No More Mental Trophies

August 21, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett 3 Comments

Last year I won both of the Fantasy Football Leagues that I participate in. This week I finally got what was coming to me, a trophy for the tremendous accomplishment of winning the Fantasy Football League at work. A physical trophy.

The trophy was given to me by League Commissioner and Ortho Bowl loser Jon Dewaard. Luckily for you, fellow Computer Mine employee Mike Vest was on hand to record the moment for posterity.

I have cleared away some space near my work area where I proudly display what I am going to call The Dewaard Trophy.

Some of you might be wondering why I’m displaying a trophy I barely earned in a competition that I hardly give any effort and put my more earned awards in a trunk in a basement. I don’t have an answer for you.

Grandma

83

August 20, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

Today my grandma turned 83.

This is about the only old picture I could find of her. My only observation is this: “I know it was the 70s, but I don’t know what my Uncle Gary was thinking with this blue tuxedo.”

Animals, Flowers, Macro, State Fair

State Fair Flowers

August 19, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

I love the gardens at the State Fair.

Pretty, but not quite as tasty as some shaved ice.

Animals, Candid Portrait, Formal Portrait, Jay, Jeff Daniel, Mom, State Fair, Street Photography, Teresa, Yin

State Fair Olla Podrida

August 18, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

A random selection of pictures from my trip to the State Fair with my Mom, Jay and Teresa.

Ran into Jeff and Yin on the shuttle to the Fair.

My new favorite hat.

My favorite State Fair Food. (I firmly believe that “food on a stick” is for tourists.)

Pioneer Hall

My favorite State Fair dessert.

You get to put on your own syrup! As much as you want!

Super Bull

2nd Largest Boar

Goat

Cow nose.

Mom in Family Center

Mom in the Family Center

This is a cake.

Also a cake.

Family Photo

Bridge

Elvis Impersonator

I didn’t take as many pictures as usual, but I did take more flower pictures than normal.

Carla, Dad, Mom, Slice of Life, Teresa

The Eldest Sister

August 17, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

Happy Birthday to my eldest sister, albeit a couple days late!

The old Bennett Antique Shop in the background.

Teresa and Carla

Swanky

Teresa and Mom

Teresa and Dad

Colorado

Teresa and Dad

Colorado

Now by looking at some of those pictures you would guess that Teresa must be like a million years old now. Her friend Rob assures me that she is only 45.*

* I should state that because women are sensitive about their age, Teresa isn’t actually 45 either.

Commercial, Formal Portrait, Shannon

That Picture

August 16, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

To answer the question: “Yes I took that picture of Shannon in the Des Moines Register”. I thought would post some of my favorite pictures from the photo shoot that will no doubt launch her modeling career.

Little White Lye Soap - Des Moines Register

Watching all that soap making makes me want to go buy some soap.

Commercial, Formal Portrait, Shannon

Slow on the take…

August 15, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

Some times the Des Moines Register gets real arrogant. They do things like try to me just who it is that “I should get to know”.

Some times the Des Moines Register gets it right. However, even when they get it right they are way behind the times. Check out this article from today’s Business Section.

Thanks for the tip, Des Moines Register, but I’ve known that Shannon was somebody to know for years now.

In case you can’t read the article, I’m willing to supply you with the important details below.

Saponification Speicialist

Name: Shannon Bardole

Title: Saponification Specialist

Company: Little White Lye Soap

City company is located in: Ames, IA

Job description or business description (especially if what you do is unusual your the title is not descriptive):
Saponification is the process of making soap, hence I’m a Saponification Specialist. I am owner/proprietor of the business. I make all-natural bars of soap and laundry soap using only Iowa-raised, free-range lard that I render and lye.

Background:
I have a BA in Family Services from the University of Northern Iowa. I worked at Living History Farms for five years, which is where I learned how to make soap using a historic recipe. I currently serve full-time as Administrative Assistant for United Way of Story County since LWLS is still a small business.

Notable achievements:
Little White Lye Soap has been in business for 20 months. The soap is available for purchase at three retail outlets: Wheatsfield Cooperative Grocery (413 Douglas Avenue, Ames), Indoor Ames Farmers’ Market (526 Main Street Station Suite 103, Ames), and Living History Farms (2600 111th Street, Urbandale). The website (http://www.littlewhitelyesoap.com) has been live for a few months.
Personally, I’ve received recognition at the state level within the Jaycees as top local secretary and state program manager.

Why I do what I do:
I love owning a small business. I love the challenges and opportunities that come along with owning a small business. And I love the product that I sell and use. It’s environmentally friendly, and I think my customers appreciate that, as well.

What I do to get away from work:
I enjoy handiwork of all sorts – knitting, crocheting, sewing. I enjoy traveling to visit my nieces and nephews in Dubuque and Illinois. I also working in the vegetable garden that my dad and I plant annually.

How I give back to the community (or volunteer activities):
I am an active member of the Ames (http://www.amesjaycees.com) and Iowa Junior Chamber (http://www.iowajaycees.org). Through the Jaycees I am able to help raise funds through my leadership as the 2008 Committee Chair of Ames on the Half Shell (http://www.amesonthehalfshell.com) that get put directly back into the community through projects such as the Easter Egg Hunt, Bowling Challenge, Fourth of July Fireworks, and Holiday Food Baskets.

Words to live by: Always have a positive attitude, even if things aren’t going well. Because suffering produces endurance, endurance produces character, character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint.

What Iowa can do to attract more people like me:
Iowa needs to keep doing what it’s already doing. I’ve been a life-long Iowan, and I love it here! I love four distinct seasons. I love the friendliness of Iowans. And I love driving in the spring and looking out over fields for miles around.

My mentor:
Frankee Oleson, Executive Director of United Way of Story County, quickly became my mentor after I began working there. She has got to be the most diplomatic person I know. That is something I really want to learn from her.

My leadership philosophy: Being a leader isn’t always comfortable. If you’re doing it right, you’re going to be uncomfortable, make people mad, but learn a lot.

What I would do if I could do something else:
I would love to be a full-time business owner. That is my goal. I’m passionate about quality, hand-crafted, all-natural, local goods, and I’d love to own a business that features all of those products.

If you want to contact me: Please visit http://www.littlewhitelyesoap.com.

You can also view the article online: You should get to know…

Sara, Writing

Desired Things

August 13, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

On Wednesday night I met Sara for supper. We went to a nice Vietnamese restaurant in downtown Des Moines. I don’t think I can actually type out the name of the restaurant, but my best Americanized version of the restaurant name is A Dong. My shorthand review of the meal was that they had incredible appetizers.

Almost any time I hang out with Sara, I learn something new. Sometimes, it is just her current degree of insanity, sometimes it is what part of the body is a perfect vacuum and sometimes it is about art.

Sara introduced me to a poem called Desiderata. Maybe you have heard the poem. I had only heard parts and had never heard the whole thing. I love the poem. Have a quick read.

Desiderata

Go placidly amid the noise and the haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender,
be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly, and listen to others,
even to the dull and ignorant;
they too have their story.

Avoid loud and aggressive persons;
they are vexatious to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain or bitter,
for always there will be
greater and lesser persons than yourself.

Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career
however humble;
it is a real possession in the
changing fortunes of time.

Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you
to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.

Be yourself.
Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love,
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment,
it is as perennial as the grass.

Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit
to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.

Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.

And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore, be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life,
keep peace in your soul.
With all its sham,
drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.

I read this poem while sucking down my second glass of wheat grass and before I took a wheat grass pill. The poem was not written by a famous poet. The author is a guy named Max Ehrmann.

He wrote the following in his diary:

I should like, if I could, to leave a humble gift — a bit of chaste prose that had caught up some noble moods.

That seems like a pretty good goal for anybody.

Black & White, Candid Portrait, Christianity, Flowers, Formal Portrait, History, Jay, Road Trip, Self-Portrait, Travel, Willy

St. Francis Xavier Basilica

August 11, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

After we left the Field of Dreams on Sunday, we visited the St. Francis Xavier Basilica. It is one of only 53 Basilicas in the United States.

Random Flower

Spires

The Church

Altar

Stained Glass Window

Sanctuary

Spire

Willy

Jay

Dessert in Jesup

Traditional Road Trip Photo

The height of each spire is 212 feet.

The term Basilica is a Greek derivation from “Basileus” meaning a royal or kingly building. In the day of the pagan Roman Empire, most cities had a large building of special architectural design to accommodate large audiences for orators of the day. They were called basilicas. In her earlier centuries, the Catholic church conferred this title on churches of unusual architectural and spiritual significance. Their number is small. Some hold the title by a special Papal edict as is the case of the Dyersville Basilica.

The Basilica is often referred to as the Pope’s church for his use in the event he should ever visit the area. There are Major and Minor Basilicas. The Major Basilicas of which there exist only five, are all in Rome, the best known being St. Peter’s. The Basilica of St. Mary’s in Minneapolis was the first church in the United States to be raised to the rank of a Minor Basilica in 1926.

St. Francis Xavier was the twelfth church in the country so honored. It is unique in that it is one of three in a rural area; all the others are in metropolitan areas.

There are now 53 basilicas in the United States. St. Francis Xavier Basilica is one of the finest examples of the true medieval Gothic architecture. Its graceful and pleasing lines are reminiscent of some of the outstanding Gothic cathedrals in Europe.

-Basilica Pamphlet