I took the pictures this year for the Computer Mine’s annual Christmas Card. I did not edit or select the pictures for the actual card, so these pictures will differ from the card.
Here are a few pictures of my fellow miners…
To see more such images follow the link below:
This week’s pictures come from:
Backup/Old My Pictures/Scanned Photos
These pictures were taken by Lowell’s grandpa Byron Davis Sr.
Next week’s folder will be:
Backup/Old My Pictures/Slice of Life
I’m not sure who anybody is in these Halloween costumes, but I don’t remember Halloween costumes being so swanky back in the day.
I believe the car pictures are of an old car that sat in Lowell’s grandpa’s yard.
The best laid plans of mice and men…
I had written this journal entry several days ahead of schedule because I was planning to be in Minnesota right now. I made all the appropriate plans, but fate took a hand and forced me to cancel my vacation.
At about 3:35 last Friday, I clocked out of work and left the building fully expecting not to see it again for 9 days or so. I spent most of Saturday morning mowing my lawn and packing and running errands and doing everything necessary to leave my humble abode for 5 or 6 days.
I pulled out of my driveway at about 3:15 and headed north to Oakdale, hoping to knock on Jill’s apartment door* at about 6:30.
But a funny thing happened on the way to Oakdale. My wheel flew off my car. That’s right. It flew the heck off.
It was a surreal experience and one that words will fail to describe adequately. I’m cruising along at about 75 MPH when suddenly the front passenger side of my car is clearly on the ground. My first thought was that I had very badly blown out the tire. I have done that before and this is kind of what it felt like. So I took a gander out the passenger side window and I saw my wheel flying through the air.
I immediately thought, “that is my tire flying through the air.. it isn’t supposed to be doing that… it is amazing I haven’t lost control of this car… I’m not going to be eating chicken wings tonight… this is garbage.”
About 10 miles north of Mason City my car came to a stop on the I-35 shoulder. There I sat for four hours roughly… pondering the questions of life.
As much as this incident has sucked (and continues to suck as my car has yet to be repaired and the towing bill from north of Mason City to Boone, well folks, it isn’t cheap!) I should be thankful for having such wonderful friends and family.
I had a pretty sweet vacation planned. Among other things, I was going to go to a chicken wing place that serves over 60 different types of wings. I was going to go to the Uptown Art Fair. I was going to watch the Minnesota Vikings practice. I was going to get to hang out with Jill, Bethany, Becca, Nate, Dae Hee, Faust, and Jackson.
Instead, I hung out with mile mark number 200.40.
But this isn’t about spilled milk, or in my case, uneaten chicken wings, this is about amazing friends and family, after all I will still be able to eat those chicken wings in about 3 weeks or so. Teresa and Ernie offered to come get me. As did Lowell, Jesse, and Sara. Faust and Jay called to make sure I was okay. Derrick even took my call while he was at a wedding reception. Becca and Bethany offered whatever assistance they could provide. After towing arrangements and picking me up arrangements were made (Thanks Mom and Jason!) and I was able to find my wheel after combing the ditch for an hour, Jill kept me company on the phone for the last 90 minutes while I sat in a ditch.
Before we get into this week’s RWPE, here are a few pictures from my time in the ditch:
You may notice from looking at the pictures, the bolts were sheered off clean. Jason has been working on cars for his entire life. He has never seen anything like this before.
Also, because of my cancelled vacation, I did get to go to the Iowa State Fair Photography Salon Reception. So now I know if I won an award besides the Superintendent’s Merit Award. Hint: I did!
Here are the submissions for LEADING LINES:
Mike Vest
Next week’s theme:
That is a new theme for this year, so there is no looking back. Only looking forward. Good luck!
*This is hyperbole. Jill lives in a secured building.
I’m sure many people have already seen these images, but for those who haven’t, I took pictures for the Boone Challenger Program a few weeks back.
Jesse and Lowell run the Challenger program and contacted me about doing their photography. Here are some of the images:
There are many, many, many more images in the album in the store:
Included in that collection of photos is what was nearly the last picture I ever took.
Next week’s random Wednesday collection will be a collection of my cousin Sarah’s pictures from my trip to New York that I received in the mail recently. Along with a few NYC “souvenirs”.
“In the end, everything is a gag.”
– Charlie Chaplin
When it comes to college basketball prognostication, 2011 will be remembered as the Year of the Woman.
Not only did the Roundball Oracles crown our first ever champion from the fairer of the two sexes, three out of the top four finishers were also members of the female persuasion.
It was certainly a chaotic NCAA Tournament this year. Consider these facts:
So who is the new Queen of College Basketball Divination?
The Final Standings
Name – Bracket Name – Points – Correct Games – Last Year
If I were giving an award for the best bracket name, it would clearly go to Andree, but I am not. Perhaps next year.
Carrie’s name now sits in the Hall of Champions with the past greats:
Past Champions
2011 – Carrie Baier
2010 – Mark Wolfram
2009 – Mark Wolfram
2008 – Mark Wolfram
2007 – Tim Peterson
2006 – William McAlpine
2005 – William McAlpine
I already can’t wait for the next college basketball season to start and not only because I expect the Cyclones to return to greatness next year. At least I have the Spring Game to look forward to in a couple of weeks. It is football, but it is something.
Happy Birthday Jesse!
Another year older. Another year weirder.
I found a few prints tucked away in the box of slides, so I thought I would get them scanned before putting that box of slides away.
I believe this picture was taken by Lowell’s grandpa Byron Davis Sr.
I’ve often heard that the saddest thing in the world is unrequited love. Unsolicited love on the other hand…
I’ve never been a Christmas card person. My thoughts on cards is that when somebody sends you a card, what they are really saying (with apologies to Mitch Hedberg) is: “here, throw this away for me.”*
Apparently my bah humbuggery has gotten around and this year I think I hit a new low for Christmas cards received.
However, even though I don’t participate in the tradition I took Christmas card photos for 4 sets of people. That made me think that maybe I should get into the act.
But I don’t know how far I want to take it. I could certainly send a picture card of me that says, “Merry Christmas! Please, throw this away for me.” But I began to wonder if I have it in me to write the perfunctory Christmas letter.
You know, the whitewashed version of people’s lives that some people put in their cards. I didn’t think I was capable of this level of lying, but then I opened the theme Christmas letter from Geri D.
It was inspiring in its creativity. Maybe inspiring enough that some of you might just get something in the mail from me in December of 2010.
Since I have already covered the Christmas card photo shoot for the Howards, I am going to spend the next few days covering the other 3 photo shoots.
The other thing I want to cover today is a new photo project I am entering into with Mike Vest of Waxen Media. (Jesse Howard has also agreed to participate, but did not submit a photo for this week.) It is the type of photo project that I hope some of you choose to also participate in.
We came up with 52 photo “subjects” and entered them into a random generator. Every week on Monday we will randomly be given a new subject to photograph.
On Mondays I will post the previous week’s photos and that week’s subject. Anybody that would like to participate can. You can participate as many or as few weeks as you want. The photos don’t have to be taken with a fancy camera or have to be high art. Pictures with a camera phone are perfectly acceptable. The only rule is that the picture has to be taken that week.
Just email me your picture before noon each Monday.
Last week’s subject was “Use of Space”. Here are our pictures:
Michael Vest
The subject for next week is “SOOTHING”. I know this to be short notice, but snap something off and email it to me at bennett@photography139.com.
This weekly random photo subject should NOT be confused with my ongoing Personal Photo Project of the Week that is one of my goals for 2010. I should hopefully start publishing some of that work next week. After I cover the other 3 Christmas Card Photo Shoots.
Of course there is one last subject that needs to be covered. It has been exactly 1 week since my old friend college football left me until next September.
The Gridiron Bowl Prophets made many wild predictions and this time, Yours Truly came out as the Champ.
Gridiron Bowl Prophets Final Standings:
It is only my incredible modesty that prevents me from pointing out the thorough dominance of my performance.
*Despite my bravado, I don’t really throw anything away. If I’m ever on Hoarders, it will be because of the boxes and boxes of cards I have in my basement.
Today is Lowell’s birthday!
Happy birthday Lowell!
