Well, it has been a while since I posted something new on this blog, a little over a year in fact. My, my, we have experienced quite a bit of change in the world in the last year, especially here in the USA. I look forward to posting some thoughts on the last year and the year ahead soon. However, today I just to share a short video a shot a few days ago with my DJI Neo drone. The video was shot here in Easton, right at the Forks of the Delaware, where the Lehigh river converges with the Delaware river.
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Visiting Gardens in Montclair, NJ
I visited NYC for a few days a couple of weeks ago and made a side trip out to Montclair, NJ on Friday, May 24th, to see two well known Garden sites in Montclair. The first site I visited was the Presby Memorial Iris Gardens at Mountainside park in Upper Montclair. The blooming period for the Irises only lasts about three weeks, so there a short window in spring for seeing the Irises. This year the blooming season lasted from May 12th to June 2nd. So, it is too late to see Irises this year. Plan ahead if you want to see the Iris Gardens next year. It is easy to reach Montclair via NJ Transit Trains, which travel to Montclair from Penn Station in Manhattan and from Hoboken, NJ. Montclair has five NJ Transit train stops! The closest stop to Mountainside park is the Montclair Heights stop, which is 0.6 miles away and the Upper Montclair stop is about one mile away.
The second site I visited was the Van Vleck House and Gardens, located at 21 Van Vleck St, in Montclair, which is about 2.2 miles south of Mountainside Park. The Gardens at the Van Vleck House are open year around. The Walnut Street stop in Montclair is the closet stop to the 5.8 acre Van Vleck property. at 0.9 away.
The Van Vleck House
The fountain at the Van Vleck House
Winter in Easton, pa – 2024
Unlike the last few winters her in the Lehigh Valley we had a few snow storms this year and the snow provided me with an opportunity to capture some beautiful images and video in my home town of Easton, Pennsylvania.
Downtown Easton, Feb 17th, 2024
My first impression of the cybertruck
I visited the Tesla Store in Manhattan last week to see the Cybertruck (CT) which is now on display at the store on Washington Street., in the West Village. Although I had seen hundreds of pictures and videos of the CT prior to my visit I found the experience of seeing this unique vehicle in person very revealing. It was like seeing a famous piece of art for the first time in person that you don’t quite fully appreciate until you have seen it person.
Here is short video I shot during my visit. In the video I noted that the CT may be a not be a good choice as a vehicle for city use because of its size, but now think I might qualify that opinion a bit. The CT has a relatively small turning radius because of the fact that has four wheel steering, but it a big vehicle any way you cut it. However, I think it would be fine in most suburban areas and I think it would a blast to have in rural areas.
Visit to Little Island and the Beach in New York City
I spent a few days in Manhattan in early November and brought my GoPro 11 to the city for the first time. The weather was great on my last day in the city and I took advantage of the ideal to shoot a couple of videos at Little Island and NYC’s newest park, The Gansevoort Peninsula, which is right next to Little Island on the lower Westside of Manhattan, near 14th Street.
Take Me to the river
1 wtc and the oculus
I took this picture of 1 World Trade Center four years today (06/30/2023) . I visited the Observation Deck 1 WTC that for first time and I was very impressed by 360 degree views of NYC and the surrounding area. However, this was my favorite picture from that day.
Proof of Life
It has been well over a year since I posted anything on this blog, but I wanted to let my followers know that I am alive and well. I took the picture above a little over a week ago at a park in Forks Township, PA, not too far from where I live in Easton. I took the photo with my new GoPro 11 Action Camera. The GoPro 11 is an excellent camera for shooting both video and photos. I will be writing a review soon about the GoPro on this blog and will be publishing other blog posts as well. I have a lot to catch up on. More to come……
PA Bacon Fest 2021
PA Bacon Fest returned to Easton on November 6th and 7th, after being cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic. I am happy to report that the celebration of all things bacon related came back strong. Bacon Fest has become the most popular event in Easton, drawing thousands of people from many points in PA, NJ and beyond.
I live just a few blocks from Centre Square, Easton, so attending PABF was quite easy for me and I paid a visit on both days. Here are a few pictures.
Visit to New York – Sep 30th, 2021
I visited Manhattan this past Thursday. It was the only my second trip to NYC this year. I live about 70 miles west of NYC, in Easton, PA, and before the pandemic hit I usually visited NYC at least 5 or 6 times a year. I was encouraged by city scenes I witnessed, which reflected the city returning to normal. Once in the city I made trips to the Upper Westside and to the new Little Island park, which is located off Westside Highway, just below 14th Street.
I have previously lived and worked in Manhattan and I grew up in suburban Northern New Jersey. I’ve lived in a few other places around the country, but always returned to NY, NJ or PA to see friends and relatives . So, over the past 40 to 50 years I have seen a lot of change in the New York skyline, but most of the time the change seemed gradual. However, there have been a few occasions in when I have been struck by dramatic changes in the skyline of the city and this past Thursday was one of those days. I’m old enough to remember when the Empire State Building towered over all other buildings in midtown Manhattan. Now it is no longer visible from directly across the Hudson, blocked by the towers of Hudson Yards. Several of the Supertall skyscrapers on 57th St. are even taller than the buildings at Hudson Yards.
gmf journal 