Off Topic - That Was the Week It Was - 01/17/10

It's Sunday morning -- time for me to kick back, perhaps enjoy a mug of hot cocoa, watch CBS Sunday Morning and relax a bit. In other words, it's a day off from work! But, more importantly, it's time for my weekly off topic reflection on the week gone by in words and photographs I've taken.

Let's see. What happened this week? Well, it started off bitter cold with high winds here, but that's par for the course this winter. We had no new snow. Most of the snow we have had this season is gone with the exception of nasty-looking dirty snowbanks and patches on the ground here and there. The last few days brought a heat wave. Yep, we got in the 40s! Hey, anything above freezing is good for me. I've decided I'd rather have bitter cold than snow and ice, though. I can always put on more layers and I can't slip and fall on cold.

The big news in the world is the Haiti earthquake. I can't imagine what those folks are going through. The only folks I've known from Haiti over the years have been strong people who've worked hard to achieve success here in America (or, more precisely, New Jersey). I only pray that the people in Haiti are as strong as they can be and that the entire world helps the victims.

On a lighter note, but with some serious considerations behind it, I've been amused by the great Late Night Television Debacle. It's really perked up the after primetime viewing! I've been channel-surfing, catching bits and pieces of every late show just to see what they're saying. I think I've watched more Jimmy Kimmel this week than I have in my lifetime -- he's not half-bad.

My late night choice has always been Letterman, even back to when he was much later at night. Jay Leno has always annoyed me, kind of like David Caruso's melodramatic acting annoys me. I just have trouble watching him, so I don't. I wasn't keen on him back in his stand-up comedy days either. Conan O'Brien? I've watched him on and off since he first appeared on late nights. He never clicked with me like Letterman did. However, he has made me laugh. Right there, he's done better by me than Jay Leno.

But what gets me about the debacle is that it's so entirely wrong. A deal is a deal. Sure, they're paying off Conan. But it's not all just about Conan, either. What of the staff? What of the folks who made the cross-country move with him? They made the decision five years ago he would get the show. All of a sudden when the time comes, Jay doesn't want to leave? Instead of having him go primetime with a doomed show, that would have been time to break the deal right then and there before Conan and company even took over the show. Poo on NBC. Poo on Jay Leno. (I told them, didn't I?)

I hear that NBC isn't even letting O'Brien use the "intellectual property" much as they tried to stop Letterman from The Top Ten and other standard acts/skits. I think in the end, Conan will do all right for himself. I think Leno, never funny to me, is now tarnished with a taint which just won't fade.

So, from this bit I've written, you're correct in assuming nothing much is happening in MY life. I've worked, eaten, slept, and worked again. My highlight was on my last day off (Wednesday) when I finished writing up that gazillion AOL celebrity bios. I had to rewrite the bunch I lost in my computer crash. But, there I was, two days before deadline doing my "I'm done! The albatross is gone!" happy dance. Usually writing projects are fun for me. But this was so limited in word-count for each one and there were so many ... it's was just tedious and not a lot of fun. And now, I have my first day off since I finished and I can actually relax and houseclean and play with a certain cat!

Enough blathering -- onto the week in photos I've taken. Clicking on an image will open it larger in a new window.

Plainfield (NJ) Train Station Lights

These lamps have been a recurring theme in a lot of my photos since I started walking around with a digital camera. The style and symmetry attract my eye. Plus, if I'm at the train station, I'm not hurrying to get there. I'm either waiting for a train or getting off of work. So I have time to take photos. This shot was taken in the late afternoon. Yes, I'm actually seeing some daylight as my work hours scaled back a bit.

I'm walking, yes indeed, I'm walking

Another shot taken at the Plainfield Train Station. The walking man is originally from Gautemala. He and I have chatted a bit over the past few years. I might know more Spanish than he knows English, but he tries. Sometimes he really makes me smile when he boldly tries to express himself in English without hesitating. Last night he was on the later train (odd as he tends to be a weekday morning commuter). He made a point of saying hello. When we got off in Plainfield, he bid me a cheery, "Happy night to you!" as we parted ways. Of course, the expression is "good" night. But his "happy" night made me smile. I used photo editing to make this a bit grainier.

They're always watching us

Yep, conspiring to take over the world. This was taken out the train window in Dunellen, NJ.

In which I mess with the birds

I used the GIMP "illusion" effect to do this with the previous photo. Hmm ... I kind of like it. It's creepy and eerie. You know, kind like birds are when they plot to overthrow mankind.

Late day sun in Bridgewater, NJ

I like taking photos in the winter as the sun's angles tend to be more dramatic. I'm also out in more sunrises and sunsets during to the winter.

Uh-oh, they brought the big guns in

A flock of geese holding a summit meeting. They're probably discussing how to bring down more aircraft. Yes, this week marks the anniversary of "the miracle on the Hudson." Bridgewater, NJ.

Shadows of summer gone by

The ball stadium where the Somerset Patriots play baseball is cold and deserted. The early morning sun sun casts some cool shadows. Bridgewater, NJ.

Let me pose for you

The squirrels are really busy as of late. Everywhere I look, they're scampering and chasing each other. Sydney said this is the time of year the babies are born. I've been watching the nest in the tree outside my window. It seems quiet. The only weird thing there is that a squirrel actually fell asleep sitting on the branch near the nest. He was in the same position for a good two hours! Photo taken on East Front Street in Plainfield.

Vincent thinking he's oh-so-cute

And he is. He's on the edge of my bed with his head actually kind of hanging off the bed. Well, in this shot he is. Actually he's curled up on the chair next to me because I won't let him get on my shoulder as I try to get this entry done.

Boneless cat!

See! See! He's still on the bed but with his head hanging off looking at the floor! This is the kind of thing he does over my shoulder although he's generally not on his back when he does it.

Train in the sunset

This is at the Bridgewater Train Station. Unlike Plainfield, it's not a raised platform. Okay, it's raised to curb height. But that's it.

Setting sun

Love the shadows of the contrail in this one.

Diggin' with a Cat

This is construction, or actually deconstruction, where they just took down some buildings in an old car lot on the corner of Cleveland and East Fourth (Fifth?) Streets in Plainfield. I edited it to leave only the Cat machine in color. Doesn't it almost look like a cat is driving the Cat?

Plainfield Municipal Court

I edited this one also, leaving the sky as it really was yet messing with the courthouse. This was a bitterly cold day early in the week with high winds and an oncoming sunset. I've never been in the courthouse. I wonder if my knee would set off the alarms.

Same day, other side of the same building

The flag looks great in the wind outside the Plainfield Police Department. But, trust me, it's better to look at the photo than to be standing outside in the winter wind taking the photo! This one I didn't mess with except to bring up the contrast a bit.

More Plainfield Train Station Lamps

This one I played with -- black and white except for the golden hue of the lamps.

Grr

I hate when people do this -- on the old trains, you could feel their knees in your back. With the new trains, it just jostles your seat not in the same jostle the train does. Some people can't sit like normal people.

Maybe he just doesn't know how to sit

Same guy a moment later. I mean, c'mon. It's not like a cross-country journey. It's the Raritan Vally Line of New Jersey Transit. From one end to the other, it may be what ... 50 minutes? An hour? And this was in the late afternoon!

Conspiracy theories abound

I know they're talking about us.

Practicing symmetry

Uh-oh. Advanced thinking processes!

Great work

Someone (not me) stuck this sticker on my train window. Yeah, it's great work until the cleaner guy has to scrape it off.

I told you she's alive

Either that or someone has changed her scarf.

Plainfield sunset

As seen from the Fourth Avenue side of the Plainfield Train Station,

Plainfield Train Station lamps (again)

In black and white.

Same shot in color

I told you I like the lamps! Better in B&W or color?

I've shot this sign before

And, I'll probably shoot it again. It's at the Bridgewater Train Station, a remnant of the old Calco (?) plant. With age, I find the sign very intriguing. It's beginning to have a weird story effect on me or something.

Before the dawn

The corner of Watchung and North in Plainfield before the dawn, taken from the westbound platform of the train station. That red line in the street is the taillights of a passing car. The evil bench (my bruise is STILL evidence) is sitting there in front of Danny's trying to look innocent.

Welp, that was my week. How was yours? What's your opinion on the latenight debacle?

Blog Discussion - Project Runway 2010

Project Runway's latest season premieres tomorrow night on the Lifetime Network. Since so many of this blog's readers are fans of the show, here's a new show discussion post for you! Mind you, this show isn't on my own viewing schedule, so I won't be blogging about it. However, you can feel free to hang out in the comments section with friends discussing the episodes! Margo has already got the blog pool going and the water is fine.

The show's official website can be located right here.

Blog Discussion - The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love

You asked for it, you got it. This is the blog discussion post for the new season of The Bachelor. Now, I don't watch the show, so I'll be really quiet here. But you all can feel free to hang out and discuss the show in the comments. I only ask that no one post spoilers. If you want to leave a link for something spoiler-ish, that's okay. But not everyone likes to know spoilers, so please be considerate.

The Bachelor airs on Monday nights at 8 PM on ABC. The official website can be found right here.

Have fun!

Simon Cowell Leaving American Idol

Yes, the rumors seem to be true. No, he's not leaving this season. It seems that the crowd who works there don't all get along so well (who woulda thunk it?) and Simon will be bringing an American version of his UK show The X Factor here. Since Cowell owns The X Factor. if it hits here, he'll be much better off career-wise. So, he's not giving his career the kiss of death. He might be picking just the right time. By the way, if you don't follow the link above, The X Factor is yet another talent contest show.

More about the American Idol Simon leaving brouhaha can be found in this Daily Beast article. While that article seems to concentrate on it's all about Simon thinking of Simon and planning to wreck American Idol, I really don't think so. I think he knows he has an audience and knows what he's doing. Sure, he's thinking of his own career. But, heck ... if I didn't think of my own career, I wouldn't bother getting up to go to work daily.

I just wonder how next year will go. I'll admit I'll most likely watch Cowell's new show. Will it diminish my interest in American Idol? Quite possibly. I guess we'll see what happens and whether AI can still be a powerhouse without Simon Cowell.

Your thoughts? Will you watch both shows? One over the other? How will it change Idol to be Simon-less and Paula-less? I'm not too keen on Kara and I can only take so much of "yo, yo, check it out, check it out" from Randy Jackson. I heard Ellen DeGeneres said that she'll leave if Simon goes.

Off Topic - That Was The Week It Was - 01/10/10

How quickly the weeks go by! It's Sunday, time to take a look back at the past week in words and photographs I've taken. To be honest, with the exception of a Y2K kind of computer program meltdown at my workplace when 01/01/10 arrived, I've had an extremely uneventful week. It's been too cold to be eventful. I realize our weather here in the New York City Greater Metropolitan Area of New Jersey hasn't been as bad as some places ... but the cold, the wind! Ack.

I personally think there should be no reason for wind during the winter. I understand in the summer, spring, and fall that the wind plays a vital role in spreading seeds, spores, and stuff. But there's no reason for it now. Make it stop.

Television's new shows quasi-returned this past week. I'll get up a Bachelor discussion post for you before the next show. I don't watch that one, so I didn't realize it was starting up until it already did. I watched the two-hour Heroes. I just can't blog that one anymore. I'm too easily confused. I watched the People's Choice Awards and was so pleased that The Big Bang Theory won even if Jim Parsons didn't win. I'm not too happy that they're moving Heroes up against TBBT. I write up TBBT for CliqueClack TV, so I need to watch it live. I guess I'll be recording Heroes. Grr.

In other TV news, did you know it's Shoprite's CanCan sale? I swear this has been going on most of my life and now the song is stuck in my head once again. Oh ... and Jay Leno failed, eh? I figured he would. It doesn't matter to me -- I'm a devoted Letterman fan. But I think Conan O'Brien is getting the raw end of the deal if they put Leno back at 11:35 PM. I'll admit it was nice to have one less consideration of what to watch at 10 PM. I'll live, though.

So, as you can tell ... my life has been uneventful this week. I even had to make a photo op for myself because this week it was so uneventful. You'll see. Without further ado, here are the photos (clicking on an image will open it larger in a new window):

Still steamy windows ...

At Danny's Bakery on the corner of Watchung and North in Plainfield, NJ. This was taken pre-dawn and I edited it to have the windows in color, the rest in B&W. Baby, it's cold outside.

You woke me up for that silly camera?

Vincent, in black and white. He's been here for nearly four months now. He still has to leap on my shoulder, does his boneless cat droop over it, and purrs each time I come home from work.

Like ships that pass in the night

Two trains at the Bridgewater NJ Transit Station. (The one on the left is the one I was catching.) In the background is the TD Bank Stadium where the Somerset Patriots play baseball. But the boys of summer are long gone. As for the trains, since I commute on them, the old math problems in which two trains set out at a certain time heading towards each other, when do they ... crash? EEK!

I actually like the visual of NYC subway trains passing each other more than NJ Transit trains. On the subway in the dark, the trains go slower and are sometimes at different heights -- it makes the passengers look like they're from a different world or disembodied or suspended in time ... or something. NJ Transit goes by too fast, it's just a rumbling whoosh.

Westfield kale

The kale I photographed last year on East Front Street in Plainfield was replaced by icky bushes, half-dead now. I took this over by the Westfield Train Station.

Here, train! I'm waiting!

Plainfield Train Station. Yes, I messed with this. I first had him in color, the rest in black and white. Then I messed with the "posterize" setting (GIMP) which eliminates shades, then I changed the hue.

For those who don't know what that "bridge plate" thing is he's standing near, it's a plate they put over the gap so wheelchairs can board or get off the train. It can only be done on a raised train platform like we have in Plainfield. At the Bridgewater station, I have to climb in and out of the train. I was shocked last night when, for the first time, a conductor (one I've never seen before) asked if I wanted him to carry my bags up the stairs. I had done some shopping and was a bit weighed down.

Poison ivy in the winter

Trust me, you don't want to burn it. Inhaling burning dormant poison ivy can do a job on you. Bridgewater, NJ.

In which Jackie makes a photo op

I really wasn't getting any great photos this week. So I decided to ignore the fact that birds are conspiring to overthrow humans and fed the seagulls some crumbled Ritz crackers.

Eek!

Help me! Help me! The birds are surrounding me!
Just walk through them.
But, but ... they're planning to take over the world.

Polly demands a cracker

Okay, okay ... everything sits better on a Ritz!

In the air

As I was feeding the gulls and snapping shots on the ground, I was occasionally just pointing the camera up without paying attention -- the joys of digital over film. Seagulls in flight on a sunny day always look pretty.

EEK! That is NO seagull!

I didn't even see this guy until I was going through my shots several hours later. As I mentioned, I was taking random sky shots as I fed the seagulls. Apparently a hawk wanted to see what was up with all of the seagulls. Well, either a hawk or a turkey vulture. The way it was silhouetted in the sun makes it hard to tell. Both types of birds are always flying around Bridgewater. It was big. And it was no seagull.

The ghost of Christmas past

East Front Street, Plainfield. No, it's not mine. I didn't put mine up this year. It stayed in its box. Yes, mine is artificial when I decide to put it up. I've never had a real one in my apartment.

Conspiring, I tell ya

I wonder if the four on their own wire think they're special or something. Bridgewater, NJ.

Spanish lesson for the day

Gratis tome uno -- free take one. I was hoping the box would be full of $100 bills. Alas, just newspapers.

OUCH

Plainfield put in benches all over the city a while back. Well, not at many bus stops, but that's beside the point. Many of the benches have been vandalized or perhaps in a design flaw, the lowest slat has gone missing, exposing a rusty nasty metal piece. On some benches, the top slat of the seatback is missing and the same metal piece is exposed there, too.

Anyway, in the pre-dawn dark on Monday morning I set my tote bag down on this bench outside of Danny's Bakery on North Street to change my not-an-iPod battery. When I picked up my bag and turned to walk away, the metal piece snagged me good. OUCH.

The damage done

Thankfully, although there's an abrasion, it didn't rip my slacks. So I didn't run off to catch up my tetanus shots or anything. It wasn't metal ripping my skin directly. But, geez. Plainfield needs to fix those benches! I took this the day after. It's still pretty colors.

Bad for New Jersey

He won, time to get down the de-layering billboards, please. East Second Street, Plainfield, NJ

EEK!

Another hawk nearby Roofus the Cat's old hangout on North Street across from the Plainfield Train Station. Although Roofus might not be able to get on the roofs anymore, the pigeons still hang out in the sun. Now, birds tend to all of a sudden all fly off for no reason -- maybe they're playing musical chairs or something. Maybe one says to another, "Let's all fly in a circle and land in different spots here just to confuse the humans!"

So, when they all flew yesterday when I was waiting for the train, it was no big deal. That is, until I noticed the guy on the railing looking up where the pigeons sit. Earlier this week local Plainfield blogger Bernice also photographed a hawk (and its leftovers). I believe it's a Cooper's hawk.

Guard dog

This is the guard dog from the gas station on the corner of Church and East Second Street in Plainfield. It's the first time I've seen him out of his regular abode in the five or so years I've "known" him. At night they lock him in the station with the appropriate "Dog bites first, asks questions later" sign posted. In the daytime, he has his own little outdoor fenced run (and barks at passerby) with a trailer he can go in and out of for shelter. But yesterday he was out in the larger fenced lot playing with one of the attendants. He actually wagged his tail at me. But, of course, there was a fence between us.

Mainly for any local readers

Is the Business District Police Sub-Station moving to the Monarch? These are in the windows of one of the offices there. If so, the police won't like everyone looking in. They always keep the blinds closed at the location down the street. East Front Street, Plainfield.

Smile!

I did this to a friend's car at the Bridgewater Train Station the other day when we had some overnight snow. She works overnight in Manhattan, so her car was still in the lot when I arrived to work in the morning.

Winter hits businesses hard

This was early the same morning as the smiley face. Now, every other season the Mi Ranchito does a thriving business with all of the early rising day laborers, landscapers, and such. Usually there isn't a parking spot in front of the restaurant to be had. The last few weeks, this has been the norm -- a car or two. Yes, I edited to do the B&W/color bit. East Front Street, Plainfield, NJ.

How was your week?

It's Midseason or 2010 Winter Season TV Time - Premiere Dates

Yep, the winter season of television is here! I feel old. Y'see, I remember the old days when television shows ran about forty episodes a year and just went from fall to summer. I've gathered some of the dates of the premieres for you -- a few already started this week, my apologies. At work, my computer system had its 2000 breakdown ten years later. All of the programs I use there went kerflooey when it changed to 2010. So my work days have been manually entering tons of data using adding machines, then re-entering it into the computer after days of manual stuff. Argh! A nightmare indeed and, that's my excuse for not getting this to you earlier.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it. Without further ado --


I liked Southland on NBC and felt they canceled it without letting it find its audience. It's kind of like Third Watch done Los Angeles. I'm a sucker for cop shows done well. TNT took the ball and ran with it, thus new Southland will make its premiere next Tuesday.


On Wednesday, Leverage with Timothy Hutton returns to TNT. Yay!

Here's a whole bunch of new and returning shows coming up this month and next:

Monday, Jan. 4 -- The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love (ABC)
Monday, Jan. 4 -- Heroes (NBC)
Tuesday, Jan. 5 -- True Beauty (ABC)
Tuesday, Jan. 5 -- The Biggest Loser (NBC)
Sunday, Jan. 10 -- Big Love (HBO)
Sunday, Jan. 10 -- Chuck (NBC)
Thursday, Jan. 14 -- Project Runway (Lifetime)
Sunday, Jan. 17 -- 24 (Fox)
Sunday, Jan. 17 -- Human Target (Fox) new
Monday, Jan. 18 -- Life UneXpected (The CW) new
Thursday, Jan. 21 -- Deep End (ABC) new
Friday, Jan. 22 -- Caprica (Syfy) new
Friday, Jan. 22 -- Spartacus: Blood and Sand (Starz) new
Monday, Jan. 25 -- Damages (FX)
Monday, Jan. 25 -- Secret Diary of a Call Girl (Showtime)
Friday, Jan. 29 -- Kitchen Nightmares (Fox)

Monday, Feb. 1 -- Kell on Earth (Bravo) new
Tuesday, Feb. 2 -- Lost (ABC)
Thursday, Feb. 11 -- Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains (CBS)
Sunday, Feb. 14 -- The Amazing Race (CBS)

And, of course, we cannot forget --


I won't be writing in-depth reviews on many of the shows. However, I'll probably be posting periodically on some. If you want me to create a blog entry for comments on a show that I might not watch (Bachelor, for example), let me know and I'll get one up for you to hang out in!

Survivor 20 - Heroes and Villains Casting and Information

Tonight on the People's Choice Awards (CBS starting at 9 PM ET), Jeff Probst has promised a peek at the upcoming Survivor season. The season is slated to premiere on Thursday, February 11. It's to be a two-hour extravaganza with a look back at each contestant in their previous season(s).

Although CBS hasn't released the official cast list yet, there are plenty of cast spoilers on the internet. Here's what I found --

UPDATE - THE OFFICIAL CBS WEBSITE IS UP!

Heroes Tribe
Amanda Kimmel (S15 China and S16 Micronesia)
Candice Woodcock (S13 Cook Islands)
Cirie Fields (S12 Panama and S16 Micronesia)
Colby Donaldson (S2 Australia and S8 All-Stars)
J.T. Thomas (S18 Tocantins)
James Clement (S15 China and S16 Micronesia)
Rupert Boneham (S7 Pearl Islands and S8 All-Stars)
Stephenie LaGrossa (S10 Palau and S11 Guatemala)
Sugar Kiper (S17 Gabon)
Tom Westman (S10 Palau)

Villains Tribe
Coach Ben Wade (S18 Tocantins)
Courtney Yates (S15 China)
Danielle DiLorenzo (S12 Panama)
Jerri Manthey (S2 Australia and S8 All-Stars)
Parvati Shallow (S13 Cook Islands and S16 Micronesia)
Randy Bailey (S17 Gabon)
Boston Rob Mariano (S4 Marquesas and S8 All-Stars)
Russell Hantz (S19 Samoa)
Sandra Diaz-Twine (S7 Pearl Islands)
Tyson Apostol (S18 Tocantins)

Hmm. There are a few on there I really don't want to see on my television throughout the rest of my natural life. Coach Ben Wade isn't a villain, he's an annoying weirdo with grand delusions. Rob Mariano has already had too many fifteen minutes of fame. Although I thought he was a bit creative on The Amazing Race, I never cared for him much on Survivor. I'm not understanding the criteria for some of these choices, either. Courtney is a villain?

I'm looking forward to seeing how some of them do with this season -- Tom Westman, Evil Russell, Colby Donaldson (just because he's a cutie-patootie), Cirie, James. Yeah, I had to mix a villain in with my heroes.

Since Richard Hatch couldn't leave the country, he's not going to be in the show. It's a shame as I'd like to see him and Russell team up. Hatch was my choice to win the first season and, although I wasn't too keen on him in All-Stars, he's the ultimate villain.

One of the nice guy heroes I would have liked to watch again would be Ethan Zohn (Africa). I feel very saddened about the state of his health these days. Yul Kwon or Yau-Man Chan would be welcome back in my eyes, too. But I think they're both very busy in their own careers. They aren't bartenders like such a large bunch of the reality contestants!

What do you think of the cast list?

Off Topic - That Was The Week It Was - 1/03/10

Baby, it's cold outside! Here in New Jersey it's bitter cold with high wind warnings. I hope everyone reading this is home, warm and cozy. I am. (So is Vincent.) And, of course, it's Sunday -- time to ramble through my week in words and photographs I've taken. Speaking of photos, the 2009 Plainfield Library Photo Competition is now up online if you want to peek at the entries.

Where to start? Hmmm ... it's COLD. Waah. Hmmm ... television has been mostly boring with reruns. I watched all of The Thin Man movies on TCM New Year's Eve into New Year's Day. No one can beat Myrna Loy and William Powell! I realize the movies were filmed in the 30s and early 40s, but they're ahead of their time. Oh, Asta the dog was great, too.

On a dog, TV, and movie note -- I went into work two hours early and got home an hour early Saturday night. That works out, right? Anyway, since I got home an hour earlier than I usually do, I looked to see what was on television. Old Yeller was on TCM. I recall seeing the movie when I was young, but it must have been a re-release of some sort. I was around eight when I saw it, yet the original release was 1957. I was NOT eight years old in 1957! Nor would I remember any movie I saw in 1957. I remembered the story and also knew it really upset me at the time. So, like a fool, I caught the last hour of it knowing the ending. I'm such a sap! It still got to me.

In other TV watching, I watched a whole lotta episodes of Barney Miller Friday on WGN. Then I watched the Chicago news at 9 PM at 10 PM. Then I watched the NYC/NJ news at 11 at 11. "It's just a jump to the left, and then a step to the right, with your hands on your hips, you bring your knees in tight, but it's the pelvic thrust that really drives you insane, let's do the Time Warp again!" No, I didn't watch The Rocky Horror Picture Show, but the Time Warp seemed to fit in here. I enjoyed the Barney Miller episodes, the news not so much. But the cold they had in Chicago arrived in this area yesterday and today. Brrr.

I know New Year's Eve came during the week, but my own week was rather uneventful. By the time I got home from work on New Year's Eve, I was already hearing all kinds of accident calls on my police scanner. The roads around here were slick and the drunks were out. I like to think I can be pretty slick at times, but I don't do drunk well. I learned my lessons about drunk decades ago and, though I'll drink some socially, I won't get drunk. I don't like the feeling and I get sick to my stomach. To me, that's not a good way to start out a new year. Instead, I baked Trader Joe's truffle brownies and had hot chocolate with them at midnight.

Onto this week's photos --

Berckman Street Bunny

As I walked to the local bodega, I spotted this guy munching on grass between two houses. You know I had to shoot him. He can't be a wild rabbit -- he's fat and clean, bigger than most cats. I'd estimate he weighs a good 15 pounds or more. As I shot him, one of the people who live nearby told me he's been hanging around for over a month, disappeared with the snow cover, then reappeared. He told me he called animal control on him, but they couldn't catch him. Since he's so fat, so clean, and went away during the snow cover, he thinks the rabbit must have access in and out of someone's home. Just in case he doesn't, he's been putting carrots out for him in his backyard. Berckman Street, Plainfield, NJ.

Eek! Crazed Killer Rabbit!

Er, no. It's just I had to use the flash and it made his eyes glow. This is as close as I got to him, then he went through a basement window under one house's porch. Maybe he's their rabbit. I don't know. Berckman Street, Plainfield.

Brr. Foggy Windows

Danny's Bakery early Saturday morning in the FREEZING cold. Of course, my eyeglasses would steam up if I went in there, too. I edited to make the windows and sign in color while the remainder is black and white. Corner of North and Watchung, Plainfield, NJ.

From the train window - One

This is the Rock Ice Pavilion -- indoor ice skating year round. It's still a hit all through the winter. There's always a year-round snow pile in the back of the building from the Zamboni, even when it's 90 degrees out. Taken as I commuted to work on the New Jersey Transit Raritan Valley Line near Dunellen, NJ.

From the train window - Two

On one side, we have factories and industrial buildings. Raritan Valley Train Line, NJ Transit outside of Dunellen/Bound Brook area, NJ.

From the train window - Three

Ah, the Chipman Chemical Company -- New Jersey, just as you pictured it, eh? This is approaching Bound Brook heading west on the Raritan Valley Train Line. To be honest, there are some woods and streams where I spot deer, herons, and such. But the woods blur with the train movement when trying to use the camera.

Naked again, finally

No Santa suit! Yay! Vincent has no clue how cold it is outside. He's curled up sleeping as I type this.

Lights, shadows, and snow

The fury of the early morning snow on New Year's Eve morning took just about everyone by surprise. It wasn't snowing when I headed out to walk to the train station. I stopped a few minutes at Everybody's Food Store on East Front Street and came out to snow coming down. Two short blocks from there is this scene at the corner of Church and East Second. The snow is covering the roads and sidewalks and blowing about.

Another short two blocks

Gee, it's really coming down. It didn't snow for all that long, but was coming down at the rate of about two inches an hour. East Third Street and Watchung Avenue, Plainfield.

Snow on the bushes

First Fresh Tracks!

"I walk this empty street, On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams, Where the city sleeps and I'm the only one and I walk alone." - "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" by Green Day. Yes, these are my tracks. I find it interesting that I'm putting more pressure on the toes of my knee replacement knee. Before the knee replacement, I'd wear my right shoes out leaving the left one fine due to my horrid limp. Now I must be limping the other way -- weight on the left knee replacement knee and taking it easy on the right one.

What is going on here?

The brief blizzard continues. North Street across from the Plainfield Train Station.

There's no business like snow business ...

Plainfield Train Station under siege from snow.

Where IS that train?

Supposedly security was beefed up this week due to terror issues. No evidence of such on my train line. Every now and then, we see NJ Transit cops. We're more likely to see local police.

I see the light!

It's either the train or that woman has an aura of goodness and light about her. Plainfield Train Station.

The train has arrived

Note the cowboy boots. I see more cowboy boots around here than I did when I lived in California. Mind you, I'm not seeing a lot of horses or cows, especially in this area. When I first moved here, I almost drove off the road when I saw an elephant walking along the road. Yes, an elephant. No, I wasn't drinking, nor was it pink. There used to be a zoo around the Scotch Plains/Plainfield area and I happened to be driving by when one of the elephants was taking an illegal jaunt. It's a shame I didn't carry a camera back then like I do now.

It's her again ... or still

If she didn't change clothes, I'd think I was seeing dead people. She's always in the single seat by the stairs on the double-decker train. Me? I hog up the four-seater across the aisle from her. The morning trains always have plenty of room heading the wrong way for peak during the rush hours. That's the stairs and my seat check you see in the foreground.

Hugo's

Hugo's, a bar in the pre-dawn hours, not at night. Again, I'm loving the lights and shadows. I've never been inside. I probably will never be inside. The corner of Church and East Front Streets in Plainfield.

How was your week? And, welcome back, JoyN. (Folks might want to check out the New Year's Eve comments to see what's been going on with her.) Oh ... and a welcome to new folks coming aboard! Pretty soon, we're getting new show seasons! Yay!