Monopoly (World Edition)
- January 29, 2009 -
I normally tell people I’m not a “game” person. I enjoy playing board games and such at times, but generally I don’t get excited about playing games. The main reason is I enjoy the ‘classics’. Playing games like Taboo, Catchphrase, Mad Gabs, etc. can be fun at times, but it doesn’t have the same lasting power I need. My games of choice: Scrabble, Chess, and Monopoly. These guys are much more lengthy in the amount of time it takes (it took us a little over 2 hours, I think), but they are so much fun!
One of my college roommates had his birthday a couple days ago, so my other roommates and I got together for a post-birthday celebration of Monopoly. But this wasn’t the old-school version…we got the new “World Edition”. I’m still not sure how I feel about it…it’s so odd not seeing Baltic Avenue, St. James Place, and Boardwalk…and instead bidding on places like Tokyo, Taipei, and London. I brought along my new macro lens to try it out, so here’s some shots:
One of the major changes: no more cash! everything is done with these plastic credit cards…it does speed up the game in figuring out how much money everyone has and making transactions faster.
I started out pretty well off with property…but I just didn’t have the money to build much…
And its very difficult when you circle around and see this.
Fun times, indeed! Forget all the Texas Hold-em games, Monopoly is the game of 2009! Any other Monopoly fans out there? What’s your favorite board game?
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natemathai | 
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On Goal Setting and Accountability
- January 26, 2009 -
As some of you (5?) loyal blog readers might have noticed, last year I created a “28 in 2008” list- 28 goals/markers/events/activities I wanted to get accomplished by the end of 2008. Some of them were easier, others were a big stretch…and a lot of stuff I didn’t accomplish. If you hit up the link, I did a recap of what I accomplished and what I didn’t, and what I learned through it all.
Basically, the main points that I learned was that I would never reach a goal if:
- I lost sight of the purpose
- I didn’t feel the goal was “truly” purposeful
- I didn’t have any accountability to reach it
For many of the goals, I didn’t have a greater “purpose” in doing so ingrained in my mind throughout the year, which made it a lot easier to push it off. For things that I felt for more necessary, I would put greater emphasis on it. Recognizing this really helped me learn something big about setting goals: Start with a great purpose to accomplish, then work your way backwwards to smaller goals/markers along the way. Only when I look past the actual goal and see something greater will I be willing to push myself to go up to and beyond it. Also, for most of the goals they were things that I was just keeping in my own head- though I posted it online, I didn’t set out to have others actively push me and keep me on track, which made it simple to let slip and not have to answer to anyone about it.
For 2009, I didn’t make a large list again, as it would be semi-purposeless (in my eyes) to do so again. I did, however, set up 2 goals, and have booked up accountability for it to help me along the way. They were both on last year’s list too, but now I have thought through actual purposes for it as well.
[GOAL #1] Read Through the Bible in 1 Year
Purpose: I wanted to greater knowledge of God and a vision for His kingdom and where I fit into it all. I want to have a foundation able to lead and teach others. I need to set aside more time to hear HOW God has worked in the past to have a better understanding of ways He WILL work in my present.
At the beginning of the year, like many, a bunch of my twitter-friends wanted to make a commitment to read through the Bible this year. And like other years, many start with a burst of energy and then fizzle out a couple weeks/months in. We wanted to change that, so we set up an online accountability. One friend created a Google Docs spreadsheet which outlined what passages to read in order to finish it in a year (or 3 months, as some are trying to do). And then everyone who wanted to do it would sign in, add their name and then ‘check off’ when they finish reading a passage. Having this in the view of everyone is a push enough to stay consistent, and we can call people out (in a loving way) if they fall behind too much.
In addition, so people aren’t just reading for the sake of reading, I set up a quick online forum that we affectionately called BibleTweet, where people would be able to post questions or insights so that people would be able to learn too! It’s only been a month, but its been awesome!
[GOAL #2] Get Physically Fit
Purpose: In order for me to perform my work effectively and efficiently, my health needs to be there. Moving forward towards marriage, I need to look good :), and more importantly after marriage and heading into family life, I want to be able to keep up with any little ones that might come into the world (whenever that might be).
A handful of my friends set up a “weight loss challenge”, where everyone put in some money in a winner-take-all battle. It was a great idea, except there’s a few of us who don’t necessarily need to lose weight..we’re just out of shape. So we decided to set up our own little competition: A 3-month fitness challenge. With a small $25 entry, it’s a winner-take-all battle, where we are scoring off of decrease in body fat %, # of workouts per week, # of miles run, and increase in strength (based off of pound increase for the bench press, bicep curl, shoulder press, and bicep curl). We wanted to have as much of a full body workout as possible, so this is what we came up with. And we’re keeping our weekly workouts and vitals transparent (for those involved), which is just the accountability we need. Plus, I don’t want to lose $25! So wish me luck! It’s been awhile since I’ve been really consistent with working out, but since starting this, I’ve got added motivation. (And hopefully once I’m consistent for a good 3 months, it’ll finally come up to be a regular discipline in my life)
I wanted to challenge you guys to take some time and set up at least one goal to accomplish this year. But before figuring out the goal, find out a purpose. What do you want from life? At the end of it all, where would you like to be? What would you like to see? What’s your driving force? Once you figure that, what’s a realistic (but challenging) step along the way to reach by the end of the year? When you figure that out, tell 2-3 people who will check up on you to make sure you reach and pass that goal with flying colors. Make this year the greatest one yet!
Oh…and since a post is boring without a picture…ummm…hmmmm…here’s my a shot taken with my new toy quality piece of business equipment that will help me make your pictures that much more wonderful!
It’s the Canon 100mm 2.8 Macro lens! If I had jewelry I’d show you just how much it’ll spice up the ring shots at your wedding, but since I don’t…you’ll have to settle for this beautiful AA Duracell battery…look at the detail! :)
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: PersonalNMP Challenge: December
- January 25, 2009 -
Hey everyone, I seem to be off to a slow start with the blog in 2009, but don’t worry, I’ve ready for change!
This post is rather overdue, but I’ve been running into issues with my galleries, so I haven’t be able to load these images (the galleries still aren’t working correctly). So, instead of still waiting, I’m just going to post the set of submissions for December’s challenge…
[Sonia]
[Leena T]
So with that, the 2008 challenges are complete. As you probably noticed, there hasn’t been one posted for 2009 yet, and it’ll probably be pushed off a bit as I’m thinking of spicing it up a bit. When I get the details all hashed out I’ll let you all know. Just wanted to say thanks to all those who participated last year- I hope it challenged you guys to see things diferent both with a lens in front of your face and without :) It was definitely a pleasure to see a glimpse of the world through your eyes.
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: Personal No Comments | add a comment
Jaimy & Sijin : A Proposal
- January 14, 2009 -
It seemed like a perfect setup. New Year’s Eve. Downtown Chicago. Beautiful skyline. Extravagent fireworks. The time and location had so much meaning for them, so of course it made sense!
The only issue I had: it was freezing cold and pitch black! [But hey, I'm just the photographer, so I do as I'm told. :) ]
I had been friends with Sijin since we were in like 5th grade, so we pretty much grew up together, and I got to know Jaimy through high school. And like I say many times, it’s such an awesome thing to watch a relationship grow from a good friendship.
About a week before the proposal, I took a few pics of the ring (mainly for Sijin, because once he gives it to her, he has nothing… ;)).
On New Year’s Eve, I headed downtown and met up with my friend and fellow photographer Steve Thomas who was also going to help with the sniping. It seriously was freezing by the lake, to the point where we could not feel our fingers or the cameras for that matter! We went to our spots though, and waited for Sijin and Jaimy to come. Just before the fireworks were about to start, they made their way to the steps and got ready for the show…
(For the photogs: majority of these were shot on the 5D with the 70-200, ISO3200, f/2.8, 1/15…handheld!)
She said yes!
Afterward, back at Jaimy’s house, their close family and friends were waiting to celebrate in the good news, and hear the story from the newly engaged couple.
Sijin and Jaimy, I had a blast freezing downtown with you. Next time you want pictures, though, I’d request a little bit more light and slightly warmer weather please. :) It’s only the beginning and I wish you guys all the best with the planning during the coming year. Good luck!
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: Modern Proposals, engagementWho Would Shoot Me… (The Bebbs)
- January 12, 2009 -
Here’s the first of husband and wife team on my list coming in from our friends up north (…Canada), Jen and Steve Bebb!
Like many of the photographers, I have interacted with them through online communities and such. Recently, though, the Bebbs came out to Chicago for one of their workshops and I was able to get dinner with them and a few other photographers. And its such a different feeling actually interacting with them in person. Though I had head knowledge of how they came up in the business and things like that, its so much different hearing them tell you, seeing their passion for the work. Image-wise they consistently provide stunning images day in and day out, and ultimately thats the goal.
check out their work: blogsite
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: Personal No Comments | add a comment
Recap: MTC Winter Regional Conference
- January 8, 2009 -
From December 27th-30th, most of you know I was out in Michigan for a church retreat. I had been attending this conference since my freshman year of high school, and it has changed greatly over the years, both in the format as well as my role. One thing that stayed consistent throughout the many blessings this conference brings. I posted a general photo recap here, here, and here (3 days of it), so I’ll just give more info to go alongside that. I’ll post a full set of images up on facebook, so be sure to be my friend and then check it out!
What normally takes about 5 hours turned into almost a 12 hour trip, as both of the buses leaving Chicago broke down in some way, shape or form. We spent a couple hours on the side of the highway, then a few more waiting at a Wendy’s nearby before finally getting new buses and continuing our journey. So we showed up about 6 hours late, but at least we made it!
Almost every year we host the event at Michindoh Ministries Conference Center in Hillsdale, Michigan. I took this pic on the last day (as it was obviously too dark when we first got in…this is what we normally arrive to, though.
The two speakers we had were Rev. Biju Simon and John C. Mathew, both flying in from the East Coast. Pretty dynamic speakers that challenged us on the importance of missions work, as well as the centrality of the Bible in traditional church liturgy- a very eye-opening mesage.
One of the highlights was a creative presentation given by the youth of the Detroit church. To the song “Who Am I” by Casting Crowns, they did a form of ‘body worship’ using a black light – BALLER! watching it was amazing, photographing it…not so much. ;) For the tech specs, I shot these at f2.8, 1/30th, ISO3200 on the 5D. It’s near impossible to focus on anything in the dark, let alone some white hands moving around!
On the last night, the speakers asked all the kids to write down different addictions, struggles, and issues that hold them back in their life, and by choice they would come to the front and throw it in the trash- sort of a visual symbol of letting go of these things.
It was truly a sight to see these kids ranging from 13-22 making such a statement. I’m excited to see how God uses this generation in the years to come.
On the last day, I did a quick walk around the area and grabbed a few shots. In all my years, I realized that I never really took the time to just escape to the beauty of this land (of course, in the middle of winter it’s never really been a viable option). But it was beautiful! The first one is my new desktop background:
Like I said, a full photo recap is all uploaded on facebook, so be my friend and check ‘em out!
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: Modern Events, Personal No Comments | add a comment
Recap: Christmas
- January 6, 2009 -
I feel like I’ve been gone from this blog for so long! I hope all of you guys had a happy Holiday Season and are ready to get up and running in 2009.
To start, anyone who still has images from the December Challenge can still send them in, I’ll get it posted within the week. Also, I was thinking of trying something a bit different for the challenge for 2009, so keep an eye out for that to come soon.
I’m playing a little catch-up here, and so here’s a recap from the Christmas celebrations here. On Christmas Eve, I went over to my fiancee’s place and celebrated with her family. With four kids, it was quite an eventful time, especially with the opening of presents.
Christmas was then held at my parent’s place, where my sisters and their in-laws came as well. We only have two little ones running around, so it was a lot more tame.
And here are a couple group pics by request: The siblings, then everyone (less one set of in-laws who left earlier)
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: Personal No Comments | add a comment
New Year’s Eve Proposal
- January 1, 2009 -
Congrats to my good friends Sijin and Jaimy for getting engaged! A little tease with more to come:
…oh, and here’s the beauty that is the Chicago skyline at night on New Year’s Eve that I grabbed waiting for the happy couple to arrive.
Happy New Year, everyone! Make this year BALLER!
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: engagement
