with something as big and as safe. Translated: something that can withstand the impact of a tree. As we had a little Hyundai Accent at the time (which Phil loved more than us I think) we decided to go with another Hyundai and chose their biggest model, the XG350, which had a 5-star crash safety rating and side airbags, something we were looking for after our crash
And now, four years later and 80,000 km on the odometer, it was time to return it and be a one-car family again. Here in our condo we only have one parking space so that now goes to the Dakota! No doubt we'll see the old car around town now and then and think of all the trips we took in it...Last week Muffy had her three-month visit from her favourite groomer
and lost at least 2 lbs of poodle hair and now shivers and shakes at the slightest breeze! It's time again to bring out her winter coat and booties as snow flurries and freezing temperatures have become the norm now we are just past the middle of the month...We have been preparing as well for our upcoming trip to Quebec City this weekend. We will be staying at the Club Vacances Toutes Saisons
just outside the city in Beaupre, near the St Anne ski hills and the famous Basilica overlooking the St Lawrence river. We were there a few years ago and enjoyed the "between seasons" quiet and solitude. A trip into Quebec City is planned and perhaps a visit to the Isle d'Orleans, before returning home on the 28th.
Then, of course we have to start thinking about our upcoming trip to Florida but that will come soon enough and before I know it will be posting pictures here!... This week I also tried to do something I have been wanting to do for years - make a photo mosaic. I found a very simple program I downloaded for free and after a few hours of experimenting came up with some fairly interesting pieces. I chose photographs from our trip to Greece this past spring as I had 500 or so pictures on file and the mosaic should be themed around the original template. The more variety of pictures (colours, shapes, tones, etc)imbedded in the mosaic creates a more realistic image, as you can see. After tweaking a few different parameters you can produce a real work of art! My first successful one is of a scene I shot in Athens at the market 
and I incorporated 10,000 individual photographs into the final mosaic. Of course as I only had 500 pictures to work from most of them had to be duplicated at least 10 times. Still I think it turned out well. Click on the picture then use your zoom feature to see the tiny photos the mosaic is composed of! Here is the original photograph -
I will have some more for you to look at next time. If anyone has any questions about this program let me know. Before I forget I have to thank Andrea Denzler at www.andreaplanet.com for the great software! There is always something new and fascinating to discover in the world of computers and it is a real challenge for me just to stay on top of all the ongoing developments. Thankfully Phil tends to let us in on the latest trends...Well I hope everything is fine in your little corners of the world and thanks for stopping by! Stay safe, love one another and have a great week! gws
