Melville Cat. My first Instagram photo.
I don’t totally understand Instagram yet and I’m not sure how to describe it. Basically, it’s an app that allows you to take simple photos using an iPhone or iPad, edit the photos on the spot with funky effects, then share them via various social networking tools. I actually find Instagram a bit bewildering and annoying to use. And yet, I love it. I love it so much.
I decided to carry my iPad around this weekend and document life through Instagram. Here are some highlights.
It’s liberating to snap photos with this strange little machine and post them right into my blog, without having to deal with bulky camera equipment, memory card readers, or PhotoShop. In fact, this entire blog post was written and photographed from my iPad. I think that’s pretty cool.
But as a friend pointed out to me at the boxing tournament on Saturday, I have now become one of “those people”. One of those people who walks around with an iPad in front of her face looking like a total dork. Sadly, he is right.
I suppose I’ll have to get an iPhone soon so I can Instagram more discreetly.
How have I never blogged about 44 Stanley Avenue, the coolest shopping and dining complex in Joburg, which is only five minutes from my house?
I guess it’s wrong to say I’ve never blogged about 44 Stanley; I’ve mentioned it countless times over the years (see here and here) when writing about specific restaurants or shops that are there. But I’ve never written a dedicated post about 44 Stanley as a destination and it’s about time I did – especially now, with the holidays upon us.
I’ve been dreadfully uninspired lately, struggling to think of anything I want to blog about despite having a long list of great ideas (many of which you, my readers, provided in September). I’m finding it hard to feel positive about life at the moment. But on Saturday Thorsten and I got the chance to visit Indwe Park, an indigenous garden and sculpture park in Braamfontein, and I knew I had my topic for today.
Given this week’s political nuclear bomb blast, it feels like a weird time to publish a light-hearted post about my recent (pre-election) jaunt through the United States. But I’m hoping you’ve have had enough of the U.S. election horror show – I know I have – and are ready (at least temporarily) for some wholesome American travel adventures. If so, please read on about my four-day visit to Maine, the northeastern-most state in the lower 48, with my sister, Susanna.
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It makes me smile, when I see it.