The Last Day of the Year

I'm ringing in the new year in Virginia (as always),
and here's something I've shown you before
that I found at a great farmers' market down here.
Here's hoping you all have a sweet celebration!

[To see more Mellow Yellow posts, go here.
To see more Monday macros, visit Lisa's Chaos.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

This is Rodeo Bar, where the crowd is young,
the food is Tex-Mex, the beer is cold, and
sometimes they have really good live music
( the band my brother plays in, The Lone Sharks,
performs here from time to time, which is pretty
much the only reason this place is on my radar).

[To see more Sunday shadows, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

I'm enjoying a bucolic few days in
the Virginia countryside, with lovely
mountain views.  But if you were to ask
me to show you my favorite view—
well, here it is: the lower Manhattan
skyline seen from across the 
East River in Brooklyn Heights. 

[To see more monochromes, visit Dragonstar's meme.] 

Cold Moon

Today is the December full moon,
called the full cold moon (and sometimes
 the full long nights moon). Did you know
that each full moon has a name?
I learned about it from the Farmers Almanac.

[Today is Skywatch Friday. To see more, go here.]

New York at Night 21

Seems as though the entire city is trimmed in
lights at this time of year. Lots of visitors enjoying
them—as I walked this block, I heard French,
German, Italian, and Japanese (but no English).

ABC Wednesday—X is for Bo"X"ing Day

{And if I'm cheating just a bit, please
keep in mind that this is my 8th "X" post.}

One explanation for why this holiday is called
Boxing Day is that servants, who had to
work on Christmas, were allowed the next
day off and their employer would give them
a box with a gift in it before they set off
to celebrate with their family.
Happy Boxing Day to my blogpals in the UK,
Canada, Australia, and New Zealand!

[To see more ABC posts, go  here.]

Happy Holidays . . .

. . . to all of you, wherever you are,
from me here in New York City.
(Hope you enjoy this colorful view
looking south down Park Avenue.)

[Today is also Ruby Tuesday.  To see more
posts with a lot—or just a bit—of red, go here.]

'Twas the night before Christmas . . .

Popsicle sticks, assorted buttons, a
trusty glue gun—and voila!
I like the homemade ornaments
the best.  How about you?

[To see more Mellow Yellow Monday posts, go here.
To see more Macro Monday pics, visit Lisa's Chaos.]

Sunday Bridges

Took this shot at dusk from the kitchen
window of my friend's apartment. Nice view, eh?
That's the Triborough (officially the Robert F. Kennedy)
Bridge in the foreground and behind it a railroad bridge
with a very cool name: the Hell's Gate Bridge.

Haven't been here in a while, but I wanted to wish
Louis (and everyone) a very Happy Holiday!

[To see more bridges, go chez Louis la Vache.] 

The Weekend in Black and White

I'm dreaming of a white Christmas,
but it's not in the forecast—which
is probably just as well. After all, I want
my family to be able to get to my house!

[To see more monochromes, visit Dragonstar's meme.]

Waaay Up North

I chose this photo (taken by my daughter Katie)
for today for a few reasons:  It's up above the Arctic
Circle and that makes me think "cold" and that
reminds me that today is the first day of winter;
it's barely 20 degrees from the North Pole
 and that makes me think of Santa, who'll
be here soon; and in one week Katie and her
sister Lila will be headed in the polar opposite
(so to speak) direction on their way to Antarctica!

[To see more Skywatch Friday pics, go here.]

Let there be . . .

. . . "light."  That's this week's Thursday Photo Challenge.

And here's a great big ball of it—in a photo
I've been waiting almost six months to use.

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—W is for "whiskers"

When I was sailing around the Galapagos this past
October, I came out on deck one early morning
and encountered this endearing visitor.

The 14 passengers were thrilled to welcome 
this sea lion aboard (she didn't stay too long, 
though, as this was the spot where we 
boarded the pangas for our shore excursions).

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Tower of Flowers

And this isn't even the only 16-tiered poinsettia 
tree  in the lobby of this midtown skyscraper.  
I just love the city all decked out for the holidays!

[It's Ruby Tuesday. To see more, go here.]

'Tis the season . . .

. . . to put up the tree and fight with those
strings of lights again (if they still work
since you put them away last year, that is).
I finally got a good fake that has the lights already 
installed. Now these old lights live under a glass 
globe year-round and they're all tangled up on purpose!

[To see more Mellow Yellow Monday posts, go here.
To see more Macro Monday pics, visit Lisa's Chaos.]
  

Laundry Day

What's more sleep-inducing than slipping
between crisp cotton sheets that have been
freshly laundered and dried in clear mountain air?
(Well, the roaring fire and the bottle of wine
probably didn't hurt either.)  This is Hacienda Cusin,
in San Pablo del Lago, Ecuador (alt. 8,500 feet).

[Today is also Shadow Shot Sunday.
To see more shadows, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

When the holidays roll around, my cousin Kay
makes sure all the silver is ready for festive dinner 
parties. There are tall, elegant candelabra, 
but I like these little candlelights—which were
waiting to be polished and set around the table. 

[To see more monochromes, visit Dragonstar's meme.]

New York at Night 20

A gray night—but I loved the way it
set off the midtown skyline.

[It's Skywatch Friday. To see more, go here.]

Thursday Challenge—"good"

There are so many good things, it's
hard to choose just one—but for sheer
ooey-gooey sweet/salty deliciousness, I'd
have to put these macarons right up there.
They're caramel aux fleur de sel, the best,
from the new NYC shop of Ladurée, also the best.

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—V is for "vines"

Not sure what the main vine is—wisteria, maybe?
But I'm impressed with the bougainvillea
blooming in October.  This garden is in the Andes, 
where it was warm during the day but the temp 
dropped down to near freezing at night.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

"Pepsi-Cola hits the spot . . . "

(Anyone remember that little jingle? And the alternate lyrics?)
This colorful, 120-foot-long sign has been here
in front of a 24-story apartment building in
Long Island City  (in Queens) since 2009. Because
it faces the East River, it's the folks on the East Side
of Manhattan who actually get to enjoy it. 

From 1936 to 1999 it sat atop
the Pepsico plant in Hunter's
Point (also facing Manhattan).

[Today is Ruby Tuesday. To see more, go here.]

An Apple a Day

Pretty much what you'll find at the greenmarket 
right now are root vegetables—and apples.  These are
Yellow Delicious (even if they're mostly green).

[To see more Mellow Yellow, go here.
To see more macros, visit Lisa's Chaos.]

Alas, poor Yorick!

I found this long-gone bird (a pelican, I
presume) on the island of Bartolomé, in
the Galapagos.  The island is uninhabited and
we were the only humans there at that time.
I learned later (when I had to step around the
decomposing carcass of a marine iguana) that in
these protected islands things are left as they
would be if we humans weren't here at all.

[Today is Shadow Shot Sunday. To see more shadows, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

I took this shot a while ago, and there's since been
something added to this Lower Manhattan
skyline—you can just see the cranes in place as
construction was starting.  Do you know what it is?

[To see more monochromes, visit Dragonstar's meme.]

Skywatch Friday

At first glance you might think that this
is all about the sun on the clouds at the top
of the photo.  But when I took this shot, I
was actually focusing on that small band of
light between the sea and the clouds.

[To see more Skywatch shots, go here.]

Thursday Challenge—"signs"

I had a hard time choosing a shot for this
challenge.  I pondered big Times Square signs,
friendly Ecuadorian signs in Spanish and English,
traffic signs, and Paris Metro signs.  In the end, I chose
this one—a little reminder that when you get back to this
dock after your day on the fishing boat and you use the
dockside tables to clean your catch, you should put
your fish guts where they belong!  My dad taught me
this lesson (and how to clean a fish) when I was 8 years old.

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—U is for "underwater"

When we snorkeled in the Galapagos in October,
we got to commune with sea lions and sharks (!)
and giant sea turtles—which I touched, flaunting 
the rules.  Sorry. (Actually, not at all.) Have to 
thank my fellow traveler Chris, and his cool GoPro 
camera with the underwater case, for this shot.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Ruby Tuesday

Where I live it's against the rules to sit out
on your fire escape—kind of a shame, because for
most of us, that's the only "balcony" we have.

[To see more Ruby Tuesday, go here.]

Mellow Yellow Monday

This one is compliments of my daughter Katie.
Love the way this kid is oblivious to the
scene behind him: That's Lago San Pablo, at the
foot of the Imbabura volcano. (Or maybe it's
not that hard for a 14-year-old to ignore a 
volcano that hasn't erupted in 14,000 years!)

[To see more Mellow Yellow posts, go here.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

These kids (on a Friday night in the small town
of Mindo, in Ecuador) are awfully young to be looking
so bored, but at least they don't all have some
kind of hand-held device in their little paws—
a very good thing, if you ask me.

[To see more Sunday shadows, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

I can't go into a church without lighting
a candle—or taking a picture of them.
These represent the prayers, wishes, thanks
of visitors to Basilica San Marco, In Venice.

[To see more monochromes, visit Dragonstar's meme.
I've also posted to my monthly Paris blog, here.]