BenSpark Family Adventures

Photo-A-Day #510 08/31/06 Tonight I had dinner at the Cork and Cleaver in Evansville, IN. I have another cleaver picture from Fort Wayne’s Cork and Cleaver. We have fun there. They make tasty Lemon Drops. I just noticed that the last three photos were taken at restaurants. I need to get out some more.

Photo-A-Day #509 08/30/06 Today I went to Jasper, Indiana. Not my first time here either. In fact I was here in March of 2005. The German Place is called the Schintzelbank. It has a bunch of good food. I found my way here without much incident. I had two other guys following me on the road and I didn’t get us lost. I thought I was going to at first but things worked out. Last time I was here there was a big discrepancy in the time zones. I flew into Evansville, Indiana and then drove to Jasper, Indiana. Each was in a different time zone. Now they are in the same time zone. It really threw me off this trip. Well, I’m not sure how they do it but TSA was able to pinpoint a small tube of hair gel in my bag under my electric razor and deodorant. They were very nice about it and gave me the option of checking my bags. I had the guy just toss it out. I’m glad they found it, makes me feel like they have a clue. I started reading the next Kathy Reichs book: Fatal Voyage. The book begins with di...

I have found a program called Andrea Mosaic. It is pretty interesting. You can take a regular image and recreate it with a ton of small images. The program does this for you automatically and the program is free. I used it to make the image above and then used photoshop to animate it. So it goes from the multiimage to the original.

Photo-A-Day #508 08/29/06 Tonight Allison and I met Neil and Andrea for dinner at the Outlaw BBQ. This is a nice place for BBQ. We got our complimentary basket of Hush Puppies and then ordered another basket. These are the tastiest Hush Puppies around. We are spoiled when we go to other places because they just can’t match the goodness of these Hush Puppies. We had a good time. Andrea has lent Allison her old camera so we may be seeing photos from Allison in the future. Leave a message if you want Allison to post photos on the blog.

Happy Birthday Shelby! Here is a bonus picture from the weekend of Taylor, Tara and Erik’s dog. Keep watching. This was cracking us up this weekend. Update: Okay it cracked us up for 3 minutes because it was cute. Thought I’d share.

Photo-A-Day #507 08/28/06 Today I had an eye Dr. Appointment, a check up on the eye surgery and a new prescription for glasses. Then I ordered some glasses. I’m going to take my old glasses frames and get some new sunglasses made out of them. I still like them and they fit me well but it is time for a new look. So in 7 – 10 days when the new ones come in there will be a photo. Today’s photo is of some miniature foxglove that is in the front of the house. It is one of the weeds that in years past were pulled. That is until Tara let them grow and we realized that they were actually some pretty flowers. This past Saturday Dad and I did a clean up of the side yard and part of the back yard. It looks great now.

Photo-A-Day #506 08/27/06 Today Allison and I rode to the Cape with Tara to visit with my sister Shelby and to see Sr. Bernadette and Fr. Felix. This photo was taken by Tara, yes we are a family of picture takers. Shelby’s birthday is tomorrow and we are pretty sure she has never had a birthday at home, they have all been on the Cape since we got the house there. We spent the afternoon and well into the evening at the house, relaxing through the rainy day, reading napping, having some Paul’s Pizza and sharing a cake to celebrate Fr. Felix’s 50 years in the Friary. Allison and I showed Fr. Felix and Sr. Bernadette our wedding pictures and honeymoon scrapbook. It was nice to go through the pictures again. Here are some Additional pictures we took at the house. Me, Shelby and Tara Dad and Shelby Shelby, Mom & Tara

Photo-A-Day #505 08/26/06 Tonight Allison and I went with Tara and Erik to the North Attleboro Girl’s 30th birthday at Tia’s on the Water in Boston. My sister Tara has 4 close friends who all turned thirty this year and to celebrate they reserved some patio space at Tia’s and had a party. It was a very nice time and fun to see everyone. Pictured are Tara, Renee, Kristy, Elizabeth, and Beth. Also Boston is showcasing Cows on Parade and I got a few pictures. Names are not actual cow names just what I called them. Fish Cow Lighthouse Cow Fruit Stripe cow Sunflower Cow with Tara, Elizabeth and Allison Where’s the Beef Moon Fantasy Cow Yoga Cow Boston

Photo-A-Day #504 08/25/06 Two heads are better than one. On those rare occasions where Oliver and Duncan are nice to each other. A moment later they are beating the crap out of each other like the brothers they are. Back to work today after a couple of weeks on the road. Felt weird. If anyone wants to let me know about the new pictures of Megatron from the upcoming movie I’ve seen them. I’m not thrilled but I reserve the right to keep quiet till I actually the movie. I am expecting it to be a good movie. What kills me is the younger kids who did not have the original toys and who are all up in arms about the changes and updates that are going to be made in the movie. I have faith it will be a good movie.

If I had known I would have woken up earlier. I actually slept late and didn’t do the 2 hour ahead at this airport. For one thing no one would have been here and for another I needed some sleep. Maybe when I get home I’ll take a nap. Michigan has been nice, I didn’t do too much here but it wasn’t a bad trip either. Last night Allison and I watched the replay of the Bones season finale from last season because we missed the very end of the show the last time we watched it. We missed a lot in those last 2 minutes. But now we don’t have long to wait to see the next episode because it airs next week. I’ve been enjoying the Kathy Reichs series of books about forensic anthropologist Dr. Temperance Brennan. She is not the same as the character on the TV show, the setting is different, she is younger on the show and she is physically different than the book version and she is younger. Allison and I both agreed that it is good to see David Boreanaz on tv, his character is great. Looks like this...

Photo-A-Day #503 08/24/06 Before I left for two weeks of travel this plant was itty bitty. It has now taken over the side of the house. It is a squash plant however it did not get fertilized so there will be no squash this year. Maybe next year it will get lucky. I finished Deadly Decisions today and started Fatal Voyage. Looks like Tempe s hitting the ground running in book #4.

Photo-A-Day #502 08/23/06 Look what I got at Toys “R” Us. It is the home version of SET. And it was only $3.00. So, another game to add to our collection. Today was a nice day. I got to sleep a little bit and that was good because I didn’t get to bed till about 1:00am. I was all wired from my ride to Bad Axe that I just couldn’t get to sleep. I ended up watching the end of Who Want’s to Be a Superhero? And then they replayed Tuesday’s episode of Eureka. That is a great show, so much fun and so interesting.

Photo-A-Day #501 08/22/06 Today I demonstrated in Neilsville, WI. The group I demoed to was very nice. The ride out to Neilsville from Wausau was a nice and easy one past farm after farm after farm. Each one was an iconic looking one with a red barn and one or two silos plus lots of cows. Mile after mile they began to blend together in a sea of green fields and corn stalks. After the demonstration I headed to the airport from a different direction and I went by the Pavilion Cheese & Gifts. This place was actually the 1964 Wisconsin Pavilion for the New York World’s Fair. At the pavilion there was Chatty Belle, the World’s Largest Talking Cow, and The Bullet, a 1919 Case Steam Engine. The Pavilion itself was an interesting looking building that had gifts and also housed WCCN Radio AM 1330. I originally passed by it, but quickly decided to turn around a little way down the road. I knew I had plenty of time to get to the airport for my flight today. And I needed a good Photo-A-Day aft...

Photo-A-Day #500 08/21/06 I couldn’t leave you without a 500th picture. Too bad I am in Central WI and have nothing to take a picture of since I spent most of the day in Walmart. So here is a picture of me when I realized I left my computer power cord at home, when I have to do a double length demo than I intended upon and when I paid $116.00 for a new power cord. Sorry Allison I am coming home bald and completely grey.

how annoyed I am today, at myself. Anyone who asks me why I am so particular and anal retentive about things is getting a punch in the face. My bad luck began this morning when I went thought the security line. I went to take out my laptop and lo and behold the power cord that I take on every single trip for the past 4+ years is missing. Why is this missing? Oh I know I took it to the Cape this weekend and forgot to transfer it back to my travel bag. Great. Maybe the laptop has some juice left in it. Nope only at 39%, that isn’t going to take me through the whole week. Okay check if someone is coming from the office and will be at my site on Tuesday night. Maybe they can bring the cord with them. Nope everyone is already out on the road. Okay fine maybe I can find a universal power cord. My model is not listed. I find a power cord with my model listed but it is a simple power cord and if I am going to buy it I am going to resell it to someone when I get back. I need to get the air/car/...

Photo-A-Day #499 08/20/06 Some motivation, huh? Yeah, this is a sign in Allison’s Aunt’s garden, which is a very nice garden. We were up at their place today to celebrate Jeff’s Graduation. I didn’t get a very good picture of Jeff for the blog so that is why this picture is up. Oh well, off to Wisconsin tomorrow. Another state I haven’t been to yet. Down to 8 after tomorrow.

Photo-A-Day #498b 08/19/06 Weird day for it but I just found this picture. My Dad had me take it on the front porch of the Cape house. This is Taylor sleeping on her spot on the front porch. She looked so relaxed and peaceful on a beautiful day. Last night Dad, Tara, Erik, Allison and I watched Dirty jobs and Dad reminded me about this picture. I thought I had accidentally deleted it but I had not. In fact I meant to put it up but was using my grandfather’s computer and had so much trouble posting that I just saved it for later, then forgot about it.

Photo-A-Day #498 08/19/06 Had a great day of sailing with Neil and Derek. Allison and Andrea and Michelle went to Dick and Ellie’s Flea Market and had a good time. Then the six of us got together and had a fantastic dinner at the house. I have pictures that I took and some that Andrea took. I’ll get those up tomorrow. It is late and I am tired from the great day. Updated: It was brought to my attention last night that I really neglected a proper blog entry for the day of sailing that I had with Neil and Derek two weeks ago. I had every intention of pulling together a good blog entry recapping the great day we had. It slipped away from me. So, albeit a bit late, here is the complete recap of that day. This morning Allison and I went to Neil's parent's house to catch up with Andrea, Derek and Michelle so we could head over to the boat. We pulled in right behind Derek and Michelle. Derek gave us a 2005 first Christmas ornament. Since we were the only couple married in 2005 that he...

Photo-A-Day #497 08/18/06 Taylor and her favorite game. She plays soccer with this squeaky ball. I made it home okay today. Not much to talk about, headed down the Cape with Allison, should have a nice weekend ahead. Then back on the road. I uploaded this from my grandparent’s place and didn’t have my programs, will fix when I can use my own equipment.

Photo-A-Day #496 08/17/06 Today I started my morning off with web comics and a 'Rooty Tooty Fresh and Fruity' at IHOP. I'm beginning to like it there. The wireless, the syrup, there's just something about the place. The wireless connection there was 'Excellent' today, unlike yesterday morning where it was 'Low'. I'll have to request the 'Excellent' section again tonight when I actually post this message. After breakfast and personal computer time, which included some messages back and forth to Andy (my most loyal reader and commenter) and Jay (Outer Banks Kiting) about weather stickers and surfing while working and things like that . By the Way Jay has been sending me many updates to the website, some great pictures, you should check it out. I went back to the hotel. At the hotel I switched gears and went to the Business Center and began to prepare for the demo this afternoon. I went through the demo and find a few snags and got them taken ca...

Photo-A-Day #495 08/16/06 Today I went to the Tulsa Zoo, Route 66 Harley Davidson, and I drove along historic Route 66 around Tulsa. The Zoo – I hit the Tulsa Zoo early hoping that the heat wouldn't be too terrible. I was wrong. While I got some of my favorite shots of the day in the Wings of Wonder exhibit I sweat buckets. The Tulsa Zoo is a pretty nice zoo with a lot of different animals and you can tell that they are really trying to have a good zoo. There are new exhibits beginning all the time and I happened to be there during the time when they had Wings of Wonder. Butterflies and moths were all over the zoo but mainly contained within a greenhouse like enclosure. There were adult butterflies and moths, and there were some that were hatching from their cocoons. I talked with the person who was monitoring the greenhouse and he showed me some of the ones I hadn't seen and he explained that as new butterflies emerge from their cocoons they let their wings dry and then take f...

Photo-A-Day #494 08/15/06 Today I had a demonstration in PA. It was about a ½ an hour away from the hotel. I just made it on time. I had woken up in plenty of time but I was futzing around checking on things on the Internet. I was trying to download some of the 'What the Muffins?' episodes. Those are going to be taken down sometime soon and I don't want to lose them. The guys are planning something brand new and are getting rid of the old stuff to make way. The demo was interesting. I demonstrated in an office and sat on the edge of a seat while the computer teetered on a desk and the projector shone on the wall, high-tech. I had to use a dial up connection as well because the Internet connection in that room was not turned on and the site had no IT people. After the demo I went and hauled ass to the airport. I had a 2:45pm flight and wasn't sure how the new travel restrictions were going to affect my trip. I also had to gas up the car and had no idea where the stations...

Naked Airlines I cleared out all of the liquids in my carry ons so I could fly like I normally do. I guess this is the next thing coming. We shall see what the next three weeks of travel holds for me. Should make for some interesting blogging.

Photo-A-Day #493 08/14/06 I am in PA today. I took my first flight since the new security measures were enacted on August 10th. And to tell you the truth it wasn’t too bad, for me anyway. And why was it better for me than for other passengers. I planned ahead and I followed the new security restrictions. I made the decision to remove all of my liquids and banned items so that I could take a carry on with me. And I checked in online. You see, I need to be mobile with my travel schedule. If a flight is cancelled or delayed I need to quickly get on another flight. I can do that only as long as I have my bags with me. If the bags are in the bottom of the plane then I am SOL. So now what should I do about my essential toiletries that I left at home? Well when I got to the hotel I asked if they had any complimentary toiletries and they were very nice and found me some toothpaste. Then I went to Target and got some hairspray because they only had that and no hair gel. I will have to leave ...

Photo-A-Day #492 08/13/06 Today was the annual company picnic. Allison and I got there around 10:30am, had our annual fried dough for breakfast and walked around the grounds. This year there was a station for camel rides. The company that had the camels for the rides had three camels that they would switch out throughout the day. We ran into my friend John and his wife Christine and their two adorable kids. The annual picnic is a great time for families because there is so much for the kids to do. There are carnival rides, magic shows and arts and crafts. And there is so much food! We had a great time.

Today Allison and I were on the Cape to attend the memorial service for our longtime friend and neighbor Mel Smith. Mel passed away last Friday. He had been our neighbor since we moved in to the Cape house. We spent many times his house visiting with Mel and his wife Shirley. We got to know the family very well over the years and my parent's even vacationed with the Smiths back in 1983. We got to see some of those pictures this morning at the house and one at the memorial service. Mel was an outstanding individual. He will be missed very much. His family gave many good testimonials about Mel and his life. The true testament was the number of people there to pay honor to this man. Our neighborhood lost a good man but his memory lives on. It felt very strange to come out of the house and not see Mel on his porch entertaining friends, laughing and smiling or working around his house. Mel and Shirley at our wedding.

Photo-A-Day #491 08/12/06 Today Allison and I went to a wedding. It was at a Holiday Inn in Nashua, NH. There was a full size ship (Bar) in the place. It was quite remarkable. After the ceremony (I was asked to take pictures for the family, couldn’t use my camera because I killed it on Thursday taking crazy videos) we went into the bar. I first see the stern of a ship called The Bounty. I think that is pretty neat they put in a decoration that looks like a ship’s stern. Then I come around the stern and I see a three masted ship with stair leading up to the deck. On deck is where you find a bar and a seating area at the stern. I was pretty impressed with it. The dinner was decent and I photographed the wedding party as they came into the reception. Then I was finished with my photography duties. I guess I had a bit to imbibe because when the music came on I flashed back to college days and threw some funky moves on the dance floor. Or rather I thought they were funky some thought they w...

Photo-A-Day #490 08/11/06 Clyde was enjoying the basket. My camera is dead. I forgot to bring the charger with me. Update: I just watched the videos from Buffett, I know why the camera is now empty of all energy. And the videos will not be going up.

Photo-A-Day #489 08/10/06 Today was Buffett Day. Allison and I went early with a group of my friends and co-workers. We met at the Stop & Shop in Mansfield to round up the cars and caravan into the parking lot. The Mansfield Stop & Shop knows when Buffett is in town. They had a Tiki themed concession stand out in front of the store where you could get your last minute grass skirts and other items. The Liquor store had a sale on Corona 12 packs. Yep they knew that Buffett was in town. Once the crew arrived, nine cars, we formed up ranks and drove into the parking lot. We had a four-car width to spread out all our stuff. The folks we were with did not screw around when it came to set up. Within five minutes we had two tents up and four tables, a ton of food, tons of chairs and liberal flowing of libations. We brought three coolers including, a Styrofoam one and two real coolers. I broke that in the span of the first five minutes. I dropped a chair right on it in my haste to unloa...

Tonight is the finale of Last Comic Standing. Chris Porter was voted off last night. I was very disappointed. It is down to Josh Blue and Ty Barnett. I like all three of the comics but I was really pulling for Chris Porter. I thought his stuff was tighter, cleaner and more polished than the other comics, but the rest of America did not. Oh well. Tonight there will be performances but the past three winners, Dat Phan, John Heffron, and Alonzo Bodden. And the return of executive producer and former host Jay Mohr. Should be a funny night. The whole cast from this year is back as well including Gabriel Iglesias. Tune in tonight. On Monday night Allison and I got to watch a few episodes of shows we taped last week. First up was episode 3 of Eureka. This is a very good show, it is funny quirky and has likable characters. We taped episode #4 last night and hopefully will get to watch it tonight. We had time to watch the two episodes of Psych that I taped as well. I can’t say enough good thing...

Photo-A-Day #488 08/09/06 It is almost Tiki time. I prepared a concoction that requires that mr. yuck symbol. I haven’t tasted it yet, but will find out how it is over ice tomorrow. Think rum, lots of rum. Yo, ho, ho. Bonus Picture #1 No ice cream needed today, Duncan is a little curious boozer. Bonus Picture #2 A beautiful hawk perched outside my window at work.