Category Archives: Naima

Blessings – 2018

I hope everybody had a great Thanksgiving! It is the time of year where we are supposed to count our blessings.

I thought I would share a few of my current blessings:


I am blessed with a great family!

Sympathy - Brandon Kahler

NATE - SYMPATHY

SURPRISE - LAURA MILLER

Bethany - Boredom

Elainie - Boredom

Fear - Alexis

Anger - Johnathan

Sadness - Logan

I have plenty of friends that share my love for the Cyclones!

Iowa State 30 #6 West Virginia 14

Liberty Bowl Road Trip

I have a job I don’t hate going to, where I work with several people I don’t want to punch in the face.

Iowa State vs. Texas Tech

Iowa State vs. Texas Tech

I have an amazing church family!

Houston Mission Trip - 2018

Houston Mission Trip - 2018

Houston Mission Trip - 2018

Pufferbilly Days Float - 2018

Critter Sunday - 2018

Easter - 2018 - Boone FUMC

I have an amazing friends family!

Anders - Fear

Shannon with her

Iowa State Fair - 2018

Maquoketa Caves Road Trip

2009 - Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest Nominee

I’m blessed to share my life with Naima!

August 23, 2017

This is really just a handful of the blessings in my life! But I’m already getting this out late, so I’ll cut if off here. I’ll just end with a passage from a Rob Bell NOOMA video that really spoke to me:

“So the verse in First Timothy, it says command those that are rich to not put their hope in wealth… and then it goes on and it continues… and it says, but to put their hope in God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.

That phrase, a God that richly provides us with everything. All that we have is a gift.

Food. It is a gift.

Clothes. Gift.

Roof. Gift.

That breath you just took. It’s a gift.

Now there are some that will say: No, you don’t understand. I’ve worked for what I have. I deserve it. It is mine. But like it says in the book of Deuteronomy, Chapter 8: You may say to yourself, my power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me. But remember the Lord your God, because it is God that gives you the ability to produce wealth.”

I thank God for the embarrassment of riches in my life!

A Man’s Best Friend is his Dog…

I spent a lot of time out at Dickcissel Park with Naima this year. I think it has become her favorite place to go, when she leaves the house.

The only thing I can say is that she has yet to accept that a trip there is a substitute for our (near) daily walk. She thinks she deserves both.

Here are some pictures from one of our trips there in August.


Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

There are plenty more pictures of Naima still in the hopper. Don’t worry about not getting your Naima fix!

WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE – WEEK 166 – PETS

Heads up that next week we will be back on our normal schedule of Monday WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE drops into the foreseeable future.

PETS did get a few people revved up and taking pictures. Although not as many as I would’ve thought. Some of you people don’t love your PETS nearly enough. You need to get on that.

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about loving PETS. You came here to see the submissions:


WEEK 166 - PETS - CATHIE RALEY
Cathie Raley

WEEK 166 - PETS - CATHIE RALEY
Cathie Raley

WEEK 166 - PETS - SHANNON BARDOLE-FOLEY
Shannon Bardole-Foley

WEEK 166 - PETS - TERESA KAHLER
Teresa Kahler

WEEK 166 - PETS - TAMARA PETERSON
Tamara Peterson


Christopher D. Bennett

WEEK 166 - PETS - BECKY PARMELEE
Becky Parmelee

WEEK 166 - PETS - MICKY AUGUSTIN
Micky Augustin

WEEK 166 - PETS - MICKY AUGUSTIN
Micky Augustin

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:



? PLACE

? PLACE! What a great theme! But what is a ? PLACE theme. Take the question mark out and replace it with where you are from or where you are at. So it could be a BOONE PLACE or an IOWA PLACE for me, since I’m not planning on traveling anywhere this week. The idea is basically taken from the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon that has categories like Iowa Place, US Place, or International Place. The idea for this category is to take a picture of a PLACE in you area. A PLACE that is well known or famous. At least to the people in your area.

I look forward to seeing your interpretations!

HOUSEKEEPING

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 RULES DIVISION

1. The picture has to be taken the week of the theme. This isn’t a curate your pictures challenge. This is a get your butt off the couch (my personal experience) and put your camera in your hands challenge. Don’t send me a picture of you next to the Eiffel Tower, when I know you were in Iowa all week. I will point out that I have let that slide some in the past. I will not in the future. Since it is literally about the only rule.

2. Your submission needs to be emailed to bennett@photography139.com by 11 AM on the Monday of the challenge due date. It should be pointed out that this blog auto-publishes at 12:01 on Mondays. So it wouldn’t hurt to get your picture in earlier.

That is it, them’s the rules.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION DIVISION

Nobody showed class, taste, and sophistication this week by signing up for a Photography 139 email subscription. I’ll try and do better next week.

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That’s all I got for today, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will commune right here again next Monday. Hopefully it will be a very well placed Monday.

A Photo Journal – Henry Carroll – Page 70-71

As the 2018 political season wound down, I found it to be a perfect time to tackle Page 70 and then subsequently Page 71 of THE PHOTO JOURNAL PROJECT:


Photo Journal - Page 70
Page 70 – Take a picture of something you hate.

There are few things in the world I hate more than the “stick-to” narrative. This belief that everybody has a right to express their political opinion, except for artists and athletes. Since I happen to be both (Monstars, represent!), it is something that hits home.

When a plumber or a line cook expresses a political opinion, nobody is out there saying, “Stick to plumbing” or “Stick to cooking”.

But whenever an athlete or an actor expresses a political opinion you hear a chorus of “Hey pal, stick to sports, just stick to sports.”

Which is weird because athletes like Jackie Robinson and Muhammad Ali (to name just a couple) have been instrumental in leading social change.

Even stranger still is the people who come down on artists. It is the job of the artist to say some thing. That is the point of art. It isn’t always political, but sometimes, that is going to be political. Banksy is probably the greatest political artist of our times. It would be tragic if he was silent.

By the way, thanks to Michelle for making my “Stick to Photography” sign!

Page 70 leads to Page 71 of THE PHOTO JOURNAL PROJECT:


Photo Journal - Page 71
Page 71 – Email me the picture and I’ll email you a picture of something I hate.

Page 71 asked you to send your hate picture to the author of A PHOTO JOURNAL, and then he would email you back a picture of something he hates. The author of A PHOTO JOURNAL is Henry Carroll. This is what he emailed me back.

Not sure what page we will check in with next time we check in with THE PHOTO JOURNAL PROJECT. It’ll be a surprise to all of us!

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A reminder that this week’s WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE theme is PETS:


WEEK 166 - PETS
PETS

A PETS image is any photo of a PET(S) or anything related to a PET(S).

Happy photo harvesting!

Naima Underwater Test

Naima likes to walk in water. Naima doesn’t swim, unless forced. She doesn’t enjoy it. But she loves tromping around in water.

I decided to try to grab a picture of her tromping around in water, from underwater.

It didn’t work out that well because the place we go so she can run around off her leash, has a muddy bottom. But here are some pictures from the test. This was back in May at Dickcissel Park.


Underwater Test

Underwater Test

Underwater Test
You can actually see Naima in this picture.

Underwater Test

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

Naima at Dickcissel Park

The water around here has gotten pretty cold, so underwater photography is probably done for 2018. However, I have plans for purchasing a camera for next year that is going to be for underwater photography and slow motion photography. It is low on the priority list:

1. Pay off car.
2. Bank fraud refund.
3. New rear brakes.
4. Big 12 Championship Game Trip ????
5. Remaining Self-Directed Training Budget – $355.20
6. 2019 Calendars ????
7. Iowa State Bowl Trip ????
8. Subscribe to Des Moines Register
9. Hope to not get screwed over by the GOP Tax Scam.
10. DJI Mavic Pro 2
11. Sony RX0
12. Sony Alpah a7II

Although 11 and 12 can be switched around, depending on whether or not I come across a deal. And obviously, there are lots of question marks on the big board. But this is how I plan on blowing tons of money in the near to nearish future.

WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE – WEEK 165 – LANDSCAPE

Before we get too involved in the week’s WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE, I want to take a little bit of time to toot my own horn. Today at 9:36 AM, I made the final payment on the Camry. Today, that baby is mine! I don’t have the pink slip in my hand yet, but that is only a matter of time! Below is the moment I clicked “Pay”:


Making My Last Car Payment on the Camry
(Photo Cred to Michelle)

Now, right after I determine how much money I might potentially spend on going to the Big 12 Championship Game, then right after I figure out if I’m going to make calendars again this year, then right after I get the rear brakes replaced, then right after I figure out how much I might potentially spend on an Iowa State Bowl Game, then after I figure out how the GOP Tax Scam effected my tax return, I can begin drone shopping in earnest. I hope to have one purchased by February. You know. When it is too cold to use it!

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LANDSCAPE, at least in my humble opinion, can be a tough nut for some people to crack, during the time of year when everything is dying and the land is barren. Despite that fact, a few people out there were able to come up with a LANDSCAPE photo.

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates. You came to see the submissions!


WEEK 165 - LANDSCAPE - CATHIE RALEY
Cathie Raley

WEEK 165 - LANDSCAPE - JESSE HOWARD
Jesse Howard

WEEK 165 - LANDSCAPE - MICKY AUGUSTIN
Micky Augustin

WEEK 165 - LANDSCAPE - TAMARA PETERSON
Tamara Peterson

WEEK 165 - LANDSCAPE - ANGIE DEWAARD
Angie DeWaard

WEEK 165 - LANDSCAPE - CATHIE RALEY
Cathie Raley

WEEK 165 - LANDSCAPE - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
Christopher D. Bennett

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:


WEEK 166 - PETS
PETS

PETS! What a great theme! But what is a PETS photo? A PETS photo is any photo that involves PETS or byproducts of PETS! If you don’t have a PET(S) or feel you don’t have access to a PET(S), then Naima can be booked. Her sitting fee is 2 milk bones and 5 minutes of head scratching.

The submissions for PETS will be published next Tuesday and not next Monday. Don’t panic. I still look forward to your interpretations.

HOUSEKEEPING

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 RULES DIVISION

1. The picture has to be taken the week of the theme. This isn’t a curate your pictures challenge. This is a get your butt off the couch (my personal experience) and put your camera in your hands challenge. Don’t send me a picture of you next to the Eiffel Tower, when I know you were in Iowa all week. I will point out that I have let that slide some in the past. I will not in the future. Since it is literally about the only rule.

2. Your submission needs to be emailed to bennett@photography139.com by 11 AM on the Monday of the challenge due date. It should be pointed out that this blog auto-publishes at 12:01 on Mondays. So it wouldn’t hurt to get your picture in earlier.

That is it, them’s the rules.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION DIVISION

Nobody showed class, taste, and sophistication this week by signing up for a Photography 139 email subscription. I’ll try and do better next week.

+++++++

That’s all I got for today, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will commune right here again next Monday. Hopefully it will be a very petted Monday.

Naima & Tempe

Last weekend I went down to Topeka with Becca and Bethany to see Nate and Laura’s triplets.

Bethany left her dog Tempe with Naima for the weekend. Part of my dog-sitting crew, Jay and Willy, got quite the kick out of Naima and Tempe’s antics. This reminded me that I hadn’t published the pictures of Naima and Tempe from when Tempe stayed with me in May.

I shall correct that now:


Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

Naima

Naima

Naima & Tempe

Naima & Tempe

When we got back to Boone, Bethany kinda called me out about how I talk about bringing back the birthday party every year and then I don’t do it. Therefore, 2019 might be the year to actually do something. Maybe I just find these days that I enjoy the company of animals and things more than people these days. So I guess if I bring back the party next year, I have decided that I like people again. Possibly.

Dog Party!!

Near the end of August, the Boone City Pool had their annual Dog Pool Party. I can’t remember if it is a fundraiser for the Boone Area Humane Society or the Canine Corral, but it is a fundraiser for somebody.

I like to take Naima to this event even though she hates it. Naima doesn’t swim. Period.

She will walk around the pool where she can touch the bottom, but she won’t go in any pool where she has to swim.

Naima will stomp around the wading pool and after a few minutes, she is ready to go. Last year, she did just leave on her own. She left the pool and walked right out the exit. She’d had enough.

Here are a few pictures from the dog pool party:


Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

Dog Pool Party - 2018

This was by far the busiest dog pool party I can remember. There was dogs everywhere. I don’t know that I’ll make Naima go again next year. I think she has built all the character that she is ever going to build.

WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE – WEEK 160 – MOUTH

Looks like a few people were inspired by the MOUTH theme.

But you didn’t come here to listen to me talk all tommyrot about participation rates. You came to see the submissions:


WEEK 160 - MOUTH - ANDY SHARP
Andy Sharp

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - TAMARA PETERSON
Tamara Peterson

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - CHRISTOPHER D. BENNETT
Christopher D. Bennett

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - ANGIE DEWAARD
Angie DeWaard

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - ANDY SHARP
Andy Sharp

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - KIM BARKER
Kim Barker

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - CATHIE RALEY
Cathie Raley

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - CARLA STENSLAND
Carla Stensland

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - MIKE VEST
Mike Vest

WEEK 160 - MOUTH - MIKE VEST
Mike Vest

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:



ENTERTAINMENT!

ENTERTAINMENT! What a great theme! But what is an ENTERTAINMENT photo? An ENTERTAINMENT photo would be a photo of anybody being ENTERTAINMENTed. Or things that you use for ENTERTAINMENT. Like movies or music or arson. I’m not here to judge. Okay, I do judge bad taste in music and movies. Just being honest.

I look forward to seeing your interpretations!

HOUSEKEEPING

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 RULES DIVISION

1. The picture has to be taken the week of the theme. This isn’t a curate your pictures challenge. This is a get your butt off the couch (my personal experience) and put your camera in your hands challenge. Don’t send me a picture of you next to the Eiffel Tower, when I know you were in Iowa all week. I will point out that I have let that slide some in the past. I will not in the future. Since it is literally about the only rule.

2. Your submission needs to be emailed to bennett@photography139.com by 11 AM on the Monday of the challenge due date. It should be pointed out that this blog auto-publishes at 12:01 on Mondays. So it wouldn’t hurt to get your picture in earlier.

That is it, them’s the rules.

A MESSAGE FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHY 139 SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION DIVISION

Nobody showed class, taste, and sophistication this week by signing up for a Photography 139 email subscription. I’ll try and do better next week.

+++++++

That’s all I got for today, so if the good Lord’s willin’ and the creek don’t rise, we will commune right here again next Monday. Hopefully it will be a very entertaining Monday.

A Photo Journal – Henry Carroll – Page 48

A few weeks back when I was taking the pictures for Page 49 for THE PHOTO JOURNAL PROJECT, I also took pictures for Page 48:


Photo Journal - Page 48
Page 48 – Take a photo that whispers.

To take this picture I cranked down the saturation, contrast, and sharpness levels on my camera.

Only 1 picture can be physically adhered into the physical A PHOTO JOURNAL, but I did take several more. Have a gander:


Page 48 - Reject

Page 48 - Reject

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Page 48 - Reject

The next time we check in with THE PHOTO JOURNAL PROJECT we will check in with Page 111.

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This is your reminder that this week’s theme for THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE is MOUTH:


WEEK 160 - MOUTH
MOUTH

A MOUTH photo is any photo that involves a MOUTH or something that goes in a MOUTH or is used by a MOUTH. Remember, there is more than one definition of MOUTH.

Happy photo harvesting!