Day 30: The Metro

Day 30: Most days are pretty quiet on the Madison Metro bus, but today was...I guess you could say...um...a little interesting. I don't think I need to elaborate any more than that.

Day 29: Spelunking?

Day 29: I went all day without taking a photo...I guess there are just those days when nothing interesting happens. But when you have a one-a-day photo blog, not taking a picture isn't an option. So I took this one of Forest as he was waiting to come inside. It made me laugh, since the flash on the window made it look like he was wearing a headlamp. Forest is ready to go spelunking, Carmen Sandiego style!

Day 28: Flock of Seagulls?

Day 28: As we were driving home on the interstate, I noticed a large flock of birds in the sky. (I doubt they were seagulls, but it made a good 80's reference :) I managed to take this picture out of the Ford Escape's panoramic roof. I guess that's what the panoramic roof is for!

Day 27: Breakfast of Champions!

Day 27: I'm typically a pretty healthy eater...I like to eat as natural as possible, but some days you just have a craving. I had been wanting one of these McDonald's bacon, egg and cheese biscuits for a few weeks and to my surprise, there was one waiting for me when I got home from the gym. Boy, was it tasty! :)

Day 26: Sunrise Fog

Day 26: I'm an early riser and even in the summer, it is not unheard of for me to beat the sunrise. On this particular morning, I was on my way to the gym and it was a bit foggy in the "valley", mainly over the farm fields. I managed to snap this shot out of my car window (I had pulled over..don't worry!) You can see the fog and the sun beginning to rise in the background. This is one of my favorite pictures I've taken thus far!

Day 25: Wildflowers...and Bees.

Day 25: It's strange how you can walk around campus in the same place day after day and still notice something new every once and a while. This happened to me on my normal route to the bus stop (where apparently I don't pay attention). I must not have been in a hurry since I noticed the beautiful wildflowers growing next to the parking lot stairs. It was definitely worth a second and third glance and now I have the picture to prove it. Gorgeous...although the bees were a little scary! Not sure what kind they were, but they were large with huge stingers! That picture is also below.

Day 24: Moon

Day 24: This photo was taken just a few days after the full moon. It was a clear and crisp evening, especially for the end of July, so I thought I'd try to see how the photo would turn out. Pretty decent image of the moon with a cell phone camera!

Day 23: Sticker Families

Day 23:  If there's one thing I hate, it's the stickers on the back of cars that show how many parents, kids, dogs, and cats are in the family. First of all, I don't care that you have 2 kids and a dog and that they are all Packer fans. Second of all, I don't care that your daughter is a cheerleader and that your son plays football. Third of all, I just don't care. Looks like someone in this family has been removed. (I'm going to assume nothing terribly bad happened...) Maybe it's just a good idea to NOT put these on your car for all to see and not care about... 

Day 22: Stormy Night

Day 22:  After a very rainy Sunday, another storm system brought some stormy weather to the area today. It was a perfectly sunny and warm day through about 6pm, and then the clouds quickly increased and the storms developed. Rain again came down in buckets and the lightning was flashing like a disco ball was in the room. I took this picture toward the farm as the storm was approaching from the west and the sun was setting. Pretty neat shot if you ask me!

Day 21: Rainy Sunday

Day 21:  Last week was a hot and humid one, with hardly any rainfall. We have been well-above average for rainfall this season and just a month ago, local streets were flooded. But lately, the grass has been gradually turning brown and the flowers have been wilting. It finally rained on Sunday, and when I say rained, I mean RAINED. It came down in buckets for a few hours and the ground became so saturated, that we had a mini flood in our yard. I wasn't complaining though, since I didn't have to water the flowers!

Day 20: Best.Dessert.Ever

Day 20:  I love most desserts, but this one is one of the best. Not sure if it's the Nutella or the cocoa or the sweet dough--but the combination is epic. We used to have to drive to Hilldale for this treat, but now there's a location just a few minutes away! Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing...but Nutella pizza is the best!

Day 19: An Odd Sign

Day 19:  TDS Fest is always held at Warner Park and this year was no exception. It was a hot and humid, summer day for this year's event and at the entrance to the park I noticed this sign. It seems to me that it would be a season-appropriate sign--meaning one that might only be put up in winter. I'm not sure there was any ice or skating rink around when we were there--unless you count the sno-cones!

Day 18: Log Rolling!

Day 18:  Last year I decided to knock off another item on my bucket list. This one happened to be log rolling--why log rolling, you ask? Well, I was born and raised in Wisconsin and it was something I had always heard about and just deep down wanted to try. I took 6 lessons last year and will be taking another 6 lessons this year. So far my record is about 6 seconds on the log, so hopefully I will be improving this year. But we'll see! These logs are pretty tricky! :)

Day 17: Name That Food!

Day 17:  After opening up the work refrigerator today, my student informed me that it was starting to smell a bit funky. So after further digging, she found many inedible foods that had been left in there for months. We had fruit completely surrounded by mold, sandwiches that didn't come close to resembling sandwiches and then this. We're assuming it at one point was Chinese, but we really didn't want to get close enough to find out. Gross!

Day 16: Ice Cream!

Day 16:  I LOVE the hot and humid weather (although I seem to be the minority on this one...) and what's better than a nice, big ice cream cone to top off the evening? I'm not sure who has the best ice cream around, but I'm a huge fan of the Dairy Queen dipped cone, which is what I had on this particular evening. And it was delish! :)

Day 15: In Full Bloom!

Day 15: I'm kind of nuts about my landscaping, and after the rough winter we had, I wasn't sure any of it would come back. However, the sunny, warm weather has most everything in full bloom, with the exception being my cosmos. I'm still waiting for those to appear! These are my impatiens, which I planted for the first time this year. Looks like they might be a winner!

Day 14: Puzzling the World

Day 14: I've always seemed to have a fascination with maps and globes and ever since seeing a garage sale with about 20 globes on sale, I've wanted one. Then I remembered I had this globe puzzle (Thanks, Shelley and Paul!) so I began putting it together. Thus far it's only part of the southern Hemisphere, but I hope to get it completed some time soon!

Day 13: The Capitol

Day 13:  Today was a gorgeous day in Madison--probably a bit warm for some, but just perfect for me! On the hunt for the perfect wedding present, Austin and I headed downtown to check out State Street. After failing to find anything, we decided to mosey on down to Art Fair on the Square. Last year's fair seemed quite pricey and we weren't sure we'd find anything, but this year was a success. We found the wedding present and a picture-perfect photo of the Capitol!

Day 12: New Car Smell!

Day 12:  There's nothing quite like new car smell! I came home to see a new car in the street--assuming it was the neighbors--until I realized whose license plates they were. Austin bought (leased) a new car! A nice, new Ford Escape!

Day 11: Nature's Irony

Day 11: One of my favorite places on campus is Bascom Mall, although as most may agree, it's much more of a delight walking down the hill than walking up it. On this bright, sunny day I left the Education building to find this stick formation on the sidewalk. Seemed fitting. :)

Day 10: Dinner of Champions

Day 10: There's nothing better than Wednesday nights at the Coliseum Bar. Why you ask? Well, they have the best egg rolls on special and they are 35 cents a piece! This Wednesday I went for the gusto and ate all 10! Below are the 10 before they were quickly eaten! :) (and no, I didn't use all of the sauces!)

Day 9: The Strength of an Ant

Day 9:  The walk to work is a particularly beautiful one, mainly in the spring and summer, but that's just because I hate winter so much. On this particular morning, I happened to look down to see this tiny ant dragging a bee. I'm not sure exactly on what he was planning on doing with the bee, but it was impressive how fast he was moving!

Day 8: Muurrrder

Day 8: Okay. So not a real murder, but at least it brought some excitement to my day. Every year, one of the professors at the School has a crime scene investigation--with this year's victim being the Sue Riseling, Chief of the UW-Madison Police Department. My detective skills believe the crime happened as follows: It was Officer Radtke, in the Dean's Office, with the poison.

Day 7: The Drought Is Over

Day 7:  Most may know that I'm a huge sports nut--football, basketball, baseball--I love them all. But one of my favorite yearly sporting events is Wimbledon. I've always loved to watch and play tennis (although I'm much better at watching than playing...) and the tradition at Wimbledon has always fascinated me. This year's tournament was a little crazy--with the top players on both sides of the draw being eliminated early. The men's final featured the #1 and #2 players in the world--with the home country favorite Andy Murray winning--becoming the first British player to win the event since 1936. Ironic that the 77 year British drought ended on 7/7!

Day 6: The Dog Days of Summer

Day 6:  The hot, humid dog days of summer are finally upon us. There are some that enjoy the heat and then there are those that enjoy the comfort of the air conditioning. There is a labrador that I know that loves both. After this long, summer day, all he wanted was a nap. :)

Day 5: What A View!

Day 5:  What a gorgeous day in Madison today! With the weather being this nice I HAD to take a break outside, so I decided to walk down by the lake. When I reached the lookout on top of the Observatory Drive hill, this is what I saw. Breathtaking!! :)

Day 4: Happy Birthday, America!

Day 4:  The 4th of July. A time for fireworks, grilling and enjoying the great outdoors. Our version of celebrating the great outdoors involved an intense match of ladderball,  after the ladders were carefully assembled. This photo shows just how many men it takes to put the game together correctly...the second time...after finally reading the instructions. Happy 237th to the good ol' U.S. of A!

Day 3: Well-Placed

Day 3:  I walk past the same things day after day when I leave work to catch the bus, but today I happened to notice this sign. The placement of the stickers made me giggle a little bit and made me wish I would have done something like this in one of my college drunken stupors. Unfortunately, I mainly settled for stealing pint classes from the local establishments in my best James Bond form. :)

Day 2: Pure Joy vs. Immense Sorrow

Day 2:  A few months ago it was announced that I could relive my youth at Summerfest by seeing some of my favorite groups. Not only were Boyz II Men and 98 Degrees playing at the show, but the headliner was New Kids on the Block--obviously the best boy band ever. I immediately posted a plight on Facebook for someone, ANYONE to accompany me to the show. Some laughed at me and told me it was ridiculous that I would pay to see them, but in no time, I had my best girls on board for a fun night out. 

Soon enough, it was time for the show and we couldn't have been more excited!! It was truly a blast, and I'm thankful for the best friends a girl could have! :) Joy.

On the other hand, there were a few of the opposite gender in the house last night with slightly less enthusiasm. We were guessing there were a few reasons why they may have been forced to make an appearance at the show--I'm sure you can name a few. Sorrow.

Day 1: Hawk!

Day 1: A professor pointed out this hawk on the corner of our building. I captured a few of him sitting there, but somehow managed to snap this one right as he was taking flight, I'm assuming for lunch :)

My New PhotoBlog!

I love taking pictures! Sometimes people might think I take too many, but as far as I'm concerned, you can never have too many photos. So that's why I've decided to start my photo blog! I don't lead a very exciting life, but I always seem to find something interesting throughout the course of my day. This blog will contain one picture for everyday of the year (if I remember!) If all goes well, I'll keep it running for many years in the future! :)