August 20, 2014

August 20, 2014

    All photos are mine unless otherwise noted,

    To see images full screen click on any photograph.

    Our friend John Wilson has almost completed his 4,000 plus mile bicycle trip across the United States with only the last leg left which is to Lubec Maine  the Eastern most point in the country. Some of us who followed his journey will bear witness to the trip's ending as he dips his wheels in the Atlantic Ocean. John is in his fifties and is a wonderful example of what can be acomplished in life, in this trip and in his personal journey. John and his wife Bev are both remarkable people and I am glad to know them. Here is John's blog documenting his trip: 

     http://crosscountryridejohnwilson.blogspot.com/

    I have just seen a most delightful movie titled "The Best of Friends" with three lifeimes of acting experience by Sir John Gielgud, Dame Wendy Hiller and Patrick McGoohan. It is a made for television movie circa 1990 whose script ws adapted from the letters of the unique 25-year friendship shared by Dame Laurentia McLachlan (Benedictine nun), Sir Sydney Cockerell (museum curator), and George Bernard Shaw (playwright/critic). It is a great pleasure to see fine acting. a good script, superb screen direction and presence, and the obvious delight the actors have in delivering truly excellent dialog. This is a rare offering by the entertainment industry.

   I received a copy from our local library so it is most likely available. 

   This post is more of a tour of a few parts of Queens rather than some of the poetical comments I usually make. 

   I have just bound the second of two books on Campobello Island in New Brunswick which have some of my poetry on the page opposite each original photograph. These books are one offs - perhaps a legacy of sorts to be passed on after my return Home to God. I am finding this to be a more meaningful way to keep so many prints in one place away from the piles I usually build. If you happen to visit I will be delighted to show them to you, but there will be only one copy made so it cannot leave our shelves on loan. A great number of the images are in the archives of this blog so please be free to explore.

   As I was looking at last weeks images I saw that even though some of the photographs were good I wasn't really pleased. So, I went back to the beginning of August and worked on images that were taken then. The question is where were they taken? If you look only at the first photo see if you can identify the place. Identification follows the photograph.

   

   All the images in this post were taken in the borough of Queens in New York City on our trip to Bridget's baby shower. The photo above and directly below were shot within a block of where Bridget and Rudy live in the Forest Hills area. I did not step foot in Manhattan on this trip as time was short, a few days, so the attention was on the pregnant lady of Austin Street and Rudy, the fine man she married. 

Cleaning the fire escape on a residential building.

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The excellent Korean market at Roosevelt Avenue, Queens.

   Just around the corner from the Jackson Diner, one of the best Indian restaurants in Queens, I found this salon and an interesting image. There is a story here about New York and what it takes to look good in the Big Apple.

   This man is a security guard sitting outside a jewelry store in the Indian section of Queens on Roosevelt Avenue. The exquisite pieces in the window and in the store are usually bought as a dowery offering in the Indian and Pakistan communities here and in the Indian Sub Continent. Part of a necklace is below. These are all truly works of art rarely seen elsewhere. We priced one once and were given a twelve-thousand dollar reply which was something of a lower cost for what is available! The craftmanship is jaw dropping in its execution. A museum on the street where everything on display is for sale. Everything is 24 carat gold which makes a delicate decoration.

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One way to cross the street with patience.

Another way to cross the street. Becoming invisible and safe from harm?

   Below are two impressions of Queens taken with a slow shutter speed from a moving car. 

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   Some humor, perhaps a scene in some parts of Queens -

  Peace until next time,

                                Bill Lagerstrom