I had the opportunity to watch my little cousins “ball” or something like that 🙂 It is amazing how children can learn skills at early ages… The understood some aspects of defense, which is amazing at 5 or 6. 
Category: Sports
Bringing the Heat… And Bringing the Water!
This past weekend, I had the chance to gain new respect for the Williams sisters (Serena and Venus)! My cousin Whitney Jones is an up-and-coming tennis player who played in the Citi Open this weekend in College Park, MD. As she was playing so close to me, I was able to see her play for the first time (definitely impressive). Well, anyone that was in the DC area this weekend knew well that Saturday was NOT the day to be outside; at some point this weekend it was 109 degrees. Now don’t get me wrong, I love the heat, but I also love shade and protection. Y’all, there was no shade to be found at this tennis match! As a matter of fact, when the tennis players sat down to rest a moment and drink water, the “ball kids” brought umbrellas and held them over their heads. The seats were so hot that you needed to put something on the seat to protect yourself from burns (I’m really not being dramatic). As odd as it may sound, I never imagined that this is the kind of weather that the Williams sisters play in from time to time! Again, I had a new found respect for their talent in light of this experience… I was even motivated to call a long time friend and former tennis player to share my new found understanding.
Anyway, aside from the heat and needing to stay hydrated, the game was pretty interesting and easy to follow… and my cousin won!!!! Go JONES!!!! Select photos below!
Surprisin’ & Seein’ the Fam in Mississippi!
Last week, my family threw a surprise party for my Dad. It was a real surprise party because his birthday was four months ago… and because he was under the impression that he was planning a get-together for one side of his family. Well, I was delightfully surprised to see that we managed to keep it a surprise up until mom yelled “SURPRISE!” This was largely because he was making a lot of calls to family and running into people that were not doing the best job at keeping the surprise, but thankfully he did not notice all of the comments that were made. But better than seeing his surprised face was the opportunity to see family that I had not seen in years. For many of my family members, I had not seen them since the homegoings of other family members, so it was good to see them for a celebration of LIFE! Needless to say, I ran my mouth more than I clicked away with my camera, but I was still able to capture the highlights of this event, which I have included below.
We not only had family, but we also had friends of the family, who seem more like members of the family than friends! One of which was a very dear friend of mine, who is also my travel budding/road dog! She has gone with me on all of my international trips and she has been present for so many noteworthy events in my life… Anyway, at the event, I took inspiration from a photo I took in Paris in 2008 of her, and I have included this throwback/inspired photograph in the collection below.
Another great moment for me was an exchange with one of my uncles. For as far back as I can remember, I recall that my uncle Stan and my dad had the same Canon SLR camera. Uncle Stan always took so much longer than Dad to capture any moment, but his pictures (as well as Dad’s) were always priceless! So when I saw him at the event, he told me that halfway down from WI, he realized that he left his camera. Well, thank God for preparation! I was able to let him use my backup camera, which I was appreciative of afterwards when I realized that there were some people that I talked to, but did not photograph – Thanks Uncle Stan! Among other shots, one of the things we did was capture each other capturing each other… and those were among my favorite shots!
Y’all, it was just sooo good to be around family, despite the heat and the loooooonnnnggg road trip! I wouldn’t have traded these moments for anything!
Enjoy the photos below, and if you see something you like, don’t hesitate to leave a comment!!!
Family & Friends
The AND1 Mix Tape
There are few sports that I really enjoy watching, and basketball is at the top of that list. Interestingly enough, I had not really photographed too many basketball games (probably because I am trying to play or just watch it). Anyway, at a church picnic last week in DC, I had the opportunity to photograph the much contested basketball tournament. Now I will admit that I did not think I’d take as many pictures as I did from it, but y’all know how basketball games go… 2 minutes on the clock can equate to 30 more minutes of a game and/or overtime. Anyway, the emotions were real and raw, passes were intercepted, shots were blocked, and anyone that wasn’t supposed to be on the court was emphatically reminded of that fact. I really believe that the guys always play as hard as they were and it had nothing to do with two young ladies walking around them with cameras… Anyway, see the images below.
HE SURELY DOES HAVE HIS EYE ON THE PRIZE
AND AFTER BLOOD, SWEAT, AND TEARS (maybe there was no blood, but it sounded more dramatic)… THE WINNERS ARE….
