The night before Christmas...

Purely Angelic

Girls from First Christian Church in Louisville rehearse their annual Christmas Pageant.

Bring on the Rock (school)

My son Josh had his first ever concert last Sunday at a local club. Josh is enrolled in a program called Rock School thru a local music store called Mom's Music. The concert is the culmination of the 8 week program. Josh is singer and bassist.

I was a full-time touring professional musician for many years. To see my 15 yr. old son get up and do his thing was a great experience. I'm not quite ready to say I'm passing the torch (I'm touring in Brazil in April with the Christian rock band Bride), but I'm happy to say it's now Josh's turn.

Josh, keep it in perspective...

Christmas Program

Last Tues. was the annual Christmas program at my 5yr. old's school. My wife and daughter are transfixed on the program.

It's one of the best Christmas events of the year.

Strong Hug

My son John likes to give a strong hug before he goes to bed. The stronger the hug, the more love behind it.
I like that.

Community Support

First Christian Church in Louisville, KY is reaching out to it's community by providing food for those who need it.

Once a month church volunteers rent a truck, drive across town to pick up a truckload of food from the Dare To Care food bank, unload, categorize, count, and bag it at the church, and then carry the food out to the vehicles of it's clients. FCC also provides school supplies to families, and will help provide Christmas presents to food pantry clients and their children.

It's a great practical way to help those in the community during these uncertain economic times.

Helping Hands

Did another EDGE photo shoot. Each pair of hands is holding something that relates to EDGE's outreach ministries.

Halloween Party At The Zoo

We had a great time at the annual Halloween Party at the Louisville Zoo. John was a transformer and Grace was Hannah Montana. I was the unbearably annoying paparazzi...

Princess

How much longer will my little girl be ok with using the Princess mirror hanging on her pink bedroom wall? I have a feeling it's days are numbered...

EDGE Water Conference 2008

I recently photographed the EDGE International Water Conference 2008. EDGE is an awesome organization comprised of singularly driven people working to provide clean drinking water to those in developing countries.

Here are some stats lifted from EDGE's website (edgeoutreach.com).

The World Health Organization says that 80% of all sickness in the world is attributable to unsafe water and inadequate sanitation.

A child dies every fifteen seconds from disease due to unsafe drinking water, poor sanitation and hygiene. — UNICEF

"The World Bank is throwing billions of dollars at this problem. What we need is people giving $1,000 towards a village to solve the problem."

Peter Gleick, President of Pacific Institute, Author, The Worlds Water.

EDGE's PureWater PureLife is about hands-on training. We teach ordinary people, missionaries, mission teams, relief workers and students to test water, implement community health education programs, build mini water treatment plants, utilize electric pumps in the field, and repair hand pumps.

We realize the way to solve the world's water problems is not a single one. We believe we must be well equipped in a variety of areas to empower indigenous people to provide pure water for themselves.



Here are a few shots from the conference:

Oktoberfest

Just shot Oktoberfest on 4th St. in Louisville. 4th Street was blocked off and a stage was erected in the street. Vendors lined both sides of 4th St.

There was lots of beer and kraut and polka music. I've got all kinds of shots of all kinds of characters, but somehow I like this photo of dancers dancing in the street after dark.

Better

John has rebounded in a pretty remarkable way. We got to spend some time out of the house at a fall festival hosted at a local university.

Sick

My 5 yr. old son John has been sick the last few days. We've taken him to the doctor a couple of times but he's still not feeling any better.

I can't think of a more helpless feeling than having a sick child.

Reluctant Participant

We spent the afternoon at the local International Festival. My 7 yr. old was not impressed...

Back to Basics

On Sept. 14th an unprecedented wind storm here in the Kentuckiana area courtesy of Hurricane Ike had 300,000 homes without power. We experienced 75 mph winds that took down countless trees, signs, and power lines and left many without electricity; some for a week or more.

My family was among the lucky ones: we lost power for only half a day. The vast majority in my neighborhood spent a week in the dark. Kids were out of school, and my wife and I missed a couple of days of work due to the outage.

As of this writing I know friends who are still without power. I recognize how frustrating, trying, and taxing this must be. I’m more than certain I’d be going more than a little crazy.

But, during the time when those in my neighborhood were without power, I saw families venture out and do some things that we probably should have been doing all along. The forced respite from tv, computers, and stereos sent us outside to meet and help neighbors. People sat on porches and talked while children played together. Many in our neighborhood re-discovered the nearby park, and the joy of going out and playing with our children.

The lack of power in my neighborhood revealed a power of another kind: the power found in community and relationships.

It kind of felt like how things were when I was a kid.

Hog's Tavern (redux)

The past weekend my band played at Hog's Tavern again (see Aug. 9th post). This time we played the parking lot during Lanesville's annual Heritage Festival. This gentleman worked up a sweat while drumming in the band that played before us.

I'm not sure what the Portland Ironheads are, but my money says it has something to do with motorcycles....

Kentucky Country Jamboree '08

I recently covered the Kentucky Country Jamboree in Louisville. The music was good, but I sure miss the rootsy sound of old country like Merle Haggard and George Jones.

Here are a few random photos from the festival:

Bedtime

Like most, I'm busier than I want to be. Much of my spent time and energy ultimately amounts to pissing in the wind.

Then there are those moments when all that is important becomes sharply focused right in front of me.

Stay this moment...

Hog's Tavern

Last night we played at a bar called Hog's Tavern in Lanesville, IN. Hog's is an honest to God biker bar with all the trimmings... Stuffed hog heads adorn the walls and tattoos are the norm.

This kind of place is not at all my usual hangout, but I have to say the people were great and we had a lot of fun.

I did meet a girl who confided that she has a Tama drumset complete with Zildjian cymbals tattooed on the left cheek of her ass.

I didn't hang around to confirm...

Here we go...

Been threatening to start a blog for a while. I'm a freelance photographer/musician/theologian. I plan to use this space to unload things that are happening in my life.

I'll start off with a few random photos from my most recent assignment: the Bisig Bluegrass Festival in Louisville, KY.

It was a hot couple of days, but the brew was flowing and the BBQ was great.

Really, nothing gets the blood pumping like well done bluegrass.









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