Monday, June 30, 2014

You lookin' at me?

My friends and I were relaxing on their deck
and were joined by a baby praying mantis.  I popped
a closeup lens on my phone, but when I tried
to take the picture the mantis jumped onto the phone!
(This picture was taken with my regular camera.)

Eventually, I coaxed it into letting me 
snap this shot with the closeup lens.
(Working with insects takes patience!)

[Linking back to Macro Monday and i heart macro.]

Sunday, June 29, 2014

In the rose garden

"We can complain because rose bushes have thorns,
or rejoice because rose bushes have thorns."
—Abraham Lincoln

I choose to rejoice (and be careful).  How about you?

[Linking back to Pink Saturday,  

Shadow Shot Sunday, and Today's Flowers.]

Saturday, June 28, 2014

The Weekend in Black and White

'Tis the season . . . for asparagus—and
lots of other yummy things for 
sale at our local greenmarket.

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

Friday, June 27, 2014

Looking up . . .

at the corner of 3rd Avenue and 53rd Street.
The building on the left is Philip Johnson's
so-called Lipstick Building.  Its most
infamous tenant was probably Bernie Madoff,
whose Ponzi scheme cost so many so much
($65 billion!) and landed him in stir until 2159.

[Linking back to Skywatch Friday and Weekend Reflections.]

Thursday, June 26, 2014

Thursday Challenge—"soft"

The Pillsbury Doughboy stopped by our
office recently—and one of my young
colleagues just couldn't resist!

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, visit Dale's meme.]

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

ABC Wednesday—X is for "X"

Well, after how many ABC rounds (I believe this
is my 8th one), it's finally come to this: X = X!
I found this one on a wall in Paris—and
it kind of reminds me of the Zentangles (but that
would be a "Z") that I draw as a form of meditation.

[To see more ABC posts that feature the letter X, go here.]

The red shoes

The owner of these cute boots is one of the
charming people who gather every Sunday in
front of the St. Medard church in Paris to play
music, sing old French songs, and dance
(and socialize a bit too).
She is one of the dancers, but also . . .

one of the singers.  If I lived in
Paris (sigh), I'd be there every week.

[Linking back to Ruby Tuesday and Our World Tuesday.]


Monday, June 23, 2014

Sunday, June 22, 2014

My favorite flowers . . .

recreated in yellow and green gold, silver, pearls,
and rose-cut diamonds by Fabergé in 1896 and given
to Czarina Alexandra, the wife of Czar Nicholas II.
Lilies of the valley were her favorite flowers
too—and this piece is considered the most important
Fabergé work in the United States.  (It was
 recently on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.)

[Linking back to Shadow Shot Sunday and Today's Flowers.]

Saturday, June 21, 2014

The Weekend in Black and White

Looking down Park Avenue
on a gray, foggy day . . .

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

Friday, June 20, 2014

My kid went to Alaska

and all I got was . . . this awesome image!

She hung halfway out of the train to capture
this,  just so her mama could use it here.
Thanks for fueling my obsessions, Katie.


[For more Skywatch pics, go here. And to see
more Weekend Reflections, visit James's meme.]

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Thursday Challenge—"trail"

Hiking in Italy's Cinque Terre:
The trail from Monterosso al Mare to Vernazza
is not the easiest one I've ever hiked and 
was usually bringing up the rear, as you can see.
(I'm more of a NYC-concrete walker than an 
"uphill rugged terrain" kind of girl).
If you want to see the reward at the top of
this trail, look at yesterday's post.

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, visit Dale's meme.]

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

ABC Wednesday—W is for "Waterlogue"

My pal Virginia at Paris Through My Lens introduced
me to this app called Waterlogue that can
make your photo look like a watercolor painting.
It's tons of fun, but (in this case anyway) . . .

to be completely honest, I
think I prefer my original photo
of the beautiful village of Vernazza,
in Italy's Cinque Terre.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

play on words

What do you suppose they do at this little
shop in Soho?  They specialize in makeup,
of course—selling it and applying it.
I really like their sign . . .

And also the cute visual hint parked out front.
[Linking back to Ruby Tuesday and
also to Our World Tuesday.]

Monday, June 16, 2014

'Black Hero'

That's the name of this tulip cultivar.
The color of the flower is true, but I did have a
bit of fun with the background in photoshop.
(It may be just as well that I don't know
how to do much with it—if I did, I'd be playing
with it all night and never get anything done!)

[Linking back to Macro Monday and Today's Flowers.]

Sunday, June 15, 2014

Happy Blogiversary . . .

to me!  Six candles for six years—
and counting.  I'm still having fun, so I hope
you are too.  And I hope that all my blog pals know just
how much I appreciate their friendly presence here.
With luck, I'll get to (actually) meet
even more of you this year!

[These candles were in the 12th-century church of
St. Germain des Prés. To see more churches
from around the world, visit inSPIREd Sunday.]

Saturday, June 14, 2014

The Weekend in Black and White

 "There is nothing more difficult for a truly 
creative painter than to paint a rose, 
because before he can do so he has first 
   to forget all the roses that were ever painted."                                                            
Henri Matisse


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

Friday, June 13, 2014

Weekend Reflections

The friends I visited recently down on the
Virginia delta built their house to take advantage
of some wonderful river views—like this
one (reflected in their floor-to-ceiling windows).

[To see more Weekend Reflections, visit James's meme.]

Thursday, June 12, 2014

Thursday Challenge—"bright colors"

I saw this colorful dishware in the window
of a shop on the rue de Seine, in Paris.
It reminded me of Fiesta ware—only a very
chic French version.  If I had an apartment in Paris,
I'd get some of these for sure (because
if I could afford the apartment, then I could
certainly afford the dishes).  If only. 

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, visit Dale's meme.]

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

ABC Wednesday—V is for "vista"


I've told people that I live at the highest natural 
point in Brooklyn, but it turns out I was lying mistaken.
This is it: Battle Hill, now in Green-Wood Cemetery
but at one time the site of a famous Revolutionary War battle.
The view of lower Manhattan from here is spectacular
(that's the new Trade Tower sticking up above everything else.) 


This is there at the site to provide a bit of perspective.
It's changed just a bit in the past 200 years, hasn't it?

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

tree peonies

Lots of flowers lately, I know, but 
c'mon—it's just that time of year (finally!).
These were in full bloom in the garden last
month, in white, yellow, pink, lavender,
but only one like this:  almost-red and white.

[I'm linking back to Ruby Tuesday,
and also to Our World Tuesday.]

Monday, June 9, 2014

The first rose

When I took this shot on Mother's Day, the 
roses were not yet blooming at the Brooklyn Botanic—
except for these primula x rosa  (also called 

primroses, from the latin for "first rose"), one of 1,200
different kinds in the Cranford Rose Garden (one of
the largest collections of rose cultivars in North America).

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

Sunday, June 8, 2014

inSPIREd Sunday


This is one of my favorite churches—
San Miniato al Monte, which has been standing
on a hill overlooking Florence since the
11th century.  Behind the altar and below the
choir loft, the archways seen here lead to the crypt,
where monks gather to pray in Gregorian chant.
The cemetery behind the basilica is beautiful too.


[To see more churches from around the world, go here.]

Saturday, June 7, 2014

The Weekend in Black and White

This is the Passage Bourg l'Abbé, in Paris's
2nd arrondissement.  These covered streets are a
godsend on a rainy or freezing cold day (as this one was).
Some passages have fallen on hard times; some have
been renovated and feature mostly high-end boutiques.
This one has excellent "bones" and lovely
old woodwork—I think it's ripe for gentrification.

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

Thursday, June 5, 2014

Red Maple

It's part of the spring color—seen
here from the viewing pavilion in the
Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden
 at the Brooklyn Botanic.

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

Thursday Challenge—"broken"

Various parts of the head, arms, and legs
of the Colossus of Constantine (c. 280–387)
can be seen in the courtyard of the Capitoline
Museum in Rome.  Those body parts were
carved of marble; the rest had a brick core and
wooden framework (possibly clad in 
gilded 
bronze) that didn't survive +/- 17 centuries.  
Still, I'm grateful to be able to see 
what's left of this once-40-foot-tall statue.

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, visit Dale's meme.]

Wednesday, June 4, 2014

ABC Wednesday—U is for "Ukraine"

I work right around the corner from the Ukrainian mission
to the U.N.  Here's what it looked like a few weeks ago. 
Now all this has been cleared away, and there's a
railing around the fence and two policemen keeping guard.
What's next, I wonder (here and there).

[To see more ABC posts that feature
the letter U, go here.]

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

a beer and a kir

. . . and some cacahuettes—and an ashtray (!)
Well, this is Paris, and I'd be willing to put up
with some secondhand smoke if I could be
walking (not long) distance from this café terrace.

[Linking back to Ruby Tuesday and Our World Tuesday.]

Monday, June 2, 2014

Past its prime, but . . .

There's a massive tulip border at the
Brooklyn Botanic Garden, with dozens of
blooms of each type.  When I took
this shot, these were the last two of this
cultivar standing.  I thought it was spectacular
even as it was beginning to fall apart.

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

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Flirtatious flower

If asked to choose the flowers I look forward
to the most each year, I'd be seriously
hard-pressed to decide.  But if I absolutely
had to say, it would probably be the tree peonies—
a clear contender for "sexiest flowers in the garden."

[Linking back to Shadow Shot Sunday
and also to Today's Flowers.]