the ghost of ian...

I am guessing he was about five or six here. he had white makeup all over his face and he really really wanted to be a ghost. happy halloween everyone! please visit  hey harriet's,  'shadow shot sunday'  meme if you want to join in the fun or if you'd like to see more shadows. & a big thank you to tracy for hosting shadow shot sunday too. 

a circle of friendly spirits

local brownie troops 3067 and 3506 made this decoration outside an elementary school in farmingdale. this is their way of saying happy halloween to their community. isn't this the sweetest thing? have a great saturday everyone!

fire in the sky

it seems like I get the best sky photos when I am out riding my bike. I caught this one about a week or so ago and as I was photographing this incredible color, a woman walked by and said, "isn't it beautiful?"
if you'd like to gaze at more wondrous skies from all around the world or if you'd like to add your own sky, please visit the skywatch friday meme, thanks to klaus and his team, sandy, wren, and sylvia.

 

halloween cupcakes

I found this picture from several years ago. ian and I made these one halloween. we had so much fun we joked about opening up a cupcake business.
only three more days until halloween folks, any plans?

O is for orange

I love how this giant wooden handmade pumpkin graces the front lawn of a fellow neighbor's home. I think it's spectacular. and believe it or not, this is the pumpkin's actual color too. 
if you'd like to see other representations of the letter O, or if you'd like to add your own O representation please visit 'abc wednesday'.

another pond at the massapequa preserve

remember the pond I posted about last wednesday? everyone liked it so much I thought you would like this one as well. personally I can't get over the color along the trail. the foliage surrounding the water seems so much brighter than it is in the outer lying neighborhood. it really is breathtaking. & I love the color of the sky reflected onto the water here too. this photo was taken two days ago, so if you live in the area, you might want to take a little ride through the preserve before the leaves fall.
to share a part of your world or just see more of others, please go to "that's my world tuesday". a big thanks to klaus for hosting with his team of helpers, sandy, wren, and sylvia.

mellow yellow eyes

I thought I would start the countdown to halloween with a creepy mellow yellow post. at least she is smiling! please visit mellow yellow monday and join in the fun.

the tunnel of love...

I'm not sure really, can this be considered a tunnel or a bridge or both? I'll take my chances and submit this to louis lavache's 'sunday bridges' meme. please visit louis if you'd like to see more bridges or join in the fun and add your own.
I snapped this while sitting in traffic on jericho turnpike heading towards glen cove road. the 'bridge' overhead is the northern parkway. I've posted another view of this tunnel/bridge before here.

reflections on the massapequa preserve

if you are heading south on the nature trail you will find this pond on the left just as you are about to climb the small hill that serves as an overpass for the southern parkway.
if you'd like to see more reflections or add your own to the mix, please check out james of newtown area photo's wonderful 'weekend reflections' meme. thanks james!

autumn sky over traffic

this perfect october sky makes waiting in traffic more bearable. if you'd like to gaze at more wondrous skies from all around the world or if you'd like to add your own sky, please visit the skywatch friday meme, thanks to klaus and his team, sandy, wren, and sylvia.

a giant blow-up kitty

another halloween lawn decoration for you to enjoy...

nature sanctuary at the massapequa preserve

last saturday around 6pm I was riding my bike when as I turned a bend in the trail, I suddenly heard what sounded like hundreds of birds all chirping at once, like they were all meeting and greeting for the dinner hour. it was really wild. I stopped here to see if I could get a glimpse of what was making the noise. apparently they were all flitting from tree to tree, but the little noisemakers were too far away for me to get a good picture. so I settled for this.
I love nature, the perfect word for today's letter N. if you'd like to see other representations of the letter N or if you'd like to add your own N representation please visit 'abc wednesday'.

bat house on long island

last sunday I was walking along the massapequa preserve and saw a bat fly over my husband and son as they ran along the trail. soon after, I passed this 'bat house'. I wonder if batman lives nearby too? I have heard that bats love to eat mosquitoes. maybe this is why I never seem to get bitten whenever I am on the trail. I have seen more than one of these houses while visiting the preserve, though sunday was the first time I ever saw a bat while here.
to share a part of your world or just see more of others, please go to "that's my world tuesday". a big thanks to klaus for hosting with his team of helpers, sandy, wren, fishing guy and sylvia.

playing in the suburbs

I'm always happy to see signs like this as a reminder to people to slow down as they enter a neighborhood. I often wonder why the speed limit is 30 mph in a residential area as opposed to say 15 or 20. if you think about it, a car moving at 30mph can do a lot of damage. speaking of damage, yesterday a plane crashed  in east farmingdale about a mile away from where I live. sadly one person was killed. it could have been a lot worse since many planes flying in and out of republic airport fly directly over our community.
my thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the deceased as well as the other three passengers of the plane, who are all hospitalized with serious injuries. 

life is fleeting and uncertain, please take time to slow down and just be.
this post is a part of mellow yellow monday, a nice place to visit when you need a break from reality.

vintage toy fire truck with window shadows

if your looking for nostalgia, you must visit the land of ooh's and ahh's. searching to see if they have a website I happened upon their ebay store which may be helpful to those of you who like to shop the internet. I often find myself staring in their window as I sit in traffic waiting for the train to pass. yesterday those lovely letter shadows made the waiting much more bearable.
as you can see, the town of farmingdale has been graced with abundant sunshine providing lots of interesting shadows for today's post. 
please visit  hey harriet's 'shadow shot sunday' meme if you want to join in the fun or if you'd like to see more shadows. & a big thank you to tracy for hosting shadow shot sunday too. 
 

reflections on conklin street

if you take hempstead turnpike as far east as you can go, you eventually wind up on conklin street in the town of farmingdale. as you can see, it has been raining here the last couple of days but we are supposed to get some good weather this weekend. hope you all have the same!
if you'd like to see more reflections or add your own to the mix, please check out james of newtown area photo's wonderful 'weekend reflections' meme. thanks james!

autumn sky in rhinebeck, new york

 it started raining yesterday afternoon so I pulled this one from my trip to rhinebeck a couple of weeks ago. isn't it amazing how the sky changes with the seasons?
if you'd like to gaze at more wondrous skies from all around the world or if you'd like to add your own sky, please visit the skywatch friday meme, thanks to klaus and his team, sandy, wren, fishing guy, and sylvia.

on a more serious note, about our water...

october 15th is blog action day, an annual event where bloggers from around the world join together in an effort to raise awareness about an important cause. this years topic is water - which brought to mind this sign I found while visiting coney island last september. please join in by sharing a water related topic on your blog. visit the 'blog action day' website to find out about how you can participate.

 I found the information below on the Blog Action Day website;
 Polluted Oceans: Not only is pollution bad for the environment, it’s also expensive! Death and disease caused by polluted coastal waters costs the global economy $12.8 billion a year. this link includes an amazing surfing video from a blog action day participant who created 'Save the Sea'.)

monsters in farmingdale

yikes this guy (or gal?) is creepy! every year a neighbor of mine in farmingdale decorates his entire front lawn with all kinds of creepy life size halloween characters. you can see my past posts about this scary house here and here.
today's post is dedicated to the letter M. if you'd like to see other representations of the letter M or if you'd like to add your own M representation please visit 'abc wednesday'.

perfect holiday weekend weather

I wonder if christopher columbus had such good weather upon his first visit to america? I found this blow up pumpkin somewhere in melville - surely not something mr. columbus would have found. it's not uncommon to see these types of lawn decorations in many different parts of long island.

 to share a part of your world or just see more of others, please go to "that's my world tuesday". a big thanks to klaus for hosting with his team of helpers, sandy, wren, fishing guy and sylvia.

nestled in the woods of rhinebeck, new york

a pale yellow house and golden sunlight illuminating the surrounding natural beauty of fall - a perfect way to start the week. please visit mellow yellow monday and join in the fun.

pumpkins, gourds and shadows

I saw these beauties displayed at the rhinebeck farmers' market while visiting there last weekend. I thought they formed some lovely shadows with the sun.
please visit  hey harriet's,  'shadow shot sunday'  meme if you want to join in the fun or if you'd like to see more shadows. & a big thank you to tracy for hosting shadow shot sunday too. 
 

an old fashioned candy store, samuel's of rhinebeck

does anyone remember necco chocolate wafers? or giant old fashioned taffy? this candy store had them both and much much more. I should title this post 'reflections from my childhood'!
if you'd like to see more reflections or add your own to the mix, please check out james of newtown area photo's wonderful 'weekend reflections' meme. thanks james!

blue sky and ferris wheel

here she is! I rode my bike through the fair yesterday hoping to get a photo of her standing against the sky. I was extra pleased to find the evening light helping me take this picture too.
if you'd like to gaze at more wondrous skies from all around the world or if you'd like to add your own sky, please visit the skywatch friday meme, thanks to klaus and his team, sandy, wren, fishing guy, and sylvia.

a very scary ghost and farmingdale's annual columbus day fair

whenever I find something made in the USA it always makes me feel better - like there is hope that people can still find jobs here. 
on another note, this weekend my hometown of farmingdale is hosting its annual columbus day fair. there will be a carnival starting today at 5pm continuing through Monday. the best part (next to the ferris wheel) is the fireworks sunday night, at 10pm. be there or be square.

block island's sacred labyrinth

last august while visiting block island, I finally walked the sacred labyrinth - something I've read about but never experienced. it sits atop a small hill just off of corn neck road. as I circled the narrow path, I enjoyed a beautiful view of the island. I found it to be a very calming experience.
today's post is dedicated to the letter L. if you'd like to see other representations of the letter L or if you'd like to add your own L representation please visit 'abc wednesday'.

pete's famous restaurant in rhinebeck

I love diners. this one is in rhinebeck, new york on east market street. the service was super fast and the food was not only delicious but quite reasonably priced. 

 to share a part of your world or just see more of others, please go to "that's my world tuesday". a big thanks to klaus for hosting with his team of helpers, sandy, wren, fishing guy and sylvia.

tansy herb at the rhinebeck farmers' market

good for repelling ants and flies, this flowering herb goes by the whimsical name of tansy. isn't she beautiful? perfect for mellow yellow monday I thought, please go there to join in the fun.

autumnal light...

that is what I thought of when I saw the light streaming into our kitchen at this angle. it's that time of year again. the sun is getting lower as this side of the earth moves fully into fall. which reminds me, has anyone noticed how utterly dark out it is in the morning? I wake up at six o'clock in the morning and it is so pitch black out, it may as well be midnight.
please visit  hey harriet's, 'shadow shot sunday'  meme if you want to join in the fun or if you'd like to see more shadows. & a big thank you to tracy for hosting shadow shot sunday too. 
 

the first leaves to turn...

every autumn my husband says the same thing, "it never fails, they always change color first"".
I notice they are quite golden this year too.
if you'd like to see more reflections or add your own to the mix, please check out james of newtown area photo's wonderful 'weekend reflections' meme. thanks james!

a very grey sky

I had to pull this one from the archives. this lighthouse resides on block island and though the skies were grey here too, at least there were shades of grey with some puffy whiteness making it a little more interesting.
every photo I took yesterday seemed horrible. the entire sky looked completely white - very boring. today supposedly we will have sun. 
if you'd like to gaze at more wondrous skies from all around the world or if you'd like to add your own sky, please visit the skywatch friday meme, thanks to klaus and his team, sandy, wren, fishing guy, and sylvia.