Twenty Days and Counting

Another high school reunion is fast approaching. Conversations are often the same, "So Nancy, what have you been up to?," they will ask. With that in mind, I started thinking about what I've accomplished in the past five years. So here's what I've come up with in no particular order: become seriously interested in photography ("When does a hobby become an obsession?," my sister asks. "When I spend $600. on a lens," I answer.), joined Facebook, taken three photography classes at the Showcase School, taken four on-line photography classes at Kennesaw State, started volunteering at my local elementary school and stopped, spent over four hours hanging out under the Brooklyn Bridge taking hundreds of images while my hungry husband waited patiently... God, I love him,

worked as an extra in a television show (Drop Dead Diva), started writing this blog, spent two weeks traveling around Provence with my sister and brother-in-law,

figured out how to download songs according to the beat onto my iPod for walking, started an on-line shop on Etsy, done several art shows, planted lavender that actually lived, painted our front staircase in black and white, designed my own web page (in html no less...okay, I'm bragging), went to the Oprah Show in the middle of winter and got Gore's DVD instead of a car :(, went to NYC on a girl's trip with my three of my long-time friends, lost two friends to cancer, saw the Chihuly exhibit at both the Atlanta Botanical Gardens and the New York Botanical Gardens,

visited my niece's fourth grade class in Brooklyn and almost killed one student, joined a Bible study at church...still with it, started taking YOGA classes...absolutely HATE the plank pose, began a life-long study of Photoshop, really, and bought my first pair of Chuck Taylor Converse sneakers in RED!

That just about sums up my life for the past five years. I'm ready for the reunion. So tell me, what have you been up to?

Note To Self: NEW YORK CITY IS COLD IN APRIL

I've been back in Atlanta for six days after my trip to New York and I've finally thawed out. I know you think I'm exaggerating, but the temperature didn't get over 50 degrees while we were there. But a little thing like freezing temperatures and hurricane force winds didn't stop us.

I met my sister, Janie, at the Atlanta airport with her friend, Shirley, who were changing planes to continue their trip to NYC. I joined them on the final leg of their journey. Shirley was going to visit her daughter and Janie and I were visiting my niece and Janie's daughter, Jennifer. We thought it was a perfect time to visit Jennifer because it was her spring break and she could spend the week guiding us to the right subway and pointing us in the right direction on the city streets. It was nice not having to have our AAA maps in our frozen hands at all times. We must have walked miles and I know we climbed hundreds of steps. Although it rained or misted most of the days, I was able to take a few shots on two of the days.

On Monday we met Shirley at the River Cafe located on the Brooklyn side of the East River. The restaurant is located near the Brooklyn Bridge and is steps away from an area called DUMBO (down under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass). After lunch (which I might add I couldn't recognize many entrees on the menu...I had chicken) we set out on an adventure. I think Janie and 'em were looking for Jacque somebody's chocolate shop and I was looking for THE SHOT. After finding the chocolate shop and getting great hot chocolate, we found Water Street where I took these shots.

The next day we met my oldest sister, Ann, in the city. We had lunch at a really nice restaurant behind the New York City Public Library, followed by a tour of the library. As we were walking, before the rain began, I managed to get this shot. This house is located directly across from the Port Authority. I haven't cropped or enhanced any of these shots, so please be patient.

It was wonderful seeing and visiting with Ann. We ended our visit with a glass or two of wine at the bar in the Waldorf-Astoria. After putting her on the bus to Hartford, we managed to crawl to the subway heading to Brooklyn.

The last day, Thursday, April 16th, the sun appeared! We packed and then headed to the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. The cherry trees were in bloom and the tulips were everywhere. As we walked along the paths we saw turtles sunning themselves. Here's a few of them.

I don't usually take photographs of landscapes (except the beach), but this was too beautiful to ignore.

Here'a a shot of my sister and Jennifer. FYI, they were standing in the shade so I used my flash. Until I took my last photography class, I had never used a flash outside. Who knew?

Here is the final shot. I asked a young woman who had a SLR camera around her neck to take this picture, thinking that she knew how to use it. Not so fast. Not only did she not focus the shot, but the composition is not so good. Whatever.

Looking back, I think it's a good thing that she didn't focus. It's hard to see the enormous bags under my eyes and the extreme pain I was in from the endless walking and climbing. Now I know why you rarely see older people ride the subways. Come to think of it, there really aren't that many overweight people down there in the tunnels. That's something to ponder Jenny Craig.

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I must end this post by thanking Jennifer for allowing us to hang out with her for six days. She was a expert tour guide who showed extreme patience with her aunt and mom. She even let me use her Mac to check FB every day, okay twice a day. I bet next year during spring break, Miss Jennifer will high tail it out of the city to parts unknown. Who could blame her?

My New York City Adventure: Part 4, The Brooklyn Bridge

After the Groom's Dance and a quick bagel, Tom and I started on our trek to Brooklyn. But before we landed there, Tom wanted to take a few pictures of the Brill Building somewhere near Times Square. You would think that since we are reasonably educated people we would have the address of the building. We didn't have the address, but Tom remembered seeing it on the red bus tour that we took four or five years ago. This was the only thing that Tom mentioned that he wanted to do while in New York, and I knew it was the least I could do because he was carrying my equipment and was going to help me find that park to the north of the Brooklyn Bridge. He vaguely remembered it being about a block from where we got off the bus. So as soon as we found the red buses, believe it or not, we found the Brill Building.

The following article on the Brill Building was found at: www.timessquarenyc.org/then_now_music_attractions.html

The Brill Building…("Tin Pan Alley")
1619 Broadway, in the heart of New York’s music district, is a building that changed the course of popular music history.
The Brill Building (named after the Brill Brothers, whose clothing store was originally located in the street level corner and who would later purchase the entire building), was completed in 1931 and intended to house the offices of brokers and bankers. The owners were obliged by a deepening Depression to rent space to music publishers, since there were few other takers. By 1962, the Brill Building contained 165 music businesses.
Here you could write a song, hire the musicians, cut a demo, and take it around the building to record companies, publishers, managers, artists and promoters. To this day, some refer to the building and its environs as “Tin Pan Alley”, though others insist the famed district was only West 28th Street between 6th Avenue and Broadway.
Famous Brill Building musicians and songwriters include Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Carole King, Hal David, Burt Bacharach, Neil Sedaka, Paul Anka, Eric Clapton, Jim Croce, Bobby Darin, John Denver, Neil Diamond, Bob Dylan, Howard Greenfield, Billy Joel, Johnny Mercer, Kris Kristofferson, John Lennon, Joni Mitchell, Carly Simon, Paul Simon, and James Taylor.
To appreciate the tremendous effect these and other Brill Building denizens had on American popular culture, one has only to scan the play list of the popular radio and television program, Your Hit Parade. Of the 1,278 songs performed by the show’s cast throughout its run from 1935 to 1958, 404 songs, approximately one third, originated with Brill Building publishers.

We did really brilliant things that day, starting with getting off the PATH train at 33rd street and walking ten blocks north to Times Square when we could have changed trains, but we didn't want to wait. Then we began looking for a bathroom. Went into a hotel that was in the middle of renovations thinking that we would walk right into the lobby and find a restroom. Wrong. Then went into the Best Western, walked right past the concierge as if we were staying there, found the restroom but didn't have a key. Finally went into a pizza restaurant, ordered a coke and went to the restroom. Then walked a few more blocks to find the subway to Brooklyn.

When we finally got on the subway, the conductor, who could have cared less if anyone understood him because it sounded like he was sucking down the microphone, announced that the High Street Station was closed and we would have to get off at Jay Street and transfer and on and on. I only halfway listened, but Tom, who is almost deaf, did. Thank goodness. We could have wound up at Coney Island if we had to depend on me. I wasn't an auditory learner, but I can hear; I just don't listen. Makes sense.

To continue, we did get off at Jay Street and, believe it or not, we were around the corner from a Marriott where Janie and I had stayed a year ago. I remembered that the Brooklyn Bridge was several blocks down the street, so we started walking. It's really an optical illusion when you are walking towards the bridge because you aren't really looking at the Brooklyn Bridge, it's the Manhattan Bridge...it becomes clear as you approach it. You really have to be there to understand what I'm trying to say. Anyway, we had a Google map in hand and tried to follow the streets. The map was emailed to me by a girl named Karyn, who has a blog under the name of Pretty in the City. We had one million arguments during that walk. Tom was right about the directions. He's a stickler for following the map, and I wanted to follow the crowd. I just figured that they were all coming or going to the park. This area in Brooklyn is called Dumbo, Down (or directly) Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass. It reminded me of some areas in Boston. Quaint. Cute shops and restaurants. But we couldn't stop. Had to keep going. Had to get THE SHOT. On the way we passed the famous pizza restaurant, Grimaldi's, where you wait in line outside for hours. Really. We kept going.

At about 5:30 we reached the park. I was so disappointed because the shot I wanted would be impossible without having access to a rooftop. That was until we changed positions and got closer to the bridge. As usual I took a million shots. Poor Tom, who was totally exhausted and starving, sat patiently on the park bench for over an hour. Several of the images turned out pretty good. I haven't had time to photoshop them yet, so I'll have to post them without enhancements.

The park closed at 7:00, just as the lights were coming on. I wish we could have stayed later, but I didn't want to get arrested. That's just me. So we packed up the equipment and began our trip back to New Jersey. Being the Sunday before Labor Day, we didn't think there would be that many people riding the trains. Wrong again.

I will spare you the horrid details of our return trip to the hotel. Let's just say that the subway stations were crowded and hot, very hot. We got up close and personal with many of our friends from New Jersey. Needless to say, we were late in meeting Nancy, Bill, Janie and Dennis for the "cocktail party" that I planned.

What a day! Starting with the Groom's Dance and ending with the Brooklyn Bridge it was an adventure that I will never forget, and I know Tom won't!

Just Playing Around

I though I would work with this image since I'll be "hanging around" there this weekend. In May my highschool friends and I went to New York to celebrate our birthdays. While there we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. I think that's one of the best things to do in the city. We took the subway to Brooklyn, ate at a nearby diner, and then started our walk across the bridge. This time I payed attention to the markings on the bridge indicating where to walk and where to ride a bike. Tom and I made that mistake several years ago when we weren't paying attention and just wandered aimlessly going from side to side, just in awe of the view. Finally, a local on a bike mentioned in passing that we were on the bike path. So nice of him.

Anyway, here is one of the images I took without making any adjustments.

After playing around with filters, I went to "artistic," and clicked on "posterize edges." In the last step, I brightened it and worked on saturation.

Notice how the bricks are emphasized...kinda cool.

Can't wait to get that shot under the bridge with Manhattan in the background. Hope it doesn't rain. Have a safe Labor Day.