civilized ku # 427-429 ~ into every life, a little rain must fall

Shadow transitions • click to embiggenWe've had a couple days of relatively early-Spring-warm weather and lots of sunshine.

What this has brought to my attention is "the light" - most specifically, "the light" with sharply defined shadow shapes. I guess that's because it seems like our Winter has been dominated by "grey" days. In any event, I have been preoccupied with the notion of light and shadow and the above triptych represents, amongst many other things, the last pictures made with my EP-1 prior to sending it on its journey to Olympus America for warranty repair.

Just prior to making the triptych pictures, the camera was sitting on my desk (after making the following red sled entry) when, as it was powering off, it made a new and unfamiliar sound. When next I turned the camera on to start the shadow transitions pictures, it made the same sound and, after the screen came to life, I noticed that the IS icon was blinking red.

Long story short, after consulting the manual and Olympus tech support, it was determined that a blinking IS icon indicates an Image Stabilization System Malfunction. While the camera continued to make pictures despite the malfunction, it was obviously in need of repair.

So, it's time to dust off the E-3 and reintroduce myself to some heavy metal.

civilized ku # 426 ~ details

Spring sunlight • click to embiggenIn addition to the aforementioned shadow shapes, sunlight has been streaming in our windows creating some interesting light shapes.

While picturing this scene, I noticed a very small detail that I paid particular attention to while framing the scene. IMO, it's a rather neat and "surprising" little detail that, once you notice it, really tends to dominate the picture.

Anyone want to venture a guess as to what the little detail is?

civilized ku # 425 ~ red sled

A sign of Spring • click to embiggenIt only looked this way once. Chances are overwhelming that it will never look this way again.

Ain't picture making grand?

civilized ku # 421-424 ~ Marges

Behind the bar at Marges ~ at the beach on Lake Ontario - Sea Breeze, NY • click to embiggen
The bar at Marges ~ at the beach on Lake Ontario - Sea Breeze, NY • click to embiggenMy last place of residence, when I lived in Rochester, NY, was in the suburban community (founded 1837) of Irondequoit. Irondequoit is bordered on the north by Lake Ontario and on the east by Irondequoit Bay. As one might assume, recreation on / in / or 'round-about the water is not only an ongoing fact of life but also has rich tradition going way back.

A big part of that tradition is found in lakeside neighborhood of Sea Breeze which is home to Sea Breeze Amusement Park - a Trolley Park that is still in continuous operation dating back to 1879. As a the major attraction on the lake at Sea Breeze, the place was the centerpiece of many other businesses that sprung up around it and catered to the recreating public over the years.

One business that has survived - Marges - is a funky little bar/tavern located in old ramshackle cottage on the lake on a very narrow strip of land - up and over the railroad tracks - that runs across the northern end of Irondequoit Bay. The business, not the cottage itself, began life over 80 years ago as a Prohibition-era speakeasy.

Marges is a great place to hang and drink, especially in the summer with its outdoor deck on the beach. During the not-so-beachy weather, the inside is very interesting / challenging place to drink because Marges gives new meaning to the word "tipsy" when it comes to drinking. That is to say, the place could function quite nicely as a classic funhouse for the Sea Breeze Amusement Park (which is located right across the road).

Not a single solitary wall, ceiling, or floor surface in the place is "square". Inside Marges, the only possible use for the words "parallel" and "perpendicular" is in a sentence such as .... he/she is no longer perpendicular to the planet's surface, however, he/she is somewhat parallel to the floor.

But of course, that is just part of the charm of visit to Marges. Considering its origins as a cottage, it truly is a fun house.

civilized ku # 417-420 ~ casing the joint

Jukebox at Marges ~ at the beach on Lake Ontario - Sea Breeze, NY • click to embiggen
The wife at Marges ~ at the beach on Lake Ontario - Sea Breeze, NY • click to embiggenThe wife had never been to Marges, so after my brother's retirement party, I took her on a date to Marges.

In addition to the funhouse character of Marges, another of its charms is the jukebox which is chock full of vintage selections - 5 for a dollar - from the likes of Elvis, Johnny Cash, Patsy Cline, Roy Orbison, and many other wayback artists. So, with a handful of quarters and a couple of Jamaican-brewed Red Stripes (an intermittent sponsor of the Jamaica National Bobsled Team), a good time - and a cheap date - was had by all.

What more can a man ask for?

civilized ku # 416 / relationships # 8 ~ 36 years of hauling mail

Retirement party mental wandering • click to embiggen
Retirement party • click to embiggen

ku # 683 / civilized ku # 415 ~ it really is the way how you chew it

Two trees ~ 3.07.10 Raquette Lake, NY - in the Adirondack PARK / 03.06.10 Fairport, NY • click to embiggenIt has been "suggested" that my pictures here on The Landscapist are lacking in nuance. At least that's what I assume is the meaning of this comment from Paul Maxim (in response to my response to the linked entry):

I really don't care if someone takes a million pictures of dead leaves, grass, twigs, snow on the street or the neighbor's porch ... [B]ut please, please show me something that's got some shred of nuance to it.

Proceeding upon the assumption that Paul's definition of "nuance" is similar to my own (and that of the gang at Meriam-Webster) - 1: a subtle distinction or variation; 2: a subtle quality; 3: : sensibility to, awareness of, or ability to express delicate shadings (as of meaning, feeling, or value) - I find it rather odd that the oft-leveled criticism of my pictures - that I am way too nuanced/subtle for the room - has been turned on its head, re: Paul's opinion of my pictures.

However, no matter which way one does or doesn't see it, "nuance", picture making / viewing wise, is most often a matter of perception and opinion. Some might even venture that, seeing and perceiving wise, it's more a matter of the difference between "insightful" and "uncreative".

Some might be able to write a book or, at the very least, a lengthy, erudite, and informed critique of the above diptych. A critique which would discuss the nuanced qualities to be found in the diptych - the evidence in each individual picture of an awareness of the ability to capture and present delicate visual shadings; how that visual quality helps lead the viewer to discern the subtle variations of meaning and expressed values exhibited by the pictures; how the pictures subtly work in tandem to suggest the subtle distinctions and the subtle similarities between them.

Or, some might be inclined to just yawn and plead for pictures that got some shred of nuance / surprise to them.

civilized ku # 411-414 ~ hot dog

Heid's hots - Food You'll Like ~ Liverpool, NY • click to embiggen
Heid's - Food You'll Like ~ Liverpool, NY • click to embiggenI'm back from Rochester and my youngest brother's retirement party and, as the pictures in this entry attest, it's a given that, if I'm headed to western NYS, a stop at Heid's of Liverpool is part of the travel itinerary.

As the claim emblazoned across the facade of Heid's states - Food You'll Like, they do indeed offer food that you'll like. Of course, that statement assumes that your definition of "food" is "hot dogs" and that if you really want Food You Won't Like there's no reason to be at Heid's in the first place.

But, here's the thing about hot dogs - I can't speak for other regions, but here in my regional environs the hot dog case at supermarkets is absolutely not the place to purchase hot dogs with expectation that they will be "food you'll like". All of the offering therein are the limp tasteless tubular trifles that give hot dogs a bad name and a bad taste.

Fortunately, a trip to central/western NYS by any family member or friend always involves a visit to a Wegmans for the expressed purpose of buying and bringing back a trunk load of either Zweigles Premium Pop Open Hot Dogs (natural casing) or Hoffman's German Brand Franks (the franks from Heid's).

FYI, that's a Hoffman's coney with ketchup featured in the top picture.