Photos taken on a golf course close to home. These photos were processed with High Dynanic Range (HDR) imaging.
Click on the images once (in the Gallery at the bottom) to see them at mid-size and twice to see them full-size.
View looking back toward the first tee and clubhouse.
View looking from the eighth tee toward the green.
“…and I’m sitting here on Capitol Hill.”
Yours truly has decided what he’s going to be for Halloween and it’s Bill from the School House Rock days. You remember School House Rock on Saturday mornings on ABC, don’t you? Those three-minute educational cartoon segments a few minutes before each hour and between your favorite cartoon shows, like Superfriends from the Hall of Justice? 
I drove all over town on Sunday trying to find all my required materials and after purchasing everything, there was one big problem I foresaw myself running into….How am I going to eat and drink wearing Mickey Mouse hands and my face covered with foam? So I might have some rethinking to do.
My costume will consist of a foam mattress cover that will wrap around my body. I bought a queen-sized (how apropo, huh?) cover, mickey mouse hands, a red ribbon for tying around the bill, and black stick-on letters B, I, and two L’s. For the red, white and blue button, I’ll be fastening a blue plastic plate and red plastic plate with white duct tape, on which the lettering will be stuck. There were thoughts of wearing white tights, but I quickly dropped that idea and went with white sweat pants instead, since I already own a pair. For the arms, I’ll probably wear a white long-sleeve turtleneck and my white tennis shoes.
My original intent was to go strictly with a drawn on mouth with no opening, but I’ll be wanting to snack on appetizers while at the parties, and of course be able to drink. The eyes were going to be through small holes that will have screening over them to hide my eyes, but still allow me to see out. So we’ll see how this works out. I may have to scrap the idea entirely. I also have to see how “yellow” I look wrapped in this foam. If I look too yellow, I’ll have to write “ENDA” or “DADT” on the backside of me and tell people that since I’ve been sitting in committee for so long, I’ve begun to “yellow.” Or as someone else said to me, “Tell them you’re a bill that was written on parchment paper.”
I am also debating which party to attend this weekend….whether the WSGA Halloween Party or an Oktoberfest fundraiser. But I may be stuck with the fundraiser. A friend suggested that I be the photographer for the evening. They were also thinking of having one of those boards that you stick your heads through that makes it look like you’re Hercules, or maybe for an Oktoberfest theme they’ll have Germans holding their steins up in a toast and I would take pictures of them at the board.
It was interesting to note that after checking out my “Dashboard” here on WordPress that someone who googled the phrase “trailer park costume ideas” yesterday was redirected to my blog. Hmmmmm.
It is an observation that I have noted since President Obama has taken office and I have been trying to pinpoint where it has stemmed from and who or what is to blame for it. I was going to start a list of observations, but I didn’t exactly have a mobile list to work from whenever something came to mind. For the longest time, I thought it was something that was started by members of the Republican Party. But when looking at it from a whole, others seemed to be to blame for it, including President Obama himself. And I don’t think that either party can claim being responsible for starting this first.
But since President Obama has taken office, there seems to be this “casualness” of the Presidency. A casualness where there is no longer this reverence associated with the actual person or the Office. Here are some examples:
President Obama has made himself available to the late night talk show circuit – something that I don’t remember with any other former sitting President. I recall candidate Bill Clinton making a surprise appearance on “The Arsenio Hall Show” wearing dark sunglasses and playing “Heartbreak Hotel” on his saxophone. But this was in 1992 during his first campaign for Presidency. I just never recall seeing a President appear on talk shows or late night shows. Particular
And we can’t forget when Republican Congressman Joe Wilson from South Carolina yelled, “You Lie!” to President Obama during his address to Congress. If something like that was said twenty years ago, the congressman would have been run out of town. What I couldn’t believe was how partisan it became when the thought of admonishing Wilson was suggested. Republican party leaders would have suggested the same thing had it been the other way around. I even read one blogger who thought it was a double standard when the outgoing President Bush was “booed” when introduced during President Obama’s inauguration speech. Even I thought it was a bit tacky and rude considering he was finally headed out of office, but this was a “boo” that was heard from numerous people, people who were out in the sea of millions who attended the Inauguration. You can’t exactly pinpoint who was responsible.
I think the Presidency will lose its importance and the associated reverence that it has had if these habits continue. The Presidency is hard enough as it is, whether you’re Democrat or Republican, but if the job loses the respect it deserves, who would want to take on this position? And if no one wants to run for the Office, we’d get someone who mounts Alaskan moose or salmon on the walls or bear skin rugs on the floor of the Oval Office. And the President couldn’t claim to be able to see Russia from her (White) house. 
Even before President Obama, I think the Presidency began to lose its “luster.” If only today’s 6 year-old children who want to be President knew what they were getting themselves into 29 years later.
It was something that was discussed on another fellow blogger’s blog just recently and that is when it hit me in the stomach as to what happened to this whole past summer. Everything was basically a blur from April until now, filled with too many “what if’s”, and putting my life on hold.
August 27th was supposed to mark the end, but it seemed like it was just another continuance. To get my mind off the perils I faced, I got myself totally engrossed in my photography. With all the editing and tweaking of my photos, the days would disappear as fast as they came. This past month, there were some days I would hit the road and drive. Most of the time to Chicago. After spending a few hours there, I’d try and catch dinner with my brother, missing him most of the time. But one day, I thought of the idea to hit the CTA rail system along the expressways and catch photos of headlight or brake light trails. After a few trains passed, I was told I had to get off the platform as I wasn’t allowed to take photos there. Then I tried to make due with what I could capture from bridges and viaducts. The unfortunate circumstance was that it was a steady misty rain that evening. My next trip to Chicago I want to be primarily at night and catch some downtown nightlife shots and shots of the architecture. Last Sunday the 27th was one of those “spur of the moment” trips to Chicago. I was too happy to get some great panoramic shots of the Chicago skyline as I was way out into the lake by the Adler Planetarium. There was also the trip to the Sears (Willis) Tower Skydeck where I had to check out “The Ledge.” For those of you unfamiliar with The Ledge, the Sears Tower’s skydeck was outfitted with three glass enclosures that extend beyond the exterior facade of the building. See one of the photos I captured where I was standing in one of the glass enclosures and photographed people in the two adjoining ones.
Due to what was financially-draining, all of my major home projects were put on hold, including adding a shower to the upstairs bathroom and having the driveway repaved. Literally, I need to get my house in order as it is getting really cluttered. Lots of clothes that need to be thinned out of my closet as well. I bought a euphonium about two months ago that I thought was going to get me out of my funk, but I have only played it two or three times. I need to play that more often. I always wanted to be accomplished at playing an instrument and while I’ve played only once a year most of my adult life (at Homecoming at U of I) on a school instrument, I am hoping that having my own instrument now will give me the added push. When I grew up I was a trombone player, but Dad and my nieces are playing that now.
Mom’s been by the house quite a bit as of late and I have a feeling she knows something has been bothering me. I’ve continued to tell her everything is fine. But wearing this “facade” has been exhausting. It reminds me of when she “broke me down” and got me to come out to her back in the late 90’s. Hard to believe it was 14 years ago.
Work has been very busy since July. We had early retirement offered to many employees who took advantage of it and then most recently we had an additional 50 people laid off. It’s made things crazy here with being short-staffed and people are “on edge.” I let the registration for participating with the Alumni Band at Homecoming and securing a hotel room escape me, so I will not be attending Homecoming this year, which may be for the better. They haven’t had a winning record as of yet and I could save some money. Attending by myself has not made it the most fun either. Granted there’s tons of alumni to be with, but when the alumni are there with loved ones and children, you feel out of place. Looking forward to spending more time in the neighborhood and not on the road trying to get lost.
After hearing my latest “notification” signal that I received a new e-mail in my Outlook Inbox at work, my heart skipped a beat when I read the subject line:
“An invitation to lunch at Buddy Guy’s during the IML Conference.”
I bet close to 90% of my readers know what IML stands for in the gay community, but what a relief when IML was actually referring to “Illinois Municipal League.”
I thought to myself, “How the heck did someone from International Mr. Leather get hold of my work e-mail address??!!” Granted I knew that the IML gathering in Chicago was a while ago already, but it still was an eye-opener. 
What a relief!
(exhaling)
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