Category Archives: Jesse

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Contests, Dawn, Elizabeth, Flowers, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nader, Naima, Nathanial, Pufferbilly Days, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Self-Portrait, Shannon, Steph, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 401 – HAPPY

May 22, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

I mailed out a postcard to the entrants of last years Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest last week. I hear they still haven’t arrived in people’s mailboxes. Thought I would share the postcard here, since many of you entered last year or have kids or grandkids that entered. Or hopefully many of you are thinking of entering this year for the first time. Monica designed the postcard. Have a look:

There are 6 Photo Classes this year:
+ Animals
+ Black & White
+ People
+ Places
+ Plants
+ Trains, Planes, & Automobiles

There are 3 Age Divisions:
+ Youth (7-12)
+ Teen (13-17)
+ Adult (18+)

Hopefully many of you enter again and many more of you are inspired to enter this year. Or inspired to have your kids or grandkids enter.

+++++++

REMINDER THAT NEXT MONDAY IS MEMORIAL DAY. WHILE YOUR BANK AND THE GOVERNMENT AND A BUNCH OF OTHER BUSINESSES TAKE THE DAY OFF, THERE IS NO REST FOR PHOTOGRAPHY 139. RISE AND GRIND EVERY SINGLE DAY. I DON’T KNOW WHAT MY PLANS ARE FOR MEMORIAL DAY (OTHER THAN MAYBE SLEEPING LATE AFTER WHAT I HOPE IS AN EPIC MOVIE NIGHT ON SUNDAY) BUT IT MIGHT INCLUDE A ROAD TRIP OR A BARBECUE OR A FEW OTHER OPTIONS THAT MIGHT KEEP ME BUSY. LIKEWISE YOU MIGHT BE ENGAGED IN A SIMILAR ACTIVITY ON MONDAY MORNING. YOU MIGHT NOT GET A REMINDER AND YOU MIGHT NOT BE IN A POSITION TO SUBMIT. PLAN ACCORDINGLY.

HAPPY! Many people claim to like to be HAPPY, but did many people actually get a picture of somebody that is HAPPY or of something that makes them HAPPY? You’ll have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, May 15, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Nathanial Brown – 1 week
2-Tamara Peterson – 1 week
3-Sabas Hernandez – 3 weeks
4-Mike Vest – 3 weeks
5-Alexis Baugher – 6 weeks (3)
6-Jesse Howard – 6 weeks
7-Mindi Terrell – 13 weeks (2)
8-Monica Jennings – 18 weeks (2)
9-Brandon Kahler – 38 weeks (2)
10-Linda Bennett – 42 weeks
11-Sarah Toot – 43 weeks
12-Angie DeWaard – 47 weeks
13-Dawn Krause – 51 weeks (2)
14-Kim Barker – 57 weeks
15-Joe Duff – 58 weeks
16-Logan Kahler – 60 weeks
17-Teresa Kahler – 69 weeks (2)
18-Carla Stensland – 69 weeks (2)
19-Micky Augustin – 71 weeks
20-Andy Sharp – 72 weeks (3)
21-Bill Wentworth – 73 weeks
22-Cathie Morton – 77 weeks
23-Elizabeth Nordeen – 78 weeks
24-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 80 weeks
25-Kio Dettman – 82 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:

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 58 weeks

Nader Parasei (Orange City, Iowa) – 1 week

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 72 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 79 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa)

Scott Degeneffe (Rural Boone County, Iowa) – 1 week

Melissa Degeneffe (Ankeny, Iowa) – 1 week

Melissa Degeneffe (Erb Pond – Boone County, Iowa)

Alexis Baugher (Iowa) – 7 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Iowa)

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 74 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 70 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 83 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 43 weeks

Mary Green (Iowa) – 1 week

Mary Green (Iowa)

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 44 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Living History Farms – Urbandale, Iowa) – 48 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Orange City, Iowa)

Joe Duff (Texas) – 59 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas)

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 73 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 70 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 81 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 4 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Iowa)

Sara Lockner (Iowa) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Iowa)

Suzie Brannen (Ottumwa, Iowa) – 1 week

Suzie Brannen (Ottumwa, Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 14 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 61 weeks

Jesse Howard (West Bend, Iowa) – 7 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 52 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 39 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 78 weeks

Becky Parmelee (Arkansas) – 1 week

Monica Jennings (Roland, Iowa) – 19 weeks

Stephanie Kim (Brooklyn, New York) – 1 week

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 4 weeks

34 participants! That is an amazing week! I know for sure it is the high for this calendar year and it might be the highest of all-time. I’ll have to check my records and get back to you.

Particularly exciting was first ever submissions from Nader and Melissa. I don’t expect Nader to be a regular contributor, but you never know. But with Melissa, there is some hope!

Also, Stephanie had her first submission this year. I don’t know if this will lead to regular or even irregular submissions or not. We will just wait and see.

There were no new states added to the map this week and at this point, I’m betting new states added will be an increasingly rare thing. Time will tell.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ New York
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

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

25 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over halfway there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 175 miles from my front door, so I continue to not contribute.

There was one major milestone this week! Dawn joined the 52 Week Club! One straight year of weekly submissions. Congratulations Dawn!

There were no streaks snapped!

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:

PARK

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

But what in the John Culbertson is a PARK image? Simply put, it is a picture taken in a PARK. And there are all sorts of PARKs. There are city, state, national, baseball, softball, playgrounds, nature preserves, urban, pocket, sculpture gardens, cultural… just to name a few. Of course, there is more than one definition of PARK.

While considering a possible subject for your PARK submission, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with an inspiring image.

The fundamental idea behind the parks is native. It is, in brief, that the country belongs to the people, that it is in process of making for the enrichment of the lives of all of us. The parks stand as the outward symbol of the great human principle.
Franklin D. Roosevelt

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 PARK in this place that I believe brings a bit of respite for some next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Bill, Black & White, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Nathanial, Ruins, Sabas, Sarah Toot, Shannon, Still Life, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 400 – RUINS

May 15, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

RUINS! One of my favorite themes and one of my favorite things to photograph. But was it a popular theme or did it leave many streaks in RUINS? This is the 400th THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE post since rebooting THE RANDOM WEEKLY PHOTO EXPERIMENT. (504th all-time) I hope it was popular. But you will have to keep scrolling to find out.

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, May 8, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):
1-Suzie Brannen – 1 week
2-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
3-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 2 weeks
4-Sabas Hernandez – 2 weeks
5-Sara Lockner – 2 weeks
6-Mike Vest – 2 weeks
7-Alexis Baugher – 5 weeks (2)
8-Jesse Howard – 5 weeks
9-Mindi Terrell – 12 weeks (3)
10-Monica Jennings – 17 weeks
11-Brandon Kahler – 37 weeks
12-Linda Bennett – 41 weeks
13-Sarah Toot – 42 weeks
14-Angie DeWaard – 46 weeks
15-Dawn Krause – 50 weeks
16-Kim Barker – 56 weeks
17-Joe Duff – 57 weeks
18-Logan Kahler – 59 weeks (2)
19-Teresa Kahler – 68 weeks (2)
20-Carla Stensland – 68 weeks (2)
21-Micky Augustin – 70 weeks
22-Andy Sharp – 71 weeks
23-Bill Wentworth – 72 weeks
24-Cathie Morton – 76 weeks
25-Elizabeth Nordeen – 77 weeks (2)
26-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 79 weeks
27-Kio Dettman – 81 weeks (2)

Heading into today, this is what the Submission Map looks like:

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:

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 69 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 72 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa)

Alexis Baugher (Nevada,Iowa) – 6 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Nevada, Iowa)

Alexis Baugher (Swaledale, Iowa)

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 73 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 47 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 69 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 1 week

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 78 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Ames, Iowa)

Nathanial Brown (Bagley, Iowa) – 1 week

Micky Augustin (Iowa_ – 71 weeks

Sarah Toot (Las Vegas, Nevada) – 43 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 82 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 42 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 52 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 57 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 60 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 80 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas) – 58 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Sabas Hernandez (Cleveland, Ohio) – 3 weeks

Cathie Morton (Norwalk, Iowa) – 77 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 38 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 18 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa)

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 6 weeks

26 participants. Not a very popular theme. But not bad either. Hopefully one of the upcoming things gets the creative juices flowing for more people.

There were no new states added this week, but if you noticed, if you let me know where your picture was taken I will add that to your submission. The town. I’ll add the town. Not, “my Aunt Hildea’s place”. But I will add the town of Aunt Hildeas’s place exists in. I think that makes it a little more interesting. Than 20 submissions from Iowa. I will NOT assume towns though, like I assume states. I mean I’m pretty sure I know where most of these pictures were taken, but I won’t assume Kio’s pictures were taken in Boone.

Also, if you aren’t in a town, a county would do. For example, I assume Shannon’s picture is taken in rural Warren County. But she also might argue it is taken in Summerset, Iowa. Though.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ Nevada
+ Ohio
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

25 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over halfway there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 15 miles from my front door, so I continue to not contribute.

There were no major milestones reached this week, but many streaks lie in ruins now. Suzie and Becky couldn’t build on their submissions last week. Jen and Sara’s streaks ended at 2.

HAPPY

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

But what in the Dave Rauker is a HAPPY photo? Simply put, it is a picture of somebody that is HAPPY or a picture of something that makes you HAPPY. HAPPY is, well it is a feeling for pleasure or contentment. In case you aren’t sure you know what it means to be HAPPY.

While considering possible subjects for your HAPPY image, mediated on the following quote and I have no doubt you will create a fascinating image:

Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go.
-Oscar Wilde

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

RULES

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 HAPPY in this place that I hope spreads a bit of happiness in this world next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Becky, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Iowa State, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Night, Ruins, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Shannon, Suzie, Teresa, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 399 – SCHOOL

May 8, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

SCHOOL! It isn’t much fun, but it is the best shot at social mobility, so it has to exist. But did SCHOOL get people excited enough to take a picture and submit it? You’ll have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, May 1, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Nathanial Brown – 1 week
2-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 1 week
3-Sabas Hernandez – 1 week
4-Sara Lockner – 1 week
5-Willy McAlpine – 1 week
6-Mike Parmelee – 1 week
7-Mike Vest – 1 week
8-Alexis Baugher – 4 weeks (3)
9-Scott Degeneffe – 4 weeks (2)
10-Jesse Howard – 4 weeks (2)
11-Mindi Terrell – 10 weeks (3)
12-Monica Jennings – 16 weeks (2)
13-Tamara Peterson – 26 weeks
14-Brandon Kahler – 35 weeks (3)
15-Linda Bennett – 40 weeks (2)
16-Sarah Toot – 41 weeks (2)
17-Angie DeWaard – 44 weeks (2)
18-Dawn Krause – 49 weeks (2)
19-Kim Barker – 55 weeks
20-Joe Duff – 56 weeks
21-Logan Kahler – 58 weeks
22-Teresa Kahler – 67 weeks (2)
23-Carla Stensland – 67 weeks (3)
24-Micky Augustin – 69 weeks
25-Andy Sharp – 70 weeks
26-Bill Wentworth – 71 weeks
27-Cathie Morton – 75 weeks
28-Elizabeth Nordeen – 76 weeks
29-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 78 weeks
30-Kio Dettman – 80 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:

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 45 weeks

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 56 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 77 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 70 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 68 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa)

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 81 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 41 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Iowa) – 5 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Iowa)

Sarah Toot (Nevada) – 42 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 72 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 11 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 59 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) 68 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Becky Parmelee (Arkansas) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Ohio) – 2 weeks

Jen Ensley-Gorshe (New York) – 2 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas) – 57 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 1 week

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 5 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 36 weeks

Cathie Morton (Iowa) – 76 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 17 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 71 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 79 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 50 weeks

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 2 weeks

28 participants! That is a pretty good week! A slight dip from last week, but still definitely a good week!
There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ Nevada
+ New York
+ Ohio
+ Texas

Thanks to Sabas’ work trip to Ohio, we were able to add a new state to the map! We actually now have more than half the states and districts. 26 out of 51! I have no belief that that I will get submissions from all 50 states, but I’m curious to see how close we get.

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

25 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive! Over halfway there!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 15 miles from my front door, so I continue to not contribute.

There were no major milestones this week, but there was a veritable bloodbath of streaks. Nathanial, Willy, and Mike couldn’t build on their contribution last week. Scott’s streak is over at 4. Most tragically, Tamara’s 26 week streak is over.

RUINS

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

But what in the Ron Harris is a RUINS image? Simply put, it is a picture of something that is in the state of physical destruction or disintegration. Something that is in bad shape.

While considering possible subjects for your RUINS image, mediated on the following quote and I have no doubt you will create a fascinating image:

We moralize among ruins.
-Benjamin Disreali

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

RULES

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 RUINS in this place that will one day lay in digital destruction next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Flowers, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Lensbaby, Linda, Logan, Macro, Micky, Monica, Nathanial, Road Trip, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 398 – ROAD TRIP

May 1, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

ROAD TRIP! What a great theme and an even better way to spend a day or two. Nothing calls to me like the open road.
But did it call to many other people? Or did people stay firmly entrenched on their couches? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, April 24, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Heather Courtney – 1 week
2-Scott Degeneffe – 3 weeks
3-Jesse Howard – 3 weeks
4-Alexis Baugher – 3 weeks
5-Mindi Terrell – 9 weeks (3)
6-Suzie Brannen – 14 weeks
7-Monica Jennings – 14 weeks
8-Tamara Peterson – 25 weeks (2)
9-Brandon Kahler – 35 weeks
10-Linda Bennett – 39 weeks (2)
11-Sarah Toot – 40 weeks (2)
12-Angie DeWaard – 44 weeks
13-Dawn Krause – 48 weeks
14-Kim Barker – 53 weeks (2)
15-Joe Duff – 55 weeks (2)
16-Logan Kahler – 56 weeks (2)
17-Teresa Kahler – 66 weeks (2)
18-Carla Stensland – 66 weeks
19-Micky Augustin – 67 weeks
20-Andy Sharp – 69 weeks
21-Bill Wentworth – 70 weeks
22-Cathie Morton – 74 weeks
23-Elizabeth Nordeen – 75 weeks
24-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 76 weeks (2)
25-Kio Dettman – 79 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:

Nathanial Brown (Iowa) – 1 week

Jen Ensley-Gorshe (Iowa) – 1 week

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 1 week

Sara Lockner (Iowa) – 1 week

Willy McAlpine (Iowa) – 1 week

Mike Parmelee (Arkansas) – 1 week

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 1 week

Alexis Baugher (Iowa) – 4 weeks

Alexis Baugher (Iowa)

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa) – 4 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa)

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 4 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 10 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 15 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 26 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 36 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 40 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Sarah Toot (New Jersey) – 41 weeks

Sarah Toot (New Jersey)

Angie DeWaard (Mexico) – 45 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Mexico)

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 49 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 54 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas) – 56 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 57 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 67 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 67 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa)

Carla Stensland

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 68 weeks

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 70 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 71 weeks

Cathie Morton (Illinois) – 75 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 76 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 77 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 80 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Christopher D. Bennett (Iowa) – 502 weeks

31 participants! That is a great week! I believe it ties the high for this calendar year. Strange that more people love the open road than love their friends, but maybe it isn’t so strange.

There were submissions this week taken in the following places:

+ Arkansas
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Mexico
+ Nebraska
+ New Jersey
+ Texas

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ North Dakota
+ Oklahoma
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Dakota
+ Texas
+ Utah
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

24 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Mexico
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Thanks to Angie’s vacation, Mexico has been added to the list of international places!

I took my picture 87 miles from my front door. So Angie isn’t the only world traveler.

The big accomplishments this week… Mindi joined the Double Digits Club! WooHoo! Tamara joined the Half Year Club! WooHoo! Mike Parmelee had his first submission of the year! WooHoo! I finally got Alexis’ last name right! WooHoo !

But it wasn’t all unicorns and double rainbows. Heather wasn’t able to build her submission from last week into a streak. And most tragically, Suzie’s 14 week streak is a goner. ROAD TRIPs are her Waterloo.

SCHOOL

IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

Let me tell you about IOWA STATE UNIVERSITY!

Iowa State University (ISU) is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1858 as Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, and it became the first land-grant institution in the United States in 1862, thanks to the Morrill Act.

Today, ISU is a comprehensive university with more than 35,000 students and offers over 100 undergraduate majors, 112 master’s degree programs, and 83 doctoral degree programs. The university is organized into eight colleges: Agriculture and Life Sciences, Business, Design, Engineering, Human Sciences, Liberal Arts and Sciences, Veterinary Medicine, and Graduate.

ISU is known for its strong programs in agriculture, engineering, and science, and it has a reputation for being one of the top public universities in the United States. The university is home to several research centers and institutes, including the Bioeconomy Institute, the Ames Laboratory, and the National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center for Biorenewable Chemicals (CBiRC).

The university’s mascot is Cy the Cardinal, and the school colors are cardinal and gold. The Cyclones, ISU’s athletic teams, compete in the Big 12 Conference and they completely dominated the Cy-Hawk Series with Iowa Hawkeyes this year.

Overall, Iowa State University is a well-respected and prestigious institution of higher education, offering a wide range of programs and opportunities for students to excel both academically and professionally.

Wait. Wait. Sorry. I’ve just been told that there are more SCHOOL(s) in the world than just Iowa State. I’m not entirely sure why. But I guess you can take a picture of some other stupid school nobody cares about.

SCHOOL! So what in the Terrence Allen is a SCHOOL picture? Simply put it is any image that involves SCHOOL. From a building to a playground to schoolbooks (before they all get banned) to report cards to teachers to really anything related to a SCHOOL. There are all types of different SCHOOL(s). Pre, secondary, high, middle, junior, dance, Sunday, vocational, technical, and even sometimes I take people to SCHOOL on the basketball court. It does NOT have to be Iowa State, but I mean, why would you take a picture of some lesser school? But you do you bro.

While considering how you are going to incorporate Iowa State into your SCHOOL picture, mediate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with a great picture:

Let us remember: One book, one pen, one child, and one teacher can change the world.
– Malala Yousafzai

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

RULES

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 SCHOOL in this place that I like to think has a bit of educational value next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Art, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Elizabeth, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Naima, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Self-Portrait, Shannon, Street Photography, Tamara, Teresa, Travel, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 397 – FRIENDS

April 25, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

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 5 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 start 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 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 to 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.

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 largest 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.

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

Suggestions are closed for next year’s list. It will be a minute before they open up for Year 11 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE.

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Well things worked out correctly.

I boarded an airplane.

I flew back to the Cyclone State.

I made it through the road construction on Fleur.

Made it to Ted’s Coney Island.

Had a badass tenderloin.

Onion rings.

And some delicious baklava.

Delivered popcorn to Elizabeth.

Greeted Naima. She was glad to see me.

Took her for a car ride.

Took her to Dickcissel Park.

Watched the show I’m currently binging. (SUCCESSION)

Did some laundry.

Then finally did all the coding necessary for you to see all the FRIENDS submissions.

So without further adieu, I present the post on this WEEK 397 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE…

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FRIENDS! They are pretty great to have in your life, but do a lot of people have FRIENDS in their life that they could photograph? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, April 17, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Porter Degeneffe – 1 week
2-Scott Degeneffe – 2 weeks (2)
3-Mary Green – 2 weeks (3)
4-Jesse Howard – 2 weeks
5-Alexis Stensland – 2 weeks
6-Sabas Hernandez – 4 weeks
7-Mindi Terrell – 8 weeks (3)
8-Suzie Brannen – 13 weeks (2)
9-Monica Jennings – 13 weeks
10-Mike Vest – 14 weeks
11-Tamara Peterson – 24 weeks (2)
12-Brandon Kahler – 34 weeks
13-Linda Bennett – 38 weeks (2)
14-Sarah Toot – 39 weeks
15-Angie DeWaard – 43 weeks
16-Dawn Krause – 47 weeks
17-Kim Barker – 52 weeks
18-Joe Duff – 54 weeks
19-Logan Kahler – 54 weeks
20-Teresa Kahler – 65 weeks (2)
21-Carla Stensland – 65 weeks
22-Micky Augustin – 66 weeks
23-Andy Sharp – 68 weeks
24-Bill Wentworth – 69 weeks
25-Cathie Morton – 73 weeks
26-Elizabeth Nordeen – 74 weeks
27-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 75 weeks
28-Kio Dettman – 78 weeks (3)

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:

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 69 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 48 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Illinois) – 44 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 67 weeks

Kim Barker (Illinois) – 53 weeks

Kim Barker (Illinois)

Scott Degneffe (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 9 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 14 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 14 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 75 weeks

Heather Courtney (Iowa) – 1 week

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 66 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 35 weeks

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 70 weeks

Cathie Morton (Illinois) – 74 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 66 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas) – 55 weeks

Joe Duff (Texas)

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 79 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 39 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Christopher D. Bennett (Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 56 weeks

Logan Kahler (Iowa)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Utah) – 76 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (California)

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 40 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 25 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa)

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa)

26 participants! That is a pretty good week all things considered.

There were submissions this week taken in the following states:

+ California
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas
+ Utah

Thanks to Shannon’s bee road trip, we added two states to the map! California and Utah!

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ California
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ North Dakota
+ Oklahoma
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Dakota
+ Texas
+ Utah
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

24 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

My submission was taken 360 miles from my front door.

This week saw the first ever submission from Heather. I don’t know if that is a sign of things to come or a one-off, but I hope it is a sign of things to come.

But it wasn’t all good news. There was a veritable bloodbath of streaks falling though. Porter couldn’t build on his submission from last week. Mary’s streak snapped at 2. Sabas’ streak is history at 4. Most tragically, Vest’s 14 week streak is gone!

ROAD TRIP

ROAD TRIP! What a great theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE! This is one of my favorite themes for THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE. It isn’t just because I am one of the few universally recognized Masters of the Road Trip. Okay, maybe it is.

But what in the Sam Hill is a ROAD TRIP photo? Simply put, it is a picture that is taken on a ROAD TRIP or in preparation for a ROAD TRIP. It doesn’t have to be a picture of a road or a car or a map or snacks. I LOVE a good ROAD TRIP snack. For example, if you are taking a ROAD TRIP to Pella to do a little flowertography this weekend, then a picture of anything you encounter on that ROAD TRIP is fair game. It doesn’t have to be a grand ROAD TRIP. You don’t have to leave the state on this trip. And judging by where many of my submissions come from, many of you haven’t left the state since Theresa Becker was the Iowa State women’s basketball coach*. I can cast stones, I’m in Illinois right now. I’m a world traveler baby! I go places. I’m a baller. I ask questions. You want me on your corporate team!

Sorry got sidetracked. Your ROAD TRIP could be a jaunt around the block or down to the grocery store. I don’t judge. Or it could just be a picture of preparations for a ROAD TRIP to PELLA to do some flowertography.

While considering possible subjects for your ROAD TRIP submission, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt that you will come up with an amazing idea:

All he needed was a wheel in his hand and four on the road.
-Jack Kerouac

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

RULES

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 ROAD TRIP in this place that is more of a journey than a destination next Monday.

Andy, Angie, Art, Carla, Derrick, Elizabeth, Jen, Jesse, Kim, Lowell, Monica, Night, Sara, Scottie D., Still Life, Street Photography, Travel, Work, WPC - Reminder

Viva Las Vegas: Day 4 and Day 5A

April 21, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

Day 4 of my trip to Las Vegas was the 2nd Day of the CCM. It was a busy day and I barely touched my camera. I spent pretty much the entire day at the conference center. I got to leave for the day at a pretty normal time and only felt the urge to punch another human being in the throat one time. But I didn’t. I just want you to know that. I didn’t punch that other human being in the throat. I only wanted to punch them in the throat.

That night I was taken out for supper by one of the biggest Computer Mine customers. They are big fans of Italian food so they took me to Trevi Italian Restaurant. Trevi is inside the Shops at the Forum. Our Uber driver dropped us off at The Caesars Forum, which is actually farther away from Trevi than our hotel.

Everybody else at the meal was Catholic and adhered to the no meat Friday deal. I ate lasagna. I offered to join them in not eating meat, since they were paying, but they told me not to worry about it. The lasagna was good and I followed it with some delicious tiramisu.

We walked back to the hotel cause we no longer trusted Uber drivers. We stopped and watch the fountain show at the Bellagio. Then I bid them a good night. I think it was late enough in the evening that I might have just went to bed myself. I don’t know. It is all a blur at this point.

I only took one picture worth sharing:

So after 4 days, here is the Per Diem Fund Update

I started the Day with $223.

Breakfast: Free
Lunch: Free
Trevi Supper: Free

Estimated Per Diem Balance: $223.

According to my highly inaccurate fitness app, I walked 18,170 steps for 8.35 miles.

Day 5 of my trip and Day 3 of the CMC is only a half day. I got to the convention center around 8. It ended at noon. Afterwards everybody “helps” pack the crates. This was the other time I wanted to punch another human being in the throat, but not as hard as the person yesterday. Also, not the same person. Just a person that had “opinions” on how the crate should be packed. After everybody else left, Lowell and I tried to redo the crate as much as we could. Then we locked them up and called it a day.

We took a moment to go back to the hotel and change clothes then we went to Nacho Daddy for lunch with Kim. Nacho Daddy serves the “most insane gourmet nachos smothered in queso and salsa made fresh daily and (they) guarantee you’ll never find a dry chip”.

I believe I got the Fajita Nacho. Which the menu describes as:

Marinated filet mignon, seared peppers & onions, refried beans, melted Cheddar & Jack cheese, yellow queso, cherry tomato pico de gallo, shredded lettuce, sour cream, guacamole, & pickled onions on top of our house made tri-colored chips.

Nacho Daddy also serves a Scorpion Shot. It consists of Telson Blanco, a scorpion, salt and a lime wedge. I don’t drink alcohol, so I was off the hook for trying it. But Lowell and Kim both backed down from the challenge. It was a bit of a disappointment.

After the meal we back to the hotel for a bit. There was talk of going to Fremont Street but I didn’t hear from anybody for hours, so after resting I decided to explore a bit nearby on my own. Scottie D. had recommend I check out the Botanical Garden at The Bellagio. I walked across the street to seek it out.

Here are some pictures:

It just absolutely poured rain all night. It pretty much eliminated the chances of anybody wanting to do anything that night. Which I guess was okay because we had to be at the shuttle by 5:15 in the morning.

Still more pictures to come from this rain-soaked night and one final Per Diem Upate!

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

FRIENDS

Not only is this your reminder that this week’s theme is FRIENDS, it is your reminder that I am in Chicago right now and won’t return until Tuesday. Three things to note about that:

#1. If you were hoping to have me in your FRIENDS picture, you better make it to Chicago.
#2. I’m going to be in Chicago on Monday, so there might not be many reminders sent out, so you will be on your own.
#3. I won’t publish the submissions until Tuesday at the earliest.

A FRIENDS photo is simply a picture that involves FRIENDS or a picture that represents a FRIENDShip.

While considering possible subjects for your FRIENDS image meditate on the following quote:

Friendship is being there when someone’s feeling low and not being afraid to kick them.

This isn’t the first time that FRIENDS has been a theme. Here is a look at a few of the submissions from the past to help inspire you:

Angie DeWaard – Week 246

Elizabeth Nordeen – Week 310

Andy Sharp – Week 172

Carla Stensland – Week 172

Christopher D. Bennett – Week 172

Hopefully this inspired somebody.

Happy photo harvesting!

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Derrick, Elizabeth, Jen, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Logan, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Naima, Sabas, Sara, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Self-Portrait, Shannon, Suzie, Tamara, Teresa, Vest, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 396 – SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH

April 17, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH. Possibly the easiest theme ever. But did it get the creative juices flowing for many people? You will have to keep scrolling too find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, April 10, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Scott Degeneffe – 1 week
2-Susanna Funk – 1 week
3-Mary Green – 1 week
4-Jesse Howard – 1 week
5-Alexis Stensland – 1 week
6-Sabas Hernandez – 3 weeks
7-Willy McAlpine – 3 weeks
8-Mindi Terrell – 7 weeks (2)
9-Suzie Brannen – 12 weeks (3)
10-Monica Jennings – 12 weeks (3)
11-Nathanial Brown – 13 weeks (3)
12-Mike Vest – 13 weeks
13-Tamara Peterson – 23 weeks
14-Brandon Kahler – 33 weeks
15-Linda Bennett – 37 weeks (2)
16-Sarah Toot – 38 weeks (2)
17-Angie DeWaard – 42 weeks
18-Dawn Krause – 46 weeks (2)
19-Kim Barker – 51 weeks
20-Joe Duff – 53 weeks
21-Logan Kahler – 53 weeks
22-Teresa Kahler – 64 weeks
23-Carla Stensland – 64 weeks
24-Micky Augustin – 65 weeks (2)
25-Andy Sharp – 67 week
26-Bill Wentworth – 68 weeks
27-Cathie Morton – 72 weeks
28-Elizabeth Nordeen – 73 weeks
29-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 74 weeks
30-Kio Dettman – 77 weeks (2)

I finally broke down and made a map of states where people have submitted pictures from:

You might notice that Michigan is filled in, even though as of last week we had no submissions from Michigan. That isn’t actually the case. After last Monday’s post published, Mary contacted me and let me know that her pictures were taken in Michigan! WooHoo! Another state. So don’t forget to let me know if you took your picture in a different state than the one you live in. Or if you want, you can always let me know where you took your picture at.

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:

WEEK 396 - SCENE FROM YOUR COUCH - KIO DETTMAN

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 78 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Joe Duff (Texas) – 54 weeks

Mary Green (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Mary Green (Iowa)

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 24 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa)

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa)

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 66 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 74 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Teresa Kahler (Iowa)

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 68 weeks

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 52 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 43 weeks

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 39 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Wyoming) – 75 weeks

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Nevada)

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 69 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 38 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Christopher D. Bennett (Iowa)

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa)

Porter Degeneffe (Iowa)

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 47 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 34 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 8 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 54 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 2 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Cathie Morton (Iowa) – 73 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa)

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 13 weeks

29 participants! That is a pretty great week!

There were submissions this week taken in the following states:

+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ Nevada
+ Pennsylvania
+ Texas
+ Wyoming

Thanks to Shannon’s annual bee road trip, Wyoming has been added to the map!

Here is the current calendar year list for states:

+ Arizona
+ Arkansas
+ Colorado
+ Florida
+ Georgia
+ Illinois
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ New Jersey
+ New York
+ Nevada
+ Michigan
+ Minnesota
+ Missouri
+ North Dakota
+ Oklahoma
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Dakota
+ Texas
+ Washington D.C.
+ Wisconsin
+ Wyoming

22 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 3 miles from my house. I continue not to contribute.

Speaking of people who do contribute in a big way. Congratulations to Kim! She joins the super exclusive 1 Year Club! WooHoo!

But it wasn’t all good news. Funk couldn’t build on her submission last week. Willy’s 3 week streak is history. Most tragically, Nathanial’s 13 week streak is just a distant memory. Very sad!

FRIENDS

NOTE: I WILL BE IN CHICAGO NEXT MONDAY FOR WORK. WHILE I MIGHT BE SURROUNDED BY COMPUTERS THAT DAY, I WILL NOT BE IN ANY KIND OF POSITION TO POST THE ENTRIES FOR FRIENDS UNTIL I RETURN. THAT WILL EITHER BE LATE TUESDAY NIGHT OR AT SOME POINT ON WEDNESDAY. ALSO, DON’T COUNT ON GETTING ANY REMINDERS. IT MIGHT HAPPEN, BUT I DOUBT IT. PLAN ACCORDINGLY.

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

But what exactly is a FRIENDS image? Simply put it is an image that captures a FRIENDS(hip). That can be through a picture of FRIENDS or a picture of an item that represents a FRIENDS(hip).

But what is are FRIENDS? ChatGPT defines FRIENDS like his:

“Friends are individuals who share a mutual bond of trust, affection, and support with each other. They are people with whom we have a close and positive relationship, and with whom we share common interests, values, and experiences. Friends can provide emotional support, companionship, and a sense of belonging. They can also offer advice, feedback, and constructive criticism, and can help us grow and develop as individuals. Friendship is an important aspect of human social interaction, and having strong friendships can have a positive impact on our physical and mental well-being.”

In case you didn’t know what FRIENDS are.

Now a reminder, I’m leaving for Chicago in a couple of days, so if you were hoping to include me in your FRIENDS picture, you either need to act quickly OR come to Illinois.

But if you can’t use me while considering possible subjects for your FRIENDS image, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will make a great submission:

“A real friend is one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out.”
— Walter Winchell

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

RULES

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 FRIENDS in this place that was designed for friendship next Monday.

Alexis, Andy, Angie, Bill, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Contests, Dawn, Drone, Elizabeth, Funk, Jesse, Joe Duff, Kim, Kio, Linda, Mary, Micky, Mindi, Monica, Naima, Nathanial, Sabas, Sarah Toot, Scottie D., Shannon, Suzie, Tamara, Vest, Willy, WPC - Submissions

WPC – WEEK 395 – ODD CAMERA ANGLE

April 10, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett 5 Comments

Before we get into the submissions for this week’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE I want to say that I’m starting to work on the 2023 Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest. There are a couple of changes from last year in the photo classes. I split NATURE into ANIMALS and PLANTS. The majority of images submitted last year were for the NATURE class. This way these are split into two categories. I also eliminated the class HIDDEN TREASURES OF BOONE COUNTY and replaced it with PLACES. The amount of classes went up from 5 to 6.

There are still 3 Age Divisions. Youth (7-12), Teen(13-17), and Adult (18+).

Another change is that the photos are not going to be displayed at KWBG this year. The Pufferbilly Days Committee is pushing to have all the activities centered around Story Street on Friday and Saturday. Details are still be worked out, but the current plan is to display the photo amongst various downtown retailers and then Sunday at Art in the Park at McHose Park.

Here is a look at this year’s entry form:

More information will be released as it becomes available. This is just the beginning of the journey. Also thanks to Michelle for updating the entry form!

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ODD CAMERA ANGLE! A great theme! But were there a ton of oddballs out there to give this theme a spin? You will have to keep scrolling to find out!

As of 12:01 PM on Monday, April 3, this was the current list of ACTIVE streaks (ignore the numbers in parentheses):

1-Porter Degeneffe – 1 week
2-Becky Parmelee – 1 week
3-Jen Ensley-Gorshe – 2 weeks
4-Sabas Hernandez – 2 weeks
5-Willy McAlpine – 2 weeks
6-Mindi Terrell – 7 weeks (3)
7-Suzie Brannen – 11 weeks
8-Monica Jennings – 11 weeks
9-Nathanial Brown – 12 weeks
10-Mike Vest – 12 weeks
11-Tamara Peterson – 22 weeks
12-Brandon Kahler – 32 weeks
13-Linda Bennett – 36 weeks
14-Sarah Toot – 37 weeks (3)
15-Angie DeWaard – 41 weeks
16-Dawn Krause – 45 weeks (2)
17-Kim Barker – 50 weeks
18-Joe Duff – 52 weeks
19-Logan Kahler – 53 weeks
20-Teresa Kahler – 63 weeks (3)
21-Carla Stensland – 63 weeks
22-Micky Augustin – 64 weeks (2)
23-Andy Sharp – 66 weeks
24-Bill Wentworth – 67 weeks
25-Cathie Morton – 71 weeks
26-Elizabeth Nordeen – 72 weeks (2)
27-Shannon Bardole-Foley – 73 weeks
28-Kio Dettman – 76 weeks (3)

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:

WEEK 395 - ODD CAMERA ANGLE - SUZIE BRANNEN

Suzie Brannen (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Suzie Brannen (Iowa)

Mindi Terrell (Iowa) – 8 weeks

Mindi Terrell (Iowa)

Kim Barker (Iowa) – 51 weeks

Angie DeWaard (Iowa) – 42 weeks

Susanna Funk (Colorado) – 1 week

Cathie Morton (Missouri) – 72 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas) – 37 weeks

Linda Bennett (Kansas)

Mary Green (Michigan) – 1 week

Mary Green (Michigan)

Shannon Bardole-Foley (Iowa) – 74 weeks

Tamara Peterson (Iowa) – 23 weeks

Carla Stensland (Iowa) – 64 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa) – 33 weeks

Brandon Kahler (Iowa)

Bill Wentworth (Nebraska) – 68 weeks

Elizabeth Nordeen (Iowa) – 73 weeks

Christopher D. Bennett (Iowa)

Monica Jennings (Iowa) – 12 weeks

Monica Jennings (Iowa)

Joe Duff (Texas) – 53 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa) – 46 weeks

Dawn Krause (Iowa)

Andy Sharp (Iowa) – 67 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa) – 77 weeks

Kio Dettman (Iowa)

Sarah Toot (Pennsylvania) – 38 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa) – 65 weeks

Micky Augustin (Iowa)

Teresa Kahler (Iowa) – 64 weeks

Nathanial Brown (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada) – 13 weeks

Nathanial Brown (North Dakota)

Nathanial Brown (South Dakota)

Logan Kahler (Iowa) – 54 weeks

Willy McAlpine (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Sabas Hernandez (Iowa) – 3 weeks

Alexis Stensland (Iowa) – 1 week

Mike Vest (Iowa) – 13 weeks

Jesse Howard (Iowa) – 1 week

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa) – 1 week

Scott Degeneffe (Iowa)

31 participants! That is the most this year for sure and possibly the most ever. Maybe tied for the most ever. I would have to check the books and I don’t have last year’s Ledger in front of me right now. We will just go with tied for most ever participants for now.

First ever submissions from Funk and Alexis. I don’t expect Funk to keep contributing, but I knew she was in Colorado doing her mountain climbing thing again, so I hit her up for a submission. But maybe she will find it addictive. One never knows about such things. I do expect big things from Alexis though. She has that good Bennett photography blood flowing through those veins. After all, there are consistently 7 regular participants with that good Bennett photography blood flowing through their veins. Your humble narrator, Linda Bennett, Teresa Kahler, Carla Stensland, Sarah Toot, Brandon Kahler and Logan Kahler. Alexis would be the 8th.

There were submissions this week taken in the following states:

+ Colorado
+ Iowa
+ Kansas
+ Nebraska
+ Michigan
+ Missouri
+ North Dakota
+ Pennsylvania
+ South Dakota
+ Texas

Four more states have been filled in on the map this week, thanks to Nathanial’s long road trip we get to fill in North Dakota and South Dakota. Thanks to Funk’s mountain climbing exploits, we also get to fill in Colorado. Also, Mary took her submissions in Michigan. WooHoo!
Here is the current calendar year list for states:

21 states and 1 district! That is pretty impressive!

Thanks to Nathanial’s super long road trip, we also got another submission from outside of the United States. Canada is on the big board now!

The Outside of the United States map is currently:

+ British Virgin Islands
+ Nassau Bahamas
+ Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

I took my picture about 3 miles from my front door. So I continue to contribute nothing. There were no major milestones this week. But Kim is closing in on joining the 1 Year Club.

While there was, maybe, record participation this week, it wasn’t all great news. Porter and Becky couldn’t extend last week’s submissions into a 2 week streak. Maybe the pressure of being the youngest contributor this year got to him. Maybe when school’s out, I’ll start hitting up Evie and Layla for submissions. They need to start getting their entries for the Story County Fair (I honestly don’t know if they still do 4-H) and the Pufferbilly Photo Contest taken sometime soon. Jen’s 2 week streak is also history. She ghosted me after I sent her a picture of a matchstick sculpture of the set of BACK TO THE FUTURE. I might have accidentally blown her mind.

SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH

SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH?!? That seems like an odd theme for Year 10 of THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE!

This theme was suggested by Angie. It was meant to be subversive. If you have read the rules for (and there aren’t many rules, but they do grow a little by little) THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE, you may remember the this line:

“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.”

Here is your chance to not get your butt off the couch. You can literally sit on your couch. Take a picture of whatever you see from your couch and submit it to me. Now, you don’t have to take the picture from your couch. You can pile a bunch of your favorite people on your couch and take a picture of them. You can take your picture from behind the couch. It actually doesn’t even have to be your couch. You can find somebody else’s couch you like better and take your picture from there. It could be a couch in a store or a hotel or a bar. Doesn’t matter. It just has to be a SCENE FROM A COUCH.

There are two things I love about this theme. First, it means that there is somebody that actually reads the rules. Second, this picture can be the easiest one you take for this year’s THE WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE or you really take your creative juices for a walk to figure out how make this picture, let us say different. To really stretch the boundaries of the theme.

All sorts of stuff happens on a couch. I can’t wait to see what happens on some of yours.

While considering possible subjects for your SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH submission, meditate on the following quote and I have no doubt you will come up with a fascinating submission:

I stick to simple themes. Love. Hate. No nuances, I stay away from psychoanalyst’s couch scenes. Couches are good for one thing.
-John Wayne

John Wayne might have been a racist, draft dodging prick*, but the guy knew couches.

I look forward to seeing your interpretation.

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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 SCENES FROM YOUR COUCH in this place that was probably dreamed up on a couch next Monday.

* I still love quite a few John Wayne movies. I can separate art from artist. Also I don’t blame him for draft-dodging. I blame him for acting like he didn’t hide behind his marriage to dodge the draft in WWII so he could cheat on his wife with Marlene Dietrich, probably on a couch.

Andree, Andy, Angie, Basketball, Becky, Birthdays, Brandon, Carla, Cathie, Dawn, Drone, Elizabeth, Faust, Frank, Jesse, Linda, Lowell, Michelle, Micky, Nader, Nature, Pastor Sarah, Robert, Russell, Sara, Shawn Lockner, Tim, Toby

Rodan139: Pilot Mound State Forest

April 4, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

I need to start the day off by wishing Andree a happy birthday. Happy birthday Andree!

I hope your birthday is filled with joy, or at least as much joy as one can feel when they are in Houston, Texas.

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Yesterday was the end of the college basketball season, which also means it is time to crown the winner for Year 18 of the Roundball Oracles.

The winner was Will Baier. Congratulations Will! Making it back to back championships for Baier brothers! It seems like almost everybody in the Baier family has won, except Jason. Hmmmm…

His name is now on the List of Immortals.

ROUNDBALL ORACLES CHAMPIONS
2023 – Will Baier
2022 – Ben Baier
2021 – Micky Augustin
2020 – Tournament Canceled
2019 – Becky Parmelee
2018 – Paul Golden
2017 – Paul Golden
2016 – Michelle Haupt
2015 – Derek Dohrman
2014 – Brandon Kahler
2013 – William McAlpine
2012 – Lowell Davis
2011 – Carrie Baier
2010 – Mark Wolfram
2009 – Mark Wolfram
2008 – Mark Wolfram
2007 – Tim Peterson
2006 – William McAlpine
2005 – William McAlpine

Also “congratulations” goes to “The Sara” winner… Ben Baier. It was a close one this year and came down to the tie-breaker. It was so close to going Shawn. Then he would have had a “The Sara” trophy and the actual The Sara living in his house. Maybe next year.

Ben Baier went from the penthouse to the outhouse in one year. Maybe next year he will be back in the penthouse and his brother will be in the outhouse. It will be interesting to watch.

THE SARA “WINNERS”

2023 – Ben Baier
2022 – Joey Randazzo
2021 – Rachel Gildersleeve
2020 – Tournament Canceled
2019 – Russell Kennerly
2018 – Robert Henning
2017 – Shannon Bardole
2016 – Laura Priest
2015 – Derrick Gorshe
2014 – Sara Lockner

Here are the final Roundball Oracles Standings:

1. Will Baier – 204
2. Toby Sebring – 200
3. Sarah Karber – 193
4. Tim Peterson – 189
5. Cathie Morton – 188
6. Elizabeth Nordeen- 185
7. Andy Sharp – 184
8. Russell Kennerly – 184
9. Linda Bennett – 183
10. Micky Augustin – 183
11. Carrie Baier – 180
12. Dawn Krause – 178
13. Corey Faust – 177
14. Jesse Howard – 176
15. Jason Baier – 173
16. Angie DeWaard – 171
17. Michelle Haupt – 170
18. Carla Stensland – 170
19. Jackson Faust – 168
20. Frank Meiners – 157
21. Lowell Davis – 155
22. Andree Jauhari – 154
23. Christopher D. Bennett – 154
24. Robert Henning – 154
25. Nader Parsaei – 147
26. Logan Kahler – 145
27. Rachel Gildersleeve – 145
28. Joey Randazzo – 144
29. Olivia Baier – 141
30. Jordan Toot – 141
31. JJ Baier – 141
32. Brandon Kahler – 136
33. Becky Parmelee – 131
34. Derek Dohrman – 122
35. Sara Lockner – 112
36. Shawn Lockner – 111
37. Ben Baier – 111

Congrats to everybody that did better than me this year. And there were a lot of them. Cherish the feeling, cause it won’t happen again. Okay, it probably will.

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A few weeks back I took Rodan139 out for a couple test flights. The second of those flights was a spin above the Pilot Mound State Forest. Here are a few pictures from that flight:

Next week I will share the pictures from the final flight I took on the battery test flight day.

Angie, Art, Basketball, Bill, History, Jesse, Logan, Music, Steph, Street Photography, Travel, Work, WPC - Reminder

Viva Las Vegas: Day 3A

March 31, 2023 Christopher D. Bennett Leave a comment

Tonight, at approximately 8:30 Central, the Iowa women’s basketball team will play South Carolina in the Final Four for the chance to play Sunday night for the National Championship. I honestly don’t expect Iowa to win. South Carolina is an 11.5 point favorite. They are the defending National Champion. They have won 42 straight games. They have the defending National Player of the Year and the presumptive 1st pick in the WNBA draft in Aliyah Boston. Plus Brea Beal is expected to be a Top 10 pick. Plus Zia Cooke is expected to get drafted. Plus Latecia Amihere is supposed to get drafted. Plus Vicatria Saxtan will probably get drafted. Plus LeLe Grissett has a shot to get drafted.

I will just add that the Iowa women’s basketball team have been getting a ton of national media attention and are setting ratings records. Their Elite Eight game last Sunday had higher television ratings than every NBA game on ESPN this year. South Carolina does not like that. Their coach doesn’t like it. Their players don’t like it.

This isn’t to say that I don’t think Iowa has a chance. They definitely have a puncher’s chance. It isn’t exactly David against Goliath because Caitlin Clark isn’t a David and either is Monika Czinano. But the odds are against them. However, if they do win, they will do something that no team from the state of Iowa has done since 1956.

In 1956, the Iowa men’s basketball team played in the National Championship Game. They lost to San Francisco 81-73. That San Francisco Dons team finished the season 29-0 and finished the year with a 55 game win streak. That team was lead by Bill Russell and K.C. Jones.

The Iowa men also played in the 1955 Final Four, losing to La Salle 76-73 and the 1980 Final Four losing to Louisville 80-72. Although it is widely believe that if Ronnie Lester didn’t get hurt in that game, Iowa would have went on to win the National Championship that year.

Drake has played in one Final Four in 1969. Falling to UCLA 85-82. Lew Alcindor (later Kareem Abdul-Jabbar) played on that UCLA team. UCLA would go on to blow out Purdue 92-72. Drake would blow out North Carolina in the 3rd Place Game 104-84. It was the closest a Lew Alcindor UCLA team ever came to losing in the NCAA Tournament.

The Iowa State Men’s team has played in one Final Four in 1944. Losing to eventual champion Utah 40-31. Wat Misaka played on that Utah team. He was of Japanese descent and he would go on to be the first non-white player in the NBA. That Utah team also played in the NIT and lost in the quarterfinals to Kentucky. Utah was only invited to the NCAA Tournament because they needed a replacement for Arkansas. Arkansas had to withdraw because a car accident injured two of their starters and killed a third person that was in the car.

The Iowa women’s basketball tournament has made one previous Final Four, in 1993. They lost to Ohio State 73-72 in overtime. Ohio State would lose in the Championship Game to Texas Tech 84-82.

Both Iowa State and Drake’s women’s basketball teams have never made the Final Four. Both have made it as far as the Elite Eight.

The Northern Iowa women have never won an NCAA Tournament game and their men have made it as far as the Sweet Sixteen.

Win or lose tonight, the Iowa women have already made some history. If you want some gambling advice, I would take the 11.5 points.

If you are a fan of basketball at all, I’d encourage you to watch. It is on ESPN and should be entertaining at the least.

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While I’m spitting out this cold knowledge about basketball history, I might as well make good on my pledge to go over the history of girl’s basketball in Boone County and the Girl’s State Tournament.

Boone Toreadors

1958 (6 on 6)
+ Twin Rivers 56 Boone 44
West Central, Maynard won the Championship.

1989 (6 on 6)
+ Boone 59 Saint Ansgar 58
+ Atlantic 78 Boone 63
Ankeny won the Championship.

2017 (4A)
+ Marion 46 Boone 38
North Scott won the Championship.

2018 (4A)
+ Center Point-Urbana 69 Boone 47
Marion won the Championship.

Madrid Tigers

1921 (6 on 6)
+ Madrid 13 Hiteman 7
+ Madrid 18 Mount Ayr 4
+ Madrid 9 Laurens 6
+ Ottumwa 16 Madrid 6
Audubon won the Championship.

Ogden Bulldogs

1972 (6 on 6)
+ Lu Verne 70 Ogden 51
Roland-Story won the Championship.

Grand Bobcats

1960 (6 on 6)
+ Corwith-Wesley 69 Grand 55
Gladbrook won the Championship.

Napier Comets

1947 (6 on 6)
+ Coon Rapids 41 Napier 26
Seymour won the Championship.

1955 (6 on 6)
+ Goldfield 63 Napier 51
Goldfield won the Championship.

It would seem that in the history of girls basketball in Boone County, the schools have combined to win 4 games. 3 of those were in 1921 by Madrid.

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Day 3 in Vegas was the first day of the actual CMC. It was a long work day. I got to the convention before 8 and worked continuously (with the exception of about a 45 minute break) until close to 10 that night.

Before I went to the convention I did take a little bit of a walk near Planet Hollywood and took a few pictures here and there. This collection of pictures are from that walk.

There is more to share from Day 3 of my work trip to Las Vegas to share, including my the Per Diem Update. Which I know you are the edge of your seat to hear about.

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

BLUE

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

But what is a BLUE image? It is simply an image where the subject or a major compositional element of the image is the color BLUE. That is it! Almost too simple!

But this isn’t the first time that BLUE has been a theme for the WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE. Here is a look at some submissions from the past to provide you a little bit of inspiration:

Christopher D. Bennett – Week 40

Stephanie Kim – Week 193

Angie DeWaard – Week 193

Logan Kahler – Week 325

Bill Wentworth – Week 325

Hopefully you find some inspiration in look back at the past!

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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS – WEEKLY PHOTO CHALLENGE

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