Wednesday, May 25, 2011

it's that time again - catch-up
beginning with pix for a story on 2 blind sisters who just bought their own home and were moving in...i have to say, i was a little confused when i got there, because i was expecting there to be thingd to help them get around or labels on things or braille or something on those lines, but there was nothing like that, and they seemed to get around as if they could see - even arranging knick-knacks on dressers and being able to tell that one couldn't be seen too well in a certain spot, but then they'd be clearing out a suitcase, and feeling around to see if there was anything they hadn't unpacked yet...so i was really confused as to the extent of their blindness - either they could see more than i thought, or they were just the most amazing women ever
turns out it was kind of a mix of both - they can see vague shapes and bright color differences, but for all intents and purposes, they're almost totally blind and eventually it will progress to complete darkness..but since they've both been this way since birth, they've just completely adapted and function pretty much like anyone else...pretty mind-blowing

so, lots o sports


particularly track, which is the default sport of choice when everything else gets rained out

speaking of rain, there was the annual AG Day event at the fairgrounds, where kids from all over the county converge to learn about, and get up close with animals

shot this near the end of my time there as the rain descended...made it into a still life with the quote "If you see a friend who needs a smile, give him one of yours."

and here's just some featurey rainy pics as i check out the telephoto lensBABY lens i got a while back and haven't used much yet

and with all the rain, as i went on another feature hunt later, there is the inevitable flooding of the river onto the riverwalk...as my morning assignment had been cancelled, i went to see if i could make anything of that and noticed this huge carp caught by the swollen current against a fence post along the walkway

went to a local auto shop that is collecting donations to take down to Alabama following the tornadoes last month - the owners are very religious, and as i was there to get a portrait of the woman spearheading the project, they gathered in the storefront for a morning prayer before opening

Republican women's luncheon - the guest speaker was the new Secretary of State, who'd never been to Monroe since election...i kind of like these events for some reason

...loved playing with the mirrored columns in the room, though it isn't something i thought the paper would run...more for fun


scene from election night in may...people gathered at the educational office to watch the returns on the issue of the continuing technology millage

portrait for our magazine - a local woman who moved back to monroe after 30-some years in california - she always missed the River Raisin

National Day of Prayer - didn't get anything i felt really excited about...more like decent daily

in preparation of the Relay for Life events, a lot of schools hold mini-relays...at least went to a different school this year

liked this image of the boy leaping over one of the signs along their route

community soccer days....didn't want to shoot it like straight-up action, so i was trying for something different..not sure these work, but i kind of dug the net shot

still making repairs from last year's tornado damage, Dundee football players, parents, coaches and teachers got together to re-sod the football field...all paid for with money they raised from bake sales and the like...pretty cool to see communities step up like this one has

kids day event at the ISD - they always bring in a popular children's performer - a big sing-along, but i liked these 2 moments from the event...hard to go wrong with kids having fun

our 1812 battlefield site was named a national park, and an open house last month was the first since achieving that status

just liked this scenic pic, too, for some reason

jazz fest Thursdays series begins in Monroe, running through the summer...great music to be found at these venues

first of the biggest Relay for Life events, this one in south county


feature hunt...found some kids out sparring and wrestling in their front yard....one of them went home in a kind of crying/hissy fit...i asked the one little boy if it was always so exciting at their house, and he said yeah, but normally they don't make people cry......

had a water boil advisory recently because higher than acceptable ratings of bacteria were found in our water system...to help allay the problem, they opened up sewer lines and flooded it with chlorine to kill the excess bacteria....i swear, my water smelled like a swimming pool when i turned it on the next day!

another feature hunt introduced me to a family of children who'd decided to take advantage of their time off school due to the water quality problems to hold a bake sale and try to raise money for their great-uncle, who is battling colon cancer -- kudos to these kids!

a group of volunteers came out to help fill the planters with flowers throughout the downtown business district...kind of liked that i found this moment of interaction between these two friends as they worked away

our local semi-pro football team had a game in the Glass Bowl in Toledo....one of my beter football frames....i was happy

carnival in Milan....kind of tough to shoot, purely for personal reasons...had gotten the call that morning, as i was standing in the auto shop awaiting word on my car which i'd had to get towed in for repairs, that i was being cut back to part-time....tried my best to make some cool frames, and this is probably the best of the bunch

next day, portrait of a sergeant who helped lead a "boot camp" style workout

then,
michigan history lesson day at a local teacher's historic home...this place was amazing!!! seriously, i want to live here

students came to tour her house, play early 1900's period games, etc

they were all encouraged to dress in period wear for the event, and this poor little girl, in an elaborate dress made from curtains was positively sweltering! luckily, cookies and lemonade cure all that ails you!

later shot a portrait of this couple, both teachers at a local school and both retiring...they were very cute and a joy to photograph

next day was a marathon in many ways...absolutely horrific heat and humidity....shot 4 ball games, one after the other....could not stay hydrated enough to save my life


then after those were done, i went to the really big Relay for Life at the fairgrounds...not my finest for sure, but i did my best

god, i SO wanted to jump in there with them! the older kid's all "don't splash her" and i'm, like, "no, really it's okay, splash away!!!"

and now, i am all caught up, at least as far as work goes....have been doing lensBABY flower pix in my off time......so totally soothes the soul...and that post of pix will be coming shortly!







Tuesday, May 3, 2011

landscapes

spent a light day out driving with lensBABY at hand friday...thinking on doing an urban/industrial landscape series of factories and the like in monroe....here's a few from what i found


saturday, started the day out at a school which was getting its courtyard re-landscaped through a comcast community service project...found a couple 'moments' amid the planting and plowing

love it when little girls defy the stereotypes by getting all excited at finding worms!

then it was an earth day event...these 2 girls were completely fascinated by the honeybee display...seriously, they must have stood there for 20 minutes at least just staring at this slab of a hive

and bubbles...not the coolest, just kind of a cute kid pic

that evening there was a fundraising dinner with a civil war theme....these things are tough, because really it's just people eating, and then there's a speaker
at the food line, i just liked this boy's obviously unhappy reaction to his mom adding carrots to his plate

...anyway, i went early and was lucky to find these period-dressed women sipping mint juleps and socializing

so, at least there's that

now, getting ready for another week to begin....i hope it warms up soon, cos i'm not looking forward to a chilly damp day out on the ballfield...oh well, it is what it is, eh?