Here's a slideshow from Africa

I'm back in Chicago! It only took about 38 hours of travel time to get home though. I've taken a first shot at some of the highlights of the safari and handful of shots from Mauritius.

|| Click here to see the slideshow ||

Hello from Mauritius

It's been raining on and off today in Mauritius, so we decided to hit up the local internet cafe at le meridien.

The safari we went on last week in South Africa was unbelievable. There's really nothing like being 3 feet from a lion or an elephant and having them look at you face to face. All of the animals were suprisingly calm and didn't mind when we came close to them. We saw pretty much everything we wanted to see. All of the "Big Five" which are lion, leopard, water bufallo, rhino and elephant. We also saw about 40 other animals and more than 25 types of birds. Here are some of the highlights of the trip -

> Listening to a male lion roar at about 5 feet away (the sound is unreal)
> Waking up to a male elephant drinking out of the pool in the back of our villa
> Tracking down a male leopard who was trying to "get busy" with a female leopard
> I was attacked by a bat on the way back from one of our drives and had to fling him off my coat

I took about 1,500 pictures from the entire safari and I can't wait to post some of them, but I can't upload them on this computer. So stay tuned next week sometime...

Hope everyone is doing well.

Steve

We've landed in South Africa!

Hi Everyone....

Just wanted to drop a quick note to let you know that we arrived in South Africa safely a few hours ago. We are in Johannesburg for the night at the InterContinental and then it is back on an airplane tomorrow morning for the Safari. The flight was long, but not as bad as anticipated, there were quite a number or meals and entertainment to keep us busy. I can't connect my camera to the computer I'm using so unfortuately no pictures for now.

Take care.

ATTN: I'M LEAVING THE COUNTRY FOR 3 WEEKS AND WILL NOT HAVE ACCESS TO PHONE OR EMAIL

As many of you know, I'm getting married next weekend, so I'm going to be out of contact for a couple of weeks. We leave for Grand Cayman at 6am on Wednesday morning and are getting married on 5/5. After that we're headed to Africa for a two week safari and island getaway. I will not have my cell phone or access to the internet at this time. I will be back in Chicago on 5/24 and can be reached at that time. I'm really excited for the next three weeks! I'll have plenty of pictures to post when I get back.

Farewell for now!

Steve

I feel like I'm a grown up for the 1st time in my life

You may already know this... but we bought a new home! We've been looking for the past year or so, but things finally picked up when both of our condos sold in the same month. We were debating between a duplex and a single family home and in the end, we found a single family home that should work out great. I'm most excited about the digital studio that I will build out from scratch. Here are some pictures of the new home...

Leopard Hills

Here's a bunch of info on our wedding and honeymoon. Here's the order of the 3 week stint -

week 1: wedding in Grand Cayman
week 2: Safari in South Africa
week 3: Island getwaway in Mauritius

Here's some info on the three spots...


Perched on the top of a hill overlooking a natural waterhole and in close proximity to the Sand River, Leopard Hills is a sanctuary exuding luxury and privacy and the perfect location from which to view the leopard on hunt amongst the other numerous big game which abound. In the western sector of Sabi Sand, part of the greater Kruger National Park system, Leopard Hills is one of the most sought after game lodges in South Africa.

Eight beautifully appointed suites, each with private sundeck and rock plunge pool, offer as much as you could wish for, glass-fronted to permit superb views of the bushveld beyond and airconditioned as comfort against the African heat. The romantic bathrooms include a Victorian bath, and double indoor and outdoor showers. This is the perfect setting in which to sit on your terrace and admire the show of the passing cavalcade below. Laze around the pool on the wooden deck and marvel at your prime elevated position.

8 Suites each with air-conditioning, Victorian bath, double indoor & outdoor showers, fire place, mini-bar. Complete with their own sundeck and private rock plunge pool.

Grand Cayman Info

More research....

Here's some info on Grand Cayman. We'll be arriving on Wednesday and leaving Monday. The big day is on 5.5.2007. Here's some info and some pictures of the island -

Grand Cayman is the largest of the three Cayman Islands at about 196 km² and contains the capital George Town. Towns on the island are referred to as "districts". It is located at 19°20′N 81°13′W. The island is a high-lying cow reef, with a highest elevation of roughly 24 meters above sea level. There is no natural fresh water (lakes, rivers, etc) on the island, so any fresh water needs must be met by catchments or desalination of seawater. The lack of rivers does however account for the exceptional clarity of the sea. The island was devastated by Hurricane Ivan in 2004 from September 11 to September 12. With Category 5 strength, Ivan passed within 30 miles of Grand Cayman, hitting it with winds over 180 mph (290 km/h) and gusts up to 200mph. The island reported no more than a few deaths - none directly caused by the hurricane - but over 80% of the buildings were either damaged or completely destroyed. Ivan was the worst hurricane to hit the island in 86 years. The eastern side of the island is somewhat undeveloped, while the western side of the island, which holds George Town and the airport, Owen Roberts International Airport, is more developed. Fast food restaurants, night clubs and resorts can be found on the western side of the island. The eastern districts offer more restaurants specializing in native Caymanian cuisine.

The island economy is heavily dependent on tourism, with as much of 75% of the island's GDP being tourist generated. Aside from numerous beaches, including the famous Seven Mile Beach, there are many attractions on the island.
Grand Cayman and the Cayman Islands in general are very well known for their diving and snorkelling. The island features many reefs and walls, some of which can be accessed by swimming from shore.

1-2 year old Green Sea Turtles in a petting tank at the Turtle farm. The district of West Bay features a turtle farm. The farm re-opened in November 2004 as a larger attraction after being damaged from Hurricane Ivan. The majority of Green Sea Turtles are raised for their meat, the theory being that this eliminates consumption of wild animals. Some of the farmed turtles are released, and have good survival rates in the wild. The turtle farm also has several rare iguanas and a caiman on display. West Bay district is also home to a formation of limestone affectionately known to islanders as Hell. Merchandise "from Hell" can be purchased nearby.

Stingray City in Grand Cayman allows swimmers, snorkelers, and divers to swim and feed stingrays. Stingray City, located a short boat ride from the northern end of Grand Cayman, is a series of shallow sand bars where sting rays are found in abundance and visitors can feed, pet, and interact with the animals. The southern stingrays can grow to large sizes (100 cm or more in span) and are quite accustomed to being handled and fed. A trip from a local tour operator will usually include snorkelling in coral gardens before arriving at Stingray City. In the southern district of Bodden Town is the historic house of Pedro St. James, considered the birthplace of democracy in the Cayman Islands. It is also the oldest known existing stone structure on Grand Cayman.

In the Eastern Districts of the island are the districts of Bodden Town, East End and North Side. In the centre of the island (in North Side district) is the Mastic Trail, a hiking trail through old growth dry forests that used to cover the entire island. Plants and animals native to Grand Cayman, such as the Mastic Tree, green parrot, and agouti, can be seen.

Learning a little more about Mauritius

Just over one month until the big wedding in Grand Cayman. I'm starting to get really excited about everything... mostly because all of the planning will finally be over. I'm amazed at how many details and logistics can be crammed into one day. I did a little research on wikipedia about Mauritius which is where we're going to go after our safari in south africa. Here's some info on wikipedia -


Mauritius (pronounced: IPA: [məˈɹɪʃəs]; French: Maurice /mɔʀis/; Mauritian Creole: Moris), is an island nation off the coast of Africa in the southwest Indian Ocean, about 900 kilometers (560 mi) east of Madagascar and about 3,943 kilometers (2,450 mi) southwest of India. In addition to the island of Mauritius, the republic includes the islands of St. Brandon, Rodrigues and the Agalega Islands. Mauritius is part of the Mascarene Islands, with the French island of Réunion 200 kilometers (125 mi) to the southwest. The flag of Mauritius has red, blue, yellow and green stripes. The red stripe represents the struggle for independence. The blue stripe represents the ocean around the island. The yellow stripe represents the sun and golden light of independence. The green stripe represents fruitful soil and vegetation.

Mauritian society is highly multi-ethnic. Island residents are the descendants of people from the Indian subcontinent, continental Africa, Madagascar, France, Great Britain, and China, among other places. The official language of Mauritius is English. All administrative documents are drawn up in English, which is also the principal language of instruction in the educational system. French, however, predominates in the media, both broadcast and printed. The French-derived Mauritian Creole, with influences from the other dialects, is widely spoken on the island and is considered the native tongue of the country. Creole was the language used by the African slaves to communicate with the French landlords. Nowadays, Creole is used in everyday life by all Mauritians. Hindi is also widely spoken, though restrained to the Indian community. Several other languages, including Arabic, Indian languages such as Urdu, Tamil, Telugu, Marathi, Bhojpuri, Gujarati, Punjabi or dialects of Chinese like Cantonese, Hakka and Mandarin are also spoken. The latter South Asian languages are spoken by descendants of the labourers brought from British India during the British rule. The Indo-Mauritians (when the ethnic groups are combined) form approximately 70% of the total population, the remaining 30% being mostly Creoles. The French and Chinese make up the smaller minorities. There are approximately 30,000 Mauritians of Chinese descent, from the Hakka, Mandarin, and Cantonese language groups. More than 90% of the Sino-Mauritian community are Roman Catholic; the remainder are largely Buddhist. Small groups of foreign students from Europe or the Indian Ocean region are present. The recent years have seen a constant flow of foreign workers mostly Chinese women in the textile industry, Indian workers in the construction industry and Taiwanese men in the harbour-related activities. Though immigration is not a debate at all in Mauritius, the relative economic stability of the island is attracting more foreign workers. Of all religiously affiliated Mauritians, Hindus constitute 52%, Catholic Christians 28%, Muslims (16.6%), Buddhists (2.5%), Adventist Protestants (2%), Sikhs (0.3%) and other religions are also followed[6].

Back in Chicago

I've been in Michigan for the past 5 days. Two for work and then the rest for a weekend getaway to Carolyn's parents house. We lucked out on the weather. It was supposed to snow this weekend, but it was warmer then they thought, so we just got a lot of rain. I'm catching up on a lot of little things while I watch the Oscars. Hope everyone is doing well!

Steve.

Search for the Next Maytag Repairman

Yesterday I went to Nay Pier to check out the auditions for the new Maytag Repairman. There were about 200 people who showed up and it was really fun to watch everyone audition for the role. Check out the website for more details - http://nextmaytagrepairman.com/ Here's a description of the event by the AP

Updated: 2:50 p.m. CT Feb 21, 2007

CHICAGO - The Maytag Repairman wasn’t a lonely job for about 200 men who auditioned to wear the blue cap and uniform of the iconic television advertising character.

During an open casting call Tuesday, a husky salesman sang “One Is the Loneliest Number” to an imaginary washer and dryer, then did a kick line. A hospital worker struggled to fit the cap over his dreadlocks. And a 20-something actor talked to an appliance — again, imaginary — like it was an underappreciated wife.

Obviously, the next Maytag Repairman — always lonely, ostensibly because of the dependability of Maytag’s appliances — could look a lot different from the somewhat older fellows with the hangdog expressions who have played the part in the past.

Whirlpool Corp., based in Benton Harbor, Mich., bought Maytag of Newton, Iowa, last year, and company officials say finding a new repairman is part of plans to revitalize the Maytag brand.

Since appearing on television in 1967, he has only been played by three actors. The contract of the current repairman, Hardy Rawls, is not being renewed.

Whirlpool officials say they want the new repairman to be energetic, young at heart and outgoing. But he indeed has to be a man. America, it seems, is not yet ready for a repairwoman — at least according to their market research.

“If you think of other advertising icons out there ... where is Ben Crocker? Where is Juanita Valdez? Where’s the Pillsbury doughgirl?” said Jeffrey Davidoff, Maytag’s vice president of brand marketing.

“I think there is something that (consumers) see the repairman partially as a person, but really as a character. To be true to that character, one of the things we had to do was stick with a man,” Davidoff said.

The company held auditions last weekend in Los Angeles and has a casting call scheduled Friday in New York City. Applications also are being accepted by mail; the new repairman will be announced in March.

At the Chicago auditions Tuesday, authentic Maytag repairmen — who either own stores or work at them — were perhaps only outnumbered by struggling actors.

Scott Thompson, 44, has owned a Maytag store for eight years in Valparaiso, Ind. He said he has seen some changes since Whirlpool took over Maytag — he now places orders over the computer instead of the phone, for instance — but is hopeful the expanded product base will help his business.

“It’s new. I wouldn’t say it’s good or bad. It’s just new,” he said.

Those making it to the final round of Tuesday’s auditions got to don the brimmed, blue Maytag cap. They were videotaped talking to an imaginary Maytag appliance of their choosing, then had to deliver a line of dialogue in several different ways — one man channeled John Wayne, another tried “Taxi Driver”-era Robert de Niro.

The auditions also drew a bus driver, a police officer, a stockbroker, a landlord, a construction worker — and a professional football player.

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Jim Sorgi backs up Peyton Manning, who has only missed one play because of injury in his nine-year NFL career.

Speaking to the media during Super Bowl week in Miami, Sorgi joked that he would be a good Maytag Repairman, “the guy bored out of my mind waiting for something to do.”

On Tuesday, Sorgi attended the auditions as part of a promotional agreement with Whirlpool and went through the process like everyone else. In a pep talk delivered during his videotaped audition, Sorgi told an imaginary washer and dryer: “You’re King Kong, baby, nobody can defeat you!”

© 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Joshua's 1st Birthday

Josh (my nephew) had his first birthday party ever so I took at the camera for a little bit and took some pictures. He just learned to walk this past week, so it was pretty funny to see him motoring around David and Catherine's house

||| Click on the picture above to see the SLIDESHOW |||

COLD... COLD... COLD

I just got back from outside and it is CRAZY COLD outside! I don't think it's been this cold in a couple years in Chicago. The only thing that makes it o.k. is that the bears are playing in the superbowl today! I do think the bears can win if the defense shows up and plays like they have in the past. We'll see later tonight. My prediction... BEARS 28 - COLTS 17

GO BEARS!

Random Trivia

And now it's time for some useless, but interesting trivia...



Pisa, Italy is six miles from the coast of the Mediterranean now, but that sea rises and falls over the ages and Pisa was a port city in the 5th century B.C. A couple of years ago excavators found 15 ships with antique cargoes intact buried in the clay under Pisa where it was left by withdrawing waters.

• The most populated city in the world is Shangai in China.

• In Caracas, the capital city of Venezuela, it is customary for the streets to be blocked off on Christmas eve so that the people can rollerskate to church.

• Using satellite-surveying techniques, scientists have determined that Los Angeles, California is moving east. At a rate estimated to be about one-fifth on an inch per year, the city is moving closer to the San Gabriel Mountains.

• The Vatican city, as well as being the smallest city in the world, is also one of the only countries within another country (it is inside Italy) The other is San Marino, also inside Italy.

• A building in Belgium was taxed if there was a street light on it...unless a statue of the Virgin Mary were placed above it. Hence, there are no buildings in the city without a statue of the Virgin Mary.

• The longest official city name in the world is: Krungthep Mahanakhon Amorn Rattanakosin Mahintara Yudthaya Mahadilok Pohp Noparat Rajathanee Bureerom Udomrajniwes Mahasatarn Amorn Pimarn Avaltarnsatit Sakatattiya Visanukram Prasit. It is the official name of Bangkok, Thailand.

• In Chester, England, you can only legally shoot a Welsh person with a bow and arrow inside the city walls and after midnight. The only trouble is finding one ;o)

• The first city in modern history to reach 1 million people was London in 1811.

• We usually think of Montreal, Canada as a cold weather city, and Paris, France as a much warmer city than Montreal, but the fact is that Montreal is south of Paris.

Superbowl Shuffle

The Bears are going to the Superbowl! I didn't think they would get there because of how inconsistent they have been lately. But they stepped up in the second half and pulled through. As soon as they won today, I was instantly taken back to my childhood when they went to the superbowl in 1986. And of course the superbowl shuffle popped into my head also. Here's some fun trivia I found out on the shuffle.


Bears defensive end Dan Hampton declined involvement in the shuffle because he felt it was too cocky

Payton and McMahon were unable to attend the original filming of the song's music video, so they were spliced in later with help of a chroma key.

The music video for the song was filmed at the Park West, a venue in Lincoln Park, in Chicago.

A female referee, played by Julia Kallish, Richard E. Meyer's wife, was also on hand for the radio and television edit of the song. She whistled and threw a penalty flag to censor the word "ass" in the lyrics.

I've been accepted into The WPJA!

Wow. The new year has been very busy so far! Work is busy and planning out some of the last minute details of our wedding continues to suck up a lot of time. This past week I learned that I was officially accepted into the WPJA (Wedding Photojournalist Association). I'm really excited about being accepted. Here's some additional information on what the organization stands for.

THE WEDDING PHOTOJOURNALIST ASSOCIATION
Leading the way in Wedding Photojournalism, WPJA represents the most discriminating talent around the world technically, creatively and visually. Qualified members hold industry-leading standards, skills and business integrity. The WPJA sponsors educational programs including seminars, conventions and workshops geared toward wedding photojournalism. We also host wedding photojournalism contests, judged by top working photojournalists and news photo editors actively in the photojournalism industry. The purpose of these contests is to celebrate the photographers who document and record the found moment.

WPJA MISSION STATEMENT
The Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA), an International, membership-based organization, represents professional photographers skilled in the documentation of weddings and events in a candid, unobtrusive style. The WPJA was founded to uphold excellence in the area of wedding photojournalism.

Happy New Year!

Carolyn and I had a great time celebrating new years. We drove down to visit some friends in Indianapolis along with a bunch of other folks from Chicago. When we got back today, I noticed there wasn't a cloud in the sky, so I thought it was a a perfect time to go out for soms sunset pictures. Plus, it was in the high 40's, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity. Here's a couple of the pictures I took which I will upload to my new website. They will all be available for purchase in multiple sizes. If you haven't already seen the new website, make sure to check it out. Click on the link on the homepage which says Chicago prints.

Steve.

picture of the week

some pictures from earlier today...

I hope everyone has had a great Christmas break so far. I always celebrate it in Chicago, which is great becuase the city will get really quite, and it loses that chaotic feel. A couple days will go by, and then it's back to the normal hussle and bussle. I went out this afternoon and took some pictures around town. Here are some highlights. I've posted some of the other pictures on my website (click on the link for "architecture and more" to find then)

picture of the week