Wordless Wednesday - Bold Autumnal Hues

Patti took a trip to Sunflower Farms nearby in Orange CT. On a rainy and dreary Fall day, the gray was  offset by the brilliant mums, so many colors. The perfect antidote to gray...See more WW with NC Sue

Shadow Shot Sunday - Shadowy Gourds

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 is back is this crisp autumnal season. Lotos of bold colors in this sea of pumpkins and mums - and many shadows too. The always lovely Patti captured and blogged about the season at Bomba's Farm in our northern neighbor of Seymour CT. Too bad the bold hues of Autumn will be replaced with the stark white snow of Winter...

Friday’s Hunt 2016-2.16

We welcome Friday, as it allows us the next installment of Teresa's fun meme, Friday Hunt  Now armed with our weekly clues, let's begin...

Starts with 'P'. I choose Pennsylvania, on the old US-22 at the WV-PA state line, the always lovely Patti at the Arc de Triomphe de l'Étoile   in Paris.

Week's Favorite: Bomba's Farm in neighboring Seymour, with one pumpkin draped in pink in honor of Seymour Pink Day, highlighting breast cancer awareness this month. Seymour Pink has been a wonderful resource for us since Patti's five-year travel since her diagnosis and treatment...

Whole. How about a whole pizza made with parmesan, white beans and escarole at our favorite pizza place, Marco Pizzeria in neighboring Derby. Thanks again Teresa!

Friday’s Hunt 2016-2.14

It's time again for a favorite meme, Friday Hunt. I was busy last week with Ansonia's Harvest Festival as chairman of the cultural commission - only four people made the event happen, and it was a great day - but a bit tiring. Nevertheless I am back and here is my post with Teresa's prompts for the week...

Starts with 'N'. I am today choosing New York City in three eras. The first I believe is from 1939, and it is my dad (aged about 11-1/2) I believe on the Queens side off the East River. The next one is from 1961, and my father and his sister (my Aunt Terry) on a building giving another view of the then skyline. The final pic in color was taken by passenger and first officer Patti on the southbound on the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway in December 2013.

Weeks Favorite. This was last Saturday at the Harvest Festival on Ansonia's Main Street. The first pic is Mayor avoid Cassetti posing with festival mascot 'Harvey' - what a sight! The second is a reflection of some of the city from the Griffin Hospital van, facing dad's Food Truck, a fabulous food destination (think a burger topped with mac n' Cheese if you can :)

I Made This. A few years ago, with assistance from my daughter Allegra, I made a frittata in three stages: sautéed the veggies, added the egg and cream mixture and after it was taken out of the oven and served with a Portuguese red. Thanks again Teresa!

Shadow Shot Sunday - Gastronomic Shadows

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 is back a mere two days from Food Trucks in the Valley fundraiser in Shelton CT that we attended. So many food trucks to choose from it was hard to decide on what carb-laden comfort food would make a great meal - I chose a fabulous quesadilla from Ay Arepas  but whatever your choice, it was a great late Summer event for foodies and shadows - the always lovely Patti is in the crowd scene with her camera high while taking a panoramic shot of a happy crowd...

Friday Hunt, 2016.2-1

Well, we begin the alphabet anew at Teresa's fun meme, Friday Hunt. The first clue this week is Starts with A. I have three ‘A’ subjects this week that work (I think), in order: 

• Allegra, our daughter. Here is in 1989 at our apartment in Derby, CT is the less than one-year old with her mom. The pacifier sees to be of more interest to her than the photographer…

• Angelino’s restaurant (excellent :) in Vernon, CT, the name resplendent in red neon! 

• Ansonia, our small city of 19,000 in southern CT. It is about 85 miles/137 km northeast of Midtown Manhattan, New York City 

Week's Favorite. How about or friend Rich DiCarlo, President of the Valley Arts Council. This is obviously a staged photo yet we have to look more than once at the large fellow looking ready to pedal the three-wheeled Veomobile to places unknown…

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, 2016-17

Ah, Teresa’s fun meme Friday Hunt is back for April 22nd. She supplies the clues, we happily search and provide the pics. A fun hunt this week!

Starts with 'Q'
For the letter 'Q' I return to a place of my youth, that being the the New York City borough of Queens. Granted, part of my growing up was in the Queens section of Bayside decades ago - however our son lives in Brooklyn and we have visited him a couple of times which necessitates driving along the I-678 Whitestone Bridge between Bronx and Queens. Quite a ‘Q’…no?

Week's Favorite

Yesterday, Patti were driving home from an appointment in New Haven. Patti noticed this statue at the intersection of Ct Route 34 and Ella Grasso Boulevard and captured from the passenger seat. It looks like a WWI soldier climbing out of the West River. Alas, over 20,000 cars cross through that intersection and with nowhere to park, we just couldn't find out what it was - but we aim to find out!

At Rest

Nothing but a cat looks at rest, this being our Linus. For 15 hours a day - this view from Wednesday. Sweet dreams to our furry family feline…

Friday Hunt, 2016-16

It is time again to fit the theme of Teresa's fun meme Friday Hunt. Happily the meme themes can again be met!

1.) Starts with P: I chose two pics that highlight two different iterations of the letter ‘P’, that being my lovely wife Patti and Photographer. She doesn’t drive the Grand Caravan, and chooses to take the pics on life’s journey. Here is passenger and photographer in selfies of sorts…she captures the essence of many a road trip.

2.) Week's Favorite: Patti went to a ‘senior’ prom last week that was an intergenerational event held at Ansonia High School and hosted by a multi-school Human Relations Club. Here, a student demonstrates the ‘Hokey Pokey’. It made for a post in our Valley-Voice blog and this week's Valley-Voice newsletter. Patti had a great time :)

3.) In motion: This is a view taken by our daughter Allegra in 2005 on her way home from a high-school trip to Paris and London when she was a junior. There is an interesting backstory here, as a few weeks before the trip on a rainy day, we were watching four flights that were in holding patterns while flying in the crowded sky heading to JFK airport New York City. When I picked her up from her trip a couple of weeks later, the first thing she said was "Guess what...we were in a holding pattern" I asked where and she noted it was over Groton and New London. (Connecticut). This is the pic she captured. (Most jaded flyers wouldn't think being in a holding pattern is all that cool - she did though :)

Shadow Shot Sunday - Melting Gnomes

Well, not exactly melting, but facing apart anyway. As the season of Winter is beginning its fading away this year (yay), the sun gets shorter as do the shadows. So for this week's edition of Shadow Shot Sunday 2, I am using a photo taken by the always lovely Patti a few years ago of her gnomes in Winter They seem to be cracking and breaking apart but are as winsome as ever, and their shadows in better shape...

Friday Hunt, 2016-08

We are back to Teresa's fun photo meme Friday Hunt. For this week, the themes: Starts with 'H', Week's Favorite and Family

• Starts with H: How about Horse? These equines were seen in 2014 at Locket’s Meadow Farm in Bethany, Connecticut. This farm offers a refuge for formerly neglected and abused horses, and these were gentle giants. Yes, this one is happily taking a gift of turf grass from the little girl

• Week's Favorite: The always lovely Patti prepared a Valentine’s Day treat, homemade donuts! There is a difference in these pastries between the usual donut shop and these fabulous examples of fried dough, and what donut seller presents their holiday wares this nicely
  

• Family: I offer an oft used picture of our family on the first day of school 1996. Our daughter about to begin third grade, our son first grade, both at Mead School in Ansonia. We are at the bus stop, doting parents and our then cute (and now grown) kids…

Shadow Shot Sunday - Afternoon Tea, if not for me...

On this snowy day in the Northeast, it is time to ignore the gray skies and focus on this week's Shadow Shot Sunday 2. Last Saturday, the always lovely Patti and Allegra went for a girls day out (not me though :) at an afternoon tea at the fancy Bee and Thistle Inn in the artistic town of Old Lyme, CT.

I'd like to have tried the Goat Cheese & Watercress and Chicken Salad with Cilantro & Scallions sandwiches, but it was a girl's day out. Perhaps next year...so for this post, I'll defer to photos Patti took of the elegant food and tea presentation and their side order of shadows...

Shadow Shot Sunday - New eatery with a Side of Shadows

We look at shadows where we find them. So for Shadow Shot Sunday 2, I go back a mere week where Patti and I attended a new restaurant opening in nearby Derby. The River Rock Tavern is the latest in a series of eateries in this spot, but do think this is the best looking one so far - maybe because we never had such delicacies as deep fried pickles before (they were delicious :) Naturally there were shadows emanating along the beautiful brick walls. I am not sure if the shadows were to be an Apéritif or an Entrée. Tasty though...