Whimsical Windows - Pushed Aside

City Hall and Main Street, Ansonia CT...11 Feb 2013 after the plows pushed the massive snow aside

Toby kindly hosts the architectural meme Whimsical Windows/Delirious Doors, and we look for portals and such in any weather. And that includes winter too...we have had a lot of snow this season, not large amounts in each storm, but in a large number of storms. However, last year, we had the biggest single blizzard I can remember in many a decade -  40in (102cm) on 9-10 Feb 2013. Every city and town in Connecticut had to hire many construction company vendors to assist on clearing the roads. Here, Patti captured the scene on along Main Street in downtown Ansonia after the initial plowing. The architecture sits alone as nary a pedestrian or vehicle are found. Spring is close, or at lest we hope :) 

Shadow Shot Sunday - Snowy season shadows

Obviously, we are full of snow this winter season - nothing huge at one time, but an endless (or it feels like that :) series of 6-9 inch (15-22 cm) snowfalls since December. With a hint of freezing rain to add an icy crust that inhibits melting...

Yet, for Shadow Shot Sunday 2, I revert to snowy scenes from 9-10 February 2013 and that 40in/ 102cm snowfall, a record in our small city of Ansonia. With that much depth, and with the snowy canvas of snow, shadows fall nicely upon the land. And thus make for a fun post. With the hope that melting and warmth arrive concurrently and Spring begins!

Ruby Tuesday Too - Sterling Opera House, Stately and Stout

Patti captures the Sterling Opera House on a cold day...

Ruby Tuesday Too returns, and on a winter's day, Patti and I took a ride around our neighboring town of Derby, CT. A landmark that towers over the downtown thoroughfare of Elizabeth Street is the oft posted and photographed (by us) and impressive Sterling Opera House, opened in 1889. It is a stately edifice, artistic in its restored exterior. Alas, interior restoration is still needed and its costs are so great that many angels are needed to complete the insides, which will require lots of $. Angels wanted!

Whimsical Windows - Surveying the past

Toby graciously hosts the architectural meme Whimsical Windows/Delirious Doors, and we look for interesting portals and such. My subject today is a restored old building, Horbal Land Surveyors in our neighboring town to the north, Seymour. I always liked this, being restored to what I imagine it looked like 100+ years ago - simple, brick and functional without any adornment.

With the modern accoutrements that surround it today, such as trash containers and fire hydrants, I have attempted to "age" the building visually. I was working with Pinta software that allows me to alter the scenes a bit. Beyond the original, I used sepia, ink and pencil motifs - all merely accenting the fine lines of an honest building that has not succumbed to urban renewal...

Shadow Shot Sunday - More of the same

Friday morning...

Pretty (if invonvenient)

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 is back after yet another snowfall in southern Connecticut. Not so much in depth, the Thursday snow was at 7 in / 18 cm, but with a hint of sleet that froze on top to make a crunchy top that really taxed our small electric Toro snowthrower. Happily the kid from across the street plowed the icy snow pile by the street to make the work of our designated snow clearer (Allegra) a bit easier...

Yet, sun, snow and shadows do offer an artistic impression for SSS2, as this has been an oft posted theme for (see below). Snow in any amount can be an inconvenience - but with a bit of style...

1963 (here)

1978 (here)