Wordless Wednesday - Defying Gravity (and sense?)

These BMX stunt riders seem to ignore gravity as they float through the air with the greatest of ease (sort of), while performing at Seymour (CT) Middle School. Cooler than cool! See more WW at NC Sue!

Shadow Shot Sunday - Fraught with danger?

It has been a whole week, and time again for Shadow Shot Sunday 2. Last week, Teresa’s fun meme Friday Hunt is back! Patti attended a BMX bicycle stunt show at Seymour Middle School last week. Here, three of the school’s teachers are on the ground where one of the riders was going to ‘jump’ over these brave souls.

I suppose that the rider was going to perform his gravity defying jump sans ramps over the trio. However, he performed his leap - on his feet! No harm, no foul…

The story with more pics was published on our Valley-Voice newsletter on Monday. Should you go, happy reading!

Friday Hunt, 2016-22

Teresa’s fun meme Friday Hunt is back! The themes are here and I thought a trip back in time for two of the themes might be in order…

Starts with V. Of course, I’ll use my last name which is Villers. It is the family name, and my photo entries take us back to the past where myself and my sisters and brother, all seven of us are shown. The first pic is from the Spring of 1969 in front of our East Hartford CT home. I (in the jacket) and two sisters are in Catholic school uniforms. And two wore plaid skirts at that same school

The second photo is from 1987 at my sister’s wedding. She was an officer in the USAF, as was the groom, so she wore her officer dress uniform instead of in white - and quite classy. This the last pic of all seven. Two have passed since then, so it is a great pic to remember us all by…

Week's Favorite. Patti was at a BMX bicycle stunt show at Seymour Middle School last week. Here, an Assistant Principal sits calmly under the performer as he jumps over her. I don’t think they were all that close. However, I am not going to test my theory…

Sunshine. This is another old print from November 1981. Here is a mid-Autumn sunset taken (as a passenger :) on the I-90 Mass. Turnpike between Boston and Worcester, the print taken with a simple 50mm Canon rangefinder. This all shows that given enough light, any camera will do…

SOOC - Soft and subtle sunset

For this week's post in Straight Out of the Camera - SOOC, Patti captured the sunset from last Thursday from Derby CT over the Housatonic River. The trestle offers a nice demarkcation between sky and water and this slightly pixelated phone photo looks almost like an Impressionist painting of a very nice evening in the Spring...

Shadow Shot Sunday - Chrome and red

I am back for this week's version 

of Shadow Shot Sunday 2. I made a visit to the Ansonia's Fire Museum and its motorized memorabilia within. I had posed about this museum back in 2012, but I was taken even more with this 1946 Mack firetruck . There is something about the old styling, round fenders (wings) and chrome grille and Mack bulldog on the hood. Not art-deco yet not modern, it is so retro cool. Naturally, shadows fall under and around the vehicle so it is (to me :) a wonderful subject. I bought a new droid phone and these pics worked out without editing - I may try more indoor shots with it again...

Friday Hunt, 2016-21

I am back for this week’s version of Teresa’s fun meme, Friday Hunt. For the week of May 20th, we are given the clues to find our pics, which for me is an offbeat look at the late 1990’s

Starts with U, which means today Unterseeboot. These vacation pics were taken in August 1999 at the Submarine Museum on the grounds of the US Navy Sub Base in Groton CT. The German word for ‘submarine’ is Unterseeboot, underesa boat. Our children were aged 10 and 8 all those years ago…

Week's Favorite. Last week, a carnival was held in Shelton. The picture was taken in Derby, just across the Housatonic River. The colors fall nicely on the surface of the river.

In the morning. Yesterday morn, Patti captured our furry family feline Linus McDonald looking out the living room window. Perhaps he is looking for prey he’ll never meet given the panes of glass. Or he is sleeping with his head up and eyes closed…

SOOC - Lonely Tulip

It is time for Straight Out of the Camera - SOOC, and this was taken two weeks ago next to our patio. Amongst the gray concrete and barren land, the colors are vibrant. Now if Springtime temps were to finally arrive...

Shadow Shot Sunday - The tall and short of it

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 returns a week after a nice event last week, that being the Recognition Breakfast for the Greater Salvation Army in Ansonia CT. Patti and I are on the advisory board and happily attended. Here, the shadows are seen behind the persons here, and the 6-ft 9-in (205 cm) Benjamin "Benny" Cornell is being recognized by the much shorter Salvation Army Major Dora Garcia. The chair was not a prop, just to allow the presenter and awardee to see eye-to-eye...

Thanks to photographer Fred Ortoli for these great captures!


Here is a slideshow of the event:

Friday Hunt, 2016-19

It is the end of the work week, and we are ready for Teresa's always fun meme Friday Hunt. We are given the themes and we are happy to search for (and find) the pics. Note that this week I am combining two of the themes into one - in an unusal view for me :)

Starts with 'S'. I'd consiered sky and sunset, having a number of pics of each. However, I am using instead a favorite nephew of mine, that being Stephen. A great guy who lives with his wife the lovely Aiko in Boston. Living in the Hub, his favorite sports teams being (in Boston) the NHL Montreal Canadians and MLB N.Y. Yankees, both not revered by the natives. I looked in the archives and found these from 1982, when he was almost 7.

Week's Favorite and Smile - I have combined the two themes here. This pic was taken at last week's Third Annual Recognition Breakfast of Greater Valley in Ansonia CT. Patti and I are on the advisory board, and we were captured during the event - I am in the wheelchair, seated low with the lovey Patti next to me. And we are smiling. And it is a favorite view :)
Thanks to photographer Fred Ortoli for capturing us and thanks toTeresa for the meme -  and the themes!

Wordless Wednesday - Ironclad

Knight "Sir Lunch-A-Lot." stands guard in Seymour (CT) Middle School, usually in the cafeteria - and now in the auditorium. Being at that awkward middle school age, students need an ironclad knight to maintain order...see NC Sue!