Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Found in The Neighborhood

This week, Ann-Christine would like us to share what we have Found in the Neighborhood for the Len’s-Artists Photo Challenge. I make no apologies for dipping into the photo files for this one. We have been asked to stay at home as much as possible for the next 30 days because of the virus and, in trying to comply, I am not about to venture out for anything less than toilet paper and Marmite. These pictures may not be recent but I don’t think I’ve published them here before.

Pull Up A Seat – In Long Grove

As I had promised, I returned to Long Grove this week to make further purchases at Paddy’s On The Square and, while I was there, checked out a few places that seemed like pleasant spots to Pull Up A Seat and take a break.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – What A Treat!

This week, Tina’s choice of What A Treat as the theme for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge sparked a trip down Memory Lane and prompted me to re-visit and re-capture the glory days of a once-popular tourist destination.

There was a time when we considered spending the day at Long Grove’s historic shopping district a treat. On busy days and especially when there was a Festival in progress you would be lucky, despite the myriad parking lots, to find a space to leave your car. Yesterday it was almost empty.

It was here that we came to buy perfumed soaps and chocolate-dipped strawberries, to eat ice cream in the summer and drink hot apple cider in the Fall. We would browse for hours through antique shops, boutiques and novelty stores.

It was here, too, that I came to find the sort of foods that I missed so much from home; Spotted Dick, Bovril, Oxos, oxtail and Mulligatawny soups (before the ban on imports that contained beef because of mad cow disease and other import restrictions more or less drove them out of business.) Here I stocked up on Christmas puddings, mince pies and Twiglets, and got recent news of home from the proprietor who made frequent visits back across the Pond.

To be fair, the decline in Long Grove’s fortunes began long before Covid arrived, but it certainly didn’t help matters. Remembering the good old days, it was very sad to see all the places that had closed down and so many of the beautiful old buildings falling into disrepair.

Gone is the magical place where you could find all manner of plush toys, much to the kids’ delight, and gone too, the store that sold the best Christmas decorations. No more, the shop that sold every kind of kitchen accessory known to man and, as far as I could tell, even the old apple press (the core of the annual Apple Festival) is no longer functioning.

The old covered bridge is still standing but only just. They had only recently reopened it after having it renovated because of damage caused by an accident involving a delivery truck, when the very next day it was hit by a chartered bus. What are the odds!

But it’s not all gloom and doom. There are still some businesses that are hanging on and people are working very hard to make a go of it. Restaurants and wine bars seem to be the glue that is holding Long Grove together these days, despite the limitations set by the pandemic.

And on the bright side, there is still a touch of whimsy, despite a general feeling of doubt about the future of the place.

I did my bit to help the economy with the purchase of a jar of Marmite (what a treat!) and various other items at Paddy’s on The Square, with a promise to return in a week or so. It may not be how we remember it but, if you are in the area, I urge you to stop by the historic shopping district of Long Grove and sample some of the treats that are still available. Who knows! Despite all adversity there may yet be a chance for the revival of Long Grove’s glory days.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Communication

This week, our guest host, Biasini the horse, has chosen Communication as the topic for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge. This was an interesting theme with many connotations; so many ways to communicate our thoughts and feelings.

Can you hear me now? Probably not. I saw this pay phone at our local gas station and, figuring it was something that would soon be a thing of the past, I took a picture for posterity. Mobile phones have almost completely replaced this old-fashioned mode of communication and a good thing too. It was a miracle if you could find one that hadn’t been vandalized and was still in working order.

The best way to communicate with the crowd, when even a voice on a loudspeaker can’t be heard, is by means of the electronic signboard seen here at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

Back in the day when there was no such thing as radio communication between ships, flags were the means of issuing orders, declaring a vessel’s country of origin and also its intentions. These flags were hoisted at the Tall Ships Festival at Navy Pier in Chicago.

Sadly, another form of communication that seems to be going the way of the dodo is the newspaper. Our household cancelled the daily newspaper many years ago in a cost-cutting purge that saw the abandonment of many such unnecessary luxuries, but I missed scanning the news from this crisply tangible source, missed filling in the ridiculously easy crosswords and mourned the loss of connection with the community. It’s just not the same, reading the ‘police blotter’ online.

Some years ago, I photographed a protest that had been prominent in our local news. I rarely take pictures of people and when I do, they are usually candid, unposed shots that don’t normally turn out that well. I don’t feel comfortable in this situation but I summoned up my courage and engaged the protesters in conversation, asking them about their cause and obtaining permission to take their pictures. I explained that I was writing a piece for my blog about the town itself and had just happened to come upon the protest by chance. Many of those present that day were quite happy to pose for pictures but many weren’t and of course, I respected their wishes, but I found it rather ironic that people who were willing to communicate their displeasure with their current working conditions by standing at the roadside, brandishing placards and screaming at passing motorists, were not willing to express their obviously deeply-held views on a more personal level. This communicated to me that they either mistrusted my motives or were afraid of possible reprisals. Fair enough.

Finally, with a nod to Anne Leueen and her horse, Biasini, here is a shot that I captured at Arlington Race Track a couple of years ago of my granddaughter, who loves horses, making contact with one of the outrider’s mounts, a communication of kindred spirits.

Cee’s Black & White Photo Challenge – Up and Down

This week, Cee is looking for outdoor ways to move up and down for her Black & White Photo Challenge. Here are a few of the more unconventional methods including maintenance platforms hanging from Marina Towers in downtown Chicago, a maintenance lift at the mall in Mount Prospect, the Ferris Wheel at Navy Pier in Chicago and grandson bungee jumping at the Renaissance Faire.

Square Tops Photo Challenge – Topknots

The Merriam-Webster definition of a topknot describes it as: an ornament, such as a knot of ribbons or a pompom, forming a headdress or worn as part of a coiffure: a crest of feathers or tuft of hair on top of the head. I think these might qualify for Becky’s Square Tops Photo Challenge.

Square Tops Photo Challenge – Tops in Chicago

The theme for Becky’s Square Photo Challenge this month is Tops.  Much of the architecture in downtown Chicago is stunning and nowhere more so than on the very top of some of it’s most illustrious buildings.

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge – Pick A Topic

This week, Cee has asked us to choose a topic from the picture she has kindly provided, for her Fun Foto Challenge. Right away, the vintage car caught my eye. As you may be aware, if you read my previous post, I’m a big fan of Volo Auto Museum and since it was one of the last places we were able to visit before everything started closing down, this challenge provided a good opportunity for me to share a few more images that I captured while I was there. Thanks, Cee!

 

 

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Reflections

This week, Miriam, our guest host over at The Showers of Blessings, is looking for Reflections for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge.  On a recent trip to Volo Auto Museum, I was so impressed by how bright and shiny all the cars are and, looking at the resulting pictures, I can see how I inadvertently captured reflections, not so much of images but the lights of the various showrooms that brought out the meticulous care and attention to detail that is lavished on these beautiful machines.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge – Treasure Hunt

I always enjoyed participating in scavenger hunts, from the day-long searches that involved driving from town to town in order to collect or take pictures of the items on our list, to the “what’s in your handbag?” games at bridal and baby showers, so when Tina suggested a Treasure Hunt for the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, I was eager to get started, all from the comfort of my own home. Here is the list of items we must find.

Challenge Items: Sunrise and/or sunset, Something cold and/or hot, a bird, a dog, a funny sign, a bicycle, a seascape and/or mountain landscape, a rainbow, a church, a musical instrument, a boat, a plane, a waterfall

Extra Credit Items: An expressive portrait of one or more people, a very unusual place, knitting or sewing, a fish, an animal you don’t normally see, a bucket, a hammer, a street performer, a double rainbow, multiple challenge items in a single image.

To start the hunt, I found a rainbow (looks like it might almost be a double) over our garden and a waterfall at Tahquamenon Falls State Park in Michigan.

Next up; a bird hood ornament perched on a car at Volo Auto Museum, a mermaid (not a creature you usually see) and a fish that were part of a Disney display also at the Auto Museum (which a cousin visiting from England this past weekend observed was a very unusual place), the massive organ in the Cathedral of St. Paul in Minnesota and a sunset over the waters of Lake Michigan.

From there we move on to a plane flying over a boat at the Air & Water Show in Chicago, a funny sign in McGovern Centennial Gardens in Houston, Texas and some remarkable sewing on display at a quilt show in Columbus, Indiana.

Next we have two street performers in Chicago one of which has a musical instrument, and a clown with an expressive face.

Lastly, a man on a bike who was competing in a marathon race among the mountains of Utah, a dog all dressed up for Christmas, a cold drink and ice cream on a hot day and a blacksmith with a hammer and bucket at the Wade House Historic Site in Greenbush, Wisconsin.  Thanks, Tina! That was fun! I’m definitely in favor of doing this challenge again on a regular basis.