Saving the World. Before Bedtime... sort of.

This week was a pretty exciting week.  

On Wednesday , I joined Wikipedia, Reddit, and other in the Anti-SOPA “black-out” in protest of the U.S. Senate vote on S. 968., otherwise known as the PROTECT IP Act or PIPA. I emailed both my Senators and I called their offices (using an innovative phone app provided by Reddit.com) to voice my concerns. This email from the office of Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA) in response to the one I sent pretty much summarizes the views PIPA supporters hold.

If you came here or went to Siege of The Dead on Wednesday, you would have been treated to this call to action page. Of course, other sites had more creative and laudably artistic protest screens. [Check out this Mashable article for a slide show featuring some of the "best" protest screens.]

Originally slated for a vote on Tuesday January 24th, a yes vote on PIPA would have given the Department of Justice the ability to shutdown websites that violated copyright laws and/or encourage online piracy. Both legislation purported to give all copyright holders the ability to stop unauthorized use of their works. This in itself is not a bad thing and as a writer and artist, I support anti-infringement legislation.  But as written, PIPA and its sister bill in the House was too vague and created an environment rife with opportunities for censorship and Due Process abuses. Even posting a link to Facebook could get you into trouble. Opponents of the measure even went on to say that those who would benefit most would be Big Hollywood rather than individual artists. Simply put, PIPA and SOPA were too poorly written and geared to protect Big Business interests.

Luckily for us, because of the protests and the attention brought to these bills by you and me and big internet companies like Facebook, Google, and others, BOTH bills are dead in their respective houses as of Friday. For now. 

Stay tuned.

I {heart} Tybee Island

I need a vacation. It is the tail end of MLK weekend: three days of running errands and college homework and time spent with the spousal unit and I need a vacation. The weather is awful here in Georgia. This time last year we were in the grips of “Snowmageddon.” This year the weather has decided to be more bi-polar than I am, alternating between unseasonably frigid and unseasonably hot. Warm or cold, the weather remains seasonably wet however.  On the bright side, Brooke and I accomplished a lot in the way of wedding planning and we actually cooked this weekend—several times. Tomorrow: we go back to work and I need a vacation.

It does not help my mood that Brooke and I looked over our budget. We decided to forgo our annual Tybee trip this year, banking our money and vacation days towards our honeymoon instead. I like to think that we are solidly happy with this decision. Yet, we catch ourselves sneaking glances at the photos of our trip last year.

"Slanted at Tybee"
(c) 2011 Nicole Brooke Rosner
Used with Permission 

Brooke, ever the shutterbug, took hundreds of photos on our old Samsung, utilizing the tips she picked up from her copy of BetterPhoto Basics by Jim Miotke. I’m particularly in love with this photo taken by Spousal Unit on our last morning there. We woke up early to catch the sunrise and spent the morning capturing the memories nature gifted us.

It's become sort of a tradition for Brooke and I to go to a Tybee Island each year as a combined birthday trip, arriving there just before the Memorial Day Holiday and leaving in time to avoid the crowds and the price hikes.

A Little Cowbird Told Me

Happy New Years, Friends and Followers and welcome back! 2011 proved to be an exciting year full of challenges and accomplishments; of possibilities and self-discovery; but most importantly 2011 was a year of growth. My sister married her best friend, a young man I am honored to now call my brother. I published movements and measure, a decision that helped me silence the ghosts of past writings and opened the creative flood gates for new works. I am back in school after years of excuses.

2012 promises not to disappoint.