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?