Jim Seida/msnbc.com
Water pours off rooftops along Bourbon Street in New Orleans as Hurricane Gustav approaches the Gulf Coast.
The torrential rain made the brick streets shiny, reflecting back the few neon lights left on along the famous street.The gutters filled up quickly and made mini-waterfalls which poured onto the street.
J. Pat Carter/AP
Robert and Sylvia Hayes walk into a Pensacola, Fla. rest stop Sunday, Aug. 31 after they left their home in New Orleans before the arrival of Hurricane Gustav. They lost their home during Hurricane Katrina.
I hope someone is there to help Robert and Sylvia.
Guiseppe Barranco/Beaumont Enterprise via AP
In order to preserve pool furniture from the potential winds of Hurricane Gustav, lawn chairs and tables were placed in the pool at Huntington Park in Beaumont, Texas on Sunday, Aug. 31.
Preparing for a huricane means different things to different people.
Lee Celano/Reuters
A man hauls bags down Bourbon Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans, La., ahead of Hurricane Gustav's arrival, August 31, 2008. Hurricane Gustav churned toward the Louisiana coast through the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday with strength that could rival 2005's Hurricane Katrina, prompting low-lying New Orleans to begin evacuation.
Someone in the newsroom said that this man looks like he's the last guy leaving town. I'd have to agree.
Noaa/AP
Hurricane Gustav swelled to a fearsome Category 3 hurricane early Saturday with winds of 115 mph as it approached western Cuba on a track to hit the U.S. Gulf Coast three years after Hurricane Katrina.
Weve been watching Gustav develop over the last few days. Ive been hoping that it would somehow blow itself out, but it looks like its only getting stronger as it approaches the gulf coast. Im worried about the people of the region. Im worried about the reporting staff were sending in. I hope the government learned the lessons of Katrina and has systems and people ready to go.
Larry Downing/Reuters
Iraq war veteran and former congressional candidate Tammy Duckworth is pictured at the podium at the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver, on Aug. 27, 2008.
This is an image that really goes right to your heart. It's a powerful way to show this woman's situation.
Shawn Thew/EPA
Illinois delegates Genevieve Thomas, left, and Iris Martinez celebrate on the floor of the Democratic National Convention after Barack Obama is announced as the Democratic nominee for president at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado on August 27.
I expected some emotion when Obama's nomination was announced, but the level of emotional intensity that many delegates displayed was the most interesting thing I've seen during the convention so far.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Wardrobe pieces are checked against stage lighting before the start of day two of the Democratic National Convention at the Pepsi Center in Denver. Senator Hillary Clinton went with the orange suit for her speech.
It's just another part of the show.
Nepal Army / Handout/EPA
A Nepal Army handout picture dated 25 August 2008 shows Nepalese flood victims taking shelter with their belongings at a Highway in Inarwa District, 400 kilometer south east of Kathmandu, Nepal. According to latest report more than 24 bodies have been discovered and nearly 60,000 people are reported to have fled their homes and hundreds still missing after a Koshi river dam collapsed in south-eastern Nepal, last week.
When I saw this image, it made me wonder what it was like to be on that strip of highway, among this colorful throng of people.
Pat Sullivan/AP
Nicholas Latimer, 10, checks in with his mother Elizabeth Wallace as she shades herself with a raft Monday, August 4 on Pirates Beach in Galveston, Texas. Wallace and her son, from Calgary, Canada, plan to leave the island for Houston before tropical storm Edouard comes ashore Tuesday.
Nothing like relaxing day at the beach...the sound of the waves, the smell of the air, the feel of an inflatable raft wrapped around your head.
Joerg Carstnsen/EPA
A toilet designed by the artist Marc Dittrich in a cafe in Cologne, Germany on August 18. The tower block illusion can be visited in the course of the 'artrmx Cologne Vol.01' festival which will take place for the first time from 22 August till 31 August 2008.
Man, that is one HUGE toilet.
Bela Szandelszky/AP
US sailers unload humanitarian boxes on the deck of the guided-missile destroyer USS McFaul anchored in the harbor of Batumi, western Georgia, Sunday, Aug. 24, 2008. The USS McFaul is the first of three U.S. Navy ships that will carry supplies such as blankets, hygiene kits and baby food to Georgia via the Turkish Straits to help the country following its war with Russia over the breakaway republic of South Ossetia. (AP Photo/Bela Szandelszky)
I like this photo's composition, with the mid-air parcel in flight.
Robyn Beck/AFP - Getty Images
Michelle Obama, wife of Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama, brings daughters Malia (L) and Sasha on stage at the Democratic National Convention 2008 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado, on August 25, 2008.
The Obama family's body language struck me in this photo differently than in the 100s of others I've seen of them in this first day of the DNC. Probably because I grew up in a home with my mom and little sister, I really see Michelle Obama as a mother in this frame, arms wrapped around her children in the middle of all of this chaos. I can't imagine what it would be like to be so young and exposed to such an enormous national spotlight.
Mohammed Saber/EPA
A Palestinian worker (L) smokes as he takes a rest before continuing the digging of a new tunnel between Gaza Strip and Egypt in the Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, 13 August 2008. The tunnel is to receive goods from Egypt. It is 20 to 30 meters down and 600 to 1200 meters long underneath the border. Since Hamas took over the Gaza strip 13 June 2007, the Gaza strip has been isolated from the outside world.
This is a window into the creation of the contentious tunnel system that is used to smuggle goods and weapons from Egypt to the Gaza Strip. Other pictures in the series showed the painstaking process of moving small barrels of dirt, by hand, along ropes, through the tunnels and up to ground level.
Eliseo Fernandez/Reuters
Greenpeace activists place an inflatable whale inside the Chilean congress in Valparaiso city, about 75 miles (120 km) northwest of Santiago August 14, 2008. The activists were protesting against whale hunting in the oceans and asking congress and the government to declare the Chilean jurisdictional waters of the Pacific Ocean a whale sanctuary.
How strange would it be to look out your window while you're working and find a giant inflatable whale starring up at you? Funny for some and probably maddening if you're on a different side of the whaling issue than the folks who bestowed your building with the whale.
Jamie Squire/Getty Images
Kobe Bryant of the United States moves through the media to kiss his wife Vanessa after defeating Spain 118-107 in the gold medal game during Day 16 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games at the Beijing Olympic Basketball Gymnasium on August 24, 2008 in Beijing, China.
Kobe Bryant seems to be doing his best to have a Michael Phelps style moment with his family after winning the gold medal. Given Kobe's legal troubles in 2003, Phelps is probably a pretty good role model.
Issei Kato/Reuters
Angel Valodia Matos of Cuba kicks referee Chakir Chelbat of Sweden during his bronze medal taekwondo bout at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games August 23, 2008. Matos was banned for life from taekwondo on Saturday after he kicked Chelbat in the head. The Cuban's coach was also banned for behaviour that the official said was in "strong violation of the spirit of taekwondo and the Olympic Games".
A nice frame from a sad moment at the Olympic Games. The picture leaves me wanting to know more about what provoked such an outburst.
Jamie Squire/Getty Images
A member of the Japan synchronized swim team is tended by teammates after an incident during competion in the synchronised swimming team event free routine final at the National Aquatics Center on Day 15 of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games on August 23, 2008 in Beijing, China.
Synchronized swimming is an easy target for television comedians, implying that it is not a sport that requires the athleticism of other Olympic events. This Japanese swimmer hyperventilated and fainted at the end of the team's routine. It was apparently a case of nerves, not a lack of fitness. Full story at: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26360048/
Franck Fife/AFP - Getty Images
The team of Ukraine competes in the group all-around qualification of the rhythmic gymnastics at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing on August 21, 2008.
The strength and flexibility needed to compete in this event is amazing. But, this particular frame captures a scene that also looks a little comical to me. It might be the hair buns, or purple outfits, but this moment from the gymnastics competition looks like it could be a whimsical illustration in a Dr. Seuss book.
� Claro Cortes / Reuters/Reuters
Cao Zhongrong of China falls from his horse ChuChu during the men's riding show jumping event of the modern pentathlon competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, August 21, 2008.
I've seen many shots of horse jump misses over the years, but this one is interesting in how the photographer captured the rider almost completely vertical. This is an image that creates suspense by making you wonder how it ended for the rider.
Stefano Rellandini/Reuters
Jill Kintner (R) of the U.S. rides past Tanya Bailey (C) of Australia and Nicole Callisto (L) of Australia during the women's semifinal run for the BMX cycling competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, August 22, 2008.
It's not hard to see why BMX racing was made an Olympic sport for the first time this year, and it's not just because it appeals to young people. It features furious, non-stop action, soaring jumps and chain reaction crashes. No lane markers in this race.
Lee Jae-won/Reuters
Rakhim Chakhkiev (top) of Russia fights Osmai Acosta of Cuba during their heavyweight (91kg) semi-final boxing match at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games August 22, 2008.
It seems like all the great boxing photos are in black and white. There's something about the bright colors that mask the gritty reality of boxing. That being said, this image has a lot going for it: the composition of the ropes, the fighter about to hit the canvas and the television image behind them.
� Alvin Chan / Reuters/Reuters
A picture of Susann, the late wife of gold medalist Matthias Steiner of Germany, is seen on the medal podium as (L-R) silver medallist Evgeny Chigishev of Russia, Steiner and bronze medalist Viktors Scerbatihs of Latvia pose with their medals in the men's Group A weightlifting competition at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games August 19, 2008.
It's really nice to see attention brought to an athlete's personal story in such a subtle, touching way.
Joe Chan/Reuters
Labourers rest in the field inside the National Stadium, also known as the Bird's Nest, in Beijing, August 22, 2008.
We often don't think about how hard people in the host country are working to make everything run smoothly, this is a rare look at a behind the scenes of the behind the scenes.
Carl De Souza/AFP - Getty Images
Road cyclists take part in a practice session near the Great Wall of China in Badaling, 78 km north of Beijing, on August 7, 2008.
This is a great photo that takes advantage of the scenery in Beijing, while showing athletes practicing for an event. The wide angle and the fisheye effect work well here.
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