I think Jason Baier was one of the quickest to choose. He was very assertive when he chose the picture below:
I manipulated this picture with Photoshop quite a bit more than I normally manipulate pictures, but I’m at peace with it.
I’m very excited to announce that there were 3 brand new first time contributors. Shannon Bardole, Angie Dewaard and Geri Derner all contributed photos for the first time ever. Hopefully they will find it addictive and become regular contributors.
Here are this week’s submissions for HOPE:
IMAGE LOST
Geri Derner A
IMAGE LOST
Geri Derner B
IMAGE LOST
Dawn Krause
IMAGE LOST
Shannon Bardole
IMAGE LOST
Angie DeWaard
Christopher D. Bennett
Looks like Dawn has gotten back on the writing horse! Here is her poetry contribution:
Walls Against Hope
Hope is a diabolical trade
it sets the heart and soul to be played
a chance for broken dreams to be filled
compromising the soul to be killedIf I told you how I felt today
would you take those thoughts and run away
or would you stay to comfort my heart
and give me reason to trust our startThe music sounds different to my soul
there’s part of you that makes me whole
If my heart trusts to reveal that thought
would the fulfillment be all I’ve soughtWalls against hope are in our nature
keep us from rising up in stature
Secret desires, wishes to fill
to let them out is a bitter pill
I’ve been down to the cave where the Random Theme Generator is housed. I answered its riddle and it gave me the theme for this week:
This is another great and easy theme. After all, everybody has a face or at least they know somebody that has a face. I hope to see many contributions next week. Hopefully some new faces as well. (Terrible pun intended.)
Andree also considered these other two pictures:
Andree followed his “I pick so and so” paragraph with a lengthy dissertation on MegaShark vs. Giant Octopus. Can you guess why we are friends?
I think most of you know that I have strange ways of picking pictures for photo contests. I think the most interesting way is how I “pick” the pictures for the Pufferbilly Days Photo Contest. In fact, I don’t pick the pictures at all. I have 6 individuals each pick 1 picture from a list of pictures I nominate.
Last year I had all Dolls pick the pictures. This year I had all Guys.
I considered this to be a small social experiment on my part. At least it did allow me to collect data that I find intriguing, even though I know it is mostly meaningless.
Last year I was excited when Jill picked a frog picture. I wrote at that time that I was impressed that a Doll would pick a picture of a frog. I also wrote that I hoped that next year a Guy would pick a flower picture this year.
No guy picked a flower picture.
This is the data that I collected. You can draw your own conclusion about the differences between Guys and Dolls.
Without further adieu, here is the selection of Jesse Howard:
I don’t think that there is going to be a “gimmick” again next year. I think I’m going to ask 6 people who have never selected before. I already have 4 people in mind, but if you have never selected before, you should leave a comment on why you would make an excellent selector. I will take it under advisement.
There were many more contributors this week. Looks like RWPE is back on track. Here are this week’s submissions for LIGHT PLACEMENT:
IMAGE LOST
Julie Johnson of The Joy is in the Journey
Mike Vest of Waxen Media
Christopher D. Bennett
IMAGE LOST
Becky Perkovich
IMAGE LOST
Dawn Krause A of The Randomness in My Mind
We’ve been down to the basement that holds the Random Generator. After a few jerks on its ripcord it sputtered and then fired up and then settled down to a nice hum. After thinking for a small bit of time, it spit out the following theme for this week:
That is a good broad theme and one that all Cyclone fans will need this week. Oh no! I’ve given up too much information on my idea. I would think that anybody with a camera or camera phone would be able to contribute something to a theme this broad and open to interpretation. Anybody that doesn’t contribute… I’m just going to have to assume that their life is devoid of hope.
These pictures were taken on a floody night back in June after Sara and I ate at a Lebanese restaurant nearby. I need to thank her for her assistance on this night even though I definitely burned out all of her patience… and then some.
I will need to revisit this bridge in the near future, now that the water has gone down on the Des Moines River.
On Sunday I got together with Shannon to take pictures of her new haircut.
Lots of these pictures don’t show off the new do, but they were taken at the same time.
Shannon also did some turtle wrangling for me on a Personal Photo Project that will be published sometime in October. In this task she performed admirably. I also helped her buy a new camera. So I have no doubt that she will be able to contribute a picture to RWPE sometime in the near future.
Perhaps the Random Weekly Photo Experiment has begun to run its course. There were zero submissions this week. I guess it will just have to soldier on for the last 17 weeks. Here is the lone picture for VIEWPOINT.
The Random Generator has generated the theme for this week. I put it before you:
There is light in every picture, but for this theme, you want to be very conscious of where the light is coming from to light your subject. Whether it is to the side of your subject. Below your subject. Above your subject. The placement of the light should effect what the picture looks like. Good luck. Hopefully there will be some submissions next week.
A late submission from Mike Vest:
I witnessed something so shocking on Tuesday night that after I got over the initial numbness, I reached out to some close friends who helped guide me through the mental issues that I was having to overcome.
I should state to clear my good name and recriminate Nader, it was not my idea to go see Piranha 3-D. I wanted to go see Scott Pilgrim, but Nader refused to see that movie because he thinks that it has the guy in it from Adventureland even though I’ve told him 100 times that it isn’t the same guy that is in Adventureland.
Since Nader couldn’t be convinced that Micahel Cerra and Jesse Eisenberg are not the same person, we went to see Piranha 3-D. It was the first horror movie I’ve seen in the theater since The Devil’s Rejects in 2005. It might be another 5 years before I see another horror movie in the theater.
Because of the frankness of the situation, I am going to keep all the parties anonymous.
I texted Friends 2 and 3:
“I just saw a movie where a fish eats a penis in 3-D!”
I texted Friend 4:
“Is there a scene in Scott Pilgrim where a fish eats a penis in 3D, cause there sure as hell is one in Piranha?”
I texted Friends 5, 6 & 7:
“This can’t wait until the morrow. There is a scene in Piranha where a fish eats a penis in 3D.”
I texted Friend 1:
“I have to get this off my chest. In Piranha there is a scene where a fish eats a penis in 3D. I’m traumatized.”
Friend 4 texted back:
“No there isn’t.”
Friend 7 texted back:
“wtf”
Friend 2 texted back:
“”
Then Friend 2 texted back:
“That is WRONG! WRONG! WRONG! I don’t need to even ask how the movie was now.”
I texted Friend 7:
“Exactly.”
I texted Friend 4:
“I thought every movie would like to include such a scene.”
Friend 6 texted:
“Yeah, its worth sharing. First time in a while, I don’t know what to say.”
I texted Friend 2:
“There was no warning. All of a sudden it just happened.”
I texted Friend 6:
“I feel disoriented. I think I’m in shock. My body is cold, but that might be because I’m standing in the freezer section of Hy-Vee.”
Friend 2 texted:
“Obviously funded by those man haters at Lifetime Movie Network.”
Friend 6 texted:
“Maybe they figured no one would see the movie and just threw in something to make it unforgettable. Its a hell of a story, anyway.”
I texted Friend 2:
“They should put a warning label on movies that contain violence against penis. So we would know not to go see them.”
I texted Friend 6:
“It definitely worked. I will never be able to wash this image from my brain.”
Friend 2 texted:
“AGREED!”
Friend 6 texted:
“Sick thing is, I’m almost convinced I will rent it on dvd. Not sure what that says about myself.”
Friend 1 texted:
“EWWWWWW!!!!”
I texted Friend 6:
“You might not want to after I tell you the full story. I will tell you tomorrow at dinner.”
Friend 4 texted:
“Now that’s a groundbreaking movie! I’m thinking Oscar. I that that piranha is Lorena Bobbitt’s pet. BTW, what did Nader say to that?”
I texted Friend 1:
“I’m pretty sure I’m going to have nightmares.”
Friend 6 texted:
“Ok”
I texted Friend 4:
“I swear to God he said: ‘Look at that cocksucker!'”
Friend 1 texted:
“I hope U aren’t permanenty traumatized!”
I texted Friend 1:
“You will have to forgive me if I get distant and weird(er).”
Friend 1 texted:
“Indeed I will, and I will completely understand.”
Friend 2 texted:
“Did u have sympathy pain?”
Friend 4 texted:
“Spoken like a true critic! Awesome job channeling Gene Siskel’s spirit. Couldn’ have said it better myself.”
I texted Friend 2:
“Not yet, but I think I might when I come out of shock.”
Friend 4 texted:
“I agree, that now makes me wanna see the movie.”
I texted Friend 4:
“It was the goriest horror movie I’ve ever seen.”
Friend 4 texted:
“From you that’s saying something.”
I finished the long drive home knowing that my bed and the nightmares to come would be there to greet me.
The Taiwan Times
By Mark Wolfram
Reporting on God’s mission in Taiwan
August 2010
“Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,”
Ephesians 2:19
Back on the island
Hello everyone. I am back in Taiwan, after a busy, but refreshing trip to the United States. It’s always nice to be back home with family, friends, American food (especially BBQ), and so many other parts of my native culture. Being here in Taiwan, it is easy to feel like a foreigner or alien. The culture, language, educational system, and so many other things provide stark contrast from American life. However, the above Bible verse reminds me that our true citizenship is neither in Taiwan nor America. Rather, our citizenship is in heaven with God. It does not come through a test or application process, but through God’s love as completed in Jesus’ death and resurrection. We were outsiders to God, but have been made members of God’s family, no matter if we live in America or Taiwan.
The new year
Today we had our annual faculty meeting, to start the new semester, and tomorrow will be the first day of school. This year I will be teaching 7th, 10th, and 11th grade students. Of my 10 classes, 9 of them will be English classes, and one of my 7th grade classes will be Bible class. In addition to the teaching I have begun some new administrative work as Concordia Middle School Liaison between the missionaries, the school, and LCMS World Mission. This past month I have helped to organize and implement orientation of our 2 new teachers: Graham Guenther and Rachel Sekki. Praise God that they were able to make it over safely and have already begun adjusting to life in Taiwan. In addition to orientation, I have also been working on organizing paperwork for work permits and green cards for the American teachers.
Fundraising
The trip back to America this summer was wonderful. Praise God that I was able to meet up with so many friends and family members, in addition to travel to several churches. I am elated to report that, God has provided the funds needed for this year’s service. In fact, I am already 1/3 of the amount over what I needed, so this will be applied to future years of service. Praise God for your prayers and financial support which have helped to make this possible.
I do want to let you know about one change for mailing in of donations. From now on (for those of you who pledged support), please send any checks to the address below.
LCMS World Mission Missionary Support PO Box 790089 St. Louis, MO 63179-0089Baptisms
| Jeff being baptized |
My first Sunday back in Taiwan was truly a blessed one, as we had three people baptized. One of them was a CMS student named Jeff, who I have known both from classes and from Salvation Lutheran Church Youth Group. Along with Jeff, his mother and his brother were also baptized. It was such a joy to welcome new brothers and sisters in Christ, the very first Sunday I was back in Taiwan.
Teachers needed
I know I have written it in the past, and talked about it this summer, but CMS is still looking for 4 teachers for this school year. The positions are all for elementary level English and Bible teaching. Even though the semester starts on Tuesday, we have had teachers join mid-year in the past. If you or anyone you know are interested, please contact me and I would love to give you more information. Even if you don’t know of anyone, please pray that God will provide the even more teachers to help share the love of Jesus with the students here in Taiwan.
Prayer Time:
1. Please pray for the start of the new school year for me and all of the teachers as we start back into the teaching routine. Please pray especially for Graham and Rachel as they adjust to a new culture and new responsibilities.
2. Praise God for my fundraising goal being met and exceeded.
3. Pray for my Chinese language acquisition. I will be using it more and would like to be more intentional and focused with lessons.
4. Pray for more teachers to come and serve here Taiwan.
May God’s love and peace be ever present in your daily life!
Mark