Category Archives: Event

Candid Portrait, Commercial, Event, Jaycees, Music, Shannon

Vivace

June 21, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

Friday was another successful night at Ames on the Half Shell. Well over 400 people came out to see Vivace. I worked admissions and checked IDs, so I didn’t take as many photos as normal. Below is a sampling:

Little White Lye Soap Promotional Cup (changes colors)

Of course there are a few other images in the Snapshots Gallery in the Ames Jaycees Album.

Ames on the Half Shell – 2008

This week the band at Ames on the Half Shell is Box Brothers. A bonus source of amusement for you is (if I read the spreadsheet correctly) that I am the person that goes on stage to introduce the band.

Ames on the Half Shell is also a collection site for Flood Relief Donations. If you are looking to donate some items to help out fellow Iowans that were affected by the floods, you can bring the following items to Half Shell on Friday:

Toiletries – for 3,000 individuals
deodorant
toothpaste/ tooth brush
shampoo/ conditioner
combs/ brushes
hand sanitizer
pillows / sheets/ blankets
diapers
baby food
underwear
socks
Cleaning supplies (mops – buckets – cleaners – rags)
Bug Spray

The items donated at Half Shell will be distributed to the areas hardest hit by the flooding. You can also make donations to the Red Cross at the door.

Event, Jaycees, Music, Shannon, Vest, Video

Video from Friday

June 17, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

If you subscribe to this blog via RSS Feed or e-mail, you will actually have to go to the website to see the video embedded below:

This video is a rough cut from Ames on a Half Shell from last Friday. My friend Mike Vest came down and shot some video of the event for us.

Although this was actually the highlight of the night:

Becky, Candid Portrait, Commercial, Derrick, Event, Music, Photoshop, Shannon

Burnin’ Sensations

June 15, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

Last Friday was another hugely successful night for Ames on the Half Shell. The band was Burnin’ Sensations and they were phenomenal. Here are a few pictures from the evening.

Abi and Melissa

Dennis

Sara

Birthday Girl

Scott

Derrick

Burnin’ Sensations

Chad

Andy and Charby

Working the Picnic Table

Possibly Discussing an UnHingd Reunion?

Every once in awhile when I’m editing pictures I find something that amuses me in a picture that was completely unintentional. Sometimes that happens when I’m not really concentrating, but just taking pictures quickly. One of those pictures above amuses me in just such a way.

I took a picture of one of the singers from Burnin’ Sensation out working the crowd. I was impressed by this because they were the first band to really work the crowd in such a fashion.

I think if there was somebody standing on top of my table playing a tambourine, I would probably be so impressed I would watch them, but that isn’t the case for everybody. Some people would rather text message.

I also made a panoramic image of the event. These are really hard to post because of their extreme width. So below I spun this image counterclockwise 90 degrees so that you can at least go through the image to some degree. It is also compressed to about 10% of its actual size. In its full resolution it is much crisper.

Of course there are about 40 more images in the Snapshots Gallery in an album named AOTHS-Burnin’ Sensations. It is located right next to the Family Night Photo Album.

AMES ON THE HALF SHELL – 2008

I should also point out that I had a new life experience on Saturday. To say it was my life experience isn’t really fair, but I overheard something that I thought I would never hear, not even in Iowa.

After a long discussion about life with Becky on her sweet front porch, I made my way down to Tradewinds for the conclusion of Shannon’s birthday shindig. While I was there I was sitting at a table where a creepy guy was putting the “moves” on a lady friend.

One of the things he said to impress her was that he was once up to his nipples in pig feces. I guess you go with what you got, but if that is what you got, maybe you should lie.

Of course, it all happens again this Friday. Not the pig poo guy, but Ames on the Half Shell will happen again this Friday. 5-8 at Bandshell Park. 3 bucks gets you in the door. Another 3 bucks gets a beer in your hand.* 1 buck gets you some Red Monkey.

This week the band is Vivace. They are also excellent. They are one of the two bands that I booked. I got to play hardball with them. The conversation went something like this:

Me: So how much do you charge?

Vivace: XXXXXX bucks. A little more for an outdoor show.

Me: Well this is an outdoor show.

Vivace: Well we can keep it the same.

Me: Sounds like a deal.

Hope to see some of you there. Even my Corporate Sellout friends.

*Technically 3 bucks gets you an orange token that magically gets turned into beer at the beer tent.

Baier, Becky, Candid Portrait, Commercial, Dawn, Derrick, Event, Music, Shannon, Suzie, Willy

Family Night

June 9, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

Last Friday was Family Night for Ames on the Half Shell. By all measurable criteria the event was a smashing success. More than twice the amount of children made it to Family Night this year than last.

Plus I got to see many of my friends and their children. Take a look at some of the fun that was had on that evening.

Of course there are about 80 more pictures in on my website in the AOTHS Gallery.

AMES ON THE HALF SHELL

Here is a Family Night Fun Fact. Despite the fact that there were 5 times the amount of children at Family Night than there were for the first night of of AOTHS and Red Monkey was free for children, less than half the amount of Red Monkey that was consumed on the first night was consumed on Family Night.

If you picked up what I was laying down with that big run-on sentence, you might be wondering how that was possible. The fact is that I am to blame. I laid off the Red Monkey during Family Night because I thought the youth of Central Iowa would pick up my slack. They did not. Now I have to hit the Red Monkey doubly hard this Friday night to make up for lost time. But I mean really, what is wrong with this generation?

I also learned a few things on Family Night. I learned that Shannon can’t blow bubbles. I learned that if you sign up to run the 5K during Scandinavian Days they give you a pretty sweet free shirt. I learned that Becky proved that she doesn’t know anything about hats because she wore a balloon hat around most of the night. I learned that even if you have somebody watching the bounce house, children will get in a fight and scare other small children. I learned that the Baier children will take their tats like men when the time comes for them to get their tats. I learned that security is such a tough job that I didn’t get a chance to talk to everybody nearly as long as I had hoped.

Of course I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that Ames on the Half Shell will happen again this Friday night. This week the band is Burnin’ Sensations and they are excellent. If you have a hole in your schedule between 5-8, this is the place to be. Also Friday is somebody’s birthday. I don’t wish to embarrass them (yet), but at the very least it is worth the price of admission (79 cents less than a gallon of gas) to wish her a Happy Birthday!*

Plus it is Friday the 13th. I’m not a superstitious person, but it might be a good day to be in a large crowd.

*That exclamation mark is not a random choice of punctuation.

Becky, Event, Jaycees, Music, Shannon

Redzband

May 31, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

Friday was the first Ames on the Half Shell event of the season. I have to say I was surprised by the large turnout considering that Ames was flooded. Below are a handful of pictures from the event.

Of course there are a few more pictures in the Ames Jaycees Album in the Ames on the Half Shell Gallery.

Ames on the Half Shell – 2008

This week at Ames on the Half Shell is Murphy’s Law. It is also Family Night. I understand that there is a slew of awesome things for kids to do, but I’ll write more on those later.

>A few of you have told me that you will be coming out for Family Night. I look forward to seeing you there and hope a few more of you make the trip out as well.

Andree, Baier, Event, Jaycees, Russell, Shannon

Ames Jaycees Sandbox Fill

April 28, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

Saturday was the big annual Ames Jaycees Sandbox Fill. I’m going to try to combine a couple of different things together to describe the event and I’m not sure it is going to come together exactly right.

So like I was saying, Saturday was the big annual Ames Jaycees Sandbox Fill. We met up at the Salvation Army at about 8:30 in the morning. We were split up into two teams: Team 1 and Team 2. I was assigned to Team 2. I felt that our team name was not indicative of our dominance in the realm of sandbox filling and was an attempt by Team 1 to claim a superiority that they hadn’t earned at the handles of a wheelbarrow. I suggested that we change our team name to Team Kicks Team 1’s Ass. I’m not sure we ever really made a decision on our team name.

Regardless of the fact that our team name did not indicate such, we were filled with powerhouses:

Shannon (Team Leader)
Melissa
Jamie
Adam
Jason
Keith

We ended up dominating the morning and early afternoon by any meaningful criteria. We filled two more sandboxes than they did, including 1 that wasn’t even on our list of assigned sandboxes and 1 that was on Team 1’s list. We also finished up well before they did, despite a couple of hiccups that were not the fault of anybody on our team.

On a downer note, I was also told that I seemed like a Computer Guy. I don’t think that I’ve ever been so insulted in many a year.

Monday morning came around and I started exchanging e-mails with my chums from The Principal Group. I let it slip out that I had stood around the Salvation Army parking lot for about 25 minutes on Saturday morning.

Russell jumped onto this little tidbit:

You appear to be loitering or are involved in some sort of drug trafficking scheme. Am I the only one who felt this needed explaining?

I wrote back:

It was actually public service. Saturday was the Jaycees Sandbox Fill. We met at the Salvation Army. Look below to see a not very good picture of me from Saturday.

The Me Not Looking So Good Picture

To which Russell replied:

You still appear to be committing some sort of criminal activity. The other person has a do rag, and when the do rag comes out, it’s never above board. How long have you worked for the mafia, Chris?

And Andree added:

I believe that Chris was indeed working. He’s a photographer, thus knows when to stop working and how to pose when a photo-op arrives to make himself as photogenic as possible given the circumstances.

And Baier added:

Doesn’t anyone else think that Chris looks added to this picture; to make it seem like he did a public service? Really; what kind of person who is actually working with a wheelbarrow smiles?

Then Russell added this:

Why the hell is she doing the digging and you’re holding a wheelbarrow? Be a man and get your hands dirty!

To which I was forced to respond:

I don’t know what is more manly, but moving a wheelbarrow full of sand is not work for the faint of heart. It is a manly and strenuous job. But if you must know, I did my fair share of raking. See picture below:

Look! My hands are dirty and now it is more difficult to eat donuts.

Now I’m going to step back from The Principal Group for a moment. There was one moment that kind of soured the day. There was a moment of prejudice and bigotry that made the day a little bit sad. The type of prejudice and bigotry that I thought that this great nation of ours had moved beyond, but I’m going to regale you with the tale because at least one member of Team Kicks Team 1’s Ass found it to be a hoot.

A customer of ours saw Jamie pushing a wheelbarrow.

Jamie and her Wheelbarrow

The customer approached Shannon and asked her this bigoted question:

What do you call a woman doing a man’s job?

I don’t know.

Lazy.

Let us put that sad story of prejudice and move back to the e-mails of The Principal Group.

After I sent out the picture of my raking, I figured I would be inundated with apologies, but that didn’t happen.

Russell responded thusly:

And in this picture you’re face is enshrouded in darkness. And how cruel is it to be burying merchandise and stolen goods underneath children’s playground equipment? Have you mafia types no shame?

I responded:

Perhaps you would like to sign on and help for next year? Stolen merchandise just won’t bury its self.

For the record, I now have a prejudice against sandboxes that are underneath play equipment, where the slide doesn’t move out of the way.

Russell’s reply:

I will volunteer if there aren’t a lot of kids running around. The Big Hu-Hot has never been an patient man. And the Big Hu-Hot will also not work in inclement conditions, but is not opposed to some muscle work if it’s for a good cause or a percentage of any profits. My do rag is black, though, not lily white, so I’d be naturally worried that would cause a conflict.

So perhaps next year I might be able to get Russell out there to move some sand around.

I do have more pictures of the event. You can click on the picture below, or the link below the picture and it will take you to my Snapshots Gallery. After that all you have to do is click on the Ames Jaycees Album and get to perusing.

Ames Jaycees’ Sandbox Fill

SNAPSHOTS GALLERY NO LONGER EXISTS

A few things for you to consider about the Snapshots Gallery. You can now register to use the Snapshots Gallery. The only thing that is required is a valid e-mail address.

In the upper right hand corner, there is a link that says “Register”. Just click on that, agree to my terms and conditions and then fill out some information. An e-mail will arrive in your inbox that tells you how to complete the registration process. Here is a hint: It involves clicking on a link in the e-mail.

Once you have registered, you can Login. Here are the benefits of registering:

Unlock Private Albums
Edit Personal Profile Information
Leave Comments on Pictures
Rate Pictures
Favorite Pictures

This Gallery is still under construction (meaning new pictures are added daily), but it is fully functioning.

If for some reason you don’t get an e-mail to activate your account, then just e-mail me and I’ll activate your account.

Also, if you have an account for the Artistic Photo Gallery, that doesn’t mean you have an account for the Snapshots Gallery. The galleries are controlled by separate databases (in actuality separate tables) and therefore you need to create separate accounts for both. However, you can still use all the same information for both.

Any way, that is enough computer garbage. You’ll figure it out, I’m starting to sound like a Computer Guy, but that is a bit of unpleasantness to discuss in the future.

Animals, Event, Iowa State, Jeff Daniel, Yin

VEISHEA

April 13, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

VEISHEA was cold. A little bit miserable. However, there were some highlights. It took me awhile to see them because I was pretty upset that the good fried cheese curd stand was not there, but I eventually got over it. Who am I kidding? I’m still fuming about it.

I did take some pictures after I ran into Jeff and Yin.

Smokey, Jeff, and Yin

Me, Jeff, Smokey, and Woodsie

Jeff

My friend Willy would call these people nerds, but he is a nerd. Who is he to judge?

Jeff took this picture of me.

Jeff and the Astronaut

Crane

The highlight of VEISHEA for me was seeing the crane in Lake Laverne. I’ve been told that it is a little bit weird that the crane was a highlight for me.

Animals, Derrick, Event, Jen, Movies, Photoshop

Oscar Pictures from Jen

March 21, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

I was sitting at work today minding my own business when an e-mail fluttered across cyberspace and into my inbox. Technically it was two e-mails. I now share with you what was contained in those e-mails, namely pictures from Jen’s camera of the Oscar Party.

Jen in her Fur Coat

Brenda

I am Mine

With the Guitar God

Jen and Derrick

Sans Beanie

That Tie Deserves Better

I think for the 2009 Oscar Party I might switch to a fedora and bring a cane. Although with the beanie Jen says I look “very Mohammad”. I dig that.

I might as well throw up a few pictures I took on that night. I didn’t take a camera to the party. I’ve been considering buying a small camera that I can fit in a pocket for this type of event, but I haven’t done it as of yet.

Derrick Waiting

I know it is derivative, but everybody loves the bass picture so why not post this one?

Jackson

Bailey

If you are wondering, I will be buying a Sony. Carl Zeiss Lens! That is all I need to say!

Derrick, Event, Jen, Movies

Oscar Party Pictures

March 14, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett

I got some pictures e-mailed to me from Brenda of the 2008 Oscar Party. These are a little bit small, but I think you will get an idea of the glamor of the event. This event is also doubles as a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society.

Brenda

Jen & Derrick

Brenda with her Beau

Jen in her Fur Coat

With Jen and Derrick

I’m still waiting to get some more pictures from Jen, so there may be more pictures posted in the future.

Becky, Event, Jay, Music, Shannon, Shorty

The Church of the Inebriated Saints

March 8, 2008 Christopher D. Bennett 2 Comments

Shorty often refers to going to church twice on the same day as building up credit. On Friday night I went to The Venue to attend the Church of the Inebriated Saints. I think by Shorty’s logic, I get credit for that and can skip church some time in the future.

I took several pictures of Inebriated Saints and I’m going to unload a large collection of them right here. I left shortly after their show concluded, but based on then names of the other bands, they sounded like yelling-screaming-angry-white-male-feel-sorry-for-me music, I’m just going to assume that they were the victors.

It is a fact that many of these pictures aren’t really your standard picture and might be kind of artistically pretentious, but I felt the need to get a bit creative because bar photography is not my forte. There is limited light, so you are really kind of limited in your options. You can crank up the ISO, but that results in digital noise. You can crack out the blinding flash and my Top Photo Assistant can tell you, I don’t really like flash photography. The only other option is to get a little creative. Admittedly you will find examples of all of these in the photos above.

On a more personal note. This trip out to The Venue was my first trip to a Boone bar in almost 2 years. I saw some people that I hadn’t seen in several years. Anybody that has ever seen me knows that I’m not a big personal appearance person. (Although I have really gotten into color coordinating my beanies lately.) If I know somebody, I know them and don’t even really think about what their personal appearance might be saying to the rest of the world.

A couple different people came up to me and asked me: “You are Christopher Bennett, correct?”

One of these people was a muscular looking gent with a shaved head and a goatee. I had a brief conversation with him and then he returned to his job duties. I never thought of him as being scary looking. Although I might not ever be muscular looking, the clock is ticking on when I will be a bald dude with a goatee. The only thing to be determined is whether or not I will have the guts to keep the sideburns.

Shannon said that guy was really scary looking.

I thought, really? I mean maybe a guy that looks like that can be intimidating, but I only see Larry Sprecher. One of the kids (along with his brother Mike and Kelly Wilson) that I played G.I. Joe with.

Becky came to the concert with Shannon. This resulted in a bonus photo session that I call “The Get Your Picture Taken with Shannon Session”. Check out these bonus photos:

One other person that talked to me at the bar was Jamie’s friend Bonnie. She wanted to know if I had a “little, short, blonde guy with me”. She was referring to Jay. When I relayed that story to Jay on Saturday morning, he became distraught. It turns out Jay doesn’t like to be referred to as both little and short.