(Almost Daily) Photo

Vacation comes to those who wait

Fri, 3 Sep 2010 15:21:36 -0700

I know I’ve not posted anything for a while. Life has taken it’s tole.

Finally, however, my husband and I will sneak away - before anyone can stop us... catch a hotel in downtown Seattle and listen to some great local, and not-so-local music at the annual Bumbershoot Music & Arts Festival. We can’t wait...

Their policies on “professional” cameras on the other hand.... that’s not something to shout about.

True Love

Tue, 24 Aug 2010 07:56:49 -0700

This surely is a recipe for love. A little Spray Paint + A little illegal graffiti = true smitten love.

What a lucky girl.

On another note... does anyone else notice the double yellow line? Who is supposed to travel in that middle lane?

In memory of...

Fri, 20 Aug 2010 08:10:10 -0700

Another photo taken while driving. This wasn’t even in Tillicum actually, but Puyallup. I merged onto the freeway yesterday along side of this semi-truck bearing larger than life photos of local missing children.

Where above most of the photos it said, “Have you seen me?”, Above Adreanna’s picture it said “In Loving Memory”.

December 2, 2005, Adreanna left home to wander the streets of Tillicum on her way to school - as many children do. She was only 10 years old.

This Tillicum child never made it to school and it wasn’t until April 5, 2006 that authorities identified her remains.

Her case still remains unsolved.

Those were tough times for this small community. It was such a shock to see that someone still clearly remembers, and drives up and down the coast proclaiming her story so that it doesn’t happen again.

Small and Mighty

Thu, 19 Aug 2010 08:48:43 -0700

This is not the greatest picture ever and the quality isn’t really there either, but - to be fair - I snapped this with my phone’s 1.8 megapixel camera while driving down the road. I just thought this scenario was to funny to pass up.

Certainly, everyone has seen 101 dalmations (the original cartoon) and remember the opening scene where the dog owners and their pups share an uncanny resemblance. This is exactly how I felt when I passed by these two. This man fit the bill for a 5.5’ Tillicum thug - wifebeater, towel and saggy (man capris?).
Small, but tough none the less.

And what kind of dog does he walk? Clearly there is none more ruthless, more vicious and more territorial than the infamous, small and mighty, Chihuahua.

Darkness to Light

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 11:34:20 -0700

As I mentioned in my last post, I left this weekend to join with a few other leaders and 30 students in Southern Washington for a Summer Retreat adventure. What a time we had!!

This particular picture was taken from deep within a cave. We crawled down into the hole and went all the way into the very back of the cave. All the students shut out their lights and it was absolutely pitch black. Sometimes I didn’t even notice that my eyes were closed, there was no difference when I opened them.

The prayer was this - that I might not live the rest of my life in a dark cave, not knowing the difference when my eyes are closed to those around me. Instead, let there be a light that illuminates the darkness. Let that light be Jesus and may we shine for him.

Summer Camp

Thu, 12 Aug 2010 13:23:20 -0700

A good friend and mentor of mine often asks me a difficult question:

Do I really believe that what I believe is really real?

A difficult question to answer. (and to understand)

The answer to that question is often different. Today though, the answer is YES.

And I want that to be the answer for 35 middle school and high school students when we return from Summer Retreat on Sunday night. Blessings to you all. Daily Photo will return next week!

Birthday Wishes

Wed, 11 Aug 2010 08:39:47 -0700

The majority of my frames as of late have been filled with the faces of this little one. My sweet nephew turned one year old last week and it’s been my absolute pleasure to watch him grow.

There is nothing like being there the day the babe is born and then getting to see him, literally, fill out, over the months to come. If you have young ones in your family I am sure you can understand!

Plus - who doesn’t like taking pictures of sweet little guys like this. It’s hard to get a bad picture.

Puddle Jumping

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 09:23:06 -0700

It finally rained.

Although it has not been as warm of a summer as I would like, I will say we must have gone 45+ days without any rain. A little drizzle hit the area and it made me think “I’m ready for Autumn”... It’s my favorite time of year and it makes for much more interesting photography, at least in my opinion.

I was out walking the dog the other night - who was a BUNDLE of energy and could not be contained inside any longer. I neglected to bring my point and shoot because the battery was dead.

I came across this dead scene and would have been remiss if I left without a photo. So, Beesly got an extra block or so in her walk as we trekked home and grabbed the old Nikon D50 and returned to sit in the street and snag a photo.

No Admittance

Fri, 6 Aug 2010 11:28:56 -0700

Recently I asked Camp Murray (Local National Guard Installation which borders Tillicum on the South Side) if I could take some pictures to use in the daily photo... My request was unfortunately declined.

My husband was asked not to return to a local mall as a teenager because his friend was talking with a thick Australian accent and wrestling the alligator outside the “Rainforest Cafe”.

The People of Tillicum have been blocked from access through a local country club into the greater Lakewood area. A fence has been put up (and I quote) “so that normal people won’t know there is a golf course on the other side”.

When was the last time you were told - “You don’t belong here”?

The Fall

Thu, 5 Aug 2010 08:20:36 -0700

My new favorite person is Mephibosheth. (and what a great name)
Crippled by a fall he could not control.
Rejected because of his lack of benefit to others.
Searched for and found.
Seated with the king simply because of who his father was.

These are the things that make me think.

Evening on the Water

Wed, 4 Aug 2010 08:43:18 -0700

There cannot be anything better than relaxing on the water after a long day of work.
Soaking up the setting sun on a calm evening.

Perhaps this was the last time this summer for such adventures! Back to school clothes already flood the racks at the local stores and teachers are prepping to meet their new students. I know friends on the East Coast have already put their children back in school!

Hold on to every last bit of Summer. It will soon be gone!

Gated Communities

Tue, 3 Aug 2010 09:00:03 -0700

We have two different kinds of gated communities in Tillicum... There are those on either end with luxurious homes and codes which I don’t know (thus no pictures from those neighborhoods). And then there are these gated communities. Boarded up houses, chain link fence and barbed wire. To be honest - I have no idea why or when the barbed wire was initially put up. The only thing I can think is that it was originally used as part of the nearby military installation? Now its used for less than adequate housing... Or, perhaps a landlord (slumlord?) wanted protection for his tenants - either way it does the job, you couldn’t pay me anything to steal from this gated community.

Sail away Sail away

Mon, 2 Aug 2010 08:56:10 -0700

I woke up to a view of a water full of windswept sailboats. I watched just kind of in awe as one sailboat lost control and nearly rammed into a dock on the mainland side of a skinny stretch of American Lake between Silcox Island and Tillicum... Must have been training day. I then realized - daily photo!

August Theme: bright color & a bright idea

Sun, 1 Aug 2010 15:50:53 -0700

At the start of every month, citydailyphoto.com bloggers participate in a theme day. This August it was voted to be “bright colors”... I struggled with wether or not to join this - I didn’t want to lay out the cliche’ sunshine posts (that I often put up here) or summertime flowers...

Then I came across this stack of chairs.

Every Thursday, the Tillicum Youth and Family Center, a Youth For Christ drop-in center, provides a bbq style dinner (hamburgers and hot dogs) to ANYONE in Tillicum who chooses to come! It’s quite an amazing offering... and plenty of chairs are often standing by at the ready.

Click here to view other theme day participants!

Friday Foolishness

Fri, 30 Jul 2010 08:44:11 -0700

I’ve always thought gangs were pretty foolish. Just a bunch of kids who need a place to call home... People to watch their back... Generally, I feel like the kids around these parts just want it to be the late 80’s/early 90’s again when the gangs were possibly something to be feared - respected.

Instead, they name themselves Peg Leg.

Come to think of it - it’s always the kids who have a lot to make up for that you have to watch out for. It’s like Johnny Cash naming his ‘boy Sue’.

With a name like Peg Leg - I guess you have to learn to be pretty tough after all.

To the last drop

Thu, 29 Jul 2010 09:29:17 -0700

I’ve been having fun changing up the photos a little recently... tough to take unique shots of such a tiny area... So - just having a little fun...

Which is apparently what someone else was doing... There is a point where the fun stops and the drowning away of sorrows begins. I’m near certain this person could explain to me the difference.

Can’t Complain

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 09:20:33 -0700

I say a lot about wanting to be soaking up the gorgeous weather instead of stuck inside a tiny office -

but at the end of the day...

Who can complain with the days where you can’t really tell where the sky stops and the water begins.