this is not the webpage you're looking for.

the webpage you are looking for is over here.

what you want is not here. it is over here.

the everyman pro galleries open today. for those who don't recall or haven't been paying attention, this is the first year of the professional version of my everyman photo contest. in the end, i was ten entrants shy of my goal but ended up with twice the images i had in the first year of the amateur version of the contest. more importantly, i'm confident that next year will show increases in interest and participation given a couple of observations i've made through the process.

enough blather, go look at a small but neat sampling of photography and see if you can pick who you think will win the $1,000 grand prize.

here's a little something i slipped into internet waters last week when no one was looking.

once again it is not with a boom but with a whimper that the everyman sounds its annual roar.

more sadly yet, scillions of 1's and 0's screaming down a broadband flume doesn't even rate a whimper. how anti-climactic that.

the 2008 everyman games are underway

sorry for the quiet week. it is everyman season and i've got seven more balls in the air than usual.

historically, i've spent between 150 and 200 hours in the month of november producing my everyman photo contest. this year saw a 400% increase in submissions (to 8k) yet, through some custom-built web enhancements, i spent less than twenty hours end to end overseeing the 2007 affair. this is by no means a reflection on the mix because there is some really remarkable photos this year. although, based on the usual varied opinions of my judges, not many folks can agree on what those remarkable photos are. or, they don't often agree with me at least (proof of this can be found in the scorecards, i'm judge #1).

see who ultimately won and how they match up with your taste.

and make sure to check out this year's most discussed photo. it is noteworthy for two reasons. the first is that this is the first year (in seven) my great friend bookpimp hasn't won that acclaim. the second reason is, well, i think i'll let that part speak for itself (may not be suitable for work or those with good visual memories). and for those wondering what the title, the samsara, means, it is a buddhist term dealing with rebirth, some definitions citing it specifically as a rebirth from the earth.

on mondays i usually post a picture of either anthony or alexander. on this monday i'm instead posting 8,000 pictures of people who aren't anthony or alexander so it may take you a few more minutes to go through them.

so for those who complain that i don't post enough, it's payback time. i hope you find some entertainment in the 2007 everyman.

this year's everyman submission deadline just hit. the current numbers stand at:

entrants: 4,174

photos: 8,122

largest category : landscape & nature (3,199)

smallest category : from the attic (599)

one might say the figures are slightly up this year. if i'm more dodgy this month than most, you'll please understand and forgive.

five years ago the everyman photo contest was ranked #837 by google when searching the phrase "photo contest". today it moves between the number 1 and 2 slots. this is a totally organic ranking meaning it has been achieved with zero advertising or search engine trickery. quite a feat for a contest that offers a $50 prize.

i also believe that this ranking has helped raise the submission count from 2,100 last year to 5,500 (and counting) this year. and this with still a whole month left. and that was my subtle reminder to any of you who have notions of entering this year's mix. tick-tock, tick-tock.

UPDATE: and a mailing list nearly 2,000 names long! of the 20 entrants in the first year's contest, 17 had eaten at my dinner table. those days seem to be long gone.

in 2001 i held a photo contest. there were 40 entrants. these were all people who had at one point or another sat at my dinner table. in 2004 the website hosting this same contest crested one million request in the month the photos were made public. last month, a dormant period for the everyman, the logs show requests nearing the one million mark. given the continued growth of this hobby-site i've had to change up how i handle the affair and today marks a major milestone for me and it; online submissions. it also marks the opening of the 2007 contest. check it out.

and, don't miss the happy, time-zapping image shuffler.

i'm more than a little bit lucky to have gotten the everyman uploaded this evening. saint louis got racked with an ice-storm and for the last five hours i've been listening to ice-heavy branches snap and crunchily fall through other ice-laden branches before painfully slamming into the ice-solid ground. after each limbs tumble through the night, i reload a web page testing my internet connection. i know there is a branch or pole somewhere in this city with my internet connection's name on it and i'm in a race with that piece of timber. at this 4am moment, it looks like i'm going to best my swaying foe, on this blustery night at least.

so if you are lucky enough to possess a healthy connection i invite you to visit my seventh love in life, the everyman photo contest, because today is a special day in the world of the everyman.

and the sixth annual everyman competition is underway.

in readying the everyman galleries, i don't think i'll be able to hang out with you all this week.

last time i checked out i shared a picture of where i'd be spending lion-share of that time so it feels kind of appropriate to again give you such a glimpse. this time though, instead of sitting in this office, i'll be up through the nights in this, my other office.

hope you all have a nice week. make sure to get a lot done so you can squander your time walking around the everyman exhibition.

last day, last reminder. the everyman deadline is tonight @ midnight. central standard time.

entries will be put on public display wednesday, november 1st.

winners will be announced monday, december 4th.

good luck to all who play.

excerpt from the website of friend of mine who is, professionally, a historical archivist.

I've been pretty obsessed with taking pictures of my toy collection and posting them to Flickr. My girlfriend's nerd alarm went off yesterday, I'm suprised I haven't worn it out.

but were he not setting off such alarms, wherever would we get great photography the likes of this ...

and, before you answer, consider that without people who enjoy the above, you may never benefit from the likes of these ...
and, i super-love this sort of stuff, which he seems to have tons of ...

i hope to see chavez at the pending everyman. which as i just consulted the website, and then my desktop calendar i see deadlines this monday. not exactly a good sign when the host gets caught by surprise. so, if you got 'em, bring 'em. time is rapidly dwindling away.



and, given the everyman's approach, our house is about to enter the time of year marty's nerd alarm gets chucked against every wall of our house, viciously.

there's no way this everyman entry received enough attention the first time around (note the submitter's occupation).

how that photo did not win first in its category AND best of show confounds me to this moment.

at the conclusion of each year's everyman photo contest, i invite the judges to my home for dinner and discussion. this year, every judge within a six-hour driving radius attended. that number gets to be so great because of one fella who trekked in from kentucky. add to that, i've never met him and he'd never met me which makes the gesture that much more noteworthy.

in addition to my kentucky boondoggler, one of my international judges, the one representing italy, called my home during the party to discuss the contest and give his feedback. it was a very neat moment for me. and this guy lives, of all places, in the region of italy i consider the most beautiful piece of the world i've ever stood upon, la spezia, which is in northwestern italy and part of the cinqua terra stretch of coastline. he was also kind enough to open his home to my family should we ever be in the region again. i hope he is serious because there is little doubt we will one day be darkening his doorway.

another contest-related thought; i've noticed since i've increased the number of judges, i no longer get hate-mail when winners are announced. i'm going to take that as a positive sign (it did occur to me that maybe no one was chatting because no one was looking, but november bested the everyman's previous traffic record, racking up 1.2 million requests.)

and, i'll leave you with the partygoer's highlight of the evening. alex woke up from his nap and descended the steps wearing one of bella's black velour dresses. since it was his older sisters', it went all the way to the floor and for-sure looked like an evening gown. earlier he had been wearing a really festive pair of red overalls but insisted on the dress for his nap. i intended on changing him before his grand appearance but was tied up in the kitchen and didn't know he woke up. marty was talking with one of the judges when they saw alex round the corner:

joe : hey look at alex in his basketball jersey.
marty : that's not a basketball jersey joe, it's a dress.
joe: i know. i was just trying to help you out.

and lastly, everyone i owe work, email, money or affection to can it expect it in the near future now that my life is again my life. thanks to all who supported, tolerated and enjoyed this year's event. as always, i'm in your debt.

365 days in the making, the 2005 everyman is finally a done deal.

i'm still recovering from what has been a very rollicking month. hope to be back up to par next week.

with life on the web your efforts rarely seem to generate appropriate affection. it's a one-way forum and those that play, or keep playing at least, know this. so to receive multiple rewards/kudos in a short span of time is pretty unprecedented, especially for a one-trick hack like myself. this week felt like troy-appreciation week. i don't want to get into the nature of the various puffs of wind sent up my skirt but just know puffs of air were billowing all around my catholic school girl plaid (and not the kind of puffs that make alex snap his head up and say inquisitively, 'GAS?').

one thing i will share with you though. on the day before the everyman's photos were released, the site received 7,000 requests. on the day the photos were released it satisfied, quite admirably might i add, 200,000 requests. i think the everyman should have no problem besting its 1,000,000 request month record.

going to bed now. g'night.

p.s. if walt and i have another child, a son, i'm going to fight hard to name him Marcher.

the fifth annual everyman is a reality.

only one (1) week left to get your everyman entries in.

so if you want to dance, get off your duff.

p.s. the from the attic category seems to again be woefully under-represented.

i have several web sites. each one requires different levels of maintenance. this site, my personal site, definitely gets the most love, receiving between 100 and 200 updates a year.

one of my sites gets updated twice a year. this is the same site that has gotten a million hits in a 30-day period, twice.

today is one of the two days of the year that site has been updated. so enjoy it while it's fresh.

busy, busy, busy with mr everyman.

block a little time for it tomorrow.