September 2009 12 of 12 - Somewhere Between Summer and Fall

Credit for the "12 of 12" goes to Chad Darnell. Thanks for doing this for everyone Chad. It's the one thing I have to look forward to every month.

Today was a rather dismal dreary day ...the third in a row. It rained and blew all day yesterday and through most of the night. No sunshine today, but this is weather I can live with The rain came at a good time and any rain day means an early day for me. Well, Here's my 12...

6:15 am - Philadelphia (Roxborough), PA

New "puter" ...well new to me. There was nothing wrong with the old one other than the last super erased all the data and all the office software with it. He also left it password encrypted. I got around the password, but still needed Excel and Word. They set up this antique (note the 3.5" floppy drive) for me. It can't seem to pick up the wireless router. The signal is too weak. However my laptop has no problem. They said they will see about a antenna extention. I have my doubts about the integrity of this thing too. Despite not having run any real programs yet it's completely locked up on me twice.

8:05 am - Roxborough

11 tee... Everytime it rains hard the cart path washes out. So here I am to pull all the gravel back over the broken concrete and rake it all smooth ...until the next rain anyway.

8:31 am - Roxborough

Motoring up Walnut Lane on my John Deere. Won't see a farm tractor on the streets of Philadelphia too often.

9:16 am - Roxborough

Here's our complainer again... still wanting to be fed by mama. He must be feeding on something. He doesn't look all that emaciated.

9:35 am - Roxborough

I wanted to get a shot of a spider's web, but between the rain and the wind of yesterdays storm, there were none to be found. I suppose a tent caterpillar's nest will have to do. Maybe a nice web next month with a big fat spider for Halloween?

9:50 am - Roxborough

Just a ball rolling in on the practice green. I could have gotten a beter perspective if I was laying flat on the ground, but I didn't feel like getting completely soaked.

12:26 pm - Roxborough

A brand new engine... I'm just contemplating whether I want to try to start to replace it this weekend or wait till I have some help on Monday. Hmmm.... Monday it is.

1:54 pm - Roxborough

In south Philly there rages an on-going debate on who has the better cheese steak, Pat's or Gino's. Up here in Roxborough there is Chubbys and Delessandro's. Like Pat's and Gino's, Chubby's and Dalessandro's are right across the street from each other. Both have there plusses and minuses. Chubby's has a really great Buffalo Chicken Cheese Steak and better seating. Dalessandro's serves a bigger sandwich and faster service. Ultimately, I usually chose Dalesandro's because I can drive in my utility cart, park on the grass next to the football field, and not have to cross a very busy 4 lane road.

2:02 pm - Roxborough

Okay, you're thinking you've seen this guy before, but no. This is a different hawk. At least the third different one I've seen here. He had a bit of a mouse or something else he was pecking at. I don't know if he caught it or just picked it up off the roadside or something. Our complaining bird was squawking nearby the whole time this fellow made his appearence. That too made it easy to say they are two different birds.

3:00 pm - Roxborough

Time to go home... not because it's 3, but I need to get some chores done at home. I never really look at the clock. I'm salary not hourly. As long as I'm here each day to open up on time, I'm good. I still punch in and out, but my pay is not based upon my hours.

3:24 pm - Bala-Cynwyd, PA

Even on Saturday there's traffic... UGH!

6:01 pm - Upper Darby, PA

The obligatory food shot... Romaine lettuce, Broccoli, onion, cucumber, red pepper, baby white mushrooms, sliced jalapeno peppers with a fat free low cal asian sesame dressing. I could do better with the dressing, but I would have added oil and it would need to sit for a while to marry the flavors. I'm really all about convenience any more. I'll have more time for myself during the winter to cook and work on setting up my apartment to my liking. Hurry up cold weather.

August 2009 12 of 12 - Summer Swelter

Credit for the "12 of 12" goes to Chad Darnell. Thanks Chad.

5:33 am - Philadelphia/Roxborough, PA

Arrived at work. My humble office. Yeah, I spend most of my time on the course.


8:00 am - 3rd green

Can't say for sure what the weather will be today. It's been unsettled at best for over a week now. At the very least it will be hot and humid. So I need to water, at least a bit, just in case the sun comes out.


8:54 am - 12th hole

I've been trying to get a shot at this youngster for about 2 weeks now when I heard him crying for his momma. This guy is in his first year. You can tell by the dark band running across his chest. The older Red Tails are in molt and can't hunt very well right now. This is when these young fellows learn to hunt, but he keeps crying to be fed. Makes me want to go find him a mouse.


12:43 pm - 7th Hole

Joe and Joe... a couple of my friends from my old course come out to play.


12:51 pm - 14th hole

Okay, it's green.


1:02 pm - 15th hole

These guy are evrywhere around the course, but they tend to build their homes inside the wood line. I think this is due to the number of nieghbors who walk their dogs through the course. However this guy recently dug this hole on the boundry betwen the wood and rough.


1:07 pm - 12th hole

Here's our young bird on the wing crying as he's flying.


1:25 pm - 18th hole

I found this a bit interesting. This is whats left of a locust tree that up-rooted about two months ago. At first I thought it was coming back to life, but those aren't locust leaves.


5:06 pm - Broomall, PA

Produce aisle at Giant Foods.. my supermarket of choice. Okay a bit of camera shake, but didn't get too many shots inside the store.


5:09 pm - produce aisle

Okay, pop math quiz. Which is the better value... 2 lbs of carrots at $1.89 or 5 lbs at $2.49? I love to eat these things for snacks. So guess which one I bought. This was the last photo I took in the store before some manager asked me not to take any photos. Its against store policy. I think the whole world has gone just a bit paranoid.


6:15 pm - Upper Darby

This is the before photo of my fridge. Now you know why I went shopping


6:31 pm

That's better and that's all for this month folks.

July 2009 12 of 12 Playing in the Mud

Credit for the "12 of 12" goes to Chad Darnell.

Today Promised to be just another long day at work, but ended up being much longer than I wanted.



4:41 am - Upper Darby, PA

We had a big downpour over night. It ended just a ittle while ago.



5:18 am - Roxborough/Philadelphia, PA

Got to have my Joe.



6:27 am - On the golf course

Everytime we get a bit of rain this cart path completely washes out... yes this is a cart path. It'll take me the better part of an hour to fix it.





8:02 am

Number 11 green



11:30 am Delessandro's

I never was all that big on cheesesteaks until I tried one of these. People from all over the country rave about these. I have the good fortune of now working right next to the restuarant. The seating area isn't any bigger than a small living room. That's why most get them to go. You'll be getting more pics as the months go by.


1:27 pm

This is Abigail. Since there is a main access to the bike and walking trails that runs right trough the course, people walk their dogs through the course all day long. Abby belongs to one of our rangers.


1:38 pm

One of our banners blowing in the wind


1:41 pm

...and so the trouble begins. Found this leak on the 16th hole.



2:06 pm

Got to climb down and shut off the water.



3:27 pm

After some digging, I finally find a pipe. I started where I saw the water bubbling up at the point nearest to the lens. I found the pipe where the shovel is. Little did I know that wasn't the right one.


6:57 pm

Looking back up the 7th fairway on my way home.


7:38 pm - Upper Darby

Looking out my window I see the neighbors on their lawn. They're not all that friendly, but at least they're quiet.


Follow up Photo - 7/13/9 6:11 pm

Here's what took me so long to post my pics. I'll test it tomorrow after the fix has cured.

June 2009 12 of 12 - A Short Trip Home

Credit for the 12 of 12 goes to Chad Darnell of course. ....Thanks Chad.

Today was a busy day for me. I had a dentist appointment back in Harrisburg at 12:15, needed to get a hair cut, had to work in the morning, and had to get back to Philly of course. I did find time to relax and spend some time with my mother.

Well here's my day...

4:09 am - Upper Darby, PA

After getting my shower I checked the radar. This last week it seemed if it wasn't raining, we either just got rained on or were about to get some more. This morning was no exception.

4:32am - City Line Ave, Philadelphia, PA

Morning commute... St. Joe's. It's really humiid out and due to the long exposure the lights all have halos.

6:28am - Roxborough/Philadelphia, PA

The lighting is still pretty bad so even with optical stabilization on my "critter cam" lens, this is the best shot I could get of this juvenile fox.

9:52am - PA Turnpike reststop somewhere outside Morgantown

On my way to Harrisburg... I didn't have breakfast yet this morning other than coffee, so I stopped and got a 3 pump 5 shot mocha. More coffee and less chocolate... Any more chocolate or less espresso and it tastes more like hot chocolate than mocha. ...Oh, I had a Key Lime crumb cake with it. Yummmm.

1:55pm - Colonial Park/Harrisburg, PA

Done with the dentist, got my hair cut, now I'm out with my mother at Cracker Barrel for lunch. ...catfish, hush puppies, steak fries, turnip greens (with pepper vinager of course), and corn muffins. I should have skipped the fries and muffins, but what the hey, you only live once.

4:37pm - Harrisburg

Sitting on the back porch with my mother. Here she is coming in after talking with a neighbor.

5:39pm - Harrisburg

As I'm getting ready to head back to Philly I decide to take this shot of the house where I grew up. It's been so long since I've lived here, but it still feels more like home than anyplace I've lived at since.

5:40pm - Harrisburg

I decide to listen to John Mayer for the ride home. Six miles down the road, I remember it's Funky Friday on WXPN and they have satellite stations all over. So I tune into XPN. My taste in music is pretty eclectic.

7:06pm - King of Prussia, PA

I decide to stop at King of Prussia mall to get a drink and something to eat. I don't stop up here very often even though I'm working closer to the mall. Brian McConnel is the Brew Master here at Rock Bottom Brew Pub. I love his IPAs and they have this one on an English beer engine.

7:17pm - King of Prussia, PA

I decide on the Ahi Tuna (rare of course) with rice and string beans. Again yummmm.

7:54pm - Rock Bottom Brew Pub ...still

Here's a run down of what's on tap. I like to sample more than one where ever I go, but the IPA is so good I stuck with that. After I left here I went to the camera shop in the mall to purchase a lens cap for the 35-70mm lens I won on E-bay, but they didn't have a 62mm lens cap... bummer.

9:37pm central time - Detroit, MI

Okay, I'm not in Detroit and it's 10:37pm eastern, but the clock is down to 00.0 secs and the Pittsburgh Penquins win the Stanley Cup ...Yippee!! It's been a great year for pro sports in PA.

Speaking of Pennsylvania sports, I have a bonus pic of last week's bike race in Philly. The Manyunk "Wall" as they call it is just a short walk from my workplace.

Extra Bonus Picture

I saw this guy back at the end of last month so I thought I would share him with you too.

Pileated Woodpecker

Just a reminder... the GPS data is imbedded in the EXIF if you want to see exactly where each photo was taken. Indoor pics won't have any GPS data and today I had some difficulty with my GPS so some of the outdoor pics are missing the data as well.

See you next month.