I admit it

Arthur C Clarke once wrote “when my past is more fascinating than my future, I will be officially old”. For some reason, as I approach my eightieth birthday, I must admit I’m spending more time considering my past than I am focussed on what lies ahead. I suppose that makes me old by Clarke’s definition.

Having said that though, I still want to know what’s around that next bend; what’s over that next hill. It’s just taking me longer to reach those vantage points. But if aches and pains are the price of aging, I can live with those as long as I can keep on going.

I’ve seen much history both internationally and nationally. I’ve seen triumphs and I’ve seen tragedies. I even remember the last time the Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup.

On a personal level I was fortunate to work in transportation ,a field I grew to love, so it didn’t really feel like working. I’ve seen my sons grow into fine young men, men I’m proud to know. I have been privileged to meet many wonderful people over the years, some of whom I am honoured to call friends.

Obviously given my age, I in all likelihood don’t have the same number of years ahead of me as I’ve already lived through, but I intend to keep on going, asking questions and finding new things to explore. And I will continue to photograph and write about those things.

Cat.

Better luck next time

I just received a text purporting to be from Scotiabank (Bank of Nova Scotia) telling me my access card “Has Been Disabled As Of New Security Improvements” (that’s exactly as it was written). I was then asked to reply with “R” to deal with the matter.

I haven’t dealt with this bank in over 20 years so obviously I wasn’t worried. And, the area code was 289, which is one of the area codes for the part of Ontario surrounding Toronto and unlikely to be associated with Scotiabank in any fashion. I also felt the unusual use of capitalisation and irregular use of bold text was a clear sign someone was fishing.

Being slightly bored, I decided to see what they would say if I replied with something other than the R they requested. I carefully crafted this response: Oh no! Something I don’t have has been disabled! What shall I do?? Notice that the letter “r” does not appear anywhere in that comment.

Didn’t matter. Immediately upon sending this I was sent a link again claiming to be from Scotiabank to allow me to verify my information. At that point I sat down to write this blog, and now that I’ve finished, I’ll delete the text right after I call Scotiabank and report this.

If you ever receive a text message claiming to be from a bank that states your access card or account has been frozen or disabled, don’t just accept it. If it is from a bank you’ve never dealt with, just delete it. If it purports to be from the bank you do deal with, again don’t blindly accept the message. Check with your usual branch if this is during regular business hours. If it is later in the day, there is a telephone number on the back of your access card. Call them and report the attempted fraud.

Enjoy your day and remember to hug an artist, we need love too.

Cat.

Prime idiots

I’ve been away from the computer for a couple of days and today I found these two messages in my spam folder:

RE:catharineamacdonald:Your Prime Membership Has Expired GET FREE Extension #253
Prime® <info@qteltini.

09:17 (6 hours ago)

Your PRIME Membership has expired!

Your membership has expired!

Your Subscription for Prime
expired on 03-22-2024

Dear customer, We tried to renew your subscription at the end of each billing cycle, but your monthly payment has failed. We therefore had to cancel your subscription. Obviously, we would love to see you again. If you wish to renew your subscription click on the link below

UPDATE MY PAYMENT DETAILS
Subscription ID : 86812677656103733968
Product : Prime 90 days
Expiration Date : 03-22-2024
Confirm
*Available ONLY TODAY

• After signing up, you have to insert your credit card details for validation of your account.
  We will not withdraw any amount.

To stop these please go here or write to:
616 Corporate Way Ste.2-9092
Valley Cottage, NY 10989

RE:catharineamacdonald:Your Prime Membership Has Expired GET FREE Extension #908
Prime® <info@hnikowwez

Mon, 18 Mar, 19:35 (4 days ago)

Your PRIME Membership has expired!

Your membership has expired!

Your Subscription for Prime
expired on 03-18-2024

Dear customer, We tried to renew your subscription at the end of each billing cycle, but your monthly payment has failed. We therefore had to cancel your subscription. Obviously, we would love to see you again. If you wish to renew your subscription click on the link below

UPDATE MY PAYMENT DETAILS
Subscription ID : 59713013418228743187
Product : Prime 90 days
Expiration Date : 03-18-2024
Confirm
*Available ONLY TODAY

• After signing up, you have to insert your credit card details for validation of your account.
  We will not withdraw any amount.

To stop these please go here or write to:
616 Corporate Way Ste.2-9092
Valley Cottage, NY 10989

Now, yes I do have a prime subscription. No, it is not “Prime 90 day” so they would not be trying to take money from my account monthly.

There are a couple of warning flags on this. First is the fact it is “available ONLY TODAY”. Why the rush to do it today? Second, when I signed up, I chose the annual package, which isn’t set to expire for a while yet, so why on earth would I be getting this “90 Day Prime” notification? And, I can’t find any listing for an Amazon location in Valley Cottage NY.

They ask for your credit card information, then say “We will not withdraw any amount.”. Right. They won’t take anything under a name resembling Amazon or Prime, but will probably use it to run up exorbitant charges everywhere else.

If you have Prime don’t just accept this email blindly. You had to sign up for Prime, so you should have their email address somewhere. Check your emails and see what you signed up for before going into a panic and doing something foolish.

On August 3, 2023, I received the following email from Amazon, which I am including here for your information:

Watch out for recent scam tactics
Amazon
Amazon

Thu, 3 Aug 2023, 03:20

to me
Amazon
Watch out for recent scam tactics
Scammers are creative and they constantly devise new schemes, exploit new technologies and change tactics to avoid detection. Stay safe by learning to identify and avoid scams.

Prime membership scams:
These are unexpected calls/texts/emails that refer to a costly membership fee or an issue with your membership and ask you to confirm or cancel the charge. These scammers try to convince you to provide payment or bank account information in order to reinstate a membership.

Amazon will never ask you to provide payment information for products or services over the phone. Visit the Message Centre on Amazon or on our app to review authentic emails from Amazon. To verify your Prime Membership status or make payments, log into your Amazon account, and go to Your Account.

Account suspension/Deletion scams:
Scammers send texts, emails and phone calls stating that your account will be suspended or deleted and prompt you to click on a fraudulent link or verbally provide information to “verify your account.” Customers who land on these pages or receive these phone calls are then lured to provide account information such as payment information or account login credentials.

Amazon will never ask you to disclose your password or verify sensitive personal information over the phone or on any website other than Amazon. Please do not click on any links or provide your information to anyone over the phone without authenticating the email or phone call. If you have questions about the status of your account, go directly to Amazon or on our app to view your account details, including the Message Center which displays a log of communications sent from Amazon.

Here are some important tips to identify scams and keep your account and information safe:

1. Trust Amazon-owned channels.
   Always go through the Amazon mobile app or website when seeking customer service, tech support, or when looking to make changes to your account.
2. Be wary of false urgency.
   Scammers may try to create a sense of urgency to persuade you to do what they’re asking. Be wary any time someone tries to convince you that you must act now.
3. Never pay over the phone.
   Amazon will never ask you to provide payment information, including gift cards (or “verification cards,” as some scammers call them) for products or services over the phone.
4. Verify links first.
   Legitimate Amazon websites contain “amazon” or “amazon.” Go directly to our website when seeking help with Amazon devices/services, orders or to make changes to your account.

For more information on how to stay safe online, visit Security & Privacy on the Amazon Customer Service page.

If you receive communication — a call, text, or email — that you think may not be from Amazon, please report it to us.
Report it to us
To review or respond to emails from Amazon, visit the Message Centre on our website.
Amazon Message Centre

©2023 Amazon Inc. or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Amazon, Amazon, the Amazon logo and 1-Click are registered trademarks of Amazon, Inc. or its affiliates. Amazon, 410 Terry Avenue N., Seattle, WA 98109-5210. If you have any questions and wish to contact us, click here. Ref: 737829810.

You are receiving this service email based on a recent purchase or to provide information related to your Amazon account.© 2023 Amazon, Inc. or its affiliates. Amazon and all related marks are trademarks of Amazon, Inc. or its affiliates. Reference: 491560262
Amazon

I have removed part of the email addresses to keep in WordPress’s good graces.

As I wrote above, these are not from Amazon or Prime, so if you get one of these, just delete it.

Cat.

Doesn’t ring a Bell

I received a text message tonight from a number in area code 807. That is northwestern Ontario. Thunder Bay and Kenora are the two largest municipalities in that area.

Here’s the body of that text:

Bell Mobility Inc has sent you an INTERAC e-Transfer. Click here to deposit $150 (followed by a link).

(Sorry dear customer, this is a refund and compensation for your last bill that we’ve mistakenly overcharged.)

There are several things wrong with this text. First and foremost, my cell phone isn’t through Bell, so right there I know this is some kind of scam. Second, while my landline is through Bell, that wouldn’t be handled by the cell phone division and the amount of a hundred and fifty would be more than twice my usual monthly bill. Finally, if you’ve ever sent or received an e-transfer, you know there is more involved than just clicking on a link.

This is a not very subtle attempt to access your phone and gain access to all your information. If you receive this text, or any similar text message, just delete it. You’ll save yourself a lot of trouble.

Cat.

Missed another one

I received the following text message this morning: The USPS package has arrived at the warehouse and cannot be delivered due to incomplete address information. Please confirm your address in the link within 12 hours. Then followed a link and a message from USPS wishing me a good day.

Several things wrong with this text. First, how would they get my telephone number to send the text? And why would the USPS be holding a package for me? I haven’t ordered anything from anyone recently – except pizza and I doubt strongly USPS would be delivering my pizza – and if this were indeed the US Postal Service, you’d think the 416 area code which is Toronto Ontario Canada would be a clue I’m not in the US.

The person or people behind this message can’t be all the bright. As I said, the 416 area code is Toronto Ontario, so there is no way the USPS would be holding anything for me. If there were a package with an incomplete address, the obvious choices for the postal service – any postal service – would be to either return it to the sender or consign it to the dead letter office.

If you receive a similar text, even if you are expecting something in the mail. DO NOT click on the link provided. Call your local post office and ask them directly. Then delete the text, or if you’re like me, use it as fodder for a blog.

Have a great day and if you live in the part (most) of North America under severe winter weather, stay warm, and remember to hug an artist, we need love too.

Cat.

Where will they stop?

Whenever I think things can’t get any stranger in the United States, something happens to prove me wrong.

I first came across this in a Facebook post, without links, a couple of days ago, but it wasn’t until this morning I was able to check it out. I found an article dated January 12, 2024 on the CBS News site about the Escambia County school district in Florida. Apparently this school district has pulled 1,600 books including five dictionaries, eight encyclopaedias and The Guinness Book of Word Records from their schools. The reason? “Examination for ‘inappropriate content’” as defined under House Bill 1069. According to the article, HB 1069 is defined as follows: HB 1069 – a bill approved by Gov. Ron DeSantis last year that, along with requiring schools to teach that “reproductive roles are binary, stable and unchangeable” and limiting education regarding sexual health, also bans schools from having books that depict or describe “sexual conduct” or “is inappropriate for the grade level and age group for which the material is used.”

Among the dictionaries removed from school shelves are Meriam-Webster Elementary Dictionary and the Webster Dictionary and Thesaurus for Students. These books and the Guinness Book of World Records provide a wealth of information and knowledge.

Can anyone explain to me how, if a child is in school and knows how to read and write (probably not cursive but still …) a dictionary or thesaurus can be inappropriate at any grade or age? How are they to know first, is the word spelled correctly and second, is it the proper word, used in the proper context? Spellcheck *may* help with the spelling, but that won’t help with the second part. (For the record, I don’t use spellcheck. I use my Canadian English dictionary if I have any doubts.)

While these reference texts are not available for use by students, how are they supposed to check spellings and definitions? Guess? Or, as Lewis Carroll wrote: Must a name mean something?” Alice asks Humpty Dumpty, only to get this answer: “When I use a word… it means just what I choose it to mean – …” Could make for some interesting essays and exams.

What happens if the decisions on these various reference texts are that their content is inappropriate for students of any age and they are permanently removed from schools? Will the publishers have to create special editions just for Florida, or will students grow up not having the benefit of getting a rounded education?

Two final questions: When will Florida come to its senses? And second, if this nonsense keeps on will DeSantis hold a giant book burning on the lawn of the governor’s mansion?

Cat.

 

 

Suggestions please

I’m in the process of switching from a PC to a Mac. As a longtime PC user, naturally I have a fair bit of software specific to my particular uses. And of course, none of this software is compatible with a Mac. I’m a writer and photographer, so my main interests are photo processing and word processing software.

I’ve been using WordPerfect for my writing. I learned word processing at Durham College in Oshawa and at the time the most current version was WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS, so yeah, I’m a long-time user. Yes, I’ve used Word, but still prefer WordPerfect. I spoke with a nice lady at Apple and she suggested that a programme called Neo Office would be able to handle WordPerfect without problem. Incidentally I’m writing this on the PC because I’m still not sure about the Mac. My son did warn me I would find the learning curve between PC and Mac to be steep, but I didn’t think he meant Mount Everest steep. More on why I’m on the PC later.

For my photowork I’m using Corel Paintshop. They advise me Paintshop is not compatible with Mac and have no suggestions for an alternative. Can someone recommend photo software for me? Before you suggest something with a price in the stratosphere, my sole income is a government pension, so cost is a major consideration.

Now, why the PC still. I’ve looked and can’t seem to find WordPress for the Mac. I have this on my iPhone and iPad, but can’t seem to find a version for the Mac. Does anyone know if there is a Mac version out there somewhere or alternatively whether the iPhone/iPad version would work properly on a Mac?

Any and all suggestions will be welcome. Thanks.

Remember to hug and artist, we need love (and computer advice) too.

Cat.

Who’s right?

Recently I read an article on whether or not landscape photographers are “cheating” (her word) when they crop an image to remove all signs of human occupation. She was referring mainly to England, her home, which is as she stated “a very crowded place”.Her argument was this: you visit a popular tourist spot to take some photos. As it is popular naturally there are other people there, all with the same goal in mind – get some pretty pictures. Since it is a popular spot, it will be almost impossible to get your photos without anybody else appearing in them. Of course, you can do a certain amount of cropping through the viewfinder, but chances are there will still be people present in your shots.

Are you “cheating” your audience if you crop or otherwise manipulate the image, either in a darkroom on using software, to make it appear there was nobody else there? Granted, you will have a clear unimpeded shot of the attraction, but without people present at a popular tourist site, in my view, the image will appear sterile.

I will admit I was able, years ago. to get some photos on Niagara Falls without people in the frame, but there’s a story behind that. When I first got my DSLR, I took an early morning train and bus ride from my home to Niagara Falls. I arrived shortly before 8 am at the train station, which was where the GO Transit bus terminal was located. The driver assured me it was only a short walk from there to the falls. Right. I walked along River Road, which as the name suggests, runs along the lower river and the Niagara Gorge, taking photos as I went. Forty-five minutes later I finally see the Horseshoe Falls. I took some wonderful shots of both the American and Horseshoe Falls through the supports for the Rainbow Bridge as well as some longer range shots of the Horseshoe Falls with the power plant (I think it was the Adam Beck Power Plant) in the background. By now my knees were telling me was an idiot for trying to walk that far, so I never got close to Table Rock or the cataract itself. But, because it was so early in the morning, there were very few cars or people about, and most of those that were present were locals going to work. Had it been later in the day, yes, there would have been people everywhere and yes, they would have appeared in my photos and yes, I’d have left them there.

The idea of unknown people in landscape or otherwise scenic photos brings up another issue. Years ago I read an article on something the author called “the territorial imperative”. The situation presented was this: you are driving through one of the seedier areas of town and see an obviously homeless person rooting through some trash cans. You grab your ever-present camera and take a photo clearly showing his face.

Keep in mind that as the photographer you own the copyright to your images and can do whatever you want with them. At least this is true in Canada. The issue is that by taking the photo of this man, you have invaded his privacy. We don’t know why he’s living on the streets. Was it a family breakup or bad business or some other reason? We just don’t know. By using that image, are we going to cause him more pain and trouble? Do we use the image anyway with a “let the chips fall where they may” attitude, or do we let his feelings and condition guide our decision? This is the territorial imperative – what territory are we going to violate? His right to privacy or our right to possibly profit from his misery?

In a sense, taking landscape photos where there are people present, brings up this same question. The chances are very good that anyone in a landscape or scenic photo will be too far away to be easily identified, but still … We have in a very real sense invaded their privacy by the act of taking our photos while they are in the image. In this case, are photographers right to crop people out of the image, or leave them there? One reason to leave them there is for purposes of scale. People in the image will give the viewer perhaps a better idea of the scope of the attraction.

In my case, I’ve taken photos both with and without people. There are occasions when I will crop the people out if possible, and there are occasions when I leave them there. It all depends upon the image.
Cat.

No safe space

The following was posted on Facebook by a friend in the United States:

I’m so tired of people telling me that I make my entire identity about me being trans. First of all, I really don’t. If you don’t understand why I talk about it so much maybe you should reflect on why I need to. Imagine living in a world where half of society wants you dead for simply existing. Where they believe they are the good guys and have no problem calling us predators and groomers while ignoring those who actually are. Having to live in constant fear of what will happen if someone finds out I’m trans is hard enough. Now it’s to the point where we are literally one of the main talking points in politics even though our existence shouldn’t even be a political debate. I’m having anti trans rhetoric shoved in my face no matter where I look. Big names are willingly siding with the anti trans crowd, and they are working really hard to make our lives hell. They want to erase us. They want ME dead. They remind me of this constantly. Until the day comes when trans people aren’t facing literal genocide don’t you dare fucking tell me I’m making my entire identity about being trans. I don’t even want to be trans. I’d give anything to have been born cis so I wouldn’t have to deal with all this bullshit. Trans people are beautiful and valid, but it’s a hard fucking life to live for a lot of us.

This unfortunately is the reality of being transgender in the United States of America in the summer of 2023. At least 15 trans and nonbinary women have been killed in the US so far this year and at least 32 were killed in 2022. Their only crime was being “different” in the eyes of their murderers. While the friend didn’t mention it in her post, several states have passed, or are in the process of passing, legislation criminalizing medical treatment for trans people.

in many cases, these various legislative decisions not only remove access to medical treatment, but also remove all protections, social and legal, for a person who identifies as other than the gender assigned at birth. This means a trans person can be denied housing and employment is addition to healthcare simply because of who they are. When you consider the ramifications of the effects of such denials, my friend’s use of “genocide” seems justified. We may not be lined up against a wall or at the edge of a trench and shot, but the effects of these laws have the same effect. They are a means to wipe us out.

I’m Canadian so while these various state laws don’t affect me directly, they do give me another reason not to visit my neighbour to the south. As a matter of interest, I enjoy various legal protections at both the federal and provincial levels. Granted those protections may not do much for me if I’m assaulted, they do offer me some legal recourse against discrimination in areas of housing, employment and healthcare. And depending upon the circumstances of any assault, the various laws could result in any charges against my assailant being upgraded to hate crime.

Trans people are not the monsters, not the perverts or “groomers” the rest of society would like us to be, for it would give them justification for their animosity toward us. We just want to be able to live our lives in peace and safety. But, in the America of 2023, there is no safe space.

Cat.

Not a safe harbour

Recently I’ve been getting emails offering free gifts from “Harbor_Freight” with an email address ending “ngfxcg32fds.onmicrosoft.com>”. There are several problems with these emails.

First, Harbor Freight, which I have heard of, does not operate in nor ship to Canada. Their nearest store to me is Niagara Falls, New York. Actually, there probably is a store physically closer to me in Rochester, 30-odd miles directly across Lake Ontario, but with no ferry service, I couldn’t get to it. So Niagara Falls is the closest one I’d have access to.

Second, I doubt strongly that a company as large as Harbor Freight would have such a strange looking name and address for their email account. I’ve since checked and this is definitely not Harbor Freight’s email address or website.

Finally, this “offer” was sent to an email address I stopped using seven years ago when I changed my name.

If you get an email like this, just delete it, for as I wrote in the title, it is not a safe harbour.

One reason I get these offers from American firms, even if they don’t operate in or ship to Canada, is that I have a gmail account, which has a “.com” extension rather than say a “.ca” extension, which would indicate Canada. So these scammers use a shotgun approach in which if it’s an email ending in “.com” it becomes their target. There probably are Canadian based email providers I could use, but I’ve been with gmail for so long now that it would take forever to change all the access codes for other sites I’ve used the gmail identifier for. So I just use these occasional tempting offers as fodder for blogs like this.

Take care and remember to hug an artist, we need love too.

Cat.