Ringing out 2008 watching Drake take on Missouri State

The men's Bulldog basketball team got their tenth win showing some excellent defense against the Missouri State Bears, 67-49. I've been trying to get images of the team members in some game action this year. By the numbers, 3 is Craig Stanley, 23 is Josh Parker, 22 is Bill Eaddy, and 44 is Adam Templeton. Most of these guys are new to the lineup this year so it's been fun to watch their game develop and how they work as a team.

Playing with my camera: Black and White

Linda was driving us to a family get together so I had time to play a little more with my camera. I'd never tried setting it for black and white so I gave it a try. It was fairly late in the day and we were goin' a mile a minute (or more) so I wasn't sure what I'd get just shooting out the window. When I got home, this image really caught my eye. I'm not sure that I'll be taking a lot of black and white images but I now know how; the question now is will I know when.

Checking on the Iowa Energy

Linda and I try to get to at least one game by each of our home town teams each season so we stopped in to see the 2008-09 Iowa Energy NBA Developmental League team. Not being big fans of the NBA, the names weren't familiar but the play was entertaining. It's interesting to see the difference in style of the NBA versus the NCAA games at the Knapp Center. The individual talents that are showcased at the Energy games are impressive while the teamwork and sustained hustle of the Bulldogs draws me in more.

Hangin' out in a Christmas Kitchen

Linda and Ashley were going to be working on Christmas treats so, of course, I hustled on over to "help." I generally got to help photo document the process; Ashley had brought her camera as well so there were plenty of shots being taken of the proceedings. My cooking help was generally the tasks given to trustworthy early elementary school age kids: unwrap the chocolates, carry the cookies to the refrigerator, etc. Fortunately, like the kids given these essential tasks, I was forgiven for the occasional quality control sampling of the goods.

Playing with my camera: Christmas Tree

Linda's Christmas tree had so many fun angles and nice little corners to shoot that I brought out my camera and took a few shots. It got me thinking about how our respective trees decorations differed. Mine have always been pretty stock, pretty standard collections of similar / identical balls, garland, what have you; looking around Linda's tree, I didn't see two ornaments that were the same. There were a couple of similar cross-stitch mounting ring things but the actual cross-stitch designs were done in different years. Linda knew when each of her ornaments had first hung on her trees and the story behind how it came to be, what it represented to her. It was nice to learn the lore.

Watching Drake's HyVee Classic First Round Game

Josh Young led the Drake Bulldogs with a 26 point contribution to win 84-73 over Georgia Southern. Josh has been an exciting player the last couple of years and lived up to that reputation in this game. Josh maintained his high caliber of three-point shooting making four of seven from long range as well as ten of twelve from the free-throw line.

Witnessing an NCAA Mens Basketball Record Tying Performance

Linda and I went to see the first round men's basketball game but arrived in time to see an NCAA men's basketball record tied. Ben Woodside of North Dakota State University put on an amazing performance in the early game against Stephen F. Austin University. Woodside put on an impressive display scoring 60 of the Bison's 111 points. Along the way, he MADE 30 of 35 free throws tying the NCAA single-game record set by LSU's "Pistol" Pete Maravich forty years prior! While we weren't aware of the record, we did enjoy the triple overtime game that was in doubt until the final buzzer sounded.

Watching Drake Host Texas Pan American

Linda and I returned to the Knapp Center to see the Drake Bulldogs take on Texas-Pan American in the opening round of the Iowa Realty Invitational basketball tournament. The game was hard fought and Drake trailed often and, with under four minutes left in the game, was down 49-56. The 'dogs showed some grit and fought their way back to even the score at 57 before scoring the final basket of the game in the closing seconds. It was quite a game and showed that this team could rally late.

Tipping off the Drake Men's Basketball Season

Last year, the Drake men's basketball team did SO well that Linda and I wondered what the team would be like this year. We finally got to see a game and were treated to that familiar Knapp Center energy. With the Bulldogs winning three of the first four games, the crowd was already enthusiastic. Most of the players were familiar; it was good to see them back on the court. The game was generally close and didn't have the scoring spurts that we'd seen before. Instead, Drake pulled ahead a point or two at a time to ultimately win 75-65. It was good to see the new team and be back at the Knapp.

Watching Drake host Morehead State

Linda and I braved a chilly day to see the final home game of the Drake football season. Morehead State was in town and the Bulldogs were looking to get back above .500 for the season. Drake got off to a slow start and fell behind 0-3 at the end of the first quarter. The second went more Drake's way as they scored 17 while giving up two more field goals. Morehead scored a touchdown in the fourth to them within two, 15-17. Their two point conversion failed so the score stood; another field goal would put Drake behind. Drake's defense rose to the occasion as it scored the final points forcing a safety in the closing minutes. It was a nice way to close out the home season.

Checking the new Urbandale Football Stadium

Earlier in the season, Urbandale opened their new football stadium and track. Linda and I thought about going one evening but it was pouring rain so we opted out. This time, it was a beautiful autumn evening AND part of the 4A playoffs. This game pitted the Johnston Dragons, who we'd seen play earlier in the season, against the Dowling Maroons, a local team with a long history of success. The game went well and came down to the final possession. Johnston trailed but had the ball and was driving when time ran out.

Visiting Howell's with Mom and Dad

Mom and Dad came to town and Linda and I took them out to Howell's Dried Florals and Greenhouse. One of the Register's 100 Places to Visit, it had a number of things to attract us. Linda and I enjoy looking around at the various items. Mom liked browsing through the dried florals. Several of the items in the barn reminded Mom and Dad of things they or their parents had used at one point or another. Similarly, the various older tractors outside caught Dad's attention. Of course, there's plenty to photograph so we all had a good time.

I posted the first time that Linda and I visited Howell's. You can find that post here.

Taking in Drake AND Iowa State Football Games

TWO games in ONE day? Yep... without really trying! Linda and I like to get out on nice autumn days and this was one not to miss. We sat in the sun at Drake Stadium and watched the Bulldogs match wits with Davidson, a pretty consistent power in the Pioneer League. The game was a pretty even affair but ended with Drake up 20-17... my favorite ending!
Later that afternoon, we hooked up with a friend of mine who had two extra tickets that we could use so we made the drive up to Ames to see the Cyclones take on Texas A & M. It was more of the big time football experience: excellent marching band before the game and at half time, extremely geared fans, good football, and, when the going gets tough, the voice of dissent. Iowa State ended up on the short end of the score but we had a good time!

Spending the evening at Party Town

The Waterloo Black Hawks play hockey at Young Arena and one of their traditions is to blast Glenn Fry's Party Town over the public address system as the crowd keeps rhythem with their cowbells. This evening, Linda and I brought Ashley and Travis to the game. Buying tickets so late limited our seat selection but it turned out to be quite an evening. We were down near the glass way down in a corner so we had an excellent view of one goal and not so great of the other.

The people watching turned out to be as memorable as the game. The guy next to me would turn to me for a high five after every Black Hawks goal ... and there were several of those. A family of four or five was sitting / standing along the glass and one of the boys begged his mom for a slice of pizza; she got popcorn for him. When she told him to clean a some kernals he'd spilled, he said "Wouldn't have spilled pizza..."

It was quite an evening.

"Helping" with a photo shoot

Ashley wanted a photo to use on her blog and asked Linda and me if we would take some photos for her. She had a general look and location in mind so we felt like we had a decent chance of pulling this off. As I understood it, the top image is reasonably representative of what we were aiming for. My shots were mostly just for my benefit; Linda had the responsibility for the project camera and the preferred angles. Of course, once you're on site, take a few shots, and review them, it's pretty common to wonder if you really got what you had in mind. With that question in mind and a little creativity, we were soon trying a few other shots. Of course, with two people and a puppy, it's tough to capture that moment when everyone's right. In the end, the image in the lower right is the one that I remember and like best. Ashley did use a shot like the one at the top but has since changed a time or two again. None the less, it was a good time out on an autumn day.

Meeting Mowgli

Linda and I visited Ashley and Travis and got to meet their puppy Mowgli, a male Canaan dog. He's a playful dog with a very nice near white coat. The hair of his coat feels a little coarse or stiff but lays down smoothly so he's nice to pet. He's learning a lot... and so are Ashley and Travis; Cesar Millan's Dog Whisperer has shown them several good (and bad) ideas for raising a dog you'd want to have around. They're doing a very nice job as Mowgli is a treat to meet.

Shooting the Grundy County Courthouse in Daylight

A while back I posted a night photo of the Grundy County Courthouse. Linda and I were passing through in the morning so I took this shot to supplement the earlier post. I like all the variety in surfaces of this courthouse. Most of the newer structures are pretty boxlike; this has curves and the clock tower; pretty asymmetric to keep my eye entertained and my mind wondering about the layout. Anyway, while I liked the glowing night shot, I'm glad to get a daytime image posted as well.

Visiting the Dragon's Den

In the spring, Linda and I went to see the Johnston Dragons win the state baseball championship. This fall, the football team was off to a great start and, this weekend, was going up against another highly rated team, Ankeny. Having not been to the Johnston field, we set out for our second high school football game of the year. The teams looked sharp and generally played well. Johnston never figured out how to stop Ankeny's running game so, by half time, the score was getting a little out of hand. Halftime adjustments didn't fix the problem and Ankeny rolled on. It was still a nice autumn evening out.

Shooting the Poweshiek County Courthouse

Montezuma is the county seat of Poweshiek County and this is their courthouse. It looks more like a school than what I think of as a courthouse. Maybe it looks more New England than Midwestern to me. Whatever it is, it's a nice looking courthouse located on the square.

Touring Cedar Rock, The Walters Residence

In 1948, construction of their home near Quasqueton began. The Frank Lloyd Wright designed home and boathouse were to be set along the Wapsipinicon River. Mr. Wright chose and positioned practically every detail of this property including the plants in the yard and the vases on the shelves. Contruction started by stripping the area to bedrock and then building it back up again; quite a project. In the end, it is quite an impressive statement of his vision. Fortunately, the Walters lived in the house as it was designed and saw that it would be preserved as Mr. Wright saw it.

It's a great stop on the list of 100 Places in Iowa and you'll get to tell people it's near Quasqueton, along the Wapsipinicon, two of my favorite place names in Iowa.