Something New for the New Year

Today  was my  first trip out in the past five days. The cold isn't good for the heart at my age. That's what I am told at any rate. It was a trip to the drug store only to find that I must go back again tomorrow for one medication that was out of stock. So, while out, it would be a chance to get lunch and make a trip around the lake for the first time in 2014.

The ceilings were very, very low lending themselves to that feeling of gloom and doom. A mist was falling just enough to keep the intermittent wipers on their highest setting.  It was almost, at times, like there was trying to be fog. In fact, a couple of landmarks at the lake had their tops covered in fog. Since fog is defined as a cloud lower than 50 feet, the credence to ceilings being low was upheld.

The old entrance to The Big Thicket had been undergoing a bit of construction that looked very much like some kind of sign, but at years end, it was not yet determined. But, today, there were several new signs-- long needed-- marking not only the Big Thicket, but the cut-off to the pump and filter buildings on the west side of the lake and a new nautical and Big Thicket route marker. In fact, they look really nice, even covered in the fine droplets of water.

Someone today was complaining on Yahoo that there was only one picture to a story they were commenting on. Someone else commented that [they]  "assume you know what the word gallery means. Did you click it on?" I realized that people still have trouble navigating on the web, so I will remind every one that you click on one of these images and it opens in a more viewable condition. Try it! It doesn't cost anything!!

Nice New Sign



Gloom and Doom Winter Day

One of the television stations were doing a piece on the re-make of the dog-park. A million-dollar redo. The bike and pedestrian bridge is blocked off at the east end and the trail is blocked off at the west parking lot entrance. That's a lot of ground being made ready for construction. The jewel of the city park system is getting her crown polished up. Looking good!!

A totally new sign that was needed. It sits at the end of the bike bridge with the back to the dog park across the water and at the foot of the Big Thicket Hill off Mockingbird.

 

Looks Like the Ugly Tail Will Stay

A couple of days ago, I drove out to Founders Plaza at DFW International. It had been a while since my last visit. The airport was flipped that day also. So the last two trips, 18L and 18R have not handled incoming traffic because traffic was coming in on 36R and 36L (the opposite end of the runways).

It was my first trip since the merger was announced as approved. The thinking was that the old livery was being replaced with the new one as a transitional and American wasn't spending any more money on livery. That meant that a new logo would be forthcoming after the merger was complete. Kind of like a bridge between the old and the new--a transitional -- when all was set. The factor not factored in was that Doug Parker would offer it up for a vote to the unions and employees. That way, it would build some unity between management and the unions. Well, as luck would have it--as Mr. Murphy's Law would dictate--the employees and the unions voted to keep the transitional livery.

As I stood on the little hillside and watched one American take off after another, There was only one old livery in the group of half a dozen. Then I got to looking, the majority of the tails were scraped up, nicked and  missing paint. All sorts of things in such a short span of time.

When you compared the new livery to the old, the old looked good then and now. But, the old adage, "close the gate now that the cows are out" is also an understatement. At the time everyone was waiting to see the new livery and it was sitting on the tarmac at Victorville, in the desert of southern California, There was a short lived campaign that American never heard that said," Anything but white, just paint it bright! Instead, we go the ugly thing we have now and it looks like we are stuck with that. If Tom Braniff was around, he'd have heard the cry and he would have painted a plane that would be pride with a capital "P". Herb and Gary are not afraid to paint an airplane. Paint can be a big marketing tool. Paint is a big marketing tool. Hope they put the cell phone users in the tail section where they put the smokers when that was a hot potato. Let the cell phone users listen to each other when they are on their phone. But, somehow, I don't think Doug Parker will listen to many consumers now that he's got the throne.

Old Livery

New Livery

HAPPY NEW YEAR !

Happy New Year to our loyal readers and those of you that have found our blog for the first time.

The loyal readers will notice a couple more ads from Zazzel as well as from Google. It's been a hard decision, but one necessary if this blog is to continue. The cost has reached the tipping point of either find additional income or shut down an essay in pictures from a freelance photographer. For the last five years, the cost has fallen totally on this photographer with out complaint. But, as mentioned earlier, additional income to cover the cost of operations is now, not an option, but a critical choice.

Cameras must be cleaned professionally, lens and camera bodies need to be upgraded as technology improves. The cost of operating a car has always been just a fact of life. Now, gas and maintenance has become a major expense, even riding the trains as much as possible. The cost of this web site annually and the cloud storage for the images is also rising.

As I have had fun with a little competition between Hotdog, my cat, and me during the holiday period when I would joke and say, " Now go buy something, Hotdog needs the sales", I can now honestly say, "Now go buy something. We both needs the sales!"

Other options will continue to be explored. And, this blog will continue to provide you, our readers, with copy and images. There sometimes my be more copy than images. It will be a  day-to-day adjustment.

Regardless, we cherish our readers and those that drop by accidentally. These are the methods of transportation we have considered during the past year, don't you see?

NASA's lease payment is far to expensive.

This guy was most gracious to let us photograph him at the St. Pat's Parade last year on Greenville Avenue. Little did I know he was the real thing. He doesn't provide commercial transportation, however.

This guy only works at one speed and would cost to much to charter for the day.

This one is retired permanently, now.

Maggie One and Maggie Two

When the Margaret Hunt Hill bridge was announced several years ago, one thinks what's in the name? In this case it was a Hunt as in Hunt Oil or the patriarch of the Hunt family and beautiful Mt. Vernon ( an exact duplicate of the original) home at White Rock Lake.  But admittedly, even with searching for some help, when the second bridge was announced and the name was Margaret McDermott, it was a bit more work to burn an image on my mind. Philanthropist. Now it rings a bell.

True, the movers and the shakers of Dallas are all involved with the bridge project as it is part of the Trinity River Corridor Project, a non-profit to development along the Trinity River. And some of those movers and shakers can be found on the board of the Trinity River Corridor Project.

While the Margaret McDermott bridge has been downsized ( it's now, just the Margaret McDermott  bike and pedestrian portion ) and was almost axed when the economy went farther down river, it was saved after TxDOT said that the bridge over I-30 would be built, even if they had to do the engineering. That jolted a few and it wasn't long until a deal was reached to scale back but never-the-less still have Santiago Calatrava design the walkways and bikeways across the second bridge.

 Actually, the feeling is that Margaret McDermott got the better part of the deal in that the bridge is over the Trinity on a major interstate highway. It will have a pedestrian

The unofficial start to work on Maggie Two

The completed Maggie One

Note the angle of the boring on Maggie Two

and bike crossing that Maggie One doesn't have and it will be more in the center of activity when the project is complete. Sometimes, second in number isn't really that bad of a deal.

So, yesterday, while looking at the work that had been done since August when the equipment first appeared on scene, pilings are never a pretty part of the job, but they are the "bedrock" of the project (pardon the pun) the call of the Nikon hit me. When Maggie One was being built, over 100 weekends were spent photographing the construction process. That weighed heavy when the thought of another long-term project registered on the brain. The purpose of the trip yesterday was to stand on the west levee where Maggie One could be seen in its completed state and then look at downtown from where this project was digging into the ground (another non-intended pun) and get a feel if it would be worth the effort.

 There is a whole lot of satisfaction in one of these projects but not a whole lot of money, if any when you factor in gas, time and added dust and dirt to be cleaned from a camera professionally. It does cost money to do one of these things. As my maternal grandmother once told me: "Nothing in life is ever, ever free." She was very right on target and that phrase still rings out in me even today. To document changes in an urban setting can be rewarding. It also can be a drain on emotions, resources of time and money not to mention aches and pains, cuts and scratches. heat stroke and many more.

But, as I stood on the levee looking at the workers going about the daily task of such a project and looking back at Maggie One, then the future Maggie Two, it was realized that I had to give it a shot, or two, since another pun worked its way in the text. While this is kind  of written tongue and cheek, it is urban history that can make a difference, even if that difference is ever so small. Much like the history that answered a question just two years ago about where Air Force One had been parked at Love Field when Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as President. It was a photo that gave the answer. An urban photo. Lots was learned in doing the Maggie One Project. Certainly, more can be learned from the Maggie Two. Provided health and money issues remain status quo.

So, Maggie One :  Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge (complete and open)
       Maggie Two: Margaret McDermott Bridge ( unofficially under way, August,2013 )


Link: http://dallascityhall.com/committee_briefings/trinity_river.html

Link: http://www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philanthropy

12/29/13: correction of omitted text.

Three Stops For A Vulture, A Bridge and A Missouri Football Team

Stop One: Sometimes, being in the right place at the right time is because of the camera. It is amazing how a camera does train you eye to pick up on things long before others. Having my camera in the car, enables me to get a shot that would otherwise be missed altogether.

 

Such was the case this afternoon. After going to the bank, it wasn't two miles before I see this huge bird in my traffic lane. The bird flies from the traffic lane onto the roof of a building being used as a charter school. At the light, I turned, pulled into the side street and parked. The bird wasn't moving. In short, there were two dead squirrels in the traffic lane. Not one, but two! That within itself was unusual but what surprised me most was that it was what I grew up knowing to be a turkey vulture. While they are related to eagles and hawks and falcons, they are not  seen on the ground in the city as much as a hawk or even an eagle or two.
 

Watching the vulture for a while, the bird became very interested in a camera mounted on the side of the building, just below the coping that  the vulture seemed to like. One, he could keep his eye on the carrion and could see me. So when I did start to shoot, he just posed for the camera. I do talk to animals while I shoot them. They understand more than most people think.

 

Stop Two:  After spending nearly two full years and over 100 weekends of following the construction of the Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge, when it was finished, my thoughts were that I would not devote that much time to the second bridge whenever construction started. Today, I went down to see what I could see and try to determine if I had any interest in photographing another long-term construction project. It took about 5-minutes and I was hooked. When these large projects get into your blood, they just seem to call out wherever you are until you can't resist any longer.

 

Stop Three: On the way home, I was just coming up on the Anatole as these 5 white buses with a 6-man motor cycle escort was pulling into the hotel. Making the block and coming back down the service road on the west side of 35E at Market Center, I pulled into the parking lot. The team had unloaded and was inside the hotel. But, I was able to get a shot of the last two buses in the 5-bus lineup. Shortly, the motor cycle guys waited until I passed then pulled in behind me. At the second light, they took off like crazy and headed toward I-30 on Inwood. Hampton Road a mile farther south.   

 

Generally, for all three events, I was in the right spot at the right time again. It was about the same thing a couple of years ago when checking on the trains at Fair Park and the Penn State Athletic Semi pulled into the Cotton Bowl.
 

Since the teams arrival at the Anatole today, I submitted the picture of the buses on a live news feed and the image is running on the 48-hour cycle. Because it is one of the top NCAA football events of the season, I could not withhold the image. It was sports news after all!

Turkey Vulture interested in camera just below on wall

The Hotel Anatole and the Missouri Team

Work on the second Santiago Calatrava Bridge is under way on I-30. When Finished, the bridge will be known as the Margaret McDermott Bridge.

 

 

 

 

The Big Man is Enroute!

As I listen to a live broadcast of  the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols from the chapel of King's College, Cambridge, England, on the live stream from WXXI-FM  Classical 91.5, Rochester, New York,  Michael Barone, the host of  Pipe Dreams, has just reported that in England, the congregation of hundreds from all around the world are departing the historic chapel into," a dark and chilly evening". Christmas, in England, has officially begun.

It is a misnomer to call the structure a chapel, for it is a magnificent Gothic Cathedral in every sense of the word. The Harris & Harris pipe organ produces sounds only heard by great organs in great cathedrals. It is the reason that I love English choral music in general and at this time of year. Especially, to the songs of English composer, John Rudder.

This is my 28th year of listening to the annual live broadcast program that began in 1928. Although, the service began in 1918 and was only suspended for one year, 1930. It was broadcast all during WW II though the beautiful stain glass, and heat was removed from the chapel. It is my Christmas gift to myself. I do not have a Christmas tree, nor do I celebrate with presents and the trappings of  a society  that we have become. Some traditions are exceedingly strong and radiate from the heart. Christmas is that to me and in true English tradition, this program in slightly less than 90-minutes, captures that joy; that wholeness;that happiness and that fulfillment of completeness, from year-to-year.

The Bidding Prayer as printed in the Program, Order of Service, Christmas Eve, 2013, King's College Cambridge, England that is linked below.

   Be it this Christmas Eve our care and delight to prepare ourselves to hear again the message of the angels; in heart and mind to go even unto Bethlehem and see this thing which is come to pass, and the Babe lying in a manger.
Let us read and mark in Holy Scripture the tale of the loving purposes of God from the first days of our disobedience unto the glorious Redemption brought us by this Holy Child; and let us make this Chapel, dedicated to Mary, his most blessèd Mother, glad with our carols of praise:
But first let us pray for the needs of his whole world; for peace and goodwill over all the earth; for unity and brotherhood within the Church he came to build, and especially in the dominions of our sovereign lady Queen Elizabeth, within this University and City of Cambridge, and in the two royal and religious Foundations of King Henry VI here and at Eton:
And because this of all things would rejoice his heart, let us at this time remember in his name the poor and the helpless, the cold, the hungry and the oppressed; the sick in body and in mind and them that mourn; the lonely and the unloved; the aged and the little children; all who know not the Lord Jesus, or who love him not, or who by sin have grieved his heart of love.
Lastly let us remember before God all those who rejoice with us, but upon another shore and in a greater light, that mul- titude which no man can number, whose hope was in the Word made flesh, and with whom, in this Lord Jesus, we for evermore are one.
These prayers and praises let us humbly offer up to the throne of heaven, in the words which Christ himself hath taught us:

Our Father …
 OUR FATHER, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we for- give them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil. Amen.
 Almighty God bless us with his grace: Christ give us the joys of everlasting life: and unto the fellowship of the citizens above may the King of Angels bring us all.
All Amen.


Here is the link for the program this Christmas Eve,2013.

http://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/events/chapel-services/nine-lessons.html













 

The Sadness of the Holiday Season

We all get excited about the holiday season. Everyone is out getting those cherished presents and goodies for that special holiday feast. Except, for those that see the other side of the joy. 

This is my favorite. The expression on the face says so much.



I watched this fireman go up and down the ladder a few time in full gear. It's not a short way up or down.

The crews on the front side would win, then they would loose the battle. It went back and forth for nearly four hours. Team work payed off in the end. The displaced residents were aided by the American Red Cross.