Day Ninety: Some hearts

Some hearts just get lucky sometimes.  Even hearts like mine. :)

Day Eighty-Nine: Sunset Boulevard

As I've mentioned before, having Lucy around has inspired me to take more walks and discover my neighborhood.  Although I've known about it for a while, I finally got to take a picture of this beautiful drive today that Pete and I passed when taking Lucy out on this beautiful spring day.  The location of this land may not be perfect: the path that leads to the house which sits on the land abuts the interstate, but it is certainly picturesque and reminiscent of a time that seems so far from, but yet so close to now.  

I've never really quite settled on the type of house that I want when I "grow-up", but if it can be "in" the city like this one with a drive similar to this, I think I'd be happy for quite a long while.

Day Eighty-Eight: Brew to Brew to Brew

Ask anyone who knows me well, or anyone who has visited me in Lawrence, and they will tell you that my favorite restaurant in town is 23rd Street Brewery.  I fell in love with the place because of its "Hazelnut encrusted goat-cheese salad".  Very rarely do I go in there and order anything else.  But the other food I have tasted is also delicious; on my most recent trip, I had the basil pesto chicken sandwich that was just as good as left-overs as it was when it came out of the oven. Those were accompanied by their made in-house pub chips.  MMMmmmMMM.

When my family visited here last year, I brought them to the restaurant.  My mom couldn't stop saying "this is so cool, this is so cool.  I think part of the reason for her reaction, and why we both like the place so much is because of its atmosphere.  This brewing "station" is lofted high over the bar.  The ceilings rise to about 25-30 feet above your head, but somehow the place still remains intimate.  In the summer, a patio invites you outside to take in the warm air, and was often a place of refuge for my friends and I this past summer when we needed a break to avoid bar review overload.

Did I mention they brew their own beer, too?  I enjoy the hoppy beverage, but I'm not anywhere near what you would call a beer connoisseur.  Frankly, I would much rather save those calories for a tasty dessert or frothy drink than beer.  Nevertheless, that hasn't stopped me from trying their brews a couple of times (usually, the raspberry wheat), and it has never failed to please.

Without trying, I realize that I have now "taken" you to three of the breweries around the Kansas City/ Lawrence area: Boulevard, Free State, and now 23rd Street.  I'm not sure I know of any more, or have any plans of visiting them, but if I do, I guess you'll know!  You may be interested to know that this weekend, there is an annual event called the "Brew to Brew" where those who love beer and running (possibly in that order) run from the Boulevard Brewing Factory in Kansas City to Free State here in downtown Lawrence.  The combination of beer and 44 miles doesn't work all that well, so it's a team event where each person runs a small leg of the distance.  I haven't yet participated in the event, but it always sounds like a good time.  Cheers, mate!

Day Eighty-Seven: Winter Wonderland

They say if you don't like the weather in Kansas, wait 10 minutes. The weather didn't change quite that quickly the past couple days, but the today's mercury reading stands in stark contrast to the 60 degree days we had at the beginning of the week. Lawrence dodged the bullet for the most part. While we got some ice and sleet, places to our west and east received several inches of snow. The precipitation we got created a nice coating around everything in its tracks. Pete and I ventured outside today to try and capture some of that. Enjoy!

Day Eighty-Six: 19 years to go?

It's March Madness, and the Kansas Jayhawks are the defending national champions. Last year, 40,000 poured out on to Mass Street to celebrate the overtime win. Last year, the University canceled classes to allow students to celebrate. Last year, the nerds and the jocks were friends, all uniting around the dream that was finally reached after twenty long years. None of that will be happening this year. With 32.4 seconds left to go and down by two, the tension was high. But despite the valliant effort and leading most of the game, the Jayhawks fell (for the second time this season) to the Michigan State Spartans, ending all dreams of repeating the victory. We must give a shout out to the boys in blue though. They exceeded our wildest expectations and gave us a post-season stint longer than we could have expected at the beginning of the season.

The Jayhawks won a National Championship in 1988. Twenty years later, we won again. Hopefully, we don't have 19 more years to go....

Day Eighty-Five: Shattered

Life is busy, and Thursdays are particularly crazy for me. At work, Thursdays usually include several conference calls, making sure I've accomplished the things I need to accomplish this week, and playing catch-up for those things that aren't anywhere close to being done. Pete and I are sponsors for people wanting to enter into the Catholic church (the program is called RCIA), and we have weekly meetings/ classes at 7p.m. on Thursday evenings. That leaves just enough time to either (A) run home, grab a quick dinner, maybe watch everything but the last round of "Wheel of Fortune", and head to church, or (B) fit in a quick workout, leaving just enough time to change into clothes that won't cause everyone to walk out of the room when I walk in.

Tonight, I chose option "B" with the caveat that my workout had to be shorter than usual. Because the President spoke on Tuesday night, my beloved reality show "American Idol" got pushed from a Tuesday/ Wednesday airing, to a Wednesday/Thursday airing. So, I shortened my (already short) workout to make sure I got home to set the DVR so that we could watch American Idol on the big screen after RCIA. I also forgot my camera and Lucy had been alone all day. In short, running home before RCIA had four goals: 1) Set TV for Idol, 2) Take Lucy out, 3) Grab camera, and 4) Change out of the smelly workout clothes. And did I mention that all this had to be accomplished in a matter of about five, and absolutely no more than ten minutes?

When I walked in the door, the number of things I needed to accomplish in that short time quickly expanded from four to about four hundred. Greeting me at the welcome mat was Lucy. She was surrounded by the shreds of two pairs of Jennifer's filp-flops Lucy had found somewhere in the house. Lying next to that was my stuffed Mickey Mouse, which meant I had left my bedroom door open, and Lucy had entered the premises. After seeing Mickey (fortunately, he was without any scrapes or bruises), I made a B-line to my bedroom. It was 95% in tact. A few remnants of (what I think were) the flip flops were on my bed, and a different stuffed animal, from which Lucy had removed it's button nose several weeks ago, had been accosted again. Lying in the threshold of my bedroom door was Lucy's food bowl, which she has recently begun moving all around the house whenever she feels like it.

At this point, my blood pressure was rising trying to figure out how I would clean up the mess and still make it to RCIA on time. Because of the other things I had to do, I decided to just leave it there until I got home and could clean up. Because Jennifer wasn't going to be home and it wouldn't inconvenience her, I decided just to leave it there and clean it up later. I changed clothes, set the TV for Idol, grabbed my camera and made straight for the door. The problem is I simply grabbed my camera (in its bag) and didn't check to see if it was secured. As I placed the strap over my shoulder and opened to the door to leave, the Canon EOS 20D fell out of the bag, tumbling to the ground with a crash and a shatter. When I picked it up, the lens looked like this.

I sat in mild anguish throughout RCIA thinking about how much it would cost to get another lens. (I failed to consider the possible internal damage to the camera. I think this is a fortunate thing, as my stomach would have been a mess.) But, after RCIA (which I always love) and some prayer time, I was a bit calmer. I told Pete what happened, and when he got to look at the camera, he delivered the first piece of good news: the shattered glass payne on the end of the lens was actually a protective cover he had put on there and could easily be taken off and replaced. With any luck, there wasn't damage to the lens. My second piece of good news came when Pete and I tried taking several pictures with the camera: everything worked normally. It appers my camera is fine. *SIGH OF RELIEF*

Tomorrow during my lunch hour, I'll head down to Wolfe's camera shop in Topkea and pick up a new protective cover. I atrribute my fully functioning camera after a hard fall to that little piece of glass that took the impact for the team. I don't know what Consumer Reports says about digital SLR cameras, but knowing how hard this camera fell and how it still shoots like day one, I would highly recommend it to anyone who is in the market.

Day Eighty-Four: Scene it

Pete and I have been trying to get to see "Slumdog Millionaire" for weeks. Earlier this week, we decided we were going to go today, and believe it or not, we actually made it there. The movie is currently playing at Liberty Hall, a versatile space on Mass Street where they hold concerts, show movies (usually independent films that aren't too mainstream), and even hosts weddings. It is a space that is definitely from another era, and as a result, is full of nooks and crannies, interesting architecture, and fixtures that intentionally haven't been updated in the recent past. Since I hadn't taken my picture for the day, I snuck in a camera in hopes of snapping a shot of the space after the lights had dimmed and come back up again. After a few attempts to gather a shot from another angle, I moved positions and ended up with this "classic" picture.

I'll answer the question right now of who the "mysterious" man in the picture is: As you probably guessed, it's Pete. I asked him to sit there while I took the shot. But setting aside the fact that we actually know who this guy is, the lone person in the theater poses some interesting questions. Why is the man there alone? The empty theater exaggerates the fact that he is there by himself and makes the loneliness you expect he is feeling even more dark. But maybe the man like the dark? Does he, like some of my friends, enjoy coming to movies by himself and find it liberating? Or maybe he's waiting for someone. Who is he waiting for? Did his girlfriend or buddy get up and go to the bathroom or the concession stand? Has he been stood up? Maybe he's waiting. Waiting for you. From the calm, almost happy look on his face, it appears that whatever his circumstances, he is peaceful and content. At this angle and lighting, you may catch a glimpse of him upon a first glance, but it takes another look to really know that he is there. The man doesn't want to be noticed right away. But he's there.

It wasn't intentional when I took the picture, but the emptiness of the theater and the lone man in it is a perfect illustration of what our lives can be like, and how the Lord patiently waits for us. And He waits for us even if we question what he is doing or why he is there. If each individual chair is a different place we choose to be in our life, we can either sit next to God, or we can sit in the opposite corner. If we sit next to Him, we get to engage in conversation with Him and have Him put his arm around us when a scary scene comes along. From seats far away, it's often difficult to notice Him or feel His presence, but He's always there. Waiting. Patiently waiting.

Maybe I read too much into my pictures. Maybe its "just" Pete sitting there, posing for my picture. Maybe its just a man who wants to see a movie. But maybe its more. Just maybe.

Day Eighty-three: One click, One Pic

This may be, in fact, the first time in the eighty-three days of this project that I have actually used just one flutter of the shutter to capture my photo of the day. Often times the circumstances surrounding the picture don't lend itself to achieving "photo of the day" quality with just one snap, but today they did. 

I took this shot at the recycling center next to Wal-Mart.  Pete is very good about recycling; I'm not so much. But, because he's feeling under the weather, something I could do to help him was to take the bottles, papers, and cans he'd been meaning to return for a couple days to the recycling center.  Having not yet taken my picture for today, I knew this might be a good opportunity to find something interesting.  After several trips from the car to the depository and back again, my last batch was in the glass section. In the large metal storage containers, I found bottles sorted by color and thrown into the bin so sporadically that was actually quite perfect and became my picture for today.

So how does this situation lend itself to only taking one picture? Well, I'll tell you.

Timing: Pete warned me that the recycling center closes promptly at 8 p.m., and he wasn't lying.   At about 10 'til 8, the attendant warned me that she would be closing at 8, no "if"s, "and"s or "but"s about it. (Long story short: if you go, make sure to be there, and DONE before 8 p.m.)  Because the glass was my last stop and I only had a few minutes until the center shut down, I didn't have time to fool around with my camera.  I had to be happy with a relatively small number of shots. (one).

Lighting: Despite the "glow" of the bottles, it was actually quite dark inside the steel container that was holding all the glass.  Thus, really the ONLY way I was going to get the picture was with a flash.  When you take pictures with a flash, and the lens is on auto focus, you don't really have to worry about much-- the pictures usually turn out a-okay.

Equipment: Even if I had had the time to mess around with the camera settings, using just the fading daylight to light my picture, it would only be possible with a tripod. A little technical insight for you:  when it's darker, the lens has to be open longer to let the light illuminating the shapes and colors in.  When it's open longer, even longer than just a split of a split second, you run the risk of the shot being blurry.  Because it was so dark inside the glass container, attempting to take that shot without a tripod would inevitably result in a blurry mess.  Since I was without the aforementioned necessary tripod, I had to use the flash to light the shot.  

Temperature: Anyone who knows me knows that I don't maintain body heat.  The wind continued to blow today, and the temperature was setting with the sun. I was cold and didn't want to spend more time taking pictures.

In the end, the recycling was completed and the picture taken with only minor injuries. (I banged my knee on the door of the car that may result in a pretty nasty bruise.  More than two hours later, it still hurts.  Stay tuned...if it goes black and blue, it may be a picture of the day.)  

It can be a lot of work to really set things aside and take them to the recycling center (if your community doesn't have a curbside system like Lawrence doesn't), but I really applaud the efforts of people like Pete and the other dozen or so who joined me at the recycling center today.  Hopefully, when space in my house allows, I'll also be able to be a good steward of our the Earth that God so lovingly handcrafted, and recycle more.  Until then, I'll attempt to do my best in little ways.

Ooh! A shout out to Sara for getting the the right answer to the riddle: "April showers bring may May flowers. What do May flowers bring?" The answer? PILGRIMS!!

Final note: I've updated the "City Sidewalks" entry below, adding commentary.  Hopefully I'll get to "Shoe Boxes" later this week.  Enjoy!

Day Eighty-Two: Out like a lamb?

An old weather proverb is that March comes "in like a lion, out like a lamb."  Some say the phrase has its origins with the constellations Leo, the Lion, and Aries, the ram or lamb. It has to do with the relative positions of these constellations in the sky at the beginning and end of the month.*  Others say that people often believed that bad spirits could affect the weather adversely, so they were cautious as to what they did or did not do in certain situations. Those beliefs often included ideas that there should be a balance in weather and life. So, if a month came in bad (like a lion), it should go out good and calm (like a lamb).**

Regardless of what people have said in the past, I argue that March has been less than decisive about whether it wants to be a lion or a lamb at any point throughout the month this year.  In fact, it's been downright bi-polar. The beginning of the month brought the only snow eastern Kansas really saw all winter.  Three days later, we set a record high of 85 degrees.  Four days after the record high, it was again chilly in Kansas. Rinse and repeat and you have the ups and downs of March. 

Yesterday was, without a doubt, a "lion" day.  The eastern half of the state experienced its first (I think) thunderstorm of the year, and weathered wind gusts of up to 90 mph in some areas.  Driving home from work required two hands on the steering wheel at all times to ensure the car stayed in between the white dotted lane marking; the 20 minute drive felt something like a cross between bumper cars (sans the actual impact) and a roller coaster ride.  The winds died down slightly in the early evening hours, but picked back up again as the storms blew in around 8:30.  Pete, acting as my  touch sensitive tripod, ventured outside with me to try and capture a picture that illustrated just exactly how crazy the wind was.  When a big gust came along, Pete "sensed" when my hair looked the most, um, awesome (?), and I snapped the picture via the remote "detonator".   The haircut I got last week left my hair (by request) pretty short, and although the effect would have been better if I had long locks that could flow in the wind, I think you get the idea of how mighty the wind was, and how fun it was to be out there experiencing it.

The weather forecast for the remainder of March looks like the month may actually redeem itself by hovering around the 60-degree mark, albeit with a couple days of typical rainy, spring weather.  But, I will take that weather any time over 90 mph winds and freezing cold.  Except maybe around Christmas. :)

UPDATE: As of the evening of Tuesday, March 24, they are calling for accumulations of snow this weekend.  It appears the month of March has finally made up its mind: lion.
* Source 1
** Source 2

Day Eighty-One: Signs of Spring

Although it wasn't bone chilling cold in Minnesota (it was actually quite pleasant, albeit a slightly chillier than here),  it was nice to come back to Lawrence and find spring in full force, both because it is now officially spring, and because the coat-less weather tells you that it is.  Apparently it was nice all weekend, and in the short amount of time I was out and about in Larry-ville today, I found several pockets of flowers like these blooming around town.  Hopefully spring is here to stay and more and more of these delightful daffodils, along with tulips and gardenias and every other fragrant, colorful indications of warm weather goodness will soon pop up.

If the blustery winds and predictions of showers (and thunder showers! yippie!) are any indication, it will not be long until everyday is (at least) in the 60s.  April will be coming soon before you know it, but April's showers bring even more flowers in May!  What do May flowers bring?  An official shout out to anyone who correctly answers that riddle. :)

Day Eighty: City Sidewalks

Downtown Minneapolis was hoping this weekend with the state girl's basketball tournament, hosting the first round of the Men's NCAA Basketball tournament, regular Minnesotan's enjoying what was probably the first nice weekend of the season, and a whole host of other people.  Pete's parents took us out for dinner in the middle of the frenzy to a delicious restaurant (whose name I cannot remember but was located just above Rock Bottom Brewery on Hennipen Street).  The vast windows and fading daylight gave way to this picture which, I think, does a pretty good job of capturing the excitement of downtown on this Saturday in March.

Day Seventy-Nine: Shoe Boxes

Day Seventy-Eight: On the Road Again

Although I haven't done nearly as much as he has, it seems like Pete and I are often on the go. And on the go for us doesn't mean simply doing things around town. No, it usually involves travels of at least to a couple hours to states other than Kansas. We've seen a lot of my family recently, but not as much as Pete's. Granted, they live 4 additional hours away, but nevertheless, it was time to get up there and see them. So, Thursday after work (I took Friday off), we loaded up and headed out for a weekend in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

As anyone who has taken a road trip knows, being on the road for 8 hours (one direction) can get kinda boring. But we somehow find ways to entertain ourselves: the alphabet game, picking out songs to surprise each other with to stay awake (last week, Pete chose "Straight Up" by Paula Abdul; this week, I chose the songs from the Saved by the Bell rock edition, featuring the Zack Attack), attempting to complete crossword puzzles by reading the driver the clue, listening to movies, etc.. Of course, being the amateur photographers that we are, often the travels include stops for picture taking. This picture, however, we didn't have to stop for. We made a daring daylight escape, leaving the sunset in the dust to find and new day and a new adventure a little further north.

Day Seventy-Seven: ROY-G-BIV

I love color. People laugh at how much I incorporate color into the things I do at work, at home, in my clothing, in my e-mails, etc. As someone who has a basic understanding and a small amount of training in graphic design, I was taught that to use color to enliven a document, to set a theme, and to organize (such as how my closet is generally organized by shirt color). I love how colors can reflect your mood, although I don't always agree that blue means sad and red means angry. I love most colors individually, and I love bundles of color all together but there are some dyes I would never pair up. But while I will gladly use a box of Crayola "original" colors any day of the week over a black pen, I also understand that there are times when only using the colors black and white are appropriate.


I'm not sure we appreciate or use color nearly to the extent that we should. Yes, while black and white are colors, we can also hide behind them, trying to mask our true potential or who we are. God made the word in technicolor so that we can relish the blues of the sky, the green of the grass, the purple of the flower, praise Him, and realize that even when dull colors come along, the bright colors will return...patience is all that is needed. I'm one to talk about patience because it is a virtue which I severely lack, but we have to keep trying, again, and again, and again. When the Wizard of Oz took the world of motion pictures into color, it turned everything upside down and helped people to see the potential that is out there. Black and white have their times, but we should be careful not get stuck behind them.

So, the next time you're feeling glum, open your eyes to the colors around you and what makes the world blue and green and yellow and red and good. :)

Day Seventy-Six: Luck o' the Irish

Although I'm both Irish and Catholic, I'm not big on St. Patrick's Day. Of course I wear green (it's my favorite color so I'll take any excuse to wear it just one more day a week), but I usually don't celebrate St. Patrick's Day in the typical American fashion. So today I celebrated the day by attending Tuesdays at the Boulevard. This is an event that is hosted by City on a Hill Young Adult ministries of the diocese of St. Joseph, Missouri. Once a month, they meet for mass and then pizza and beer at the Boulevard Brewing Company. It's an opportunity for me to praise the Lord and catch up with friends. I don't always get to go, and cherish the opportunities when I do. Today, it worked out for me to attend.

The part of the Boulevard factory where we hang out has an awesome patio and last night, people spilled outside to take in the warm March (but still winter season, as Kelly reminded us) night air. The factory is just outside of downtown and the view of the city lights from the patio is unbeatable. And voila!, we have my picture for the day. Turn around and you see the color changing "Boulevard Brewing Company" sign that was appropriately participating in the wearing o' the green (that is, with the exception of the "B" in Brewing that Dan dubbed as the "mood letter".) And here's a shout out to Kelly and Dan for keeping me company while I took these pictures and helping select the winning shots. It was delightful to see you, amongst many.

In late fall, I stumbled upon a prayer that has become a prayer that Pete and I pray every morning (coordinating through text message to say it at the "same" time): The Lorica of St. Patrick. I find it's a great way to start the day; it praises the Lord for it's goodness and asks Him to be with us each and every moment of the day. It prepares us for the battles we will have to fight during the day, and reminds us that we are to follow the Lord's will in making every decision. Pete attended mass while at Notre Dame, and in honor of the patron's feast day, they said the last, and what is probably the most popular, part of the prayer where we ask Christ to be in our every movement. But I will end my post today with the four lines that both commence and conclude the prayer, and encourage you to do the same.

I arise today through a mighty strength.
The invocation of the trinity.
Through a belief in the threeness.
Through a confession of the oneness
Of the creator of creation.

Day Seventy-Five: Beauty in your backyard

Sometimes finding a picture is tricky. You have to look around for the right spot at the right time of day to make sure the lighting, the subjects, and all the other little elements come together.  Some days, you're out walking your dogs and it just hits you. Today was one of those days.  

Pete is venturing around the country while on Spring Break (by the time he starts school again on Monday, he will have been in  six states).  He is currently visiting his friend Matt at Notre Dame and was unable to take Farley with him, so I more than willingly offered/ agreed to watch Farley.  Apparently my daring side snuck out last night and I decided to take Lucy and Farley on a walk at the same time. That's not always a good idea because Lucy just gets so excited while outside and, at the same time, tries to play with Farley, usually by gnawing at his collar or leash.  Although it hasn't happened yet, it wouldn't surprise me if this venture resulted in a scraped chin or elbow because they've (Lucy) tripped Pete or me.

But we didn't get very far outside of my house when I spotted it: my picture of the day.  In the seven months or so I've lived here, I haven't stopped to take a lot of time to explore my neighborhood.  But all of the sudden, my eyes were opened to the sunset and how the waning daylight created a mirror image of the trees in the 

very still creek that cuts across my townhouse complex.  I quickly brought the dogs back to the house, and ran back outside with my camera in hopes that the sun would hold out a few more minutes for me. And it did. I was able to capture both my picture of the day, and several others like this one.

I encourage you to take a look out your backdoor to see what beautiful things might be hiding.  And more than that, don't just go look...explore. Sometimes the beautiful things won't reveal themselves until we approach them from a different angle.  And even if you don't find it the first time, go searching again; beauty is always there.  A friend of mine writes Christian music. One of my favorite lines from his song called "Proposal" (a song he wrote to propose to his wife, Erin), recalls that "even the rain is the love of the Lord".  Explore the rain, the cold, the heat, the wind. You never know what will pop up, and how you will find beauty and inspiration in the little things.

Day Seventy-Four: Mr. Squeaky

Meet someone I have just recently (read: in titling this entry) dubbed "Mr. Squeaky."  Lucy, although now about 60 pounds, is still very clearly a puppy. She's hyper and happy, and loves to chew on things.  Two shoes (from different pairs) have bitten the dust, but fortunately thus far, she's mostly only chewed up sticks and her toys.  But when I say "chewed up", I really mean destroyed, demolished, and any other adjective which implies completely modifying something from its original form and reducing it to tiny bits and pieces.  So, of the three or four toys I've purchased for her thus far, prior to this weekend, only two remained.  While in Ankeny this weekend, we made a "family" outing to PetSmart this weekend that included my brothers Ted & Ben, Lucy, Farley, Pete, and myself to get both Lucy and Farley another couple of play things.  Ted & Ben picked out two toys: a rubber stick (that Lucy has already begun to tear apart), and Mr. Squeaky.

Unlike the rubber stick, Mr. Squeaky is an awesome toy.  First of all, he's large enough that Lucy has a hard time getting him into her mouth, and watching her try has provided for many minutes of entertainment.  Eventually, because she's a smart and savy dog, she's figured it out. But that's not where the fun ends:  Mr. Squeaky, as his name probably leads you to believe, squeaks. And it's not a normal high-pitched noise that many baby and dog toys make. No, this sound is more reminiscent of flatulance, or "fluffling" as my old roommate Beth used to say, which has provided for even MORE laughs.

Despite our best intentions, something about flatulance makes nearly everyone laugh.  This was best illustrated when, at one family Christmas, my cousins placed a "flatulance machine" in my grandpa's back pocket, then proceeded to repeatedly press the remote "detinator" throughout his Christmas money presentation and had nearly my whole family in tears we were all laughing so hard.  Although I don't usually laugh THAT hard when Lucy plays with Mr. Squeaky, he has easily become my favorite toy of Lucy's and I usually hope that she is playing with him.

So, Mr. Squeaky, thank you for being a wonderful, well-made toy.  And for providing us with the giggles...and low-brow comedy.

Day Seventy-Three: Sweet Victory

There were several goals in trekking up to Ankeny this weekend: to work with my brother on preparing for receiving the sacrament of Confirmation in a couple of weeks, and for Pete to meet some of the extended family.  Much of my mom's side of the family was in town because their alma mater (and when I say their, I literally mean nearly every person on that side of my family except for the Friedmans) was playing in the Iowa Boys State Basketball Championship.  Adding to the hype was the fact that my cousin EE played on the team.  As you can probably tell from the picture above, Sioux City Heelan took home the crown. I caught them the the first few seconds after the clock expired in the first few moments of probably one the greatest days of their young lives thus far.  (Notice the ref scampering the other direction in hopes of not being trampled.)

The little fan in the picture is my cousin Ali's angel, Josie. She was the best little fan during the evening: she didn't cry or whine, and only whimpered through the whole game when the crowd got a little noisy.  Way to go, Jo! :)

Day Seventy-Two: Family Tradition

Anyone who knows me know that I love games: board games, card games, athletic games, silly games, games that make you look ridiculous, and games (although I don't always take it well) even when I loose. When I think about it, it's clear to me that this is genetic: everyone in my family, and even both sides of my extended family, like to play games. We like games so much, that a game of cards or "Loaded Questions" usually unfolds every time I am home.

Last night, it was a game of "Oh Hell"; a fun game where you bid to see how many tricks you can take in each round based on the trump suit and receive points based on whether or not you actually made that bid (although after looking at the description on wiki, it doesn't appear that we play exactly how they say you are supposed to play). The "high point" of the game is the round where you only use one card, and instead of bidding on the card that you have in your hand, you bid on the cards that everyone else has...and places on their foreheads to display them to you, much like this (having the towel on the head is an optional accessory that my 14-year old brother chose to fashion last night.)

As with most games, you develop strategies to figure out how many tricks you should bid, in part based on everyone else's bids, and when to just sit by and bid zero. Sometimes, unexpected cards can take tricks, and Katie is expressing her disgust at such a trick in the first picture above where her three of spades ended up being the "high" card.

Right about the time I started dating Pete, my sister Katie started dating Junior. Although some people think it's early in the dating game for us, family is a hugely important part of our lives. So, we've brought those boys home to meet the family and to see if they can handle the typical Friedman craziness. Although Junior is trying to find his way out of the picture at the top, both he and Pete survived last night. Now just wait until they meet the extended family.... :)

P.S. I've updated a couple of posts for which I didn't write an entry at the time. Check out Day Sixty-Six: Neon and Day Sixty-Seven: A Different Perspective.

Day Seventy-One: Landmarks

As any person who does a lot of traveling on the interstate knows, there are always those landmarks along the way that let you know how far you have come and how far you have to go. The road that I travel most often is I-35 from Lawrence to Ankeny (a suburb north of Des Moines for those of you who are unfamiliar with Iowa geography.) There are a variety of landmarks along that journey that always let me know where I'm at: the midwest's most beautiful McDonald's (don't ask me how they got that title) in Cameron, Missouri; the town of Bethany, Missouri itself which is about half-way inbetween Ankeny and Lawrence; the closed gas station just south of the Iowa border whose gas price sign perpetually remains at two dollars and some odd cents a gallon (something that seemed extraordinarily cheap this past summer and now, again, seems extraordinarily expensive); and this guy, Senor Terrible (as Pete and I call him).

Every person, and I mean every person who travels along I-35 in that stretch knows about Senor Terrible: the excessively large light up sign advertising Terrible's Lakeside Casino in Osceloa, Iowa. His huge belly screen is constantly running, advertising the "cheapest" gas, the availability of rooms in the hotel, and any upcoming concerts the casino might be hosting. In the dark hours of the day, Senor Terrible's presence can be seen and felt from miles away. Although a cursory search of the internet did not reveal his height, you can see from the picture that he is taller than the average height flag-pole.

In this day and age, you wonder how many kilos of electricity it takes to operate Senor Terrible on a daily, or even hourly basis, and if that cost is worth the benefit. Additionally, what is Senor Terrible himself doing to the environment? When they get free publicity like this, I bet they mark one up in the "worth it" category.

Seeing Senor Terrible is usually a good thing; it lets me know I'm quite a ways into Iowa and have about 45 minutes to an hour until I pull into my driveway. Somedays he is a sign that I'm almost there...and others...that I've still got a ways to go. Regardless, I'm thankful Senor Terrible is there to make my ride a little more interesting.

Day Seventy: Blooming in the Real World

As of this coming Saturday, I will have been in the working world 7 months.  Although it's gone incredibly fast, the transition to the eight hour work day, only having a couple of hours in the evening to do whatever I want to do, and living for the weekend has been tough at times.  But, I enjoy my job and the people I work with, and we do what we can to make working "fun".

Because I work in the tobacco unit, one thing the unit decided to do to spruce up the office  (before I even got here) was to actually grow tobacco.  They purchased some seeds and soil and placed the two in little cups on our boss' windowsill.  Then, we named them, fed them, and watched them grow. Some of the plants sprouted.Some of them didn't do anything. But some of them flourished! At first, this meant that spawning a round of gnats. Fortunately, that stage has passed, and rather than gnats, the plants are now blooming surprisingly beautiful flowers.  Those dainty pink flowers are the subject of today's photo.

We don't have any intention of actually processing the tobacco into the type that you smoke, but watching the plants grow has been a lot of fun.  As for my personal plant, TB-42C, he didn't quite make it past the sprouting stage.  May he rest in peace.

Day Sixty-Nine: Unfamiliar reflections

I love hands. They give a partial reflection of who a person is, where they have come from, and often where they are going. Hands can build up or tear down. They are instruments for good and bad. Holes in the Lord's hands made Thomas believe. Raising your arm and hand in a certain fashion can represent a regime or respect. Men have thick, solid, rough hands and fingers. Women's hands are more slender and delicate. My family's hand's are typically dry and always in need of moisture. Jewelry on your hands may be the simply that -- jewelry-- or the symbol of a bond that is greater than what it symbolizes. Having someone stick up the middle finger on their hand may infuriate you. Hands are used to soothe and to punish. To pray and to work. Hands tell your age. As we use them nearly every moment of every day, hands are vulnerable, but strong and resilient. Short nails. Long nails. Painted nails. Dirt under the nails. Soft hands. Callused hands. Dirty hands. Shaky hands. Short pinkies. Long ring fingers. Palms large enough to grip a basketball. They all say a little bit about us. In this day and age, a significant portion of how we communicate is completed by our hands creating words that may last forever. Sweet music. Deafening screeches. Good poetry. Bad poetry. Terrible poetry. Hope. Joy. Fear. Love. All communicated through your hands. Think about all the things that you do with your hands and how dramatically different your life would be without those ten fingers and two palms.

The hand holding mine in this picture has been a source of great support over the past 4 1/2 months. They have played some incredible music, held me up when I'm feeling down, wiped the tears from my eyes, encouraged me through rough times, helped me relax, made some delicious food, and spun me around in dance moves that are nearly perfected. Those hands are just reflection -- but only a partial one -- of the person that I love dearly.

But guiding both hands in this picture, and guiding every hand of every person, are the hands of the Potter, carefully shaping and molding our every moment and being. Everything we are able to do with our hands is a gift from the Potter, and everything we do with our hands should be a gift back to Him. And if we do, the reflections of ourselves that we find in our hands will hopefully someday reflect the hands of that Potter.

Day Sixty-Eight: A classic American Friendship

I quite enjoy this picture; it's springy, it's fun, it's candy. :  )This photo came very easily-- that is after I spent at least 20 minutes trying make a cup full of Peeps photo friendly.  Despite that fact, I've attempted to start this entry three of four times, but find myself completely devoid of anything thoughtful or witty to write.  So, I'm going to resort to do the writing for me today and provide you with fun M&M facts. 

Fact #1: Forrest Mars came up with the idea for M & Ms during the Spanish Civil War. He discovered that soldiers were looking for a taste of home, in the form of chocolate, but needed something that could withstand hot temperatures. Mars took their request as a challenge and eventually came up with the candy, which he packaged in heavy tubes. Soldiers today still love M & Ms because they can hold up in just about any climate.

Fact #2: Red, green, and yellow colors were added to peanut M & Ms in 1960, but orange wasn't added until 1976.

Fact #3: Red M & Ms were discontinued in the mid-70's because of concerns that red food coloring was connected to cancer.  Red M & Ms were brought back into the fold in 1987 when consumers demanded his return.

Fact #4: A holiday blend of special colored M & Ms were developed in the early 80's. The first blend was a mixture of red and green candies for Christmas. A mixture of pastel candies quickly followed that for Easter. Eventually, the special holiday line went on to add pink and red for Valentine's Day.

Fact #5: Ms Green - - the first female M & M character - - was born in 1997.

Fact #6: In 2001 M & Ms launched a global call for a new color to add to the M & M mix. Citizens of over 200 countries took part in the survey, which was conducted by ballot, phone, website, mail, and even on site at kiosks. The result wasn't quite unanimous, but purple edged out aqua by four percentage points to become a temporary M & M color.

Fact #7: You can purchase customized M & M's in colors and sayings that you choose through the candy's official website.


Although M&M's aren't my favorite candy, who doesn't enjoy a handful of the chocolatey goodness, especially in these festive spring colors?! :)  I hope you enjoy this picture almost as much as those candies.

**You can find all these and more fun facts at this Associated Content website.

Day Sixty-Seven: A Different Perspective

When struggling with life situations, those we seek out for advice often encourage us to see things from another perspective to shed a light on what is going on from a view that is different from our own. The same thing can apply for pictures: when you can't find anything interesting to take a picture of, try a different perspective.

From floor level, this would seem like a large table with menus and silverware that are just waiting for patrons to come and sit and enjoy food and fellowship. But from the level above, it's an interesting background with something that looks like a table and chairs with pictures (although we can't be sure), and turns out to be a pretty interesting picture. From the ground, it's possible we wouldn't notice that the chair on the right is pulled out from the table slightly more than all the rest. From above, we wonder if someone left the table before everyone else, or got there, saw that none of his friends had arrived yet, and decided to go back out to the waiting area. From the ground, it looks like the silverware conform to the restaurant's standards dictating how they should be laid out. From above, we might notice that the way the silverware adorn the menus kind of makes them look like rocket-ships ready to engage in flight. Maybe.

Things generally look different from above than from the ground. When we're struggling with life, it might be good to remember that things always look different from above.

Day Sixty-Six: Neon

This picture is one of my favorites, if not the favorite so far. It's of the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City, Mo, and Pete and I ventured there to meet some of my friends, and celebrate the engagement of two of them (yea Holly & Chris!). I love the lights, the streaks, the background, the colors...just everything about it. And I love that, although it looks like it took a lot of camera mastery to get it together, I got this shot in only about two or three clicks of the camera.

I don't have any philosophical musings or interesting commentary to add to this picture, except that the warmth and enjoyment I get out of the picture was exaggerated by getting to celebrate a wonderful occasion with wonderful people. Chris & Holly haven't quite set a date yet, but hopefully they'll do it within calendar year 2009....they would most definitely be the subject of my picture on that most wonderful day. :)

Day Sixty-Five: The bird stream

Day Sixty-Four: Springtime

We set a record high in Lawrence today: 85 degrees. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, the bugs were buzzing, and the flowers were springing up. The only break I took from work today was to venture outside to move my car and decided that we had actually skipped right over spring to summer. It was H-O-T. Little creatures like this guy probably weren't made for 85 degree temperatures; when the weather usually gets to that point, they have shed their fur to become beautiful butterflies. But Mr. Caterpillar stuck today out and around 7 p.m., he was still being his creepy, crawly self.

It was actually Pete's idea to take this picture, and we debated for a while (read: seconds) about who got to have this for their picture of the day. But, since Pete is such a great guy, and I don't like holding bugs, he let me have it. The picture turned out just the way we hoped with the focus on the bug and a crazy face (not intended to look like, but slightly reminsicent of an ominious figure from the 1930's and 1940's) in the background.

This is picture number two in the past three days that Pete has let me use of him that show his variety of facial expressions. I believe I probably owe him some goofy pictures in return. Be on the look out for those at his blog. :)

Day Sixty-Three: Today is not the day

Some days, the words ooze out of my fingers like honey out of a bottle.

Some days, creativity seeps from my veins.

Some days, life's vibrancy jumps out at me from every direction, enticing me to draw a little nearer and think a little deeper.

Some days, all that happens.

Today was not one of those days.

This picture was taken at one of my favorite restaurants in town: El Mezcal.  I'm not sure if I like that I can get a full "meal" of chips, queso, and a quesadilla for under $5, or it's the memories of all the gathering's I've had there, or the conversations with friends that never seem to fade, but whatever it is, it's good.  The decor in El Mez is much more interesting and colorful than this bland picture of (psuedo) stucko, and the food much more tasty than the burnt sienna leads you to believe, but today, I was not able to capture all of that.  Today was not one of those days.

Day Sixty-Two: Perfect Timing

Although Pete and I have been working on this Project 365 "together", that together-ness usually only extends to reminding and encouraging each other to get our pictures taken, edited, and posted each day.  Often we take the our pictures that end of being "the one" for the day in each other's presence, or somehow facilitate making the pictures happen, but we have yet to attempt to take our pictures TOGETHER...until tonight. 

Pete had a fun idea where we would mount our cameras on our respective tripods, load the remotes, and attempt to get the picture you see above by clicking our camera "remotes" at the exact same time. We also attempted to "pose" to make the subject of the picture interesting, too.   Of our 24 attempts, I captured the desired effect just once; another time I was very close -- in fact, so close so that there was too much light.  Pete's timing seemed to be more accurate, and he caught me a couple of times. But the process itself ended up being quite fun.  We caught some pretty goofy faces, worked through the doubt and skepticism of two of my neighbors, and ended up with some pretty decent pictures in the process. 

Although I hope that we can try more projects like this in the future, I promise to keep them to a minimum; I know that many of you read both of our blogs and the entertainment value would be significantly diminished if the content on both were the same.  Alas! Do not fear...for I doubt Pete would post endearing pictures of himself such as these on his blog. :)

Day Sixty-One: Spinning Closer and Closer

Despite receiving the most substantial snowfall we've seen all winter this past weekend, Spring is getting closer and closer each day.  We will soon be able to venture outdoors without hats and mittens, and will thrust open the windows and doors in hopes of catching a whiff of that sweet fresh air.  The Kansas weather changes with the blink of an eye, and every now and again, Spring will give way to Summer -- slipping in before it's due -- inviting us to turn on our fans, and possibly even the air conditioner. 

Although a significant portion of the country is no where close to spring today, and Lawrence only reached a high a third of its average ( 34 degrees where the average is 52), the spring bug seeped into my soul and invited me to play with my colorful fan.*  Yes, this is the fan in my room.  Yes, I am 25 years old.  But no, I did not install this fan.  From what I understand, the couple who lived in the condo before Jennifer and I moved in were expecting.  My room was supposed to be the child's room, and they prepared it for the baby: light blue walls with white feather dusting (maybe to look like clouds?) and the multi-colored fan.  But when they were told they were having twins, the humble four-walled living space was no longer big enough, and sold the house to Jennifer.

When I moved in, I promptly painted the walls "coffee with cream" and accented the north wall with "dark chocolate" paint. I attempted to take down the fan blades to either paint them to match or replace them with the white blades that are patiently waiting in my closet, but the space between the screws and the ceiling proved to be smaller than the height of my screwdriver, and nearly seven months later, I still have the colored blades.

I don't really mind the fan.  It is always a talking (read: teasing) point for the few people that enter my room, and I feel (and hope you do, also) that it reflects my cheery personality....reminding me that there is a lot of color and joy in the world.  Maybe that's a lot to read out a simple ceiling fan, but reading a lot out of things is also my personality. :)

*Truthfully, the inspiration for this photo came last week when I was hitting the sack early after the bar exam and was challenged to take my picture for the day from my bed...but the commentary on spring just fits a lot better.

Day Sixty: Casualties of War