Z-Man

New Website, New Blog!

2009-12-02T15:17:00.004-06:00

For those of you who were wondering if I was ever going to update my blog again the answer is yes!
... Just not here.

Please visit Zac Lehr Photography which will serve as my new website and blog.

http://www.zaclehr.com/

Extra Special thanks to Michelle at Mockingbird Creative for the site's re-design.

Enjoy!

Jerry World!

2009-10-04T10:41:00.003-05:00

Went to the palace at Dallas (OK Arlington but it doesn't rhyme) last night for the Arkansas/Texas A&M game. Arkansas won 47-19 and Jerry World is AWESOME!

When I walked onto the field I was awestruck. I really can't describe it but I was speechless and the place is incredible.

The first photo is mine and thanks to Wesley, Marc and Bob for the photos I'm in.

Pea Ridge!

2009-09-27T18:58:00.004-05:00

I went to the Pea Ridge National Military Park this weekend on assignment. While I was there I shot a few extras.

Enjoy!

Bleeecht!

2009-09-23T11:56:00.002-05:00

Space!

2009-08-24T19:56:00.005-05:00

I went to Little Rock this weekend and visited the Space Exhibit at The Clinton Presidential Library and Museum with my family.

Before the going to space we fueled-up with lunch at the Flying Fish, a real favorite of mine. I had a 4-piece basket "Snappy", way too much food but delicious.

Then it was off to Space!
First thing we had to do was suit-up.

The boys:

And the girls:

The exhibit was just OK but it was pretty cool to go with our family friend Ed Jeter.
Ed worked for NASA during the Apollo Project and knew most of if not all of the astronauts including the ones who walked on the moon.
It was a fun afternoon but at the end we were all tuckered-out.

Enjoy!

Let's Roll!

2009-08-17T11:19:00.003-05:00

I awoke this morning to find my neighbors had been"rolled" during the night.

When I saw this it put a smile on my face, even though it was like 8 a.m. on a Monday morning.

Personally I have only been "rolling" once. It was when I was about 14 and we got caught. We got caught because it was only like 9:30 or 10 at night, way too early but we weren't allowed out much later than that.

I am ashamed to admit I did not even know my victims, they were friends of the friend I was with. When we got caught they were like "And who are you?"

How embarrassing.

Whew!

2009-08-14T13:08:00.004-05:00

You know sometimes a day at the office is more like a day at the lake.

Man, days like today I love my Job!

Les!

2009-08-13T12:33:00.014-05:00

Les Paul, A.K.A. "The Wizard of Waukesha", died today, he was 94.

Paul was a pioneer in the development of the solid-body electric guitar which "made the sound of rock and roll possible." He called his invention "The Log".

This design was marketed by the Gibson Guitar Corporation as the "Gibson Les Paul" and is still one of the most popular electric guitars ever made.

Here's an example of a 1959 Les Paul and a Les Paul Studio model

A few years ago when I decided to learn guitar I picked the "Paul" because it was the guitar Eric Clapton played on the "Beano" album, it was the guitar of choice for most of the musicians I was currently listening to and it looked really cool!

I ended up with a 1991 Black Les Paul Studio.

In addition to guitars, Les Paul's many recording innovations include overdubbing, delay effects such as "sound on sound" and tape delay, phasing effects, and multitrack recording. He is often credited as being the 'father of modern music'.

Les Paul is the only individual to share membership into the Grammy Hall of Fame, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the National Inventors Hall of Fame, and the National Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

For over twelve years, until just recently, Paul continued to perform two weekly New York shows with the Les Paul Trio, at The Iridium Jazz Club in New York City

I had planned to see him play if I ever made it to the Big Apple but I guess I waited too long.

R.I.P. Les Paul you will be missed.

Stadium!

2009-08-11T09:51:00.002-05:00

Just thought this was a cool photo.
Enjoy!

Betsy!

2009-08-07T14:34:00.004-05:00

Talk about job perks...
I got to ride in an 83-year-old fire truck this week!
Anyway here a few of the extras that didn't make the cut for print.

WHEEEEE!

Enjoy!

SDC!

2009-07-27T21:42:00.006-05:00

My buddy Don recently wrote about a trip he and his family took to Branson, MO and Silver Dollar City.

Back in the early 80's my family did the same thing. I don't remember a giant banjo or Butterfly Palace like what Don saw on his trip but we did do country music shows and the Silver Dollar City thing.

One of my favorite things at Silver Dollar City, other than Fire in the Hole and the Log Ride, was the old time family photo.

In the TinType photo above you see me (center) mom and dad on the left and grandma and grandpa on the right.

Here's one from another trip, from left, Greg, Barbara and Mark Friedman (family friends), mom, dad and me again.

Enjoy!

BoscoeDUCK?!

2009-07-22T16:16:00.013-05:00

So yesterday I am at Murphy Park in Springdale and the duck on the right in the photo above comes waddling up to me.

Another bread beggar you say? No say I.

This duck came up to me... are you ready...

WAGGING ITS TAIL!

It then proceeded to rub on my leg. It would not leave me alone and I have never seen another duck do this. I decided this must be the re-incarnation of Boscodog, "Boscoeduck".

BTW the duck on the left kept trying to make sweet, sweet love to Boscoeduck so I guess Boscoeduck is a girl duck.

Here's a photo of her giving the same treatment to some folks with bread.

There were more ducks at the park than I have ever seen there before.

These guys must have been from a cloning experiment gone wrong or ducks and rabbits have more in common than you think.

Last one

Enjoy!

Is it Real?

2009-07-16T11:40:00.013-05:00

Or is it Memorex?

Surely everyone remembers this commercial. If you don’t you’re probably too young to be reading my blog anyway.

I just finished restoring/rebuilding an all tube, circa 1962, Dynaco PAS-3 pre-amp and ST-70 amplifier. Actually I finished them almost a year ago but there was an electrical bug in the ST-70 I couldn’t find and I just now got around to enlisting professional help. The culprit? A bad ground. DUH!
Well I fired her up this week and OMG the sound is awesome.
Here’s a couple of photos of the finished ST-70.

When I bought this stuff a year ago my research told me, even though it was 47 years old and broken, it had the potential to put modern solid state systems to shame and was considered a “poor man’s” McIntosh. The PAS-3 was in working condition so all I had to do with it was have a tech go through it just to make sure I wasn’t going to burn the house down when I plugged it in.

The ST-70 however was a different story.

The unit was rough but the purchase price was pretty low so I bought it. First thing I did was completely disassemble the unit. I then replaced everything except the original transformers and power supply with new parts. I had the choice of upgrading the unit or keeping it stock and I chose to replace the old parts with new stock parts. I figured this was one of the most popular stereo amplifiers of all time why mess with a good thing. After spending a week or so trying to polish the rusted nickel finish on the unit I decide to have it sandblasted and powder coated. I then began re-assembly; it took me about a month.
Here’s a before and after of the restoration.

So... how's it sound?
Effing incredible!

For the techies The system is a Dynaco Pas-3, Dynaco ST-70 and Polk Audio Monitor Series 4 speakers. I am using a borrowed CD player and my iPod for input but will soon add a turntable (mine is broken beyond repair), an all tube FM tuner and a permanent CD player to replace the borrowed one.

Here's a photo of my listening room.

So you tell me, "Is it real? Or is it Memorex?" All I know is it sounds awesome.

Enjoy!

Billy!

2009-06-29T09:59:00.009-05:00

Billy Mays, one of America's great, died Sunday, he was 50.

I became a fan of Billy back in his OxiClean days, The product amazed me because, during his "Wow!" demo, I could never figure out where all that red dye went when Billy dumped the OxiClean in the fish bowl. He went on to enlighten us with the Awesome Auger, Zorbeez, Mighty Putty and countless other must have products.

This Spring Billy and Anthony Sullivan invited the T.V. viewer behind the scenes of their world on The Discovery Channel's Pitchmen. It was awesome and I was an instant fan.

Last night I read his son "Little" Billy had requested fans wear a blue shirt today in memory of his father.

Billy Mays, 1958-2009
I'll miss you Billy.

Dirty!

2009-06-14T12:17:00.002-05:00

I know they are just doing their job but it looks so pervy.

Near Miss!

2009-06-12T20:47:00.006-05:00

He had me in his sights, all the meanwhile dad is giving me the "thumbs-up!"

Thank Chebus mom was paying attention!

Wakarusa!

2009-06-07T23:08:00.004-05:00

Just got home from Wakarusa on Mulberry Mountian. The weather was great, the music incredible and the good times rolled. My only complaint was the stage next to my tent hosted trance music d.j.'s till sunrise each night so sleep was at a minimum. Highlights? Met G.E. Smith and saw the Black Crowes. Here are a few pix, more on my Flickr page.

Can't wait till next year.
Enjoy!

Boil!

2009-05-13T14:03:00.003-05:00

It's that timne of year again. All are welcome!
If you don't know me or where I live, drop a line and I'll talk you in.

Buzz B Q!

2009-05-13T13:29:00.007-05:00

Ok, I know I am late posting this but last weekend the Smokin' J's competed in our first BBQ contest, Buzz B Q.
We didn't win but we didn't finish last either and considering the weather (it was crap) I think we did ok. Next time, The Boardertown Bash in Fort Smith, we should win.
Here are a few photos from the contest. The rest can be found here.

Enjoy!

Cool Tools!

2009-05-04T16:33:00.004-05:00

This blog post is just a shout out for Kevin Kelly's Cool Tools, another blog I really enjoy.

The editors of the blog update it each weekday with a new "cool tool". I can't even begin to remember how many times I've seen an item on the blog and thought "Man, I need that."

I created the photo above at Tilt Shift Maker, a link I found on Cool Tools.

In addition to Cool Tools the rest of Kelly's website is pretty cool too.

If you haven't checked it out you should.

Enjoy!

A 24 hour Pork Butt!

2009-04-25T10:59:00.007-05:00

I smoked my first pork butt this weekend. It took a lot longer than I expected so I thought I would present this entry in the form of a timeline.

Friday, 9p.m., I prepped two pork butts with rub. Planning to start the smoker about 12 hours from now at 9 in the morning.

Saturday, 9:30 a.m., the meat is in the smoker, Pecan chunks are in the firebox or soaking in a bucket, the temperature is 46 degrees Fahrenheit; my goal is 190, just 144 short degrees to go.

Saturday, 10:30 a.m., something is wrong here, the temperature had come-up a few degrees but there’s no smoke, the smoker is cold.

Saturday, 10:32 a.m., the smoker was plugged into a non-functioning outlet. I have now plugged it into a working outlet.

Saturday, 11 a.m., still no smoke, turns out the GFI switch on the new outlet was tripped. I reset the outlet and “babysit” the smoker until I can smell smoke.

Saturday, 3 p.m., after three hours and several additions of wood I check the meat and refill the water. The temperature is about 136.

Saturday, 6p.m., 7 hours in to the cook, temperature is in the 140’s.

Saturday, 8 p.m., I hit 160 degrees and stop adding Pecan to the fire, just heat from here out.

Saturday, 10, p.m., I check the meat expecting to be in the 170-180 range, it’s not. The temperature has dropped down to
155.

Saturday, 11 p.m., Temperature is now in the low 140’s. I am worried and decide to switch to an outlet where an extension cord is not necessary. Maybe this will help.

Sunday, 12:15 a.m., Temp is now 147 and climbing slowly.

Sunday, 2 a.m., I have once again hit the 160 mark.

Sunday, 3:15 a.m., the temperature is at 167, my goal is 190, this is ridiculous, I am going to bed and will set my alarm to check the meat in a few hours.

Sunday, 5:30 a.m., 176 degrees, my pork butts have been smoking for 18 and a half hours and are still not done. I decide to check again in an hour or so.

Sunday, 7 a.m., still about 175-177, at this time I jam an instant read thermometer in the lid of the smoker and find out it is only cranking out about 190 degrees of heat. I make the executive decision to remove the butts, wrap them in foil and finish them in a 225-degree oven. Back to bed.

Sunday, 10:30 a.m., my alarm goes off on my meat thermometer, I have hit my mark the butts are at 190 degrees Fahrenheit. A smoking process that should have taken 12-14 hours had lasted 23 hours and 30 minutes. I am exhausted. I remove the butts from the oven and set the timer for a one-hour rest.

Sunday, 11:30 a.m., I open the foil, remove the butts, take some photos and begin to pull the pork. The bones just fall out and the meat is delicious. All in all I think the 24 hour pork butt is worth the effort but I will have to do some serious R&D to figure out why it took twice as long as necessary.

Enjoy!

Cool Sign!

2009-04-25T10:46:00.001-05:00

Changes!

2009-03-24T10:13:00.002-05:00

You may notice a few changes around here. The first one is I have added a Google search. You can find it at the top righthand corner of my blog.

The second change is I have added some advertising via Google's AdSense.

So if you need to search for something please use my Google search to the right and if you see an advertisement that interests you PLEASE click on it.

I know you, you know me!

2009-03-19T14:52:00.006-05:00

In my many years at the paper I have always watched for but never caught any of our feather friends at Murphy Park in Springdale crossing the street... Today I got my chance.

As I was cruising the park looking for a feature I spied this foursome walking down the street with a huge truck behind them. It cracked me up so I parked and got into position to take some photos.

By the time I got where I wanted to be the driver had gone around his moving roadblock, these animals had finished their journey from the park and they were gorging themselves on some berries or something across the street.

Like a duck to water I figured sooner or later they would be moving back to the park so here I sat until they decided lunch was finished and they were headed home... so I waited... and waited... then waited some more... and then this "Beatles-esque" photo appeared.

Very Abby Road.

Enjoy!

HOT! springs

2009-03-16T09:40:00.006-05:00

Spent the weekend in HOT! springs. I was invited to join Jason and Jeff (The Smokin' J's) at Jason's lake house on Lake Hamilton.

We also went to Oaklawn Park for the Rebel Stakes on Saturday. I only cashed two tickets in eleven races but they were big enough payoffs that I only was only down $16.40 at the end of the day.

Teddy!

2009-02-26T10:59:00.002-06:00

"...Please send this to as many people as you know, post it on facebook, do
whatever as long as everyone in the world can see this picture. It was
taken on Lundi Gras (Monday before Mardi Gras) right by Tipitinas before a
few of the parades..."

I opened my inbox to this wonderful photo and message this morning. So just doing my job. The photo is of my friend Ted, Theo of Theo's Pizza in New Orlenas and Richard Simmons, New Orleans native and American fitness personality who promotes weight-loss programs.

Sweat it to those oldies Ted. Sweat!

Please feel free to repost the photo as often as you wish.

Enjoy!

Uncle Bruce!

2009-02-23T10:07:00.008-06:00

I met my Uncle Bruce in Little Rock this weekend. Uncle Bruce is my father's brother and he lives in Wisconsin. I don't get to see him too often so it was nice to catch-up for a few hours. His kids, my cousins, seem to be doing great. It turns out I have a whole set of second cousins I have never met. Sounds like it's time for a family reunion to me.
So we met in Jacksonville at my parents coffee plant and then headed to lunch. We went to Shorty Smalls, the food was better than Chili's but not as good as Flying Fish.

One more photo of Me, Grandma and Uncle Bruce, Fall 1993, just before I was awarded my Eagle Scout.

Enjoy!

Home!

2009-02-02T11:16:00.006-06:00

Happy to be home but I wish I was still on vacation. I got home last night after dark. I looked anround and thought this isn't too bad. Well the photo is what I saw this morning. It is not as bad as some but all my neighbors have had a head start on cleaning up and created nice little piles of debris for the city to pick-up so my property looks like a ghetto crack house.

One last photo from my trip.
These people were holding a Sunday church service at Our Lady of Good Counsel Catholic Church in the Garden District in New Orleans yesterday. The catch is the church they are meeting at was closed by the Catholic Church as part of a "...post-Katrina reorganization of archdiocesan worship life, shrinking the regional church from 142 to 108 parishes..." but the congregation continues to meet and function even if they cant use their building and it is all very 60's protest/sit-in-esque.

Enjoy!

79-69... LSU!

2009-01-31T20:04:00.007-06:00

Arkansas lost to LSU at Baton Rouge tonight. This was the working part of my trip to New Orleans and I am glad its over. I posted a bunch of action photos to Behind the Lens, please be sure to check them out.

Tonight was the "A Century of Basketball" celebration at LSU and I guess these three guys were in the house in spirit... but

These two were here in body.

Also my friend Mark Saltz with The Advocate caught me acting like a giant wussy when I almost got killed in the first half of the game.

Thanks Mark!

HOB!

2009-01-31T01:13:00.005-06:00

Tonight we went to the House of Blues to see the Bustout Burlesque featuring International Burlesque Superstar, Catherine D'Lish.

After the show we headed back to the Garden District to the Le Bon Temps Roule Bar on Magazine. One of my favorite New Orleans musicians Walter Wolfman Washington was playing. He's on the right hand side of the photo but it was dark and I was using my iPhone as a camera so it kinda sucks.

Did I mention I was using an iPhone to take all these photos?

Here is a better photo of the Wolfman from the KBBF a few years ago.

Enjoy!

Easy Biggie!

2009-01-29T18:55:00.005-06:00

First day of my vacation in Fat City. Jammer had to work so I took the trolly downtown and walked around for few hours, listened to street music and came home on the bus. Big day! Here are some pics...

Enjoy!

Ice Ice Baby

2009-01-28T21:37:00.008-06:00

Northwest Arkansas experienced the "Ice Storm of the Decade" yesterday. Of course this storm arrived the same day I was scheduled to fly to New Orleans to see my buddy Jammer and take some much needed R&R.

Well I was supposed to leave at 11:45 Tuesday morning but ofcourse Mother Nature and American Airlines had different plans. My flight was rescheduled and rerouted and finally canceled. Okay bad weather... Yada, yada, yada.... I re-booked for 11:45 Wednesday morning.

Well it rained and sleeted and froze Tuesday night. I was the only person I know who did not lose my power and here is what I woke up to.

And yes, these are all photos of my house.

So today (Wednesday) I was confirmed on an 11:45 flight to New Orleans Via Dallas. I got up, got ready and went to the airport.

FYI, on Tuesday the weather was coming and on Wednesday the weather was here. I usually drive to the airport in about 25 minutes, yesterday it would have taken me 40 and today... two hours! That's right 25 miles on pure ice behind some jackass who would not go faster than 15 mph and then stopped in the middle of a goddamn hill... Why???? I have no f'ing idea!

Of course... I was stuck. I had to back down the hill and get a running start. I passed the jackass and gave a good long horn blast. The only bit of good feeling I had was that this idot was also stuck on the same hill but too dumb to back-up and try again. He was just spinning his tires.

So I got to the airport and checked in. They told me if I went through Dallas I would probably spend the night there. My options were Chicago O'Hare or St. Louis Lambert.

I know from experience that O'Hare is about the most messed-up airport I have ever been to so I picked St. Louis.

Long story short... I arrived in New Orleans at 7 p.m. and Jammer and I ate a great dinner at Mandina's in Mid-City. Whew!

WTF!

2009-01-22T15:04:00.004-06:00

I am not sure what is going on here but this guy was dancing around, banging a hand drum before he knelt to the ground in "prayer". I think this monkey is about to immolate himself Buddhist Monk style. I'll never know if he lit himself on fire or not because the traffic light turned green and I mashed the accelerator.

Stupid Monkey!

Psst!

2009-01-08T10:59:00.005-06:00

Hey buddy need a watch?

If you do let me know because I've got two of them I need to sell for a friend.

Number one is a Victorinox Dive Master 500 Limited Edition titanium dive watch. It is number 514 of 900, very cool and very collectable.

Number two is a Victorinox Chrono Classic TT dress watch, also very cool.

Both watches are brand new and have never been worn.

Let me know.

Horns Down!

2009-01-06T23:11:00.011-06:00

Went to watch Arkansas' 67-61 victory over #7 Texas tonight at Bud Walton Arena, The Basketball Palace of Mid-America! It was awesome! My buddy Drew got some tickets and I took the pick of our VICTORY with my iPhone.

At first the seats (which were great) were just ok compared to my normal sideline press-pass but then I noticed a grey-haired man a few rows in front of us...

That's right former Arkansas, former Oklahoma basketball coach Eddie Sutton!

If row 10 section 102 is good enough for Eddie it is good enough for me. (BTW he is in the photo, lower right quarter)

Go Hogs!

myPhone!

2008-12-01T17:08:00.001-06:00

I am iPhoned!

And yes the picture is the South Park version of me!

$700,000,000,000!

2008-11-26T21:19:00.008-06:00

So while I was driving to Little Rock tonight from Fayetteville for Thanksgiving I got thinking. I was thinking "How long will it take our government to print the $700 billion dollars for the bailout?"

After a few well placed clicks of the mouse at my parent's house I think I may have the answer.

According to the "Innerwebs" the United State of America can print 37 million notes a day and the present denominations of our currency in production are $1, $2, $5, $10, $20, $50 and $100.

So assuming we print the bills seven days a week with no breaks for holidays and weekends...

If we print the "700 billion" in One Dollar bills it would take us 18,919* days or about 52 years.

If we print the "700 billion" in Two Dollar bills it would take us 9,459* days or about 26 years.

If we print the "700 billion" in Five Dollar bills it would take us 3,784* days or about 10 years.

If we print the "700 billion" in Ten Dollar bills it would take us 1,892* days or about 5 years.

If we print the "700 billion" in Twenty Dollar bills it would take us 946* days or about 3 years.

If we print the "700 billion" in Fifty Dollar bills it would take us 378* days or about 1 year.

If we print the "700 billion" in One Hundred Dollar bills it would take us 189* days or about six months.

I vote for the "Benjamins"

*All figures are rounded to the nearest whole number.

Stark Vegas!

2008-11-22T21:21:00.008-06:00

Back from Stark Vegas Baby! A beautiful day for photography, a bad day to be a Razorback. It was another "nail biter" and you can read about it here if you want.
I did learn some things on my trip.

Their mascot is named Bully

Big foot is a fan (like we didn't know he was from Mississippi)

And they like to do push-ups because it means they are scoring points

Of course there was a football game and Arkansas lost 28-31.
Nathan Dick was quarterback and I guess a win was not in the cards today. This loss also means Arkansas will not be bowl eligible this year.

Enjoy!

FANtastic!

2008-11-04T11:51:00.004-06:00

I went to my second Razorback football game as a fan in 12 years on Saturday. We played Tulsa so my friend Jeff, who is at TU Law School, came over for the game and Lee, who is a Canadian, also went. It was Lee's first ever "American" football game and I think he liked it.

Arkansas won 30-23, sorry Jeff.

Vote!

2008-10-24T16:28:00.006-05:00

I am proud to say I voted today and you should too!

I would share my votes here but I feel it may not be a good choice professionally since I do have to interact will all the local candidates, both those who I voted for and against, the winners and the losers, in the course of my business day...

So I will post a fun photo of Michelle I took a couple of years ago instead. She reminds me of Betsy Ross in this photo.

I feel good I have done my civic duty.

Chili!

2008-10-18T15:06:00.002-05:00

With a side of "Imodium AD" please.

Blues!

2008-10-13T16:40:00.020-05:00

Back home after a great vacation to the 2008 Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival in Helena Arkansas. This year the weather was perfect and the music was awesome.
One of my favorite parts of the festival is getting to see all my “KBBF” friends.

These are people who have been, for the most part, attending the event for a lot longer than me. They organize into groups of friends, old and new, at the campground. Tent City is one of these “communities” complete with a Mayor and Ghost Town is another. These are great people who are some of the friendliest you could ever meet. This year, as in year’s past, we camped next to Paul and Burkett.

Our group seems to grow each year and I think we were christened with a name this time around but I am not sure what it was.

As always the music was not to be missed.

A yearly highlight for me is Pinetop Perkins.

Pinetop is a piano player who played with Muddy Waters for many years.

This year, as in years past, He and Bob Margolin performed together Friday afternoon.

Reba Russell sang.

I really like old Fender amps

And everyone had a great time.

Enjoy!

Hook'em Horns!

2008-09-27T23:16:00.015-05:00

Just got back from Texas and it was a whipp'n! Arkansas lost 10-52. Now on to the good stuff.

For the record I was born in Texas but...

HOOK'EM HORNS!

That's right, Horns DOWN!

AAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGHHHH!

Bill Murray was at the game...

And happy to have his photo made with these guys.

BEVO!

Am I the only one who thinks Wesley should turn around?

And finally the best move of the game...

Take Two!

2008-09-26T21:08:00.003-05:00

My second shot at Video for the Morning News. I think it is pretty good and a lot better than my first effort.

If you dont recall my first effort, a short video about rain this spring, you aren't missing much. If you feel you mus see it here is a link.

Please enjoy my masterpiece.

A short video from the 2008 Bikes, Blues and BBQ in Fayetteville Arkansas.
Click here to view

BTW, This video would not be what it is without the extra video from Spencer and the production expertise of Michelle. Thanks guys.

2nd And 10!

2008-09-10T14:21:00.009-05:00

Two games down and ten to go.

Okay, I know this post is late but here are some photos from Arkansas’ 28-27 victory over Louisiana-Monroe in Little Rock last Saturday.

Highlights include:

London Crawford catching the ball but not making a catch because of a penalty,

Casey Dick losing his shoe,

And Michael Smith running the ball for a whole bunch of yards and two touchdowns.

And... Yes, I am that cool…

Draw Sucker!

2008-09-05T19:52:00.011-05:00

It was a good old fashion “wild-art” shoot-out at Parson’s Stadium in Springdale Today. That’s right, Jason Ivester, of the Democrat-Gazette, and I, of The Morning News, went head to head shooting the prep for monster truck races.

He was quick but so was I.

I hope he posts his photos to his blog so we can see who will reign supreme for the title of the Biggest Badass in Springdale.

Dreaming!

2008-09-04T15:43:00.002-05:00

I am dreaming of buying a new car. I want an SUV but I also want awesome gas mileage. So far a Kia Rio5 seems to fit the bill but I don't know if I can be seen driving a Kia and still feel like a man? What do you think?

Go Hogs!

2008-08-31T01:07:00.006-05:00

I Just finished shooting the Razorbacks vs. Western Illinois season opener. It was new head coach Bobby Petrino's first game and it was... well a football game.
I really thought Arkansas might lose this one but quarterback Casey Dick came alive in the second half and Arkansas won 28-24.

I <3 Strike!

2008-08-06T20:40:00.000-05:00

Tonight Strike almost got two, that's right, two children for dinner. I have yet to see him catch the kids at any game this season. He must be very hungry.

Flowers!

2008-08-05T15:50:00.004-05:00

The Fayetteville Farmer's Market, pretty morning light and sunflowers. How could I resist?

Enjoy!

Dragonfly!

2008-08-01T15:06:00.001-05:00

I shot this little guy yesterday during a golf tournament. I used a 300mm lens stopped down to about F/5.6. The dragonfly was perched on this rope and the background is the green grass of a fairway. I love the way a long lens completely distorts the background of an image. I shoot with long glass whenever it is possible; I find a 300mm lens make for really great portraits, people or insects.

River Runners!

2008-07-29T17:19:00.010-05:00

I know it has been along time since I posted an new entry but believe it or not I did not forget about my blog and its loyal readers, I just haven't done anything I felt needed to be posted until this past weekend.
I just returned from rafting the Arkansas River in Colorado. That's right I left Arkansas and flew to Colorado just to raft on the river that runs right through the middle of the state I live in. It may sound crazy but even though it is the same river, it is a completely different river in Colorado than at home.
At home the river is a wide slow moving river a mile wide at some spots. It is clogged with barges and commercial traffic; in Colorado it is maybe 25 yards wide, cold, CLEAN, and full of rafters and kayakers.

The river begins near the town of Leadville and meanders through Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and then finally merges with the Mighty Mississippi and heads for the Gulf of Mexico.
I met my cousin Matt, second cousin/nephew Joey, and Matt's friends Evan and John in Denver on Friday. Evan lives in Denver and graciously picked us up at the airport and hosted us at his house.
We hung out Friday and then headed to Lakota Guides near Buena Vista CO, at the crack of dawn.
At Lakota we met our guide, chef, oracle, manservant and all around great guy John.
He gave us the rundown of our trip.

We began upstream above Buena Vista and rafted the Narrows and Numbers sections of the Arkansas and the “Silver Bullet” rapid. This was Class III and IV white water. We camped out just past the entrance to Browns Canyon Saturday afternoon.

After setting up camp Guide John cooked us dinner and dessert.

Mmmmm! Steak!

Here are some extra "camp" pix.

The following day we continued through Brown's Canyon, stopped for lunch, and then navigated the “Toilet Bowl” and “Slidell” to finish our trip.

As loyal readers of my blog know I have done a lot of canoeing in Arkansas, but I have never done anything like what I did last weekend. I have memories that will last a lifetime and I can’t wait to go again.

Here is a slideshow from the trip. Be sure turn your sound on.

Strike Three!

2008-06-19T14:19:00.004-05:00

They're Off!

Almost got'em!

Darn! Got Away Again! Better luck next time Strike.

Strike Two!

2008-06-16T20:51:00.001-05:00

Run little boy! Run!!!
God I hope he makes it!

No Poo!

2008-05-27T15:33:00.004-05:00

Just another sign from Springdale. I blew by it at 30mph and had to back-up and look at it again. The funny thing to me is this sign is right near the sewer plant so the whole area kinda smells like poo regardless of whether the dog has crapped in your yard or not.

Floaters!

2008-05-05T16:39:00.005-05:00

Sunday we floated the Buffalo River from Ponca to Kyle’s landing. This was the first float of my season and it was beautiful. We had planned for a really big group, 26 total, but by the time Sunday morning rolled around we only had 15. The group included my parents and their friends from Little Rock and my cousin Matt from Boca Raton Florida.

Matt said this was his first canoe trip and there will be many more in his future. I hope he is right.

Here are a few more pix

Enjoy!

Almost Famous!

2008-05-02T18:40:00.011-05:00

We had some pretty bad storms in Northwest Arkansas last night. This morning I went to a mobile home park in Siloam Springs where a 15-year-old girl was killed when a tree fell on her bed. When I got back to work I was asked to put a photo on the AP wire.

I didn't think much about it when I put it up but the picture was picked-up by most of the national news outlets, including...

USA Today

CNN

FOX News

MSNBC

and AOL

Of course, being the company man that I am I saved the best photos for the Morning News

I am glad my photo traveled around the country and the world but part of me wishes it was a picture of a Razorback game or a victory party or just some pretty photo of kids doing something fun and not a photo of the worst day of a families life.

Dega!

2008-04-30T11:49:00.014-05:00

Back from the Aaron’s 499 at the Talladega Super Speedway this past weekend.

Wow!

I went as a member of the Theo’s Pizza Race Team (no we did not have a car in the race) from New Orleans.

Man can these guys do it right, big assed R.V., primo parking and all the food and booze you can eat.

For those who don’t know Theo’s Pizza is the pizza restaurant in New Orleans my friends Jammer, Ted and Greg opened a few years ago. If you ever in the Big Easy you should definitely check them out.
What can I say about the race? I’m hooked? It was incredible? Awesome?
Well it was all of the above.
I have posted a gallery to my webpage with some rocking pix in it so check them out by clicking here.

Enjoy!

RUN!

2008-04-22T22:56:00.003-05:00

RUN! Run as fast as you can little girl. "MMMM... Strike Hungry!"

Just kidding, shot the NWA Naturals game tonight and this was my best shot.

Enjoy!

Big Dam Bridge!

2008-04-22T14:48:00.007-05:00

We visited the Big Dam Bridge in Little Rock this weekend. The bridge connects approximately 15 miles of scenic riverside trails in the cities of Little Rock and North Little Rock, and assists in the connection of 70,000 acres of various city, county, state and federal park land.

I went with my parents and their dog, Murray. Turns out Murray is a rock star.

People flock to Murray. It may be because he s a Delta Dog and, along with my mother, a volunteer in the Arkansas Children’s Hospital T.A.I.L.S. (Therapeutic Animal Interventions Lift Spirits) Program.

Some quick bridge facts:
4226 linear feet of bridge
679 feet of walled embankment
14 feet wide
54 inches to the top of the handrail
Approaches to the bridge are at 5% grade
72 feet above the Arkansas River upstream
90 feet above the Arkansas River downstream
8 observation areas
Capable of holding two 36" utility pipelines
Contains over 3 million pounds of steel
Contains over 24 million pounds of concrete
160 L.E.D. light fixtures on the piers
16 L.E.D. light fixtures on the towers
63 light fixtures for walkway illumination

Naturals!

2008-04-11T16:47:00.007-05:00

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals had their inaugural home opener against San Antonio at Arvest Ballpark in Springdale last night. Most of the month it has been rainy and it was pouring rain until about 9 a.m. Thursday morning. I thought the game would be a rainout but by an act of God the rain stopped, the sun came out, the skies cleared and the weather was windy but beautiful for the first pitch.

I had decided long ago to do a time lapse movie of the opening game. You may have seen my time laspe experiment of a Razorback game on an earlier post.

Marc F. Henning snapped this pic of me admiring the time lapse rig.

The end product is over eight hours of time and 720 still photographs are presented in a two minute time lapse movie. You can view it here if you like.

Enjoy!

Keep Out!

2008-04-11T16:43:00.003-05:00

Public Property, No Trespassing.
Am I the only person who can't see how it it possible to trespass "Public Property"?
I guess it is ok for the "Public" to use this property as long as they keep the "Private" out.

Fool!

2008-04-01T18:20:00.003-05:00

I am a fool!
Most of the day today something had been “off” and I was not quite sure what it was. I came to work and planned to pull an April Fool’s gag on two of my co-workers. One of the jokes I have been planning since last April Fool’s and the other for about the last week.
Well I got busy and procrastinated the planning and prep of my cruel little pranks and, of course, I arrived at work today completely un-prepared for either of them.
I was a little disappointed but there’s always next year so I figured I’d just refine my “plan” and really get’em then.
I went about my business, e-mail, schedules, and photo editing…. But still something seemed not quite right…
At around 4:15 p.m. in our afternoon budget meeting it hit me (keep in mind I showered, got dressed and arrived at work by about ten to eight this morning and it was now 4:15 in the afternoon). I looked down and this is what I saw.

That’s right two different shoes on two different feet. In my defense it was dark in my room when I got dressed this morning and the shoes are the same brand and model, just two years apart and different colors. Needless to say for the rest of the afternoon and until I got home my feet were uncomfortable. Granted they were fine until I noticed my gaff, but unbearable after the fact.
So Yes! I am a bonehead and a fool and even more so because I unknowingly pranked myself and made this SNAFU today of all days.
Happy April Fool’s Day everyone and laugh at me because the entire Springdale office already has.

TCB!

2008-03-24T13:38:00.025-05:00

Just back from a trip to Memphis, Tennessee. It was a weekender to celebrate a birthday and we had a great time. After arriving and checking into our hotel Friday we hit the street, Beale Street to be exact. First stop, BBQ, and the best BBQ on Beale Street is at the Blues City Café. We had a half rack of delicious wet ribs.

Beale Street has changed a lot since the last time I was there. There was more neon and more places like the Hard Rock Cafe and Coyote Ugly, but the old places were still there also. After dinner we went to Rum Boogie to listen to music, drink and watch the NCAA Basketball Tournament. A quick stop at B.B. Kings for a t-shirt and then back to the hotel. Great first night!

Saturday morning we went to the Arcade Restaurant for breakfast. The Arcade is a Memphis landmark. Established it in 1919 it is Memphis' oldest restaurant. According to their website, many famous and distinguished people have eaten at the Arcade. They have served Cybill Shepherd, Robert Duvall, Dennis Quaid, Susan Sarandon, Rufus Thomas, Elvis and his buddies, and many others. The restaurant has been in many videos and movies. Mystery Train, Great Balls of Fire, The Client, Elvis: The Early Years, Memphis, A Family Thing, and 21 Grams all had scenes filmed at the Arcade.

Just a few blocks from the restaurant is the National Civil Rights Museum. Formerly the Lorraine Motel, this is where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assasinated on April 4, 1968. I had visited the museum in high school shortly after it opened. The exhibit had changed a lot since high school. It had nearly doubled in size and now includes information about the Civil Rights Movement following King’s death.

After the National Civil Rights Museum we headed back to the car and down to Sun Studio, birthplace of Rock & Roll.

Sam Phillips, the owner Sun Studio discovered a few rockers like, ummm, I don’t know… ELVIS! Johnny Cash, Ike Turner, Jerry Lee Lewis, B.B. King, Carl Perkins and Howlin’ Wolf, just to name a few. It is still an active recording studio used by everyone from local flavors to U2.

On the way to the car I saw this logo on a furniture store. Whatever works, He looks nice enough; I guess I would buy a couch from him.

Last stop before a nap, Neely’s Interstate BBQ for a late lunch. I recommend the sampler platter; it is more than enough for two.

Trolleys make a loop around downtown every ten minutes and you cant beat'em for convenience, plus you can ride the whole line for a buck!

After a nap we took the trolley to the Cheese Cake Corner for dessert. If you like cheesecake you must stop at this small local eatery. They don’t open till late in the afternoon but their cheesecakes are unbelievable.

A quick stop to take some photos of the Orpheum Theater and then back to the hotel to get some rest for the long drive home in the morning.

Rain!

2008-03-18T14:40:00.004-05:00

I shot my first video for The Morning News today. I spent most of the morning recording video of flooding in Springdale and getting rained on. I put it together this afternoon. The video is not great but it's not bad either.

Click on the play button and enjoy.

Bridge!

2008-03-16T20:45:00.004-05:00

I spent saturday at the "Golden Gate of the Ozarks" in Beaver Arkansas. It is a "swinging" or suspension bridge and is the last one in Arkansas open to vehicular traffic and is referred to as "the bridge to nostalgia".

Here are some fun bridge facts from BridgeHunter,

"Overview
Suspension bridge over White River (Table Rock Reservoir) on AR 187 at Beaver, Carroll County, Arkansas
Status
Open to one-lane traffic with a 10 ton weight limit
History
Built 1949 by the Pioneer Construction Co.
Wire suspension
Dimensions
Length of largest span: 311.9 ft.
Total length: 554.0 ft.
Deck width: 11.1 ft.
Vertical clearance above deck: 13.8 ft.
Recognition
Posted to the National Register of Historic Places on April 9, 1990"

Enjoy the photos.

Planes, Trains and Automobiles!

2008-02-23T17:35:00.000-06:00

I am a folk hero.
I just shot Arkansas' 63-58 loss to the Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington.
Soon after the end of the game my mom called me to ask if I was a part of "The Morning News" team they were talking about on the radio.
Sure was!
That's right... we left Arkansas Friday afternoon to come to Lexington to cover the Razorbacks.
Our flight was XNA to O'Hare to Lexington.
The problem was the weather in Kentucky...
So yes, I was on the crew who flew to Chicago only to find out their flight to Lexington was canceled and they would not make the game's tip-off if they took the next available flight the next day.
What would you do?....
We said "We aint skeered of some winter weather," and rented a car.
That's right, six hours of driving through the middle of the night only to arrive in Lexington at six a.m. Saturday, with no luggage, grab five hours of shut-eye and go back to work.
This is the stuff legends are made of folks.

It was a tight game and a tough loss for the team and coach Pelphrey. For those of you who don't know Pelphrey was a Wildcat in college and his jersey hangs from the rafters of the arena.

The best part of the game was before it even began. As Pelphrey took the court the crowd went crazy. Not boos like you would expect from the opposing team's fans but a a standing ovation. They love Pelph here in Kentucky. Even as he left the court at the end of the game fans were still applauding him.

Pretty cool!

Kentucky has some famous fans also...
Ashley Judd???

I DONT THINK SO, but Judd does attend games occasionally.

Eat your heart out Shuperman.

Time-Lapse!

2008-02-21T00:14:00.000-06:00

My first time-lapse photography experiment.

16,212 Screaming Hog Fans
483 Still Images
Four Hours In Real Time
Watch Arkansas Defeat LSU 87-61... In Just One Minute and Twenty Seconds.

Click The Play Button Below And Enjoy!

Vacaciones!

2008-02-12T15:15:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the long time between posts but I have been on vacation.
That’s right, I just back from a weeks vacation to Sunny South Florida.
My trip was so action packed I feel like I need another vacation from my vacation.

After arriving in Boca my cousin Matt and I hightailed it to South Beach in Miami. We went to see the Miami Heat get their ass handed to them by Toronto, ate great food and crashed. The next morning I spent about a half hour on the beach and then flew to Key West for the day.

Key West is pretty cool. It claims to be the Southernmost point in the continental United States and everyone there seems to be pretty easy going.

Ernest Hemingway lived in Key West for a while and every bar; restaurant and t-shirt shop claims he frequented their business.

At Sloppy Joes, a Hemmingway hot spot, we drank Papa Dobles in honor of Papa Hemmingway

And ate Sloppy Joe’s Sloppy Fries honor of gluttony.

We left Joe’s to explore the town and take in the sights. Saw a bunch of chickens on the street.

Then we went to the Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum to see how he lived while in Key West and his six-toed or polydactyl cats. The cats were pretty cool.

After Hemmingway House we went to Mallory Square to watch the Sunset.
The place was jammed with visitors and street performers. The performers were awesome. This guy was juggling fire and machetes while standing on his brother’s head... Unbelievable!

And of course… the Sunset.

When I got back to Boca my Uncle and I went to a cool Packard car museum in Ft. Lauderdale. The Ft. Lauderdale Antique Car Museum is the largest collection of Packard cars and memorabilia in the United States.

But the real reason I went to Florida was not to “rock out” in South Beach and the Keys but to meet my new second cousins, Eva and Ryan.

With mom and dad.

With their Nana.

And with their Great Aunt.

HBC!

2008-01-20T16:33:00.000-06:00

Saturday Eric, Delia and I left Fayetteville before sunrise to go look for a herd of wild elk in the Boxley Valley near the Buffalo River. It was pretty cool. We found the elk, about a hundred of them. They were awesome but the temerature was COLD! According to the National Weather Service the temperature was 10 degrees at 7 a.m. when we found the herd. BBBBRRRRR!!!

After the elk we went to check out Hawksbill Crag. Lucky for us the weather warmed-up to the all-day-high of 23 by the time we were on our way hiking through the woods.

Also very cool.

I also decided to try my hand at video and produced a little movie of the trip. Now this is my first time working with video so please be kind, make sure your sound is on and click play.
Enjoy!

Fatso!

2008-01-17T15:27:00.000-06:00

News Flash.... I'm fat.

I'm not going to post a photo of my fat ass but take my word for it or check out some previous posts, I am fat.
Since my birthday last October I have been on the ol' See-Food diet.
That's right, I see food and I eat food.
Good news though, this week I began exercising and the E.L.F. (Eat Less Food) diet.
To aid in my weight loss and new healthy lifestyle my managing editor and I signed-up for “Train for the Cure”, a seven session training program with UA Track Coach McDonnell and former and current U of A track stars to be prepared for the "Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure" 5K on April 19, 2008.
We had our first session Tuesday during which I ran one mile in 13 minutes and 36 seconds. I know, not a blazing fast speed, but I haven’t run in… well forever.
Hopefully by April 19 I will be a lean mean running machine.

Bowled!

2008-01-02T12:21:00.000-06:00

Here is the "A-Team" with 41 minutes and 31 seconds till go-time. It was a beautiful, long day and I was glad to be back in my own bed in Fayetteville by midnight. Arkansas lost to Missouri 7-38. Better luck next time.

High Cotton!

2008-01-01T09:18:00.000-06:00

Greetings and Happy New Years from the 72nd AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic Photography Workroom in Dallas Texas. It's 9am Tuesday, January 1, 2008. I went to bed at midnight last night and I've been up since 5:45 this morning. I slept poorly because I snore and my rommate has the un-canny hearing of a bat. All night long I was attacked by flying pillows and curses.
We are leaving here to go home just after the game and I should be home by nine or ten pm. It's going to be a long day.

Legend!

2007-12-25T15:01:00.000-06:00

Today I know how Will Smith must have felt when he was the last man in New York City in the movie "I Am Legend". Sure Fayetteville is no New York, but at 2:30 Christmas Day, a Tuesday afternoon, I was able to stand in the middle of the road on Dickson Street in Fayetteville and feel like I was the only person in town. This was not just for a few seconds but for about the 15 or 20 minutes I was there.
That's right... not another car, person, dog or bug... nothing!
Just Me, Myself and I.

Here is the view East, up Dickson St.

And West, toward the UA.

I Am Legend!

Run!

2007-12-23T14:34:00.001-06:00

"Run! Run for your lives....AAARRGHH!"
Just kidding. I love the new Razorbacks basketball coach John Pelphrey. When the team makes a run he gets exited, when he gets exited the team gets exited, when the team gets exited the fans go crazy and a good time is had by all.
I am enjoying Arkansas basketball more now than I have since Nolan left.

Flight!

2007-12-22T12:48:00.000-06:00

Just a photo from the inaugural flight of the Z-16 fighter/paper aircraft outside our Fayetteville office last night.

Here are some specs:
The Z-16 is a multi-role jet fighter aircraft developed by Craft & Spencer Skunkworks, Fayetteville, AR. Designed as a lightweight fighter, it has evolved into a successful multi-role aircraft. The Z-16s versatility is a paramount reason it was a success on the export market, serving 24 countries.
The Z-16 is the largest Western fighter program with over 4,000 aircraft built since production started in 2007.
The Z-16 is a dogfighter with innovations including a frame-less, bubble canopy for better visibility, side-mounted control stick to ease control while under high g-forces, and reclined seat to reduce the effect of g-forces on the pilot. It is also the first fighter aircraft to be deliberately built to sustain 9-g turns. It has a thrust-to-weight ratio greater than one, providing enough power to climb and accelerate vertically - if necessary.

Thanks Donna!

Pretty!

2007-12-20T14:25:00.000-06:00

I've been meaning to post this photo for a couple of weeks now.
It is an abandoned farmhouse on the Gay Orchards property on the East side of Springdale. About five or six years ago I shot a very similar photo when the Springdale School Board wanted to have the property condemned so they could build a new high school here. The Gays fought the school board and eventually the new school was built on the West side of town instead.
I am glad to see that after all this time it is still the same scene.

P.S.
Gay is the family's name not their sexual orientation.

Che!

2007-12-14T16:28:00.000-06:00

Apparently Che Guevara is alive and well and driving a bus for ORT. Also, judging by the logo on his hat, he moonlights as a fry cook at McDonalds.

OMG!

2007-12-12T13:14:00.000-06:00

Guess where I ate lunch today?

ACAMBARO!

Yes, by some sort of Christmas miracle or act of God they have re-opened their doors. I don't want to get too exited just in case this is a temporary thing, but today is a good day.

Starcrossed!

2007-12-11T12:36:00.000-06:00

For those of you who don’t already know I have been having an affair for the past three or four years.

At first it was a casual thing but the more lunches and dinners I enjoyed the more my love grew.

During the past few months our tryst had become intensified with meetings three, four and sometimes even five times a week.
All this came to an end Monday, December 10, 2007.

When I arrived at work that fateful day I was told to go to a local restaurant to cover an immigration bust. In the back of my mind I knew what was going on but refused to accept it.
Yes, on Monday the Immigration Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) agency raided my beloved Acambaro Mexican Restaurant and shut her down. It was not only a sad day in Springdale but in all of Northwest Arkansas as they shut down all the Arkansas locations.

Yes, Acambaro was my lover and I am not ashamed to admit it. Near the end of October I pledged to eat and rate every item on their lunch menu. When finished I was going to re-christen the restaurant “Zacambaro”.
Unfortunately I only managed to finish 14 or the 30 items before the raid. I recently learned of two “secret” lunch items. The #31 is “the same as a number one only with a chicken taco instead of beef” and a #32 “Huevos Rancheros”. I guess I shall never know these two.

For anyone still reading here is a copy of the lunch menu complete with my notes on the items eaten.

And here is the final ratings of the 14 items eaten:
***** = 5 Stars
**** = 4 Stars
*** = 3 Stars
** = 2 Stars
* = 1 Star

#3 ***
#5 *
#6 ****
#9 ****
#10 ***** (best meal at the restaurant)
#11 ***
#12 ****
#15 ****
#16 ****
#17 ***
#22 ***
#24 ****
#25 ****
#26 ****

As you can tell I really liked their food.

Pelph!

2007-12-04T14:55:00.000-06:00

A homage to Neemah’s "Incredible Pelph" photo in the comments on In The Loupe. I think mine is better. BTW Arkansas beat the Missouri State Bears 70-51 last night.

Geaux!

2007-11-25T13:57:00.000-06:00

Back from my Thanksgiving holiday and "LS You Suck!" trip. Once again we traveled in style on the phat jet.
Did you know....

WE ARE ROCK STARS!

And

Darren

McFadden

is SUPERMAN!

GEAUX HOGS! Arkansas beat #1 ranked LS "You SUCK" 50-48 in triple overtime.

Here is the same photo from November 28, 2003.

I also shot the 7A State Football Championship and the Fayetteville High School Bulldogs "Brought the Wood!"
Cody Hammer is the un-holy seed of D-Mac and Peyton Hillis combined. This guy was un-stoppable!

T-Day!

2007-11-22T21:37:00.000-06:00

So this is what I would look like if I were on South Park. You can create your own southpark character here.
Happy Thanksgiving!

BTL!

2007-11-13T17:40:00.001-06:00

Just a plug for our re-designed Morning News photo blog Behind•The•Lens.
Check it out!

Rocky Top!

2007-11-10T21:48:00.001-06:00

Early this morning I drove to Springdale, jumped on a Stephens Inc. jet and headed to Knoxville, Tennessee, to shoot the University of Arkansas Razorbacks as they took on the University of Tennessee Volunteers.

This is not the first-time I have flown on the jet and will not be the last, but every time I fly it is a rush just like my first time.

Yeah, we're a bunch of pimps.

The front of the plane...

And the rear.

Did you know there is a magazine dedicated to the "Private Jet Lifestyle"?

And at $35.00 an issue quite a deal. I guess if you can afford the jet, you can afford the mag.

Just in case you were wondering what Tennessee looked like when you're traveling nearly 600 MPH at 41,000 feet.

By the way, Arkanss lost to Tennessee 13-34.

Brick!

2007-10-24T16:38:00.001-05:00

How could I resist a photo-op with the world's largest brick?

The brick, AKA “Baby Clay” is constructed with clay from Acme Brick Co.'s 23 brick plants. The brick is 116 inches long (9’ 8”), representing the 116 years Acme has been in business. The brick weighing about 5 tons is nearly 3,000 times the size of a standard brick. Baby Clay is the fifth attempt to create the world's largest brick.

And yes, Z-Man is "The Best Thing To Have aournd Your House."

Bourdain!

2007-10-20T16:03:00.001-05:00

Last night I encountered one of my favorite celebrity chefs at the Fayetteville Public Library. Anthony Bourdain, author, chef and host of the television show "No Reservations" visited town and I was the "official" photographer for the library. Bourdain was a pretty cool guy. Following a news conference Bourdain was greeted by hordes of "foodies" who just wanted to meet, touch, talk to, hang with and get autographs from their hero.

As you can see I had some pretty stiff competition for photographs.

I like the fact that when Bourdain spoke he didn't use notes, swore like a sailor and drank like a fish. As a matter of fact, I had to make an "official" beer run when the library ran out of Heineken for him to drink.

In all over 500 people showed-up to meet their favorite T.V. personality. This guy came all the way to Fayetteville from Lawrence Kansas, that's about a four and a half hour drive. He was pretty stoked.

The highlight of my night is when I was asked to take Mr. Bourdain, no, Tony, back to his hotel. I did not expect this and I was not really prepared. As I moved all the trash and car crap from the front passenger seat of my car Tony said,
"Wow, kinda looks like Norman Bates' car from Psycho."
I froze... then he said,
"Aahh, it looks just like my apartment back home."
I think he was just exhausted and didn't care what my car looked like, but I doubt his apartment is as gross as my 4-Runner.
Of course, as the "official" photographer, "official" beer-getter and "official" ride-giver-homer, I had Tony sign a book to me.

Helena Back!

2007-10-08T21:01:00.001-05:00

Well, I am back from the 2007 Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival in Helena, Arkansas. The music was great, the campground was crazy and the weather was hot. No, really, really, REALLY HOT!
This year we took a side trip to Clarksdale Mississippi to visit the blues club Ground Zero.

While we were in Clarksdale we also stopped at Cat Head Records and saw Mr. Tater "The Music Maker" playing on their front porch. I have seen Tate playing on the street in Helena during the festival in years past. I guess this year he decided to stay home.

Again the music was great but the weather was hot so most of our activity was limited to the hours after sunset. Here is one from Friday night, I don't remember who he is so I'll call him 'Fez'.

Here is Roy Book Binder playing on Saturday.

I have created a photo gallery of all my KBBF photos this year and years past. Please check it out and enjoy!

Decapitated!

2007-09-29T23:42:00.000-05:00

The Arkansas Razorbacks beat, no decemated the North Texas Mean Green in Fayetteville tonight. Here are a few highlights of the 66-7 victory.

One last shot for Zamora

Turns out the Mean Green are not so mean after all.

Can't Wait!

2007-08-21T12:39:00.000-05:00

I am counting the days, hours, minutes and seconds until the 2007 Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival in Helena, Arkansas, beginning on October 4, 2007. The photo is Pinetop Perkins performing in 2005.
See you there!

Countdown To The 2007 Arkansas Blues and Heritage Festival

Good Stretch!

2007-08-16T20:24:00.001-05:00

I could never be an Arkansas Razorback, these guys are so damn flexible. Kinda like Gumby!

This Way!

2007-08-15T17:11:00.001-05:00

Right turn only. Ok, got it!

Left turn only. Ok, got it!

Wait a minute......

Elk, Take Two!

2007-08-06T12:06:00.001-05:00

Sunday was the Second Summer Morning News and Friends Float Trip down the Elk River. We had 21 people on this trip and we had a ton of fun. We celebrated Neemah's birthday and "shot-gunned" beers. No GPS or camera this time so I cant go into specifics but here's the rundown. We floated from Kozy Kamp at the US Highway 71 bridge near Pineville to the Mt. Shira Public Access. The distance was 7.26 miles; the water was about kinda low, clear and wonderful. We had to drag our boats in a few spots. The trip took a little over six hours and we messed around a lot on the river. Our average speed was SLOW with sunny skies and temperatures in the 90s. 21 of us in 10 canoes and one kayak made the trip. The largest group of the summer by far! Zac and Sarah, Brook and Larry, Nathan and Melissa, Pablo and Dug, Ryan and Chip, Marc and Michael, Trey and Samantha, Christopher and Christa, Neemah and Diana, Megan and Matt, and Eric.
p.s. I stole the photo from Nathan's blog.

A Bugs Life!

2007-07-25T10:23:00.000-05:00

So, since my last post was such a downer I figured I would follow it up with some pretty eye-candy. Everyone thinks I took this photo underwater. It seems to be a new favorite among my peeps. It is just a very purple flower with a tiny little bug on it, shot after a summer rain storm. Enjoy!

R.I.P.

2007-07-13T10:50:00.000-05:00

For those of you who don't already know Boscoe was diagnosed with osteosarcoma (bone cancer) earlier this year. He lost a leg to the disease in February and passed away on Thursday at about 6:30 p.m. at our vets office. He was nine and half-years-old or 67 depending on how you count.

Boscoe T. Dogg
December 16, 1997-July 12, 2007
My best friend.

I'll miss you buddy!

High!

2007-07-10T18:36:00.000-05:00

It's not every day I get to go 100 feet in the air on a million dollar fire truck... but the days I do are pretty cool. This is the Springdale Fire Department's new Sutphen SPH-100 Bucket Truck.

Lucky for me I did not have to climb the ladder.

The department took delivery of the truck on Tuesday and let the media (ok, just me), members of the city council and administration takes rides in the truck's bucket. Days like today I love my job.

Boscoe!

2007-07-09T16:43:00.000-05:00

I love my three-legged, stinky, furry dog.

Elk!

2007-07-09T09:48:00.000-05:00

Sunday we floated the Elk River in Missouri. We floated from Kozy Kamp at the US Highway 71 bridge near Pineville to the Mt. Shira Public Access. The distance was 7.26 miles; the water was about 3.35 feet, clear and wonderful. The trip took 4 hours and 26 minutes. We spent 2 hours and 45 minutes paddling; the rest was spent messing around on the river. Our average speed was 1.6 MPH with sunny skies and temperatures in the 90s. Sixteen of us in seven canoes and two kayaks made the trip. The largest group of the summer! Zac and Sarah, Flip and Tait, Dug and Pablo, Melissa and Josh, Eric and Delia, Christopher and Christa, MIchael and Wes, Emilie and Abby.

The Fourth!

2007-07-04T21:07:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday America.

I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable holiday.

Rodeo!

2007-06-25T15:49:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year, time for the 2007 Rodeo of the Ozarks!!!!!
I kicked off my personal rodeo experience today with a hay ride. Never one to settle for the "back of the bus," I rode in the raised bucket of the tractor pulling the wagon. "Best Seat in the House," if I dont say so myself.