Mi Casa? Picasa!
Like many moms and dads, I’d hit the brick wall of digital
photography. There were too many generically named image files on my computer.
My camera’s naming scheme made things worse. It’s impossible to tell what the
files contain without opening them, and Microsoft’s support for photos is
somewhat quixotic.
If I had a Macintosh, I could use the iPhoto software that
comes with it. Until that day, however, I’m happy to have found Picasa2.
Internet giant Google offers Picasa (www.picasa.com) as well as the
picture-sharing application, Hello, as part of its expanding portfolio of free
software.
Having been bitten by bad, free apps before, I was skeptical
at first. But from the moment I started Picasa, I liked it. It asked where I’d
like to begin (specific folders or the entire computer). Quick as a blink, it
went to work scouring my computer for pictures. Next, I quickly scrolled
through the photo library Picasa had indexed. I could double-click an image and
non-destructively enhance it with the
Picasa toolkit. I found the tools simple and yet powerful enough to fix many
common photographic problems (Picasa’s quick fix button is labeled with
Google’s trademark “I’m Feeling Lucky”). Using Picasa2 as a front end for my
scanner, I was able to scan a photo and post it on Blogger within minutes.
With Picasa’s connections to a variety of online photo
finishers and Blogger (another Google freebie), I’ve been having more fun with
photos lately. For families making the transition from film-based photography,
Picasa2 is one of those must-have applications.
— Stan Merrell
This week for
families
Asian Heritage Family
Day Sun, May 1. art in motion, drama, dance, stories, art, Memorial Art
Gallery, 500 University Ave, 12-5 p.m. $1. 473-7720
Brighton Memorial
Library storytimes: Mondays 10 a.m. (ages 3-4), 10:30 a.m. (ages 1-2.5);
Thursdays 7 p.m. | 2300 Elmwood Avenue. 784-5300, www.brightonlibrary.org
College Night on the
Mall Mon-Tues, May 2-3. Mon: Marketplace Mall, 7-9 p.m.; Tues: Mall at
Greece Ridge Center, 7-9 p.m.
Experience Your
Future Day Wed, Apr 27. for high-school seniors, Bryant and Stratton
College, 1225 Jefferson Rd, 9 a.m.-12 p.m. 292-5627
I’m Beautiful Essay
Contest for girls ages 11-17. Deadline: May 31. 482-6910
Inside the College
Admissions Process Wed, May 4. high-school students and their families, UR
River Campus, 6-8:30 p.m. $20. 275-2344, www.rochester.edu/college/osp
Inventions Alive Sun,
May 1. Family Sunday event, invention demonstrations, kids activities, Central
Library, 115 South Ave, 2-4 p.m. Free. 428-8301
Kite Flight Sun,
May 1. demos, public kite flying, entertainment, Ontario Beach Park, Robach
Community Center, 12-3 p.m. Free. 865-3320, 428-6755
Little Red Riding Hood Sat-Sun, Apr 30-May 1 and May 14-15.
TYKEs, UpStage3, Auditorium Center, 875 E Main St, Sat 10:30 a.m. and 1 p.m.,
Sun 1 p.m. $10. 723-6080
Rhyme Time PJ
Storytime Fri, Apr 29. w/poet Carin Berger, Barnes & Noble, 3349 Monroe
Ave, 7 p.m. Free. 586-6020
Scoobie Do Where Are
You? Sat, Apr 30. Choo Choo’s Express, 5138 W Ridge Rd, Spencerport, 12-8
p.m. $5. 352-4422
Soap Box Derby Sat-Sun,
Apr 30-May 1. youth race, School House Rd, Greece, 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. 261-8881
Summer Arts in Action
Program Scholarships summer arts camp for ages 4-12, Hochstein School.
454-4596, www.hochstein.org
YOHP Summer Musical
Auditions Wed, Apr 27. Penfield Recreation, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat audition for ages
12-18. 340-8664
Colorful language
A father used that term in my office recently. His
four-year-old son is learning how language shocks and dismays parents. He uses
terms like “poopy head” and “doo doo.” I like this dad’s reference to “colorful
language.” He didn’t call it “bad”, “foul,” or “rude.” He values his son’s
creative ability to check out what provocative language does.
My friend,
Reverend Jim Warnke, says “Oppositional behavior is strength of character
pointed in the direction that pisses you off the most.” This son is doing his
job. Our kids have to oppose us, test new behaviors, and express their
frustration while learning limits. They could act out physically, hurting
themselves, others, or valued property. If we say, “Shut up!” they might choose
to keep their feelings inside, unexpressed and festering. Given the
alternatives, I’ll take colorful language every time.
This father
wanted advice. Responding with, “That’s bad language!” or by washing the
child’s mouth with soap, serves to increase the power of the child’s defiance,
reinforcing it. Meeting defiance with defiance never works. Ignoring the
behavior is really hard to do and difficult for the child to understand.
Empathy always works. “Boy, you’re mad!” “I know you don’t want to!” “You’re
saying silly words, aren’t you?” This kind of response dodges the provocative
intent of the language and grabs the feeling behind it, modeling both
compassion and better communication.
By the way,
when you use colorful language in
front of yourkids, smile and say,
“Whoops. I’m sorry.”
— Laurence I. Sugarman, MD
This article appears in Apr 27 – May 3, 2005.
