Next Blog>> Update

Ok, that time I only got 3 hits. But the one from Alabama stayed for a 1:13 mins.

You can tell I am at work and very tired, can't you...

Update>>>They are on to me! This post did not get any new hits, unless, I am not blogging at the opportune time. Maybe it has to be past Midnight when all the surfers start hitting blogger hard.

Next Blog>>>>

Sometimes it is fun to post something just to see how many insomniacs are clicking the next blog option. If you do it a just the right time you can get like 6 or 7 hits in one min.

But Next Click Blog readers, don't click the Next Blog button, take a look around on my blog. I got some good photos here (and some not so good). But I am sure if you look long enough you might find something interesting to see or read.

Ok, I am going to submit it now and I will repost how many hits I got with in 5 min of this post.

First

1. First movie I saw on VHS: Footloose


2. First thing I heated in a microwave: Stale Cookie


3. First real job I had: Dishwasher at Golden Corral


4. First traffic violation I received: City Ordinance Violation for spinning tires


5. First Car I had: 1976 Chevy Malibu Classic


6. First real date I went on: Batman movie, 1989


7. First song I sang on Karaoke: Every Breath You Take, Police


8. First plane ride: From St. Louis to Colombia, Ohio


9. First video I saw on MTV: Wake Me up, before you Go Go, Wham!


10. First apartment with my wife: 10 Community Dr. Lincoln, IL.

Concerts I have been to.

I know I am following the crowd by posting this but...

Concerts I have been to:

Oak Ridge Boys (last month)
Trent Wilmon
Little River Band (twice)
Eddy Money (twice)
Joan Jett and the Blackhearts
Kansas
Styx
Montgomery Gentry
Brad Paisley (Month before Karli was born, I think she liked it)
Hootie and the Blowfish (Anniversary present for my wife)
Cheap Trick (Six Flags)
Survivor (Twice)
Cleitus T. Judd
10,000 Manicas
Tesla (Twice, once in the late 80's and once in the mid 90's)
Great White (with Tesla in the 80's)
3 Doors Down with Tantric and Lifehouse (4th of July, 2001 at PCCC)
Blessed Union of Souls
Shooting Star
Night Ranger
REO Speedwagon

Local Bands:
UltraViolet
Late Arrival


Thanks to Jenett via Marie for the idea for the post.

More Posts on Artwork-Etc

Check out some of my new work on my Art blog.

Microscopic Life

Dude, Where's My Car?

Rorschach

Vertigo

Illinois Building Art

Crowne Jewel

Green Grows the Corn

The farmers are working hard to get the crops in this spring. Proof that you reap what you sow...

Image: Tiny corn plant breaks through the soil.

Image: Row of tiny corn plants.

It is hard to beleive this will be over knee high by fourth of July.

My Store

IGA in Taylorville used to be "My Store"'

Image: Block in IGA wall that shows date of building and former owner

Welcome to my Blogroll

I am adding ThiryWhat to my Illinois Blogs Links section. She is out of Central Illinois and a fellow Techie. Welcome to Photos-etc, ThirtyWhat!

What a bad day

Today JP and I went for our daily walk but it was nasty out. Not many photo ops since the weather just was not nice. Rainy days don't really bring the color out of photos. Here is a photo that kind of represented the whole day:

Image: Man with an umbrella walking in Springfield.

The Art fair is coming, the art fair is coming!!!

I thought I would digitally change this photo into art in honor of the fair coming. I thought it was fitting.


Image:Flag advertising the art fair coming to Springfield.

Cactus Flower

Random Acts of Photography First Edition

Sometimes you feel like taking a photo just because. I mean it may not even be that interesting. So I thought I would post some of these photos under the heading Random Acts of Photography.

Here is a photo I took of two men talking. I don't even know who they are. Thus a Random Act of Photography.



Image: Two unidentified men in front of the Lincoln Herndon Law office, Downtown Springfield

Guess This Photo--April 23 Edition

I am starting a new series called "Guess This Photo". I will post a photo during the week and let people guess what it is. The following week I will post the actual photo and people can check back to see if they got it right. 1000 points to the person who gets closest to the answer. (This is a lot like "Who's line is it anyway" because points don't matter.) HE HE!

Anyway, here is the first photo:

Can you guess what the subject is?

Check back next week to see if you are right.

Well I guess we have a winner. ThirtyWhat got it with a few hidden hints. Way to pick up on that ThirtyWhat. So here is the original photo:

Image: Ben Grimm a.k.a The Thing from Fantastic Four.

Sleep

Ok, I know I said I would try to sleep but I admit it, I can't. I am going to surf some blogs and maybe post some more thoughts. It has just been a crazy day and who knows what tomorrow will bring.

Question...How come I see that several people visit my blog but few comment? Are people afraid to?

Chew Spit revisited

I was back at the restaurant today and the sign was gone. Do you thing they read my post?

Hint: This is NOT in Taylorville.

Karli

Today my family went to the cemetery where my daughter is buried. We had to bury the ashes of my wife's uncle. Since the burial plots are all together, we also took time to plant some new flowers and some fresh grass seed. I walked around the cemetery and noticed a double grave that two women were buried at. On the back of the large stone was a poem that spoke of no regrets. It basically said that we should live every moment that we have with one another, to love, hug, share and just enjoy one another's company while we have each other. Because we never know when something tragic happens as in the case of these two women. By the dates on the stones I could see that one was in her 20's and the other in her 30's. So, I am in a somber mood tonight.

I also saw that the tulips that we planted around Karli's tombstone were in full bloom. I picked them all and gave one to my mother-in-law, mother, sister-in-law, grand-mother-in-law and niece. We kept one for ourselves. They are pink. I think Karli would have liked them. I do miss my daughter. I know she never saw me. But she did know my voice. I remember speaking to her, reading to her and praying with her. She would leap in her mothers womb when she heard my voice. When I lost her, I did not know what I would do. You know it will be two years in July.

The other day I saw a lady that I know that lives in Taylorville. I saw her the night we lost Karli in the hospital. I can only assume that she got a new grandbaby that night. I saw her the other day in Walmart pushing a cart with a baby girl that looked almost two years old. It is strange to see her because I can't help but wonder if Karli would look like that. Instead, I have a photo I carry in my wallet of a baby, frozen in time, just as the day we had her. Never growing, never saying, "I love you daddy."

When people ask me how many kids do you have, I have always said 3 but one was born still. Then follows the "I am sorry." And the uncomfortable silence, followed by me saying, "Thanks." What I wish people would do is say, "Oh, I am sorry, What was her name? When was she born? If you have a photo of her, would you mind showing me?" People don't realize that we don't want to forget about our daughter, never talking about her, pretending it did not happen. We want to tell the world that we had a daughter that was very beautiful. She had skin as soft as pink rose petals. Her head was full of brown hair. She looked like her mother. I will admit it is sad to talk about her, but sometimes it feels good to remember her, to know that she was a living being, and if we cry when we talk about her, then cry with us. Let us remember and let us talk about them without feeling like you just spoke a taboo. Everyone who as lost a child will never forget them, please don't try to get them to forget.

None of my friends usually bring up our daughter in conversation. Most, I feel have forgotten about it. You don't realize how good it feels when someone mentions her name to us. One of my close friends said a while back, "Remember at Karli's funeral..." It is wonderful to hear people say her name.

I realize this is a little different post than I normally do, but today was special. Seeing her grave again has brought up feelings that I have not really expressed to anyone. Now I have and I feel better. I also wrote about our story on this blog and I hope you will read it.

Well, I am going to try and get some sleep. Good Night Blogsphere...

Karli Michelle Reynolds

July 6, 2004

New posts on my other blogs

Sorry about neglecting my other blogs, Artwork-etc.blogspot.com and food-critic.blogspot.com. But I will have you know that I have two new posts on these blogs. One is the review of Bella Milano's and the other is a photo I made to look like legos. Please check them out.

To be totally honest, it is very hard to keep up with all these but I will try and do better.

What have I gotten myself into???

Lego Mania

The other day I was walking in downtown Springfield. I was photographing the Old State Capital. I know what you are thinking, that is so touristy. But I try to get things that people don't normally capture, (but on occasion I still like the touristy photos). Here is a photo of the underside of the overhang of the Old State Capital.

It kind of looks a lot like the top of a lego. So here is the new photo.

It makes you want to go play with legos again, doesn't it?

Feel free to leave comments on whether it looks good or not. I can take it, really!

Jordy's Bar and Grill

Jordy's Bar and Grill

923 W. Spressor

Taylorville, Il

62568

217-824-8200

Jordy's Bar and Grill is located on the corner of Spressor and Cheney St. It is right across the street from Harpers Gas Station. It seats about 80 people and has a bar, which also has an area for smoking. The non-smoking section is nice since it is far away from the smoking area. The store was opened in March of 2004 after extensive remodeling. It was a Chinese restaurant before that. Before that it was part of a large grocery store (Eisners or IGA). The decorations are interesting. They have the ability to make room for larger parties and also have a VIP table located in the front of the restaurant. Hours are 11:00 AM-9:00 PM Monday-Thursday and 11:00 AM -10:00 PM Friday-Saturday. Sunday hours are 11:00 AM-3:00 PM. Also they offer carry out as well.

The menu offers a large selection of appetizers including Shrimp Cocktail, Shrimp on a Stick, Hot Wings, just to name a few. They also offer salads including a Cobb Salad.

For the main courses, they have daily specials or a wide variety of other dishes. We went on a Friday. The special was all you can eat walleye. My wife got that but was only able to eat part of the first order because it was such a large portion. If you like burgers they offer a build you’re own burgers with all kinds of toppings ranging from blue cheese, teriyaki and even salsa.

I usually always order off of the light menu. I went to Florida last year and had grouper and loved it. So around here, they only place I have found it was Jordy's. You can order that grilled, fried or blackened. I go for the blackened. It is very good. And the price is right too at only $5.95. You get fresh baked rolls with cinnamon butter and two sides. I ordered corn and cottage cheese but they were out of cottage cheese. I replaced it with potato cheddar chowder soup. It was really good, too. It had real bacon on top.

The menu has lots to choose from, really too much to mention here, but if you like the basics, like sandwiches, steak, fish, pork or chicken, they will have something for you. Saturday you can get their smoked baby back ribs special that runs $7.95 for a half rack and $12.95 for a full rack.

Children can get macaroni and cheese with there meal and they are only $3.95, which includes a drink. The main entree can be a hamburger, chicken strips or a grill cheese with a choice of fries or Mac and cheese. I wish they would have macaroni and cheese for the main entree and be able to add fries to that. But we order it that way and they always accommodate us with that request.

If you drink alcohol, you can get beer, wine and various mixed drinks. They also have frozen drinks; one I need to try called a Dreamsicle. Sounds good, doesn't it?


Image: First round of "all you can eat" walleye.



Image: Grouper ordered off of the Light Menu.

Our waitress, Elizabeth, was very nice an attentive to our needs. She promptly refilled our drinks when they needed it. I was very satisfied with this visit to Jordy's. I have been there several times and for the most part have always been taken care of.



Image: The Bar at Jordy's Bar and Grill

Wrapping up this review I give Jordy's a 9.5. Food is always quality as well as the service. They did run out of cottage cheese and that is a big deal to us since that is all my three year old seems to want to eat these days. But I think they have come a long way since they opened back in 2004. If you have not been to Jordy's you should try it. It is one of the better placed to eat in Taylorville.

Bride and Groom

Image: Bride and Groom

Spring Trees of Downtown Springfield

I wanted to photograph some of the beautiful blooming trees of downtown Springfield before they loose all of there flowers.

Here are a few I liked.

Image: Blooming tree near Abraham Presidential Library and Museum.

Image: Blooming tree near Abraham Presidential Library and Museum.

Image: Blooming trees near Old State Capital

Image: Blooming tree with a reflection of the Old State Capital

Go Fly a Kite!

Image: Kite Flying in the month of April

Abe's Tree--Supplemental

Just a follow up to the post on the new tree at Abe Lincoln's home. I went by there Friday and noticed that they had most of the work done to the sidewalk and put up a support for the new tree. Here are the photos:

Image: Work mostly completed on sidewalk in front of Abe Lincoln's home.

Image: Close up of new tree and support structure.

School is out!

Friday being a holiday, school children were with there parents walking around downtown. I also noticed parents using the time to take their children to see the sites, like the Lincoln Home.
Here is a photo I thought was neat of children spending time with a parent.


Image: Adult walking children across 6th street, Downtown Springfield.

Graffiti

Image: Photo taken of a building with graffiti near the train station, Downtown Springfield

Remember When?

With temperatures has warm as today, it is nice to realize how good it is to have warm weather again...





Image: Snow drift in Moweaqua, IL Winter 2005-2006

Abe Lincoln's Home Gets A New Elm Tree

On April 5th of 2006, I had the privilege of covering the replacement of the elm tree in front of Abe Lincoln's home. This is something that I was not aware they did. According to the press release given to me that day, "A younger and smaller tree American Elm (Ulmus americana) tree," was planted "in front of the Lincoln Home..." The Superintendent, James A. Sanders announced that the old tree, that had outgrown its role, was removed and replaced with the 8 foot tall new tree which happens to be the same species that Abe Lincoln planted back before 1860.

Here is a little history taken from the press release:

"Mr. Lincoln planted an elm tree in front of his house and it appears in two photographs taken in 1860, as well as in many photographs taken at the time of President Lincoln's funeral in May 1865. At the time of the National Park Service's restoration of the home (1987-1988), it was decided to plant a young elm to replicate the one seen in the 1860's photographs. Since then, the tree is replaced and relocated when it grows beyond the size as it appeared in the 1860-61 photographs. Dr. Charles H. Ware of the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois, has provided the replacement elm trees. The National Park Service intends to continue to replace the elm tree in front of the Lincoln Home as needed, so that an American elm will always be located where Mr. Lincoln planted one nearly 150 years ago. This year will be the fifth time the tree has been replaced since 1988."



Image: Photograph taken in 1860 by Boston photographer John Adams Whipple showing the tree in front of the Home.



Image: House without the tree.


Image: Robyn Schroeder holding a photo of the house in 1860 next to site


Image: Vee Pollock dumping sand in preparation for tree planting


Image: Vee Pollock using survey equipment to set the grade for the bricks


Image: The new tree arrives


Image: James Sanders is Superintendent and Illinois State Coordinator and Vee Pollock discusses tree orientation


Image:Tom Pacha, Bob Trentor and Vee Pollock get ready to plant the tree


Image: Bob Trentor is having fun.

Image: The hole is dug


Image: The tree is planted


Image: House with the new tree.


Image: The old tree is planted on the corner of 9th and Capital.


I would like to thank the National Park Service as well as James Sanders, Vee Pollock, Bob Trentor, Tom Pacha and Robyn Schroeder for allowing me to be a part of this historical event and posing for the photos that I took.