Flowers, Lensbaby, Macro, Music, Sara, Shawn Lockner

Fulton County Jane Doe

August 31, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

One, two, three, four…

Out in the middle of nowhere
With nothing much else to do
Oh, the night brought us together
And I lent my heart to you

Maybe you were running way from something
Without so much as a plan
Not a living soul to guide you
Jesus tattooed on your hand

And when my heart has no rest
And a thousand things are on my mind
I’ll always save some room for you
I won’t let you get left behind

Oh, and I always will remember
When the lonely day is through
That somewhere fall from Fulton County
A stranger says a prayer for you

We came into this life with nothing
And all we’re taking is a name
That’s why I’ve written you this song
This is for Fulton County Jane
-Brandi Carlile

Before I get into this Thursday’s flowertography collection, thought I would share some cruddy cell phone picture from going to see Brandi in concert in Omaha with Sara and Shawn.

Pink was there supporting Brandi.

It was nearly or over 100 degrees on this day.

But people waited in line just to get in to see Brandi.

The concert was at the baseball stadium that host the College World Series.

It was a bigger stadium than I expected.

It was nice of Pink to build this big stage for Brandi.

The opening act was Grouplove. You can see Hannah Hooper if you squint.

Brandi!

This guy’s head.

About as good of a picture as I could get of Brandi and the twins, cause of this guy’s head.

Pink closed the show for Brandi.

If you look closely, you can see Pink descending to the stage from the lips.

More descending.

I actually almost like this picture.

On her last song, Pink flew around the stadium.

It was an amazing concert that just needed more Brandi! A week ago I could have told you every song she played, but for now it is enough to note that she did play “The Story” and “Broken Horses”. The highlight of the Pink portion of the show was when she talked about how she wished she could write songs like Brandi. Then Brandi came out and they sang “Nothing Compares 2 U” as a tribute to Sinead O’Connor.

It was a great show and I can’t wait to see Brandi perform again!

But Thursdays ARE for flowers. Here are some flower pictures I took in my yard back in May:

Next Thursday I might share more flower pictures from my yard or more pictures from Pella. It is a mystery that will only revealed by time.

Art, Christianity, History, Railroad, Road Trip, Street Photography

Dubuque County Aux. – Vol. 3

August 30, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

Time once again to share some auxiliary images I took while harvesting the town signs of Dubuque County. Last time we left off I was sharing pictures from the Fenelon Place Elevator. Here is some more information on the “world’s shortest and steepest railway” (https://www.fenelonplaceelevator.com/):

Fenelon Place Elevator Company
512 Fenelon Place
Dubuque, Iowa 52001

Historic cable car. Also known as the Fourth Street Elevator, this funicular railway has been called “the world’s steepest, shortest scenic railway.” 296 feet in length, elevating passengers 189 feed from Fourth Street up to Fenelon Place. Magnificent view of downtown Dubuque business district, the Mississippi River and three states. Buses should go to the bottom of the bluff. Please use 4th and Bluff Streets for GPS. Narrow streets with parking on both sides at the top of the bluff. Open 8 AM to 10 PM daily April 1 though November 30. Closed Thanksgiving. We do not accept debit or credit cards.

And from the history section of their website:

In 1882, Dubuque was an hour and a half town – at noon everything shut down for an hour and a half when everyone went home to dinner.

Mr. J. K. Graves, a former mayor, former State Senator, also promoter of mines and a banker lived on top of the bluffs and worked at the bottom. Unfortunately, he had to spend half an hour driving his horse and buggy round the bluff to get to the top and another half an hour to return downtown, even though his bank was only two and a half blocks away.

Mr. Graves liked to take half an hour for his dinner, then a half an hour nap, but this was im-possible because of the long buggy ride.

As a traveler he had seen incline railways in Europe and decided that a cable car would solve his problem. He petitioned the city for the right to build. The franchise was granted on June 5, 1882.

John Bell, a local engineer, was hired to design and to build a one-car cable modeled after those in the Alps.

The original cable car, which was built for Mr. Graves’ private use, had a plain wood building, that housed a coal-fired steam engine boiler and winch. A wooden Swiss-style car was hauled up and down on two rails by a hemp rope.

Mr. Graves’ cable car operated for the first time on July 25, 1882. After that, he had his gardener let him down in the morning, bring him up at noon, down after dinner and nap, and up again at the end of the work day. Before long, the neighbors began meeting him at the elevator asking for rides.

On July 19, 1884, the elevator burned when the fire that was banked in the stove for the night was blown alive. After Mr. Graves rebuilt the elevator, he remembered how his neighbors showed up when he used the cable car and he decided to open it to the public. He charged five cents a ride.

The elevator burned again in 1893. Because there was a recession Mr. Graves could not afford to rebuild the cable car. The neighbors had come to depend on the elevator to get them to work, to church, to school, and to the market.

Ten neighbors banded together and formed the Fenelon Place Elevator co. Mr. Graves gave them the franchise for the right of way for the track. This group traveled to the 1893 Colombian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois, to look for new ideas. They brought back a streetcar motor to run the elevator, the turnstile, and steel cable for the cars. They had remembered that each time the elevator house burned, the fire also burned through the hemp rope that held the car and sent it crashing down the hill destroying it and the little house at the bottom. Then they in-stalled three rails with a fourth bypass in the middle to allow for the operation of two (funicular) counterbalanced cars.

By 1912, C. B. Trewin, who had built a house next door in 1897, became the sole stockholder. It was natural for him to buy up the stock from the original ten stockholders as they either passed away or moved away.

Mr. Trewin added garages to the north and south sides of the operator’s house in 1916. He also added a second floor apartment which the neighborhood men used for a meeting room where they could smoke and play cards without the wives interfering.

The auxiliary images:

Fenelon Place Elevator

Peosta

New Melleray Abbey

There is only one collection in this post of the many amazing murals in Dubuque. I actually did a little more research into the murals of Dubuque and they are a lot more extensive than I thought. I will definitely be going back to Dubuque at some point to photograph as many of them as possible!

There is still one more collection of images from Dubuque County left to share!

Birthdays, Drone, Nature, Vest

Rodan139: North Harrier Marsh

August 29, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

Today is Vest’s birthday. Happy birthday Vest!

I hope your birthday is as amazing as you want it to be!

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The other day I took Rodan139 out for a flight around the north end of the Harrier Marsh. I just needed to spread its wings and runs some pixels through it. I haven’t taken any pictures from that side of the marsh before, so it was a new experience.

The next time Rodan139 takes to the skies, it will be in Moingona.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Black & White, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Evie, Formal Portrait, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Nature, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Sheri, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 415 – SHADOW

August 28, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

It is the last collection of submissions of the month, so it is a good time revisit the THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE FAQ:

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS – WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE

What skill level photographer can participate?

THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE is open to photographers of all skill levels. From award winning photographers to professionals to the highly ranked amateurs to those that are just beginning to those who don’t even know how to focus a camera. All skill levels are encouraged and welcome. You can’t be too bad and you can’t be too good! Everyone has room to learn and be challenged!

Award winning photographers? Really?

Yes. I can think of at least 10 photographers that participate regularly that have won a photography award of some kind.

Is this a competition?
NO.

Is there a limit to the number of submissions I can have each week?

Yes. That limit is 3. If you send me more than 3, I will post the first 3 that you send. I’m not trying to harsh your photography buzz, but any more than that starts to overwhelm the other submissions and it takes me about 5 minutes to take a picture from my inbox to code it on the website. So I have to manage my workload.

If you are going to submit more than one picture, I strongly urge you to choose completely different subjects for each submission. If you are submitting multiple pictures of the same subject, make sure that each picture is saying something unique.

If participation rates climb, that limit of 3 is subject to lower.

Can I send you several pictures and have you pick the best one?

No! No! NO! If those words come out of your mouth or your keyboard, I consider that to be a non-submission.

Do you ever question whether somebody’s submission fits the theme?

Meh. Only if I think somebody is clearly confusing this week’s theme with last week or next week’s theme. Otherwise, if the submission makes sense in your head, that is good enough for me. However, I would urge you to not try to fit your favorite subject into the theme. This isn’t a challenge to share a picture every week of your kid or your business or your pet. It is a challenge to take pictures of different things every week. Which isn’t to say subjects can’t be repeated, but you shouldn’t become reliant on the same ones.

Why can’t I submit after 11 AM on Mondays if the post doesn’t publish until 12:01 PM?

I go to lunch at 11 AM. I leave my office. I’m not near a computer. At 11 AM I hit “Schedule” and then I go throw food down my throat. 167 hours is more than enough time to send a submission. Okay, 166 hours and 59 minutes. You got me.

Do I have to wait until Monday morning to submit?

Absolutely not! In fact I appreciate the submissions that make it to me by Sunday evening. Makes the job of putting this together on Monday morning much easier!

Are there resolution requirements for submissions?

I won’t turn down submissions that are too small. I will probably ask you for a picture of greater resolution if it is really small. The typical 4 x 6 image posted to my website has a resolution of 1280 pixels x 853 pixels. While a 400 x 300 image might look okay on your phone, it looks like trash on a computer monitor. I prefer images that are at least 1000 pixels at their widest point, but don’t ban smaller pictures at this point.

What format should my submission be?

.JPG but .PNG also works.

If I write a description of my image will you include that in your post?

No. Photography is art that should stand on its own. Only exception is the SLICE OF LIFE theme. But if you let me know where the picture was taken, I will include that.

When will you start accepting suggestions for next year’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE themes?

I will take suggestions only and ONLY in the comments sections of the THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE posts the last week of October and the 1st week of November.

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SHADOW! A great theme, but did inspire people to lurk in the dark or come out into the light of participation? You’ll have to keep streaming to find out!

I do want to say that hope at least somebody appreciates my submission this week. I was pretty close to kicked out of a museum for taking it.

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, August 21, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Sabas Hernandez – 1 week
2-Willy McAlpine – 1 week
3-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
4-Nader Parsaei – 1 week
5-Mary Green – 3 weeks (2)
6-Sara Lockner – 3 weeks (3
7-Mike Vest – 7 weeks
8-Sheri Fakhouri – 10 weeks
9-Monica Jennings – 11 weeks
10-Logan Kahler – 11 weeks (2)
11-Nathanial Brown – 12 weeks
12-Jesse Howard – 12 weeks
13-Tamara Peterson – 15 weeks
14-Alexis Stensland – 20 weeks
15-Mindi Terrell – 27 weeks (3)
16-Brandon Kahler – 51 weeks
17-Linda Bennett – 56 weeks (2)
18-Sarah Toot – 57 weeks (2)
19-Angie DeWaard – 61 weeks
20-Dawn Krause – 65 weeks (2)
21-Kim Barker – 71 weeks
22-Joe Duff – 72 weeks (2)
23-Teresa Kahler – 83 weeks (3)
24-Carla Stensland – 83 weeks (3)
25-Micky Augustin – 85 weeks
26-Andy Sharp – 86 weeks
27-Bill Wentworth – 87 weeks
28-Cathie Morton – 91 weeks
29-Elizabeth Nordeen – 92 weeks
30-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 94 weeks
31-Kio Dettman – 96 weeks (2)

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates or streaks. You came to see the submissions and what streaks continued and what streaks flamed out:

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa) – 97 weeks

Kio Dettman (Boone, Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 95 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 93 weeks

Cathie Morton (Water Works Park – Des Moines, Iowa) – 92 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Omaha, Nebraska) – 88 weeks

Andy Sharp (Boone, Iowa) – 87 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 86 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa) – 84 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Boone, Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Ames, Iowa) – 84 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa)

Joe Duff (Dallas, Texas) – 73 weeks

Joe Duff (Dallas, Texas)

Kim Barker (Nevada, Iowa) – 72 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 66 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 62 weeks

Sarah Toot (East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania) – 58 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 57 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 52 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 28 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 21 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 16 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Jesse Howard (Ames, Iowa) – 13 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Logan Kahler (Guthrie Center, Iowa)

Sheri Fakhouri (Ankeny, Iowa) – 11 weeks

Mike Vest (Madrid, Iowa) – 8 weeks

Sara Lockner (Johnston, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Mary Green (Camp Wyoming – Wyoming, Iowa) – 4 weeks

Becky Parmelee (King Author Flour & Bakery – Norwich, Vermont) – 2 weeks

Becky Parmelee (West Lebanon, New Hampshire)

Becky Parmelee (Atlanta, Georgia)

Sabas Hernandez (Rock and Roll Hall of Fame – Cleveland, Ohio) – 2 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Boone, Iowa) – 2 weeks

Evie Gorshe (Iowa) – 1 week

Scott Degeneffe (Dickcissel Park – Boone, Iowa) – 1 week

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 1 week

Christopher D. Bennett (Union Station – Omaha, Nebraska)

34 participants! That is a pretty great week! And pictures were taken from all over the country this week!

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:
+ Georgia
+ Kansas
+ Iowa
+ Nebraska
+ New Hampshire
+ Ohio
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas
+ Vermont

Thanks to Becky’s recent travels, 2 more states have been filled in on the map. New Hampshire and Vermont. WooHoo!

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Louisiana
+ Maryland
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ Montana
+ Nebraska
+ New Hampshire
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ North Carolina
+ North Dakota
+ Ohio
+ Oklahoma
+ Oregon
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Carolina
+ South Dakota
+ Tennessee
+ Texas
+ Utah
+ Vermont
+ Washington
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

35 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over 70% of the way there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico (General)
+ Isla Mujeres, Mexico
+ Riviera Maya, Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Vallunareju Norte – Peru
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture 156 miles from my front door. In a state where a regular contributor resides. I continue not to contribute.

The big milestone this week is Brandon joining THE YEAR LONG STREAK CLUB! WooHoo! Congratulations Brandon!

But it wasn’t all good news! Nader could not build on their submissions last week and their streaks are over before the began.

But enough dwelling on the past. Time to look to the future. We are all interested in the future, for that is where you and I are going to spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friend, future events such as these will affect you in the future! This week’s theme:

NATURE

NATURE! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

But what exactly is a NATURE photo? “Nature photography is a wide range of photography taken outdoors and devoted to displaying natural elements such as landscapes, wildlife, plants, and close-ups of natural scenes and textures.”

That encompasses a lot of the world. So what isn’t NATURE? Humans and anything created by humans. Although those elements can be included in a NATURE photo. But they aren’t the main subject matter.

While thinking about possible subjects for your NATURE photo meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with a fascinating image:

Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.
-Khalil Gibran

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

RULES

The picture has to be taken between 12:01 PM today and 11 AM next Monday. This isn’t a curate your photos project. This is a get your butt off the couch (unless you are taking your picture from the couch) and take pictures challenge. There is a limit of 3 submissions per participant. To be considered the photographer, you have to be the one that takes the picture. Don’t be stealing the work of other artists. You can submit pictures for other photographers that took pictures with your camera or phone, but give credit where credit is due.

You can send your images to either bennett@photography139.com OR you may text them to my Pixel 5.

That is it. Thems the rules!

That is all I got, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will all be sharing your idea of NATURE in this place that shows mine next Monday.

Art, Self-Portrait, Still Life, Tenderloining

Donut O’Clock – Jefferson Field Work

August 27, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

Back in June I got a surprise day off from work. They had re-shuffled PTO and suddenly I either had to take a day off or I was going to max out on PTO and therefore lose PTO. Yeah, I don’t play that game. On my surprise day off I went to the High Trestle Trail. Then I went to Jefferson to try a donut place I had recently heard about. Dunkers by Matt.

I’m not a fancy donut guy. I like your basic cake donut with frosting and sprinkles. But Dunkers By Matt definitely intrigued me. One of the things that most intrigued me is the fact that you can get a 7 inch or 12 in donut. I wasn’t able to get this massive donut because you have to pre-order them, but I hope to get one some day.

Here are some pictures from the trip:

I got to the bakery late, which is the cardinal sin of bakery eating. They donuts were pretty much picked over and there weren’t a ton of donut holes left, but I still had an amazing experience!

The woman was working gave me extra donut holes for free, noting that she can’t count very well when she is upside down. Then she made the blank long johns that were left and then finally threw in a maple bacon long john for free since the person that had ordered it never came in and picked it up.

The donut holes were fantastic! And they seem to frequently have special donut holes on Wednesday and Saturdays. On their Facebook page they have posted Red Velvet Donut Holes, Cherry, Birthday Cake, Strawberry & Cream, Salted Caramel and Apple Crisp!

I don’t really have a way of rating donuts. They are donuts! They are fantastic! I’m going to keep my eye on their Facebook page and have to make a trip the next time they make those Apple Crisp or Salted Caramel and Red Velvet donut holes. I believe my birthday in 2024 is on a Saturday. My birthday present to myself might just be that 12 inch donut! Play your cards right and you might just get an invite to help me eat that 12 inch donut.

Dunkers by Matt can be found at:
119 North Chestnut Street
Jefferson, Iowa

Next Sunday’s food adventure will involve the Des Moines Art Festival.

Birthdays, Black & White, Kanoa, Nature

A Foggy Morn on the Trail

August 26, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

I realized yesterday that I had forgot to wish my great nephew Kanoa a happy birthday, cause I suck. So happy birthday Kanoa!

I hope it was a pretty great birthday!

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Back at the beginning of the year I took a foggy morning hike to the High Trestle Trail Bridge. Of course I took some pictures. Here is the first collection:

Almost every time one visits the High Trestle Trail Bridge, it is magical. But I think the most magical is when the river valley is filled with fog.

There are more pictures from this trip still to share.

Art, Road Trip, Street Photography, Teresa

Color the Wind – One

August 25, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett

On my list of things I wanted to do this year was hit the Color the Wind Festival in Clear Lake. Teresa and I went to it back in February and it was as amazing as I imagined. It is cold and I highly recommend getting spikes (which I didn’t do) if you every go, but it is definitely worth it.

Here is the first collection of images from the day:

Still a ton of pictures from this day to share!

Flowers, Lensbaby, Macro, Music, Sara, Self-Portrait, Shawn Lockner

Whatever You Do

August 24, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 4 Comments

If I don’t owe you a favor, you don’t know me
I don’t believe we’ve ever even met
If there’s a God in heaven you can show me
Then I guess I should admit I lost the bet
There are moments I could hold you forever
There are moments that lasted way too long
There are days when I change with the weather
To hold you in place would be wrong

I never met a morning I could get through
With nothing on my breath to hold the night
And I never said I’m sorry but I meant to
I never met a coward I don’t like
There are reasons why the body stays in motion
But at the moment only demons come to mine
There are days when I could walk into the ocean
With no one else but you to leave behind

There’s a road left behind me that I would rather not speak of
And a hard one ahead of me too
I love you, whatever you do
But I got a life to live too
-Brandi Carlile

As you all should know, on Monday I got a chance to see Brandi Carlile in concert for the first time in several years. It was an amazing concert! I had almost forgot how amazing of a live performer she is. Almost! I definitely can’t let it be so long before I see her live again!

I might be a little out of practice with taking selfies since I’m not doing THE SELFIE PROJECT this year so apparently the selfie I took with Sara and Shawn caused quite the stir…

I took this selfie and sent it to a few people:

One of the responses I got back was:

The girl behind you is practically showing her boob. She must know the kind of pictures you like.

I guess I walked into that one.

I guess we got Photo-boobed. I mean Boob-bombed. I mean boobs!

Anyways, I will still treasure this picture and this moment in time.

But Thursday is for flowers! Here is some flowers from my yard:

There is one last collection of images of flowers taken from my yard on this day left to share.

Art, Railroad, Road Trip, Street Photography

Dubuque County Aux. – Vol. 2

August 23, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

Continuing on with the auxiliary images I took while harvesting the town signs in Dubuque County. All of these pictures were taken in Dubuque which is by far my favorite river town in Iowa. Maybe I should say river city. Fun fact: Mason City is actually the River City from the musical The Music Man, but I bet you have no clue what river flows through it. I might like towns like Marquette and Lansing better. But I do love Dubuque!

Dubuque has so many amazing murals! Up there with Creston!

The last few pictures of the Fenelon Place Elevator. Sorta Dubuque’s answer to Burlington’s Snake Alley. Both answers to the same issue.

Art, Drone, Olympic Sports

Rodan139: Madrid RAGBRAI Art

August 22, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 3 Comments

I had forgotten that I had went back to Madrid after RAGBRAI had left their town and took a picture of the art that Madrid put on their streets to greet the RAGBRAI riders. I will get more into what Madrid and other towns did for RAGBRAI when I get into the land based photos at some point. But it is sufficient at this point to note that Madrid went with a Alice in Wonderland theme and for me the best part was the giant Cheshire Cat mural they put on the intersection of the two main streets of their business district.

This collection of pictures is a reminder of why I hate powerlines so much. It is 2023 people! Why aren’t all powerlines buried underground or why isn’t electricity transferred without wire like Tesla pretended to invent?!?

Photography 139

Monthly Archives: August 2023

Fulton County Jane Doe

Dubuque County Aux. – Vol. 3

Rodan139: North Harrier Marsh

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WPC – WEEK 415 – SHADOW

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS – WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE

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RULES

Donut O’Clock – Jefferson Field Work

A Foggy Morn on the Trail

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Color the Wind – One

Whatever You Do

Dubuque County Aux. – Vol. 2

Rodan139: Madrid RAGBRAI Art