3 Quarters Today

My Life, my photography, my passions

Nebraska

Day 72/365: Super Target, It’s Huge!!

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Day 72: Shopping

The Super Target in the Omaha L Street Market is huge!  It goes on forever and ever! I went in for a Valentine card, my daughter Birthday card, and socks for my son. Ended up walking a half a mile. Really it did. Never fails, whatever you’re needing is in opposite sections of the store. Then you remember something else you need and trek back to the far section again. This particular store is 174,000 sq feet and one half is the grocery section which I didn’t even venture into on this trip.

I do like Target, much more than Walmart. Target has higher quality items and for a chain department store the home decor section makes me drool.  I did resist, I made the conscience decision not to get a cart. That strategy has worked more than once. You can only buy what you can carry.

This store was so bright, clean, such a contrast from the Walmart at the other end of the shopping plaza, which feels like warehouse. Target has an actual finished ceiling, instead of open pipes and heating ducts. The floor is finished and not polished concrete, again like Walmart. Makes the shopping experience so much more relaxing and enjoyable. Maybe the concept is people will feel more comfortable, shop longer and spend more money. I might have, it I had a cart.

Photoshop Notes: In addition to the standard adjustment layers I posterized the image and it really made a difference in the image clarity giving it more depth. The original was looked  a dull and boring. I wasn’t getting the same bright crisp effect in the photograph that I got in person. First time experimenting with this function and I’m going to have to use it more often.

Day 70/365: Elmwood-Murdock High School

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Day 70: Elmwood-Murdock High School

I’ve mentioned my kids high school a few times in this blog, yes I’m not only a proud parent, but a proud member of the Elmwood-Murdock community. This is the school sign outside the high school located in Murdock Ne. Murdock has a population of about 267 people, give or take a few, and is located in Eastern Nebraska between Omaha and Lincoln. The Village of Elmwood is just six miles south comprised of approximately 700 citizens.

As you can see sports isn’t the only area the students pf Elmwood-Murdock High School excel. Academic recognition is just as important and the FLBA (Future Business Leaders of America) has made it to Nationals every year since 1992. My daughter is in FBLA, FCCLA, Speech, Track, and Volleyball. With such a small school if there is going to be any activities just about everyone has to participate.

Participate they do, in a big way. It’s cool to be involved, fun, and from a parents perspective it really builds character, confidence, and skill sets that will take them far. Over 50 students participate in FBLA and more than 20 in speech.  The high school student body  is comprised of approximate 120 students from 9-12th grade. We have a 100% graduation rate, and an average ACT score of about 24, would have to check that again as two years in a row we had students that got a perfect score.

Anyhow, more to come on the school as the year progresses.

Day 69/365: It’s COLD in Nebraska!

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Day 69: Yes the thermometer is correct

Woke up one morning not wanting to climb out of bed. It was cold! Brrrr. Broke out my trusty iPod, (have I mentioned I love my iPod yet? Well I do!) and checked the weather. Yes, you read it correctly -2.1F, that is without wind chill which made it feel like -15 F, too cold for outside pictures, I think I’ll just stay under the covers and work from my iPod. I can do that, email counts.

The free App is @Thermometer, simple, but does the trick. I’m really addicted to Scramble, it’s like online Boggle. Don’t even ask what level I’m on, it’s embarrassing.

Day 67/365: Hastings Honor Choir

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Day 67: Hastings Honor Choir

Just a little bit about the Hastings College, High School Honor festival. It is the oldest honor music festival in the state of Nebraska, now in it’s 41st year.  The choir and band only accepts juniors and seniors, while the string orchestra is open to all high school students. This year the clinician was Dr. Daniel R. Afonso Jr. and the students spent 6-7 hours a day Friday and Saturday practicing their pieces for the concert on Sunday.

My son is in the middle of the above picture, a senior, and sings Bass II. Until a year ago he never tried out for honor choirs.  He was accepted for Hastings last year, ECNC last fall, the University of Nebraska Omaha BOCH Festival last month, and two years ago sang at Carnegie Hall in New York City with the Elmwood-Murdock choir in a mixed ensemble. Quite a set of accomplishments in the past few years. Yeah, and he hates for me to brag about it too. But what are the chances he’ll ever read this? Slim to none.

I have thoroughly enjoyed watching and listening to him sing. In six months he will be leaving for Marine boot camp in San Diego, CA and starting a career as an MP. I am more and more proud of him every day. I hope, somehow, that he will find a way to continue singing.  Maybe on a base somewhere a group of them will start a group, enter a talent show, or just be goofing around one day with ditties and form a group like the 4 Troops.

Day 67: Extra, full Honor Choir

Disclaimer: I know, the top photo is not one of my best, very amateurish Photoshop eiditing. But hey, the purpose of this blog is to stretch not only my photography skills but to get better in Photoshop as well.  I was experimenting with layers, selecting colors, and skewing images. I accomplished that.  So my goal for the night was complete. Considering the lighting and the distance I thought the pictures turned out decent.  I tried to improve it in Photoshop but was only slightly success.

The second picture was photoshopped too…I removed a random trombone player intruding on the choir and pushed the bleachers together.

Day 66/365: Winter Neighborhood

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Day 66: Snowy Neighborhood

The view down my street in Elmwood, Nebraska. A small community (technically a village), population 687, give or take a few.  This was a few days after a snow and the sun had finally come out. I know compared to my Connecticut friends this snow is nothing. But, last year we can get 8-10 foot drifts with just a foot of snow, so this year we’ve been given a break.

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