AND THE SIGN SAYS...

You just have to love a road that goes right through the stream. 

ON A FARM

Seeing balloons land in the fields reminds me that it's haying time. Nothing like the smell of new mown hay and the sting of sweat in your eyes, swelling bug bites on your legs and the taste of dust in your mouth. On a farm.

TRANSLUCENT

The sun sets on the balloon challenge weekend. (and the week of balloon posts) This balloon lands in a field and becomes translucent with the setting sun behind it.

LARGE

A skydiver brings in a large flag to begin the final day of the challenge. 7800 square feet of flag.
I keep wondering about the weight of the thing to the skydiver given the size of the flag and the drag it must create during the descent.

GLOWING

Quick response since I wasn't prepared for the night glow. Handheld so a bit fuzzy and grainy.

**Note:  FAA regulations prohibit balloon flight after dusk. The glow was totally a ground event!

PLAYFUL

Bad framing (or darn good luck) on my part makes it appear as if the larger balloon is playfully nudging the smaller balloon right out of the shot.
This was a toss up for this theme or the creepy theme. The big ol' smiling sun face may not be all that benevolent and looks as if it's thinking of eating the littler balloon.

SPIRAL

If you step back a little it's easier to see how the color blocks spiral down around this balloon.

SIZZLING HOT

The skirt or lower portion of the balloon envelope is coated with a flame retardant material so the propane fueled fire is less hazardous.

BODY PARTS

The monster balloon has many  body parts. And he's very purple which is pretty cool.
He was good for a shot or two but didn't command my attention in the same way as the other balloons. I guess I'm a balloon traditionalist.

UNIQUE CAMERA ANGLE

If you're tired of balloons you may want to avoid the blog until after the weekend.  I'll probably finish out the week with shots from the balloon challenge. Easy pickin's there for a lot of themes.

Looking nearly straight up as this balloon passed over made for a unique camera angle. I was lucky enough to be right on the field with the balloons, directly across the air strip from where they were launching. Many of them went almost directly overhead. Later there were many opportunities to pull over and shoot them in flight and as they landed.

AIRBORNE

There's nothing like an airborne smiley face to brighten the day.

FLIGHT

Taking flight from the pack.

If you look back at the post before this one, you can see this same balloon on the ground being inflated with the group.

GROUP/GROUPINGS

A group of balloons being filled for the early evening flight.

CHALLENGE/CHALLENGING

2011 MidUSA Ohio Balloon Challenge

One of those PULL OVER NOW moments when I realized the cornfield was a perfect border to the shot. I think there were 31 balloons in the air at the time but I couldn't get wide enough to get more of them with the lens I was using.

AND THE SIGN SAYS...

I probably wouldn't have paid any attention to a billboard from this organization but their balloon sign certainly caught my eye.

POWERFUL

Powering through the pack.

MOTION

LEADING LINES

WHEELS

Ohio State Criterium Championship in Miamisburg, Ohio.

SLAM ON THE BRAKES

I think the occupants of this house are used to passersby who slam on the brakes.
I saw a single version of the Futuro home when visiting the Outer Banks a few years ago. This is the double wide version.

THE OFFICE

I wonder if the guy with the big office at work gets one of these BIG pencils.

CHAIRS OR BENCHES

"Dedicated to the Immortal Spirit of Daytonians Orville and Wilbur Wright"

LUNCHTIME

The aftermath of lunch.

The Ruck from The Dublin Pub, Oregon District, Dayton.

The stars of the plate, though, are the Black and Tan onion rings and the french fries smothered in a white wine cream sauce, cheese and topped with bacon. Good stuff.

The pickles were my nod toward including a green vegetable in the meal.

SKY HIGH

Downtown Dayton office building offers a sky high reflection.

AND THE SIGN SAYS...

The Oregon district in Dayton.  One street, just a few blocks long of art galleries, music shops, bars, bistros (fancy bars with $12 drinks), a giant Goodwill.  And The Annex.

MUSIC

I'll leave it to each of you to figure out the "music" theme connection.

*edit*  You guys are good.  The Doors it is! And, Gisele, you may officially add "genius" to your list of skills!

TOGETHER

Two sweet rides together atop a warehouse building in downtown Dayton.

The Tajma Garaj, banquet facility.
http://www.tajmagaraj.com/

THE LETTER P...

P is for Packard.
I was surprised to find this little gem tucked away downtown. Alas, this is a drive-by shooting as there wasn't time for a suitable visit but I did find this online.
http://americaspackardmuseum.org/the_story.html

FROM MY PAST

My father has always been a car guy.  Everyone else I knew had a 'normal' car but I grew up polishing fenders and cleaning white wall tires just like these. And then suffering through the pre-teen agony of having to ride in the cars, scrunched down as far as possible in the seat hoping no one I knew would see me.
Funny how a viewpoint changes with time. I'm thinking a stylish ride like this one parked in downtown Dayton would be the way to tour the city.  I wish I had brought my big sun hat.

IN THE DISTANCE

Downtown Dayton, Ohio, in the distance.

PATRIOTIC

STILL LIFE

I liked the burst of color from the flowers someone has planted around the old wagon frame.

ONE

One lone magnolia. Not sure why it's blooming so late in the year.

DEBRIS

I used the "Debris" theme because, well, because I needed to use it.  To be honest, I love this shot of the old bus and all the junk around it. It's something of a classic southern Ohio foothills vista.

AND THE SIGN SAYS...

If you read carefully between the lines it says "We're putting up some high priced housing where your park used to be located. The lofts will gradually force up rents throughout a neighborhood of people who are already living on the street and in tenements they can't afford..."
If they're going to take away someone's bed park bench, they should have to replace it with reasonable shelter. In a neighborhood of so many homeless and so many living in unsafe housing, "urban lofts" are a crime.

ODDITY

I didn't ask.

IN THE CITY

You can get anything you need at any time in the city. Even a streetside massage.
I was only looking for some fresh sweet corn but the massage thing is good to know.

MORNING ROUTINE

Wake up. Maybe in the shelter, maybe on the street. Put your blanket in your cart because blankets are gold out here. Out of the shelter by 7 am, that's the rule. Off the park bench by daybreak cause the city government doesn't want you to be too visibly homeless; it scares the suburbanites who flock to the market on weekend mornings. Find something to eat.  Morning routine in Over the Rhine.

BLOOM

THREE

Three steeples in Covington, Kentucky.

MIST

Misty morning in southern Ohio.
The sun had already cleared off the mist in the front of the scene but the area closer to the woods was still covered.

RELAXATION

FAIRYTALE

Cinderella and her prince leave the afternoon Christian ceremony in a fairytale carriage. Not surprised in the least, are you?

THE LETTER B

With both Hindu and Christian ceremonies in one day, she got to be the bride twice.

MATCHED PAIR

Groom's young cousins do duty as flower girls in the Christian ceremony.
Little things that made me laugh out loud: we weren't allowed to have them drop real rose petals because the petals might stain the stone walks. But an elephant was no problem.

THE LETTER A

Aashirwad(Blessing)
Married women from the family bless the bride by whispering a blessing in her right ear.
Some of the whispered remarks elicited a lot of giggling between the young women.

THE LETTER S

Saptapadi (The Seven Steps)
The bride and groom take seven steps around the sacred fire represesnting the seven principles and promises they make to one another:
1. Together we will acquire energy to share in the responsibilities of married life.
2. Together we will fill our hearts with strength and courage to accomplish all the needs of our life.
3. Together we will prosper and share our worldly goods and we will work for the prosperity of our family.
4. Together we will cherish each other in sickness and in health, in happiness and in sorrow.
5. Together we will raise strong and virtuous children.
6. Together we will fill our hearts with great joy, peace, happiness  and spiritual values.
7. Together we will remain lifelong partners by this matrimony.

TRADITIONAL

The traditional place for a Hindu wedding is within the Lagna Mandap which would probably equate to the sanctuary area in a Catholic church. This is where the offerings are made and the ceremonial events take place. Everyone who enters the Lagna Mandap must first remove their shoes. One of the fun Indian traditions is Joota Chupai.  The bride's sisters try to steal the groom's shoes once he removes them to enter the Mandap. His cousins and groomsmen must try to protect his shoes. If the sisters steal and hide the shoes the groom must ransom them back after the ceremony.
While there are religious backgrounds to most of the Indian wedding customs, much of the reason and most of the result is a fun filled blending and mingling of the two families and their guests.

WINDOW

At this point in the Hindu wedding the bride is still hidden away as the celebration begins. I did catch a quick glimpse of her peeking through a window at the scene below.