April 2014 – Ruth E. Hendricks Photography

I Know Two People Who Collect These Stickers from Fruits and Vegetables

Especially if they are interesting or different. Unique.

I thought these produce stickers’ design would qualify as a keeper. Although I’m not starting a produce sticker collection today, I thought about two people I know who save them.

What do you collect?

Hey ML? Do you still save these from your fruit and veggies?

Here is what I made with the two zucchini and yellow squash.

In a large skillet sautee an onion and a couple of garlic cloves in olive oil, throw in two yellow and two green squash (cut up) then add salt and pepper and red pepper flakes. Add a bit of water and let them cook until soft. Mash up with potato masher. Boil water and cook eggy pasta noodles, drain and toss in squash sauce. Grate fresh cheese on top. I learned to cook this from Anna Fevola of La Cucina Flegrea. See the cooking class post in 2010 (from before the restaurant moved downtown to Market Square) Everything she cooks is delicious!

April 30, 2014 by Ruth Categories: Cooking and Eating, PhotographyTags: collections, fruits, kitchen, pasta, photography, postaday, produce, sticker collection, supper, vegetable, yellow squash, zuchinni 12 Comments

Men at Work

In the living room at Mark and Erika’s house, Saturday of Easter weekend.

I pulled the iPhone out of my pocket. QUICK

The four males engaged with their devices or book. Oblivious to me.

Erika’s dad- Donald, grandsons Michael and Jack and my son Mark on the right. Pap’s birthday. April 19th.

I love this photo of the four them.

April 29, 2014 by Ruth Categories: PhotographyTags: books, devices, family, grandchildren, home, living room, men at work, photography, postaday, reading, technology 19 Comments

At First the Oranges Appeared Hard and Uninviting

But I found a solution….

Pulled the old glass reamer off the kitchen shelf and proceeded to make some fresh squeezed orange juice.

The hardness of the orange peel was deceiving because they gave up a lot of juice.

Fried egg sandwich on wheat toast.

Squeezing OJ this past weekend, I was trying to hold onto that Spring Break mood.

Hand painted glasses from Mary Ellen’s gift shop in Lawrenceville- Divertido– “where everyday is a gift?”

and if you want an interesting book to read- everything you need to know about oranges- read John McPhee’s Oranges.

(I have a copy if you are in Pittsburgh)

April 28, 2014 by Ruth Categories: PhotographyTags: Divertido, food, fresh squeezed orange juice, fried egg sandwich, glass reamer, John McPhee Oranges, kitchen, oranges, postaday, reamer 13 Comments

Joan Used to Teach at Larimer School- Slated to Become Affordable Housing

The school has been closed since 1980. Joan taught art there.

Built in 1896 and two additions- 1904 and 1931 for the auditorium.

My friend Joan drove me over to Larimer neighborhood to see it Sunday morning. Here she’s looking out the driver’s window at the property.

Joan emailed me an article about the future development of Larimer School.

Larimer School is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Although it seems next to impossible, it is slated to be developed into affordable housing.

We spoke with a neighbor who lives across the street from the property and her niece went to Kindergarten there.

Watching it be restored will please her greatly, as she is tired of looking at the heaps of trash and old tires that have accumulated.

Joan is an artist and is using her iPad to catch images – maybe she will paint from them later

The bas relief is very beautiful

Joan taught in the Art Room on the second floor. You could see an open window around the corner,

Detail of stone faces

When Joan dropped me off at home, I was glad to see the Eastern Redbud tree in bloom in my backyard.

(Thanks Ginny for planting this beautiful tree in memory of my parents, Roy and Marian,)

April 28, 2014 by Ruth Categories: PhotographyTags: affordable housing, architecture, community, development, neighborhood, old school, Pittsburgh PA, REdbud in Bloom, urban decay, urban scene 15 Comments

Weekly Photo Challenge: Letters

Tons of signage in the archives but you don’t get many letters in the mailbox today.
Found an envelope of letters that our Aunt Rhea gave to us when she moved out of her home.

Letters.

Even some I’d written when we lived in Germany. Photographs inside letters. Letters from my father and mother and sister. Thank you notes from my own children when they were small.

I have other letters saved, tied with ribbon. My sister wrote to me in Germany for three years. And I wrote back. She saved my letters, too. My friend Erica transcribed all the letters and I have them typed in a desk downstairs.

My Dad had a photo of their wedding in one of the letters. A nice find.

April 27, 2014April 27, 2014 by Ruth Categories: Weekly Photo ChallengeTags: family, letters, photography, postaday, stamps, vintage, wedding photo, weekly photo challenge : letters 22 Comments

April Showers

Liberty Avenue. Downtown Pittsburgh. Friday afternoon.

Bradford Pear Tree and Blossoms Reflection in a Puddle Downtown.

The rain stopped but the pavement was still wet and the lights reflected in it as it grew dark.

Pedestrians closed their umbrellas.

Puddle in a downtown alley.

The Greyhound Bus Station, photographed through the windshield. I liked the blue and the sky.

Silhouettes in a downtown alley.

April 26, 2014 by Ruth Categories: Night Light in the City, PhotographyTags: April showers, bus station, city at night, lights in the city, photography, Pittsburgh PA, postaday, puddles, reflection, travel, umbrella, waiting for the bus, walking, wet pavement 10 Comments

Gallery Crawl Downtown Friday Night

Got a sneak preview Thursday afternoon. Was at a meeting with the Penn State professors and preservice teachers ( I learned that student teacher is no longer the correct term!)

We were surrounded by terrific art created by Pittsburgh Public School students from all over the city!

The Pittsburgh Public Schools All City Art Show is in the Cultural Trust Gallery – 807 Liberty Avenue.

Click this link from the Post-Gazette to get all the Gallery Crawl information and locations (5:30-9:00) and be sure to stop in and see the student artwork.

I loved the arc of shoes created by Mr.Kyle Kline’s art classes at Pittsburgh University Prep. Each one an original design. Painted on cardboard (which could not have been easy to cut out)

In the next block, I was too late to pop into the ToonSeum but captured a glimpse of the Golden Book Art Exhibit through the front window. I saw some familiar titles as I peered through the glass and look forward to seeing them in person tomorrow.

The Golden Legacy: Original Art from 65 years of GoldenBook Exhibit will be up until June 30th.

The ToonSeum is located at 945 Liberty Avenue, downtown Pittsburgh.

Do you have a favorite Golden Book you remember from childhood?

Mine would be Mickey Mouse Picnic and Santa’s Toy Shop (adapted from a 1932 Disney animated short)

I also loved the Tiny Golden Book series, especially The Naughty Little Guest by Dorothy Kunhardt and illustrated by Garth Williams. I had a Giant Golden Book of Christmas I liked, too, and can remember my mother reading me Granny Glittens and Her Amazing Mittens Story by Getrude Crampton.

Went across the street to capture the facade of the ToonSeum.

ToonSeum Hours of Operation

Self- Portrait in the window of the August Wilson Center.

April 24, 2014April 25, 2014 by Ruth Categories: Art, PhotographyTags: art show, August Wilson Center, city, cultural district, downtown, Gallery Crawl, Golden Book, Pittsburgh PA, Pittsburgh Public Schools, Post-Gazette, Santa's Toy Shop, The Naughty Little Guest, Toonseum 13 Comments

The Village of Rockton Illinois Afternoon

Another Spring Break post-

Mary and I drove from Durand, Illinois (our mother’s hometown and the town where our parents were married in 1939)

to Rockton, Illinois in Winnebago County.

We browsed in Main Street Antiques Mall and Mary bought a couple of handkerchiefs. There were two vintage jukeboxes playing records as we enjoyed looking at all the vintage items.

We had these exact bookends in the house when I was growing up. I think they are at Mark and Erika’s house now

Had just been in San Antonio for a wedding a couple of weeks ago.

Truman was president when I was born!

Then we went into the library.

What a beautiful library! The Talcott Free Library is celebrating 125 years this year.

Inside the library-

A close up of one of the ships in a glass case at the library.

Bring a puzzle, take a puzzle. A jigsaw puzzle library.

Wedding Cake Ice Cream was the recommended flavor at the Dairyhäus, according to a guidebook Mary had read in NYC.

The Dairyhäus was located right next to the library and opened at 3 PM.

I sampled several flavors but decided on the Peter Rabbit which was a carrot cake flavor. Mary had the Toffee Fudge. Ice Cream season had just started. One employee who has worked NINE seasons at the Dairyhäus created the counted cross stitch Care Bears sampler.

Owner Brent Murray shows off an ice cream cake his wife had just put together in the back. Brent really enjoys his work! He said mother had purchased the ice cream store in 1994 and he has been there ever since. He’s enthusiastic about his product and with good reason.

April 23, 2014 by Ruth Categories: People at Work, PhotographyTags: Care Bears, clipper ship, counted cross stitch, Dairyhäus, food, ice cream, iPhone photography, jigsaw puzzle, Library, Main Street Antique Mall, photography, postaday, Rockton Illinois, skates, Talcott Free Library, travel, Winnebago County 6 Comments

Groundhog Day Filmed in Woodstock Illinois

If you follow the blog, you know that Laura and Mary and I went to Punxsutawney PA February 2nd to see Phil the Groundhog predict six more weeks of winter!

Groundhog Day has always been a favorite holiday in my family. The celebration breaks up the winter and dreary February days.

It’s a holiday where no cards or gifts are necessary.

Last week on Spring Break, Mary and I took a short (12 mile) side trip to Woodstock Illinois where they filmed the movie Groundhog Day in 1993.

We drove around a bit, walked around the town square and had a nice coffee (see below). Mary is back in New York City and I am back in Pittsburgh now but wanted to share our quick visit to the scene of Groundhog Day movie, Woodstock, Illinois.