Sunday, December 30, 2012

Day 286/365


     Today was another lazy day as well, but that's when my wanderlust tends to become most prominent, so I decided to put the free time to use and start planning a (hopeful) trip to Ireland for this summer.

Day 285/365


     Yesterday/Saturday/day 285 was an extremely lazy day. I did a bunch of chores around my apartment and ran errands that had all been neglected between moving, working, and getting ready for the holidays the past few weeks. It seems my lazy attitude caught with my pets too, Finch especially.

Day 284/365


     One of my assignments on Friday/day 284 was to get some photos of some of the migratory birds in the Saginaw area. One of our editors noticed a lot of them at a park nearby, so I went out and saw literally hundreds of Canada geese and a few dozen gulls walking around on the ice and in the few open patches of water. It was such a bitter cold day, I wouldn't have wanted to spend it here if I were them. 

Day 283/365


     The morning of Thursday/day 283 was spent in Ohio for an hour or two, before I left a bit early to drive the rest of the way back to Michigan a day late due to the snowstorm that came through. I'm pretty sure my family's cat, (actually my friend and former roommate's that we're taking care of while she's in the navy), was a bit upset with me for taking my cat/her buddy away from her. 

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Day 282/365


     Yesterday/day 282 the local meteorologists actually got the weather right for once, and northern Ohio got hit with a snow storm bad enough to put off my going back to Michigan for a day. The hot chocolate was flowing all day long though, so I guess I can't complain too much. 

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Day 281/365


Merry Christmas everyone! I wish you a safe and happy holiday, and a wonderful new year!

Day 280/365


     Last night/Christmas Eve/day 280 my mom gave me one of my Christmas presents early since we had our annual Christmas movie night. The cheddar popcorn from Pittsburgh Popcorn is addicting, and I've missed it so much ever since I moved away from the Burgh over a year ago. My mom ordered some off of their website, and I'm pretty sure the tub's not going to be a goner by the time I head back to Michigan tomorrow. 

Sunday, December 23, 2012

Day 279/365


     Today my mom got some of our younger cousins over for our yearly holiday baking/crafting binge. My cousin's two daughters are the cutest kids, I swear, and they are so much fun to have over. We made tons of cookies/cupcakes/and other desserts, and had a great time doing so. 

Day 278/365


     Yesterday/day 278 was the O'Donnell family, (my mom's side of my family), Christmas party. With the exception of a few of a few cousins, almost all of us were able to make it this year. There's so many of us that all of us getting together at the same time and sam place doesn't happen all that often. 
     
     I had an idea to make them all Christmas ornaments this year, (my mom and her seven siblings), using a photo of all of them together on Christmas morning when they were children. I love this picture of all of them; I think it shows each of their personalities so well. And the ornaments seemed to be a hit!

Saturday, December 22, 2012

Day 277/365


     It finally snowed today! In both Michigan and Ohio! I love snow in general, but I especially love it around the holidays; it just doesn't feel like Christmas to me without some snow. Hopefully it sticks around until Tuesday!

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Day 276/365


     This morning I got to shoot a pretty fun assignment; the national "Shoes that Fit" campaign being hosted at two local schools. The campaign gets new pairs of shoes for children in need. I shot the shoes being handed out to elementary school kids this morning, and they were absolutely ecstatic. My ears were ringing for about a good hour after I left the school from their squealing and cheering. It was really such a great story to be a part of.

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Day 275/365


     Today I got to shoot and write a pretty bittersweet assignment. (If you'd like to see my other photos, I read the short writeup I did, you can find it on MLive here). It was a last minute one, and all I was told was that a group of ladies from the Red Hat Society were visiting a friend of theirs in the hospital. When I drove to the hospital and actually met the woman, Linda, who was getting the visit, I found out that she was in the hospital from being in a serious car accident a few weeks ago that killed her husband. 
     When her friends walked in and each one of them walked up to her, hugged her, and told her how much they loved her and were there for her, it was truly touching. It was easy to see how much she'd missed them, (she was in I.C.U. until last week so her only visitor has been her daughter), and how much them being there helped her. It made me think of when I came back home after finding out my dad had passed away, and how much having my family and friends there as soon as I walked in the door really and truly helped me get through everything. 
It's really amazing how much human beings can do for each other just by simply being there.

Day 274/365


     Yesterday/day 274 consisted of another demolition site assignment. Yet another building in Saginaw is being torn down, and the razing began yesterday. I've happened to cover each of the demolitions that have gone on since June, and with the same construction company being at all of them, I'm now on a first-name basis with have of the crew.

Day 273/365


     Monday/day 273 was filled with numerous technological issues for me; between my work laptop deciding to lock me out and then the system that I upload to MLive through locking me out as well. In between my hours of calling tech. support, I covered a few assignments, including a local Bay City area school that restored two nine and-a-half foot electrical toy soldiers and installed them at the entrance to Bay City's Santa House. 'Tis the season.

Day 272/365


     Sunday was filled with some unpacking, then some more unpacking... did I mention I did some unpacking?

Day 271/365


     Saturday/day 271 marked my first time shooting wrestling. I covered two different day-long tournaments, one in Saginaw Township and another in Auburn. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, and photo-wise it was actually pretty interesting. It still wouldn't be my favorite sport to shoot, but definitely not my least favorite by far. I got plenty of action shots, but this one ended up being my personal favorite.

Day 270/365


    So even though I did get internet installed last Friday/day 270, moving my things into my new apartment and work kept me plenty busy and my blog suffered for it. Anyways, Friday was filled with work during the day, and some overtime at night when I covered a local girls basketball game.

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Day 269/365


     Today was certainly a long one. My car is currently in the body shop getting fixed after it got hit a few weeks ago. The tire pressure light in the rental I was driving turned on a few days ago, and when I stopped in the rental place today they switched out the car for me. That's probably a good thing, really; I was originally driving a VW Beetle, and my legs were already starting to hurt just thinking about driving that car back to Ohio for Christmas. Anyways, my last assignment ran a lot later than all of us involved with it at work thought it would, so I was looking forward to going back to my apartment for the night, even with it being sans-furniture at the moment. When I came home, I realized Finch decided to help me with some of the unpacking in the kitchen. Made. My. Night.


Day 268/365





     Yesterday/day 268 was a bit of an emotional one. My dad would've been sixty years old yesterday, and for work I covered two memorial services. In a way it was all entirely fitting. The first service I covered was what would have been a local boy's ninth birthday. The boy, Jayden Lamb, passed away last month after more than a two year battle with cancer. In honor of his birthday, hundreds of people met at a Midland church to light and send off hundreds of lanterns into the sky. It was really cool to see. There's also been a pay it forward movement gaining steam in the wake of his passing, and if you like you can read about it in one of the articles on MLive here.

     The second service I covered last night was the eleventh annual Project Blue Light ceremony, which is for law enforcement officers and their families to pay tribute to deceased officers. It was amazing to see so many officers from different areas, (some as far as Canada), and their families come together to support each other. I was doing fine with everything yesterday, until at the end of the ceremony they had bagpipers play "Amazing Grace" to lead out the processional. Gets me every freakin' time!
  



 

Day 267/365


     My return back to Michigan/work was met with another basketball game to shoot. It was a lot of fun, and had the first slam-dunk attempts I've seen this season. 

Day 266/365


     To make up for the major delay in updates here's a holiday-themed pet post! We were finally able to get our Christmas tree for my mom's house and put it up on Monday/day 266. My cat, Finch, was especially happy about it it would seem. I can't wait to go back home for Christmas and smell it. Christmas trees and home are easily my favorites when it comes to the holiday season. 

Day 265/365


     Sunday/day 265 was spent paying homage to my dad. My dad would've turned 60 December 12 of this year/yesterday, so when my family was together this Sunday we celebrated it together. We had his favorites for dinner: my mom's lasagna, boston cream pie for dessert, and beer throughout the entire day. Halloween through Christmas have been hard and a bit surreal without him, and he's missed by us and so many of his friends and family every day. So Sunday was for him. 

Day 264/365


     Saturday's/day 264's post is a bit of a cop-out, I'll admit, but it's a pretty good representation of my day. I spent the day with good friends and great family, ending it with going through old family photos with my mom and some of my relatives on her side of the family. This is a photo of my mom's mother. I haven't seen very many pictures of her when she was younger, and rarely ever any candid ones, so I really loved this picture of her. As soon as I get settled into my new apartment I plan on scanning it in so I have a better copy of it.

Day 263/365


     I apologize for the serious delay in updates. I'm in the process of switching apartments and I won't have my internet service switched over until sometime this weekend, and I've also been working remotely more than in the office this past week so my internet access has been touch and go.

     Anyways, Friday/day 263's post is another basketball one. It capped off a pretty tumultuous week for me personally with having to deal with my volatile neighbors, so shooting the game before driving home to spend the weekend in Ohio was literally a breath of fresh air.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Day 262/365


     I got to shoot another basketball game tonight. Plus, my volatile psycho of a neighbor is out of town for at least tonight, if not longer. Today is a good day. 

Day 261/365


     Yesterday was not one of my more interesting assignment days, and I figured you guys might be missing a pet post of Finch so I figured I'd indulge you. When it gets colder like it is now he becomes quite the cuddler, so much so that he'll resort to seeking out my laptop if I'm not giving him enough attention.

Day 260/365





     I didn't have to wait too long to get to shoot an entire basketball game, because I got to Tuesday night! It was a pretty good game too; they're not always that common at the beginning of the season. Anyways, I couldn't pick just one, so day 260 gets four photos, (click on the image to view larger). I know sports photography is one of my weaker areas, but I think it's come a long way since I first started shooting sports up here in August. There's still so much room for improvement, and I'm all too happy to work on it through shooting basketball.

Monday, December 3, 2012

Day 259/365


     The day has finally come; volleyball season is over, and basketball season is only just beginning! I covered my first game tonight, and loved every minute of it. Unfortunately I could only stay for the first  two quarters, because I had to get back to the office to get the photos in by the print deadline for tomorrow's paper. Hopefully I'll get to stay for a full game at some point. I've missed playing basketball so much; I literally think I've only gotten to play once or twice since I played in high school. I was never very good, but I always had so much fun playing nevertheless. None of my friends or living immediate family share the interest in the sport with me, and shooting hoops by yourself only keeps you going for so long. There are an indefinite number of things I miss about my dad, but hanging out in the driveway playing one-on-one or playing horse or just seeing who can shoot the farthest is definitely in the top ten.

Day 258/365


     Sunday was spent pretty much the same as Saturday was: packing. It was a bit more delayed though, seeing as Kip, Finch, and I spent almost the entire morning being lazy and not getting out of bed.

Day 257/365


     Saturday afternoon was spent packing up the first stages of my apartment. The neighbors living in the apartment below me have been getting more and more volatile since I've gotten a dog, to the point where I was going to look for a rentable house to move into when I found out my internship was being extended. When I told my landlord what I was thinking, she offered my a first floor apartment in another building in my apartment complex away from Mr. and Mrs. Psycho. Here's hoping things work out better in the new place, which I'll hopefully be in sooner rather than later.

Friday, November 30, 2012

Day 256/365


     My last assignment today was the sentencing of a woman who was recently convicted of embezzlement. She ran a funeral home in Bay County and reportedly embezzled over $400,000 from her customers. She got the maximum sentencing possible today, with a minimum of seven years to a maximum of twenty in prison, along with having to pay over $460,000 in restitution. A number of the victim's family members made statements on their behalf, saying everything from, "I feel sorry for you," to, "You're pathetic," to, "You're evil incarnate." The convicted woman, Erica C. Kaznowski, showed absolutely no emotion throughout the entire sentencing, even as she looked into the eyes of an 86 year-old woman who cried as she stated what dire straits she, her husband, and their adult children are in now that the money set aside for their funeral arrangements is completely gone. To see the article, you can find it on MLive here.

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Day 255/365


     Today was filled with a few unplanned assignments, but the most memorable one was definitely a car veering off of a road and into a house in Bay City. It's looking like the driver had a seizure of some kind, and luckily no one was home in the house when the car crashed. If you're interested in seeing the MLive article or more photos from the scene, you can find them here.

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Day 254/365


     A few months ago, on day 186, I took photos of a 10 year-old Bay City girl who had been diagnosed with stage five kidney failure earlier this year. Her mother gained local and national attention with her attempts to get the word out that her daughter needed a donor, whether it was by contacting us at the newspaper, or standing on street corners asking people to help get the word out and get tested to be donors. Her efforts paid off.

     Her daughter, Jessica, has received a donor anonymously and will have the kidney transplant in the first or second week of January. Local Bay Cit businesses are now helping the pair out with medical bills by holding donation days this Saturday, where beauty salons, Jessica's favorite candy store, and other shops will donate and profits and proceeds taken in directly to Jessica and her mother, Stacey. A benefit is being held for them Friday night at a local theater with food and music as well.

     This girl is by far one of my most favorite people I've photographed. She's so much fun, and such a spunky little kid. I had to remind myself how serious her problems were, because you'd never know it by meeting her. I met her and her mom at the aforementioned candy store this evening, and after we had taken pictures and I was going to leave, Jessica came up to me and gave me a giant hug. Then, her mother thanked me for helping to get her story out, and that she didn't think they could've done without the paper's publicity. The article that I took today's photos for should be up tomorrow, but in the meantime you can see all the photos from today in this MLive gallery here, and once the article's up there should be a link to it under the photos when you look at them individually. 

Have I mentioned before that I love my job?
     

Day 253/365


     Yesterday was a day of extremes. In the morning, I went with a Bay City crime reporter to interview a likely serial killer from a string of cold cases from thirty years ago that the police could never get enough hard evidence to charge the man with anything. The man was extremely unsettling, as one would expect, but the experience was absolutely amazing. It reminded me of why I love what I do for a living. Unfortunately for me, the man didn't want his picture taken, so I only came away with a picture of an old photograph of his deceased mother, (her murder is also a cold case). To read about the ongoing cold case series, you can find it on MLive here.

     After dealing with the cold case series in the morning, I had a restaurant feature to shoot out in Frankenmuth. That was all fine and dandy, until I was leaving the restaurant to go process my images when the driver of a minivan decided to not check her blind spot and clipped my car. My car, luckily, is still drivable, and I'm taking it in tomorrow for an estimate on repairs. Here's hoping things go much more smoothly this time around than they did in August. Oy....

Monday, November 26, 2012

Day 252/365


     Today I was in a bit of a weird mood; it was one of those days where I wasn't necessarily unhappy, but I definitely wasn't happy... just kind of a 'meh' kind of mood. Anyways, to cut short my rambling, I ventured out on my own more often than I stayed in the office today out in Bay City. It was a relatively quiet day and the only assignments I had were little last minute ones here and there. The area got its first snow of the season this weekend, and I didn't get a chance to get pictures when it first arrived Sunday/yesterday morning so I attempted to go out and get a few shots of what was left today. This photo was taken in Wenonah Park, which is a nice little park right along the Saginaw River in downtown Bay City. Most of the snow is now gone, but I'll definitely be ready for when it really hits and makes everything look like a winter wonderland; I love it when it does that. 

Day 251/265


     Saginaw got a dusting of about an inch of snow overnight, so waking up to a little wonderland Sunday morning was a nice surprise. It was Kip's first time seeing snow, and he absolutely loved it. I wish I had time to go to the dog park, because when we went out for a walk it was so easy to see how much he was dying to run around and bound through it. It's since melted away for the most part, leaving just a little bit here and there with a bit of ice. Next time it snows though, I'll have to make sure to let him loose so he gets a chance to play. A

Saturday, November 24, 2012

Day 250/365


     After shooting Christmas tree farms yesterday, and a Christmas market this morning, I was ready to start getting into all the Christmas festivities when I got off work. I went and got an artificial tree. I hate artificial trees, but seeing as I'm switching apartments in a few weeks, I figured moving a live one would've been too much of a hassle on top of moving everything else. Nevertheless, it was a lot of fun decorating it and hanging lights around one of the big windows in my apartment. 

Happy holidays!

Friday, November 23, 2012

Day 249/365


     After stumbling through early-morning Black Friday coverage bleary-eyed and almost completely fed up with people in general, I got a bit of a pick-me-up with my afternoon assignment. Since the day after Thanksgiving is a big day for Christmas tree farms, a reporter and I went to a few of the local farms to interview and photograph families picking out their trees. This little girl was hilarious; she got bored while waiting for her parents to finish paying for their Christmas tree so she climbed into the tree baler when she thought no one was watching. The whole afternoon made me a bit nostalgic, but it was nice to see the fun side of the holiday season after having to deal with the greedy and crazy side this morning. 

Day 248/365


     I got to spend yesterday/day 248/Thanksgiving back in Ohio, (for the most part at least). At 22 years-old I've never missed Thanksgiving dinner at my aunt and uncle's house, and while I would've understood if I had to work yesterday, (since Black 'Friday' seems to start much earlier than Friday each year, and I am, in fact, an intern), I definitely would've been a bit disappointed. Anyways, I was able to have dinner with my family before driving back up to Michigan. My shift for Black Friday coverage was supposed to start early this morning, but I ended up getting some shots in earlier... when it was still Thanksgiving Day. I'm sure it's pointless to hope for, but I'm sincerely hoping that the shopping on Thanksgiving is just a trend that dies out. There's nothing I'd ever want to buy so badly that I'd skip out on spending the holiday with my family to do so.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Day 247/365


     Today I got to cover a really nice Thanksgiving assignment. The two co-owners of a local bar/grill in Saginaw held their sixth annual Thanksgiving dinner today, where they provide an entire dinner for free to anyone who comes in the door. Last year they had around 450 people, and they expected at least that many to come in this year. They prepared 26 turkeys and made 60 pumpkin pies, and any leftovers will be donated to a local church for their Thanksgiving day dinner tomorrow. It was such a great event to see, let alone photograph. People from all walks of life were sitting at tables together, from homeless people to newscasters that work one block away from the bar. Everyone was happy, whether they were sitting down eating or they were back in the kitchen making food. It certainly was a nice refreshing reminder that there are still people who realize what tomorrow's holiday is supposed to be about.

Day 246/365


     Yesterday/Tuesday/day 246 was a bit of a let down. I was supposed to cover a high-profile preliminary hearing, but the FBI ending up taking over the case, making it federal, meaning no photos would be allowed. Anyways, one of the assignments I ended up shooting instead was an orchid greenhouse that a local woman fashioned out of her screened in porch. There's supposed to be a big orchid show put on by the Saginaw Valley Orchid Society this weekend, and the woman whose orchids I photographed will be showing a number of her plants. To see a few more orchid photos, you can find a gallery on MLive here.

Day 245/365


     Monday/day 245's belated post is a product of my drive back up to Michigan after spending the weekend in Ohio. As the sun was setting, a fog rolled in when I was driving down a side street to avoid traffic. I liked how it looked, and took a quick picture before finishing the rest of the drive back to Saginaw.