I really wanted to blog about something more exciting today. I’m in the midst of several graphic and web design projects that I’m dying to share with you, but unfortunately, I don’t have any finished products yet. So let me introduce the newest addition to my technology arsenal: my Amazon Kindle.

Before I get to that, let’s address my intense love affair with real life books. I have a TON of them, and that may be literal. According to my last count, I have 227 at least. If you’re interested, you can check out my personal library database in Google Docs and be exposed to my questionable taste.

Part of one of my four bookshelves.

I love everything about books — the smell, the feel of the pages, the way they look lined up by author and subject on my shelf. I take good care of my books, make sure they have breathing room (did you know books need to breathe?) and annually sort them out and give some away to the library. But it’s clear that if I don’t want to end up on Hoarders, I have to admit that I no longer have the space for more books. Though if you want to encourage me into self-destruction, here’s a shameless link to my Amazon book wish list.

Enter the Kindle. It’s NOTHING like a book. It doesn’t have a smell, and there aren’t any pages to make a satisfying ripple under your fingertips. For a long time, I was completely adverse to owning one — will digital readers lead to the death of books? I couldn’t live in a world without bookstores. But after a year living in D.C., I grew accustomed with the concept after spending my daily Metro commute reading classics on the tiny screen of my Droid. (I use the Wordplayer app.) And as you might expect, I eventually grew tired of squinting and wanted an upgrade.

And thus, I ordered my Kindle on Amazon a couple weeks ago, and it has quickly become indispensable. It’s light and sleek, which appeals to the design enthusiast in me, plus, it doesn’t have the (excuse me, purists) negatives of books. For example, I am currently reading Vanity Fair, a 19th century novel that has been compared to War and Peace based on how lengthy it is. Seriously, this would be 900 pages or so in print. Think of how hard that would be to carry around! However, on my Kindle, it’s less than an ounce.

Not to mention, just like on the Droid, I’m able to read my favorite classics for free! Since it’s so old, Vanity Fair is in the public domain. If I bought the book, aside from having nowhere to put that mammoth, I also would have to fork over $10 or so to pay for the printing. But without printing fees, in digital form, it’s absolutely free.

Like the case? It’s Moleskine’s official Kindle case. Yes, like the stereotypical former English major that I am, I am also a big fan of Moleskine. I love the pocket that fits a Moleskine reporter’s notebook, so I can still make notations on the book I’m reading even though I can’t underline the words anymore. For someone who had a hard time letting go of print, the case comfortably blurs the line.

Do you have a Kindle? Would you buy a Kindle? Or are you too attached to the feel of a book in your hand?

It’s amazing how much technology has improved our lives.

A few days ago, my grandma lent me a photo that’s very important to her. The ripped, creased, yellowed photo is about 2 x 3 inches in size. It’s a photo of my grandparents, my uncle, and my dad the year they arrived in the United States. My grandma has inscribed “Lidanno, Vanda, Gino, Enzo/August 18, 1956″ in her loopy cursive on the back.

Grandma wanted me to enlarge a copy of it for a large picture frame. But looking at the well-worn photo, I decided to take things a step further.

Here is the picture before, and after, Photoshop:

And here is an animated gif that shows the contrast more clearly:

When my grandparents immigrated from Italy, they didn’t speak a word of English. Their rural village didn’t yet have electricity or running water (not until the late ’70s!). Everything about America was an adjustment for them. They were incredibly brave to make a new life here.  I am grateful every day for their choice — if they hadn’t made it, I might not have the opportunities I have today, such as getting the chance to learn to use Photoshop. It feels fantastic to use today’s technology to better remember the past.

Can’t wait until my grandma sees this framed.

After months of saving and weeks of shopping around for the right choice, I finally got myself a flipcam! I got to test it out today and I’m feeling pretty good about my purchase.

The Kodak zi8.

I love that this model lets me choose between standard and high definition shooting. So far, I’ve been using mostly standard while just experimenting with HD for a few seconds at a time – I only have an 8 GB SD card in the camera. Which leads me to another thing I like about it- the storage capabilities aren’t limited to what the camera allows. If I feel like I need more storage, I simply need to buy a bigger card. I think that makes the camera less likely to become obsolete quickly.

What I don’t like about the camera is the sound, but I knew that already. There’s only so much a flipcam can do in that department. So what’s really special about the zi8 is that it has a microphone jack that allows me to use an external mic. I’ve tried using a directional mic so far, and it helps to drown out all the noises except the one I am trying to capture.

Testing out my new flipcam at Capitol South.

Another thing that I’d like to add into this post at the last minute is, my new business cards came! I got them through Moo and I adore how tiny they are. “But didn’t you just get business cards made in November?” you might ask. That’s true, but my regular size cards 1) number only in 50, and I have about 15 left at this point and 2) are more professional, while the Moo cards are more personal. I wouldn’t put space invaders on my regular cards!

My new cards, designed by me, published by Moo.

I got 100 of them printed for only $20, which was fantastic, so I got a little case with a keyring to hold them in. I plan on giving these out by the handful at Anime Boston, which I am attending next month as a con blogger. It’s an enormous convention and I hope to make a lot of contacts in the anime world!