Buy Me Some Peanuts and Cracker Jacks

Back in March, I pulled somewhat of a double shift. Our newsroom was short on staff photographers for the day, so it was decided that I would not only design my normal pages, but also attend the Iowa State softball game as a photographer. One of my images was used as main art (a bit intimidating, I must say), but both photos were displayed on the website. (If you would like to see relatively fuzzy versions of them, go here.) 

I took more than just those two shots, of course. The ones below are images I took throughout the seven-inning game. Just like in February, when I shot the Iowa State women's basketball team, this was a new experience. However, I did appreciate the slower pace of softball, and I would be eager to try it again. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon, and the only thing that bothered me in the slightest were the mounds of sunflower seeds I stood on just outside the fence.

Note: As you can tell, I'm having great difficulties with the new Blogger Dashboard. Currently, my biggest problem is with photos. Can anyone explain to me what I'm doing wrong when it comes to centering? Each photo has a mind of its own, and even if I go in and write the HTML code myself, it doesn't work. Also, has the time it takes to upload photos increased? (Of course, that could always just be me being inept; and I'm perfectly okay with being corrected.) Anyone's thoughts or comments are appreciated. (And if you want to call me curmudgeonly inept, that's cool, too.)

Update: I fixed the centering of images on this post. It involved inconsistencies in the code. Again, if anyone is having any sort of similar issue with Blogger, I'd like to hear it. 

Fleeting

I am cheating you out of content, I know. I promise you that I am not twiddling my thumbs. I promise you that, one day, I will return with words, thoughts armed and ready to be expressed and explained.

But for now, I must ready for a weekend away.

Please enjoy the attached music, if you desire a listen. My current favorite is the second song, one with a chirping, addictive melody.


























Go ahead and dance in your chair, dance about your room. ...for no one is really watching ... and the only thing hindering your inhibitions is your own self-consciousness. Let it go, and dance. And don't think. And dance again and replay a song over and over and over until exhilaration, that encompassing feeling of invincibility, comes.

Have a wonderful weekend. 

Ledges

I have found a place.

It is only a few miles away, nested in the valley of the Des Moines River. It is peaceful there, tranquil. Encompassing. The grasses grow tall, the sun beams upon hills and worldly creatures--birds, spiders, fish, frogs, humans--find each other. They converse in a language unspoken; they rely on reflections and textures to tell each other stories. Visitors--people--come to be a part of this natural world. They embrace the scratchy sandstone, the dirt and mud and grass.

The younger you are, the less clothes you wear. Grandfathers and grandmothers don long pants and hats. Parents wear t-shirts and shorts, while bikini-clad teenagers lounge upon picnic tables and towels, tanning their freckled skin. Children wear bathing suits. Little kids wear underwear. The littlest wear nothing. All wade through the streams, pushing their soles into the mud with a satisfying squish. Minnows. Rocks. Water. An endless flow of motion and wet energy.

It is a beautiful place, friends.








































April 1 marked the anniversary of this blog; it is now three years old.

That being said, I want to thank you all for being patient with me; for continuing to read this little blog. Though I lack time for regular posts, I do read each and every comment. Your words bring small joys to my days, and I cannot thank you enough for your wise words, your small pleasures. I wish I had time to respond to each kind word I receive, for it is utterly due. Though I have not excelled at reciprocating, please know that your thoughts, comments, ideas, excitements, compliments, recommendations and humorous outbursts are very much appreciated.

Thank you. Have a wonderful weekend, friends.