A dazzling dahlia

On a recent day off from work, I was at my
"backyard" botanic garden at 8 a.m.—and had the place
 almost entirely to myself (which was my plan).
Took my time playing around with the hard-to-focus
(but lots of fun) macro lens that fits on my iPhone.
This dahlia was so ready for its close-up!

[Am linking back to Monday Mellow Yellows,
Mandarin Orange Monday, Macro Monday.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

Someone got a little jump on the season—
this is the first pumpkin I spotted in
the neighborhood (a week ago).  Nice carving
job; unfortunately, this jack-o'-lantern
might look a little sad by Halloween.

[To see more Sunday shadows, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

On Monday, I showed you another bride
(at her wedding).  That same day I also saw 
this bevy of beautiful brides.  A few of them seem 
to be looking for something—a groom perhaps?

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

WTC Tryptich

I was downtown a few days ago and caught
these images of the new World Trade Center building
reflected in the façade of the Milennium Hotel and
twice in one of the other new buildings that will make
up the WTC complex—4 WTC, which is scheduled to
open next month.  (Two dancers from the NYC Ballet
did a short but very special performance on its roof at
sunrise on 9/12.  Check it out here; it's absolutely beautiful.)

[To see more Weekend Reflections, visit James's meme.
And Orange You Glad It's Friday? I am.]

Thursday Challenge—"beverages"

Here in the States, a group of college students
would probably order a pitcher of beer
(or at this time of day—noon-ish—maybe a
round of Cokes).  But in Venice, they go for what
seems to be the official drink of the city (and
my fave), uno spritz: Prosecco, seltzer, and Aperol
(with a couple of big green olives for sustenance).

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

ABC Wednesday—K is for "kite"

I didn't get to spend nearly enough time
on the beach as I wanted to this summer, but
this takes me right there.  BTW, in my
entire life I don't think I've ever managed
to get a kite up and actually keep it aloft—so
bravo to the kids who got this one to fly so high.

[To see more ABC shots, go here.]

Hard to miss

This looks like a hibiscus, which I always
thought of as a tropical flower—but I found this
big, bright red bloom right here in Brooklyn.

[Linking back to Ruby Tuesday and
Nature Footstep/Blo-Ma.]

They Do

I was walking in Brooklyn Bridge Park last weekend 
and came upon the very public wedding of 
Sarah and Paul.  It was a lovely ceremony and even 
though they're complete strangers, I must admit I 
did get a little bit verklempt when they said their "I dos."

[To see more Monday Mellow Yellows, go here.]

At the Met

One of the perks of membership at the
Metropolitan Museum is that you get to preview new
exhibits for a few days before they're opened to
everyone else and get so crowded. This is
part of Interwoven Globe, which shows colorful examples
of textiles traded between East and West after new
sea routes were discovered in the 15th century.
Most of the items (like this satin chasuble made in
China for the Spanish market) are incredibly well preserved.

[It's Shadow Shot Sunday. To see more, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

I had an appointment way over on the West Side
one evening this past week. When I went in, the sky was
bright but when I emerged an hour later, things
had changed dramatically.  This is the back view of
the Time-Warner Center at Columbus Circle.

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

Letting Off Steam

The steampipes under Manhattan are like a
volcano about to erupt—as they have been
known to do from time to time.
The last time it happened (in 2007) was right
outside my new office. Scary! (But not for me;
fortunately, I started that job a couple of days later.)

[Orange You Glad It's Friday? If so, go here.
For more Weekend Reflections, visit James's meme.]

Thursday Challenge—"wet"

These wet women are my intrepid daughters,
who took the challenge and went for a
swim (more like a quick dip) in Antarctica.
Granted, it was summer—but still . . .
(and yes, those are penguins back there).

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

ABC Wednesday—J is for "jewelry"

You start with just one bracelet and a
watch, and the next thing you know . . .
(I'm glad to report that most of these were
gifts—and I found a couple of them.)

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

skyline

If you want the best view of Manhattan,
just come to Brooklyn!  Especially now that
you can enjoy that view from Brooklyn Bridge Park,
a waterside green space along the East River.
It's still a work in progress, but what's been completed
is wonderful (and the Brooklyn Philharmonic
is playing there this Saturday).

[To see more of Our World, go here.]

A bunch of bittersweet

Bought these at the greenmarket this weekend.
The cheery colors brighten up my room and 
make me very happy.  Hope they last all week!

[Linking back to Monday Mellow Yellows,
Mandarin Orange Monday, and Macro Monday.]

Quinceañera

This girl is celebrating her 15th birthday. But maybe
I should say this woman . . . because that's the
point of the Quinceañera celebration:  At 15, she
goes from being a girl to being a woman.  She was
not the only one marking this milestone yesterday
with a photo op in Brooklyn Bridge Park.

[To see more Sunday Shadows, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

I know I often feature this bridge
(just last week, in fact), but it's not so
often that I give it a well-deserved closeup.

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

Skywatch Friday

I took this shot on a beach too (though not
the same one as on yesterday's post). This looks
kind of peaceful, doesn't it? Just a pretty sky at
that magical time called "the blue hour."  What
you can't see is that there was a big party going
on: food, drink, live music, dancing.
Not at all peaceful, but fun!

To see more Skywatch pics, go here.]

Thursday Challenge—"blue"

Last weekend I went for a walk on a rocky deserted 
beach, where I was hoping to find some
pretty blue sea glass.  Didn't find any of that, but
I did come across this bright blue chair
(and a perfect sky-blue sky).

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

ABC Wednesday—I is for "illuminate"

Took this shot a few years ago, and I
believe it was the last time the city did
this to commemorate 9/11.  I was on 
lower Broadway, about a mile or so north
of the original Trade Towers site.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

I'd like a big bunch, please

When I go to our local Saturday greenmarket,
my first stop is the flower sellers, just to see
what they have that week.  Last time I was pleased
to find cosmos and salvia and sunflowers—and
lots of dahlias, including these lush red ones.

It's Ruby Tuesday; to see more, go here.
And for more flower macros, visit NF/Blo-Ma.] 

Dragons Can Fly

Took this shot at the same pond where I
took yesterday's lotus flower. I'd like to thank
this delicate dragonfly for posing on
the water-lily petal long enough for me to
take his picture—from 5 or 6 feet away.

[Linking back to Macro Monday and
Nature Footstep/Catching the Light.]

The Jewel in the Lotus

I think this beautiful bloom speaks for itself.


[To see more Sunday shadows, go here.
And to see more of Today's Flowers, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

Yesterday, I whined a bit about my currently
limited horizons (commute, work, home—or as
they say in Paris: metro, boulot, dodo).
But I had to admit that at least the view from
my office isn't too shabby—and this part of my 
commute comes with a pretty good view too.

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

An "okay" view

I'd love to widen my horizons and
show you some spectacular skies
over someplace other than Manhattan
or Brooklyn. But such is my life at the moment,
and I guess I should be grateful to have
this view from the office (could be worse for sure!).

[To see more Skywatch, go here.]

Good Things From the Garden

I discovered a new meme, Share the Joy, hosted
by Meri in Washington (state).  I love the
premise and wanted to play along.  So here's
what gave me joy this week—and this is a
very small part of the overwhelming
bounty to be found at my local greenmarket.

[To share your own joy, visit Meri's meme.]

ABC Wednesday—H is for "hookah"

Passed this restaurant on LaGuardia Place, in the
Village, recently.  I'm seeing more and more
places where you can top off your meal
with a few drags on a water pipe.
Is this a trend where you live as well?

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Second Act

The roses are giving us an end-of-summer encore.
This unusual variety is called 'Stars 'n' Stripes'.

[To see more Ruby Tuesday posts, go here.]

Dancing Feet

A friend of mine was involved in a charity dance
performance, and at the end they rolled out a huge
canvas across the stage, put some blobs of paint on it,
and invited all the performers to dance across it.
Then they somehow "miniaturized" it and auctioned it
to raise some more money.  I think it was a brilliant idea.

And here's what the entire canvas
looks like (hanging in my friend's house).

[To see more Monday Mellow Yellows, visit Gemma's meme.
To see more Macro Monday, go here. And you can
find Mandarin Orange Monday at LoriK's meme.]

See me!!!

Now here's a flower that is not afraid to be noticed.
I know some people who are like this, but
I'm not one of them—how about you?

[To see more of Today's Flowers, go here.
For more Sunday shadows, go here.  And it's the 
1st of the month, so I've posted to my Paris blog.]