Ice Storm of 2009

We just got internet up and running after several days.  The ice storm hit here in KY and made things a real mess.  I was down in the bed with stomach flu or some such virus...an insidious attack that left me weak, queasy, and unable to do much at all for a few days.  It was quite surreal lying in bed hearing the trees exploding outside the house and occasionally bashing into the roof.  Suzann was in the basement and refused to come upstairs but sparingly.  We still have no power at home...nor will we for several days.  It looks like a war zone.

Kinda reminds me of old photos from the civil war where the cannons had shredded the tops of trees at Gettysburg.  In fact the loud cracking and popping sounded like gunfire and the ice falling like shrapnel all around.  I finally gained some strength to go outside and bring in more firewood.  Having no hard hat, I put on my 4wheeler helmet for protection...not much good it would have done if one of the trees came down on top of me.  Suzann and I were cooking on the coleman stove on the back screen porch when half of a big oak just snapped off and came crashing down not 20 feet away.  Now there is just a long stump sticking up.  

The power came back on at the studio in Etown so we ventured over there and have been staying the nights.  We come home during the days so that we can build a small fire in the wood furnace to keep the house from freezing.  And so it goes here in KY.  They say this is the worst power outtage in the states history and may take days if not weeks to repair.  It is definitely the worst ice storm I can remember in my 55 years.  Ice on branches over an inch thick.

Well, that's it for now.  Hopefully there will be sunshine and warmth in the near future...I am ready for it.

A Foggy Road Ahead

Every now and then life sends you down a trail that is spooky, unclear, uncertain, and maybe a little bit scary. Such is the way life is at the moment. The future remains foggy at best. About a year ago I was down Savannah way and came across this old historic line of live oaks over arching a long road. The trees were old and covered in Spanish Moss. You could not see the end of the drive but on it went. You could almost feel the spirit of the place reaching out to cover up it's bare bones laid open during the winter sleep.

I have felt that fog in recent weeks come slipping into the recesses of my mind as I try to comprehend the future that lays before me. God knows what is out there...really. I do not. Yet, I put my trust in Him to know the way and lead me where the vision fails and the trail becomes faint.

This weekend, Suzann and I attended the Ky Pro Photo Expo put on by the Ky Professional Photographers Association of which we are members. We haven't been active for many years but this year we decided to attend and try to get re-engergized a bit. Glad we did. We came back with lots of new ideas and things for the studio...HOLY COW...does software have to be so expensive....oh well...

I attended a couple of seminars that I especially liked...Darton Drake from Wisconsin was very interesting as well as Michelle Celantano from Phoenix...The two are very different in style but yet I brought back ideas from both. Things have changed so much in the photography industry in the last 5 years it is almost unreal...certainly...the path forward is foggy and overshadowed. I think that there will always be a need for a true professional but the overall industry is being diluted by ignorant newcomers that buy a digital camera and computer...hang out a sign proclaiming their profession...and whammo...instant photographer....caveat emptor. Don't be fooled by such.

Well...I shall prevail, one way or another so watch out, new things are on the horizon. Good Lord willing, the studio will be offering some new and interesting things in the coming months. Strange, wonderful things....A new way of seeing...A new way of understanding....Things that you can only get from me...and McCoy's Image Studio

Some people talk about having a "boutique studio". Well, I would say we are the original boutique studio. We have catered to more people, with more variety in clientele than anyone else...and we can prove it...just ask me sometime....30 years of experience counts for something and I challenge any newcomer to step up toe to toe with us see who can come out on top. You can fool some of the people some of the time but you can't fool all of the people all of the time. After 30 years, I don't fool anyone...never did...never had to.

Tell you what...if you are interested in a portrait session...family, child, etc....give us a call and mention this blog and I will give you an extra 8x10 with your order...how bout them apples.

Being Real

I have been thinking about being real today. That is authenticity. No smoke and mirrors. No mask. No fronts. Just plain old being real and truthful in who you are and how your relate to people. I know this is difficult if not impossible to completely real all of the time...but, something I strive for is to be real and honest as much as I possibly can. Sometimes, people don't even realize that they are acting in a dishonest manner...not so much as being dishonest in business matters...but being dishonest in how they present themselves. I think people sometimes create a false personna that they project in the presence of others and deep down they are not like that at all. Other times...people do that intentionally and purposefully because of what ever reason they have.

One thing that bugs me is people being real in worship. Some worship leaders come across as very authentic and others just leave me cold. I think that has something to do with the presence of the Holy Spirit both in their own lives and in the church service itsself. I can't stand fake people and they turn me off immediately. I hope people don't see me as fake because I try very hard to be real. When I play worship music...I try go to that place where I am in touch with God. Sometimes I can really feel His presence and sometimes it is just that still small voice and I struggle to make the connection. I wonder sometimes if some people ever make the connection. Being real is obscured by just doing what comes from habit...and that leads to lifeless and dishonest worship...at least in my way of thinking.

Reality sometimes is raw, offensive. Sometimes it may seem good to go to that fantasy land where unreality takes over and the real is covered up. But in the end you have a handful of nothing with only fake feelings, fake ideas, and a fake personna that others see truthfully and others may see as real while they go about leading their fake unreal lives.

I guess at some point you have to have a come to Jesus moment and open up your dishonest front and allow God to point out the hollowness in your own life. Realization of your hollowness can lead to growth and full dependance on God. After all, we are all sinners and come short of the glory of God. Yep...sinners. Hollow, fake shells of what is truly real. Now we see only dimly what is the truth of reality but one day, my faith says that I will know as I am known. Then REAL will have a true meaning.

So what is real anyway? I would hope that at the end of the day when it is all said and done that others will be able to point to me and say...He was the real thing. A little raw and rough around the edges but real...not some phony with a fake mask that changed depending on the crowd...but a real honest person that was open to all who crossed his path. Real. The Real McCoy...I think I have heard that somewhere before.

Free to Worship

I have been at church all morning working with a couple great brothers in the Lord.  We have been picking out worship music for our blended service at FBC in Hodgenville.  One of the big concerns is that we have to be concerned about "offending" some of our traditional leaning members.  That in and of itsself is offending to me.  What is wrong with having a variety of music styles prevalent in our worship so that all of our people may enter into worship in a manner that is meaningful to them.  Who says that only Hymns are worship and that God wants churches to sing only hymns to HIM.

It seems to me that those of us who happen to like contemporary praise music are very open to sharing the time with some hymns yet the other side wants to cram their style down our throats with no compromise.  They proudly proclaim their hymns and at the same time squelch the Spirit.  They smugly sit in their seats wanting to only hear "their" music...most of the time not even singing themselves...and damn us for wanting some life and authenticity in worship...

This really burns my chaps.  How in the world can our church move into meaningful worship, look ahead, reach out to the unchurched and lost in our community while there are those who are willing to dash the hopes of a whole segment of our church membership?  Who are they to dictate the manner in which I worship?  After all, we should be worshipping the one true God and especially in a manner that speaks the language of our heart.  I really think they are worshipping the hymns instead of God.

At least they should take a hard look at Psalms and see how David worshipped.  Something about making a joyful noise...harps, stringed instruments, lyre, cymbals...crashing cymbals...drums...well read it for yourself.  I prefer a little joy in my worship...not cold dead music that contains no spirit.  

Sorry about the rant.  God will have his way...one way or another.  Patience Grasshopper.

A Lotta Bull!

This is Tri Chex. He is a registered Texas Longhorn bull. He lives at our farm in Indiana and is happily engaged with a herd of Longhorn cows that he affectionately calls his own. He may look menacing but he is really just a big baby. His crowning jewels...aka horns..measure over 64 inches tip to tip and by all respects he is a lotta bull. As longhorns go he is not at the very top of his class because some of those guys have over 70 inch spreads but TChex is hanging in there because of his mass and body condition...

We like old Tri Chex. He is just happy doing his job...that is...making baby calves. We will soon see the fruit of his labor in the coming months. We are hoping for some very colorful and heavy horned offspring. We love to just watch our longhorns as they peacefully graze in the pasture. The little calves chasing each other and just loving life. Of course, we have another member of the herd that thinks she is a longhorn but in reality she is just an ass...er...donkey. Jedup loves the little calves too and hates coyotes....she will chase the critters down and promptly run them out of the field. Jedup is pregnant...and we are hoping for a cute little donkey this spring.

Life sometimes reveals a lotta bull and we have seen our share of it this year. I am praying that 2009 will have less bull and more sensible leadership in our country. It's one thing if you really are a bull and you have a job to do...but quite another if you are just spreading bull around...Instead of being the bull you might just be the ass....food for thought.