Whimsical Windows - Tall Spire

Toby hosts the fun architectural meme Whimsical Windows/Delirious Doors. This week I am staying local and offer views from our neighboring town of Derby Connecticut. This is St. Mary's Church on Elizabeth Street. This was a house of worship primarily for the Irish immigrants that moved to this area for work starting in the mid-1890s, and due to this growth, a new building was needed, and fast. Thus, the cornerstone was laid down on September 23, 1906 and completed on July 4, 1907, a true accomplishment. I have been unable to find the height of the spire but do guess it to be around 200 feet - and even taller feeling as it sits on a hill above the road (and of course I sit even lower than most :). Visit this fun meme for windows and doors of note...

Shadow Shot Sunday - Cool Customline

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 is back, and I revert to a favorite of mine, now the desktop photo on the computer. It is the mixture of bold colors, chrome, reflections and of course, shadows. The car a 1955 Ford Customline, the lower priced Ford of that year (Fairlane the top) - even the less opulent models had plenty of chrome as standard equipment - not optional. 

The obvious shadows fall under the car itself, from the V8 emblem and under myself and Allegra. A sunny day also allows for the two if us to show up twice in the many shiny and curvaceous arcs and contours. Cars from back then were not very good compared to today - but what style! Follow the shadowy world at the great SSS2!

Tina's Pic Story - Vacations

Tina's Pic Story is back with its simple rule: she provides the theme, we supply the photos. The theme this week is vacations...I am going back a generation and two, and we see our daughter at the water's edge on Cape Cod, and a sibling of mine quite awhile ago at high tide in Brigantine NJ. For kids, work is play, and on these vacations, the children are very hard at work...

Ruby Tuesday - Midget football back when

Ruby Tuesday reminisces and returns back to 1977 and a recently found print of a midget football team that features my then 13 year old brother on the team (CP) was number 60 if my eyes are not deceiving me. The town is East Hartford, Connecticut, the place is Labor Field in the Mayberry Village (really) section of town. I cannot recall the team's name, and the quality of the scan is helped by modern means - so the past comes alive...

Whimsical Windows - Cape Lighthouse

Toby's fun meme Whimsical Window / Delirious Doors is back, and I revert back a few years, The photo taken by family member Allegra, from the back seat of the family van on vacation. The place was on the sandbar known Cape Cod, the Chatham Lighthouse. 

This is the third of the original Chatham structures, built in 1881. It is still a US Coast Guard approvedlight, and has been updated to 2.8 million candlepower aerobeacons. Despite the modern updates in brilliance, its shape and style are classic - still.

We actually took a vacation drive one day to look at lighthouses, foregoing the crowed beach for the afternoon - vacation and learning are a great summer combination....

Shadowy Shot Sunday 2 - Shadowy Summer Solstice Subsides

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 is back, and alas the season of Summer ends its run for this year at 1:04 A.M. (EDT), as I slept so Autumn in the Northern Hemisphere is here. Luckily in the Land of Oz, it is Spring...I went out yesterday into the drive and have really noticed the southerly angle of the sun these days...

The gray house next door is actually facing due south - as evidenced as the sun shining across and cascading over my van...early autumn is often delightful, dry and a sunny day today at 80 °F (27 °C). Of course, late Autumn is quite different, leafless and much chillier. Which I will deal with at that time...

Wordless Wednesday - Side order

Our diner dinner was not meant to be an artistic event - however, several stuck onion rings can be interpreted as either Mickey Mouse or Curious George - cannot tell which...see Tina and Ramona!

Tina's Pic Story - Feet

Tina's Pic Story is a fun photo meme where she provides the weekly subject and we provide the photos - our subject this week is feet

I use a wheelchair to get around, so multi-tasking in my 'wheels', like driving and taking pictures at the same time, often means that neither is done well. Like this view from 2004 where myself, Patti and her newspaper co-workers attended a wedding of a colleague. I was in charge of capturing these four attendees, and I was not able to balance the camera at all...this picture was not cropped, what you see is what I captured, feet and all.

A unforced (but fun) error - and perfect for the subject. By the way, the lovely Patti is in blue...

Ruby Tuesday 2 - Last harvest this year...

Ruby Tuesday 2 is back, and alas as Autumn approaches, the tomatoes will grow no more. So we are now gathering the remaining fruit in the pots alongside the garage in any color...to ripen in the windows. Alas, winter tomatoes are picked green and transported by truck later - and winter fruit ripened in the window in January is just not the same. So when this is all ruby, a homegrown tomato and mozzarella salad will be the culinary prize!

Whimsical Windows - Venue Views

Toby's fun architectural meme Whimsical Windows/Delirious Doors is back, and my subject today is based on a fundraising event held by my previous employer CDR (now a customer) held at the Savin Rock Conference Center in west Haven, CT. The event included on a closed course walkers and wheelchairs, this referred to as the seventh annual Wheel-A-Thon. The center is along Long Island Sound and the building once held several restaurants but now is an events venue. The walls of windows style is mid-70s, and attractive on the outside.

Interesting on the inside too. Note the banner we see outside the venue - and from inside too. The perspective of both views gives the same object a completely different feel while under a blue sky or through the window blinds...the day was nice, over $16000 was raised for scholarships for disabled youth and windows and doors were noticed. What's not to like about this day?

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 - Shoreline walk/roll

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 highlights an event last Sunday that was fun and also involved wheelchairs. This event was the seventh annual fund-raiser Wheel-A-Thon hosted and run by my last employer (and now Alcam customer) the Center for Disability Rights in West Haven CT.

The Comcast videographer and writer Patti query the event leader

Prizes for the leading fund-rising teams

This event is a team walk along the West Haven (CT) shorewith an option to travel the course in a wheelchair. While there, I was taking pictures with my newre used IPhone 3G (son Cameron gave me his old phone when he purchased a new phone). With enough sun, the pictures worked out well, although my thumb got in the way – live and learn

A leader leads, so the ambulatory Director starts the event

Awaiting the results...

The walk was held at the West Haven shore walk along Long Island Sound. The weather cooperated as it was a stunning day for a walk/roll. Besides being a fun event, shadowy effects were all over. Patti blogged about it and she and Allegra signed the waiver and walked the course too - participants and photographers had a great time...

Wordless Wednesday - To Park or not to Park

I had the disabled parking permit - he did not...see more at Tina and Ramona   

Tina's Pic Story - Textural

Tina's Pic Story is back, and we are reminded of that old saying about a picture having 1000 words. Naturally, we are not looking for quantity but instead looking to Tina's weekly theme for our inspiration - which this week is Texture.

For me, I am looking to the leafless shrubs and dormant or dead vegetation in winter's snow. On top, our forsythia has no leaves in the the cold season - we are used to seeing this full of leaves and trimmed. Now minus the foliage it looks wild as the snow weighs it down. The branches and dead leaves add a unique texture...

On top, our forsythia has no leaves in the the cold season - we are used to seeing this full of leaves and trimmed. Now minus the foliage it looks wild as the snow weighs it down. The branches and dead leaves add a unique texture...

Below, the modern wall is made of concrete blocks that are not smooth, the dead weeds above the wall from the previous summer are golden under the March sun. I hope winter stays away for a few months...

Ruby Tuesday 2 - Side order

The return of Ruby Tuesday 2 takes me back a coupe of weeks to a tomato laden panini.

We brought Cameron bak for his final semester at the U-of-Hartford with (1) Grand Caravan and (1) Neon full of collegiate living items and a total of (4) persons to transport said goods to West Hartford four days before the freshmen arrived - and confusion was avoided as we survived two freshman move-in Saturdays over the years...

We all stopped at Tapas restaurant in Bloomfield for lunch after the unloading. One of the specials was this chicken bruschetta panini surrounded by a lightly toasted ciabatta roll; another ruby was that spicy ketchup to dip the best waffle fries ever into. Happily free refills on the iced tea helped with the heat...Tasty red rubies are a Tuesday special not on the menu - and thoroughly enjoyed

Whimsical Windows - Red doors and more

Toby is the host of the fun Whimsical Windows/Delirious Doors where portals of interest are showcased. Today, I offer for the meme the Immanuel St James Episcopal Church in nearby Derby. This stately building was built in 1843 in a gothic style, Like many small New England town incorporated a town green that was flanked by many houses of worship. This is a beautiful structure, and although I have not been inside - imagine the stained glass windows under a long southerly winter sun. The views are from around the town green – we always ought to tote a camera around lest we miss the beauty that is often not far from home…

Shadow Shot Sunday - Streetlight Shadows

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 returns and I am going back merely to 3 July and the fireworks show and gathering in downtown Derby. A warm and humid evening prior to the colorfully exploding sky, and these two shots are a bit grainy (cheap camera) in the evening lighting but shadows emerge. Bella's makes a fine and tasty thin crust pizza and of course, we truly enjoy our favorite small and local art Gallery@37. I don't know if anything was sold, but keeping the doors open and allowing potential patrons to enjoy the pieces made by local artists. Happily, it was a fine day for shadows!

Wordless Wednesday - Vacation is over

So we remind ourselves of vacations past where kids enjoyed the hotel pool and the biggest decision of the day was which restaurant we were going for dinner...see Tina and Joy