Let’s continue our journey back to the 80s.  Today I’m taking a look at my second birthday party.  The year is 1981.  Looks like it was quite the bash.  I think my favorite part is the cake my mom made me.  Check that thing out!  That was one amazing cake - thanks, mom :)

Nikon 9000 ED 35mm Color Film Scan, 4000 dpi.

If you live in Nashville (or anywhere in the South, probably) you’re well aware of the cicadas that have all-the-sudden emerged from the ground.  2011 is the year Brood XIX (the largest cicada brood) emerges from its 13 year slumber.  Every 13 years the cicadas crawl out of the earth, climb up a tree (or wall, or car tire, or trash can, or … you get the point), molt, and then fly to the nearest tree to feast and mate.  I read an article yesterday that said there are approximately 1,000,000 cicadas per 1 acre of land.  That’s a lot of bugs.

Last night I grabbed my camera, a macro lens, and my flash and I took pictures of several cicadas molting in my backyard.  Here’s a look at Brood XIX.  The great cicada invasion of 2011 has begun.

Here’s a picture of a cicada that has just begun the molting process:

I’m particularly fond of the guy swan-diving out of his shell.  You go for it, buddy!

I must admit I’ve been feeling the 80s and early 90s this week.  Maybe it all started when Laura, Allison, and I watched “Three Men and a Baby.”  Tom Selleck and his amazing mustache.  Ted Danson and his uber-hair.  New York City and the awesome 80s.  It all must have had an effect on me.  And, to top it off, we recently had a music listening party where there was an extreme emphasis on 80s music.

That said, today we’re gonna take a trip down 80s lane to check out my sister Rosie’s birthday party in 1987.  I don’t know who any of the party attendees are - Rosie, care to comment and tell us who some of these people are?  :)

You can check out the full set of photographs over at Flickr - 1987 04 Thede - Easter and Rosie’s Birthday.

Also, here’s a map of where these pictures were taken:

The other day I got an email from the business school at my Alma Mater - The University of Colorado, Boulder.  The very first article is about a great professor I had the opportunity of taking classes from.  Apparently this year marks the 25th anniversary of the Leeds School London Finance Program headed by Professor Michael Palmer.  Professor Palmer teaches finance at CU, and he’s also responsible for a summer seminar series in London.  I had the great opportunity to participate in the program and to spend an entire summer living in London.  I’ll post more on that experience later.

Today I want to post just one picture.  It caught my eye as I was browsing the pictures I took while studying in London.  Here’s a picture of me waiting for the metro in Paris, taken by my friend Jeff Berge.  I think it’s a great shot.  It’s funny looking at this picture, because Jeff would later go on to sail with Semester at Sea and take incredible photos while participating in the voyage.

So, here I am in the summer of 2000, sitting on a bench in Paris, France.

The other day I was on the phone with my buddy Josh Walker talking about skiing in Colorado.  He’s trying to plan a trip for this upcoming ski season so we were chatting about our favorite resorts and places to stay.  The conversation inspired me to post some skiing related pictures.

So, here we have it, a trip my family took to Vail in 1991.  I’m not sure my coat could have been any more neon.  Wow.

To view the entire set, head over to Flickr to see 1991 Thede - Trip to Florida and Skiing at Vail.

Happy Mother’s Day!

I’ve got a great mom :)  It’s hard to describe how very awesome she is.  She’s always been incredibly loving, caring, nurturing, and fun.  I honestly felt as a child (and still feel) that nothing was as important to her as raising her children.  And isn’t that what a great mother is?  She’s a great mother :)

So, today we honor and celebrate our mothers.  And, as is my style, I’m going to do so with a few pictures!

This first picture was taken in 1978 at my dad’s family farm in central Nebraska.  I’m not sure of the exact date this picture was taken, but I believe my mom was pregnant with me at the time.  I think it’s a great shot.

These next two pictures were taken on the front porch at our first home in Colorado.  I wanted to post a few pictures of my mother’s young family.  Here are the three “Thede-lets” and mom.  The first picture is from the summer of 1984.  The second was taken on Easter Sunday in 1985.

Happy Mother’s Day, mom!  You done good!  I hope you’re out enjoying a relaxing afternoon in Colorado, preferably planting flowers recently purchased from Tagawa :)

One year ago Laura and I were out in East Nashville trying to help our neighbors recover from the great flood of 2010.

We happened to be in Florida when the storm and flood ravaged Nashville, and as soon as we heard news of the devastating weather we hit the road to try to get back as fast as possible.  As we headed home we quickly learned that the interstates in and out of Nashville were closed and that it would be impossible for us to get home until the waters had receded.  We stayed one night at my sister’s place in Atlanta while we waited for the roads to open.  When we finally made it home we were blessed to find our house unaffected.  However, many of our neighbors had not fared as well.  Many people were in need of help.  Fortunately, our neighborhood is full of people always willing to help when people are in need.

Our neighbor, Alan Murdock, told us he had turned his business space into a sort of command central for flood relief volunteers.  He partnered with Hands On Nashville and pretty soon tons of people were showing up at his place in the Five Points area of East Nashville to wait for marching orders on where to help.  Below are several pictures I took both at ArtHouse Gardens and at several locations where we helped people cope with damage from the flood.

I recently had the opportunity to attend a Hands On Nashville one year anniversary event commemorating several individuals and institutions who provided major relief efforts for the flood of 2010.  Having volunteered through Hands On Nashville I can tell you that the organization is run amazingly well and is whole-heartedly dedicated to volunteerism.  I was fortunate to speak with Lisa Davis Purcell (Director of External Affairs) and learned a lot about the organization.  Lisa is an extremely dedicated and hard working person who cares deeply about Hands On Nashville, and, more importantly, about helping those in need in Nashville and the state of Tennessee.  If you’re looking to do some heartwarming volunteer work, I encourage you to check out Hands On Nashville.

Here’s a map of where the below pictures were taken.

To see the entire set of photos, head over to Flickr to 2010 05-08 East Nashville Flood Relief.

Last year, on May 5, I posted a blog with immersive panoramic pictures of downtown Nashville.  To see those images check out my post, The Nashville Flood of 2010.

As a resident of Nashville I quite often find myself engaged in conversations regarding the current state of the music business.  It's hard not to spend your time focused on the past - declining music sales, transition to digital, the empire of the "single," piracy, mergers, acquisitions, 360 record deals, etc.  That said, I believe the best method for ensuring success is by putting all that energy into a vision for the future.

My dad shared this comic with me.  He’s well aware of my photography obsession :)