More Reeds

Mystic River, Mystic, CT

Clay Pipe

Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT

I feel that the photography gods have conspired against me lately, and as a result, I have not been as diligent has I have been in the past when it comes to posting here.  It turned out that January was a very busy month for me personally and left me little time to photograph and post process.  When I did have time, the weather was terrible.  This past weekend the weather was great, but I was sick with the flu, and stayed in bed the entire weekend.  Hopefully in the coming weeks, as I feel better, and a couple of big projects I'm involved with are done, I'll be able to return to regular posting.  I appreciate my followers and I thank you for visiting and your patience.

Bench with Reflection

Wickford, RI

Winter is really here in Connecticut this week.  It has been pretty mild so far this winter, with only one really major snowstorm.  However as I write this the current temperature outside is 15 degrees Fahrenheit, with a wind chill making it feel  like -6.  In a somewhat feeble attempt to feel a little bit warmer, I started going through some pictures taken this past summer when I happened across this park bench, complete with a reflection, so I'm linking this to Weekend Reflections hosted by James.  I can almost feel the warmth of the sun on the bench.  Winter won't last forever.  Have a nice weekend. 

Cider Press

Clyde's Cider Mill

Mystic, CT

Between my day job, and some other projects I'm involved with, I haven't had too much time to get out and photograph.  On top of that, the weather has not been conducive to good photography.  So as I result, I'm going through my library of pictures looking for images that I have not posted and hoping to find  a gem or two, that I might have overlooked.  This photo was taken back in November at Clyde's Cider Mill in Mystic.  The place is only open from Sept to December and closes right after Christmas.  They make great apple cider with this press, which was down for cleaning on this particular day.

Joseph Conrad

Mystic Seaport

This is a view from across the river of the Mystic Seaport.  The boat pictured is the Joseph Conrad, used by the seaport for various camps, and overnight stays for children.  I think it's outfitted to sleep about 30.  If you look closely, you'll see a Christmas Tree atop the foremast.

River Rocks

Mystic River

Mystic, CT

Small Boat

Mystcic River, Mystic, CT

One often sees boats moored off shore in the various coves, inlets, and marinas in this part of Connecticut.  With some of the larger fishing and sailing boats, it's obvious that to reach them, one needs a smaller boat or inflatable craft.  This boat was pretty small relatively speaking, and I wondered why it wasn't moored closer to shore.  I guess it could be moored here, awaiting the return of the "mother ship", so to speak, but at this time of the year, most of the larger boats are stored for the winter and I've not seen any particularly large craft in this part of the Mystic River.  

Wall Sculpture

Katz Women's Hospital

New Hyde Park, NY

Lobby Reflections

Katz Women's Hospital

New Hyde Park, NY

Sharing this post with Weekend Reflections hosted by James.  With winter weather, it's hard to capture bright sunny reflections, especially on foggy days.  Nevertheless, if you look hard enough, you can find  some pretty interesting reflections indoors.  Have a nice weekend, and thanks for looking.

Lobby

Katz Women's Hospital

New Hyde Park, NY

This is the lobby of the Katz Women's Hospital, which is part of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center, located in New Hyde Park, NY.  This building opened in January 2013.  At first glance, one would never think this was a lobby for a hospital.  It looks more like a lobby for some very classy resort  hotel.  The clock pictured in yesterday's post can be seen to the left 

Clock

Katz Women's Hospital

New Hyde Park, NY

This clock was made entirely of wood.  I think someone forgot to wind it, since it doesn't show the correct time.  It did look pretty interesting though. 

Piano Factory

Ivoryton, CT

Ivoryton is a village located in the town of Essex, CT and takes its name from the ivory trade.  At one time, according to Wikipedia, 90% of all the ivory in the United States came through Ivoryton.  The town manufactured ivory combs, buttons, toothpicks, and billiard balls.  As one might guess, the town also manufactured ivory keys for pianos, which led to the manufacture of piano movements, as well as pianos.  This factory once made pianos, but today supports a number of light manufacturing jobs.  Also, according to Wikipedia, there is no other place in the world named "Ivoryton".  

Thames River

Uncasville, CT

This is a view looking north of the Thames River which really isn't a river at all, but a tidal estuary that flows from the confluence of the Yantic and Shetucket Rivers in Norwich CT, south to Groton and New London before emptying into Long Island Sound.  The structure  in the center of the picture was the subject of a previous post of mine and can be found here.  This is not to be confused with the River Thames, which flows through London, England.   Along the banks of this Thames River can be found the US Coast Guard Academy in New London and the US Navy Submarine Base in Groton, located about 12 mi south from where this picture was taken.

Gazebo

Ivoryton, CT

Norwich State Hospital

Preston, CT

Located directly across from Mohegan Sun on the banks of the Thames River is the old Norwich State Hospital.  Opened in 1904 as the Norwich State Hospital for the Insane, the site once encompassed over 900 acres and contained 40 buildings.  Although primarily a mental health facility, it also housed patients with tuberculosis, geriatric patients as well as those patients with a chemical dependency.  At its peak, the facility housed over 3,000 patients. Declining patient populations forced its closure in 1996.  It was listed on the National Registry of Historic Places in 1988.  Most of the site lies in the city of Preston, which is currently trying to develop the site after having purchased 330 acres from the state in 2009.  Although there have been many proposals to develop the site for other uses, nothing concrete has ever come of the plans.  Meanwhile, these historic buildings are left to decay.

Margaritaville

Mohegan Sun, Uncasville CT

Jimmy Buffet has taken a song of his and turned it into a huge business.  This is one of his many restaurants.  The place does a pretty good business at Mohegan Sun.  Too bad I don't really like margaritas. l

Chihuly and Wreath

Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT

The wreath was part of the holiday decorations on display at Mohegan Sun.  The glass sculpture by artist Dale Chihuly is on display year around.  It is one of 4 Chihuly's pieces on display in Connecticut. The glass work that goes into this piece amazes me. 

Abandoned

Norwich, CT

Wine Glasses

Davenport Press Restaurant, Mineola, NY 

If you're ever in Mineola, NY, you owe it to yourself to check out the Davenport Press Restaurant.  They offer good food and drink, and a wonderful staff.  I thought these wine glassed afforded some interesting reflections, so I'm sharing this with Weekend Reflections hosted by James.  Thanks for looking and have a nice first weekend of 2013

Little Building

Ivoryton, CT

I'm not sure what purpose this little building served.  It was located at one end of a fairly large parking lot in Ivoryton, CT.   It could be simply for storage, but with all the windows, I don't think so.  In any case, it was decorated nicely for the season.

More Model Trains

Connecticut River Museum, Essex, CT

I'm really impressed by the level of detail that went into this model train layout.   The trains were fun to watch, but I enjoyed looking at the buildings, and other objects placed in the layout.  They even have piles of junk spread around as shown here.  It was difficult to get the shots I wanted.  There was mixed lightning, as well as a plexiglass wall around the entire layout.  The plexiglass made for some interesting reflections.  

Happy New Year

Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT

I know this is a Christmas Tree, and perhaps I should've posted it last week.  We're still in the "holiday" season though, so it's not totally inappropriate for New Years.  As hard as I tried, I couldn't come up with a photo that conveyed the feeling of "Happy New Year".  This will have to do.  Happy New Year to everyone.