Monday, February 28, 2011

Snow Angels




Don't tell me that winter is almost over. I know what the groundhog said. Early spring. Blah, blah, blah. Personally the longer winter holds on the longer it is until we see those God-forsaken 90 degree days over and over and over. 'Cause let me tell you what, I'd take two foot of snow and mid-20's for thirty more days a year if I didn't have to suffer through twenty days of ninety plus every summer.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Shorebirds


Just some beach pictures to get you through another day of winter. These sanderlings and yellowlegs were picking sand crabs on Assateague Island at sunrise last August.

Friday, February 25, 2011

Lackland AFB, Texas, FD 1983



Back again to the old pictures. These were taken on the same day as the San Antonio pictures. These are on Lackland Air Force Base and were taken on Town Pass Day near the end of basic training. The station must be on of the substations for the Base Fire Department. And the Powerwagon was Rescue 7. I can kind of make out the street sign as George Street? When I look at the military FD websites I found a substation but it wasn't this one. My guess is that this building probably no longer exists.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Glenwood Canyon

Someday this will be the view from all of my windows. And that's not just because the Glenwood Canyon Brewpub is a half a block behind me. I'm not picky though, it doesn't have to be these rocks and trees or that hot spring specifically. But these mountains in general. At least that will be my dream. This is, for those of you from elsewhere, Glenwood Canyon looking east from Glenwood Springs, Colorado, taken late last October between the time we ate lunch at the brewpub and a relaxing soak at the Hot Springs.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Cafe Habana, NYC (PG 164)



Painted Gentleman this week is from NYC. The Cafe Habana sits at 17 Prince Street at Elizabeth Street in Nolita (North of Little Italy). Not sure it was open or not but after checking out the website and the menu it looks like a place you could eat something good. I picked up a lot of PG's while in the City so expect to see a slice of the Big Apple for a few weeks.
Post Number 14 Hundred

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

High and Dry



So, OK then, why is there a old paddle boat sitting out in the middle of Pennsylvania? No river nearby. No lake. No stream, even. There is a place called the Riverboat Saloon there. Their website says that the boat was there before they bought the bar, that's why they named it the Riverboat Saloon. It looks like it may have had some water around it at one time. Roadside America's website even features it but still there is no reason that it is there. But it is.
I guess I should tell you where this is, huh? Shartlesville, Pa. Just off of Interstate 78 at exit 23.

Monday, February 21, 2011

Harrisburg's Icy Skyline

A frozen look at Pennsylvania's capital city. This was taken last month. With the warmer weather that snuck into February last week all the ice and most of the snow is now gone. The white and blue building is the City Island Bathhouse.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Hershey Bears Hockey



Ever hear the old saying, "I went to a fight and a hockey game broke out"? Well, last night was, what seems to be, my annual trip to Hershey for a hockey game. The Bears were playing the Bridgeport Sound Tigers and were beating them very well. Although the score wouldn't tell you that. After the third or fourth Hershey goal these two stood side by side waiting for the restart and the Sound Tiger kept picking a fight. Well the fight was brought to him. This was the longest fight I've ever seen at a hockey game. Not the worst or bloodiest, but the longest. The Bear-guy pommeled him for quite a while. All in all it was a good game. Bears won 6-4, so there were a lot of goals and it didn't get boring. Below these videos show the third goal (I think) for Hershey
and the ritual afterwards.


Friday, February 18, 2011

Name That Sign




No seriously here are some of the signs and miscellany I've run onto while taking pictures of firehouses. The first one should just say "No Nothing". No Skateboarding, Rollerblading, Bicycling or Playing on Fire Company Property? And what's that other one? No Parking fire trucks at the Firehouse? What? And what the second one all about? I've heard of fire company junior member programs but Fire Department Head Start? The third one is just some cool graphics on a brush truck, I think. The final one... do you think that really works?

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Sunset Out My Back Door



Today we travel to a place far far away. How far? About 100 yards out behind my house. I've been up there before and you've seen from up there before. But that was then this is now. This is sunset from a couple of weeks ago.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Winston Building, Phila. (PG 163)



Today's Painted Gentleman comes from my short lived Cheesesteak Roadtrip and sits on Arch Street in Philadelphia. The Winston Building also was once home of The Connelly Organization, Incorporated. Offering such modern services as Duplicating, Addressing, Mailing and Copying as well as Electrical Multigraphing. Sorry I don't know who was on the 2nd floor.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Billy's Antiques and Props, NYC



Back to NYC. While crossing Houston Street, from south to north, (yes, that would be from SoHo to NoHo) along Elizabeth Street I stopped halfway when I saw this tarped hut on the corner. That's the place I saw on American Pickers. The one where they bought the sideshow tarps from the out of business amusement park for, like, 75 bucks and sold them for, like, 10 thousand bucks. And then they went back and split it with the guy at the amusement park. Did you see that one. Well , Billy Leroy at Billy's Antiques and Props was the appraiser that they hooked up with and the hung the tarps on the chain link fence there. New York is the kind of place you can do that. Just walk and say hey that's the (black) from the (blank) movie/show. You know, like, that's the wall Adam Sandler took a leak on in Big Daddy.
And the Indian Larry sign? Indian Larry was a bike builder who was always on those Biker Build-Off shows. East Coast vs. West Coast, with Jesse James, back before American Choppers and OCC.
When we first got into the city I got in the wrong lane and ended up crossing the Manhattan Bridge into Brooklyn. Then driving circles around trying to get back across and ended up crossing back over on the Williamsburg Bridge. Anyways, we passed by Indian Larry's shop but I could find anywhere to park to get some pictures so we kept going.
Check out Billy on YouTube, and his website. Check out Indian Larry on YouTube, and his website.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Something Different


I know what I've said about people pictures. Don't let this change your impression of me. This is one of my many cousins' grandson at the big family Christmas party. I was just playing around with my camera and this shot presented itself. For the most part he wasn't this docile. Better lighting would have helped and a different bokah would be nice.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Gray's Papaya in the West Village

Gray's Papaya is in three different locations throughout NYC. This one sits 402 Sixth Avenue at Eighth Street. When I saw it I was reminded of the scene in the movie "Fools Rush In" with Matthew Perry and Salma Hayek. She has his mother send some hot dogs from Gray's Papaya's in NYC while he's homesick and stuck in Las Vegas. Check out the clip on YouTube. Sorry, Didn't realize you didn't speak German. It's a good thing I told you what was going on. Actually it gives it a certain foreign film feel doesn't it? maybe sometime I could do the Great NYC Hot Dog Roadtrip. Yeah, I like that idea.

Friday, February 11, 2011

FDNY Squad 18





What would a trip to the City be without some pictures of a firehouse? We left Chinatown and headed for the NYFirestore on Greenwich Avenue to pick up a t-shirt. Half a block before we got to the store I saw the tell tale red doors of a fire station. Squad 18 is located at 132 West 10th Street in the West Village neighborhood. The door has got to be one of the best in the City. According to their website the city budgets money annually to maintain the painting that was originally painted in 1976 when 18 was an engine. As we were ready to head on about our business we saw the squad coming back down the street from a call and I was able to snap some shots of the unit in front of the station.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Chinatown in Black and White



Today I pay a bit of homage to one of my daily reads; Kitty at NY Portraits. There are several NYC blogs that I check each day and my favorite and first check of the day is usually Kitty. Now while I have no intentions of trying to take pictures like her I simply took some pictures with her style. Average New Yorker going about a typical day. Street corner and sidewalk pictures and straight on images of store fronts. And mostly black and white. I say mostly because yesterday was a rare color photo from her. My picture of Vanessa's Dumpling House I think I did a good job with but my average New Yorkers pictures just don't speak like hers. Must be that " I don't like people" thing I have going. So, if you get bored at work today check out Kitty's Blog.

Wednesday, February 09, 2011

Dragons and Drums



I've been asked why I go to the Lunar New Year parade. This is my second year and I can't explain. I can't explain why I went for the first time last year and I can't explain why I went back up this year. It's like taking a trip somewhere far far away but actually it's only 3 and a half hours away. The sights of Chinatown, the smells of the open street markets and the sounds of the parade are something so much different than I have ever experienced at home or in any of my travels. The drums at the parade and constant. Boom Boom Boom Boom Boom. You can feel it vibrating your insides. The colors are so vivid. The reds and the golds. These drummers where just playing for the crowd, the parade was still most of an hour away. They all wore the gold pants, I guess the switched out carrying the dragon. Junior got some good video but it was video from a video camera not the point and shoot. Maybe I'll have to post to YouTube and attach it here. I'll have to figure that out.

Tuesday, February 08, 2011

The Sky is Falling





Confetti was the name of the game. That and those little snap cap things. The confetti comes is those tubes and when you pop them the sky fills with streamers, foil pieces and little tiny hundred dollar bills. When I got home the hood of my sweatshirt was full of those foil bits. All afternoon there was confetti falling from the sky. The sanitation department was cleaning the streets , I'm sure, before the parade had completely finished. Brooms, leaf blowers and the big street sweeper. I wonder just how long it took them?

Monday, February 07, 2011

4097 - Year of the Rabbit - 2011


Just a quick post today. Spent the day in NYC yesterday for the Lunar New Year Parade. The year 4097 is the year of the rabbit. I set up along Mott Street this year about a half block up from Canal right where the parade started. It was a lot better than last year in this area. Problem was there was three times more people than I had to put up with last year. If you're wondering, yes, it is Theme Week - Chinatown. Bear with me.

Friday, February 04, 2011

Chambersburg Icefest, 2011





I attended Icefest in Chambersburg last Saturday with the Mrs and my daughter. These ice sculptures were lining Main Street from King Street to Liberty Street, Most were maybe three feet tall. Some of them around the square were much larger. Some you could sit on for a special picture. There was even a 40 foot slide in one parking lot. The biggest problem with events like this is that other people attend. Rude people. People who step in front of you when it's obvious you're about to take a picture. Or those who think they have the decency to walk behind the sculpture when you're standing there with the camera ready. Hello. It's ice. l can still see you. Duh.