• Millipede invasion in my room in Ogasawara!! Gah!! #
• Be sure to check http://wetpixel.com for in-depth update on my Ogasawara sperm whale trip! #
• RT @Wetpixel: Wetpixel sperm whale expedition, update 1 – We arrived in the Ogasawara Islands two days ago after endu… http://ow.ly/15UP8j #
• My photo of Paul Watson is on the cover of Resistance Magazine. http://bit.ly/4FOfgD #
• 1-ply toilet paper should be banned. that is all. (Have to return Douglas’ blackberry — cut off!!) #
• Ok, this millipede invasion is getting ridiculous. #
• Confusing and annoying: serious replies & suggestions to humorous complaining (or, how to find folks who are not compatible electronically) #
• RT @Wetpixel: sperm whale expedition, update 2 – The typhoon to the east continued to throw huge swells into… http://ow.ly/15V2Uy #
• I am lobbying to put Douglas into an Architoothus costume to see if the sperm whales go for him. #
• Ogasawara millipede update: I’ve stopped relocating the buggers to the toilet. It is just too much work; we can co-exist! #
• Heading back to Tokyo tomorrow on the 25.5 hour ferry. The others are extending for 6 more days in Ogasawara! #
• Epiphany: if I can see Tokyo, it probably means I’m in Verizon Blackberry range! http://pic.gd/fd7841 #
• @andybiggs I could have saved you time re: int’l iphone plans and practicality. :) in reply to andybiggs #
• RT @tonywu: Sperm Whales! http://bit.ly/34s5t #
• I have spent the last 24 hrs in silence. Not the longest stint ever, but enjoyable nonetheless. Can see the attraction of silent meditation. #
• Interesting. Google Latitude from my Verizon blackberry tour works internationally while I’m on 3G, but not while I’m on 1X. #
• Read “Life of Pi” and re-read “Running with Scissors” while on the ferry. Imagined Republicans reading “Running with Scissors” and chuckled. #
• It occurs to me that I don’t know what day of the week it is, and more importantly, that I’m not going out of my way to find out. #
• Received news that my old conductor, Karla Lemon, passed away. Life is becoming more fleeting by the year… #

15-meter male sperm whale, Ogasawara Islands, originally uploaded by echeng.

We spent much of the today watching a huge (15m / 49ft) sperm whale. The crew said that it was a big male, and that male sperm whales in Ogasawara are both rare and shy. We dropped in several times at a distance and swam to him to see if he would tolerate our presence. In most cases, he did shallow dives as we approached, but just once (when I was alone), he surfaced and turned to face me. The sperm whale was gigantic, and his huge head had large bulges coming out of it (it has to be shaped like that to hold the spermiceti organ). I have to admit that I was a little concerned when he swam to me, nearly blocking out the sun. I know that whales have very rarely harmed humans, but the mind comes up with all sorts of bizarre scenarios. :) echeng091016_023246

For more photos, see the official trip report!

Pantropical dolphins, Ogasawara Islands, Japan, originally uploaded by echeng.

Two pantropical spotted dolphins (Stenella attenuata) jumping out of the water. Ogasawara Islands, Japan. echeng091015_0239050

For more photos, see the official trip report!

Water surface abstract, Ogasawara Islands, originally uploaded by echeng.

A mild wind blew in during a flat-calm day on the ocean, creating these meandering valleys of light. Ogasawara Islands, Japan. echeng091014_0238975

UPDATE: Purchase this print!

For more photos, see the official trip report!

• Have arrived in a cool but humid Tokyo and have started queuing politely. http://myloc.me/TUTQ #
• Bus to Shinagawa http://pic.gd/00444f #
• Best date summary from a friend tonight: “he was soo dull i almost stabbed myself w a fork.” #
• @tonyylu Invited. Took 12 hours for me to get mine from time of invite. in reply to tonyylu #
• FYI: Bar + dining + cafe + jazz + new york = Lounge Foodium. (Shinagawa station, Tokyo) #
• @jauderho sorry, man. That is terrible! No old backups, I guess? :( in reply to jauderho #
• Love the Blackberry Tour on Verizon. 3G in tokyo was draining batteries so I switched to CDMA, and am happy. #
• Lunch with Tony Wu, followed by a meeting at Sea&Sea — was great to meet them in person! #
• THE TOILET BEEPED AND WENT UP BY ITSELF!! (Tokyo) #
• I love that Crashplan is backing up my notebook (here in Tokyo) to my NAS box in San Francisco. #
• @jauderho BorrowLenses bought my 1Ds3! I didn’t know they did sensor cleaning. in reply to jauderho #
• Hanging out at INON in Japan — check out their new “insect eye” lens for super close focus wide angle! http://pic.gd/4842c7 #
• In front of Playstation central: Sony Computer Entertainment Inc, Tokyo http://pic.gd/17e013 #
• Wind is picking up. Typhoon supposed to hit Toyko tonight — hopefully, after we get home! #
• HAHAAHA. digg bar comic. http://bit.ly/3YWXHO #
• Going to try to get to bed before 3am so I can feel like a real person tomorrow. Good night! #
• My gallery of SLSQ chamber music workshop images at Stanford Arts initiative: http://bit.ly/26y1NQ #
• I am getting spammed to hell by DEMA — including a message containing a 3.1MB attachment, today. This is getting ridiculous. #
• @chriskac You and Alex are the only people I know who go through more phones and services than I do. :) in reply to chriskac #
• Petition: Protect goliath groupers http://bit.ly/YqXaS #
• Beautiful blue skies over Tokyo. Slept through the typhoon last night / this morning! #
• @alexkingorg my hybrid MobileMe / google sync / busy sync solution seems to be working well even though it feels fragile. in reply to alexkingorg #
• G2 Gallery sold my aluminum jellyfish lake print! Only one print left up on their walls. http://bit.ly/3CgAKS #
• Leaving the womb of Hitomi-san’s wonderful hosting. We are Ogasawara-bound! Horrible 26-hour ferry, we embrace thee! #
• @viennateng have you *ever* sold less merch than you thought you would?? ;) in reply to viennateng #
• Mountain of luggage for the ferry (Seifert and dome not included). http://pic.gd/3a9ad3 #
• Leaving on the SS Craptastic to Ogasawara! http://pic.gd/1fbf3f #
• Robin Williams says NO AUTOGRAPHS!! http://pic.gd/c6923e #
• The timelapse is running! Planes flying over us, but fisheye lens will make them look like gnats. http://pic.gd/b9315e #
• 1st 2 days of sperm whales in Ogawara a roaring success! My Blackberry doesn’t work here, but I’ll try to posts photo or 2 some other way. #
• I stole Douglas’ blackberry for the evening. AT&T works on DoCoMo here in Ogasawara, but Verizon (on Softbank) doesn’t. Grrrrr. #

Sperm Whale, Ogasawara Islands, Japan, originally uploaded by echeng.

Sperm whale off of the Ogasawara Islands in Japan. One of my first sperm whale photos!

For more photos, see the official trip report!

“Soft cream” — not to be confused with ice cream or soft serve. Hitomi is imitating a pufferfish in the background, but it’s hard to tell…

• Last day in Paris. The weather has been holding — beautiful! Everything great, except that I am literally surrounded by smokers right now. #
• Time change while in Europe is tough. Everyone is active in the U.S. while I’m ready to go out for a later dinner. Must.. ignore… emails.. #
• I uploaded a YouTube video — Timelapse: Saint-Martin canal cruise in Paris http://bit.ly/xrwLY #
• Headed back to the States via Boston. Wish I could stay here longer… #
• Wow – can’t believe the luck we had with the weather in Paris. 5 days of sunshine! The clouds have gathered for my departure… #
• My “Life is crap” t-shirt is very popular among CDG airport staff. #
• A baby right behind me? Again?! I am cursed. #
• Oh, and this baby is a back-rest kicker, too. I guess it’s not acceptable to kick back. #
• There are two of them!! Two babies within a 3 foot radius!! #
• I am cursed. 2 babies from Paris to Boston, and another baby right behind me from Boston to SF??!!? #
• Panasonic DMC-LX3 firmware version 2 released: http://bit.ly/dRKJD #
• jwz writes: “My ongoing Kafka-esque nightmare of dealing with Palm and their App Catalog submission process” http://bit.ly/2JEMI #
• 30% iPhone call drop rate is normal in NY — maybe higher in SF. This is why I use Verizon Blackberry for calls. http://bit.ly/3DQC2n #
• I guess I should try to get some sleep. My schedule is totally off… #
• Panasonic DMC-LX3 firmware 2.0 available here (since it’s not on the official site anymore): http://bit.ly/AMFe6 #
• Working at a Thai restaurant, and they have what sounds like karaoke Christmas music playing. A bit early, don’t you think? #
• Anyone have a spare Google Wave invite? #
• On Blackberry Tour: replaced TwitterBerry with UberTwitter and Blackbird. Both a lot faster. (TwitterBerry unbearably slow) #
• @tanthalas Yes! still need one. You’re the first to reply. in reply to tanthalas #
• @tanthalas Thank you, Calvin! I eagerly await the invite. :) in reply to tanthalas #
• It is so hard to be motivated this late, but I have to work. :( #
• RT: Photos of Ketsana. Sheer devastation. http://twurl.nl/0edw8f (via @tonywu) #
• Wow, cforms II is a great forms plugin for Wordpress! http://bit.ly/28DvJf #
• Pure genius! AMERICA! http://bit.ly/1OIRUh #
• Google Wave invite processed. Thanks, @tanthalas, @jauderho, and @tammyloh! #
• Photos from China’s celebration of 60 years of communism. http://bit.ly/tudEs #
• RT: Nicholas Samara wins 2010 Raja Ampat Tag Design Contest http://ow.ly/15SrXD (via @Wetpixel) #
• I need to do work, but a haircut before I leave for Japan is an absolute necessity. No more chia head! #
• Downloading Blackberry Desktop Software for Mac. Hope it’s better than Missing Sync… http://bit.ly/7E3hr #
• Hmmm. I may stick with Missing Sync because it syncs SMS and call logs on both Blackberry and iPhone. #
• Nice overview of why Google Wave is interesting. http://bit.ly/IXnWS #
• @alexkingorg I just print to PDF from the Print dialog in Preview. in reply to alexkingorg #
• OK. Missing Sync Blackberry 2.0.2 was throwing errors. Now trying Blackberry Desktop Manager for Mac. First sync failed. Exciting. #
• Blackberry Desktop for Mac doesn’t work for me, and the uninstaller just failed, too. *sigh* #
• Wiped my Blackberry Tour to attempt to fix sync. #
• I had dinner with Dave Le tonight. Am hoping he’ll one day install a USB port into my arm. http://xkcd.com/644/ #
• My Blackberry Messenger reset. If you had me on your last, please re-add me! #
• Verizon Blackberry BIS email outage? Anyone else? http://www.blackberry.com/go/vzw #
• @jauderho The Palm Pre can’t do remotely what the Blackberry does overseas on crap connections.So to everyone who is suggesting the Pre: NO! in reply to jauderho #
• ARRRRGH! Aperture crash in the middle of working. This is not a good day. #
• @jauderho It’s easy to suggest stuff, but all apps and devices have their problems. I am totally aware of the pros/cons of Lightroom and Pre in reply to jauderho #
• Twitter feature request: block tweets by keyword, temp block user for X hours/days (not targeting anyone in particular at the moment) #
• Thanks for asking: the Blackberry is syncing properly. I wrote about it. http://bit.ly/1iwl1P #
• @tsutaoka where is the new blue bottle hq? Their website has no info… in reply to tsutaoka #
• I just discovered: Quickbooks 2006 was actively discontinued. No more online statement downloads w/o upgrade. Bastards! http://bit.ly/pDMDY #
• This was mixed in my Japanese yen, but since it says Chinese people on it, it probably isn’t. Help! http://yfrog.com/15u03xj #
• Terminal I vs 1 — attempts at confusery nearly worked. http://yfrog.com/bbuldj #
• NYTimes article on the meat processing industry. Anyone want a burger? http://bit.ly/1MrgWa (via @randyching) #
• .. always an insane flurry of activity before I leave, followed by relative calm while I’m away.. (as things pile up on periphery of notice) #

Hello, friends. I’m going to be out of town for 7 weeks out of the next 3 months, and need to stock up on books again. I read all of the books recommended the last time I asked for recommendations (the ones available for Kindle), and nearly all of them were fantastic!

Here’s what I read from that list:

• The Amber chronicles (all 10 books)
• A Thousand Splendid Suns
• Sex Lives of Cannibals
• Three Cups of Tea
• Water for Elephants
• Whatever You Do, Don’t Run

The rest were either not available for Kindle, or were books I had already read. I’m not a big fan of “cheap” plot books (e.g. Dan Brown), but I’ll read them if I have no other choices.

I’m currently reading Song for the Blue Ocean (but not available for Kindle, and thus, I only read it at home), Collapse (been trying for a couple of years), Quicksilver (of the Baroque Cycle — still trying), and have started a science fiction book called Spin.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I leave tomorrow morning, and will load up the Kindle before I step onto the plane. :)

I realized today that 98 contact were not syncing to my Blackberry Tour from my MacBook Pro running Mac OS 10.6.1 Snow Leopard. Neither Missing Sync for Blackberry nor Blackberry Desktop Manager (newly released for Macs) would sync my contacts properly. I even wiped my Blackberry, and it didn’t solve the problem. (read more »)

I almost was fooled by this one. Wetpixel received an urgent notice from the “Business Filings Division” today stating that we had to submit a Statement of Information in order to continue doing business in California (LLCs have to file one every 2 years). The fee? $239.00

I filled out the form and wrote a check, but something didn’t seem right, and I went to Google for help. It turns out that this is a common scam that quite a few people fall for. Through official channels, the actual fee for filing is $20.

Here’s the fraudulent form: (download)

fraudulent statement of information form

… and here’s the actual form (Form llc-12, which you can download from the Secretary of State):

actual statement of information form

Bastard scammers.

AAAAAIIIIIIIIRRRRRRGRGRRGHGHGH!

And that’s just on one virtual desktop. Overwhelmed.