Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - July 31, 2016

Good morning! Since it's Sunday morning, it's time for my weekly off television topic reflection on the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken along the way. If you're here for Big Brother news, everything I have for you can be found at this link. I'll be posting another live feeds report late tonight as well as live-blogging the aired show. But this ain't that. This post is a year-round regular "feature" while Big Brother is a summer obsession. Or, something like that.

It was another miserably hot and humid week here in New Jersey. On Monday we had a storm which almost rivaled Hurricane Sandy in intensity, albeit much more brief. It only lasted about an hour. It seems my workplace, where I was when it hit, was on the edge of what they call a "micro-burst." I was just glad I wasn't out in it!

We seem to have had pop-up storms almost daily. Unfortunately, I must have left my best big umbrella somewhere on Thursday. I didn't realize it had gone missing until late last night. Thinking back, I might have left it at the bodega around the corner on my way home from work on Thursday. I only brought a smaller umbrella to do my work commute yesterday. I don't really plan on going out today. But tomorrow, I'll ask at the bodega if anyone turned the good one in. Oh, well.

Work remains work. Gah. After six weeks come and go, I'll be into my next staycation and the weather should be a lot more bearable. Until then, I guess I'll just sweat (er, perspire, glow) and keep on working. I had to cancel the order for the Lamborghini when I heard someone in some obscure state won the Powerball Lottery after I invested two dollars in it! How dare they!

That's about it for today. Onto the photos! Clicking on an image will open a larger version.

Eastern Cicada Killer Wasp

These are so cool. Not only are they colorful and harmless, but they're a hoot to watch while they battle each other! The wing beatings actually make quite a noise. With the rain deluges we've been having, I've worried that the burrows -- they're digger wasps -- might be destroyed. But I keep seeing the males protecting them, so things must be okay. Bridgewater Train Station.

The Plainfield Train Station Groundhog

He is SO chubby! People keep feeding him bread, donuts, pizza and more. While he's still skittish around people -- he won't just walk up to them -- once they toss food, he'll certainly eat it. I would guess none of it is good for him. But, where he is, he's safe from predators and probably doesn't leave his little woodsy territory in search of food. He most likely will never get hit by a car or a train as he doesn't need to really forage. He looks healthy. Chubby, but healthy.

Honeybees are good bees!

While I'm severely allergic to bee stings, I rarely worry about your basic honey bee. It's wasps (not the Eastern Cicada Killer Wasp as it's the males you see and they have no stinger at all) and yellow-jacket hornets that worry me -- they're aggressive. Honey bees, carpenter bees, bumblebees ... they're all all rather mellow. Unless they feel really threatened, they aren't aggressive at all. Bees don't seem to mind cameras.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - August 31, 2014

Good Sunday morning to you, albeit a bit later than my usual! Hey, it's a holiday weekend, y'know! This is my weekly off television topic post reflecting on the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're looking for my latest Big Brother TV show/live feeds content, you can find that by clicking on this link right here. This photo post is a year 'round staple on the blog; BB is only three months. I could sometimes add "thankfully" to the latter.

I have a rare three-day weekend going on and I've already totally messed up my sleep pattern by taking really long naps Friday evening and yesterday, then being up most of the night. I must not nap today! I can't get into that pattern as I'm back to work on Tuesday. One positive is that I had a four day work week this past week as I took my last paid vacation day yesterday before my PTO turns over. This coming week, I have a four day work week due to the holiday. The week after I have a four day work week as I'm taking the Saturday as a vacation day leading into VACATION. Yay.

As I type this up, CBS Sunday Morning has a segment about workers not taking their full paid vacation time off from work. I never NOT take it. I need it. I've earned it by working decades at the company. I want it. I take it. To the last minute ... my personal days, my holidays and my vacation time ... I take it all. I let sick hours bank up when I'm not having a health crisis of one type or another.

Nothing much has happened this past week. I'm still running on empty despite the four day work week. I will admit that right now I'm feeling incredibly well-rested. What an odd feeling indeed! But I know it won't last. Sigh.

I still have no clue about the new upstairs neighbor(s). I see two Hispanic last names on the mailbox, but I'm wondering if they just didn't know how to make a hyphen with the P-Touch label maker. It sounds like one person, quasi-nocturnal. He/she/they are still ranking as great upstairs neighbor(s) with fairly quiet walking and just the occasional music or television noise wafting through the floors. I've dodged the upstairs neighbor from hell once again. Yay.

They say Plainfield is a rough town. And, it can be in places, sort of like any city I've ever been in. But, now and then, the true spirit of the city shines through. A prime example -- the other day I was walking on the sidewalk near my apartment. I saw a woman standing looking at her car which was parked a bit haphazardly on the street. What I couldn't see is that she was looking a flat tire on the driver's side. I could see she looked confused and like she was about to cry.

Along comes one of the local black street type dudes on his bike. I've seen the guy around for years and he always says hi to me. He stops his bike and asks the woman if he can help. She's a Latina, speaking no English. He proceeds to gesture at her tire and trunk of her car. She smiles and opens the trunk. He gets out the jack and spare tire and starts to work.

When I told him that was very nice of him, he said, "God put me in front of two different ladies with flat tires this week. He must want me to help them, so I do."

Yes, that's Plainfield. The majority of people I know in town are good people and I enjoy living here.

Just after sunrise these days

Yep, the sunrise is coming through as I walk to the Plainfield Train Station now. I enjoy that. I like sunrises. I actually don't mind the days of walking to the station on the dark mornings, either. It's not like walking the streets of town at night -- the denizens of the streets are gone by the time I pass through after 6am.

Watching me watching him

The Plainfield Train Station groundhog seems to be disturbed that I know his hiding place. I imagine one of his burrows is near there.

Brickhenge

The night crowd, mostly drinkers and street people, have taken some of the bricks from where the wall at the Plainfield Train Station let go in the cold from this past winter and have made creations on the ledge. One day I'll go by and it will be a shrine set up to an empty beer bottle or red Solo cup; the next day it's Brickhenge. By the way, they actually did repair the wall at the station.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THIS WEEK'S FLOWER SLIDESHOW AND THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - August 17, 2014

Good Sunday morning to you all! Welcome to my weekly off television topic post in which I reflect on the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're looking for Big Brother live feeds (or show) content, you can find all of that right here at this link. No television content in this weekly post that I make year 'round -- you've been warned!

That said, it's basically been just another week of hectic stuff between the blog and my "real" job. Nothing earth-shattering happened in my personal life. I didn't win the lottery, nor did I have much time to do much other than work and blog. I felt like I was running late all week and didn't seem all that inspired to take photos. Sigh.

This week's random ramblings:

• They're demolishing that building by the Bound Brook Train Station with the structural cracks and caved-in roof I've been photographing for a few years now. I think they're just taking down that rear addition with the issues, not the whole building. It's about time. I couldn't get any decent shots of the demolition from the train, though.
• OCD Guy has been missing from the train for a good three weeks now. 
• That's how trains go -- people ride them for a while, then lose their jobs, change their work hours, perhaps decide to drive, etc. But I remain.
• I expect NJ Transit to give me flowers when I retire!
• My new upstairs neighbor is even more quiet than the last one although I have yet another person who's up late and up again early above me -- kind of like my own hours. I hear footsteps, not in shoes, above me and nothing else. I think I heard music coming from there one evening, but I couldn't tell. It was faint -- could have been from a car in the parking lot or next door. It didn't bother me, mind you. I could just hear it.
• Speaking of music from cars -- there needs to be a law outlawing those ridiculous sound systems they're putting ATOP cars these days! OMG, who came up with that? It's bad enough the huge systems IN cars! 
• And, while I'm fussing, they definitely need to crack down on bicyclists on the sidewalks here in Plainfield. I stand my ground on the sidewalk. I figure if they hit me, it's the bicyclist who will fall, not me. I'm rather solid.
• One of the Plainfield Narcotics/Gang cops bought me a cold bottle of water when he saw me waiting for the bus. Aw, how sweet of him! I really like those guys!
• A month from now I'll be on staycation. I can't wait! I need the sleep.
• My latest rent increase for the new yearly lease is $7. I guess I can afford that even though there are cheaper places to live. I do like this location and these landlords now are the best yet -- new windows, they maintain the elevator, new machines in the laundry room, new drainpipes, quasi-landscaping (mulch, hedge trimming and such), things fixed quickly, no regular $50 yearly increases like the past criminal landlord, good neighbors on my wing (most there for years although the apartment above has turned over about four or five times in my years here), location is good for public transportation and walking places.
• Moving would also be a huge hassle. So, I'm staying. Now it's going to be on 14 years. Oy.

Onto the photos for the week. Clicking on an image will bring it up in a Photobucket page. From there, you can increase the size twice by clicking on the magnifying glass. Just X out of that page to return to the blog.

The Plainfield Train Station groundhog

He thinks he's hiding from me. But I see him. Alas, I had no bread for him. He doesn't look like he's starving to me!

Spiderweb in the morning sun

No spider, though. This is on the railing alongside the parking lot of the Bridgewater Train Station. It's HUGE!

Chicory blossom, Plainfield Train Station

The blossoms close up overnight and open in the morning. They're usually unfurling their petals on my early work commutes. This and more in this week's flowers slideshow after the jump!

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - August 10, 2014

Happy Sunday morning to y'all! Just a word of warning -- this post is my weekly off television topic photo post reflecting on the week gone by in both words and photos I've taken along the way. If you're looking for my Big Brother live feeds content, those posts can be found at this link right here. You've been warned. Feel free to skip this post if you wish!

We continue to have a not horrible but a bit rainy summer here. While I hear some people whine that it's not hot enough, you won't hear any complaints from me! I don't like heat and humidity. I love night time temperatures in the 50s. The last thing I ever would want to do is lay in the hot sun sweating while I burn to a crisp. While we've had some warmer days in the 90s, it pales compared to many summer in the past. Good.

This week's random musings:

• If you have a July monthly NJ Transit train pass, don't expect the conductor to take it in August just because you haven't had a payday yet. (No, not me. I always have mine by the 1st.)
• If you're a substitute driver on the NJ Transit bus from Dunellen to Newark, please know your route and don't depend on passengers (me) to tell you that you missed a major turn.
• I wish the sunflowers that I pass by were growing closer to where I have access without going up on lawns.
• I have yet another new neighbor(s?) upstairs. My good upstairs neighbor of the last year plus a few months got the boot after his girlfriend left and he either didn't want to pay the rent or couldn't do it on his own. Other than moving in at nearly midnight one night this past week, he/she/they walk quietly on the hardwood floors and I just hear some not unexpected movement around the apartment noises. So far, so good.
• I'm expecting a Peapod grocery delivery today and the elevator door stuck when I went down to get my newspaper. Eek! I fixed it myself with some WD-40. Yay, me! I don't want the delivery guy/gal to have to lug all my heavy stuff up the stairs.

Onto this week's photos! With the slideshows (groundhog here, flowers after the jump), clicking on the diagonal arrows on the bottom right of the window will make them full-screen. With the photos, clicking on them will bring you to my Photobucket where you can make them larger twice by clicking on the magnifying glass on the bottom right. Just X out to return to the blog. Have a great Sunday!

I had a bit of a treat yesterday morning, as did a certain Plainfield Train Station groundhog. Now, I've seen this groundhog at the station before. But he usually scurries away and hides. It turns out that some of the Latino guys who hang out at the station have been feeding him bread and hard rolls daily. I happened upon one throwing down chunks of hard roll for him and we sat back to watch him come out. Very cool.

Let freedom ring

One of the streetlamps in the business district on East Front Street, Plainfield.

Flowers grow on Westervelt Ave.

One of the business on the corner of East Front Street and Westervelt Avenue in Plainfield has a gorgeous display of flowers growing this year. The sunflower caught my attention. One of these mornings on my walk to the train, I'll have to cross the street for some close-ups! Kudos to them for beautifying a rather otherwise boring corner!

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**

Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - June 22, 2014

Good morning! For those now cruising the blog for Big Brother television show news, I'll be posting the blog pool sign-up post later today (don't sign up for it on this post, please!). This here post is my weekly off television topic reflection on the week gone by in both words and photographs I've taken along the way.

As for the week gone by itself, it wasn't a heck of a lot of much more than work, work, work. The big news is that Big Brother started revealing the new hamster house, new hamsters and new twists. I've covered those things in previous posts and will be posting more daily as we head into the season premiere on Wednesday night.

The weather here in my area of New Jersey hit the nineties for the first time this year. As it was only two days, it wasn't a legitimate heat wave. It still felt like it. I'm not a big fan of summer with ultra-hot and humid days. If summers could have an 80 degree cut-off with low humidity, I'd like it much more. I don't like sweating!

I had good luck with critter photos this week -- a pigeon with its wings expanded during landing and the Plainfield Train Station groundhog, along with a rabbit and a squirrel. Had I been more prepared, I would have had a nice deer shot last night. I climbed up the stairs at the Bridgewater Train Station only to practically walk into a large doe. I gasped. She gasped. She ran so quickly that I couldn't get the shot. She even scared a bunch of rabbits who also hopped away quickly. I was happy that she ran into a fenced area rather than towards the train tracks.

Onto the photos for the week ... clicking on the photo will show it in its Photobucket page. In that view, there's a magnifying glass on the bottom right. You can make the photo larger twice there. To get back to the blog, just close the Photobucket window.

Can you see the hidden groundhog?

This groundhog at the Plainfield Train Station thought he found the perfect place to hide from me. Yeah, right. I've got you, groundhog!

Religion and Politics Shouter

With a nod to Stephen King's "Monster Shouter" in The Stand, I came across this man with a megaphone at the corner of Park Avenue and East Front Street in Plainfield one afternoon this this week. He was shouting against gay marriage, abortion, Obama ... you name it. No one was paying any attention to him. Also, no one was at the chess tables in the sun!

My flower slideshow teaser

If you're reading this post from the main page of the blog itself instead of the individual post, this week's flower slideshow is after the jump.

**CLICK THE 'READ MORE' LINK TO SEE THE REST OF THE PHOTOS**