bright spot on a gray day

We had a day of ugly, freezing rain and very high
winds last week.  As much as I appreciated
 comfort food and a glass of wine when I got home
 from work, a little floral therapy helped too.

Linking back to Monday Mellow Yellows
and to Macro Monday.]

inSPIREd Sunday

A detail from the façade of the Cattedrale di
Santa Maria del Fiore (aka the Duomo),
in Florence.  The church was begun in 1296
and consecrated in 1436—it takes a
few years to create a masterpiece like this.

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

The Weekend in Black and White

Here are Bernini's classic columns, 
which hug the square in front
of St. Peter's, in Rome. I took this
picture some years ago and I still can't
believe there are no people in it.

[To see more b/w shots, visit Dragonstar's meme.
Also linking back to Shadow Shot Sunday.]

Weekend Reflections

Reflections—and reflections of reflections—at
a chic design emporium on Fifth Avenue.

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

Thursday Challenge—"sweet" (#2)

This is called a "merveilleuse" —crème Chantilly,
bits of meringue, and salted caramel— 
and it can only be enjoyed at my favorite Paris
restaurant, Circonstances, which is the
labor of love of the very talented Franck and Karin.

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

ABC Wednesday—G is for "giraffe"

And speaking of giraffes, this tower
(yes, a group of giraffes is
called a tower!) lives peacefully
at the Bronx Zoo.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

just my size

Without going into detail, I will never wear a
pair of shoes that looks like this—but that
doesn't mean I can't enjoy them on
some other level.  This particular number
showed up in our office kitchen recently and, yes,
the whole thing was made of dark chocolate.

[Linking back to Ruby Tuesday and

 Our World Tuesday.]

where did it go?

I took this shot when I was on my way
to work one day last summer. 

When I passed by one rainy morning
recently, I noticed that things
had changed.  I wonder why.

[Linking back to Monday Mural at
Oakland Daily Photo.]

inSPIREd Sunday

This is St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery, in
Manhattan's East Village. There's been a
place of worship at this spot since
1660—the first was a family chapel built by
Peter Stuyvesant.  This church was
completed in 1799 (though it's been a bit of
a work in progress ever since).  

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

who goes there?

Seen like this, I think there's something a little 
sketchy or film noir-ish about this 
stretch of city sidewalk.  In fact, it's just the 
block before mine, with scaffolding 
and a well-placed work light.

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

Weekend Reflections

Another thing I love about the Marché aux Puces
in Paris:  Most of the vendors don't mind if 
you take photos—though it always helps to ask
nicely, or you just might be told to cease and desist.

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

Thursday Challenge—"sweet"

Perfect for a tea party: these mini sugar cubes
decorated by my cousin Beth—who
possesses imagination, patience, and a
very steady hand.

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

ABC Wednesday—F is for "frieze"

And also for the church of the Frari, in Venice,  
where this angel can be found.  Not sure
about the symbolism here, but I do wonder 
what's supposed to be in that urn.  I'd say ashes,
except that I believe that when this was created,
the Catholic Church didn't exactly condone cremation.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

the garden is closed

There are lots of wonderful community gardens
in the East Village; I passed by this one a
few days after our January blizzard; it was closed of course.  
But I'm a copy editor, so I'm surprised that I didn't
notice the real reason why until I got
this shot up on the computer. 

[Linking back to Our World Tuesday.]

his heart was in the right place*

*Artist James Goldcrown, that is—who painted
this mural back in November.  According
to his Instagram account, "this one's for Paris."
I'm putting it here, with some leftover
Valentine's Day love, for whoever needs it.

[Linking back to Monday Mellow Yellows and
to Monday Mural at Oakland Daily Photo.]

Happy Valentine's Day

I hope that whoever might be the one
to bring you flowers or candy
(or whatever your little heart desires), he or she
agrees with the sentiments expressed so
sweetly here.  I know I do.

[To see more Shadow Shot Sunday pics, go here.]

The Weekend in Black and White

I usually forgo my morning walk over the
Brooklyn Bridge when the temps
dip down to the low 20s F (with wind chills
in the teens), but I did walk this
week—and it wasn't so bad, especially
with that bright sun shining down.

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

Weekend Reflections

In honor of Valentine's Day on Sunday,
here are some silver hearts—seen
in one of the world's most romantic cities:
Paris, of course.  (These are meant to 
hold solid perfume, I believe.)

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

Thursday Challenge—"lots"

. . . of  extra-large farm-fresh eggs
for sale at the weekly organic market
held each Sunday on the
Blvd. Raspail in Paris.

There's LOTS more too.

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

ABC Wednesday—E is for "entertainer"

I took this picture of monsieur and his
portable piano when I was in Paris
in 2014.  I took it with me when I went back
in 2015, in case I ran into him again.
(I didn't, though I was able to give pics to
some other people).  La prochaine fois, peut-être.

[To see more ABC pics, go here.]

Eve's forbidden fruit?

Some claim it was a pomegranate that
got Adam and Eve kicked out of the garden.
Such a sensual fruit—I wouldn't be
surprised.  After I cut into this one, I
decided it deserved a close-up.
(And then I used it for this. Yum.)

[Linking back to Ruby Tuesday
and Macro Monday.]

Good grief!

This six-story mural by Jerkface adorns
the side of a tenement building on
12th Street in the East Village.  It's been
there since October 2014.

[Linking back to Monday Mellow Yellows and
to Monday Mural at Oakland Daily Photo.]

inSPIREd Sunday

Set against a bright blue sky, the 
campanile of the Siena Cathedral, aka 
Santa Maria Assunta, aka the Duomo.

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

The Weekend in Black and White

When Punxutawny Phil predicted an early 
spring, and then the temp went up to 
almost 60°F (15°C) on Thursday, I began to think 
that just maybe we might make it through  
this winter with only that one monster snowstorm.
So I was a bit surprised to wake up yesterday 
morning to this.  Oh well, it was only a
minor inconvenience—and so pretty, don't you think?

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

Skywatch Friday

"Do not expect again a phoenix hour,
The triple-towered sky, the dove complaining,
Sudden the rain of gold and heart's first ease
Traced under trees by the eldritch light of sundown."

—Cecil Day-Lewis; poet laureate of the UK, 1968–1972

[To see more Skywatch pics, go here.]

Thursday Challenge—"happy"

My girl Kate looks pretty happy, doesn't she?  
She's probably looking forward
to celebrating her birthday tomorrow.
Happy b'day, Katie!

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

ABC Wednesday—D is for "daydreaming"

Now, how did that Kinks song go?
Oh, right.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

on the job

Anyone who's been visiting this blog for any
length of time knows that I love NYC's
hardworking little tugboats.  I spotted this one
from my friends' 38th-floor apartment
as it helped a barge up the East River, past
a hospital on Roosevelt Island.

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

Hang in there

This five-story "rock-climber" is
doing his thing on Lafayette Street,
in Soho.  I liked the way that lighted garland
was plugged in through the window at the
local fire station.  The guys probably felt that
safety counts, neatness . . . not so much.

[Linking back to Monday Mural
at Oakland Daily Photo.]