Preparing for the 4th of July

There is one thing about Indiana, besides my girlfriend, that keeps bringing me back and that is the ability to buy and shoot off fireworks. I am not talking about the “safe and sane” Red Devil variety, but rather the good stuff provided by Phantom Fireworks. I am not saying I spend a lot of money there, but they send me a Christmas card every year. I got the house in Valparaiso in July 2007 and started doing fireworks shows that same year. It has become tradition. These photos were taken on the days leading up to the 4th of …

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Photos from the Special Olympics of Porter County fundraiser.

Saturday, July 2, 2011 was the Special Olympics of Porter County fundraiser, Livin’ it Up! Tanya has some friends that were the organizers of this event, so I decided to come to Indiana early to photograph it. They had a cutest baby contest and a dog show, along with live musical entertainment and fair-style food offerings. The night ended with a fireworks show. Unfortunately, we had a lot to do so was only able to go for a while, but it looked like a nice family affair that raised some money for a deserving organization. Back to Livin it Up …

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Photos from the Sacramento Delta

When I came back from Indiana, Tanya came with me. A good friend of mine was having a party prior to the Dixon May Fair Motorcycle Show & Swap Meet. He has been doing this party for many years, and this year I made a point of making it. Since he lives in the Sacramento Delta, we had to leave the day after we got home. I opted for the car over the bike and brought Buddy with. On the way to Dixon, we stopped in Fairfield at the Jelly Belly factory. Hot tip, Belly Flops. We had to go …

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Photos from Jasper County, Indiana

These photos were taken at the Jasper County courthouse and various locations around Kouts and Wheatfield, IN. A couple days after I got back from my cross country road trip, I had to fly back to Chicago to attend a trade show. After the show, I drove back to Indiana to spend a few days with Tanya. Since I am getting ready to do another cross country trip, this time as a passenger, I decided to practice my photography at 65 MPH. Back to Jasper County Photos Back to Jasper County Photos

Photos from Route 66 – AZ and CA

After leaving New Mexico, I decided it was time to head home. I hit a severe dust storm outside of Winslow. In fact, of all the storms I encountered in my three weeks on the road, this was the only storm that had a police presence to handle the driving hazard. I stopped off in Flagstaff, AZ to have lunch at the Beaver Street Brewery. Good food and great beer made it a pleasurable stop. I then continued into California in time to catch one of our fantastic sunsets. Back to Route 66 AZ and CA Photos Back to Route …

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Photos from Amarillo and El Malpais

These photos were taken at Leal’s Mexican Restaurant in Amarillo, TX, then along Route 66 in New Mexico and El Malpais National Monument. I stopped in Amarillo, TX for a late lunch, early dinner. A local radio station ad piqued my interest, so I headed for Leal’s. The food was okay, but Southern California has the best Mexican food anywhere. As I continued into New Mexico I came upon a roadside stand outside of Laguna. While talking to one of the girls about the large rocks holding the roof onto her stand, she told me they were lava and that …

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Photos from Route 66, Missouri

These photos were taken on Route 66 in Missouri. This was on the way to Joplin, MO. I entered St Louis in the late afternoon, so it was not an ideal time to tour. I did find Jellystone Park though, so I had to make a quick stop. I wanted to find some local cuisine and a billboard directed me to Missouri Hick Bar-B-Q in Cuba, MO. Great food. Right next door was a newly renovated Wagon Wheel Motel, so I walked over there and got a room. Would have been better if Tanya was with me though. She would …

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Photos from Central Illinois

These photos were taken over the course of two days in Central Illinois. The first day I was attempting to get to Joplin, MO but I got a late start. Since there were many severe storms in both Illinois and Missouri I did not want to drive after dark. I have already experienced tornadoes at night and they are not very photogenic. When I got close to Illiopolis I had my GPS find somewhere to eat. The first place that came up was Uncle Monkey’s Bar & Grill. I admit, when I pulled up I fully expected that I would …

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Fine dining around Valpo

These photos are from dining establishments in and around Valparaiso, IN. Next week will mark four years that I have been a regular visitor to Valpo. When I first started coming here I used to think that I would have to go to Chicago to get a decent meal. Steak ’n Shake and Bob Evans were not exactly my idea of fine dining. I eventually found a couple places that would satisfy my culinary desires, but even Cracker Barrel can only go so far. During my most recent visit to Indiana I did more exploring and discovered that there are …

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Photos of Valparaiso, IN

These photos were taken over a few days in the last month or so. I seem to keep returning before I can get all my photos up. Anyway, these are primarily in the downtown Valpo area. One evening we happened to be there when they were having a movie night, with ’How To Train a Dragon’ being featured. It was a little cooler than people are used to at that time of year, but it still had a good turn out. Back to Valpo Photos Back to Valpo Photos

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