Review: World without end

So far this year I have read many books, both fiction and nonfiction.  The books range from George Washington and the American Revolution to Marine units in Vietnam.  I have enjoyed them all and will add more books to my collection before the year is over.

One of the more enjoyable books I've read this year is "World Without End" by Ken Follet, which could be considered a sequel to his earlier masterpiece "Pillars of the Earth".  The new book is set approximately 200 years in the future and is still set in the town and priory of Kingsbridge.   The story centers around the lives of four children, Merthin, Gwenda, Ralph and Caris and how one event early in their youth events profoundly shapes their lives and that of the town for many years to come.

One of the elements that I have always enjoyed when reading Ken Follet's books are the rich character developments and how well he describes the people, events and their surroundings.  Compared to other books and authors, I find it very easy to picture the people and their surroundings.  This is not something that happens with most fiction books.

In the book, the characters of Merthin and Caris are the best developed and as such, they are prominently featured throughout the book.  Initially, the character of Gwenda was interesting and I enjoyed reading the portions of the book devoted to her, but as I read deeper into the book, I had the feeling that her development was secondary and I began to lose interest in her.  The story of Ralph was well done, but his rise to the Earl of Shiring seemed a bit far fetched at first, but after thinking about the events leading up him gaining the title of Earl, it makes a lot more sense to me now.

Throughout the story, the book takes us from Kingsbridge, to the Earldom of Shiring, London and the Kings court, Florence Italy and to the opening stages of the 100 years war in France and back to Kingsbridge.  During this time we see the four children grow into successful adults and see the rise and fall of several prominent characters through accidents,  scheming plans, betrayals and ultimately, the Black Plague.

All in all, this is an excellent book and although it could be considered a sequel to 'Pillars of the Earth',  it is not necessary to read the first book.  However, I do recommend reading the earlier book as it is an excellent read and some of the people in 'Pillars' are referenced in the book.

If you have been a fan of Follet's more contemporary spy and espionage novels and are hesitant about reading a historical novel set in the early and middle parts of the 14th century, don't be alarmed.  This book delivers an excellent story and will have you turning page after page just to see what will happen next. Go and read it now!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Mummies, birthdays and Burlesque!

So, after the forgettable dinner at Cadillac Ranch, the next part of my birthday gift to my girlfriend was tickets to see Here Come the Mummies at the Vogue in Broad Ripple.  I saw the band earlier this year at IMS and despite it being a cold and rainy day, they put on a fantastic show.  I knew I wanted to see them again in a better venue.

My girlfriend had never seen the mummies and was happy to see the tickets in her birthday card.  She was convinced I was taking her to a haunted house (that was all I had talked about during the weeks leading up to her birthday...complete surprise was accomplished!).

The Vogue was getting packed by the time we arrived and we were lucky enough to find places down near the stage.  While our spots at first looked great, we didn't realize that Lurch and his twin brother would soon be in the way and would make watching the warm up act very difficult.

The opening act was performed by Show-Me Burlesque and they were very good.  It was my first time watching a live burlesque act, I guess strippers at the Brass Flamingo don't really count as burlesque, do they?

Their first performer was Lola Van Ella, who performed and sang...quite the decent singing voice I must add. She was followed by Faith McQueen, who, uh, filled out her costume quite nicely.  No complaints from me at all by this point.  If only I was allowed to bring in my dSLR, the pictures I could post here.  After Faith, I believe Foxy laFeelion came on next and also put on a good routine.  She was followed by Sammich the Clown, who put on a very good Charlie Chaplin impression.  She was followed by Allura Fette (I'm not completely certain that she was the next performer, her name and picture on the website seems very familiar).  After Allura was gone, the previous performers came out (minus Sammich) and the three of them put on a balloon popping routine.  They came out one at a time, pretended to be upset with their cast mates and proceeded to pop each others balloons until little remained of their costumes. All in all, I was very happy with the show.  The only disappointing part of the show was the aforementioned Lurch and his brother.  They made it difficult to see parts of the routines, especially when the performers laid down on the stage

Despite the monoliths standing in front of us, the burlesque show was very good and I think they were the perfect act for Here Come the Mummies.  It was certainly better than having an unknown band open the show.  The performers for Show-Me Burlesque are mostly based out of the St. Louis area, however they do have a large contingent of performers from around the Midwest.  I would like to see them again in a bigger show and my only recommendation is that they could use the services of a photographer to help, um, promote their troupe.  I believe I am just the man for the job...:-) Bottom line, if you have ever wanted to see a burlesque show and they are in the area, go and see them!

On to the main act.  I won't even get into the details of the rather bland costume contest before the Mummies took stage...Ugh...

When the Mummies first take the stage, they come through the audience, playing some drums and chanting.  It is an entrance like no other that I have seen in concerts.  Let me say this, for two hours, the Mummies were on top of their game.  I have seen too many shows when the performers were either not interested in playing (and it showed) or they wore down midway through the show.  But not on this night.  I don't know if they took an energy drink or ate their Wheaties that morning, but their show was the most energetic I have ever seen a band play.

They played a lot of their familiar songs, Ra-ra-ra, Pants, booty, Attack of the Wiener Man, Freak Flag, Creepin, jailbait and so many more great songs.  I just wish I had written this blog entry sooner so I could have remembered more of their set.  I also wish I had properly used the video camera on my phone and I could have posted some videos here of their performance.

Thankfully the middle of the performance, the Lurch brothers moved and my girlfriend and I had a much better view of the stage.  Bottom line, it was an excellent concert and I can't wait to see them again!

How about a video from their appearance on Fox and Friends the Monday after their shows at the Vogue?

Here come the Mummies video

Of birthdays, small menus and bad service.

Last night was my girlfriends birthday (the fair Lady Rene) and since I had a Groupon to Cadillac Ranch, that is where we ended up going for her birthday dinner.

A few days ago, I made reservations for dinner, just in case the restaurant was busy.  After arriving at the restaurant, I had a feeling something would be wrong when the rather distracted and very unhelpful hostess couldn't find our resume, only to tell me that our reservation was for the next day.  She didn't seem all that bothered by the incorrect date and just waved her hand and told us to find a table.  Yep, that's it, not helpful at all. If customers can just walk in and get their own tables, why even have a hostess?  She couldn't even be bothered to give us menus.

We walked in to the restaurant, which is very large, open and well decorated. It was also almost empty of customers.  We were there early, so my only concern was that the service could be slow...which of course it was.  We waited several minutes for the waitress to show up at our table with menus.  Given the size of the restaurant and the money that was obviously spent on the decorations and the restaurant in general, I expected more menu offerings.  We were all rather disappointed.  Two pages of food items and not enough steak or meat items was a surprise given the "ranch" name in the title. We gave our drink orders (nothing fancy) and again waited for the drinks to show up.  Well, at least we had plenty of time to look over their small menu, gave her our orders and again waited for the food. 

After a reasonable amount of time had passed, our food arrived. This was probably the best part of the dinner.  I had ordered the pepperoni cheese flatbread pizza (I know, pizza at a steak place?..should have went with some meat), my girlfriend ordered the Cadillac burger (no tomatoes and of course it comes with tomatoes).  Her mother got a basket of fries and chicken tenders while Rene's friend bought a salad and order of fries.  Everything looked and tasted good, no complaints with the food.  The waitress also delivered an extra basket of fries by mistake, thankfully at no charge.  Oh, the appetizer...yes, I forgot that part.  We ordered an appetizer (loaded fries) and they were good. The bacon crumbles were bigger pieces and were not overly cooked. 

At the end of the meal, as we were leaving, the waitress came by to get the check and clear the plate and then started to tell us to give her the dishes and glasses on the table?  What?!  I've been to a lot of restaurants, even worked as a busboy in a restaurant as a teenager.  Never have I been asked by a waitress to clear the table for her. I've even handed plates and glasses to a waitress when they are very busy, or short and have given good service.

I think if the service had been good (it took a long time to get refills and she barely checked on us. throughout our dinner), being ordered to do her job might not have bothered me too much. Between the slacker hostess and the slow service, the four of us aren't sure if we would ever go back to Cadillac Ranch.  I think I might if they ever have a good coupon or deal, no more buying Groupons to their restaurant.

Some positives from the evening.  The restaurant was clean, the music wasn't too loud and the bathrooms were immaculate and very well decorated.   I just can't get over the indifferent hostess, the small menu, the slow service and being directed to clear the table.

Would I go again?  I'm not sure...Maybe if I had a really good coupon or if they had a good special.  It's really disappointing..I really wanted to like Cadillac Ranch. 

Zombies, brains and food for the poor

Well, it was zombie walk time again in Indianapolis, err, Broad Ripple on Saturday.  This was the annual Zombie Walk through Broad Ripple.  The zombies not only stroll through the streets looking for some tasty brains to eat, but they also help the local food bank, Gleaners, by donating food items.  Judging by the large number of people who turned out for this event, I think Gleaners took away a very hefty haul of food donations.

I was at this same event last year and walked away from it somewhat disappointed at the costumes, makeup and small number of participants.  I wasn't sure if I was going to photograph the event again this year due to my feelings about the zombie walk last year.  Boy, am I glad I went to the walk this year.   I met up with several other Indy area photographers, including a friend from Danville, Illinois.  I enjoyed seeing everybody this year and eating at Qdoba after the walk was finished.

This year's walk also included a zombie wedding (yes, an actual wedding), the walk itself, a zombie feast held at several restaurants along the Broad Ripple strip and the evening ended with a zombie prom at Tru nightclub. Unfortunately I didn't make it to the prom, but I did enjoy everything else that happened during the evening.

The event started out in the Kroger parking lot where people were getting makeup applied, a DJ was spinning and donations were accepted by Gleaners.  Starting around 6:30pm, the wedding took place between two people who met at last year's zombie walk.  I made a few shots at the wedding, not the best as we were crowded into a small area in the parking lot and I didn't have much room to work with due to the crowd.  After the wedding, the zombies lined up for the walk through Broad Ripple.

I moved down to the corner across from the fire station (less crowded..yay!) and while shooting the march, I talked with a few firefighters about the zombies, how tough it is to work in Broad Ripple as a firefighter..haha and anyone else that we saw walking around the area.  Needless to say, the firefighters were a hit with the female zombies and the attention was reciprocated in a few cases.  Although one poor firefighter nearly had has brains eaten by one of the female zombies later on the strip.  See below for a photograph of the unlucky guy.

So, I did end up with some good shots before, during and after the event.  Let's take a look?...

The couple that eats brains together, stays together...even after death.

She had some very good contacts.  Good makeup on both of them.

Zombie Jesus?  Wow...haha

Getting ready for the walk. The makeup artists did a tremendous job on a lot of people. 

Even Indy's finest firefighters are safe from zombies.

So that about sums up the 2011 Broad Ripple zombie walk.  I had a very good time shooting this event.

As for next year, yeah, I think I will definitely put this on the calendar for next year.  That being said, I need to get a lot better at shooting with a flash.  I had some good pictures, but too many so-so pictures where I either used too much flash and over exposed or didn't use enough flash and everyone is underexposed. 

Hey, practice makes perfect, right?

Indianapolis Bloggers

Good news! I applied and was accepted into the Indianapolis Bloggers community here on blogspot.  They have many good blogs about Indy and by Indy based bloggers. Check them out Indianapolis Bloggers

Steel wool, a water hose and the burning bush, er branch

So, in addition to having a really good lunch last week, I decided to get off my rear end and finally spin steel wool.This was something I have wanted to do for a long time after seeing pictures in the Flickr group "Light Junkies".  It's a great group to learn about burning steel wool, light orbs, spirographs etc.  Overall, it is a great place to learn about light painting techniques.  I know I have certainly enjoyed looking at all of the pictures in the group pool. 

I learned how to spin steel wool after reading a post on .photoextremist.com website.  His video and blog entry were very helpful and showed me what I would need to spin the wool.  His site also has some great ideas on other types of trick photography and some good tips on processing photos.  Take a look..

I originally planned to burn the steel wool over Labor Day weekend at Dale Hollow Lake.  However, the tropical storm that blew in from the gulf pounded us with a never ending storm and killed my plans for late night photography. Which is a shame as I was also ready to experiment with star trails. Grrr...

Forward to last week.  I set up my camera on the sidewalk, set up the steel wool, lit it and started spinning. I could not be happier with my results.

Did I mention that steel wool can set dry grass or tree branches on fire?  No, I suppose I forgot that part..then and now.  After spinning the wool and feeling quite pleased with myself and setting up for the next shot, I was curious about a glowing light several feet off the ground and to my left.  Yikes, I set a branch on fire.  I grabbed a hose and put the fire out before it did any more damage.  Thankfully the burn patter was small (but oh so bright) and the tree seems to be none the worse for wear.  Just to be safe, I hosed the rest of the yard down, waited for any more sparks and then set up for this picture in the street:

A different technique and thankfully I didn't set the street on fire.  Again, I'm very happy with the results. Another safety tip, wear long sleeves, trousers, gloves and something to cover your head.  The bits of wool don't stay lit for long, but they can give a little sting when they hit bare flesh.  As far as clothes go, wear something black unless you want to stand out in the picture.  Both of these pictures were shot at f13, ISO 200 and were 30 second exposures.  I added a little warmth to the colors in PSE as I think it helps them stand out more.  After subsequent attempts, I kept the colors closer to what they actually look like.  They are below:

In both of the new shots, I was trying to spin the wool into an orb shape.  I like the two attempts, but I need to refine my spinning technique some more.  I think I might need some extra weights to keep the whisk from spinning around too much.  These two were done at f11, ISO 200 and 30 second exposures. 

Well, that's all for now.  I have been scouting locations in Indy that would look good in the background when I burn the steel wool again..and soon.  I think along the canal is a good place to start. 

Of hamburgers, bleu cheese and that wonderful smell of cooked meat

I finally had a chance to return to the Red Lion in Fountain Square. I was there with a couple of coworkers for the return of our "nutrition group discussion" meetings, that being an excuse to go out and try new (to us at least) restaurants in the downtown Indy area.  We used to go out more frequently, but increased workloads and telecommuting have hurt our gatherings.

My girlfriend introduced me to the Red Lion and I am so glad she took me to the restaurant a few months ago.  The first thing I always notice is the wonderful smell of meat being cooked over a fire as soon as I walk in the door.  This being a lunch crowd, surprisingly it wasn't too crowded, which made me happy.  I don't like having to waste my lunch hour on a long wait to get a table, do you?

Lately, I have had a craving for bleu cheese on my cheeseburger and today wasn't an exception.  I ordered their blue cheese burger and had tater tots on the side.  Yep, no fries, just tots (was in a Napoleon Dynamite mood, I suppose).  The burger was tasty and came with some very good bleu cheese.  I prefer the crumbled bleu cheese, but the Red Lion had some type of spread.  It was still good and had that nice tart bite which I really enjoy on hamburgers.  The tater tots were as good as I expected.

My coworkers ordered the grilled cheese and a chicken wrap and both of them were happy with their lunch.  They had enough food to take home. All of us were craving something sweet for dessert and we all ended up getting an elephant ear to take back to work. Yep, an elephant ear and it wasn't from a fair.  I couldn't wait to tear into my dessert and started on it after I returned to work.  Fortunately it was still warm and was very sweet and yummy.

All in all, the Red Lion is a great place to eat.  The only downside?  I didn't get any beer due to it being a work day.  When you go, try some of the different brews like Upland or Sun King, you won't be disappointed.

Next up, how about lighting steel wool and spinning it?