Random pic I took of a girl up at Indy. I didn't have any good shots to post today so I thought I'd just add this one.

Wow. That was ugly.

I had a very interesting experience at dinner tonight. Someone I considered a friend had a complete change in personality. Unfortunately tonight, we sat in her section after band practice. I can only imagine that she has something going on in her personal life that caused her to have this horrendous attitude but nevertheless, she didn't get much of a tip from me. Crazy.

My day also didn't start off all that great. Around 3 this morning, I rolled over only to feel a cramp start in my right calf muscle. Next thing I know, I'm WIDE awake trying to rub my leg and keep it from tightening up. Too late. I'll tell you what, a cramp there hurts like a MOTHER. About 20 minutes later I could finally move again but I didn't sleep the rest of the night because I was afraid it would happen again. When I stood up in the morning, it still was hurting so I spent the first hour hobbling around.

Stayed busy at work. Had lunch with Lesa who shared her home plumbing woes with me. She has a rental house that needs all new plumbing. Yikes! She's now getting a second estimate from the guy who came and fixed my shower. Hopefully the diagnosis will be better... and cheaper.

Had to take Kelsey to the vet today for her annual vaccinations. That's always an event as getting her in and out of the car is always a major operation. I finally get her in and she just starts shedding like there's no tomorrow. Great. We get to the vet and get all that stuff taken care of then it's time to get her back home. More shedding.

Sigh.

The good thing is that she's all healthy. I'm glad for that.

I'm trying to get something together for this weekend. We'll see what happens.

Steamy Tuesday.

Busy at work this morning taking photos and such. Jetted out early though as I had to meet the Cook's guys at the house for the Sentricon install today. 3 trucks and 3 techs showed up. About an hour later, my house had 25 "stations" installed around it's perimeter. Cool.

Had a problem with one of my deadbolt locks. I was having to wiggle the key around to get it in. I talked to the locksmith who said all I had to do was spray it with WD-40. Either I could do it or for $80 he would come and do it. Hmmm... Good tip. It worked. The lock works like a champ now. Yesterday when I came home in the pouring rain is when I couldn't get my key working. I got all nasty trying to get the door open. Finally after about 10 minutes, I managed to get the key working. I was determined not to let that happen again.

Ate dinner with Kyle over at Logan's. Kyle had some kind of malfunction that left us sitting with no doubt the worst waitress in all of North Alabama. I'm sure he'll be elaborating on his blog. Dinner was jacked up. I ordered a burger with no onions, done medium. I get a burger with onions done well. Sigh.

A station in the ground.

More stations going in.

A little core drilling action from the pest control guys installing my Sentricon termite stations.

The #20 Car in Bill's garage being worked on this afternoon. Must be kinda cool to walk into your garage and have a REAL NASCAR racer in there.

Muggy Monday.

Sticky day out today. Sheesh. I felt much better though after a good nights rest so maybe last evening's funk was just a fluke.

I was over at a supplier's place today when I guy I knew from WAAAAY back came out to chat with me a bit. In the middle of our conversation he asked me "So where are you in the Word?" At first, I was stunned. Then I sounded like a Beavis and Butthead cartoon with a long drawn out "Uhhhhhhhh...". This was so out of the blue I wasn't upset or anything. Well, except for being upset with myself for not reading my Bible regularly as I had in the past. I actually laughed to myself afterwards and made it a point to get back into that.

I also ran into Brian, my friend that has the Home Depot car. He and his family were on the way to Mobile on business. We talked about some photography stuff for his race team before we went our separate ways. Stopped in over at Bill's place as he was doing service on the car for the next event. There were some minor dings from the Watkins Glen race but nothing that would be too hard to fix.

I spent some time working on my photo portfolios this evening and had to make a run over to Hobby Lobby to get a small album for my 5x7 prints. Hit New China for dinner on the way home then ended up running into Eric over at BAM where his girls were playing chess. I toted my food over there and ate at the counter while talking to E and Jeff. Good times. A little drumming and a little Battlefield 2 and I'm off to dreamland.

Tomorrow should be busy. I've got a photo shoot at 1:30 then I have to meet the guys from the pest control place as they install my Sentricon termite protection stuff. I'll take pictures.

I'm bummed. Weird huh?

Okay, for some unknown reason this afternoon, I've just kind of been bummed out. I can't put my finger on just why, which seems strange to me. Is this yet another thing that getting older has in store for me? Sheesh.

Despite how I feel, the weekend has really been a good one. I got a chance to do some work behind the camera, eat at my favorite restaurant, spend time with good friends, rest at home and play drums. Oh well.

I think I'll tinker around a little before doing some reading and then go to bed. That would probably be the best thing to do. Hopefully I'll feel better tomorrow.

For Sale

I've decided that I don't need a second in-ear monitor system so I'm going to sell one. It's a Shure PSM 400 wireless system that includes the P4T transmitter, P4R receiver and P4M mixer. Also included are the brackets that connect the transmitter and mixer together in one portable package. It's exactly like this on the Musician's Friend site but does not include earphones. You will have to supply your own. Leave me a comment if you are interested. I'll probably put it up on eBay in a few days but I thought I'd give anyone that follows my bLog a shot at it first. It's in pristine condition and I have the origial boxes for it all except for the mixer. I was looking to get $750 for it.

Self-portrait while waiting for some lighting gear to arrive.

I stopped in to check on Tracey to see how her mural was progressing. She was working on this tree today.

Hot and muggy.

That would pretty much describe part of my shoot today in an un-renovated building this morning. Eventually, I was able to get some cool air in there but it was still in the 80's. Met up with Karen around 9. Brandon showed up a few minutes later. Big kudos to him for coming out to help me on such short notice. He was a tremendous help with lighting and pretty much everything else at the shoot. I've posted a few samples from this morning for your enjoyment.

In the doorway.

On the chair.

On the wall.

On the couch.

Wrap it up.

The week is done! It was a productive week at the office for me. That definitely helps me enjoy the weekend more. In looking through my planner, I accomplished pretty much every task I had listed.

I spent Friday evening working on photos from Indy as well as working on a drum part for a song Kyle sent over. Making good progress there but I still need to come up with more transitions. I'll probably track the song a few different ways and then pick and choose the parts that sound best from each then put it all together on one track. Yeah, that's the ticket.

Hung out at Applebee's with Jeff and Kyle. I ordered a Perfect Margarita (their version of a top shelf) and a kid's chicken finger basket. Donna (bartender), looked at Jeff and said "I thought you didn't hang out with people who drank" to which Jeff said "He's the exception". That was actually kind of a funny exchange but when I thought about it, that almost has a certain stigma to it.

WARNING: Rant ahead

Now, for those of you that don't know me personally or my background, my feelings towards drinking is that it's fine. The drinking till you get drunk is not fine. There are those who make the argument that if it takes you 6 beers to get drunk and you have 1, you're 1/6 drunk. PUH-LEEZE. That's about an intelligent an analogy as saying that if the speed limit is 40, and you're doing 20, you're half breaking the law.

Okay, back to other things.

I got a chance to talk with my buddy
Garrisson Steelle for awhile last afternoon. Mainly talked about photography techniques. He and I were supposed to get together for coffee or something when I was in Indy last weekend but my schedule was packed and it didn't happen.

Speaking of photography, I'm heading over to Huntsville this morning to do a shoot with a girl over there. I'm using natural light from a window to light up the scene so hopefully the sun will cooperate. It's very cloudy right now which is going to make it impossible to get the hard light I was wanting for a few shots. We'll see what happens.

On to other things.

Been busy with other stuff this week, mainly just trying to catch up from being out of town for a few days. Got a note from the utility company to trim my shrubs because they can't read the gas meter. Sigh. I have holly bushes... plants that can defend themselves. I braved the heat, humidity and the risk of contracting West Nile virus to get all my bushes up front all neat and tidy. I need to do some work in the backyard too. Hopefully, I'll get to it this weekend. Yardwork is NOT my favorite pastime.

On the gaming front, I picked up Battlefield 2 the other day. I really enjoy that style of game. It will be a nice distraction from my regular routine. In other news, I'm still porcessing all my photos from Indy. I should have those up on my gallery site soon.

More on the F1 brouhaha...

The following in Paul Stoddart's inside report on what happened behind the scenes. Paul is the term principal for the Minardi team.

"What follows is a press release from the MinardiF1 team giving the views of Paul Stoddart.

"Much has been said about the farce that occurred on Sunday, June 19, in Indianapolis, and I feel that in the interests of transparency, it would be worthwhile for someone who was actually present, and participated in the discussions leading up to the start of the Grand Prix, to provide a truthful account of what took place, both for the 100,000-plus fans who were present, and for the hundreds of millions of people watching on television around the world.

While this is a genuine attempt to provide a factual timeline of the relevant events that took place, should any minor detail or sequence be disputed, it will not, in my opinion, affect in any way this account of events that led up to arguably the most damaging spectacle in the recent history of Formula One.

Background

For those who have not followed the recent political developments in Formula One, it is fair to say that, for over a year now, the majority of teams have felt at odds with the actions of the FIA and its President, Max Mosley, concerning the regulations, and the way in which those regulations have been introduced, or are proposed to be introduced. Not a weekend has gone by where some, or all, of the teams are not discussing or disputing these regulations. This is so much the case that it is common knowledge the manufacturers have proposed their own series commencing January 1, 2008, and this is supported by at least two of the independent teams. The general perception is that, in many instances, these issues have become personal, and it is my opinion that was a serious contributory factor to the failure to find a solution that would have allowed all 20 cars to compete in Sunday’s United States Grand Prix.



The Facts

Friday, June 17
I noticed that Ricardo Zonta’s Toyota had stopped, but in all honesty, did not pay any attention to the reasons why; however, I actually witnessed Ralf Schumacher’s accident, both on the monitors, and more significantly, I could see what took place from my position on the pit wall. This necessitated a red flag, and in the numerous replays on the monitors, it looked very much like the cause of the accident was a punctured rear tyre.

Throughout the afternoon, numerous people in the paddock suggested it was a tyre failure and commented that it was similar to the serious accident which befell Ralf Schumacher during the 2004 US Grand Prix. Later that evening was the first time I was aware of a potential problem with the Michelin tyres at this event. In all honesty, I didn’t pay a great deal of attention, as our team is on Bridgestone tyres.

Saturday, June 18
On arriving at the circuit, the word throughout the paddock was that there was a potential problem with the rear tyres supplied to all Michelin teams for this event, and it became evident as the first and second sessions were run that most of the affected teams were being very conservative with the amount of on-track running they were doing. In addition, Toyota announced that it had substituted Ricardo Zonta for Ralf Schumacher, who would take no further part in the event. Speculation was rife in the paddock that some Michelin teams might not take part in qualifying. Also, during the practice session, I was informed there would be a Team Principals’ meeting with Bernie Ecclestone at 1430 hrs after qualifying, which I incorrectly assumed would centre around the Michelin issue.

Qualifying took place, and indeed, all 20 cars qualified for Sunday’s Grand Prix.

At approximately 1420 hrs, I attended Bernie’s office, and with representatives present from all other teams, including Ferrari, the meeting commenced. Surprisingly, the main topic of conversation was the number of events and calendar for 2006, followed by a suggestion that a meeting be convened at the next Grand Prix to discuss two issues only – firstly, a proposal for a single-tyre supplier in Formula One, and secondly, whether or not it would be desirable to qualify with or without a race fuel load in 2006. Only at the very end of the meeting did the Michelin tyre issue arise, and in fairness, it was not discussed in any great detail. I personally found this strange, but as I have stated, it did not affect Minardi directly, and therefore I had no reason to pursue the matter.

Throughout Saturday evening, there was considerable speculation in the paddock that the tyre issue was much more serious than at first thought, and people were talking about a fresh shipment of tyres being flown overnight from France, and what penalty the Michelin teams would take should those tyres be used. By the time I left the paddock, people were taking bets on Minardi and Jordan scoring points!

Later that evening, I checked with our Sporting Director on what developments had occurred, and was told that the issue was indeed very serious, and the possibility existed that the Michelin teams would not take part in the race.

Sunday, June 19
I arrived at the circuit at 0815 hrs, only to find the paddock was buzzing with stories suggesting the Michelin teams would be unable to take part in the Grand Prix. I was then handed a copy of correspondence between Michelin, the FIA, and the Michelin teams that revealed the true extent of the problem. By now, journalists were asking if Minardi would agree to a variation of the regulations to allow the Michelin teams to compete, and what penalties I felt would be appropriate.

A planned Minardi press briefing took place at 0930 hrs, and as it was ending, I was summoned to an urgent meeting, along with Jordan, with Bernie Ecclestone, the two most senior Michelin representatives present at the circuit, IMS President Tony George, Team Principals, and technical representatives from the Michelin teams. At this meeting, Michelin, to its credit, admitted that the tyres available were unable to complete a race distance around the Indianapolis circuit without a change to the track configuration, so as to reduce the speed coming out of the last turn onto the banking. Much background information was provided as to the enormous efforts that Michelin, with support from its teams, had undertaken in the preceding 48 hours to try and resolve the problem, but it was clear that all those efforts had failed to produce a suitable solution that wouldn’t involve support from the non-Michelin teams, and ultimately, the FIA.

What was requested of the Bridgestone teams was to allow a chicane to be constructed at Turn 13, which would then allow Michelin to advise their teams that, in their opinion, the tyres would be able to complete the race distance. It was made very clear that this was the only viable option available, as previous suggestions from the FIA, such as speed-limiting the Michelin cars through Turn 13, could, and probably would, give rise to a monumental accident. This idea, as well as one concerning the possibility of pit stops every 10 laps, were dismissed, and discussion returned to the only sensible solution – a chicane. During this discussion, a technical representative with specific knowledge of the Indianapolis circuit, together with representatives from IMS, were tasked with preparing the design of a chicane, and Bernie Ecclestone agreed to speak with the one Team Principal not present, Mr Todt, and to inform the FIA President, Max Mosley, who was not present at Indianapolis, of the planned solution to allow the successful running of the US Grand Prix. With only a few hours now remaining to the start of the race, we agreed to reconvene as soon as Bernie had responses from Messrs Todt and Mosley.

At approximately 1055 hrs, Bernie informed us that not only would Mr Todt not agree, stating that it was not a Ferrari problem, but an FIA and a Michelin problem, but also Mr Mosley had stated that if any attempts were made to alter the circuit, he would cancel the Grand Prix forthwith. These words had a familiar tone to me, as they were similar to those I had heard around midnight on the Friday preceding the 2005 Australian Grand Prix, when I was told by all the senior FIA representatives present that the Australian Grand Prix would be cancelled forthwith if I did not withdraw pending legal action between Minardi and the FIA. Once again, Mr Mosley was not present at that Grand Prix! It is fair to say at this point that the vast majority of people present in the room both felt and stated that Mr Mosley had completely overstepped the mark, had no idea whatsoever of the gravity of the situation, and furthermore, cared even less about the US Grand Prix, its organisers, the fans, and indeed, the hundreds of millions of television viewers around the world who were going to be affected by his intransigence.

By this time, the nine teams had discussed running a non- championship race, or a race in which the Michelin teams could not score points, and even a race whereby only the Michelin teams used the new chicane, and indeed, every other possible option that would allow 20 cars to participate and put on a show, thereby not causing the enormous damage to Formula One that all those present knew would otherwise occur.

By now, most present felt the only option was to install the chicane and race, if necessary, without Ferrari, but with 18 cars, in what would undoubtedly be a non-championship race. We discussed with Bernie the effects of the FIA withdrawing its staff, and agreed among ourselves a Race Director, a Safety Car driver, and other essential positions, and all agreed that, under the circumstances, what was of paramount importance was that the race must go ahead. All further agreed that since we would most likely be denied FIA facilities, such as scales and post-race scrutineering, every competitor would instruct his team and drivers to conduct themselves in the spirit of providing an entertaining race for the good of Formula One.

At this point, we called for all 20 drivers, and indeed, all 20 arrived, at which point we informed them of our plan. While I cannot testify that each and every driver agreed with what we were proposing, what I can say with certainty is that no driver disagreed, and indeed, members of the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association discussed overseeing the construction of a suitable chicane. Jean Todt was the only significant team individual not present, and the Ferrari drivers stated this decision was up to Mr Todt.

I feel it is important to stress that, at this stage, and mindful of the total impossibility – call it force majeure if you wish – of 14 cars being able to compete in the race, the nine teams represented agreed they would not take part in the race unless a solution was found in the interests of Formula One as a global sport, as it was clear to all present that the sport, and not the politics, had to prevail if we were to avoid an impending disaster.

After a short break, we reconvened without the drivers. When I arrived in Bernie’s office, Flavio Briatore was on the telephone to Mr Mosley, and it was quite clear from the body language of the others gathered in the room that Mr Mosley was having none of our suggestions. At the conclusion of the telephone call, it was obvious that many of those in the room had lost all faith in Mr Mosley and his ability to perform his function as President of the FIA in respect of Formula One matters.

I’m sure this sentence will be treated with contempt by Mr Mosley, but what must be realised is that there are various reasons that other Team Principals, and the most senior people in Formula One, will not say publicly what they openly feel privately about Mr Mosley, his politics and his governance of the sport. There is a great temptation to go into those reasons in detail, but that is for another day. Suffice to say, those gathered at Indianapolis felt Mr Mosley, and to a lesser degree, the lack of co-operation from Mr Todt, were about to be responsible for the greatest FIAsco in Formula One’s recent history.

Discussions then took place concerning the other telephone calls with Mr Mosley from, among others, Bernie Ecclestone, Ron Dennis and Tony George, and it was clearly revealed to what extent Mr Mosley was prepared to go in order to achieve his aims. To my total disgust, it was stated that Mosley had informed Mr Martin, the FIA’s most senior representative in the USA, that if any kind of non- championship race was run, or any alteration made to the circuit, the US Grand Prix, and indeed, all FIA-regulated motorsport in the US, would be under threat – again, exactly the same tactic that was used in threatening the Australian Grand Prix and Australian motorsport in March of this year.

By now, it was evident Mosley had bullied the US Grand Prix promoter into submission, Bernie Ecclestone was powerless to intervene, and all efforts of the Team Principals, with the exception of Jean Todt, had failed to save the 2005 US Grand Prix.

At this point, the pit lane had opened and a hasty discussion took place concerning whether or not the Michelin teams would go to the grid. A radio had been delivered to me by team personnel at this stage, and I was able to know which cars were going to the grid. It is interesting to note that the Jordan Team Principal was not present at this time, and indeed, it was the Jordans that first proceeded to the grid, followed by the Ferraris. After discussion with Bernie Ecclestone, it was agreed the Michelin teams would go to the grid, but were absolutely prevented from participating in the race because of the tyre situation.

We then proceeded to the grid, at which point I asked Jordan’s Colin Kolles if he intended to stand by the other teams or participate in the race. In no uncertain terms, I was told Jordan would be racing. I was also approached by a Bridgestone representative, who informed me that Bridgestone wished us to race. This left me with one of the most difficult decisions I have had to take during my time in F1, as I did not want to race, but given my current relationship with Mr Mosley, felt certain heavy sanctions would follow if I did not. I made it clear to Bernie Ecclestone, and several Team Principals, that if the Jordans either went off or retired, I would withdraw the Minardi cars from the race.

It is important for people to realise that Minardi, the seven Michelin teams, Bernie Ecclestone, and the promoters did not agree with Mr Mosley’s tactics. For the reasons previously outlined, it may take some considerable time, if ever, for this to be admitted, but there is no question in my mind that the farce that occurred on Sunday, June 19, 2005 at Indianapolis was the responsibility of the FIA President, Max Mosley, and compounded by the lack of support from Jean Todt.

For the avoidance of doubt, in my opinion, Michelin was responsible enough to admit that the problem was of their creation. When one considers that even the replacement, Barcelona-specification tyres that were shipped to IMS, when tested, apparently exhibited the same characteristics as those that originally failed, this clearly is a case of force majeure, as I do not for a moment believe that Michelin intentionally brought tyres to the event that were unsuitable for competition.

Far more importantly, however, Mosley refused to accept any of the solutions offered, and that refusal was, I believe, politically motivated. Therefore, I feel he failed in his duty, and that is why I have called for his resignation.

Much discussion and debate will undoubtedly take place over the coming weeks and months, but I believe this is a truthful and honest account of the facts, and not the fiction, surrounding the responsibility for this FIAsco. People can now make up their own minds!"

Press Release
MinardiF1"

Up close artsy shot

Yours truly in Gasoline Alley. The pagoda is in the background.

The flags flying near the pagoda.

Jenson Button, another favorite of mine in his B.A.R. Honda.

Defending World Champion Michael Schumacher in his Ferrari.

David Coulthard driving for Red Bull racing. This was the old Jaguar team.

Renault, my favorite team.

U.S. Grand Prix 2005

Overall, I had a great time in Indy. Got to hang out with old friends and make some new ones in the process. The weather was spectacular the whole time. Joel and I headed out Thursday morning and hooked up with Carol and Steve for the drive up - us in a Nissan Titan and them in a big GMC. Around 8 hours later we were pulling into our hotel parking lot.

Bright and early Friday morning we headed to the BMW corral - a large blue and white tent with food, drinks, tables, chairs, video games, etc. for members to enjoy. Got some breakfast snacks and walked 2 blocks up to the track where I *almost* bought a current Honda team uniform shirt but suprisingly, I exercised some restraint. I actually only bought one thing... a Red Bull Racing cap. I made my way to the seats next to the end of the pit area to set up for pictures of the cars coming out. Ah... the glorious sounds of F1 machinery at full throttle... I got some good shots from there. Spent the rest of the day checking out the other cars and shopping around. Also got a chance to meet drivers from the Formula BMW racing program. Still open-wheeled cars but with a limited amount of modifications each team can make. This series focuses more on the driving aspect of things rather than all-out performance to teach these kids (they are all in their teens) to hone their skills. I also was able to tour their garages in the famed Gasoline Alley.

Saturday saw more people out there. Things were really starting to get hoppin'. F1 practice went well despite some tire failures for the Toyota team. That afternoon after F1 qualifying was over - a whole bunch of us went downtown to monument circle to look at a bunch of older and classic cars. VERY cool stuff. Took some nice pics there too. Went back over to the corral later for a sumptuous meal. There was an entertaining time with the annual auction and then after that, it was bedtime again.

Sunday we were at the track bright and early. Watched this guy named Reed race in the Formula BMW race (I had met him the previous day) which was pretty cool. Also watched the Porsche Supercup race as well. Lots of excitement.

Time for the main event! Everything looked all set to go - all cars were on the track, everything normal. I had heard that there might be some drama over a tire issue but didn't think much of it. The drivers fired up their cars and started around for their parade lap before taking their starting positions... then then Michelin shod cars pulled into their pits and switched their cars off.

The race started with 6 cars on the grid: 2 Ferrari's, 2 Jordan's and 2 Minardi's. All Bridgestone runners. The crowd went bananas!!! This was a bad thing for F1 here in the States.

I kind of got part of the inside story on what happened. Michelin did advise their teams that the tires they had were not safe and not to run them unless certain conditions were met (they weren't). What happened was that the track was resurfaced prior to the Indy 500 race a few weeks ago, the one where Danica Patrick came in 4th. Well, when the resurfacing was finished, Michelin came out and tested the surface so that they could build a suitable tire for it's F1 teams to run. After all this, the Indy cars started practicing on the track. They were sliding around on the track so to alleviate that, they put small grooves in the track surface. The Indy cars all run Firestone Firehawk tires. Firestone is owned by... Bridgestone. There is speculation that Firestone passed their tire information and the groove "situation" to Bridgestone so they could adjust their tire construction. Michelin did not find out about the grooves and subsequently, their tires were getting ripped up by the track.

Anyway, this is all speculation at this point. We'll see what ultimately shakes out of this.

More to come later...

I'm clear of Monday.

Beautiful day + no malfunctions, THAT'S how a Monday should be especially after the rainy weekend. Kinda warm and steamy out though.

I'm on the tail end of my chiropractor visits now. About a month or so ago, I suddenly lost feeling on my whole right side. Not completely numb, but definitely significantly less sensitive than my left. It freaked me out actually. Before trying anything else, I went and visited my old employer and friend - a chiropractor here in Decatur. While it took a few weeks, I'm back to pretty much normal feeling now without having to take drugs or have surgery. Just wanted to get that out there in case someone was interested in chiro as an option for treatment.

I was pretty tired after work. Went ahead and laid down for awhile before getting up feeling hungry. Met up with Kyle at Cracker Barrel for a quick dinner (and a child that needed some serious disciplining) before swinging by the book store. Ran into my dentist and talked photography with him for a bit. Probably going to try and hook up for lunch sometime soon and talk more. It's definitely nice when you not only have good doctors but when you're friends with them too... that's priceless.

Chatted with Jeff at the bookstore. Looks like some music collaboration is in the works. I'm looking forward to it.

Here's my favorite kid getting out of the pool.

Kay and Lesa smiling for the camera (Daikin event).

Japanese lanterns from the Daikin festival a few weeks ago.

Arlene in the house.

Tropical storm Arlene has made her presence know in the form of rain, rain, and more rain. I had to load up this morning in the rain - cymbal and snare drum case as well as my stick bag and a bottle of water. Also had to bring along a replacement kick drum head and a pillow for muffling. When I got to church, the first order of business was to get the busted head changed out. Got that done then went on with my usual routine.

Musically, everything went smoothly from my standpoint. Even the song that was my least favorite (because it's in a time signature that's awkward for me) went okay. Jack did a good job with his message about seeing where you are going.

Took in the Canadian Grand Prix this afternoon on the tube. WOW. Lot's of drama today. It was a tough day for Renault. It was an especially tough day for B.A.R. Honda with Jenson smacking the wall. This should make for an exciting time at Indy.

Had dinner with Kyle and Jeff at the Moulton Steakhouse. Good food + cheap = Me happy. Stopped off at Kevin's on the way home to return some DVD's he loaned me awhile back.

Oh, ran across this hottie on the modeling pages. Sigh.

And it was!

Yep, I had an inside day today. The only time I went outside was to get the mail. On the domestic side of things, I did 3 loads of laundry. Washed, dried and folded or hung. I also cleaned out the shower. That's a lot of freakin work. Hard water deposits are the main issue. Geez. That wore me out. That and the cleaner fumes.

I did get to spend time on some of my photo work. Wrapped up that wedding from a few weeks ago finally. I also processed a few of my shots from the Daikin festival. While on the subject of photography, I added a new blog buddy to my links... photographer Clay Enos. I ran across his galleries while surfing the web. He does some incredible work. Check it out when you get a chance. He also takes some great club shots too. Excellent stuff.

That pretty much summed up my day. Took it easy, played drums, watched TV... I took the head off my extra kick drum to use tomorrow morning. I think I'll just show up a few minutes early and put it on.

Looks like it's gonna be an "inside" day.

It's pouring rain out. That pretty much eliminates any kind of outdoor activity today. I had plans to trim the bushes in the front yard but I guess that can wait for awhile.

I actually had a very busy day for a Friday. Visited several clients and got things taken care of and was also able to stop in and see an old friend. Her office has an undeveloped side of their building that will be a fantastic spot for photography. I need to take advanatage of that location soon. Nice natural lighting and old civil-war era wallpaper peeling off the walls. Very cool stuff.

Went over to Simp's after work for a drink with a friend. Soon Lori, Lesa, Maria, Scott, Billy and more showed up and we had a table full. I didn't intend on eating dinner there but that's exactly what happened. By the time I got home, I was tired and ready for bed.

Sometime today, I need to get over to the church and do something about the kick drum there. At practice the other night, I discovered there was hole in the batter head where the beater strikes it. That's not a good thing. I thought I had another head I could replace it with at the house but I think the only good head I have is the one that is currently on my spare kick drum. I can use that I guess.

Qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix will be on Speed TV at noon today. That's the nice thing about the north American races on the schedule... they happen at a decent hour.

I need to do some photo work as well today. Got a few projects I need to go ahead and finish. I also need to clean the bathroom. Yay. Life in the fast lane.

Defunkifying

I think I'm starting to get out of this "funk" I've been in the past few days. I sure hope so. Speaking of funk, Nicole is under the weather AND having to move this weekend so a shoot we had previously planned went down the tubes for now. Looks like that's gonna get moved to July. It's okay though because I think it's supposed to be kind of rainy this weekend anyhow.

On a better note, my evening tonight was a WHOLE lot better than my evening a week ago. I was thankful to be sitting at band practice tonight instead of stressing over lost data.

Afterwards, had dinner with Kevin at Logan's. Kyle showed up also to join in the fun and excitement. Food wasn't that great tonight. Oh well.

The Canadian Grand Prix is this weekend. I'll be watching that so I can get all lathered up for the US Grand Prix the following weekend. I can hardly wait. If you have an interest in F1, click on one of the F1 related links on the left.

The weekend is in sight!

Today was nice. I was out of the office the majority of the day visiting a client of mine down in Birmingham. I did a few things at the office before hitting the road around 10. Looks like I left town just in time as I looked over at the city as I crossed over the river and saw a large storm moving in. The drive down was uneventful apart from catching up with some friends on my phone. I'm trying to get one of my buddies I talked to over in Texas to get a blog going. (YOU CAN DOOOO IT!!!) I could use more people in my blog community anyway.

Client meeting went very well. Had a good lunch down in Homewood at an eatery there. Lots of good "scenery" too. That's the one thing I miss about a college town. I'm not saying we don't have "scenery" here where I live... it's just a lot more sparse and usually baggage-laden. But I digress. ;-)

Stopped back at the office on the way home then picked up something to eat for dinner. I figured that I just needed a night to stay in and relax. It was then I realized that I was kind of bummed out, but for different reasons than my post from the other day. I *really* got stressed out over my server malfunction last Thursday/Friday. One of the ways I've found myself recovering from those situations is that I surround myself with friends - not just people, FRIENDS. I hung out with friends every night up until today. Anyway, I was just noticing and observing how my moods change and what the possible influences are.

Weird, huh?

Here's a shot of Tracey, the artist working on the mural I mentioned.

Bummed out.

Sigh. Just talked to a friend tonight who is well on her way to a difficult life. It's sad because she's at a point where she can considerably affect the outcome for much better but probably won't.

Just heard on the news that they're charging those guys in Aruba with homicide in the Natalee Holloway case. I feel so bad for Natalee's family. What was supposed to be a happy time has turned into a nightmare that they never imagined. I can't imagine what they're going through right now.

What else? Medical marijuana is being outlawed. Geez Louise. While I'm not advocating getting high, folks legally using the medicinal herb should be allowed to continue. They're not hurting anybody.

So... not a good day in general.

After work today, Lesa and I took pictures of a friend working on a mural here in town. She's doing it as part of a project to raise money to help children diagnosed with Autism, Aspergers Syndrome and Pervasive Development Delay. It was a beautiful evening to start painting. I was glad I was able to get some shots.

Ah... back to normal.

Well, good success with the server today. All who needed to use it were able to log on without incident and access their files. Once I was satisfied all was working, I went ahead and checked on all the backup scripts to be sure they were set to run properly. Thank goodness for backups. They may be a pain in the rump to do, but when you need them, they're priceless.

After work, met up with the old Guad Squad + the Spooners. Good times. Michelle got to try out one of the toxic margaritas. That was some funny stuff right there I tell ya. Walked around the mall like we used to - it was then we realized why we quit doing this.

Less than 2 weeks now till my annual pilgrimage to Indy for the Formula 1 US Grand Prix. I hope the weather cooperates. I hope to have some really nice pictures this time around as you can imagine. I'm just not sure how much photo gear I want to lug around with me.

Bedtime for me.

Whew!

I had an AGONIZING Thursday night and Friday scrambling to get the data restored on the server at work. Words cannot explain how stressed out I was. After a loss of sleep and a LOT of prayer, things finally started looking better Friday as the data started reloading off the backups.

Originally, I was supposed to go to a wine tasting Friday night but because the ordeal had drained me, I went straight home and crashed for awhile. I got up a little later and gave Lesa a buzz to see what was cookin. They were done with the wine tasting and were over at the bar. She asked me to come join the party. Before going to 113, I stopped by the office to see the magic words on the server display... "Restore Complete". The files are all there thank goodness. The only issue I saw is that permissions were not working right so I'll tackle that first thing Monday. Joined up with quite a crew at 113... Lesa, Lori, Susan, Luke, Josh, Stephen, Jimmy, Lois, Beth, Linda... Had a great time talking with everyone. Caught up a lot with Linda. A friend now divorced that I had last seen a long time ago.

Things got late at 113 so the party moved across the street to The Brick. Saw MORE people I knew over there including a girl that horned in on our airport TV commercial a few months back. Also ran into this other girl I'm supposed to photograph this week. Chit-chatted with her some then went back to listening to the band - Microwave Dave. Lori got the clever idea to tickle me. Unfortunately, she's not ticklish so I had to do other things. After a much needed time out with the gang, I headed home where I finally got some rest and sleep.

Today was slightly productive for me. I fixed an issue with my shower head as well as an electrical gremlin on a light switch. Played drums a bunch and also worked on the wedding photos from a few weeks ago. Took it easy the rest of the day.

Well crap.

Today was a good day - up until 5 when I went to change out a tape that backs our server at work up. To make a long story short, lost the drives that carry our data. Luckily, I do a backup every night so I'm in the process of restoring Wednesday night's data. This will take awhile as there's about 200+ gig of data to restore.

I do not like it when things like this happen. I don't take stress well at times and this is one of those times.

Other than that, things are great!