Live From The 371 Diner In Brainerd, MN

Yes folks! I'm still alive. I am having a quick lunch and will decide on where I am going when I get back in the car. You might ask, Why I chose the 371 Diner?
Well,... This was my "Restaurant Roulette" selection off my GPS. Restaurant Roulette is a game I play when I am traveling with my wife in unknown territory. The rules are simple! You can decide on a restaurant from a distance based on what type of food you wish to have. EG. Punch American, Italian, or Chinese etc. into your GPS for listing of possibilities. Here's the catch! If that restaurant is open ... you have to eat there, even if it is Harley biker gang headquarters and you are wearing your "I'd rather own a Honda" t-shirt (I don't have a shirt like that). You GOTTA eat there!
This game has led to some of the most memorable evenings we have ever had while on the road. One time in Utah, a pit bull sat at our feet eating our scraps. On another occasion with my son, we visited a restaurant that the cole slaw was trying to crawl off our plates and get into the trash all by itself. Yuck!
Either way, ... Today, it's the 371 Diner in Brainerd, MN. This place is pretty nice by roulette standards. Kind of a 50's joint with friendly folks so a big thumbs up to the 371. If you live out here, drop in and tell em, NikonSniper sent ya!
I will post Minnesota photos later today from somewhere. Hope you are having a great day in your part of America and the world. Well, their bringing my eggs and toast.
Gotta go! God bless.
NikonSniper Steve

Sliddin' Logger Outside Ely

Minnesota Brook

Minnesota's November Colors

An Escape From The Concrete Jungle

She's All Dressed Up With No Place To Go

A Peeker Blending In

Cottage Daze

Appointment With God

Hey bloggies!
Did you ever want to just bail out from earthlings and head to Mars for some time alone?
Well, On Wednesday night that's how I felt but all flights to Mars had left O'Hare for the day so I did the next best thing. I just jumped in my car and headed north through Wisconsin and I am now north of Minneapolis. I needed to just clear my head for a few days and get alone with God to pray. I am seeking what God would have me do with my life in the next phase. I am finally at an age where nothing was keeping me from hitting the road with cameras in hand to cruise through back roads on an aimless path.
So in the morning I'll decide what direction I'm going for the day. I really have no idea where I am going or what I'll see on this trip but I just needed to do this and let God speak to me.
I will post something on Thursday night if God drags something cool to photograph in front of me in Minnesota. By the way, please don't be offended if your from Minnesota and you didn't like being compared to Mars. I am just saying that Mars has a better climate than Minnesota. I'm not saying Minnesota is the end of the civilized earth ... but Fargo IS!
Have a great day!
NikonSniper Steve

Oregon Coastal Night Light

Small Falls

Getting Ready For Winter

The Promises Of Psalm 34

Here are the words of Psalm 34. Notice our actions and His promises.
Can any of you use these promises today? Are you willing to do your part?

I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.
My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.
Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.
Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.
This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.
Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing.
The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days,
keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.
Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.
The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry;
the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.
The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all;
he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.
Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned.
The LORD redeems his servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.

So I read this and I have to ask some questions.
How big is your God? Is He a mini-God who can only cure the common cold? Or is He the awesome God of scripture? The Bible declares that He is awesome and that He can do above all you can ask or even think. This passage tells what my responsibility to Him is to be. If I am doing my part, I can count on Him. If God is for us, who can be against us?

Think on these things a while and have a great day!
NikonSniper Steve

Glimpse Of Pink

Sundown in Farm Town

BLEI5t ... Yeah Dat's Wut I'm Talkin' Bout

An Apology To You All

I had the following comment sent by Friko at Friko's Musings to one of my posts and I wanted to single it out for a more formal reply. It deserves some addressing to many of you.

"I come across your photo in the followers column of many, many bloggers. Some interesting ones, some ordinary ones, some photographic sites, and many of no particular focus. I am curious to learn what makes you pick one blog over another. I have visited your blog and left appreciative comments from time to time, even followed for a while, but you have never reacted. I'm sure there's nothing personal, after all, bloggers don't really know each other at all. It would still interest me how people choose the sites to look at. I've recently written a post on blogging and I would like to explore the subject further. Congratulations on a very successful blog."

Fricko

First let me say, I am sorry I did not acknowledge your appreciative comments. That is really the most important thing I want to say here and I am glad I can address this a bit because I am horribly neglegent in this area. Truth is, ... I am receiving far too many positive responses to answer with individual Thank You's to everyone. I just can't keep up with all the kind comments and that is why I periodically thank everyone in my written posts. I am very serious and DO want to thank every member personally but I typically don't respond to them individually UNLESS a specific question is asked ... and sometimes this takes days based on my schedule. Many people write personal comments to my email address asking for advice for oppinions. It does take time but I DO respond to each of them if it is needed. Either way, I KNOW this is an area I am weak in handling but I must take care of so many things as I travel. I am not trying to make excuses in any way but I really don't know how to handle this personally every time. BUT I am glad you brought it up so I could at least address it here. Thank you Fricko and my heartfelt appologies. Es tut mir leid. Mein Deutsche ist sehr schlecte.

Now, as to how I chose the sites that I look at. Wow! Probably many other people wonder how that nutty NikonSniper ended up here. Well, I do not own a television any more. I was bored with it and it generally depressed me. I was a notorious channel flipper when we owned a TV. I probably watched segments of 15 shows in 30 minutes.

I can say that the root of what I look for in a blog begins with photography ... but from there it carries into so many hobbies and interests I have no way of knowing exactly what got me to where I was when I have hit on another 20 sites to explore. I believe photography is the best of hobbies because no matter what your hobby is ... you will probably want photos of it (unless "thinking" is your hobby). I often enjoy the photos in a site even though it has nothing to do with photography. I might see someone who is stark raving bonkers for handcrafts, cooking and jewelry and love looking at how they chose to photograph them. Lots of other times I have joined the blogs of those who have chosen to follow NikonSniper. And I may end up discovering their friends listed on their blogs. You see I doubt I can help you much with specific methodology. I am a channel flipper I guess.

Thank you for your kind comments and I hope to be forgiven by the hundreds that leave comments wondering if I read them. I DO! And am so thankful for all of you. I just know I need to spend more time shooting than anything because that's where I find peace and quiet in my life. I hear nature speak to me. I am trying to record as much as I can photographically in order to keep a high volume of different subjects coming to NikonSniper. The actual blogging part of this is by far the most difficult and time consuming aspect. To me, the fun is in the firing shots. The work is the blog. If it was all blogging I wouldn't do it at all.

On another note, ... there have been several who have sent personal emails requesting my oppinion of why there are so many followers. I can't say for sure but I will venture a guess for those of you who wish to expand your follower base.
Reason #1 to me is getting on to others blogs and trying to encourage what it is that I like with comments. It is that old thing that the postman said a hundred years ago ... if you want letters - send letters. This is the most important thing. I believe there is no substitute for time in building a blog.
Other possible factors that may help are as follows:
a. I mix my photos up from all over the place. I want to spread color, subject and special effects. I like the fact that when you scroll down on the front page ... you have no idea what you will see from one photo to the next and I constantly look for new subjects to bring into the mix so I can do this even better.
b. I don't under estimate a neutral color (shade of grey) in a background. Aqua is a beautiful color but portrait photos or earth tones may or may not show up well with an aqua border. Some will, some won't! Black is my background of choice because I believe it shows all photos to be better in this form of media.
c. I am nearly brain dead now and pop-ups nearly make my head explode. I know they can earn you money (which is nice) but I am trying to create a place that is simple and about photography. I am looking for ways to add better organizing and even some cool movement without having 15 things pop up in your face.
d. Why are my photos smaller than what most people want to see? It allows you to scroll down and see what the next photo looks like. YES, all of these photos look better if you click on them to make them larger but some will have no interest to you and you can usually see that you are not interested with the smaller version. It may be the the next photo you will spend time looking at.
e. I don't write a lot! I spend time giving each photo a title but usually that's all I say. My photos mean different things to each of you. I don't want to cloud out what a photo means to you by explaining what every photo means to me. I let you do that for yourself. In doing so ... it is your comments that are actually the majority of the text in this blog. When I do write ... It is usually about my faith in Christ which matters more to me than my next breath. I am aware this bothers some people but I am certainly not willing to keep my mouth shut about Jesus! Some dear encouraging people have quit following because of my expressed words of faith and I respect them for their decision. But as for me and my blog ... we shall serve the Lord! God bless.

All the best. NikonSniper Steve

Colorado Sunsets

Evening At Bandon Beach

What's Better Than .... ICE CREAM!

Burning Leaves

OK, So, I Ate The Duck All By Myself Again ... And Now He Won't Let Me Ride In The Front

Dried Field Flowers

Sky Patrol

Sand Helicopter Pad

More Fun Than A Life Guard On A Leash