Entries Tagged 'Photos' ↓

In 2008, I was fortunate enough to travel quite a bit. Rather than a typical “here’s what happened last year” post, I thought it would be fun to look back through my iPhone camera lens…

Chicago

I was in Chicago for WebTrends training as part of the job I started in late 2007. I love Chicago, and would like to visit in warmer weather. It could have at least snowed when I was there to make the cold more fun.

New York City

Genia and I went to New York to celebrate her 30th birthday. It was amazing, and I loved getting a few days with Genia apart from our daily routine. We need more long weekends like this! (Flickr set)

San Jose / Carmel-by-the-Sea / San Francisco

I visited San Jose for the Search Engine Strategies conference. My friend Wes happened to be there as well, and he had a car, so we took the opportunity to travel around in the evenings. We hit Carmel-by-the-Sea, a great little beach town, and San Francisco. Good times, plus, the Google Dance. (Flickr set)

Paw Paw, Illinois

Paw Paw is my dad’s hometown. I hadn’t been back in years, but we made a family trip there in September for a memorial service. While it was clearly a difficult trip to make, we had a good time with our extended family.

Charlottetown, PEI, Canada

Zap. What an experience!

Ellijay, Georgia

UnThanksgiving. Thanksgiving 2007 was incredibly emotional, in a positive way. Dad had just come home from a stem cell transplant at Vanderbilt, in full remission. None of us were prepared to do the usual Thanksgiving routine this year, so Genia and I took the girls to the woods and had a very relaxing (and distracting) unThanksgiving. (Facebook photos)

Now, who wants to be my patron so I can just travel around with the family in 2009?

My older daughter Bailey found this tonight, probably on our evening walk around the neighborhood. She’s 4, and I’m frequently surprised by what can fascinate her or grab her attention. Tonight, this is what did and she gave it to me with strict instructions to keep it.

One day, long after it is inevitably lost, at least I can show her this blog post about her special gift.

Hyperlocal Blogging
SEO consultant Matt McGee discusses the growing trend of “hyperlocal” blogs. He mentions the big names like Gothamist, but surprisingly left out a number of localized blogging communities like the Chattanooga-founded Terrablogs, which has been around for years. Coincidentally (or not), I’ll be announcing an exciting new group adventure into this space in just a few days. Stay tuned!

Can Android Vanquish the iPhone?
In a word, no. Seriously, though, Business Week is asking the question. Fair enough, but the fact is that Android is just a software platform at this point. There is no “gPhone” and there probably won’t be a handset manufactured by Google. Perhaps one of the big handset makers will take Android and do something great with it, but I don’t expect any Android phone to be as big a hit as the iPhone. Apple’s “closed system” — which is often lamented by that same crowd waiting for Android — is what makes their products successful and beloved. They control the user experience more than anyone else in this space, and they are the hands-down experts.

Sketch Notes
If you, like me, missed the SEED 3 conference put on by 37Signals, you’ll want to check out these incredible sketch notes from the event. There’s also a great profile of the conference in the Chicago Reader. I’m still processing the vast amounts of info and insights…

Summer on Prince Edward Island
Chattanooga may be the “scenic city,” but PEI looks absolutely gorgeous. I suppose Dan deserves summer vistas like this after enduring the frigid Canadian winter.

Evening Outdoors
Originally uploaded by JHawbaker1800

After dinner on the patio at Mellow Mushroom, we walked down past the aquarium to the riverfront for some playtime.

Rascal Flatts on a Milk Carton
Originally uploaded by JHawbaker1800

Rascal Flatts on a milk carton? If only.

And they could take the rest of CMT with them. Well, Carrie Underwood can probably stay.

Two Masters?
Originally uploaded by JHawbaker1800

Urban Night Bicycling ™
Originally uploaded by JHawbaker1800

Last night I celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with a nocturnal bike ride, touring St. Elmo, downtown and the North Shore. Our official pit stops included Big River, The Local and some lady’s front yard near the finish line.

That’s the world-renowned Josh Green posing triumphantly for the camera.

Second place, that is. After this weekend’s pitch by Bill that he would make a great VP on a joint ticket with Hillary, Barack dismissed the idea as “gamesmanship” and “double-talk.”

“First of all, with all due respect, I’ve won twice as many states as Senator Clinton. I’ve won more of the popular vote than Senator Clinton,” Obama went on. “I have more delegates than Senator Clinton. So, I don’t know how somebody who’s in second place is offering the vice presidency to somebody who’s in first place.”

Right on. In related news, the Chicago Tribune takes on Clinton’s experience argument.

“…there is scant evidence that she played a pivotal role in major foreign policy decisions or in managing global crises.”

Terror on the Walnut Street Bridge
Originally uploaded by JHawbaker1800

Farewell EPB Building
Originally uploaded by JHawbaker1800

Apparently this is old news, but the demise of the former EPB building is imminent. It’s always a bit sad to see an old building go down, and I’m hoping the future of this site holds more than just parked cars. Viva downtown!