Wintry mix

Last night Gus provided me with more entertainment than usual. He was quite perplexed by the snow storm that we got because he could hear and see the snowflakes hitting my bedroom window but, no matter how hard he tried, he could not capture any.

Holiday time

I have been terribly remiss and have not been posting...sorry! I have been busy writing papers, and have been down with a little cold this week. Things are going well, Thanksgiving was fun and it was a much needed break. I can't wait for the semester to be over, here is Gus wishing you a Merry Christmas/Happy Hanuka next to his favorite little Christmas tree that he likes to chew on...he is crazy :)

End of the Season

My parents and I headed up to St. Ignace this weekend for a wedding just before the season officially ended for the town. We had a nice visit with family and it was neat being Up North so late in the season. We aren't usually up there in the Fall and even though most of the leaves had changed it was still really beautiful. We got to go to our favorite breakfast spot, Java Joe's, one more time, and the wedding and reception were fun. It is always interesting watching the girls waiting for the bouquet to be tossed, and this time two of the little girls were fighting over said bouquet. We stayed at my Uncles' motel on Lake Huron and woke up Sunday morning to a huge storm front rolling in.

Haab's Restaurant Anniversary

Haab's Restaurant in Ypsilanti celebrates their anniversary on the third Monday of October each year. They lower the prices on their menu to reflect what guests might have paid in 1934 when the restaurant first opened.

The life of a cat

My cat has become more and more entertaining recently, I think I'm just easily amused. Anyway, here are a couple of him in his favorite cat house, which if you have a cat and you don't have one of these I recommend it they are about $8 from Ikea. There is also a shot from the Laugh Lounge an event that Campus Life puts on for students with local comedians.

Change we need rally - MSU

Last Thursday I got to see Obama in East Lansing. He came and spoke on MSU's campus, I skipped class to be able to go and it was really awesome. He was in Lansing once before and I missed it so I was determined to go this time. Frank got us tickets, and armed with my 200, we waited 3 hours in the cold somewhat rainy weather to hear him speak. Thousands of people crowded around the stage on Adams Field. Most of these are from when I was waiting for him to come speak. It was the first time I heard a presidential candidate speak live in my life, and I am really glad I had the opportunity to do it. I hope everyone registered to vote, the deadline has passed in Michigan. I'm not sure what it is in other states, but if you haven't registered yet DO IT! And if you are, don't forget to get an absentee ballot...it's really simple, I sent for mine and a week later I have already voted!

Playing dead

I'm sorry! I know I keep posting ridiculous pictures of my cat sleeping, but he is so cute. I was working on my computer, and I turned around to find him sleeping upside down, even his tail is sticking up :) Perhaps I am too easily amused, but hopefully you are all enjoying these pictures of him as much as I do.

Step Show

I never took the opportunity to shoot a Step Show when I was at Western, but I did not pass up on the opportunity when the assignment came up here. I had a really great time shooting this step show, it was a cultural experience for me which I loved. I am learning a lot about the campus and the different people represented here by shooting for the paper which is really good for me as a journalist. Something weird happened though, when I was walking in to this event and maybe some of you could offer me some insight. First of all, the place had every EMU police officer in or around the building which I found to be quite racist. So when I was trying to get in, the police officers kind of hassled me asking for a press pass, which we don't have and then my student ID. Fortunately, they let me in, but right as I was walking in one of them kind of laughed and said, "Oh, and Obama will be here in abut 10 minutes." I'm not sure what he meant by that, my first thought, was no...he's in Mississippi for the debate and then my second thought was, was that some sort of racist joke? I've talked about it with some people here, it just still doesn't sit right with me. I guess there is not a way to make logic out of racism. Aside from that, I really enjoyed myself and got to see some really interesting performances.

Turtles and toes

I shot the all-campus picnic at Eastern, and surprise surprise free food brought out some interesting people. I am a sucker for dogs so I hung out with this couple and their four-year-old Haley who was ever hopeful for a bite of food. Then I hung out with the musical entertainment for the event. These guys were very interesting, they said that they didn't have a name for the group officially, but that day they were thinking of The Chris Smith trio. Chris Smith is the guy jamming on the keyboard, the other guy was from Midland, small world. I just loved their expressions in this image, too bad I didn't get one I liked of the drummer because he had a unique look too. I hung out with Alex that photo editor at the Echo and his roommates, the one who's toes and tortoise are featured is Rob he also shoots pics for the paper. It was nice to meet some more people and I think I am going to enjoy working on the Echo this semester. The best part is it satisfies the journalist in me while I pursue other avenues in education.

Life's rough...

when you're a little cat. Just a cute one of my cat, Gus, taking a nap. He rests up during the day so he can terrorize me while I try to sleep at night. He's good company though, so I can't complain too much.

Keepin busy

I am really glad I decided to start shooting for the Eastern Echo, it keeps me shooting and therefore, it keeps me busy. The first three are from a piano/violin concert performed by a father and son duo. They were intense guys, I had fun and enjoyed listening to classical music. The other is just a feature I found on campus of a kid snoozing before class, he told me he gets to his art history class early so he can get take a nap because he needs. I hope everyone that checks this is doing well, and don't forget to register to vote/get your absentee ballots!

Fast-a-thon

During the month of Ramadan Muslim people fast, at Eastern the Muslim Student Association held their second annual fast-a-thon. This year they invited non-Muslim students to join them fasting yesterday from 5:40 am to 7:40 pm. For each non-Muslim student, money was donated to the organization Food Gatherers of Ann Arbor. I got to go to the meal where everyone broke their fast it was a really fun experience.

It feels like fall

It is starting to get chillier at night and the leaves are just about to turn. I love Fall, it is by far my favorite season. Here are a few from the past week or so. A feature I shot of sorority girls that live next door on their way to a party. Gus in his favorite spot in my apartment and a swallowtail butterfly in my parent's backyard.

Pease Auditorium

I have been watching construction progress on Pease Auditorium since I got to Eastern. I suggested that we do a story on the status of the construction project in the school paper, and they decided to go with it. This isn't the picture that I initially saw, but it will have to do. It turns out that they are supposed to be done with construction on the building in about a week, so it was a good idea to do the story :)

Labor Day Weekend

I can't believe the summer is actually officially over. I had such a blast this weekend, it seemed like it flew by. It was wonderful seeing Cass, and meeting Jim I wish we could have spent more time together. After lunch with them, I headed Up North. It was a long drive but I finally made it and the sunset was phenomenal. The rest of the weekend we basically stayed in the water all day. It was so gorgeous, and the weather was the best it has been all summer. The girls loved the beach, and so did I. Monday morning we got up and walked the Mackinac Bridge. It was really neat, and now I can say I have done it. There were tons of people, I am still proud of myself for walking all 5 miles! It was horrible leaving Monday because the weather was perfect, again. We took one last swim after the Bridge walk and packed up the cars and left. My mom, sister and I are planning one more trip before it gets too cold. I have my very first class as a Grad student tomorrow, wish me luck!