On your mark....

There was no extra hour of sleep this morning.  After Lola woke us up with her usual pre-dawn clawing, pawing and noise-making, the sounds on the street began.  Soon there were sirens, church bells, cowbells, whistles, barking dogs, cheers, clapping, hooting and then the High School band down the street playing the theme to Rocky for 4 hours straight.  We are at mile 8 of the NYC Marathon, right at the top of a long uphill slope (thus the hill in Clinton Hill).   I did not take pictures of the elite runners - too fast and very serious!  Show me the throngs!

First the wheel chair racers come through.
















This neighbor has a problem with anything on wheels, and was howling at every one.  She really is very sweet, but her person finally took her inside - I think it was too much stress for her.

Then the wait for the rest of the race. The long shadows are great at this time of year.  

 

A brief break from marathon coverage:  this young lad looks like the wired haired dachshunds my family had - more fluff than wire, large, sturdy, rounder nose/snout and very blond.  I miss them.  This dog is some complicated mix.















Back to the race coverage - here are the regular runners!  Many people had their names boldly displayed on their gear so some  "Way to go Anita, you can do it Enribe, looking good Jose!" encouragements got us smiles and waves.




















My favorite sign.


Oh come on now.  It was cold - about 40 degrees for most of the race.  I know people heat up when running, but seriously?!

Save that energy lady - you have 18 miles to go!















This spectator must have high-fived about 20 runner in two minutes.


I have the world of respect for these athletes, but I think this little guy had the best mode of transportation today - a deep purse and the subway.
















Some of the spectators were pretty spectacular too.

Small and simple.

I'm not sure I understand the message, but I liked the artwork.

Back to the warmth of the home.  The view from the bedroom.  I love the way the runners appear from under the canopy of trees along Lafayette Avenue.

We see more costumes on the slower runners.

Lola's form for race day - in the sun, and on the heater.   Cats are so smart.
















At about 1pm, it was like someone turned off the marathon.  The noise suddenly stopped until a truck came by with a speaker system announcing that this was the "official" end of the race, and the streets would be open.  A few more tired and slow runners bravely continued to come through.  I was glad to hear that Edison Pena, one of the Chilean miners, finished the race - quite a feat for someone who had never run more than 10 miles before - not to mention spending 70 days in a mine.

And then after all this, the Jets won in overtime!!  Overall, another great day.

Another Brooklyn Ramble*

*Ramble definition: 1. To move about aimlessly. [No, I had errands.]  2. To walk about casually or for pleasure. [YES!  A purpose does not preclude pleasure or casualness in a walk.]   

A crisp and sunny Saturday morning in the Clinton Hill/Fort Greene.  There is more spring in my step and light in my spirit thanks to a recent excellent development (more on that in coming weeks).   I went out for bread (large white peasant round), apples (honey crisps - worth the $.50 more per pound), dry-cleaning, etc., but found myself wandering up and down every street where the sun was shining through the Autumn leaves.

I'm not sure I appreciate the smug message, but I did like the leaves' shadows on the graffiti.

This squirrel found a bonanza in a yellow pumpkin, but was very camera shy.

I pretended to walk away and caught him at the feast.

The bane of many Brooklyn streets - the female ginkgo tree.  Their slimey fruit (which some people eat!) smells like vomit, especially when squished underfoot.  Story goes that only male (fruitless) ginkgoes were to be planted, but someone in the Parks department made a mistake and now hundreds of females are dropping their foul fruit.

Fascinating hand-made clocks by Richard Birkett at the Farmers' Market.
I urge you to click on the photo to see more detail.

Where all the great peppers meet.

The decorative elements are so rare these days.

Great colors in this stall at the Brooklyn Flea.

An array of magnifying glass pendants.

The vendor says these wonderful creatures, which I have featured before, are made by artists in Mexico.

I was listening this lady's person describe how she is a working dog and high-strung around a lot of people, so they gave her the "job" of carrying a friend's purse.  Her expression shows what she thinks about this...

It seems squirrels (top right on tree) love to tease dogs everywhere.

After another magnificent jump by the dog, the squirrel ran further up the tree.  Dog wins!

Tomorrow is the big NYC Marathon that runs right under our windows, and yes, I'll be a-rambling round with my camera.

Peaceful Brooklyn

I've been enjoying so many autumnal scenes and photos on the blogs that I thought I would like to share some too. These were taken during a recent early morning at the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens of which we are proud members. Not quite the back roads of New England, Canada or Wales, especially with the din of airplanes and sirens in the background, but still tranquil enough to calm a city-dweller's soul.