Friday, December 30, 2005

"Favorite Photo of 2005"
6:40pm

"Holidailies 2005"

Choosing which photo taken in 2005 for Photo Friday's theme today, "Best of 2005", wasn't easy. There were a few traditional shots, of places seen by many people, such as the view of Lady Liberty across the waters while I relaxed in Battery Park. That was a lovely day, it was so nice to sit in the shade and look at 'the Lady'. There is the view of the sidewalk along Central park. But many people have seen those views, I wanted something unique.

The shot of pots on a shelf in Mexico is a little more exotic. That was taken on a lovely day we spent with friends. But, no, that's not quite my favorite. The interplay of light and dark in this photo is precious. But I still can't call that my favorite.

My favorite is at once commonplace, yet unordinary. It speaks of finding beauty in the unexpected places. It was taken on a day in which Julia and I got outside for a little walk in the shade provided by the buildings in Old Town. There's something fascinating about those old storefront windows. They hold glimpses of treasures that are not the ordinary mass produced items found in newer storefront windows. I like the interplay of reflection capturing the view on the outside of the window mixed with what's seen on the inside.

In this, my favorite, not only is all of that there, I also like the way Julia and I are encircled by the mirror frame. It is uniquely 'us', it couldn't have been taken by anyone else but me, and that's another reason I like it best.

Saturday, December 31, 2005 A

"Savoring the Last of 2005"
7:43am

"Holidailies 2005"

illo in progress...

I am taking a break from coloring my illustration for Friday Illo. It's tedious work, the filling in of pixels, sometimes one pixel at a time., and I must take a break.

Meanwhile, I remember the meal of last night. My herb crusted chicken dijon with pasta and cilantro pesto was very tasty. Julia enjoyed her fish rich bouillabaisse soup. River City Grill was crowded, and as such it seemed the communal dining experience. I got caught up in the conversations of other people. The family to the left of me, 'Nana' in the wheelchair, her slender, well dressed children in their fifties, their blond teenaged daughter, their conversation was quite audible. Granny was at 'Emerald Springs' nursing home, her husband died five years ago. She spoke of when he was alive, how they'd go to River City Grill often. The sadness was still there in her voice. She told her children and grandchild, "I won't bother you for another week." How sad!

When I am old, I hope never to be in one of those wretched places. I want to be vital and creating art and writing up to the very last. Don't shove me away in some corner easy to forget until I die! That's what it seemed. I understand if she was too infirm to be able to live on her own, or with her children. It's just a sad state to be in. But the old lady tried her best to be cheery, with her colorful Christmasy sweater on, declaring they don't serve food like this at Emerald Springs, oh!

And the three people to my right, all gray haired, two men and one woman. They were waiting for a woman that never showed. What was behind that? That's a mystery. Meanwhile, they drank their wine and ate their food quietly.

And the young family in front of me, behind Julia. The young daughter spilled her drink, and a waiter came and quickly cleaned it up. Julia said she got some of the spray. I watched them all, observing. And the late arrivals, large groups without reservations, they all had to eat out on the patio, they passed by us to the doorway that led outside. Perhaps they didn't find it as cold as Julia and I would have.

We were all there to mark the year's passing with a fine meal. All were there to try and savor the last tastes of 2005. And overheard, the indifferent moon just listened quietly. The moon has her own cycles of time measurement.

Saturday, December 31, 2005 B

"Flavorful"
1:25pm

"Holidailies 2005"

My illo for the theme of FLAVOR is at last done!

Yum! So tasty, so sweetly sour! Yum!

I did it first in the .tif format, as that gives most options for a clear image with endless color options. Then I saved the results in a .gif and a .jpg. To keep the clarity I like, the .jpg was all of 105KB. I lost a tiny bit of the color subtleties with the .gif, but none of the clarity, and it is only 38K.

Sunday, January 1, 2006

"Before We Quieted..."
8:09pm

"Holidailies 2005"

I didn't want to spend the New Year's evening absorbed alone in my own thoughts at the computer or elsewhere, but with Julia. So around 3:00pm or so, I detached myself from the computer, and got ready. We ate at a familiar place, India House, but each found something we'd not eaten before. The lamb fraizee was tasty, Julia liked her fish curry. We ate it all, and then headed to Old Town. Good Night and Good Luck had just one showing yesterday, at 5pm, I suspect it may have been the last showing in this town. We got tickets and then walked back up to Twigs, because Julia had a gift certificate for that store burning a hole in her pocket. She picked gunpowder tea, named so for its tiny green pearls, and Ceylon supreme tea which are now on our shelves. My first samplings were quite satisfactory. I also got a rustic looking candle with a platform. I broke my rule of needing to know exactly where it will go before I buy it, and bought it anyway.

If I don't find a spot, yes, you know where it will go, in storage! After paying for our purchases, we asked the time. "Five o'clock," we were told. And off we went, dashing just as fast we could. Their clock must have been running fast. The theater hadn't even started the previews yet. I wasn't prepared for the grainy black and white of the movie, but this did help to set the movie within the era of the 50's. All of the movie's events happened before I was born. (Okay, the address Ed Murrow gave to the radio and TV group was in the October just before the November I was born.) But it is good to learn about a courageous man who took a stand.

Going home, I turned on the TV and learned the most intriguing thing was a series of old Twilight Zone episodes. It seemed a natural transition, from the black and white movie to these black and white classics. They included the one of the bespeckled book reader who longed for time to indulge his hobby. Also, it was interesting to see both Star Trek veterans, Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner in a couple of episodes. Nimoy had just a bit part, but Shatner got to show his acting skills in portraying a man barely recovered from a nervous breakdown who has a 'scary' flight. His next TV role was echoed in the show that followed, about an astronaut who crashed on a distant planet, only to receive bad news from the home planet.

Then we switched to PBS. We drank Raspberry Framboise while we watched Live From Lincoln Center: New York Philharmonic New Year's Eve Gala Concert. The celebration featured Italian opera with soprano Angela Gheorghiu. She's a slender dark haired beauty who changed her fancy dress three times during the concert. I liked the glittery one with red roses the best. After each aria was delivered flawlessly, we could see her exuberant triumphant relief. Her engaging stage presence has been won by many years of performing. In her interview with Beverly Sills, she said she could not remember when she first began singing, so young she was.

After singing along with Auld Lang Syne, and shouting "Happy New Year", we settled in to bed and enjoyed some animated conversation before we quieted for sleep.