My World Tuesday

AirTrain JFK

Operating 24 hours a day, it’s the easiest way to get to, from, and around John F. Kennedy International Airport.

This is what it looks like running above the Van Wyck Expressway into Jamaica Queens where you can catch subways and the Long Island Railroad into Manhattan.

The link for more information: Airtrain

SOOC Sunday

Thought you might want to see the new NYC Taxi. A little yellow hatchback. This is a Toyota. There are other fuel efficient cars and hybrids too. You want to know the taxi rates?

TAXI RATES:
$2.50 just for getting in
$.50 for each 1/4 mile
$.50 for each 30 seconds stopped in traffic
$1.00 additional night charge
Plus, tip in the range of 15-20 percent.

The design of the "NYC Taxi" logo you see above was designed by Wolff Olins. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered all city taxis to operate on hybrid engines by 2012 as part of his drive to reduce air pollution.

The typical yellow taxi has been the Crown Victoria and before that the Checker cab. The Crown Vic which makes up right now the majority of NYC taxicab fleet gets 14 miles per gallon.

Go on over to Jan's at Murrieta 365 to see other SOOC participants.

Thematic Photographic -drab

Electrical works

Looking to take shots with my camera as we returned from JFK airport yesterday. Not much to shoot: boring, ugly buildings. Even this structure which I assume is an electrical plant on the grounds fits the theme well. When I saw Mojo's entry for Carmi of Written Inc.'s theme - drab, I knew exactly what I wanted to post.

So, Carmi, here's my first post for Thematic Photographic.

theteach

My World Tuesday

Today is My World Tuesday. And it's SPRING! I want to show you my little bunch of tulips that are coming up, albeit slooowly, but still they are coming up.

The soil looks terrible but the gardener is coming to turn the soil and it will look much better. These are the only flowers I have growing. A twin bunch died several years ago. I do have a lot of evergreens, one forsythia bush and one azealea bush.

Thanks to the My World Team:

Klaus | Sandy | Ivar | Wren | Fishing Guy | Louise

maryt/theteach

SOOC Sunday

Jan of Murrieta 365 is the host of this week's SOOC Sunday.

I thought you'd like to see some buds up real close!



Here's what Jan says about her meme:

Do you ever take a photo that you love; it comes out so well, straight from the camera, that you're not tempted to do a thing with it, once you've downloaded it. It's wonderful and you want to share it. I've decided to start a new meme - Straight Out Of the Camera Sunday. I'll host it here, each Sunday. So put your thinking cap on, scroll through your files and decide what to post. The subject is open, no weekly theme, just have fun. On Sunday morning, actually at 12:00 PM PST, on Saturday, I post my SOOC Sunday, and Mr. Linky.

What are the rules? On any Sunday you can post any photo you like (it must be one of your own) that hasn’t been tweaked or altered in any way (cropping is OK). In other words Straight Out Of the Camera.

Go on over to Jan of Murrieta 365 to see other participants.

My World Tuesday

Doors on two of many mausolea in the old Calvary Cemetery, Queens, N.Y.

A bronze relief on the door of a mausoleum. The relief depicts a standing female figure dressed in classical apparel. Her head is bent in grief and her hand reaches for the handle to open the door behind which her beloved lies. The flowers in the relief indicate life everlasting and resurrection.

Repetitive leaf design. The slight color yellow you can see on the upper right is from the stain glass window at the back of the structure.

A mausoleum (plural: mausolea) is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the mausoleum. A Christian mausoleum sometimes includes a chapel.

The word derives from the Mausoleum of Maussollos (near modern-day Bodrum in Turkey), the grave of King Mausollos, the Persian satrap of Caria, whose large tomb was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Historically, mausolea were, and still may be, large and impressive constructions for a deceased leader or other person of importance. However, smaller mausolea soon became popular with the gentry and nobility in many countries. In the Roman Empire, these were often ranged in necropoleis or along roadsides: the via Appia Antica retains the ruins of many private mausolea for miles outside Rome. However, the practice fell out of use when Christianity became dominant.^[1]

Later, mausolea became particularly popular in Europe and her colonies during the early modern and modern periods. These are usually small buildings with walls, a roof and sometimes a door for additional interments or visitor access. A single mausoleum may be permanently sealed. A mausoleum encloses a burial chamber either wholly above ground or within a burial vault below the superstructure. This contains the body or bodies, probably within sarcophagi or interment niches. Modern mausolea may also act as columbaria (a type of mausoleum for cremated remains) with additional cinerary urn niches. Mausolea may be located in a cemetery, a churchyard or on private land.

Thanks to the My World Team:

Klaus | Sandy | Ivar | Wren | Fishing Guy | Louise

maryt/theteach

SOOC Sunday

This is a shot of the stained glass ceiling of the restaurant called Le Citron, in Roslyn, N.Y. We had a great lunch there on Thursday.

Go on over to Jan's Murrieta365 for other participants in her meme SOOC Sunday.

theteach

My World Tuesday

It was an overcast day at Old Calvary Cemetery in Long Island City, Queens, N.Y. The New York Skyline didn't look very good so I added a little Film Grain to the photos using Photobucket Online.

I'll be going back in April when trees begin to fill out and flowers begin to bloom. I'll make sure the day is bright and fine so the skyline will be sharp and beautiful.

Here's a shot facing the other way (toward the East)

So that's My World for this Tuesday.

Thanks to the My World Team:

Klaus | Sandy | Ivar | Wren | Fishing Guy | Louise

QUOTE FOR THE DAY

[War] is instinctive. But the instinct can be fought. We're human beings with the blood of a million savage years on our hands! But we can stop it. We can admit that we're killers ... but we're not going to kill today. That's all it takes! Knowing that we're not going to kill today! -- Kirk, "A Taste of Armageddon", stardate 3193.0

SOOC Sunday

Old Calvary Cemetery with St. Mary's Roman Catholic Chruch in the background.
March 2009

St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, which dates to 1887 and was built by renowned church architect Patrick Keely. Vernon Blvd. at 49th Avenue. It is the third church on the site; cinders from the LIRR powerhouse burned down its predecessor.

Jan of Murrieta 365 is the host of SOOC "Straight Out of the Camera" Sunday. Go visit her and her participants here.

My World Tuesday

Golden Pond
Crocheron Park, Bayside, N.Y.
March 1, 2009

The Crocheron family lived on the edge of Little Neck Bay for centuries. The first family member to live in the area was John Crocheron, a farmer whose will dates from 1695. His long line of distinguished descendents include: Henry Crocheron, a Congressman from 1815 to 1817; Jacob Crocheron, a Congressman from 1829 to 1831; Nicholas Crocheron, a member of the 1854 State Assembly; and Joe Crocheron, a horse racer and gambler who was as renowned as Cornelius Vanderbilt and August Belmont.

In the days when the Tweed Ring ruled city government (1866-1871), this park was known as a political gathering place. The “Old Crocheron House” here on the shores of Little Neck Bay was a favorite site for Tammany Hall picnics and clambakes. The infamous William “Boss” Tweed (1823-1878) knew the area well, and took refuge here after he escaped from the Ludlow Street Jail in 1875. Boss Tweed had been held on corruption charges, but his extensive connections allowed him to escape to Spain in 1876. He was arrested by the Spanish police and returned to prison in New York, where he died of pneumonia in his cell in 1878.

The Crocheron family house burned down in 1907, and the estate remained unused and undeveloped for almost 20 years. In 1924, the City of New York bought the land where the house once stood. The following year, at the request of the Bayside Civic Association, the City purchased another 45 acres and drew up plans to build a park on the consolidated property. By 1936, the City had turned the area into a park with picnic grounds, winding walks, an enlarged lake for wintertime skating, and thousands of trees. The following are just some of the species found in the park: Northern catalpa (Catalpa seciosa), American elm (Ulmus americana), Honeylocust (Gleditsia triacanthos), Sycamore maple (Acer pseudoplatanus), Red oak (Quercus rubra), Japanese black pine (Pinus thunbergiana), London planetree (Platanus x acerifolia), and Weeping willow (Salix alba ‘Tristis’). Since 1936, fields of saplings have grown into a veritable forest, and Parks has added a playground, a dozen tennis courts, a baseball diamond, and a field house. In addition, visitors can also take in the splendid views of Little Neck Bay from either of the hexagonal gazebos that stand on the bluff.

Between 1954 and 1956, Parks acquired the property to the north of Crocheron Park from Broadway producer John Golden (1874-1955), built a park, and named it after the donor. Parks undertook a major renovation of Golden Park in 1973, when the goldfish pond was restored and a tennis house, tennis courts, playground, and six baseball fields were built. Together, Golden Park and Crocheron Park provide the neighborhood with a large area for recreation.

I'm eager to take photos of the park in April and May when things are in bloom. I promise to post pictures then too!

So that's My World for this Tuesday.

Thanks to the My World Team:

Klaus | Sandy | Ivar | Wren | Fishing Guy | Louise