Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - November 13

Good afternoon! Since it's Sunday, 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. This is a regular Sunday part of this blog in addition to the television posts. Right now I'm covering Big Brother: Over the Top daily -- you can find those posts at this link. I'm also live blogging Survivor episodes as they air on Wednesday evenings. Come join the blog parties!

My apologies for getting this up so late. I'm still fighting the super-cold that's gone rampant through my workplace and the general public. And, it's just not been a great week on the whole for me on a personal level.

The amount of hate and unrest in the world is getting to me. I voted my conscience on Tuesday. Now I see the hatemongers who posted so many racially charged memes of President Obama over the years continuing to post hateful things, I'm dismayed with humanity. 

My upstairs neighbor decided that since Friday was a holiday for him, the world needed to hear his subwoofer stereo late into the night on Thursday. The police responded over a half hour after called and talked to him. But, by then he had turned it off. The landlord will get yet another complaint tomorrow about that. And, mind you, Friday was NOT a holiday at my workplace. 

For the first time ever at the Plainfield Library Photo Contest, not a one of my five photos was deemed worthy of even an Honorable Mention. I don't really like to sound like a sore loser or sour grapes, but obviously the judging criteria has changed with a different person judging the photos. I really feel like I had two photos that were strong contenders and they got zilch even though one of them had all kinds of people gathered around it saying how wonderful it was. I guess I'll rethink what I do next year. 

So, for me ... it's been a week of dismay, disappointment and disturbing. I won't even go into a few deaths of people who touched my life.

Onto the photos, for what they're worth ...    

Reflections on the library.

The Plainfield Public Library's windows reflecting the nearby street scenes.

Yes, I voted

A birds-eye view?

I always liked this building.

Although it could definitely use a bit of tender loving care, this is one fine building. The mosaic tiles are beyond cool. It was obviously built back when art was part of designing buildings. Corner of Park Avenue and East 5th Street in Plainfield.

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

Let there be a gull to oversee the city

Well, looky here.

This signal boxes at the corner of Berckman and East 2nd Streets have been the target of graffiti artists and slapped with stickers and posters over the years. For a long time, I referred to it as the HAHA Box as someone repetitively wrote "Hahahaha" all over it. Now the city's program to beautify the city has done this. I like it. One day, it was same old, the next ...!

I'm very impressed!

Also, in the background, you can see the work being done on rehabbing what I once referred to as the Deliverance House. That home had various riff-raff living in it for years, was crumbling apart, the lawn outgrown over the summers and full of trash. The fire department even put one of their No Entry danger symbols on it as it was deemed unstable. Someone bought it and it's being totally rehabbed. Yay.

Signal box art program at work

This signal box, at the corner of Park and 7th, was painted some time ago. I'm not sure why they didn't paint the smaller box.

Waiting for Mario to work wonders ...

... with the building in the background. Developer Mario Camino has grand plans for that building which include apartments on the upper floors and mixed commercial use on the ground level. That building has been empty, abandoned and neglected for years. Meanwhile, the signal box is sure looking good! Corner of Park Avenue and East 7th Street in Plainfield.

The saga goes on.

I see dead people on the NJ Transit Raritan Valley Line train. Will they wake up to the zombie apocalypse? Maybe. It's New Jersey, after all. 

Patches of brilliant colors

West 8th Street in Plainfield. Many of the leaves are now gone. But, every now and then, there is beauty in the leaves.

The Unitarian Church in Plainfield

Park Avenue. Not to be confused with Manhattan's Park Avenue.

The beautiful bride

This was going on in front of my apartment building yesterday when I returned home. I can't imagine how many pine needles got caught up in her wedding dress! That big tree there has been shedding them like crazy. That tree has some history behind it. It's huge and old. Several years ago, that tree saved the front part of our building when a tree at the neighbor's house fell down. As a result, the huge pine is missing half of its branches way up high. That tree was also part of a crime scene a few years back when a man hid behind it and opened gunfire on police officers. He ran and was taken into custody a bit later with no one injured.

Tuesday night's moon

Friday night's moon

I didn't go out last night to shoot the full moon. Oh, well.

Red mums in Bridgewater

He's actually begging!

My gosh. How dog-like of him. I gave him some croissant crumbs and he wanted more. Plainfield Train Station.

I guess it's the holiday season.

The holiday decorations in Plainfield went up just after Halloween. Hmm. East Front Street.

Yellow mums in Plainfield

Vincent

I guess I'm an odd one indeed. My best friend and ever-present family member is a cat.