Bridge Sentinel Eagle - Philadelphia by M. Douglas Wray

I was 20-something, Pentax K1000 in hand, walking down a street in Philly near Union Station when I found this fellow and his mates on the bridge end pylons. Magnificent art deco renditions. Such heroic scale.

Hat tip to Say It Ain’t So Already

Hat tip to Todd Lockwood!

From the National Archives.

Outstanding collection.

GO SEE.

You never got to see Ireland or Scotland as we’d hoped, so I’m hoping your spririt got to see this lovely place. I’m missing you terribly just now hon – and so are your friends.

Here’s the photos and words from her friend Kris:

This is where I spread Marilyn’s ashes.  Will you pass them along for me?

Overlooking Edinburgh was taken from the end of Loch Dunsapie where I spread her ashes.  This looks over the city and on to the Firth of Forth.  At the other end, the road circles around to Arthur’s Seat.  Oh, this Loch is in the Queen’s Park, adjacent to Hollyrood Palace.  It’s full of birds and Swans.

The Swan’s nest is again taken from the spot where I spread the ashes but looking across the Loch.

Google map

Here’s the first batch of images!

There are a lot of duplicates and many need rotated to vertical as well as captioning. Work, work, work! I’m here to PLAY!

Note – all these images are royalty-free, use them any way you like.

The room is small but well-appointed, right down to a somewhat-battered but quite serviceable box-fan (that was oh-so-welcome since I sleep with a fan at home). The shared bathroom(s) are nicely done, also small but numerous and plenty of hot water… ahhh. These tired old bones appreciated that. Will have to try out the sauna upstairs (roof??? more later).

Only rub: wireless access on top floor wasn’t working. Desk person suggested it might be fixed today. Hope is a good thing. Meanwhile, I’m writing from the refectory (my word, not theirs) and enjoying the pleasant (and surprisingly quiet)(hangovers?) atmosphere.

Well, off to gird these loins and go forth. DJ’s busy today so I’m on my own in a strange city.

I cannot express  my eagerness.

Cavalcade of Lights fireworks on City Hall at Nathan Phillips Square by The Circus Orange Pyro Team.

If you haven’t discovered Daily Dose of Imagery do yourself a treat and add it to your feeds list.

This man takes the best photos. His archive is to lose a day of your life (at least) and be inspired greatly.

Go. Enjoy.

Here’s a short video I shot with my still cam:

A panarama shot by my pal Mark Berenson – he shot single frames and I assembled it in Adobe Photoshop. The thumbnail opens a scaled-down version. If you want the full effect, download the PDF and you can zoom way up. Enjoy!

Panarama (pdf, 1.1Mb)

I love suspension bridges. There’s just something magic about all that weight just… hanging there. Walking across them is always a thrill, you can feel the fabric of the structure moving, vibrating, flexing. Really gives you an idea of how delicate such a big thing can be. You can feel harmonics rolling back and forth along it’s length when really big vehicles go by.

The PATCO trains that were added to the structure were actually doing damage by twisting the structure repeatedly, requiring some modifications to ensure it’s safety. It was nuts to be ON the bridge when a PATCO commuter train went by underneath the walkway. You could FEEL the bridge move, sinking down ever so slightly from all the added weight, then surge back up. The view down the Schukyll River was also incredible… as was the reek from Newark’s outflow. There’s a lot I don’t miss about “Phillthy,” but I do miss the incredible architecture.

I think ole Ben would have been delighted to see his name attached to this Bridge.

The upcoming elections will no doubt be cause for much societal turmoil – regardless of the outcome. Visiting Denver on a cloudy day recently, I was struck by this image and how the Capitol building looked much like a castle before a seige.

One of the waterfalls on the North St. Vrain river below Button Rock Dam (TerraServer).