The Visitor

I saw this yacht anchored a bit north from where Laurel Avenue meets the water, in Hempstead harbor.  Boats are not usually moored this close to shore and I realized that I didn't recognize this craft.  It is a relatively large catamaran, and it was here for about 3 days.  I did make a note to photograph it when the wind and the light were right.  I could see the name of the boat on both the sail cover on the boom, and on the bow.  It is called "Scenic Route" and I guess that's true.  You don't use a sailboat to get somewhere in a hurry!  I have no idea where she is from and after three days, the spot where it was anchored was empty.  It's called "cruising" and you sail from harbor to harbor and anchor for a night or three, and then continue on your way.

No Dunkin' Donuts - Week 29

We had everything planned for a different kind of breakfast at the beach.  We brought two beach chairs, and a small, low table, and we planned to walk down by the water and sit in the sand for our breakfast.  Guess what?  Look at our windshield.  Water drops.  Right, the sprinkles started as we were pulling into the beach parking lot.  So instead we sat in the car and enjoyed our beverages and out donuts, on a rainy day.  Anyplace is a good place to have a donut!

My Grass is Growing!

My grass is growing, my grass is growing!  Look how green and lush it is, now that the seed has germinated!  Well, I mean, it is green.  And OK, so it's not lush.  But...  You have no idea how exciting to see, after all my work, that at least tiny shoots of grass are poking up through the earth!  In the photo below, you can see a close up of the grass shoots.  Oh happy day!  My perfect lawn is on the way!

 

Oscar in the Tree

This is Oscar in a tree, getting ready to cut off a branch that was hanging low over our back room roof.  The interesting thing is that the branch is from a tree in the neighbor's yard!  The neighbors are in the process of selling their house, so I asked permission to cut the branch off and they said "yes" and they said the workmen could come over in their yard if they had to to accomplish this.  Legally I am allowed to cut any part of the branch that crosses the property line.  But practically, I wanted to remove the whole branch so that I could get more sunlight in the back yard, AND I would also get a larger view of the sky from the back yard.   I wanted that so that I could more easily view the moon in the western sky as it sets.  So everything went well and I can see the sky better!

 

Sunflowers!

One of Kathy's clients sent her a bouquet of these small sunflowers while she was in Los Angeles.  So I found the biggest thing I could use as a vase, which happened to be a glass pitcher you would serve punch in, in the summertime.  I put water in the vase, and the weight of the water seemed heavy enough so the weight of the flowers wouldn't turn the my vase over.  So they have been sitting here on the glass-topped table, brightening our back room.

 

The Apples Fell Down But The Roof Stayed Up!

My favorite pie is blueberry pie, and lately I love a variant of that which Kathy makes - blueberry apple pie!  For some reason, several days ago I asked Kathy if she could make an apple pie.  I have no idea why I asked for just apple, but I did.  So Kathy made one in a flash.  After it came out of the oven she warned me that the crust was up in the air but that the apples had settled and there would be a space under the crust.  After I cut our two pieces for the evening's dessert, I could see all the air space above the apples, and I thought it was funny and it made me smile.  And the pie made my tummy feel good!

 

Wait! Which Way?

So these are the arrows I talked about in yesterday's post.  There are two of them, pointing in different directions, and they don't seem to make any sense at all.  There was some excavation work going on in one of the main streets of Sea Cliff, off to the left of these signs, so maybe the arrows are adjusted for the days traffic flow.  Maybe these are just stored this way.  I just thought it was funny to see this.  If you turn right on the street to the right, you will be facing the park and the bench where the young woman was enjoying the sunshine.

 

A Warm Morning in the Sun

It is funny how I came to take this photograph.  We were on our way to get Dunkin' and passed some signs and I thought "I need to come back after breakfast and photograph those signs."  So I did.  After I photographed the signs (you will see that photograph soon...) I turned the corner and went down a short street and saw this scene.  Just someone sitting on a bench, enjoying the sun,  in one of the small parks in town.  By the time I realized it was a shot, I was only 20 feet from the woman, so I turned the corner, and drove all around the park, and then parked again, and made this photograph with a telephoto lens, so the woman wouldn't know she was being photographed.  I love the feeling of the sun in this photograph.

 

No Dunkin' Donuts - Week 28

Wow, 28 weeks sheltering in place.  That's 7 months!  Wow!  When this all started I didn't really think how long it would be that we would have to change how we live.  So time goes by and we shelter, for the most part, and suddenly it is 7 months later.  And a lot of months to go, by all accounts, until we have a vaccine, and, until us "nonessential people" can get inoculated.  So this is the beach today, at our coffee, tea and 2 donuts breakfast at Tappan Beach.  No lifeguard tower, but a number of green 55 gallon drums to be used as trash cans.  No sign of anyone on the beach, although a number of people were parked in their cars facing the beach.  This was the first photograph that I "saw" and I did this image and tried a number of other photographs, some from down low, level with the sand, but for some reason this was the most interesting photograph of all to me.

 

Guess What This Is...

OK, a guessing game.  Who wants to be the first one to guess what this is a photograph of?  What are these circles?  And how big are they?  Have I been flying and doing aerial photographs again?  Is this some decorative material that you can buy at Home Depot and apply to your walls, if you want to have a really modern house.  OK, a clue.  This is Monday night.  I took this picture, yesterday, Sunday.  Do you know what Sunday is in our house?  Right!  Pasta night, just like Tuesday morning is donut morning!  Any guesses yet?  OK, in our house there is a division of labor.  Kathy makes the pasta sauce most Sundays, and I cook the pasta.  Is that a clue?   OK, so I was heating a pot of water for the pasta, in a non-stick pot, which has that dark gray surface inside it.  I happened to look down into the pot to see if it was boiling yet, and I noticed hundreds of tiny bubbles starting to form on the bottom of the pot.  They were not starting to rise up in the water yet, and the water was clear because of this, so I grabbed my Nikon with the Micro-Nikkor close up lens.  You are looking through a whole pot of water, at the tiny air bubbles on the bottom of the pot!  Is this amazing, or what!  Who got this right?

 

"Wooley Bear"

I opened the garage door the other day, and there, lying behind the garage door on the cement floor, was a long black thick thing.  I recognized it as a caterpillar and didn't want anything to happen to it, so I carefully went to pick it up.  The second I touched it, it rolled up into a circle like you see here.  So I found a piece of cardboard as a background, and took it over by the garden to photograph it in the sunlight.  I haven't seen one of these in years.  The common name is "wooly bear" but it's real name is "eyed-tiger moth caterpillar."  This type of caterpillar is both harmless and beautiful to look at, which makes them a welcome visitor.  They are not harmful to us, and in fact, they are good to have around.  They go through several stages of molting and then go on to become beautiful moths - in this case the giant leopard moth.  It is particularly striking, with its three-inch white wings which look almost porcelain, with embossed black rings randomly positioned throughout. It’s bright and unique, making it stand out even among the most eye-catching insects.  What an amazing find this caterpillar was.  I put it in the herb garden, next to the driveway, and haven't seen it since.

I Gave Up!

So after two days struggling with troubleshooting the old cultivator, I decided to give up.  The place where I buy equipment said it would take 10 days for them to repair it.  So I bought a brand new, shiny orange ECHO cultivator!  It comes highly recommended, and after using it for two days, I love it.  And it starts easily, as well!  I am a happy camper!

So yesterday I worked on a patch of bare lawn and the machine dug down about 5 inches, turning up the soil.  Then I raked over all the dirt until it was level again, and then I spread two bags of what they call "topsoil" over the ground - you can see that it is black in color.

Then I raked it all together, and sprinkled starter fertilizer on top, and then I spread grass seed on top of that and raked that all together, and watered it.  And this is the result.  Then this morning I did another whole patch of bare lawn in the same way.  Whew!  I still have more to go, but it's a start.  Now I wait for the seed to germinate.  I hope it warms up a bit so the seed will germinate.

Frustration!

This is a photograph of my gas powered cultivator.  I was about to use is yesterday to start the rehabilitation of our lawn, little by little.  But it wouldn't start.  Or, rather it would start and run for 10 seconds and then quit.  It is a Sears cultivator that I have owned for probably 40 years, and has always been difficult to start.  I solved that problem by using winter starter fluid in a spray can - one squirt of the ether into the air intake, and the cultivator would start instantly.  So, yesterday I reluctantly got out all my tools, and began disassembling the cultivator.  Because it would start and run for 10 seconds, I knew that it had to be fuel, and that means the carburetor.  So I took everything apart and disassembled the carburetor.  I cleaned out the passages and checked for dirt and found nothing. So I put it all back together.  It took the better part of the afternoon, which is not what I wanted to do.  I put gas in it, gave it a sprtiz of starter fluid, and it started...  for 10 seconds, and then quit again!  That was maddening!  So this morning I started all over, and took it all apart again, and carefully looked at every part of the carburetor.  I got out my air compressor and blew out all the passages again and double checked everything.  Reassembled it, gassed it up, and, put, put, put, and it died.  So frustrating.

 

As Fall Comes On...

As fall comes on, I like sitting back and seeing what I accomplished taking care of things around here.  Like the lawn.  I worked like a dog all spring and summer, getting it to look great.  And it shows, right?  Look how rich and thick and green the lawn is!  This lawn is so good, that if a grass seed company were to drive by, and see this, my lawn would be shown on their bags of grass seed!  That's what I get for all my hard work, and it feels great!  The satisfaction for hard work.  I love what you can see with a drone, it reveals everything!

 

A Driveway Find

I found this lying at the end of our driveway after a windy period a week or so ago.  It was in really good condition, so I put it carefully in the garage with the intent of photographing it.  Finally got around to it tonight before my astronomy meeting.  I used one light behind the piece of the plant, but up high.  I also used a black background behind the subject to make sure that where were no distracting tones in the background.  The incredible detail in these ornamental grasses is really something!  They are so beautiful seen from a distance, and so fascinating when you look more closely, which is why I am posting two photographs - the second one so you can see the detail better.

 

No Dunkin' Donuts - Week 27

Together again!  Kathy is back, and I don't have to have to sit by myself to have my coffee and a donut all alone on Tuesdays!  It was a bit chilly this morning - 51 degrees when we woke up.  It was warmer at the beach but I am wearing fleece and Kathy has a sweater on.  But we are so glad that her trip to California went to so well, and she arrived home with no sign of the virus - fingers crossed.  She received a call two days ago from a "contract tracer" in New York state, wanting to know if she was quarantining at home, and if she had any symptoms.  Then the next day she received a call from someone from the county, also a contact tracer, wanting to know the same things.  And today she received another call from the same county tracer.  Maybe they want to see if they can catch her out!  But she has been good and has not left the house, except for our donut day, and there was no one at the beach!

 

Oh No! My Bike Store is Closed Forever!

I needed a part for Kathy's bicycle, so I went to my nearby bicycle store. "Road Runners"in Glen Cove.  Going back 13 years I went to a different bike shop, and was really friendly with the owner and his wife.  Then one day in December of 2015, they said they were going out of business because the landlord had increased the rent.  I hated to see them go, but then I found this store.  It has been owned by three generations - the grandfather started the business, and then passed it to his son.  When I started going there, the father and son were working there together.  The son was a great bike mechanic and worked on my racing bike a couple of times.  He was great.  I was in shock when I got out of the car and saw the closing sign!  It is a terrible loss, the closing of a neighborhood bike shop after 55 years!

 

Cobweb

I was sitting in the back room this morning when I looked out one of the small windows to the side of the fireplace and this caught my eye.  It is a huge cobweb, fortunately on the outside of the window.  I guess it must have been growing over time, because this is a lot of spider silk.  It is also an interesting construction - it is different from the spider's web that I am accustomed to.  Still it is a striking construction.  You can really only see this when the sun is shining on it for a brief moment in the morning.  Please click on it to see it in more detail.

 

Always Under Something

That Grace!  She is always doing something amusing.  Anytime she can find something to get under, she manages to get under it.  I have no idea how she managed to get under this - it is a wash tub that was sitting on the run upside down.   How does she even get a paw under this?  I cannot begin to imagine how she does it?  And why does she want to get under it?  Oh, that's easy - because she is a cat, and cats are curious!  And they are amusing as well, and certainly fun to have around.

 

Scanning History 6

This photograph is called a "Photo Illustration."  It is a completely set up and posed photograph.  I forget what the story was that needed an illustration.  I think it involved childhood poverty, but I am not sure where.  Maybe just childhood poverty in general.  So they told me they needed a photograph to illustrate the story. It wasn't a news story, because NOTHING can be set up or posed for news stories.  Anyhow, I dreamed this shot up, using an old window in the garage, that was dirty and badly needed painting.  Liz was the subject and I dressed her in an old tee-shirt that was way too large.  I used both graphite and powdered chocolate to make the tee-shirt and Liz's face "dirty."  Maybe a few drops of glycerine to put a tear on her face.  I think the old doll with no clothes on was a finishing touch.  I was really pleased with how this came out.  Of course the question is, "What kind of a father would do this to his daughter!"  Uhhh...  a creative father, maybe?

Beautiful Steel Gray Sky

I was doing my usual bike ride today, and when I was on the home stretch, riding alongside the harbor, I saw all these beautiful gray clouds in the sky.  There is something about the perfect gray color of the sky when it is like this that really touches me.  So I stopped riding and went across the street.  Unfortunately I don't bring a camera with me on the ride any longer - I worry that all the vibration will shorten the life of the camera.  But I always carry my iPhone with me, and that's what I used for this photograph.  So I took this photograph first, and while I was standing there, I noticed a woman come into the frame from the right, riding her bicycle on the sidewalk.  I snapped several photographs as she moved through the frame, and the one below is the last shot I got.  I REALLY love the shot below, because it is different and unexpected, and an unusual composition with the woman and her bike going out of the frame.  So this shot below is my favorite, as a photograph, but the shot above is much better for showing you the beauty of the clouds.  So that's why I posted both.  It is a 2 for the price of 1 day for you all!

 

Scanning History 5

I have photographed more than a hundred celebrities, writers, actors, authors ,musicians and theater people.  Out of all my subjects, I am not sure why I ended up with the negative from this shoot, of the writer Nat Hentoff, of the Village Voice.  I remember he was in a completely cluttered office down in the village - piles of papers everywhere!  Remind you of anyone?  I photographed him at his cluttered desk, and then, since he was on the top floor of his building asked if we could go outside, which he agreed to.  Once out there I realized that as a famous New Yorker, the background of all the buildings in the Village behind him made a perfect photograph, and that's why I took this shot.  It really is fun to see the beauty and richness of the black & white photographs again, isn't it?

 

No Dunkin' Donuts - Week 26

I asked Kathy last night if she wanted to wait and have our Tuesday coffee on Wednesday when she got back home.  She said that she would be on California time and it would be hard to get up "early" on her time, so she said I should have coffee alone again.  Which I did, BUT...  SOMEONE WAS SITTING AT OUR TABLE!  This is OUR table and no one else should be using it on Tuesday mornings!  Yeah, I know there is another picnic table to the right, but that's not OUR table.  OUR table is the one she is sitting at!  So I went and sat on a single bench off to the right, and enjoyed my coffee and donut.

Scanning History 4

This was a fun assignment that led to this cool photograph.  It was a whaleboat race out of Kings Point Merchant Marine Academy.  The boat in the foreground is from Kings Point.  I am not sure if the boat in the background is from there too, or if this is a race with the New York Maritime College which is nearby.  What is cool about this race is the weather conditions.  It was howling out there, as you can see from the spray flying  around the boats.  What is really cool is having the Throgs Neck Bridge in the background, and then the Whitestone Bridge is in the distance.  It was so cool to find this negative!

 

Sewing Up A Storm

Kathy has been having so much fun making quilts!  Back in May I showed you a photograph of the rainbow-colored baby quilt which she sent to Amy.  But for this trip, Kathy made another quilt to take with her for Vivian.  She has been sewing up a storm, working on it for hours and hours each day, anxious to get it done so she could bring it with her.  And it is such a beautiful quilt.  I love the pink elephants on the top and bottom of the quilt, and the multi-colored ones with their green balloons in the center!  Certainly a perfect quilt for our new baby.

Scanning History 3

This is another "weather" shot for the paper, only in the winter.  I went up to Morgan Park in Glen Cove just to look around, and maybe see if I could find a scenic photo if there were no people around, with the trees and the snow.  I remember wandering around and then suddenly seeing this scene in the distance!  I couldn't believe my eyes!  I quickly put on a 200mm lens and waited and the woman kept feeding this squirrel that climbed up her cane.  After I was sure I had the shot, I went up to the woman.  I asked her about feeding the squirrels and she said they now know to climb up her cane when she arrives!  I was blown away!  So it may have been a slow news day, and I think this may have run on page one of the paper.  What was wonderful was how this touched a number of people, who wrote to the paper.  The letter I remember, and may still have around here somewhere, was the person who said how nice that a woman could take the time to feed the squirrels in the winter, AND that Newsday took the time to tell the story!  Wow, talk about connecting with our readers!

Happiness Beyond Measure!

Kathy arrived in California last Sunday afternoon.  So it has been 5 days of seeing Vivian from across the room.  So Kathy and Liz decided to go get Covid-19 rapid tests.  They came back negative, which is wonderful.  I am thrilled that Kathy didn't get infected from the trip on the airplane.  So the net result, is that Kathy and Liz can now hold Vivian!  I cannot imagine the joy for both Liz and Kathy to finally be able to hold her!  Happiness beyond measure!

 

Scanning History 2

One of the things that newspaper photographers do, is that on some days an editor will call and say "get me a weather shot."  That meant driving around and trying to find a photograph of people doing something outside that shows the weather wether it is raining or snowing or freezing or if it is sunny.  This may be one of the best weather shots I ever did - four boys on a Sunday afternoon hopping from rock to rock down at the beach, backlit by the sun!  Brought to you from out of the past through my Nikon scanner that works once again!

 

Scanning History 1

So this is one of the black & white negatives that I thought that I had lost forever.  It was in a folder titled "important negatives."  I am so glad I found those negatives!  I can't remember what year I took this photograph, but it was in the early days at Newsday because I was shooting black & white.  There was a huge snowstorm, and so I went out to the airport and was told to fly around (with an instructor pilot) and look for photographs showing the effects of the storm.  I cannot remember any other shot I took that day, but this was a keeper!  I remember the feeling of circling the tree and watching the shadow and the line of the fence, and then at THIS moment, I clicked the shutter and too, one of my all-time favorite photographs.  I am sure glad I got that Nikon scanner working again!

No Dunkin' Donuts - Week 25

Who would have imagined, when the governor of New York said it was important to shelter in place, that we would still be doing that, after 25 weeks.  So maybe we are allowed to be out and around a bit more, we just need to wear masks and be careful.  So Kathy has flown to Los Angeles, and has gotten to see Liz and Amy and Vivian up close!  No touching and 8 feet away, but she is hanging out with everyone and really enjoying herself!  Liz has been cooking all the meals for her as well, which is a treat.  Of course today was Tuesday and I had a ritual to take part in - Dunkin' donuts at the beach, but I had to do it alone.  It wasn't as much fun...