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Bottom of the Glass: Random Musings on Missing The 4th of July
By: Bob at 8:00 PM
Bobby, as usual, enjoyed your blog entry, though respectfully, I think you’re a bit off base here and not entirely accurate in your reporting. So here are my own observations about your 4th of July lament and your thesis that those of us not “born and raised” in the USA are less American than you:
1. I don't think you sound 'elitist' when you suggest that people like me (though I was born in the USA) are not quite as "American" as you are. Indeed, that would mean that those, like you, who were "born and raised" in the States are somehow better than those of us who have spent a considerable portion of our lives overseas. Does it make you more American? To quote the woman at the front desk of the Human Starville…”maybe yes, maybe no.” But no one my age witnessed the Pirates winning the 1960 world series, JFK’s assassination or Woodstock. And I'm not sure what seminal events in the 1980s I missed out on that make me "less of an American" (though I'm certain Billy can tell me:) What I do know is that growing up overseas forces you to consider your country through the eyes of others and puts you in situations where you are often defending the values and actions of the country you love. Like when I argued with my Libyan friend Jamal, the day after Reagan ordered the bombing of his hometown of Tripoli because of Libya's complicity in a discotheque bombing in Berlin earlier that month. I also recall stepping off the bus station on my way to school into a mob of 300 angry Arabs only to realize that I was wearing my favorite U.S. army camo pants on that particular day. Somehow I was able to slink past them unnoticed. I think your patriotic litmus test is a little shortsighted. Indeed, speaking for the expat American communities around the world - the diplomats, missionaries, students, businesspeople, and others on the "front line"...they all love their country just like you do and don't think of themselves as "not having their country in their blood." (surely that kind of jingoistic bravado is best left to drunken rednecks or national socialists). They are the ones sharing American culture and values with the rest of the world. As you experienced for the month in Seoul, living in another country is not always easy and it can be pretty isolating - you try to fit in, learn the language and appreciate the culture, but regardless, you're still an "auslander." But when you are with other Americans, you feel like you’re in this thing together. Which made celebrating the 4th of July all the better. Growing up in Vienna, we’d celebrate at the American International School – it was heavily guarded with machine-gun toting soldiers due to terrorist threats, but we’d ignore whatever the latest political issue was, wolf down hot dogs, play softball, sing the Star Spangled Banner till we were hoarse and watch fireworks late into the night. I’ve celebrated a lot of 4th of Julys here in the States, and like you, I love it – mostly for my boys now. But I haven’t experienced the same kind of intensity of feelings that I had when I was an expat. Had the void you felt in Seoul been filled with this of experience (instead of playing Golden Tee at a Canadian bar), I daresay you might rethink this. Not to mention, that I don’t think Ben Franklin’s time in Paris made him less of an American. And please don’t join the right-wing freaks who question Obama’s patriotism…like me, he grew up overseas for part of his youth (the rest was in Hawaii…hardly the America of which you speak), but I think he’s plenty “American.”.
2. The Dallas Cowboys ARE America’s Team but you are incorrect in assuming that expats in general believe this. God does, yes! Sophisticated Candadians in Seoul are fans, naturally! But sadly, not everyone is, though they obviously should be. In my own case, I was fortunate enough to live in Dallas as a young boy before moving to Europe. I packed up my Dallas Cowboys helmet and headed off to Europe. Thankfully, our friends from Dallas, being the true patriots they are, sent us videotapes of every game…what a treat to watch America’s team in Austria even if they were two weeks old. The term was not coined by an expat either, but by the editor of NFL Films in 1979 (thank you Wikipedia). The Cowboys have sold out more games, both home and away, than any other team in the NFL, and they are of course on national television during your turkey dinner on Thanksgiving - another great American holiday. As for other expats, they don’t actually believe that the Cowboys are “America’s Team” – indeed, like you, they hate the Cowboys and prefer their hometown teams. There are even some Steeler fans who live overseas.
3. Had I known that we were competing for the “most American” song the night I put on Scorpions for you, I obviously would have chosen a different tune than a song from a German rock band. Like you, I am devotee of the Boss. But there was no prompt like “what’s your American song Dillow?” – perhaps this was a miscommunication? Or perhaps this bit of misinformation fits nicely with the rest of the un-American expat thesis, so why not? (but shame on you)
4. “Case Closed” already…please!
I love the posting, even if I do think that perhaps there was an attempt to stir, so to speak. Specifically:
1) Dallas Cowboys are truly America's team. I can reference a poll-sampling Americans-which stated that the Cowboys were the team that were most associated with being 'America's team'. I confidently believe that if you sampled non-Americans the results would be similar, perhaps thanks to some marketing genius from a gentleman named Schramm.
2) The removal of a holiday, which is truly unconceivable to North Americans, was to make up for the fact that Korean society has gone to a 5 day work week, eliminating the Saturday shifts for almost all full time employees. The Korean labor force works long hours because they have one of the lowest productivity rates in the world. Every day counts when you are too hung over from Soju and the bathhouse the night before.
3) I think that your analogy with North Korean flags might be a little off. It is a well known fact that South Korean has one of the highest rates of active spies living its country-the majority of those being North Koreans. As well, although if you ask the younger generation that are US educated there is not a lot of apathy towards NK, amongst the conservative regions of the south and the 29-49 age bracket there is a lot of support for NK. That support is the reason why rampant anti-Americanism, which is a blatant slap in the face in my opinion, can rear its ugly head here very quickly.
4) Please do not use South Korean expatriates as an example of the sadness of expats. I would strongly agree if you said that about expats that deal here with blatant racism, poor working conditions, shady business owners, and a poor understanding of the cultural differences between countries at age 24ish, but I would not consider Tommy a sad guy, granted that I didn't know him when he lived in Europe.
5) Canada is the 51st state anyways, so how could you being there not be like the US?
Jason, I don't think of Tommy as an ex- pat, except in the most literal sense. A child of missionaries with a planned return to the US is not the sort of person that usually fits the term.
Instead, I'll quote a friend who emailed me yesterday:
You are right on the money regarding ex-patriates.....
I have a friend who has been dragging his family around to every Spanish speaking country on the planet -- never happy anywhere, always bad mouthing America and Americans when, if the truth be known, they had it
better here than anywhere else.......They know it --- won't admit it.
During the "nothing happened" 80's and early '90s, the following had profound impacts on the American psyche:
--Iran hostage crisis, as seen on Nightline
--Reagan getting shot
--Apple IIe and Macintosh
--Challenger explosion
--Iran-Contral scandal
--Reagan's "weekend in Grenada"
--Clarence Thomas hearings
One of the most powerful images for me was seeing the yellow ribbons draped on all of the bypasses over I-75 that were filled with cheering people as the convoys of American troops rode past below. I don't offer that as an example of my patriotism; I offer it as a cultural spectacle the likes of which I had not seen before and haven't seen since.
I stand by my point: if you didn't grow up here as a child/teenager without the daily cultural reference points, it's more difficult not to see America as an outsider.
You will note: the examples I gave were Billy Joel and the Dallas Cowboys, not American patriots--past, present, or living in Germany-- which should have given some indication of the fact that the discussion was about a cultural void, not a nationalistic one.
Well Tommy wouldn't be considered an expat now obviously, but he was at one time, with or without parental influences. I have a planned return date as well but I would still be considered a lonely expat.
As for bad mouthing your old country (ies), well I can't understand that at all.
Certainly the expat life has its ups and downs just like home life. You have to take them both.
Methinks the cultural/nationalistic differentiation is a key here, folks.
As a very close friend to a girl whose family spanned the globe for his work as a military protege for the Ambassador's office, and as a good buddy to Tommy and some clueless Malaysian ex-pat named Randy, I can proudly acknowledge that these folks have "information gaps" in their American culture. Most of these gaps are meaningless pop culture matters, but others are more in the vein of the events Bob mentions. (NOTE: The yellow ribbons Bob mentions were from the march toward Desert Storm in '91, if memory serves.)
None of these three friends would be considered, in my mind, less patriotic or nationalistic than myself. Although it's strictly anecdotal, I'd suspect I was the least patriotic of these.
As for "America's Team," I'm pretty sure I saw a report that said the LA Lakers were now the most recognized American franchise in the world. But I struggle to see how the NY Yankees couldn't be up there, since baseball is much more popular world-wide than American football.
But let none of this confuse the fact that Tommy is a moron no matter where he lives.
Thank you Billy, I do take that as a compliment coming from you :)
So, we're talking about both cultural and political reference points it seems - things like America's invasion of Grenada (hey, what about the more controversial invasion of Panama), the Clarence Thomas hearings (pubic hairs on coke bottles...poor Anita Hill), Iran-Contra (you mean “freedom fighters” right?), MTV, ESPN, etc. I guess I'm not quite sure why your experience of these events in the United States "counts more" than we expats who experienced them via the same media outlets you did (TV, Time Magazine, newspapers), but while living in another country? The very notion that these events can only have their true patriotic intravenous effect if viewed FROM the United States is where you go wrong. You saw the Clarence Thomas hearings and talked with friends and colleagues about it the next day around the watercooler. So did we with our fellow Americans living overseas, but in addition, we automatically became the surrogate voice of our country as we celebrated, defended or explained these events to non-Americans. One might argue that this pedagogical process alone creates in the expat a love and appreciation for his homeland, as does simply missing home, in a way that you were never able to experience. I would venture to say that your friend (and I mean no disrespect here to your friend) who emailed you about his expat friend who “drags his family around to every Spanish speaking country and badmouths the U.S.” has not talked to enough Americans who live overseas. The image of disgruntled anti-patriots is very far from the truth. Many are diplomats or military personnel who are serving their country loyally. I’ll admit that seeing how others view your country can be an eye-opening and challenging experience, and can change the way you look at your own country (perhaps as an “outsider” as you say). But this doesn’t mean America’s not in their blood. That’s like someone suggesting that you are not a true patriot because you believe (quite firmly) that the United States government engineered the assassination of its own president (and his brother).
Sure there were some "cultural gaps" because we didn't have all the same TV shows or read all the same news. (though we did have Dallas, Mash, the A-Team among others, and many of these “cultural gaps” were filled by good friends back in Dallas who sent us videos each month of our favorite TV shows). But surely there were those less fortunate within the actual “boundaries” of the United States (a proposed requisite for Americanness) who did not have a TV and did not or could not read much, and thus had no idea who Clarence Thomas was and who never saw ESPN in the 80s. Is America missing in their blood too?
I found a great website of some folks who were born and raised overseas, like me, and thought it might be interesting (and pretty funny) to consider just how much America they have in their blood.
The entire band “America” (grew up together in London, England)
Too many congressmen and senators to name
About 10 astronauts
In my mind, I was winning the argument until I saw Jessica Alba. At that point, I cried "Mercy! Uncle!"
I had you in mind Billy...
I'm having a tshirt printed that says, "Tommy Dillow--50% European, 100% American!" I'll wear it proudly as a concession. Someone else can figure out the math.
How bout 45% Austrian, 45% German, 9 % Scottish, 1% Korean (2 full months now!) but 100% American! Side note - Bob, I need follow-up on my email question to you...I'm confused...
TD, I wrote you back, but both emails came back as spammed by your powerful firewall.


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...this world (2 Corinthians 4:4). Romans Chapter two, verse twenty-one: "Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou not thyself? Thou that preachest a man ^ should not steal, dost thou steal?" S" Here the Apostle Paul is attempting again to get the Jews to understand that they, indeed, have...
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In her regular column for the Waltham Forest Echo Link4Growth volunteer Debra Oakaby visits a community café helping vulnerable people.
http://walthamforestecho.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Echo-18.pdf#page=14
The new community café at YMCA East London, Forest Road is open seven days a week from 7.30am-7pm, Monday to Friday, and 7.30am-2pm at weekends.
For more information on YMCA East London:
Email: info@ymcaeastlondon.org.uk
Website: ymcaeastlondon.org.uk
In her regular column in the Waltham Forest Echo highlighting local projects, charities and services, Link4Growth volunteer Debra Oakaby visited WAVE (Walthamstow All Voice Ensemble) community choir.
http://walthamforestecho.co.uk/raising-the-roof/
No experience is necessary. The choir meets Wednesdays 7.30-9.30 in the Melody Room at Harmony Hall, 10, Truro Road, E17 7BY. The first rehearsal is free, then it's £10/£8 per session.
For more information contact Virginia on 07813-116505. To sign up, contact Jo on 07930 636678.
Posted by Jane Walker at 03:50 No comments:
In her regular column in the Waltham Forest Echo h...

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value: Walmart Inc. ( ; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.


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Patent US20070183501 - Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing ... - Google PatentsSearch Images Maps Play YouTube News Gmail Drive More »Sign inPatentsA method and apparatus for performing motion estimation in a digital video system is disclosed. Specifically, the present invention discloses a system that quickly calculates estimated motion vectors in a very efficient manner. In one embodiment, a first multiplicand is determined by multiplying a first...http://www.google.com/patents/US20070183501?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US20070183501 - Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsAdvanced Patent SearchPublication numberUS20070183501 A1Publication typeApplicationApplication numberUS 11/621,977Publication dateAug 9, 2007Filing dateJan 10, 2007Priority dateJul 24, 2002Also published asCA2502004A1, CA2502004C, CA2784948A1, CN1714572A, CN100417218C, CN101242536A, CN101242536B, EP1579689A1, EP1579689A4, US6728315, US7339991, US8009736, US8009737, US8077779, US8090023, US8094729, US8817880, US8817888, US8824565, US8837603, US8885732, US8934546, US8934547, US8934551, US8938008, US8942287, US8953693, US20040017851, US20040184543, US20070183502, US20070183503, US20070286282, US20090022224, US20110243235, US20110243236, US20110243237, US20110243238, US20110243239, US20110243240, US20110243241, US20110243242, US20110243243, US20110249752, US20110249753, US20150117541, WO2004054257A1Publication number11621977, 621977, US 2007/0183501 A1, US 2007/183501 A1, US 20070183501 A1, US 20070183501A1, US 2007183501 A1, US 2007183501A1, US-A1-20070183501, US-A1-2007183501, US2007/0183501A1, US2007/183501A1, US20070183501 A1, US20070183501A1, US2007183501 A1, US2007183501A1InventorsBarin Haskell, David Singer, Adriana Dumitras, Atul PuriOriginal AssigneeHaskell Barin G, Singer David W, Adriana Dumitras, Atul PuriExport CitationBiBTeX, EndNote, RefManPatent Citations (52), Referenced by (37), Classifications (72), Legal Events (1) External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, EspacenetMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operations
US 20070183501 A1Abstract
A method and apparatus for performing motion estimation in a digital video system is disclosed. Specifically, the present invention discloses a system that quickly calculates estimated motion vectors in a very efficient manner. In one embodiment, a first multiplicand is determined by multiplying a first display time difference between a first video picture and a second video picture by a power of two scale value. This step scales up a numerator for a ratio. Next, the system determines a scaled ratio by dividing that scaled numerator by a second first display time difference between said second video picture and a third video picture. The scaled ratio is then stored calculating motion vector estimations. By storing the scaled ratio, all the estimated motion vectors can be calculated quickly with good precision since the scaled ratio saves significant bits and reducing the scale is performed by simple shifts. Images(5) Claims(25)
1-20. (canceled) 21. A bitstream comprising: a. a plurality of video pictures; and b. at least one display order value for a first particular video picture, said display order value indicative of a temporal relationship of a first particular video picture with reference to a second particular video picture. 22. The bitstream of claim 21, wherein the first particular video picture is before the second particular video picture in a sequence of video pictures, wherein the bitstream comprises at least two display order values for different pairs of video pictures. 23. The bitstream of claim 21, wherein at least one temporal relationship relates to an interpolation distance between a first video picture and a second video picture. 24-29. (canceled) 30. A bitstream comprising: a. a plurality of video pictures; and b. at least one display order value for establishing an order for the selection of at least one reference video picture. 31. The bitstream of claim 30, wherein the display order value is for specifying a sequence for displaying at least one video picture from the plurality of video pictures. 32. The bitstream of claim 31, wherein the sequence for displaying is different than a sequence for decoding the video pictures. 33. The bitstream of claim 32, wherein at least one display order value is a difference between a decode order value for a first video picture and a display order value for the first video picture. 34. A bitstream comprising: a. a plurality of video pictures; and b. at least one display order value for computing a first motion vector for a first video picture, said computed first motion for the first video picture is based on a scaled ratio and a second motion vector for a second video picture. 35. The bitstream of claim 34, wherein the scaled ratio is an approximation of a ratio between a first display order difference value and a second display order difference value. 36. The bitstream of claim 35, wherein the first display order difference value is a difference between a first display order value for the first video picture and a third display value for a third video picture. 37. The bitstream of claim 36, wherein the second display order difference value is a difference between a second display order value for the second video picture and the third display order value for the third video picture. 38. The bitstream of claim 34, wherein the scaled ratio is based on a P value, wherein the P value is a power of two. 39-44. (canceled) 45. The bitstream of claim 44, wherein the division operation comprises performing a shifting operation of a portion of the bitstream by at least one bit. 46. The bitstream of claim 34, wherein said display order value comprises at least one display time value. 47. The bitstream of claim 34, wherein said display order value comprises at least one display time difference value. 48. The bitstream of claim 34, wherein said display order value comprises at least one display difference value. 49-54. (canceled) 55. A bitstream comprising: a. a plurality of video pictures; and b. at least one display order value for computing an implicit B prediction block weighting for at least one motion vector. 56. The bitstream of claim 55 further comprising at least one motion vector. 57. The bitstream of claim 55, wherein said display order value is for computing at least one motion vector. 58. The bitstream of claim 55, wherein computing the implicit B prediction block weighting comprises determining whether a particular video picture is a B frame. 59-62. (canceled)
RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This patent application claims the benefit under title 35, United States Code, Section 119(e) to the United States Provisional Patent Application having Ser. No. 60/398,625 filed on Jul. 24, 2002.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates to the field of multimedia compression systems. In particular the present invention discloses methods and systems for specifying variable accuracy inter-picture timing with reduced requirements for processor intensive division operation. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Digital based electronic media formats are finally on the cusp of largely replacing analog electronic media formats. Digital compact discs (CDs) replaced analog vinyl records long ago. Analog magnetic cassette tapes are becoming increasingly rare. Second and third generation digital audio systems such as Mini-discs and MP3 (MPEG Audio—layer 3) are now taking market share from the first generation digital audio format of compact discs. [0004] The video media formats have been slower to move to digital storage and digital transmission formats than audio media. The reason for this slower digital adoption has been largely due to the massive amounts of digital information required to accurately represent acceptable quality video in digital form and the fast processing capabilities needed to encode compressed video. The massive amounts of digital information needed to accurately represent video require very high-capacity digital storage systems and high-bandwidth transmission systems. [0005] However, video is now rapidly moving to digital storage and transmission formats. Faster computer processors, high-density storage systems, and new efficient compression and encoding algorithms have finally made digital video transmission and storage practical at consumer price points. The DVD (Digital Versatile Disc), a digital video system, has been one of the fastest selling consumer electronic products in years. DVDs have been rapidly supplanting Video-Cassette Recorders (VCRs) as the pre-recorded video playback system of choice due to their high video quality, very high audio quality, convenience, and extra features. The antiquated analog NTSC (National Television Standards Committee) video transmission system is currently in the process of being replaced with the digital ATSC (Advanced Television Standards Committee) video transmission system. [0006] Computer systems have been using various different digital video encoding formats for a number of years. Specifically, computer systems have employed different video coder/decoder methods for compressing and encoding or decompressing and decoding digital video, respectively. A video coder/decoder method, in hardware or software implementation, is commonly referred to as a “CODEC”. [0007] Among the best digital video compression and encoding systems used by computer systems have been the digital video systems backed by the Motion Pictures Expert Group commonly known by the acronym MPEG. The three most well known and highly used digital video formats from MPEG are known simply as MPEG-1, MPEG-2, and MPEG-4. VideoCDs (VCDs) and early consumer-grade digital video editing systems use the early MPEG-1 digital video encoding format. Digital Versatile Discs (DVDs) and the Dish Network brand Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) television broadcast system use the higher quality MPEG-2 digital video compression and encoding system. The MPEG-4 encoding system is rapidly being adapted by the latest computer based digital video encoders and associated digital video players. [0008] The MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 standards compress a series of video frames or video fields and then encode the compressed frames or fields into a digital bitstream. When encoding a video frame or field with the MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 systems, the video frame or field is divided into a rectangular grid of pixelblocks. Each pixelblock is independently compressed and encoded. [0009] When compressing a video frame or field, the MPEG-4 standard may compress the frame or field into one of three types of compressed frames or fields: Intra-frames (I-frames), Unidirectional Predicted frames (P-frames), or Bi-Directional Predicted frames (B-frames). Intra-frames completely independently encode an independent video frame with no reference to other video frames. P-frames define a video frame with reference to a single previously displayed video frame. B-frames define a video frame with reference to both a video frame displayed before the current frame and a video frame to be displayed after the current frame. Due to their efficient usage of redundant video information, P-frames and B-frames generally provide the best compression. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0010] A method and apparatus for performing motion estimation in a video codes is disclosed. Specifically, the present invention discloses a system that quickly calculates estimated motion vectors in a very efficient manner without requiring an excessive number of division operations. [0011] In one embodiment, a first multiplicand is determined by multiplying a first display time difference between a first video picture and a second video picture by a power of two scale value. This step scales up a numerator for a ratio. Next, the system determines a scaled ratio by dividing that scaled numerator by a second first display time difference between said second video picture and a third video picture. The scaled ratio is then stored to be used later for calculating motion vector estimations. By storing the scaled ratio, all the estimated motion vectors can be calculated quickly with good precision since the scaled ratio saves significant bits and reducing the scale is performed by simple shifts thus eliminating the need for time consuming division operations. [0012] Other objects, features, and advantages of present invention will be apparent from the company drawings and from the following detailed description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0013] The objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to one skilled in the art, in view of the following detailed description in which: [0014] FIG. 1 illustrates a high-level block diagram of one possible digital video encoder system. [0015] FIG. 2 illustrates a series of video pictures in the order that the pictures should be displayed wherein the arrows connecting different pictures indicate inter-picture dependency created using motion compensation. [0016] FIG. 3 illustrates the video pictures from FIG. 2 listed in a preferred transmission order of pictures wherein the arrows connecting different pictures indicate inter-picture dependency created using motion compensation. [0017] FIG. 4 graphically illustrates a series of video pictures wherein the distances between video pictures that reference each other are chosen to be powers of two. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT [0018] A method and system for specifying Variable Accuracy Inter-Picture Timing in a multimedia compression and encoding system with reduced requirements for division operations is disclosed. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, specific nomenclature is set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that these specific details are not required in order to practice the present invention. For example, the present invention has been described with reference to the MPEG multimedia compression and encoding system. However, the same techniques can easily be applied to other types of compression and encoding systems. Multimedia Compression and Encoding Overview [0019] FIG. 1 illustrates a high-level block diagram of a typical digital video encoder 100 as is well known in the art. The digital video encoder 100 receives an incoming video stream of video frames 105 at the left of the block diagram. The digital video encoder 100 partitions each video frame into a grid of pixelblocks. The pixelblocks are individually compressed. Various different sizes of pixelblocks may be used by different video encoding systems. For example, different pixelblock resolutions include 8�8, 8�4, 16�8, 4�4, etc. Furthermore, pixelblocks are occasionally referred to as ‘macroblocks.’ This document will use the term pixelblock to refer to any block of pixels of any size. [0020] A Discrete Cosine Transformation (DCT) unit 110 processes each pixelblock in the video frame. The frame may be processed independently (an intra-frame) or with reference to information from other frames received from the motion compensation unit (an inter-frame). Next, a Quantizer (Q) unit 120 quantizes the information from the Discrete Cosine Transformation unit 110. Finally, the quantized video frame is then encoded with an entropy encoder (H) unit 180 to produce an encoded bitstream. The entropy encoder (H) unit 180 may use a variable length coding (VLC) system. [0021] Since an inter-frame encoded video frame is defined with reference to other nearby video frames, the digital video encoder 100 needs to create a copy of how each decoded frame will appear within a digital video decoder such that inter-frames may be encoded. Thus, the lower portion of the digital video encoder 100 is actually a digital video decoder system. Specifically, an inverse quantizer (Q−1) unit 130 reverses the quantization of the video frame information and an inverse Discrete Cosine Transformation (DCT−1) unit 140 reverses the Discrete Cosine Transformation of the video frame information. After all the DCT coefficients are reconstructed from inverse Discrete Cosine Transformation (DCT−1) unit 140, the motion compensation unit will use that information, along with the motion vectors, to reconstruct the encoded video frame. The reconstructed video frame is then used as the reference frame for the motion estimation of the later frames. [0022] The decoded video frame may then be used to encode inter-frames (P-frames or B-frames) that are defined relative to information in the decoded video frame. Specifically, a motion compensation (MC) unit 150 and a motion estimation (ME) unit 160 are used to determine motion vectors and generate differential values used to encode inter-frames. [0023] A rate controller 190 receives information from many different components in a digital video encoder 100 and uses the information to allocate a bit budget for each video frame. The rate controller 190 should allocate the bit budget in a manner that will generate the highest quality digital video bit stream that that complies with a specified set of restrictions. Specifically, the rate controller 190 attempts to generate the highest quality compressed video stream without overflowing buffers (exceeding the amount of available memory in a video decoder by sending more information than can be stored) or underflowing buffers (not sending video frames fast enough such that a video decoder runs out of video frames to display). Digital Video Encoding with Pixelblocks [0024] In some video signals the time between successive video pictures (frames or fields) may not be constant. (Note: This document will use the term video pictures to generically refer to video frames or video fields.) For example, some video pictures may be dropped because of transmission bandwidth constraints. Furthermore, the video timing may also vary due to camera irregularity or special effects such as slow motion or fast motion. In some video streams, the original video source may simply have non-uniform inter-picture times by design. For example, synthesized video such as computer graphic animations may have non-uniform timing since no arbitrary video timing is imposed by a uniform timing video capture system such as a video camera system. A flexible digital video encoding system should be able to handle non-uniform video picture timing. [0025] As previously set forth, most digital video encoding systems partition video pictures into a rectangular grid of pixelblocks. Each individual pixelblock in a video picture is independently compressed and encoded. Some video coding standards, e.g., ISO MPEG or ITU H.264, use different types of predicted pixelblocks to encode video pictures. In one scenario, a pixelblock may be one of three types: 1. I-pixelblock—An Intra (I) pixelblock uses no information from any other video pictures in its coding (it is completely self-defined); 2. P-pixelblock—A unidirectionally predicted (P) pixelblock refers to picture information from one preceding video picture; or 3. B-pixelblock—A bi-directional predicted (B) pixelblock uses information from one preceding picture and one future video picture. [0029] If all the pixelblocks in a video picture are Intra-pixelblocks, then the video picture is an Intra-frame. If a video picture only includes unidirectional predicted macro blocks or intra-pixelblocks, then the video picture is known as a P-frame. If the video picture contains any bi-directional predicted pixelblocks, then the video picture is known as a B-frame. For the simplicity, this document will consider the case where all pixelblocks within a given picture are of the same type. [0030] An example sequence of video pictures to be encoded might be represented as: [0031] I1 B2 B3 B4 P5 B6 B7 B8 B9 P10 B11 P12 B13 I14 . . . [0032] where the letter (I, P, or B) represents if the video picture is an I-frame, P-frame, or B-frame and the number represents the camera order of the video picture in the sequence of video pictures. The camera order is the order in which a camera recorded the video pictures and thus is also the order in which the video pictures should be displayed (the display order). [0033] The previous example series of video pictures is graphically illustrated in FIG. 2. Referring to FIG. 2, the arrows indicate that pixelblocks from a stored picture (I-frame or P-frame in this case) are used in the motion compensated prediction of other pictures. [0034] In the scenario of FIG. 2, no information from other pictures is used in the encoding of the intra-frame video picture I1. Video picture P5 is a P-frame that uses video information from previous video picture I1 in its coding such that an arrow is drawn from video picture I1 to video picture P5. Video picture B2, video picture B3, video picture B4 all use information from both video picture I1 and video picture P5 in their coding such that arrows are drawn from video picture I1 and video picture P5 to video picture B2, video picture B3, and video picture B4. As stated above the inter-picture times are, in general, not the same. [0035] Since B-pictures use information from future pictures (pictures that will be displayed later), the transmission order is usually different than the display order. Specifically, video pictures that are needed to construct other video pictures should be transmitted first. For the above sequence, the transmission order might be: [0036] I1 P5 B2 B3 B4 P10 B6 B7 B8 B9 P12 B11 I14 B13 . . . [0037] FIG. 3 graphically illustrates the preceding transmission order of the video pictures from FIG. 2. Again, the arrows in the figure indicate that pixelblocks from a stored video picture (I or P in this case) are used in the motion compensated prediction of other video pictures. [0038] Referring to FIG. 3, the system first transmits I-frame I1 which does not depend on any other frame. Next, the system transmits P-frame video picture P5 that depends upon video picture I1. Next, the system transmits B-frame video picture B2 after video picture P5 even though video picture B2 will be displayed before video picture P5. The reason for this is that when it comes time to decode video picture B2, the decoder will have already received and stored the information in video pictures I1 and P5 necessary to decode video picture B2. Similarly, video pictures I1 and P5 are ready to be used to decode subsequent video picture B3 and video picture B4. The receiver/decoder reorders the video picture sequence for proper display. In this operation I and P pictures are often referred to as stored pictures. [0039] The coding of the P-frame pictures typically utilizes Motion Compensation, wherein a Motion Vector is computed for each pixelblock in the picture. Using the computed motion vector, a prediction pixelblock (P-pixelblock) can be formed by translation of pixels in the aforementioned previous picture. The difference between the actual pixelblock in the P-frame picture and the prediction pixelblock is then coded for transmission. [0000] P-Pictures [0040] The coding of P-Pictures typically utilize Motion Compensation (MC), wherein a Motion Vector (MV) pointing to a location in a previous picture is computed for each pixelblock in the current picture. Using the motion vector, a prediction pixelblock can be formed by translation of pixels in the aforementioned previous picture. The difference between the actual pixelblock in the P-Picture and the prediction pixelblock is then coded for transmission. [0041] Each motion vector may also be transmitted via predictive coding. For example, a motion vector prediction may be formed using nearby motion vectors. In such a case, then the difference between the actual motion vector and the motion vector prediction is coded for transmission. [0000] B-Pictures [0042] Each B-pixelblock uses two motion vectors: a first motion vector referencing the aforementioned previous video picture and a second motion vector referencing the future video picture. From these two motion vectors, two prediction pixelblocks are computed. The two predicted pixelblocks are then combined together, using some function, to form a final predicted pixelblock. As above, the difference between the actual pixelblock in the B-frame picture and the final predicted pixelblock is then encoded for transmission. [0043] As with P-pixelblocks, each motion vector (MV) of a B-pixelblock may be transmitted via predictive coding. Specifically, a predicted motion vector is formed using nearby motion vectors. Then, the difference between the actual motion vector and the predicted is coded for transmission. [0044] However, with B-pixelblocks the opportunity exists for interpolating motion vectors from motion vectors in the nearest stored picture pixelblock. Such motion vector interpolation is carried out both in the digital video encoder and the digital video decoder. [0045] This motion vector interpolation works particularly well on video pictures from a video sequence where a camera is slowly panning across a stationary background. In fact, such motion vector interpolation may be good enough to be used alone. Specifically, this means that no differential information needs be calculated or transmitted for these B-pixelblock motion vectors encoded using interpolation. [0046] To illustrate further, in the above scenario let us represent the inter-picture display time between pictures i and j as Di,j, i.e., if the display times of the pictures are Ti and Tj, respectively, then D i,j =T i −T j from which it follows that D i,k =D i,j +D j,k Di,k=−Dk,i Note that Di,j may be negative in some cases. [0047] Thus, if MV5,1 is a motion vector for a P5 pixelblock as referenced to I1, then for the corresponding pixelblocks in B2, B3 and B4 the motion vectors as referenced to I1 and P5, respectively would be interpolated by MV 2,1 =MV 5,1 *D 2,1 /D 5,1 MV 5,2 =MV 5,1 *D 2,2 /D 5,1 MV 3,1 =MV 5,1 *D 3,1 /D 5,1 MV 5,3 =MV 5,1 *D 5,3 /D 5,1 MV 4,1 =MV 5,1 *D 4,1 /D 5,1 MV 5,4 =MV 5,1 *D 5,4 /D 5,1 Note that since ratios of display times are used for motion vector prediction, absolute display times are not needed. Thus, relative display times may be used for Di,j inter-picture display time values. [0048] This scenario may be generalized, as for example in the H.264 standard. In the generalization, a P or B picture may use any previously transmitted picture for its motion vector prediction. Thus, in the above case picture B3 may use picture I1 and picture B2 in its prediction. Moreover, motion vectors may be extrapolated, not just interpolated. Thus, in this case we would have: MV 3,1 =MV 2,1 *D 3,1 /D 2,1 Such motion vector extrapolation (or interpolation) may also be used in the prediction process for predictive coding of motion vectors. Encoding Inter-Picture Display Times [0049] The variable inter-picture display times of video sequences should be encoded and transmitted in a manner that renders it possible to obtain a very high coding efficiency and has selectable accuracy such that it meets the requirements of a video decoder. Ideally, the encoding system should simplify the tasks for the decoder such that relatively simple computer systems can decode the digital video. [0050] The variable inter-picture display times are potentially needed in a number of different video encoding systems in order to compute differential motion vectors, Direct Mode motion vectors, and/or Implicit B Prediction Block Weighting. [0051] The problem of variable inter-picture display times in video sequences is intertwined with the use of temporal references. Ideally, the derivation of correct pixel values in the output pictures in a video CODEC should be independent of the time at which that picture is decoded or displayed. Hence, timing issues and time references should be resolved outside the CODEC layer. [0052] There are both coding-related and systems-related reasons underlying the desired time independence. In a video CODEC, time references are used for two purposes: [0053] (1) To establish an ordering for reference picture selection; and [0054] (2) To interpolate motion vectors between pictures. [0055] To establish an ordering for reference picture selection, one may simply send a relative position value. For example, the difference between the frame position N in decode order and the frame position M in the display order, i.e., N-M. In such an embodiment, time-stamps or other time references would not be required. To interpolate motion vectors, temporal distances would be useful if the temporal distances could be related to the interpolation distance. However, this may not be true if the motion is non-linear. Therefore, sending parameters other than temporal information for motion vector interpolation seems more appropriate. [0056] In terms of systems, one can expect that a typical video CODEC is part of a larger system where the video CODEC coexists with other video (and audio) CODECs. In such multi-CODEC systems, good system layering and design requires that general functions, which are logically CODEC-independent such as timing, be handled by the layer outside the CODEC. The management of timing by the system and not by each CODEC independently is critical to achieving consistent handling of common functions such as synchronization. For instance in systems that handle more than one stream simultaneously, such as a video/audio presentation, timing adjustments may sometimes be needed within the streams in order to keep the different streams synchronized. Similarly, in a system that handles a stream from a remote system with a different clock timing adjustments may be needed to keep synchronization with the remote system. Such timing adjustments may be achieved using time stamps. For example, time stamps that are linked by means of “Sender Reports” from the transmitter and supplied in RTP in the RTP layer for each stream may be used for synchronization. These sender reports may take the form of: [0057] Video RTP TimeStamp X is aligned with reference timestamp Y [0058] Audio RTP TimeStamp W is aligned with reference timestamp Z [0059] Wherein the wall-clock rate of the reference timestamps is known, allowing the two streams to be aligned. However, these timestamp references arrive both periodically and separately for the two streams, and they may cause some needed re-alignment of the two streams. This is generally achieved by adjusting the video stream to match the audio or vice-versa. System handling of time stamps should not affect the values of the pixels being displayed. More generally, system handling of temporal information should be performed outside the CODEC. [0000] A Specific Example [0060] As set forth in the previous section, the problem in the case of non uniform inter-picture times is to transmit the inter-picture display time values Di,j to the digital video receiver in an efficient manner. One method of accomplishing this goal is to have the system transmit the display time difference between the current picture and the most recently transmitted stored picture for each picture after the first picture. For error resilience, the transmission could be repeated several times within the picture. For example, the display time difference may be repeated in the slice headers of the MPEG or H.264 standards. If all slice headers are lost, then presumably other pictures that rely on the lost picture for decoding information cannot be decoded either. [0061] Thus, with reference to the example of the preceding section, a system would transmit the following inter-picture display time values: [0062] D5,1 D2,5 D3,5 D4,5 D10,5 D6,10 D7,10 D8,10 D9,10 D12,10 D11,12 D14,12 D13,14 . . . [0063] For the purpose of motion vector estimation, the accuracy requirements for the inter-picture display times Di,j may vary from picture to picture. For example, if there is only a single B-frame picture B6 halfway between two P-frame pictures P5 and P7, then it suffices to send only: D7,5=2 and D6,7=−1 where the Di,j inter-picture display time values are relative time values. [0064] If, instead, video picture B6 is only one quarter the distance between video picture P5 and video picture P7 then the appropriate Di,j inter-picture display time values to send would be: D7,5=4 and D6,7=−1 Note that in both of the preceding examples, the display time between the video picture B6 and video picture video picture P7 (inter-picture display time D6,7) is being used as the display time “unit” value. In the most recent example, the display time difference between video picture P5 and picture video picture P7 (inter-picture display time D6,7) is four display time “units” (4*D6,7). Improving Decoding Efficiency [0065] In general, motion vector estimation calculations are greatly simplified if divisors are powers of two. This is easily achieved in our embodiment if Di,j (the inter-picture time) between two stored pictures is chosen to be a power of two as graphically illustrated in FIG. 4. Alternatively, the estimation procedure could be defined to truncate or round all divisors to a power of two. [0066] In the case where an inter-picture time is to be a power of two, the number of data bits can be reduced if only the integer power (of two) is transmitted instead of the full value of the inter-picture time. FIG. 4 graphically illustrates a case wherein the distances between pictures are chosen to be powers of two. In such a case, the D3,1 display time value of 2 between video picture P1 and picture video picture P3 is transmitted as 1 (since 21=2) and the D7,3 display time value of 4 between video picture P7 and picture video picture P3 can be transmitted as 2 (since 22=4). [0067] Alternatively, the motion vector interpolation of extrapolation operation can be approximated to any desired accuracy by scaling in such a way that the denominator is a power of two. (With a power of two in the denominator division may be performed by simply shifting the bits in the value to be divided.) For example, D5,4/D5,1˜Z5,4/P Where the value P is a power of two and Z5,4=P*D5,4/D5,1 is rounded or truncated to the nearest integer. The value of P may be periodically transmitted or set as a constant for the system. In one embodiment, the value of P is set as P=28=256. [0068] The advantage of this approach is that the decoder only needs to compute Z5,4 once per picture or in many cases the decoder may pre-compute and store the Z value. This allows the decoder to avoid having to divide by D5,1 for every motion vector in the picture such that motion vector interpolation may be done much more efficiently. For example, the normal motion vector calculation would be: MV 5,4 =MV 5,1 *D 5,4 /D 5,1 But if we calculate and store Z5,4 wherein Z5,4=P*D5,4/D5,1 then MV 5,4 =MV 5,1 *Z 5,4 /P But since the P value has been chosen to be a power of two, the division by P is merely a simple shift of the bits. Thus, only a single multiplication and a single shift are required to calculate motion vectors for subsequent pixelblocks once the Z value has been calculated for the video picture. Furthermore, the system may keep the accuracy high by performing all divisions last such that significant bits are not lost during the calculation. In this manner, the decoder may perform exactly the same as the motion vector interpolation as the encoder thus avoiding any mismatch problems that might otherwise arise. [0069] Since division (except for division by powers of two) is a much more computationally intensive task for a digital computer system than addition or multiplication, this approach can greatly reduce the computations required to reconstruct pictures that use motion vector interpolation or extrapolation. [0070] In some cases, motion vector interpolation may not be used. However, it is still necessary to transmit the display order of the video pictures to the receiver/player system such that the receiver/player system will display the video pictures in the proper order. In this case, simple signed integer values for Di,j suffice irrespective of the actual display times. In some applications only the sign (positive or negative) may be needed to reconstruct the picture ordering. [0071] The inter-picture times Di,j may simply be transmitted as simple signed integer values. However, many methods may be used for encoding the Di,j values to achieve additional compression. For example, a sign bit followed by a variable length coded magnitude is relatively easy to implement and provides coding efficiency. [0072] One such variable length coding system that may be used is known as UVLC (Universal Variable Length Code). The UVLC variable length coding system is given by the code words: 1 = 1 2 = 0 1 0 3 = 0 1 1 4 = 0 0 1 0 0 5 = 0 0 1 0 1 6 = 0 0 1 1 0 7 = 0 0 1 1 1 8 = 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 … [0073] Another method of encoding the inter-picture times may be to use arithmetic coding. Typically, arithmetic coding utilizes conditional probabilities to effect a very high compression of the data bits. [0074] Thus, the present invention introduces a simple but powerful method of encoding and transmitting inter-picture display times and methods for decoding those inter-picture display times for use in motion vector estimation. The encoding of inter-picture display times can be made very efficient by using variable length coding or arithmetic coding. Furthermore, a desired accuracy can be chosen to meet the needs of the video codec, but no more. [0075] The foregoing has described a system for specifying variable accuracy inter-picture timing in a multimedia compression and encoding system. It is contemplated that changes and modifications may be made by one of ordinary skill in the art, to the materials and arrangements of elements of the present invention without departing from the scope of the invention. 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encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8824565Jun 15, 2011Sep 2, 2014Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8837603Jun 15, 2011Sep 16, 2014Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8885732Jun 15, 2011Nov 11, 2014Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8934546Jun 15, 2011Jan 13, 2015Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8934547Jun 15, 2011Jan 13, 2015Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8934551Jun 15, 2011Jan 13, 2015Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8938008Jun 15, 2011Jan 20, 2015Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8942287Jun 15, 2011Jan 27, 2015Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS8953693Jun 15, 2011Feb 10, 2015Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS20070183492 *Jan 10, 2007Aug 9, 2007Haskell Barin GMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encodingUS20070183502 *Jan 10, 2007Aug 9, 2007Haskell Barin GMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS20070183503 *Jan 10, 2007Aug 9, 2007Haskell Barin GMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS20070189378 *Jan 10, 2007Aug 16, 2007Haskell Barin GMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encodingUS20070189379 *Jan 10, 2007Aug 16, 2007Haskell Barin GMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encodingUS20070274395 *Aug 8, 2007Nov 29, 2007Haskell Barin GMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encodingUS20070274677 *Aug 8, 2007Nov 29, 2007Haskell Barin GMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encodingUS20070274678 *Aug 8, 2007Nov 29, 2007Haskell Barin GMethod and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encodingUS20070286282 *Jul 18, 2007Dec 13, 2007Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS20090022224 *Jul 18, 2007Jan 22, 2009Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS20090022225 *Jul 18, 2007Jan 22, 2009Apple Inc.Method and apparatus for variable accuracy inter-picture timing specification for digital video encoding with reduced requirements for division operationsUS20100183073 *Jan 18, 2010Jul 22, 2010Barin Geoffry HaskellMethod and Apparatus for Variable Accuracy Inter-Picture Timing Specification for Digital Video Encoding* Cited by examinerClassifications U.S. Classification375/240.16, 375/E07.17, 375/E07.211, 375/E07.139, 375/E07.187, 375/E07.123, 375/E07.155, 375/E07.198, 375/E07.148, 375/E07.176, 375/240.26, 375/E07.258International ClassificationH04N7/26, G06T9/00, H04N7/36, H04N7/12, H04N11/02Cooperative ClassificationH04N19/52, H04N19/00551, H04N19/587, H04N19/0003, H04N19/00278, H04N19/00218, H04N19/00193, H04N19/00545, H04N19/00472, H04N19/00781, H04N19/00369, H04N7/50, H04N19/00721, H04N19/00187, H04N19/00733, H04N19/00684, H04N19/0009, H04N19/463, H04N19/00563, H04N19/00587, H04N19/40, H04N19/51, H04N19/124, H04N19/159, H04N19/107, H04N19/48, H04N19/176, H04N19/132, H04N19/46, H04N19/513, H04N19/61, H04N19/577, H04N19/15, H04N19/152, H04N19/13, H04N19/196, H04N19/137, H04N19/146, H04N19/139European ClassificationH04N7/26A4P, H04N7/26M, H04N7/46E, H04N7/26A10S, H04N19/00G1, H04N7/26M2, H04N7/36C2, H04N7/26A4C2, H04N7/26C, H04N7/26A4Q, H04N7/26M6, H04N7/50, H04N7/26A6E2, H04N7/26A8B, H04N7/26T, H04N7/26A6S2Legal EventsDateCodeEventDescriptionMay 27, 2015FPAYFee paymentYear of fee payment: 4RotateOriginal ImageGoogle Home - Sitemap - USPTO Bulk Downloads - Privacy Policy - Terms of Service - About Google Patents - Send FeedbackData provided by IFI CLAIMS Patent Services

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$78.00 Nextbook Ares 8" Tablet 16GB Intel Atom Z3735G Quad-Core Processor 3.0 stars (145) ratings Free shipping Free store pickup today Clearance $49.99 Was $59.99 Save $10.00 Bright Tab 7" Android 4.4 KitKat 8GB WiFi Dual Camera Tablet w/ Bluetooth + Case 2.0 stars (3) ratings Sold & Shipped by VMInnovations Free shipping $179.99 List price $197.0 Save $17.01 Nextbook Ares 11.6" 2-in-1 Tablet 64GB Intel Atom Z3735F Quad-Core Processor Android 5.0 3.0 stars (86) ratings Free shipping Free store pickup Blue
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Eric Gordon: Sore Knee - Yahoo Sports
What's buzzing: College Station furniture store owes patrons over $1M thanks to A&M upset Eric Gordon: Sore Knee
Update: Gordon didn't play in the Hornets' first preseason game due to a sore right knee, reports The Times-PicayuneRecommendation: Rookie Austin Rivers started in the backcourt next to Greivis Vasquez with Summer League darling Brian Roberts backing up the point guard position. Gordon still expects to play once the regular season gets underway.Greivis Vasquez

value: Yahoo (, styled as yahoo!) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake Yahoo!


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Fit Fifties: Progress Report: Week 4
That makes us 1/3 of the way through the initial 12-week program. We didn't miss a day, though on Wednesday we walked our whole 2 miles around the parking lot at my work instead of indoors with the DVD.
That's because my car broke down, and we had to wait for Mitch to come fix it. We couldn't walk later because we were attending a Cub Scout "banquet".
I have followed my food plan for 30 days. I want a chip like they give out in AA that has a big 30 on it. You fasten it to your keytag as a reminder to keep it up.
Hmmm...a stop at Genesis Books might be in order this week.
Labels: addiction, exercise, food plan, Genesis Books, making do, rewards, walking


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- Hebron hopes to complete dream softball season
"Nobody expected us to make it this far,''� Heather Stearns said. "Nobody thought we would beat Keller in the first round. It is fun to be the underdog.''

value: ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American multinational basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The company was founded in 1979 by Bill Rasmussen along with his son Scott Rasmussen and Ed Egan.


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House block - block two, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.Here's the second block for my house quilt. Next I'll be doing the hammock that Jodi suggested - and making it all tropical! Good thing to do when it's winter outside.
House block - block one, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.I've finally finished the first block for my house quilt - I decided to piece the trees. I'm planning to do one block each week. It's good to set a goal...
IMG_2052, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.Thanks Fran from Willow Patch for your fabulous quilting.
IMG_2050, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.Excuse the photo - it's a gorgeous sunny winter afternoon. I have sewn on the binding, just need to turn and handstitch it down.And the beauty is - I didn't buy any new fabric for this. Discovered that I had enough spotty fabric already (shows the kind of stash I have!)
IMG_2047, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.The machine quilter used black and white thread, and we decided on an open spiral/ snail shell. I'm sooo happy with it!
IMG_2048, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.Back from the quilter - a close up.
Ben's wonky houses quilt, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.A real milestone today. Ten people have now marked this as a favourite on flickr.I loaded this (pretty bad) photo to flickr about 15 months ago.I really need to take another shot, which 1) shows the whole quilt (!) and 2) doesn't have bumps all over (husband's knees and elbows, I think).
46/365: yellow car, a photo by xxxrmt on Flickr.We're mad about a game called spotto. The rules are simple, just say "spotto" first whenever you see a yellow car. The boys and I play it most days driving to school. Then when I've dropped them off, I catch myself still playing the game.We often come up with all sorts of complicating rules - my husband has tried bringing in negative spotto if you cheat. Does anyone else play it? The kids have started to say that I'm obsessed!(This is obviously not my photo - but isn't it a gorgeous one.)
Reduced Fat Chocolate Fudge Cake, a photo by kellbakes for Baking911 on Flickr.There - that got your attention... I baked a chocolate cake for Ben last night (this is obviously not mine). He's learning about money in his class right now, and all the kids had to bring something along to their market day, they're using fake money. I loved Ben's attention to detail. He suggested packing food-handling gloves, drew a big poster, which set out the ingredients. He also did a small cardboard sign, saying that slices were $1.50 each. The sign could be flipped to the other side ($1 each) if sales weren't going so well!!
Ten make two bee quilt top, a photo by Aneela Hoey on Flickr.And I really like this one - teeny houses and trees - and all in red and aqua.
Paint Chip Challenge Quilt Block, a photo by VeronicaMade on Flickr.Gorgeous range of aquas and reds...
Red and Aqua Half Square Triangle Quilt, a photo by heidigoneaussie on Flickr.Another red and aqua - so fresh with lots of white sashing.
Red and Aqua House Doll Quilt, a photo by AFriend2 on Flickr.I've found a "red and aqua love" group on Flickr. Looove that colour combination - I'll have to give it a go.
IMG_2032, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.I've been inspired by another flickr member - Mini Milly, who received a quilt of lots of quirky houses from her friends.
I came up with some ideas while I was sitting in a very boring meeting this week! Did the notes in (very bad) shorthand so no one would be able to read my notes, and realise I was thinking about quilts! This will be block number one - a clothesline. And I'm thinking about having the trees in these pots. I've had these buttons for ever.
IMG_2033, a photo by Linseed2010 on Flickr.Bird in the tree, undies on the line!