For the second time in as many years (March 6, 2015) I visited the New Croton Dam. This time as a waypoint on a 420 mile one-day road trip from Concord to Little Neck, NY and then on to Schenectady, NY.  Technically, it was more of a bus/delivery service than a road trip.  My mother asked if I could drive her back to her home from NYC. Her last trip on the bus did not go very well and she also wanted me to transport a few pieces of furniture back to her home. Croton-on-Hudson was not too far out of the way and I needed something to break up all the driving. During the second leg of the journey I used the time to quiz my mother about our family history.  I learned that my maternal grandfather remarried after divorcing from my grandmother and had 5 children with his second wife.  I only knew about one of them so this trip netted me several new step aunts and uncles.

By my estimation, I have bought and sold more than 30 cameras since I took up a serious interest in photography while studying at Stanford.  I currently own six (2 Canon, 3 Sony, and 1 Nikon), each serving a different application.  Today I had occasion to think back on the first camera I ever purchased. It was the film-based Konica FS1, distinguished as the first SLR to incorporate a built-in motor drive. It remained my only camera for almost 20 years until I switched to digital in 1999.

The entire eastern seaboard was pummeled by a powerful “nor’easter” yesterday.  The two feet of snow that was forecasted for our area missed us by about 30 miles as the blizzard veered inland when it reached Massachusetts.  Even still, we got more than our fair share before it turned into freezing rain.  I had the good sense to clear a major portion of the drive last night before the rain arrived. The ice-caked snow that remained this morning was impervious to our snowblower and after replacing two shear pins I decided to let the sun do its work before making another attempt.

With a blizzard raging outside today, I had time to process additional photos from our recent visit to New York City.  Caleb is a freshman at Tufts majoring in political science. Maya got to know him while on a school trip to Paris many years ago and they have been dating for the past 6 months. The parental units approve of him.  He is intelligent, charming, and kind to Maya. Neither Kyle nor Nicolai has threatened him with bodily harm suggesting he has cleared that all-important hurdle. We enjoyed getting to know him better on this trip.

The life-size dioramas at the American Museum of Natural History are nothing short of spectacular. I decided they warranted a post of their own. If a picture is worth a thousand words, these displays are worth a million. Life-like in every detail, they are true works of art.  Maya: Did you notice the otter?

Over the many visits I have made to Manhattan over my lifetime, I have never paused to enjoy Central Park. Jeanine and I braved the cold and wind to complete a 4 mile tour of the southern end of the park this morning after visiting with my mother and aunt and dropping off Maya and Caleb to rendezvous with a friend. The views from Belvedere Castle were impressive but not nearly as exciting to Jeanine as a visit to the Swedish Cottage, home to one of the last public marionette companies in the United States. Unfortunately, advanced reservations were required for the performance.

After a so-so lunch at Dean & DeLuca’s we visited the American Museum of Natural History, one of the world’s preeminent scientific and cultural institutions. Founded in 1869, the Museum has advanced its mission to discover, interpret, and disseminate information about human cultures, the natural world, and the universe. I was drawn to the dinosaur displays while Jeanine preferred the furry mammals. Maya and Caleb caught up with us later in the day before we set out on our return journey to Boston.

The newly discovered 122-foot-long Titanosaur pictured below is arguably the most impressive fossil ever discovered and its 39-foot-long neck extends out the door of the Wallach Orientation Center into the next room. Discovered in 2012, this dinosaur is estimated to have weighed 70 tons and is thought to have been a juvenile. Hard to imagine how big momma and papa would have been.

My Aunt Maruja celebrated her 90th birthday today.  Jeanine, Maya, her boyfriend Caleb, and I traveled to New York City for the party which was held at the Douglaston Club in Little Neck, a block from her home. A complete set of photos from the evening can be found here. I can only hope to be as spry and sharp minded should I survive for another three decades.

Earlier in the day we visited the Fearless Girl Statue on Wall Street. I had hoped to photograph it in relationship to the Bull but the mob surrounding it made that impossible. Later we visited the Occulus and Eataly.

It is nice when we get enough snow to cover the grass and powder coat the trees but not enough to bring out the snowblower to clear the driveway. Today’s dusting is the warm-up act for a major winter storm we are expecting next week. Temperatures are expected to plummet this weekend to record lows making the anticipation of our trip to Cuba in 10 days that much more pronounced.

US citizens traveling to Cuba need a passport and “visa – tourist card” which must be obtained through the agency specified by your air carrier. The cost of the visa is $50 but the agency/airlines see fit to mark that up by 100% by way of service and delivery fees. Our tickets are with American Airlines which seems to have the highest markup of any of the airlines now flying to Cuba.

While parked at a grocery store, Jeanine’s car was sideswiped by a careless driver who left the scene without reporting the incident. The impact was localized to the driver’s side rear door. I took the car in for a repair estimate today which totaled $1740. I may try to buff out the black streak and pop the dents out myself given what seems to me like an insane bill for the amount of damage present.

My listings for photographic equipment and shop tools have been selling like hot cakes.  Today I turned my attention to antique furniture. Before moving to Concord, we lived in Indianapolis, IN in an old English Tudor mansion. Furnishing the 10,000 square foot home was a massive undertaking and during that time we accumulated a great number of antiques which worked well with the style of the house. As we look forward to downsizing, we simply have to part with at least half of our current furnishings. Craig’s List has not proven very effective for furniture so I may have to investigate alternatives.  The French powder table pictured above will be something of a trial balloon.

UPDATE: My mother expressed great interest in this powder table and it will be making its way to her home in Schenectady the next time we drive out. She has given us so many wonderful gifts over the years it is so nice to be able to reciprocate with something she truly covets.

On something of a whim, Jeanine and I decided to visit Cuba later this month. I booked airfare, applied for tourist cards (visas), reserved a casa particulares (Cuban homestay in Havana), and purchased a guidebook at our local bookstore. We both have been looking forward to a couple’s getaway and respite from the winter’s cold. With the recent easing of sanctions, it is now possible to book a commercial flight directly from the US and to travel independently provided we engage in “people-to-people education” which will be the focus of our visit. We thought it wise to go now before the new administration seeks to undo the progress of the former. We are counting the days until our March 20th departure.

Yesterday I netted just over $1000 from items I sold on Craig’s List. Today I listed several more items which should bring in double that. Downsizing is far easier when you can do it on a leisurely schedule. Exhausted and nearly frozen from my soccer practice this morning (13F air temp, wind chill well below zero), I was quite content to spend a few hours thawing in my photo studio.

Jeanine found time while not working to bake a lovely pudding cake which will not likely last the evening.

The John Greenleaf Whittier Bridge was built in 1951 connecting Newburyport and Amesbury over the Merrimack River. It is currently under reconstruction with a completion date late this summer. Jeanine and I visited the area today, me in hopes of photographing a bald eagle and Jeanine with a case of cabin fever and a desire for exercise. It was about 16F for most of the afternoon but the wind chill was easily sub-zero. We took a total of three short walks; one in Moseley Woods, one on the seashore of Plum Island, and the other from the Plum Island Refuge to the Spencer-Pierce-Little Farm where Jeanine had to make friends with all the animals. We saw no eagles or many birds at all but did manage to locate a nice little bistro, the Wild Garlic, for lunch.