park

Just Pecking Away!

January 17, 2016 — 38 Comments

Red-Bellied Woodpecker

 

F/ 6.3, 1/125, ISO 800.

Red-Bellied Woodpecker

I went to the zoo today and asked if they had any talking parrots.

The zookeeper said they didn’t, but they had a woodpecker that knew morse code.

Interesting Fact: You may occasionally see a Red-bellied Woodpecker flying quickly and erratically through the forest, abruptly changing direction, alighting for an instant and immediately taking off again, keeping up a quick chatter of calls. Scientists categorize this odd behavior as a type of play that probably helps young birds practice the evasive action they may one day need. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-bellied_Woodpecker/lifehistory )

That’s Quacktastic !

January 4, 2016 — 26 Comments

Wood Duck

F/ 6.3, 1/40, ISO 1600.

Wood Duck

Duck Week Continues!

What do you get when you cross a duck with a computer?

A quackintosh.

Interesting Fact: Wood Ducks pair up in January, and most birds arriving at the breeding grounds in the spring are already paired. The Wood Duck is the only North American duck that regularly produces two broods in one year. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wood_Duck/lifehistory )

Dear Autumn, I Am Not Ready For What Comes Next

November 3, 2015 — 59 Comments

autumn night

F/ 25.0, 393.0, ISO 64.

Day 307 / 365

A couple goes to an art gallery. They find a picture of a naked women with only her privates covered with leaves.
The wife doesn’t like it and moves on but the husband keeps looking.
The wife asks: “What are you waiting for?”
The husband replies: “Autumn.”

Interesting Fact: As winter approaches, leaves make a coating for themselves which blocks their water source; in the absence of water, the leaves no longer produce chlorophyll (chlorophyll is what makes leaves green). ( http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/learning/learn-about-the-weather/how-weather-works/autumn-facts )

I Found Fountain Of Youth, But I Wasn’t Thirsty.

September 25, 2015 — 6 Comments

hoboken park

F/10.0, 30.0, ISO 100.

Day 268 / 365

A drunk falls into one of the fountains in Trafalgar Square. Floundering around, he looks up and sees Nelson standing on his column.

“Don’t jump!” he shouts. “This is the shallow end!”

Interesting Fact: The ancient Greeks were apparently the first to use aqueducts and gravity-powered fountains to distribute water. According to ancient historians, fountains existed in Athens, Corinth, and other ancient Greek cities in the 6th century BC as the terminating points of aqueducts which brought water from springs and rivers into the cities. In the 6th century BC the Athenian ruler Peisistratos built the main fountain of Athens, the Enneacrounos, in the Agora, or main square. It had nine large cannons, or spouts, which supplied drinking water to local residents. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fountain )

Park Closes At Dusk!

September 2, 2015 — 22 Comments

park bench

F/10.0, 30.0, ISO 100.

Day 245 / 365

I woke up on a park bench and had no idea where I had been

And then I remembered, I’d been to the park

Interesting Fact: The first parks were English deer parks,[citation needed] land set aside for hunting by royalty and the aristocracy in medieval times. They had walls or thick hedges around them to keep game animals (e.g., stags) in and people out. It was strictly forbidden for commoners to hunt animals in these deer parks. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Park#History )

 

The Best Revenge Is Massive Success

July 24, 2015 — 6 Comments

pier a hoboken

F/9.0, 30.0, ISO 100.

Day 205 / 365

How can you go without sleep for seven days and not be tired?
 Sleep at night.

Interesting Fact:  The name “Hoboken” was decided upon by Colonel John Stevens when he purchased land, on a part of which the city still sits. The Lenape (later called Delaware Indian) tribe referred to the area as the “land of the tobacco pipe”, most likely to refer to the soapstone collected there to carve tobacco pipes, and used a phrase that became “Hopoghan Hackingh”.[24] Like Weehawken, its neighbor to the north, Communipaw and Harsimus to the south, Hoboken had many variations in the folks-tongue. Hoebuck, old Dutch for high bluff and likely referring to Castle Point, was used during the colonial era and later spelled as Hobuck,[25] Hobock,[26] Hobuk[27] and Hoboocken.[28]  ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hoboken,_New_Jersey )

Piano Man

April 18, 2015 — 25 Comments

piano man

F/11.0, 1/500, ISO 100.

Day 108 /365

Perfect end to a perfect day, listening to classical music as the sun is setting.

Interesting Fact: Pianos generally have 220-230 strings. The strings are made of steel and are strung tightly to create the tension needed to produce the sound. They are strung so tightly to about 168 pounds per string, the total tension can equal 18-20 tons. ( http://www.houstonpianocompany.com/20-fun-facts-about-piano/ )

That’s One Big Arch!

February 4, 2015 — 10 Comments

Washington Square Arch

F/25.0, 30.0, ISO 100.

Day 35 /365

I bet you that Washington would never arch like that….    🙂

Interesting Fact: In 1889, a large plaster and wood memorial arch was erected over Fifth Avenue just north of Washington Square Park by local businessman and philanthropist William Rhinelander Stewart (1852-1929). Stewart lived at 17 Washington Square North and he collected $2,765 from his friends to finance the work. The temporary arch was so popular that three years later the permanent stone arch, designed by architect Stanford White, was erected.[2] ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washington_Square_Arch )

Hmmm I Wonder…….

December 4, 2014 — 2 Comments

Jarek

F/7.1, 1/200, ISO 200.

This photo of Jarek Polatynski at Empty Sky Memorial really makes me wonder what was going through his head as he was looking at all the names on the walls.

 

Interesting Fact: The memorial includes twin walls, transecting a “gently sloped mound anchored by a granite path that is directed toward Ground Zero.[2] Two 30-foot-high rectangular towers stretch 208 feet, 10 inches long — the exact width of the World Trade Center towers, the proportion of the walls a symbolic representation of the buildings as if they were lying on their sides.[2] The name of each of the 746 victims is etched in stainless steel in 4-inch-high letters. A granite passage is oriented to face the site of the twin towers.[2][3] The name of the memorial is taken from the Bruce Springsteen song “Empty Sky“, which is about the “empty sky” where the towers once stood. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empty_Sky_(memorial) )