City Views, Country Dreams

Good afternoon from New York.

This the first September Sunday, which means tomorrow is September's first Monday, which is designated as Labor Day, an occasion to honor workers.  Current political office seekers may be marching in parades and giving speeches.    

The U.S. Tennis Open competition is underway.  The Arthur Ashe Stadium has debuted its new roof that can open and close.  It rained last week and the players and spectators discovered that the stadium is really noisy when the roof is closed.  Lots of hard surfaces for sounds to bounce off.  The rain on the roof sounded like heavy drumming.

A former hurricane named Hermine is blowing its way up the Atlantic coast.  We have been advised that the main concern to the NYC area will be along our shore lines.  Beaches are closed for this three day holiday.

During the past week, I had reason to take the crosstown 79th Street Bus.  This bus has a strange, but interesting and challenging route that requires skilled drivers.  These two photographs were taken while "my" east bound bus was stalled on West 81st Street.  This often happens due to double parked vehicles, icy streets, or road repairs.  Last week's excuse was road work.  I was glad to have my camera handy, so I could take a few pictures as the bus was allowed to slowly make its way past all sorts of equipment and red flag waving workers.  The bus driver was very patient.

Perhaps you can tell from the photos that tree leaves are beginning to change colors and that some branches are already looking bare.  I was very glad that I'd allowed plenty of time for that particular bus ride and was able to still have time to get to the library, and then take the subway downtown to meet a friend.  

These two pictures are close ups of some of my favorite old cushions that I made long ago.  Although the original fabric is beginning to wear out, I do not want to discard the cushions, and so I've been doing a helter skelter bit of embroidery and applying of patches. This is a relaxing technique to play with when the weather is way too warm for knitting with wool yarns.

In the recent slightly cooler days, I have also finished another pair of woolen mitts.

I'm in the early stages of another pair that will feature cool blue/ green and warm neutral colors.

More drawing and painting has also been underway.  The next photo is more of a doodle than a painting, but I wanted to explore a newly purchased watercolor tube of a color called Opera Rose.  I like the name very much

Sometimes when I take pictures and play with the computer's cropping tools, funny images appear, like the next one. I'd propped an open book against one of my needlepoint pillows.  When I saw the resulting photo, I thought it would be fun to disguise the picture's source.

The next photograph gives a better clue to the subject matter of this lovely book I have just checked out from the library.

I admire both William Morris and Mariano Fortuny, and also A.S. Byatt's writing, and thought I would mention this book in case some of you all might also be fans.

It's a small book, with many color pictures beautifully printed on heavy paper.  The book was manufactured in China.  I am going to read it slowly, to savor the experience.

Another pursuit that's been occupying my time is varying research with an eye to buying my very first smart phone.  I don't think I am a natural audience for these devices, but do recognize that I might find such a phone useful and even enjoyable to use.  

It is now the traditional back to school season, and so I am attempting a climb up this new learning curve.  I would welcome any comments you all might have to offer this novice either about the phones themselves, or about how to choose a data plan.

Meanwhile, thank you all for your visits to my previous post and your comments.  It's a pleasure to connect with you.