Such Expressive (and Unexpected) Taxidermy
Beware of Fox!
It’s been up on this porch roof for at least a couple of days.
I was driving to the zoo from school on Monday.
The story I heard from the guy out in front of the house next door?
The guy who lives there does demolition and probably got it from some home he was tearing down. It is the season of demolition around the city as you know.
A photographer has no choice but to pull to the curb and shoot the scene. Remember the days of women’s stoles with fox heads dangling and tiny paws with claws? Beady eyes? Ugh. Wonder if they take him in if it rains?
The last book we read in 2nd grade Intervention Group was the Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl.
Note to Self: Leave Home Ten Minutes Earlier
Two school buses and a garbage truck stopped on the narrow street as I made my way to school. A standstill, brake lights on. Do you worry? No, you photograph the scene. Write a note to self.
Tugboat Pushes Barges on the Mon
Shot through a chain-link fence.
I was in the passenger seat and I had my camera out. The 70-200 lens.
We were headed to the wedding reception from McKeesport to Greentree. (Lots of double ee)
Crossing the McKeesport-Duquesne Bridge. A truss bridge.
And there was a tugboat pushing filled barges on the Monongahela. (Monongahela means “Falling Banks”)
Pushed the shutter and shot shot shot as fast as I could, no chance to change settings. Lucked out with the cables on the edge and the gull in flight. The chain link fence gives the photo a soft haze and fuzz to the sharpness.
I’d asked my friend to drive a little more slowly but everything whizzes by when you are moving and it was unrealistic to go slow on the bridge. Couldn’t have done it if I were driving as there was no place to pull over. It was a squeeze.
and might as well show you the failed shots, the ones with the bridge cables, the blocking the view, the actual fence.
Photography can be exasperating. You would like to get it right.
There was no time for a turnaround, rerun, do-over.
It was the one shot that worked. Lucky day. Oh yes, at least three below that didn’t.
That’s What I’m Honking About
This is the second image shown first. Shot from the balcony at the Convention Center (where the garbage was for THROUGH)
And just moments earlier, this was the peaceful scene. Not sure why all the honking and general nastiness from the Canada Goose in the above image..
A grandmother and her granddaughter by the Allegheny River. (Unidentified subjects)
Yikes- You’ve Got to Pull Over, Get Out of Your Car and Shoot It!
In the distance you can see the Cathedral of Learning at Pitt.
The sparkly Christmas Tree caught my eye . St Patricks’s preparation?
And as I returned to my car, I saw the sidewalk/stairs in the shade.
Built in 1870 – Oldest Continuously Operating Incline
Could be a shot for contrast as well. A spot of color on a dull day. The Monongahela Incline. View from West Carson Street.
Find the Magic Chef Gas Ranges Sign
City rooftops from the 22nd floor. Through a hotel window. Raindrops on the glass.
Shrouded Downtown Church from the Parking Garage Spiral & Detail
Going to fact check but believe this is the church with 13 Tiffany windows
Shot Through the Bus Windshield
You saw Thursday’s post of the passenger photo from the school bus ride to the Carnegie Museum of Art when it was snowing. Here’s another one. We were coming back from the Teenie Harris exhibit headed back to school. This photo has a cool story and link.
My friend R came over in the snow for a bowl of minestrone soup, Friday night. She told me about this cool house on the South Side, featured in the New York TImes. ”A cantilevered house over a glass factory”, she said. I said, “I drive by that house EVERYDAY on the way to school. I watched it being built!” I’ve photographed the trains going by, the weather. I have pulled over there many times and photographed the scene.
On Wednesday I photographed a piece of this unique house through the school bus windshield. You can see a glimpse of their Emerald Art Glass Factory, the school bus yard on the left and the train trestle where I’ve photographed trains in a blur. Up on the slopes is formerly St. Josaphat’s church that’s now closed. If you want to see the house as it should be seen then you will have to go and watch the NYTimes slideshow.
Here is the link and the NYTimes amazing photos in a slideshow of this really cool house in detail. You just see a snippet of the house in my photo in the upper left. After you see the pristine and fantastic photographs at the New York Times you might wonder why I posted my iPhone photo of the same scene?
Southside Flats and Slopes
The Passenger’s View
Took the eighth grade on a Field Trip to the Carnegie Museum of Art to view the Tennie Harris,Photographer: American Story show. We had a wonderful day. Here’s the view from the passenger seat. (note the sidewalk on the right is stairs!) You can see the stop sign at the bottom of the hill. And the reflection of the school bus in the right side mirror. Shot through glass on a snowy day.
Through the front window. It was great to be a passenger.
Fresh Spring Rolls from Tram’s Kitchen
Everyone I know has been talking diets lately. Paleo, Eat for your Blood Type, Low Carbs, No Carbs and a couple of Vegetarians. After speaking with a friend about her shopping and cooking for the day I started thinking I wanted a hamburger on a white bread bun with grilled onions and a side of fries made from some regular old white potatoes, the four cheese macaroni and cheese at Tin Front Cafe or just a trough of grain.
Steve brought this offering home Tuesday evening and I found it on the kitchen table, right next to the box of Clementines when I arrived. I photographed the tray of Fresh Spring Rolls right then- before we ate them! I sliced one in half so you could see the interior. There’s a detailed review of Tram’s Kitchen at TastyBurgher here and an AllMenus link full menu and reviews here. The tiny containers of sauce- peanut or HOT chili really accent the Vietnamese Spring Rolls. *And Tom and Chee posted a new note on their webpage with a link to the Cardboard Me Travels blog
Tram's Kitchen Fresh Spring Rolls
They were delicious.
Tram's Kitchen Fresh Spring Rolls
Downtown Reception
Not sure who is watching what but plenty of antennae and dishes on this roof
City Shapes
Old and new, shapes and colors.
Like a Piece of Jigsaw Puzzle on Wet Pavement
Puddle reflection
… and Flat Ruthie is in Homer Alaska today so check out the snowy scenery here
Shadyside in the Snow
We lived in this neighborhood for two years in a little rental behind what was the Balcony Restaurant and Jazz Club. You could hear the dumpster trucks come in the early morning and the beer bottles clash in the alley. Today on the way home from school I stopped by the Food Museum where the fruit in the window is like a Flemish painting in the Metropolitan. Better known as the Shadyside Market. An elegant place. They were really nice to me although they knew I was checking the price tags before I made my selections. I knew I could buy bacon, eggs, and bread and not break the bank. The plan was to use a box of spaghetti in the pantry, the parmesan in the fridge and make spaghetti carbonara accompanied by a spinach salad with oranges and red onion. (had Spinach Salad on my mind, thanks to Chicago John from Bartolini’s Kitchen blog)
With the snow falling I knew that our big markets would be swamped as everyone rushes there to get the last roll of toilet paper or empty the shelves to stock their larder when they hear of an impending snowstorm. So no food photos of the great meal I was inspired to cook in the winter weather, But the neighborhood of Shadyside. Sometimes I cringe when I realize I would let 7 year old Laura walk around the block ALONE to Rite-Aid to buy the paper. What was I thinking? Prantl’s Bakery makes the Burnt Almond Torte everyone loves. Well, most people.
Famous for their Burnt Almond Torte. Pamela's is nice for breakfast, too.
Unretouched, But Who’d Believe It?
Sunlight in January. Blue sky. Although predictions for the tonight and morning are snowfall, we are not convinced. Everything has been mild and though some wet, it has felt almost like Spring.
I caught the sunlight on this garage as I pulled out of the school parking lot and it was just aglow with the sun. It was a one shot chance from the car window. I know it looks like I increased the saturation on the red. But I didn’t. This is how it looked.
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Flat Ruthie is a VW Hood Ornament on Cardboard Me Travels
It looked like a jewel to me.
Two Mannequins, Two Men
Walking along Carson Street on the South Side, a slight movement caught my eye. I stopped. The man on the phone looked up.
I “asked” if I could take a picture with mime-like camera, he gave a nod yes, went back to his phone as I fumbled in my bag for my real camera, not my iPhone. Had the settings wrong, took another one quick. Got his attention and acted like I was typing, conveying I would email it as I hurried back to my car across the street. I was thinking about the cookie jars in the second hand store across from the post office but I felt this was the shot of the day!
Southside Shop Window Like a Live Stage
Wylie Avenue View – Winter Afternoon
Wylie Avenue view of the city skyline in my mirror. I was pulled over to the curb.
The last of the light on our first real winter afternoon- snow, icy roads, dropping temps. I was headed home.
Read Guest Blogger Theresa of Third Hand Art -
Flat Ruthie/ Cardboard Me Travels is in Independence Missouri click here to see her photos
Outlook Drive View of Last Working Steel Mill- 12-4-11
The View from Outlook Drive, West Mifflin
You might remember(or click the blue words) the night view of the same mill from April 2010.
Update on Demolition, Sign Painter at Work and Cooking Outside Wholey’s
Similar colors. A friend emailed to let me know that the once silver Civic Arena/Mellon Arena roof looked completely red so I drove downtown to capture the progress of the demolition.
I drove to the Strip on a most crowded holiday shopping day. It was Saturday afternoon in the Strip District and I saw a sign painter was painting above the crowded sidewalks. I realized I walked under a ladder. Didn’t think I was superstitious but when I saw this photo for the people at work series, I remembered a tinge of concern. It makes sense to not walk under a ladder as a bucket of paint could spill on you or you could hit the ladder and knock someone off. Need to do some research but not tonight.
I can tell you that the scent of grilled veggies and shrimp was inviting but I’d just eaten lunch. ; – (
Zucchini strips on the left. Grilled shrimp on the right.
Nostalgia for Metal Roller Skates and a Key Around the Neck
Photographed at Bicycle Heaven 10-26-11
When my family lived in Newark, NJ my brother and I used to skate around the block. Your feet would hum after you took off the skates. You left your regular shoe on your foot and tried to fit it into the metal brace. I can hear the sound when I look at these old skates. Childhood of the 1950′s. They were heavy. At least that is how I remember them.
Bicycle Heaven Shop and Museum
Kurt and Craig in Bicycle Heaven.
People at work. What an amazing place. A field trip for photo class Wednesday night. Craig and Kurt were most hospitable. And you never saw so many bicycles in your life. Steamers for handlebars, baskets, reflectors, headlamps, tires, gears, seats. You name it. Anything and EVERYTHING for a bicycle. Whatever you want? It is there! Craig has been collecting bikes for 30 years and just put this place together in the last three months. WOW is all we could say. Holy Bikes! The four bikes on the wall are Bowden Spacelander bikes made of fiberglass designed in 1948. There are very few in the world and here were FOUR together !!!
Pittsburgh- Zombie Capital of the World
Thanks to George A. Romero and his classic Night of the Living Dead(1968). Would you believe I missed the recent Zombie Fest in Downtown Pittsburgh the first week of October? That is what Zaq told me as I asked him about his shirt he was sporting on the South Side. I had just been to the Post Office and was headed for a slice of pizza at Blue Grotto and I stopped on the sidewalk and asked if I could photograph him in his shirt for the blog. Sure! I asked him where he got the Pittsburgh Zombie Capital of the World T-shirt and he said, ” The Monroeville Mall!” That is where they used to hold the Zombie Fest. I regret that I missed the Zombie Prom I was invited to a few years ago. I know I could have gotten some great shots. But here is Zaq (with a Q) on Carson Street and he said I could blog his shirt, with him in it. Thank you Zaq! And thanks to your friend who was with you. I should have taken him with you.
I see the most interesting people and scenes on Carson Street in the South Side.
Heinz Plant at Night
Shot from the Penn Brewery Parking Lot
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