Off Topic: That Was the Week It Was - January 15, 2017

Good morning! Since it's Sunday morning, this is my weekly off television topic reflection on the week gone by in both words and photos I took along the way. Right now I'm still in between seasons of the television shows I regularly cover. That's not to say I'm not watching ANY television, but ...! 

Once again, my photos aren't all that great this week. I've had little inspiration and I'm still a bit in an overworked and not feeling well kind of funk. Nothing has really been going on in my life that's all that interesting and absolutely nothing all that exciting. Work, home, eat, sleep, cater to a certain Vincent cat. Oh, well. In about three weeks I'll have a week off. Yay.

Random observations:

• Apparently the Plainfield Police accomplished my upstairs neighbor's loud stereo issue when the landlord didn't. I've been saying all along that he had sub-woofers sitting on the floor and needed to get them off the floor as the thumping bass was shaking my whole apartment. Well, I called the police about 1am one night about two months ago. He had turned it off before they arrived. But, talking to the police via the intercom, I mentioned the speakers on the floor bit. They went up to talk to him even though he had turned the music off. It worked! They must have said the bit about the speakers on the floor! Since that night, I can hear his music (often), but it's not life-disturbing thumping. I can deal with that. Yes! Now, had the landlord actually said "speakers up off the floor" to him, I wouldn't have had to go through months of torture.
• I'm tired of everyone snipping at each other over local and federal politics. Obviously, the Trump fiasco is divisive. Yet, here in Plainfield, there's all sorts of nastiness going on. I'm tired of it all. Overall, I think Plainfield has made tremendous strides in moving forward during the nearly twenty years I've lived in town. I know there are projects and people living in poverty. Yet, the kids have more organized stuff to do than anywhere I've ever lived and more resources available to them. There are poor areas and wealthy areas in town ... but more people just living, working and trying to peacefully live here. 
• As an observer of stuff, I see friction between some people who grew up here and didn't take part in any enriching of the city and the immigrants who have opened all kinds of businesses. I can get along with anyone out there trying to do the right thing for the city. But a few folks are determined to think their particular group is more important than any other. The city needs to keep moving forward. It's actually the working class people who are the vast majority in town -- and we are black, white, Latino, Asian, etc. We're not the ones shooting each other or hanging out on the streets at night drinking or doing drugs. We don't live in lofty mansions either. We all just keep working and paying the bills. All we want is a decent town in which to live.
• I'm looking forward to the upcoming week's winter weather after today. Yes, you heard me! The forecast is for the low 50s for most of the week. I can deal with that. I don't ski anymore. I don't need snow.
• I was an unwilling bit of someone's Facebook Live session yesterday. Grr. A young woman got off the train in front of me and an older man was right there to hug her (in my way, mind you!). As I tried to get around them, I heard a woman say, "Wave to everyone in Georgia and tell them you arrived safely." Gah. There was an older woman filming this reunion (or whatever). That would have been fine had the man/young woman reunion had not blocked everyone else trying to exit the train! So, hello, Georgia.

That's it. Onto the photos, none of them all that great this week. If you click on an image, it opens up in a larger version. 

As seen from Track 1

The view of North Avenue from the platform at the Plainfield Train Station on Monday before our big snow meltdown. I edited this very ordinary shot with a "nostalgic" filter on Google's Color Efex photo editor. I like how it turned out.

Home to the icy snow last night

We didn't get anything like the midwest got yesterday, but it sure was slick walking getting home from work last night! I'd say maybe a half-inch of snow covered by a layer of ice. The streets seemed to be just wet. However, the sidewalks were treacherous. Plainfield Train Station.

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

Is that pigeon guffawing?!?!

Probably not. 

YOU can't do this!

Well, maybe Linda Blair could turn her head around in The Exorcist, but that doesn't count!

More than frost on that pumpkin!

While the landlord of where I work cleared the pumpkins from its harvest decorations -- which was amazing and cool this fall -- they missed one poor pumpkin. I'm very disappointed that, after clearing the spectacular harvest displays, they did absolutely nothing for winter. The planters sit empty this year with no berries or holly. Sniffle.

EWWWW!!!

This woman seated in front of me on the train home one evening was eating something extremely messy (covering the whole handle of her fork) which looked like some sort of fried seaweed and smelled like fish heads. Ew! Some foods should NOT be eaten on trains! 

Gull talk

Probably talking about how silly humans have to wear coats and fall on icy sidewalks! Bridgewater, NJ.

Well-fed gull

Scavengers that they are, I've never seen a skinny gull. I swear they'll eat anything, edible or not! Bridgewater, NJ.

Full Wolf Moon over Municipal Court

I took this shot Thursday evening as I was coming home from work. For some reason, my camera didn't want to do its usual detailed job on the moon -- perhaps the cloud haze around the moon? I don't know.

Huddled together for warmth

Obviously, with little other fodder, I shoot pigeons. (With my camera, of course.) North Avenue, Plainfield.

Wrong day for these clothes!

While Thursday was actually balmy with a high in the high sixties (F), Friday wasn't the day to be running around in short pants. We won't talk about the school bus yellow sneakers. It was about 20 degrees when I took this photo on North Avenue in Plainfield.

I give the landing an 8

Yep, I'm sure pigeons judge each other much like people do.

Can we get this photo shoot done?

"I need to get back to napping, please." Poor Vincent. He leads such a rough life!