Happy 2nd Birthday to Joshua.  It sure is fun to see you growing up and learning new things.  This image was taken this past Monday when Angie, Josh, and I had lunch at Champs.

Yesterday I had a very unusual experience and had it not caught me so totally off guard I might have reacted differently.  I was in Cedar Rapids, Iowa yesterday finishing up our company meetings.  On the way back I pass through the town of Wyoming, Iowa.

I’ve been through this little town hundreds of time (without incident mind you) and have never paid more than a passing glance or two to the scenery of the town.

Coming West into town you go past the Wyoming Fire Department.  Like a lot of small town fire departments they have a bronze statue of a fireman erected in front of their building.  It looks nice.  I’ve seen it a hundred times and not once every thought about taking a picture of it.

Yesterday however around 4:00 pm the setting sun was just brilliant shinning on the statute.  So I went past it and then drove around the block and pulled in the driveway of the fire department (not blocking any fire truck doors.)

I was clicking away when all of a sudden I had this sense there was someone behind me.  I took the camera away from my eye and there was this man dressed in blue jeans, a checkered shirt and a pull over wind breaker with a baseball cap on.

He raised his wind breaker to reveal a pistol tucked into his belt and a sheriff’s badge attached to his belt.  He offered no other form of identification although he did state his name and that he was a deputy sheriff.  I couldn’t really hear or understand what his name was.

“What are you doing?”  I’m taking pictures I said.  Then he asked, “Why are you doing that?”  To which I said, because I enjoy taking pictures, is there a problem?  Does this all sound a little familiar?

I said to him.  Is there a problem?  He said, “It looks kind of unusual.”  I said look I’m an avid photographer taking pictures of things, I didn’t think that was against the law.  He said, “No, but people were just wondering.”  Then he got in his old Ford Taurus and drove away.

My guess is that he was the town cop after I thought about it.  And had I been a little quicker on my feet, I would have asked to see some identification, taken his name and number down and reported him to the Sheriff’s department for displaying his weapon in an intimidating manner.

On the way back to Maquoketa I saw this military helicopter flying around the area.  I though OMG they’ve got the secret service after me because I’ve said some less than complementary things about the current occupant of the White House.  🙂

By the time I got back to the office I was fuming.  More angry at myself for not being more assertive with this guy and his Gestapo like behavior.  It’s broad daylight, in a little town, I’m standing on public property taking a picture of a 5 foot high statue, and you have to show me your gun and ask me what I’m doing.

I tell you this photography thing is getting dangerous.  Thanks for stopping by.  Enjoy your Friday.  Sounds like we’re going to have pretty nice weather this weekend.  Be careful.