Thursday Challenge — "door"

Someday I'm going to have a door
this color—and if I'm lucky, it'll be
in Venice like this one is.


[To see more doors, visit the
Thursday Photo Challenge.]

abc wednesday — T is for "Thanksgiving"

I was so busy enjoying our recent Thanksgiving
dinner that I forgot to take any pictures—until we'd
had our fill of turkey, stuffing, sweet (and not) potatoes,
veggies, and my daughter Lila's delicious apple pie à la mode
(we only just stopped ourselves from licking our plates clean). 
                                                This has to be my fave meal of the year! How was yours?                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

Well, I did take a shot of the pie
before we devoured it.
[To see more abc wednesday, go here.]

'tis the season

. . . because nothing says Christmas
like feathers and sequins, right?

It's Ruby Tuesday—to see
more, visit Mary's meme.

New York at Night (14)

I'm sure the trees that are looking so festive now remain
wrapped in lights all year (I wouldn't want to do this
more than once, would you?).  I saw this pretty blue
display in the East Village on the night before Thanksgiving
(and the one in the banner shot across the street from my new office).


[Today is Blue Monday. To see more, go here to Sally's meme.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

I was driving around with my mom this weekend;
we passed my high school and I just had to ask her to pull 
over so I could jump out and snap a small part of this "field of honor"
that's been installed there since Veteran's Day.

[To see more Sunday shadows, go here.]

New York at Night (13)

Took this shot a couple of weeks ago—
when the Empire State Bldg. was
all lit up in red, white, and blue
in honor of Veteran's Day.

Skywatch Friday

My usual fave spot for catching Skywatch
shots is up there on the bridge.  But when
I was down below in Brooklyn Bridge Park
recently, I saw this pretty pink-and-blue sky.


[To see more Skywatch, go here.
And to see more Sunday Bridges, visit Louis la Vache.}

Thursday Challenge — "soft"

It's a Turkey Day classic—that didn't quite work out.
By the time it was cooked, most of this soft and gooey
sweet potato-and-marshmallow concoction
wound up at the bottom of the oven.
Oh well—the part we managed to salvage was de-lish!
Hope you all have a very Happy Thanksgiving.

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

abc wednesday — S is for "squirrel"

I actually took this shot this past winter, when we 
had our blizzard (or one of them).  This little guy
looks pretty healthy despite the weather, and
I hope he does as well this season.


[To see more "S" posts, go here.]

Traveling Tuesdays

Yesterday I showed you the Marco art truck.  Today we
have the "Mario" boat—a floating veggie market
moored next to the Ponte dei Pugni, in Dorsoduro, 
Venice—where I was this time last year (sigh). 


[To see more Tuesday travels, visit Sandi's meme].

Mellow Yellow Monday

This bright yellow truck, which was parked
in Soho on a recent Sunday, belongs to Marco,
 New York's most enterprising POP artist.


[To see more Mellow Yellow, go here.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

Hi, y'all!  I got up real early to
turn my short self into this tall gal.


[To see more Sunday shadows, go here.]

photo Hunt—"wet/rain"

I love Venice rain or shine.

[To see more on the theme, visit tnchick's meme.]

Skywatch Friday

I walked home across the Brooklyn Bridge
(as usual) and found the moon perfectly
framed by the cables of the bridge
(and in my favorite heure bleu).

Took this close-up (if you can use that word
when the subject of your photo is, on
average, 238,857 miles away) the next night.
[To see more Skywatch, go here.]

Thursday Challenge — "books"

Look but don't touch. Actually, most of the books
in Venice's Biblioteca Marciana are kept away from
even the gaze of the folks (like me) who just wander into
its main room after visiting the Museo Correr.  In addition
to about a million printed books, the collection includes
thousands of incunabula and manuscripts, some illuminated.


[To see more books, visit the Thursday Photo Challenge.]

abc wednesday — R is for "remedies"

Found these at a local flea market here
in Brooklyn.  Don't know if these "cures"
actually worked, but the bottles are pretty.


{To see more "R" posts for abc wednesday, go here.]

Traveling Tuesdays

Here's a photo from the time BD—before digital.
It's part of Marie Antoinette's Petite Hameau at
Versailles. Can't you just see the young queen and her
handmaidens playing at being "rustics" here?


[To see more Tuesday travels, visit Sandi's meme.]

Mellow Yellow Monday

Yesterday's big treat: brunch at Balthazar.
Almost feels like a meal in Paris—wonderful
lively bistro ambience, but here in NYC
                                              there's a nice mix of locals and hip tourists.                                                                                                                  

And the waiters are cute.
[To see more Mellow Yellow, go here.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

I love the European Sculpture Court at the Met—
and the shadows are a definite bonus.


[To see more Sunday Shadows, go here.]

Photo Hunt—"two"

You don't often see two of these, do you?
In fact, I didn't see them at all—this shot 
was taken by my daughter Lila, who chose
a good moment to glance out the office window.

Skywatch Friday

Hope you're not tiring of sunsets from the Brooklyn Bridge
(because I never will).  This one provides backlighting
for the four-masted barque Peking, the cranes 
in Red Hook (where the Queen Mary 2 docks when 
she's here), and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge.


[To see more Skywatch Friday, go here.]

Thursday Challenge — "hard"

I recently visited the Museum of Natural History,
where I found this hard thing:  It's the Star of India,
a 563-carat star sapphire that was donated to
the museum in 1901 by J. P. Morgan.  It was stolen
 in 1964 (at which time it was uninsured and "protected" by
an alarm with a dead battery!).  The thief was caught, the gem
recovered (from a locker in a Miami bus station), and
I assume they've taken better care of this treasure since then.
[To see more of this challenge, go here.]

abc wednesday —Q is for "quack"

 I know this duck "frau" well.  She and her hubby live in
the Botanic Garden—and she definitely rules the roost.


[To see more "Q" posts, visit ABC Wednesday.]

Traveling Tuesdays/New York at Night (12)

This is the garden of the place I showed you yesterday.
A little too chilly to sit outside, but the grapevine 
arbor is still very leafy.  In fact, the leaves are still 
on the trees and mostly green—even though it's 
November and we've already had snow.


[My city is a favorite destination 
for travelers from all over.
To see more travels, visit Sandi's meme.]

Mellow Yellow Monday

Istanbul?  Karachi?  Tashkent?  Nope. We're on
9th Street in the East Village.  Friends and I
were having an early meal at this place—called Cloister
(hence the stained glass)—and this guy was the only
other customer.  I guess the No Smoking rule
doesn't apply if this is what you're smoking! 


[To see more Mellow Yellow, go here.]    

Shadow Shot Sunday

I'm finding shadows and more shadows as
I walk around my new work neighborhood.


[To see more shadow shots, go here.]

Photo Hunt—"light"

I've experimented with shooting directly
into the sun before—and it usually results
in a blown-out, unusable picture.
But I kind of like this one.


[To see more "light," visit tnchick's meme.]

Skywatch/Reflections

While riding through Virginia, I caught
multiple reflections of this beautiful sky—
and decided it was worthy of two memes.

[To see more Skywatch Friday, go here;
to see more Weekend Reflections, go here.]

Thursday Challenge — "creative"

All dressed up for last year's Halloween party:
I give 1st prize for most creative costume to
Paul Scher, the Lone Sharks' sax player. 

The runners up: my daughters
Katie and Lila.  Welcome
aboard Zombie Airlines!


[To see more of this photo 
challenge, go here.]

abc wednesday —P is for "polar bear"

These are (again) compliments of my daughter Katie,
taken while she was on her latest trip up above 

the Arctic Circle.  The polar bear woke up . . .

had a nice yawn, a stretch, and a scratch . . .

and got a whiff of the ice cutter Kate was on
(or, more likely, the people on the ship).
So it lumbered over—

and when it finally realized
that this big snack was out of its reach, it
sauntered off and went back to sleep. 

[To see more "P" posts, visit ABC Wednesday.]

Ruby Tuesday

With so many people marching in our annual
Halloween parade, there are some amazing
costumes—but I just liked this guy's style.

[To see more Ruby Tuesday, go here.]

He was joined later by about 50,000 fellow revelers
(and I was just as happy to be 10 flights up!).