115/365 The joy of an ice cube

Every evening, and whenever he asks, Buster gets a bowl of ice cubes and one set out for him to crunch on.

He loves it, and I don't blame him. I love watching his ingenuity as he wrangles the slippery ice cube without the aid of opposable thumbs.

He manages to crunch it into smaller, bite-sized pieces, then he gets a piece in his mouth, tips his head back, and rolls it around on his teeth as he eats it. I'm a fan of crunching on ice cubes, too, so I completely understand why he likes it.

Don't even get me started on how cute it is to listen to him eat pieces of an apple. That just may put me over the edge.

Camera: Canon 40D, 1/60s, f/4 at ISO 1600 in incandescent lighting.

114/365 Tasseling corn

It must be summer, because the corn is beginning to tassel.

Is it just me, or does this year seem to be flying faster than ever before? Can it really be mid-July already? Are we really halfway through 2009?

Part of it, I'm sure, is the amount of activities that have been keeping me busy this year. But it almost feels like I missed spring entirely.

But sure enough, the corn was more than knee-high by the fourth of July, and it's now tasseling. I've even heard some cicadas already, which are definitely an auditory clue that summer is here.

Oh well, there's nothing we can do but enjoy it while it's here!

Camera: Canon 40D with 60mm macro lens, 1/250s, f/4 at ISO 100 at about 7:00 p.m.

113/365 Lunchtime staple

Homemade hummus has become a staple in my everyday lunch routine.

That punch of protein really helps me get through an afternoon at work, and all I need is a small snack in the late afternoon to give me enough energy for a workout.

And there's just something about making my own hummus that makes it extra satisfying. Not only is it an easy, fun recipe, but it's nice knowing exactly what's going into my food.

Speaking of recipes, how about I share mine with you? It's been a while, but I believe I got this from the Cooking Light website.

Homemade hummus

2 cans (15 oz) garbanzo beans
1 T sesame seeds (toasted sesame seeds work great, too)
1 T roasted garlic
1 T lemon juice (I always add more, but not a specific amount)
2 T olive oil (You'll most likely need to add more to get it to the desired creaminess)
1/2 t. oregano
1/2 t. salt
1 t. parsley

Throw all ingredients, in no fancy order, into a food processor and let 'er rip! Add lemon juice to taste, and olive oil for creaminess. One aspect of this recipe that makes it different than many others is the use of whole sesame seeds instead of tahini.

Makes approximately 2 1/2 cups. Enjoy!

Camera: Canon 40D with 60mm macro lens and 430EX Speedlite, 1/125s, f/2.8 at ISO 400

112/365 Flowers and personal space

I made a quick photo of this flower at my grandparents' house on Sunday. I love the light pink against the background of greens. I was without my trusty macro lens, so I made do with my (also trusty) point-and-shoot.

The reason for my "quick" photo-making was due to the number of bumble bees hovering nearby. I try to be calm and abide by the "if you don't bother them, they won't bother you" philosophy, but when there are half a dozen of those suckers in my personal space, I can't help but be a little wary.

And those bees were loving these flowers. So after a minute of photographing, I headed back to the safely enclosed car.

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000 at about 6:00 p.m.

111/365 Feeling marooned

There's something about this sight that makes me laugh.

We got nearly three inches of rain on Saturday, and on my drive home, I passed this cow just standing by herself (I think it's a "she") in the middle of a big puddle.

She must have been enjoying it, perhaps soaking her tired hooves in the cool mud, because her comrades were nearby on dry ground.

I drove by her once, chuckled, then decided to turn around and go back for a photo. By the time I got back to her, she had turned her back to me, as she is here. I got my photo, drove by to turn around again, and on my third pass she was still in the puddle.

I'm not one to judge her reasoning. I'm sure a cool foot bath on a hot day was welcomed!

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000 at about 4:30 p.m.

110/365 Red geraniums

I always think of Dad when I see geraniums, especially deep red ones.

For as long as I can remember, Dad has included red geraniums in his annual flower planting. They're lovely, and they bloom all summer long. And for the rest of my life, I'll always associate them with him.

One thing I find a little surprising, or interesting, about geraniums, is that for such a pretty flower, they don't have the prettiest smell.

I suppose the same could be said for lilies. Perhaps it's a defense mechanism?

Ooh, boy, we could get into some lengthy metaphors with that line, couldn't we? I'll leave that alone for now.

Camera: Canon 40D with 60mm macro lens, 1/125s, f/5.6 at ISO 320 at about 7:15 p.m.

109/365 Sneak Peek - Kelly & Matt's Engagement

Kelly and I know each other from our days on the ballroom dance team at Butler University. I haven't seen her in several years, so I was surprised -- and completely honored -- when she emailed me, asking if I'd shoot her engagement photos.

It didn't take me long to respond, "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

She said she and her fiancé, Matt, have been following along with SightSalad and wanted to support a fellow BU alumna. How in the world could anyone turn that down?

I asked them a series of questions to find out more about how they relate to one another and what they had in mind for their photos, and Matt said his dream would be to have a photo of them sitting at center court in Hinkle Fieldhouse.

Well, let's see what we can do about that!

We met for Part 1 of our session at Hinkle last night, and we're planning to head back to campus on Saturday for more outdoor photos. (Cross your fingers that the weather holds out.)

You get a sneak peek today, with one of my favorites from the Hinkle series. And yes, they are indeed at center court. Stay tuned for more shots in the days to come!

Camera: Canon 40D, 1/60s, f/4 at ISO 640 in halogen gymnasium lighting.

108/365 Fancy features

Shiny, fancy, brand-new appliances.

Even if you're not currently in the market for a new _____ (insert appliance here), it's still fun to go look at the fancy colors, dials, and options, don't you think?

Or maybe it's just me.

I was in Sears with my parents last night, and I couldn't help getting a photo of the neatly stacked fancy front-load washers and dryers.

Can you imagine living 100+ years ago when you had to take your laundry out to the river to wash by hand? Well, maybe you do actually remember that time, but I haven't had the pleasure of living through that experience.

The features on the latest machines are mind-boggling. They'll practically load themselves then help you get dressed when your clothes are warm and dry. And then you consider the décor aspect, and you get into a whole different realm of decision-making. When did a washing machine become artsy?

It makes me wonder what the features will be like in 10 years. Or 20. Maybe they really will load themselves.

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000

107/365 Fresh salads

A good, fresh salad is one of those foods that feels like you're burning calories just by eating it, because it takes so much work.

It takes a lot of hunting around in the bowl to get a forkful of a good mix of ingredients. Then it takes work just to chew it, because it has volume and lots of crunch.

Now, if it gets drenched or buried under creamy dressing, not only is the healthy aspect minimized, but those wonderfully crunchy ingredients go soft.

But I like just a little dressing, so my salads take work. Right now I'm on an Italian dressing kick, preferably made at home with vinegar, oil, water and a packet of seasoning. And with the abundance of fresh veggies becoming available, I'm having lots of salads.

So does that mean I deserve extra dessert?

Camera: Canon 40D with 60mm macro lens, 1/125s, f/2.8 at ISO 800 in window light at about 7:30 p.m.

106/365 Zucchini arrival

Look out. The zucchini are arriving.

That sounds a bit like a "heads up, the aliens are landing," or "be prepared, the in-laws are here," doesn't it? I'm sure some people would argue that those statements are actually synonymous, but that's a topic for another day.

The arrival of zucchini, I believe, is much more enjoyable, though requires nearly as much preparation or work.

If you aren't a gardener, then you probably aren't blessed with the knowledge of the amazing production of one zucchini plant.

I've heard many people remark that they'd be willing to bet you could hear the squeak of a zucchini growing overnight if you sat there long enough. They've been known to double in size in 24 hours, meaning they'll take over your yard (or counter top) if you turn your head for an entire weekend.

And my dad planted three plants. Holy mackerel. And they're starting to arrive.

But oh, they're tasty. I look forward to dozens of loaves of Mom's zucchini bread, and many more nights of zucchini sautéd with Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb.

Bring on the fresh vegetables!

Camera: Canon 40D with 60mm macro lens, 1/125s, f/2.8 at ISO 125 at about 7:30 p.m.

105/365 Working as a team

Unless you live beyond the borders of urban, and even suburban, areas, this isn't something you get to see every day.

The gentleman driving this big rig is a neighbor whose house I pass every day on my way to and from work. He has several beautiful draft horses, and I've seen him out a lot recently training these two to pull a wagon together.

He started by training each one individually, then moved them up to pull a smaller cart together, so they can get used to working as a team. Judging by how well they're doing here, I'd say the training is going quite well.

In the winter he has a sleigh and bells that he attaches to the horses, which has to be one of the coolest, most postcard-perfect scenes I've seen.

But I don't want to think about winter right now. I just want to stand in awe of these magnificent horses.

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000 at about 6:00 p.m.

104/365 It's Independence Day

Independence Day for me this year was going to largely be spent like any other weekend. And really, the day itself dawned gray, rainy, and the temperature barely reached 70°F. That weather alone is enough to make you forget what day it is.

And sure enough, Mom and I headed to Brownsburg for some errands, not realizing until we saw flashing lights ahead that we'd run straight into the town's parade.

Oops.

Well now that we're here, we might as well catch some of the parade, right? Looks like a photo opportunity to me!

I told Mom that in about 20 years she should join this group of ladies. They call themselves "Red Hats and Purple Chaps." It made me laugh, but honestly looked like a great idea.

I worried for the band's instruments when the sprinkling rain started to intensify. They didn't seem phased, though, and they had a captive audience of little kids.

This spectator and her pup made me smile. The poodle was really cute, one of the cutest poodles I've seen, and teeny tiny. And of course she was sporting a red, white and blue scarf around her neck!

We watched the parade for a while then left before it was finished in order to beat the traffic. That may not be patriotic, but it sure saves some time.

Happy Fourth of July!

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000 at about 10:30 a.m. under overcast, rainy skies.

103/365 Blooming hosta

The lovely (and pun-worthy) hosta, along with all of its brethren, is blooming. I had forgotten that hostas bloomed at all, until I noticed the thin shoots sprouting.

I think it actually seems like a flower meant for another plant. The leaves of the hosta are broad and decorative on their own and remain pretty close to the earth. Then this flower extends a foot or two above the plant, a delicate lavender flower on a thin stem.

Is the hosta trying to compete with its neighbors? Feeling left out of the seasonal color?

What led me to choose this photo from the group that I shot was the mottled background. You can see the ivory and green leaves below the bloom, out of focus.

Well, at least the lavender nicely compliments that ivory and green. The hosta got something right.

Camera: Canon 40D with 60mm macro lens, 1/125s, f/2.8 at ISO 200 at about 8:00 p.m.

102/365 Festive lilies

As though in celebration of the upcoming red, white and blue holiday, this red lily bloomed this week.

One thought I have as I look at this photo is, "Wow, this looks like an allergy nightmare." The pollen on this patch of lilies was very thick, and the yellow dust had fallen down into the flower and out onto the petals.

Luckily my seasonal allergy affliction isn't very severe, so I don't think it bothered me. But I sure feel for the people it does.

Camera: Canon 40D with 60mm macro lens, 1/125s, f/2.8 at ISO 250 at about 6:00 p.m. under overcast skies.

101/365 A century-old practice

This view reminds me of an old photograph from several decades ago.

I think of round bales as a fairly new concept, but a little research on Wikipedia has proven me wrong. Round baling machines were introduced as early as 1910, and the first to be sold to the masses were produced by Allis Chalmers.

That's amazing, that this machinery has been around for 100 years.

I think of some of the vast changes that have been made in other areas, such as the difference between automobiles now and a century ago or the idea that calculators hadn't even been invented yet. But then to read that farmers 100 years ago were baling their hay and straw in round bales, a system still in practice today, and the dichotomy is very interesting.

I guess if it's not broke, don't fix it, right?

Camera: Canon PowerShot SD1000 at about 7:00 p.m.