11/12/09

Unofficially, students affiliated with WashU's school of medicine put on a pubcrawl each fall and spring. The theme this year was early 90's hiphop -- complete with dancers in Salt N Pepa jackets, boomboxes, and Hammer pants.

11/11/09

Saint Louis, King Louis IX of France, watched over Art Hill this beautiful Saturday just as he's done every day since 1906. Before the Arch he was the symbol of the city.

Happy Rememberance Day (or Veterans' Day to Americans). It's important that we do not forget the costs of war.

11/10/09

Wow, keeping up with regular photos is tough. I've been super busy lately. But happily, the beginning of November has been so beautiful -- it makes up for the October that should have been. On Saturday I went out to Art Hill in Forest Park and lay in the sun with my book. It was so tranquil with people outside, just hanging out, flying kites, enjoying the weather.

I've started taking a letterpress printing class at the (fabulous) Firecracker Press and I want to take some shots of the shop sometime. They do wonderful design work on antique letterpresses. The presses are absolutely amazing machines -- built with real craftsmanship, built to last.

11/05/09

I really need to go out and get some new photographic material, but in the meantime here's a shot I took kayaking the beautiful Apostle Islands shoreline in northern Wisconsin in the summertime.

11/02/09

Currently on at the Kemper Art Museum (on WashU campus) is the exhibition Metabolic City, which examines plans for urban design understood through the metaphor of the human body. Like a human body, a city needs interacting systems, operating at different levels of analysis, that work effectively in order to maintain a healthy state. The exhibit focuses on work from a few different countries (Japan, the UK, the Netherlands) and most of it seems to be from the 1950s-1960s.

Some of the visions from that era are really interesting. It's especially interesting to me that the work highlighted here emerged in the postwar period, the period when it seems to me that suburban sprawl and the decline of city cores really accelerated... yet it was a visionary time when people were really interested in how they could change their cities into something that they wanted them to be. It's been in the later decades that there's been a preference movement back to pre-war characteristics such as core density, but for new reasons such as their environmental footprint.

I'm a fan of the dense, vibrant city core and follow developments in that direction in the St. Louis area with a lot of interest, but without any formal background in the urban planning field it can be difficult to develop and articulate my opinions in more detail, or feel confident doing so.

11/01/09

A man was carrying this wonderful rendition of the house from the movie Up at the Central West End's Halloween parade yesterday.

10/31/09

At the Botanical Gardens, the Climatron in a blaze of autumn colour. Happy Halloween!

10/29/09

Again from the flipside.

10/27/09

Sorry for the long delay again.

It's been a harrowing week, so on Sunday I went to the Missouri Botanical Garden to draw and give my mind some empty space. My camera batteries needed recharging, so I just took a few snaps with my phone along with the sketches. In my opinion, the garden is the most beautiful place in St. Louis. I can literally feel the peace when I walk through, even if some special event is going on, like the children's Halloween event that happened last Sunday.

It's beautiful any time of the year. Right now, all the colours are ablaze. It's good for the soul to come visit.

10/19/09

A pic from a few weeks ago of the remains of the San Luis Apartments in the Central West End. Tearing this down leaves a gap... which will be filled in by a parking lot -- a "campus improvement," of course. The bus picking people up in the diagram is a nice touch:

As someone who lives here without a car, it is difficult. But it drives home the awareness that until St. Louis is willing to seriously consider lessening reliance on the automobile it will never be a great city.

10/18/09

A shot from outside the region today -- Lake Superior, August 2009. When I get homesick, this is the kind of thing I miss. Living next to the Mississippi is not the same as living next to the inland sea.

10/17/09

Canary yellow bicycle on Washington University campus the other day. There was only a handful of bikes on the racks -- with the colder weather, bike commuting has decreased substantially.

10/16/09

Stuff from Third Degree Glass Factory's demonstration at St Louis Science Centre last weekend for SciFest, a five-day festival showcasing all kinds of different science talks, demonstrations, and other activities.

10/15/09

One of four blue herons spotted while biking out on the Great River Road from Alton to Grafton, IL.

10/14/09

Building detail in the Central West End neighbourhood.

I got bogged down the past few days with work and put off posting because I didn't have any particularly good material. I've kind of made a resolution to myself to try and put up a photo each day, even if they aren't remarkable photos. The habit is the important thing, and hopefully with more practice my photos will improve.

10/08/09

It's amazing to me that the old Chain of Rocks bridge was part of Route 66 and meant for vehicles. Look at how narrow it is! Now it's for bikes and pedestrians only. Also unique is the bend partway through, so that the bridge was located on bedrock the whole way through - cheaper to build that way. You can see it at the right of this photograph.

The old Chain of Rocks bridge is rich in history, some good and some bad. I hear it's cleaned up a lot since the early 1990s (where it was the site of a double murder), and we didn't feel unsafe when we were there, but apparently many cars at the parking lots on either side are prime game for break-ins, so be careful.

10/07/09

At the end of the riverfront trail is the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge - which is called old on account of the fact that a New Chain of Rocks Bridge was built, larger to accommodate more traffic. This bridge is open only to cyclists and pedestrians now and crosses over to Illinois. Some work has been done to renovate the bridge and commemorate its history as part of Route 66, including this mural.

10/06/09

One of a couple of junkyards along the Riverfront Trail. When you see the number of cars in these junkyards, it's a bit staggering.

10/04/09

Railway car labelled for the now-defunct Cotton Belt Railway, again along the Riverfront Trail.

10/03/09

Starting just north of the arch along the Mississippi River, the Riverfront Trail is a wonderland of abandoned and still-functioning industrial infrastructure, reflecting St. Louis's history as a river city whose port is past its peak. This little building is not far from the trailhead.

10/02/09

There is nothing better than beer and dinner after a long bike ride - unfortunately, it might leave you with a shaky hand... hey, I never said I was actually much of a photographer.

This pic's from back in the summer, taken at the Schafly Tap Room after biking STL's Riverfront Trail. Those blurs behind the drinks are our bike helmets. More info about the trail here - it starts just north of the Arch and extends 10 miles north until the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge, where you then have the option of crossing over the bridge and continuing in Illinois.

There is a lot of interesting, historic industrial infrastructure along that trail and I hope to make it back before the weather gets too cold, although I hear the trail's washed out at Mile 7 so making it to the bridge isn't an option at the moment.

10/01/09

Another shot of the arch on a dramatic, cloudy day!

09/29/09

Of course, the major St. Louis landmark, the Arch. Built on the shores of the Mississippi River to symbolize St. Louis's position as the "Gateway to the West", the Arch is bigger in person than you'd expect, and offers a lot of photography opportunities (as you can see on the excellent STL Daily Photo).

A big issue for the city is that the arch and the river are cut off from the rest of downtown, and while there is a Metro (light rail) stop to access the Arch (Arch / Laclede's Landing), it's not a straightforward path. It didn't occur to me until I had lived here for some time that they cannot develop along the river the same way one might along a lake or ocean shoreline, because the Mississippi is big, muddy, and prone to floods. Developing the riverfront and integrating it with the downtown under these circumstances (not to mention I-70 getting in the way) is a major challenge.

As a tangent, it's funny how growing up next to a body of water can shape you. I imagine growing up next to this river as a defining characteristic, something that runs through Mark Twain's writing, for example. I don't feel the same kind of affinity for the river lands, maybe because I grew up on the Great Lakes. I miss the water. On the other hand, someone who grew up next to the ocean might feel that the big lakes are missing something too, maybe the smell of the salt instead.

09/28/09

We finished off a great weekend in Illinois by going apple-picking at Mill's Apple Farm. The weather was beautiful, and now I have more apples than I could possibly eat before they go bad, so I'd better start making some baked goods with them.

I'll get back to some shots of actual St. Louis soon!

09/27/09

Another shot from out in Illinois. It was a beautiful day to be outside (although in theory we were out there to listen to talks).

09/26/09

Went across the river to Illinois for a mini-conference and back to the city today. The scenery along the Illinois River is very scenic, rolling hills and countryside. The road runs along the river for quite a long way - I'd like to take my bike out here for a ride, especially as the leaves begin to change.

09/25/09

Eggplants and tomatoes from the Burning Kumquat, Washington University's community garden. They have a table out over the lunch hour each Monday selling produce, and I figured this is probably the shortest food distance I'll be able to find, considering I don't have a garden of my own.

I used one of the eggplants and the tomatoes in a roasted vegetable pasta with goat cheese, and I think I'll use the other with lentils, onions, etc. in some attempt at Middle Eastern cooking.

09/24/09

I love my bike. I live without a car in St. Louis, and so my bike plays a vital transportation role. Sometimes it's a pain, but getting around like this has its benefits -- even if you have a car, it's good to get out and around by foot or by bike when you can. It makes good public health sense.

09/23/09

On a boarded-up building in Forest Park Southeast. Wishful thinking?

09/22/09

Again, from the community garden at Tower Grove and Gibson, an old washing sink (I think?) becomes a planter.

I think this is also some sort of repurposed machinery, but I can't tell what it is. It doesn't seem to be used as a planter, so perhaps it's just intended to be an ornament to the garden.

My camera is having some issues. It spontaneously shuts down, and takes forever to do anything. It's nothing fancy and several years old (and has been submerged in water to boot) so I guess I shouldn't be surprised, but it's never a good time to replace your camera!

09/21/09

Evangelical wastebin in Forest Park Southeast.

09/20/09

Mural in a community garden in Forest Park Southeast.

09/19/09

Balloon Glow in Forest Park last night, where everyone gets to see the hot-air balloons up close and personal before the balloon race today.

Always a fun event to check out.

09/18/09

Again at Washington University, a flash of colour among all the tasteful red stone. The campus is beautiful, but it drives me nuts sometimes how homogeneous the architecture is.

I found these neatly laid out just as you see them in the photograph and thought it was a little peculiar. Some animal starting to gather for the winter? Or a sign from one member of a secret society to another?

09/17/09

Five Rudders (1964), by Alexander Calder, is installed in the sculpture plaza at Mildred Lane Kemper art museum on WashU's campus. I like this piece, if nothing else for the flagship position it occupies in the collection -- it's something distinctive and recognizable. The museum itself is also worthwhile perusing.


Two layers of art and a would-be photographer in the same shot. I'm wearing a helmet because I was getting around by bike this day. The reflections didn't turn out the way I wanted them to, but I will post the picture anyway for posterity.

09/16/09

Forest Park borders onto the campus of Washington University in St. Louis:


Here's Brookings Hall, framed by the trees and path that lead out to Skinker Boulevard and behind, Forest Park. It's a beautiful campus -- I have a few more shots in the next few days before I continue on to other subjects. At this time of the year the campus is buzzing with the activity of another academic year, just beginning, but the weather continues to be beautiful and just summery enough.

09/15/09

Continuing with the tour of Forest Park I continue past the Missouri History Museum:

Outside the museum is an old trolley car -- the title "Loop Trolley" refers to the Loop neighbourhood to the northwest, which used to be the turnaround for all the trolley cars. Streetcars are no longer used in St. Louis. There's been talk of establishing a new Loop Trolley, with a streetcar line connecting the Loop to the History Museum in Forest Park, but it seems like such a short distance and I don't know who would end up using it, except for tourists. That has been debated elsewhere, though.

09/14/09

Another shot in Forest Park -- this time you can see some of the buildings of the Central West End, through the trees.

09/13/09

First post!

My goal is to post images & captions (hopefully daily, but we'll see) of the city I live in, St. Louis, MO, USA. I'm not a serious photographer, but I love how looking for pictures to take makes you appreciate the beauty of the world around you.

A pond in Forest Park, St. Louis's landmark park.