Random Creativity

…or at least that was my first reaction after spotting the cassette in a friend’s locker in 1986. Little did I know that 1/2 a second later my entire view of modern heavy metal would get dumped on it’s ear. “Um….yeah, dude. Those are guys.”  ”What?” I stammered. (heart sinking as I pondered the repercussions of the current situation as it related to my perceived sexual orientation and music purchasing habits.) So, with that shock and slight wound to my ego, I hesitantly welcomed the world of Glam Rock into my life….although with a little distrust.

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Pic A Day Project: Sure….we’re all voyeurs. We all love to get little peeks inside the lives of others from time to time. Maybe it’s because we’re seeking reinforcement that our lives are just as twisted as everyone else’s (my reason) or maybe it’s because it’s just good fun. Who knows? It’s only natural and there isn’t anything wrong with that. As it so happens, I like to take pictures. Actually, that’s not quite true. By some strange character flaw or mental issue (according to my family), I’m compelled to take pictures….lot’s of them. Besides the whole mental issue/character flaw theory, I really enjoy looking at the world through the eyes of a photographer. I love looking at ordinary things, finding the interesting details, and recording them with whatever camera I’ve got with me in whatever light/setting they happen to be in. Doing this keeps me from walking through life with my head up my rear end like so many other people. Happily, now is our chance to help each other out and it’s really simple: I’ll take ‘em and you look at ‘em.

This all brings me to my promise to you, dear friends. Assuming that I’m not dead, paralyzed, or in a coma:  I promise that I will take and post one picture each day for the next year. Sure, some days I’m really busy and some of them will be lame and boring but I’ll do my best to keep the boring pictures to a minimum, whenever possible. You must realize that each picture I’ve posted has a reason and there is alway SOMETHING in the picture that I found interesting or unusual. It’s your job, dear friend, to look at the images with an open mind and find a meaning for yourself (or don’t….some of them might just be crap, lol).   I’ll even go one further and also post some of the more notable “extras” that I take as well, because a crazy person like me can’t take only 1 picture per day. It’s just not possible. If you feel compelled, please leave a comment (positive, negative, or neutral) or don’t. It’s up to you.

One last thing. I also post other things here such as jokes, writing, etc. If you want to sort through all the junk and just see the Pic A Day posts, please click on “Pic A Day” that’s listed in the categories section on the right side of the page.  Now, I’ve wasted too much of your time already so I’ll leave you. Have a great day!

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I love to ride my motorcycle. I especially love to ride early in the morning or late at night.  It gives me the opportunity to see and experience so much more of the world that I’m passing through. The temperature changes, sights, smells, and sounds really help paint a more vivid picture than watching the world pass by from behind a car window.  Most of all, I love the 360 degree view and the chance to see things I’ve driven past, in my car, everyday for the last several years and never noticed. I got this picture at one of those spots. This area is usually hidden by tall grass and a steel guard rail. Yesterday I found this, made a u-turn (another awesome bike trait), and got this shot. You would be amazed what the area actually looks like in the full glare of the daylight (not to mention the trucker taking a leak beside his rig 200 feet from me….ick).

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Truer words have never been spoken. Even if you own a trillion dollar, solid gold, super-duper, awesomest camera ever, it’s doing you no good if it’s sitting on the desk at home or gathering dust in a drawer somewhere. Sadly, it’s impossible to judge the photo quality of images you’ve never taken by not having that awesome behemoth with you when you needed it. With that in mind, a couple years ago, I had an epiphany of sorts. I realized, after missing many, many wonderful photo opportunities, that picture quality didn’t really matter to me anymore. The fact that I actually had something to take the image, regardless of how it looked, became my main concern. The fact is that most images can be saved in post-processing using image editing software after the event, if need be. The ones that don’t look so hot…well…they become artsy using black and white or funky colors.  I absolutely believe this and I have certainly missed more than my fair share of great photo opportunities by not being prepared.  Those days are over for me. These days I’m better prepared and more than over-joyed at the oddball, goofy, or cool pictures I’m able to get simply by changing my equipment perspective and priorities.

In the old days (a couple years ago) I owned a giant digital camera and that was it. I used the digital camera for artsy-type pictures and family events but is was huge and heavy; very impractical for tossing into a backpack  or keeping close by while going about the day to day stuff. In “emergencies” I tried relying on the camera built into one of Windows Mobile phones I usually had with me but the pictures were terrible. Barely viewable, in fact. It was the pits.  That all changed when I got my first iPhone. The original iPhone shipped with a 2 megapixel camera that actually wasn’t terrible. If you held it completely steady and had decent lighting conditions you just might get a decent (not wonderful) picture. More times than not, you still can. So for the last couple of years my iPhone has been my go-to camera in emergencies or when I need to get a photo somewhere quickly via the internet or sms phone service. It also comes in handy for live-blogging events/travel and a couple other reasons, which I’ll go into in a later article. Needless to say…I still use the iPhone as a portable photo device but I’ve also moved on.

After sitting back and analyzing my photo libraries, I noticed that I used my iPhone to take pictures a whole heck of a lot.   Although I was thankful to have had the iPhone when I needed it, I couldn’t help but notice that some of the photos were pretty nasty when I compared them to my “real” cameras, so I decided to do something about that. I set out on a massive search for the perfect everyday carry camera and here’s what I came up with. The Canon (yes, I’m a Canon guy, ladies) PowerShot SD940 IS. The SD940 IS is really, really light  (roughly 4 ounces) and extremely small (1/2 inch thick and exactly the size of a credit card) yet it takes fantastic 12.1 megapixel photographs. In fact, it’s so small that every morning I slip it into my pants pocket (insert joke here) and forget it’s there till I stumble on something that begs to have it’s picture taken. It’s really a fantastic day to day camera. Sure, the images are not of the same pristine quality I’m used to getting with one of my more complicated, larger Canon Digital SLR’s, but it’s always within arm’s reach and always ready to go. That’s what makes this little guy the best camera that I own. I’d highly recommend getting a small, pocketable camera to anyone but especially if you’ve got kid or grandkids. You don’t ever get those precious moments back (and it just breaks my heart to see parents/grand parents taking crappy cellphone pictures of special evens.  What are you waiting for? Go make some special memories!

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We recently visited Cantigny Park in Wheaton, Illinois, which is home to the First Division Museum (Big Red One) and a fantastic tank park. You can walk amongst the tanks, touch them, hug them, climb on them, and kiss them, if you like. My kids loved it. The park itself is fantastic and a wonderful place to spend a nice sunny day. Besides the First Division Museum, there are tours available of the famous McCormick mansion, a great visitor’s center, places to eat, lots and lots of beautiful gardens to stroll, a nice golf course, group camping, and a whole lot more. (A quick tip: while at the visitor’s center be sure to check out the massive park model under glass, built into the floor. Awesome!). Admission to the park is a measly $5 per car and includes admission to both museums. On the park’s website there is a giant schedule of events (classes, live music, etc) and Cantigny Park is extremely Cub Scout/Boy Scout friendly as they offer several events for both programs. (That’s how I found it….stayed overnight with the Boy Scouts in 1984. ) Cantigny Park is truly a hidden gem and a must see.

A few of the many tanks on display. More photos to come later.

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Ok. I’m testing my new website templates. I’m digging the legos. Looks ok.

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