Life in the Bristolwood

Whine, whine, whine…..

After enjoying all the beautiful weather we have been blessed with, we are now experiencing some chilly temperatures. And snow. Yes, just this morning, we got a “dusting”.  You understand that I love the winter, but this is the end of April.  I don’t enjoy seeing the flowers and bushes get roughed up!  So….

I decided to post some springlike photos I took last week. Michelle had an interview in downtown Rochester (again) so the camera and I wandered around just a bit.  I was afraid to go too far, lest my skirt fly up into my face!  Yes, it was very windy that day!  So, here are some downtown photos….

Wow…I took quite a few photos in such a short amount of time! 

Michelle called and said she was done, so Mark and I headed over to pick her up.  Upon picking her up, I did something unusual for me. 

I suffer from an affliction called I never open my mouth and tell the family what I want to do. I am accused of this on a regular basis….the family insists that if I want/need something, I need to tell them.  And so, I asked if perchance Highland Park wasn’t *too* far away?  In checking with GPS, we discovered it was “only a couple miles away”. Now, I was really excited. 

Blue skies. Puffy white clouds. Lots of sunshine.  Wow, all these conditions add up to a nice opportunity to take photos. Highland Park on a really nice day….how could I not love this!  (Sorry, but you, Dear Reader, are about to get innundated with photos. You ARE forewarned!)

I have previously mentioned that Rochester is famous for its Lilac Festival.  I think I read the festival begins May 11 this year.  I am including photos of some Lilacs I took at the park.  As you can see, the Lilacs were out pretty much, already.  I am wondering what they are going to look like in a couple of weeks….I am thinking they may be spent by then! And yes, the fastival takes place in Highland Park.

I sure covered a lot of territory in a short amount of time. I was only at the park for about half an hour.

On the way home, we passed by the Erie Canal, so I thought perhaps I should take a quick peek there as well.  Don’t worry…there are only a few pictures left!

I don’t know what the weather is like in your neck of the woods. but I feel better just seeing these photos!  It’s like a breath of fresh spring air!

I have so many photos, but for this time, I am not going to comment on them.  I am just going to post them! 

And…..it’s almost Friday!  Yay!!!

Okay….breaking the silence!  Did you ever see the movie It’s a Wonderful Life with Jimmy Stewart?  It is a Christmas movie and it is said the town of Beford Falls might well have been loosely based on the (real) little town of  Seneca Falls, New York.  So…Seneca Falls is proud of this fact.  So…it is kind of sad to see Zuzu’s Cafe (named after the little daughter Zuzu in the movie) up for lease!?

These photos are really random and taken from all over the place.  Just thought you might enjoy….

Yesterday afternoon, Michelle had an interview for an internship job.  At Rochester Institute of Technology, it is mandatory that students work for two ten week periods at a business in their field of study before they can graduate. Michelle is majoring in Business Management and she is thinking she might like to hone in on Human Relations.

As an aside, when we picked Michelle up after she was done at school, she was so excited.  She has a class that is somewhat “difficult”. (She has told us that one of the major differences between the community college she attended and RIT is that the students at RIT are more focused and are striving to achieve good great grades.) The professor noted that the scores on a test  handed back ranged from 58% to 93%.  Michelle got a 93%.

We had some time to kill before Michelle had her interview downtown.

I have this “strange” concept of downtown Rochester.  I imagine it is safe if one is always alert to safety!  When Mark and I were first married, we lived very close to the downtown area.  Even though it was a stone’s throw away, I never, ever explored it! The area where we lived, I had to always make sure that the doors were securely locked every time we left home….or even went outside!  Just before Mark and I were married, I went to his house to do laundry.  I was in and out of the house, cooking steaks on a grill.  I went down to the basement to put the clothes from the washing machine to the dryer, and there was a young man in the basement, stealing some of Mark’s  tools! Another time, someone broke into my car to steal my radio. (Now you know why we live in the woods!)

We  dropped Michelle at a very nice building on a small street off Main Street.  The area was extremely clean and neat!  Michelle had been given information about where to park, so Mark and I sat in the car  in the parking lot while Michelle was inside.  As I sat there, I asked Mark if it might be safe for me to take some photos.  He asked *which* camera I might be toting around and when I told him the little micro 4/3′ds, he told me just to not look too conspicuous. Off I went!

The wind yesterday was ridiculous!  I struggled to hold the camera steady on many shots. I am not exaggerating at all…I had no idea it was going to be so windy!! But, I did manage to get some photos!

This lovely pillar sat alongside the road where Michelle’s interview was. Nice to be formally “greeted”!  And, Rochester is indeed a city rich in history. It is shameful that there is so much crime there now.

A view of some of the buildings downtown.

This building, with its Mansard style roof really intrigued me. Seeing the sign “Leasing” made me wonder just what they were leasing?  Michelle has a dream to buy a loft downtown and live there.  Argh.  I cannot imagine it…while we were there, it was so annoying, hearing emergency vehicles constantly screaming either off in the distance, or down our street.  We “even” heard gunshot.  In fact, the year we moved to our new home, Mark’s dad showed us a news article, showing there had been nine murders that year within about an area two miles square, of our old house. Downtown just isn’t my idea of “nice”!

I looped around to the front of the building that was leasing, only to find is was next door to this beautful Victorian-styled church!  The tree with its abundant blossoms kind of diminishes the beauty of this church, but if you enlarge it, you can see just how beautiful it is!

This is the front side of the building that is leasing!  Oh, what an awesome building this is! Please do click to enlarge it….The lentils over the windows are incredible! There is a “badge” on the left side, top, that I think, reads 1873.  This building is so stunning, but in need of some major repairs.  I noticed windows missing here and there.  What a shame that such an incredible building has been let go. Located in a beautiful setting, I can imagine that this building would lend itself to some fantastic luxury apartments, if it were not too far gone on the interior.

Just down the street, and around the corner, I found this plaque, giving information about the quaint church i had seen!

I had not wandered too far, when I saw yet another interesting old building….

Wow.  This building was very interesting, indeed.  What was it originally?  I discovered the poster below in a nearby storefront and photographed it.

Well, the building a was HUGE store, built by two Scotsmen! Today, it has a sign that calls it “City Place”. Not sure about what it is, but the building is beautiful and very impressive in size, even by today’s standards!

I have mentioned previously that Rochester boasts a rather amazing Lilac Festival each year, in May.  The city has pretty flags sporting lilacs hanging about..

Rochester is also home of the prestigious Hochstein Scool of Music.

I was rather enjoying my little walkabout. Mark had told me that although Rochester is a fairly large city, the downtown area is “condensed”, rather than sprawling, making it easy to visit several areas within walking distance.  I wasn’t gone for more than maybe half an hour, and I saw so much of the city!

As I passed by an art supply store, I noticed these two dummies.

I circled back around to the lot where Mark sat. Off in the distance, I saw something pertaining to where my own love for photography began,

That is the Kodak building.  Kodak.  My very first experience with a Kodak camera was with my parents’  Kodak Reflex II camera. From that, I became so modern with my camera that touted a 126 mm casette and one of those hideous “cube” flashes! Ah, the memories!

I walked down to a turn on Cascade Drive, where I found not only this really cool clock,

but also another nifty view!  I love the sign welcoming folks to downtown Rochester, with the Kodak building off in the not too far distance.  I was not so thrilled that as soon as I got my shot staged, a big ole train came barreling along with those ugly, ugly black tanker cars!

I felt compelled to take this next photo, because the clouds surrounding the tree made it look like the tree had a halo! Let me tell you, that tree may look like an angelic thing with its beautifully innocent white flowers, but the thing stunk! How something so pretty could smell so foul….

And, just a couple more shots…

One of the coolest parts to taking this look at that city was that as I was taking the photos, people would stop walking and take a look at what I was photographing.  If nothing else, I made people stop for just a second, to look at something they might have passed a million times, yet never really saw!  That is one of the things that I love about photographing the world around me…not only do I look at things differently, but I cause others to have a look as well!

And, of course,  I was more than happy to see this…

at day’s end.  Life is so nice in the Bristolwood!

Key operative word: dropping!!!!

We have been so busy lately with this, that, and the other thing.  Yesterday, we ate dinner a little after six.  By eight, I was passed out, sound asleep.  And, I slept until 6:30 this morning!  Yes, I think I have been a little sleep-deprived.  There is always something more to do, and it seems like sleep is low man on the totem pole!

Today, we went to visit my parents for Easter.  We had a marvelous day for travel.  It was bright and sunny all the way to their house.  We went to the rod and gun club for a spectacular dinner….I had a Queen cut Prime Rib. Someone made a mistake, because I think I got half a side of beef, instead!  The prime rib on my plate looked more like a ROAST!  I am so disappointed I didn’t photograph my dinner…I was too busy eating!

We visited for a few hours and it rained during that time.  Then the sun would break out from behind thick clouds. Strange weather, for sure.  We made it home by nine tonight, and there was no rain the whole way home.  Although there were cloudy skies on the way home, at our house, the sky was clear, and there were endless stars!

Just a couple of photos from today…

Yup, Remarkable Randy managed to find me one wonderful Chocolate Scottie Dog!!!  Of course, Randy and the kids were joking around about whether or not I would actually eat the Scottie Dog.  Hmmm…..

And, one photo taken from the rear view mirror on our way home….

Just look at those cool clouds!

And, as a *bonus*, we got some good news when we arrived home.  Let me back up a bit.  When we arrived at my parents’ house, my father was in so much pain!  He said his right leg was hurting so much, he could barely walk.  He even thought perhaps he would stay home while my mom, Randy, and our family went out to eat.

Well, Dad did come with us, and I for one, was happy he came. 

When we got back to their house, I asked Dad if he might talk with his neighbor…he is a massage therapist and he has a business not too far away.  Well, since it was Sunday and a holiday at that,  my dad didn’t want to bother.  After we left, Randy went over to their house and talked to Jim.  He came over and worked on Dad’s leg.  After he was done,  Dad said the pain was reduced and he could walk on the leg again!  I am so happy!!!

It is amazing the work that was done for us on that cross that we celebrate every Easter.  It is so hard to imagine how God’s love for us can be so personal.  And yet, not only can we count on a heavenly reward, but in this life, He gives us the people and answers we often need!  What greater love?

Yesterday’s bone-chillin’ miserable weather really was an April Fool’s joke!

We left for Rochester early this morning, escorted the entire way by glorious sunshine AND luscious blue skies! It didn’t matter that it wasn’t as warm as earlier this year, because the sun’s warmth was enough to generate warmth from within! 

So, now that you know the kind of day we had,  here are random photos taken today with the Nikon….

As you can see, the sun was with us the entire day and it really was quite an awesome sunset from the upstairs window!

If I didn’t see it with my own eyes, I never would have believed it.  Better yet, we know the camera never lies!

Okay.  I confess. It was just this Heron that took off and headed eastward.  I shot the photo toward the “light of day”. (as opposed to the sun!) One must admit, though,  it *does* sorta kinda look like a flying dino! (Pterodactyl)

Naw, not really.  I was only there for a short period of time.

Mark and I drove up to Mark’s mom’s today to take her to another doctor appointment.  While she was at the hospital, Mark and I went over to visit briefly with a friend of ours who lives just a short distance from the hospital.  He has an awesome three wheel motorcycle that he showed us.  It was amazing…..it is a custom build.

After Mark’s mom callled for us to pick her up, we decided to go down to Irondequoit Bay to grab cheeseburgers for lunch.  It was actually a late lunch, but burgers sounded good to all three of us!  The store we went to is located at the bay, so I was pretty excited to see just what waterfowl might greet us (or not) this time.

We finished lunch, then wandered on over near the boat launch.  Wow!  There were so many birds!  It was a great adventure, because it seemed like they were all waiting for me and my camera.  They were all very friendly, posing and just being their beautiful selves!

I won’t comment any further.  The photos speak for themselves.

I told Mark and his mom they could just leave me at the bay for a few hours. I just love being around the water and these birds.  I saw one pair of Swans that looked like they were courting….they kept rubbing their heads together, forming a perfect heart shape!  I totally missed the whole thing because my SD card was full!  DRAT!

I would venture to say that most years, here in the northeastern USA, everyone makes comments on the first day of spring, like, What spring?  Suffice it to say,  our wintry weather generally carries on pretty much into April and sometimes even May. But, not so this year!

I was greeted by a bouquet of Daffodils in the front garden this morning!  I had to smile, as most years, the flowers show up one at a time,  so there are never more than a couple of pretty faces showing at one time.  Not so this year, though!

I planted the Hyacinths a couple of years ago and they are also up and flowering….way earlier than previous years!

When I walked down to the mailbox,  I forgot to take my camera along.  My loss, for sure.  I thought I needed to have my eyes examined as a tiny powder blue butterfly flitted in front of me, landing in the driveway.  I literally ran to the house to grab my camera, but the little bugger had flown off by the time I got back.  Seriously…..butterflies in March?

As the day heated up little by little,  I had a thought that I would like to go kayaking.  Michelle was busy with schoolwork, so I asked Ben if he would go with me.  He reluctantly agreed.

When I stepped into the water in my flipflops to get into the kayak, the water was pretty cold! Thankfully, the kayaks have nice seats that raise one off the bottom of the craft. 

Pretty far out from shore, we came on a group of Coots and Bufflehead Ducks. The ducks are fairly easy to identify with their striking black and white coloration and large heads.

My original thought was that perhaps we should just paddle a little today, it being our first outing and all.  As we paddled out to the mouth of the West River,  we decided to give it a go to paddle to another boat launch along the river. 

Although I was hoping to see some Great Blue Herons,  there were none around.  I did get to see some blinds hunters use all along the river, though.  Some were pretty rustic! We also saw an awful lot of (very startling!!!) fish hopping up out of the water.  One hit my paddle and I yelped!  Somehow,  I just could not get comfortable with the thought of a fish jumping out of the water and into my kayak!  Thankfully, it didn’t happen!

If you click on the photo below, you can see the windfarm up in the hills, south of Naples.

We managed to successfully flush out a number of Canada Geese as we paddled along.  They scolded us as we went by, then when they felt we were getting too close, they lifted off!

At one point, we ran amuck!  Ben called out to me that he was stuck!  I thought he was kidding until he hopped out of his kayak and pushed it!  The water really was only maybe two or three inches deep in some places!  That’s enough to deter one!

As we neared the end of our journey, we saw turtles everywhere, lying in the sun on floating logs.

I never would have ever dreamed of going kayaking in March. So strange!

Yesterday had to have been one of the most awesome days in a while! 

I had some ridding up to do to get my house in order in the morning.  Things have a way of walking off and finding new homes at my house.   I know this isn’t anything major, but there are times when it drives me batty!  Anyway, I was excited because our friends, Jeanne and Ben were coming over!

They came by at two. Jeanne had warned up not to eat too much lunch because they were bringing a snack!  I had made up a fresh batch of pesto, something I’ve not done in a long time!  I put that out with crackers but Jeanne and Ben brought CHEESCAKE!  Woohoo!  Jeanne even brought plates and forks!  Talk about a planner!!!!

We ate that fabulous cheesecake, then Ben and Mark played their guitars while Jeanne and I sat out on the porch.  We had our usual great time…..the air was warm and there was a gentle breeze blowing across the porch.  We could not have planned a better day!  As we sat and talked, Ben and Mark played through an open window, and Jeanne and I were impressed by the music!

The only problem was that the time passed by much too quickly and Jeanne and Ben were leaving.  They have two adorable Bichons and one of the little ones is afraid of the thunder.  As the day progressed, the weather became more threatening, so they had to get back to the girls!

I was so disappointed when they left,  I asked Mark to take me to Arby’s.  They have a 2 for $4 fish sandwich special.  The kids and Mark love these sandwiches, which are quite large!  Mark agreed and we were off to Canandaigua.  As we pulled into Arby’s, rain let loose and we got quite a nice rainfall.  However, over to the west,  the sun was shining. Brightly!

We got our sandwiches and pulled around to the back of Arby’s.  There is a huge pond behind the stores located on a strip that parallels Routes 5&20.  Across the pond is a water park.  We sat there, looking and looking for a rainbow, but none was found. I did *have* to get out to take a picture, though…..

I love the colors in this photo….the sky, the blazing sun, the bike, and the bike’s reflection in the puddle just grabbed my eye!  As I returned to the car,  there “it” was!

Yes!  A rainbow finally appeared.  I took so many photos. I loved the fact that the little ducks were there.  If you are familiar with the movie Babe, this setting reminded me so much of Farmer Hoggett’s farm!  The ducks were just a little added bonus!

Well, all good things must come to an end, and we needed to get to WalMart.  Mark needed an HDMI cable, so we left and headed east.  The WalMart/Lowe’s stores are located on a sort of plateau…they and their parking lots rise up a bit off Routes 5&20.  As we drove west into the lot,  I just had to take one more photo!

Take a look at that sky!  It was just so beautiful!  Even with buildings, utility lines, and cars in the photo, this was just too good to pass up! What a great way to end an awesome day!

Yessir!

Our weather has been extraordinary.  Well, at least for those fond of summer.  Not so for the likes of me.  I am still bemoaning the lack of snowfall this winter.  Yes, go ahead and call me a poor sport, but I just do not care for hot weather.

Anyway….this morning, I went outside and was looking at the garden out front.  Magically, literally overnight, my Daffodills have gone from large green bulbous “heads” to Iamgoingtoopenanyminute buds!  The bad news is, all my glorious and brightly colored Crocuses are meeting their demise.  Apparently, the too warm temperatures not only apply to me, but also to Crocuses!

So…in tribute to my lovely Crocuses,  I will show you photos I took of them.  They were so beautiful!

I know…I showed my flowers in a post before.  But, I have some really cool photos!

While the Crocuses were in their glory, the honeybees were working like crazy, gathering pollen! 

I really like gatting good shots of the bees working, but in this last photo, there were actually three bees all working on the same flower!

Yesterday was another relaxing day. The day culminated with Mark and I going out to dinner in Canandaigua with some old friends of ours!  We met our friends, the Copenings and the Lucianos at a fantastic Italian restaurant downtown, called Casa de Pasta.  The food was truly amazing!  The best part, though, was visiting with our friends whom we have not seen in years! We made our minds up that we certainly will not allow years to pass again before we see these friends! It is terrible how we get so busy that we lose contact with those who mean so much to us!

Our evening ended relatively early, as the Lucianos had a bit of a drive home.  The sun was setting over the surrounding hills, so I asked Mark to pull up onto the City Pier once again.  I have rarely been disappointed by Canandaigua sunsets.

And, once again, the sunset was wonderful!