Thursday Challenge—"tiny"

One of a small collection gathered from
here and there around the world: a
cut-glass salt cellar and a tiny silver spoon.

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

ABC Wednesday—L is for "lazy"

Last week I promised cute and cuddly.
This 2-year-old two-toed sloth
clung to her human companion (again, 
one of the nice folks from Sea World who show 
up at the office from time to time with 
critters and make our day).

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Dancing boy

Came across this photo recently.  It was taken by
my brother David when he and I were living in Morocco
briefly in the early '70s.  Our fave café in Tangier
was on the rooftop of a building deep in the
heart of the medina:  Abducadah's Dancing Boy Café.
Not sure any more if that was the real name or
just what we called it because of this kid (who, if he's still
around, will be about 55 years old now).
Back then, I wavered between "cute" and "creepy."

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

past their prime

Left over from a dinner party more than a week ago:
If I touch them, they'll disintegrate, but I can't
bring myself to toss them just yet.  Anyone else strangely
partial to dead flowers?

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

Happy Easter

 . . . to all of you who are celebrating today.
None of my eggs are chocolate, 
but I hope the Easter bunny brought
you all the sweets you wanted.

[Linking back to Shadow Shot Sunday.]

The Weekend in Black and White

Who knows what's missing from this skyline?
Hint: This photo was taken in 2011 from
a boat on the Hudson River, and there are
actually two correct answers.

[To see more b/w shots, visit Dragonstar's meme.]

Weekend Reflections

Buon compleanno, Venezia!
Today is La Serenissima's
1,595th birthday.  Wish I could be
there to help her celebrate.

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

Thursday Challenge—"long"

And that's the understatement of the year.
I just could not resist taking a picture 
of this man with the most amazingly long 
dreads I had ever seen!

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

ABC Wednesday—K is for "kookaburra"

The nice folks from Sea World come to see us from 
time to time.  Three years ago, they brought a 
couple of penguins to the office, and they 
showed up recently with some more cute critters, 
including this (very loud) kookaburra.

(Come by next week to see an especially 
cute and cuddly visitor.)

[For more ABC posts, go here.]

The pope's protectors

I'm not sure what makes a young man want
to join the Swiss Guards—but I doubt it's for the 
privilege of wearing that hat.  Actually, it's a
very prestigious (and hard-to-get) posting.  Since
Pope Francis fired a commandant two
years ago for being too tough on the guards, it
might be a less rigorous gig.  (Apparently, the pope
came out of his apartment one morning and
found that the guard there had been on duty all night.
He brought the young soldier a chair and ordered
him to sit, then went back in, made him a 
sandwich and brought it out to him.)

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

Proud as a . . .

I did my best imitation of a peahen, hoping
he'd fan those feathers for me, but
he wasn't fooled (and I guess that's not
necessarily a bad thing). 

[To see more Blue Monday posts, go here.]

inSPIREd Sunday

This is the bell tower of Santi Apostoli, in Venice.
It was built in 1450, and in 1659, the belfry
was blown off during a bad storm.  According to
some, during the reconstruction an old
priest went up to check things out, slipped and
fell, and his robes got caught on the arms of
the clock, and there he stayed until he was rescued.
(I like an urban legend with a happy ending—don't you?)

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

morning rush hour

. . . at Grand Central Terminal. 
Scurry, scurry—all in a hurry.  I seemed to
be the only one who was admiring
this wonderful light.

[Linking back to The Weekend in Black and White
and to Shadow Shot Sunday.]

Nice view

It's not my view, but I do get to enjoy
it from time to time—as long as
I'm willing to hang out this 10th-story
window, that is.

[Linking back to Weekend Reflections
and to Skywatch Friday.]

Thursday Challenge—"empty"

Not much going on in the lily ponds
on a cold wet winter day.

(But this is what they'll look 
like in 5 or 6 months.)
Well worth the wait, I believe.

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

ABC Wednesday—J is for "juvenile"

Well, I was jeune then—but not so much now.
In fact, I'm thinking it's a bit of a joke the
age I've arrived at today.  Oh well, I may not be
young, but I don't feel that old either,
and I'm doing my best to keep my joie de vivre.
(BTW, who else remembers the good old
days, when you played all summer in the sun sans 
SPF, protected from crisping by nothing 
but the ozone layer?)

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Bird on the Wing

[Linking back to Our World Tuesday
and Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday).]

Blue Monday

As I post this photo of a Victoria
crowned pigeon, I'm thinking of Sally,
who began the Blue Monday meme and has,
sadly for us, gone on to her blue heaven.

[The meme is being carried on by Sally's
friend Jeanne at Backyard Neighbor.
To see more, go here.]

lady slipper

This orchid traps insects in its pouch,
but not for food.  The escape route takes
the prisoner past the staminode,
where it deposits pollen.  A bit convoluted, but
Mother Nature knows best, I guess.

[Linking back to Today's Flowers
at An English Girl Rambles
and to Macro Monday.]

church music

I stood for a long time watching a talented
organist at St. Patrick's Cathedral
one afternoon a couple of years ago.  This was
before they did their massive renovation;
unfortunately, I don't think I'd be able to see him now.

[Linking back to The Weekend in Black and White
and to inSPIREd Sunday.]

Skywatch Friday

A glorious southwest Virginia sky—in honor 
of my mother, who was born and 
raised there and whose 96th birthday is today.

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

Thursday Challenge—"bright"

(Almost) all the houses on Burano are
super-bright.  The yellow one is a
bit much for me, but I'm kind of intrigued by
the very narrow turquoise place next to it.

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

ABC Wednesday—I is for "inquisitive"

More monkeys:  I watched this baby baboon and
his mama for a long time, and this was
probably the only time he wasn't in motion.  But
Mom had a way of keeping him in check.

She had a firm grip on his tail the entire time!

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

at the neighborhood zoo

Turns out my membership to the Bronx Zoo
also gets me into the cute little zoo
in Prospect Park that's only a 10-minute
walk from my house.  I checked it out on Sunday
and found (among other interesting things)
these curious little redheads: golden lion tamarins.

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

Monday Mural

Welcome to the wilds of . . . Brooklyn.
This is one of a series of jungle
murals that I found on Flatbush Avenue.

[To see more, visit Monday Mural
at Oakland Daily Photo.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

I was pruning my office plants this week
and discovered that my desk lamp
creates some cool shadows.  Naturally, the
first thing I thought of was this meme.

[To see more Sunday shadows, go here.]

each light a prayer

. . . a good thought, an intention, a pledge,  
a memorial, a thanksgiving, or 
whatever it may be.  These were left in the church 
of Santa Maria in Trastevere, in Rome.

[Linking back to The Weekend in Black and White
and to inSPIREd Sunday.]

Weekend Reflections

Had a celebratory dinner recently at NoMad.
The ambience was hip, the food was
delicious, and the main room has a glass ceiling.
So, when someone told me that we missed running into 
Kanye, Kim, and North there by one day, was
I disappointed or relieved?  What do you think?

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

Thursday Challenge—"clothes"

At the Printemps department store they
created this inventive display
to showcase Kenzo's colorful clothing.
No less than I'd expect.  It is Paris, after all.

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

ABC Wednesday—H is for "hot peppers"

These were on display on a sunny early-winter
morning at my local greenmarket.
They're not really part of my recipe repertoire,
but they sure are pretty, aren't they?

[To see more ABC posts, go here.] 

blooming in winter

It's not a trick—although the temps here on
Sunday when I visited the garden were
near 60°F (16°C).  This bud was blooming in one
of the indoor climate-controlled zones.

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