Project 365 - August 23, 2009

And It's Goodbye Again














Ok, so I had one more shot at taking photos of the lake. I wish I could see the leaves changing in the fall. But Rachel can send me photos of that!















This was the moment that made us all cry. We are in the parking lot of Rachel's dorm and it was time to leave for the airport. So Joel gave her one last hug and that was it. We all started with the water works. It was like the TV commercial for Walmart!!




















And this is the site that greeted us when we came home. Not only did a really large poster come crashing off of the wall in the downstairs bathroom, but it knocked a shelf off of the wall which was holding some books. The books fell into the toilet and must have been in there all week because there was white, fuzzy mold growing out of the toilet and the water was all black because the ink dissolved. Needless to say, the smell was like there was a dead animal in the house. It took me about an hour to clean it up. But that was fine because we had to stay up till ab out midnight because the airlines lost our luggage and they were delivering it to our house! What a long, long day that was.

Project 365 - August 22, 2009

Last Day

Our last day in Indiana. We had a few last things to take care of with Rachel on campus, but mostly we were cleaning up after ourselves in the house where we were staying, doing some laundry, packing and then we took Rachel out to dinner. It was a strange day because we knew we were leaving her the next day and we didn't want to hover over her and make it any more difficult. This was the day that all of the students were moving into the dorms so Rachel was able to meet everyone as they moved in.
















I was up at 6:30 a.m. again. The temperatures had dropped overnight to about 55 degrees. I went out in my pajamas and a sweatshirt to snap these really cool shots of the mist over the lake. I have tons of these, but this is my favorite.




















I made sure that I had my coffee on the porch so that I could try, again and again, to snap a decent photo of the hummingbirds that came to feed on a daily basis. They are so quick and every time I would lift my camera to my eye they would take off. But finally, finally, finally my patience and persistence paid off and I was able to get a few good shots. Even though I had to shoot through the screen, I liked these because it gave the photos a canvas-like quality.




















Mid-day we stopped at White Castle so that Joel could FINALLY get his hamburger that he was craving. He and Adina went out to the dock to eat. I loved this shot of father and daughter eating.














Adina asked me to take this photo. She saw this construction site and loved the rough quality of it so we stopped and she posed for me.














This photo was taken outside of Kleptz Restaurant in Brazil or if you want to get really technical, in Seelyville which is straight out on Wabash Avenue which turns into US 40 and then about 20 miles. It is a little place that has good homecooked food.

Project 365 - August 21, 2009

This is the Day

So the day finally came that we were moving Rachel into the dorm. This was the day that she would be sleeping there too. This was it. It was really here. And, I was okay with it.














Here we are helping Rachel move the bed up as high as the window ledge and then put on all of the new bedding that we bought at Bed, Bath and Beyond. Notice all of the other boxes all of "stuff" all over the floor! It really didn't take too long to organize with all four of use working. It also helped that her roommate wasn't there quite yet.














Nice view out the window!! That is the courthouse that was built in 1890 or so. This faces west so she will also see sunsets!




















We were hungry so we went over to the Clabber Girl Museum and Restaurant on Wabash Avenue. Clabber Girl is baking powder that is manufactured in Terre Haute. Look at the cans at the supermarket, it should say Terre Haute on the label. The girls were being very silly at the museum and I had to encourage them to pose for this shot. They were not entirely pleased with me, but what the heck, I like the photo.




















Later in the evening we went to a fund raising event for ISU with our friends. The event was held at the football field to show off their newly renovated locker rooms and football field. It really was done very nicely. This is a photo of Adina way, way up at the top of the bleachers.



And this is the end result of our hard work on Rachel's dorm. It looks cozy to me!

Project 365 - August 20, 2009

Indiana State Fair

I had NEVER been to a state fair. Sure, I have been to hundreds of festivals and fairs, but nothing like a REAL state fair. Complete with livestock, fried EVERYTHING, rides, arts and crafts and music.



















This was one VERY noisy rooster. I tried to record the sound inside the poultry building, but they had very noisy fans to keep the air moving and that interfered with my recording, but I did manage to snap this photo of this very pretty bird!














This made us all laugh pretty hard. Some guy took the time to create this artwork of sorts that looks like a cockroach rodeo to promote the "Roach Races" -- truly, I am not making this stuff up.














I loved this photo of the piglet trying to climb onto his mommy's snout. You can see the other piglets in the background, but this little guy wouldn't stop climbing.




















After the fair (we left the house at 9:30 a.m. and it was a little over an hour drive and we spent about five hours there) we relaxed at the lake. The girls dipped in the water (again, not me!! I am not a brave soul when it comes to deep water). Then they dried off on the dock.














The end of the day gave us a spectacular sunset. I took this from the car window. Shear luck!

Project 365 - August 19, 2009

Day Three

We spent the morning moving slowly (I was up at 6:30 a.m. everyday to drink my coffee on the porch and watch the sun rise over the lake. It was a beautiful sight and offered many photo ops!).

Then once we finally got dressed and moving (it was equally as hot and humid there as here in Florida) we went up to the Indiana State University campus to do what we needed to do (pay our first installment on tuition, open a bank account for Rachel, visit some staff and faculty and I even popped in on my friend's sister who works in the Records Office).




















This is the sculpture outside of the brand new recreation center. It is an unbelievable gym with a pool that not only has lanes for swimming laps, but also has a recreational area with islands and palm trees and another area with a Jacuzzi that seats 23!


















This is a public art sculpture. I really liked this one. Talk about "plop" art . . . what is wrong with sculpture? I can't really understand the mentality of some people that think "plop" are is a bad thing. Think about Washington, DC . . . the most famous piece of sculpture . . . the Washington Monument took a very long time to build, was over budget and is now revered and loved and it is sculpture and meant to be the burial place of our nation's first president . . . but . . . I digress.













All around campus there were signs of them getting ready for the new school year. School didn't welcome the students back until Saturday and this was only Wednesday.



















Adina wanted to pick corn. Every time we would pass a cornfield we would yell out, "Hey Adina, look, CORN!" So John took us over to a friend's cornfield (otherwise you can get shot!!) and she went into the field and picked it and he showed her how to husk it. She was supposed to let it dry and then take it home, but we forgot it!!














Kim would take us out on the lake in the pontoon boat every day! The dogs couldn't wait to ride on the boat and Adina was really enjoying it too!!

Project 365 - August 18, 2009

Midwest Beauty

No matter where I looked in Indiana I saw a photo opportunity. I probably drove my family crazy, but I couldn't help it. The camera never left my side and I snapped at whatever caught my eye. These are some of my favories.

Project 365 - August 17, 2009

Back Home Again . . .













Here we are driving on Harlan Road on the way to our friend's house in Riley, Indiana. You see a lot of these open fields filled with either corn or soybean. It is a very pretty and very green sight! Very, very peaceful in this part of our country.