Paranormal

The wet weather has enhanced this gravestone with a spooky image. Please enlarge if you dare!

Happy Halloween & Happy Monochrome Monday . . .

Snow Job

Woke up this morning to a some slushy snow as a backdrop to the autumn leaves. Warm ocean air kept this historical snowstorm at bay. Inland, the Bay State received as much as 2 feet of the snowy crystals!

Occupying Boston . . . brrrrr!

A few train stops heading in-town will bring you to South Station and the Occupy Boston encampment at Dewey Square. It was about 46 degrees yesterday and KP was happenning outside the Medic tent. Keeping this encampment alive as winter approaches will be quite a challenge.

Purple Majesty

The only elk I have seen in Quincy is this elk statue for members of the Elks organization that are buried here at Mt. Wollaston cemetery.

Happy Skywatch Friday everyone! The sun is shining today . . . nice!

Thursday is "This Old House Day"

This Colonial Revival house looks meticulously maintained with its stucco facade and timbering details under the roof peak. It was built in 1925 and is located at 80 Summit Avenue on Forbes Hill. Many houses in this neighborhood were built after WWi in the 1920s. I'll share more of them in weeks to come.

Dressed & Undressed

Cemeteries are a great place for viewing the shapes and colors of trees in a city. I liked the contrast of the 2 trees here -- one in full fall dress and the tree beside it that has shed all its leaves.

Bright Sails

Sailors are taking advantage of good weather in Boston Harbor. Winthrop water tower can be seen in the background. Winthrop is a coastal community that reminds me of the coastal sections of Quincy.

Forever Leaves

These beautifully rendered leaves caught my eye on the doors to a mausoleum at Mt. Wollaston cemetery. I hope to do lots of leaf peeping in the next week.

Flower Power

I like the backdrop for this white dahlia -- it's the Adams Mansion.

Still Climbing!

Quincy's air space is frequented by planes trafficking in and out across the bay at Boston's Logan International Airport. Watching planes gives me wanderlust; how about you?

Happy Skywatch Friday everyone! You can enjoy more sky pictures from around the world by clicking HERE!

Thursday is "This Old House Day"

This 1767 saltbox was the birthplace of our 6th president, John Quincy Adams. I like the asymmetry of the saltbox, which takes its name from a wooden lidded box that was once used to hold salt.

The saltbox style was a popular architectural style in early colonial America because it was considered a single-story building (from the back) and was therefore exempt from Queen Ann's tax on houses greater than 1-story.

School Days

Built in 1894, as Quincy's first high school, Central Middle School now serves 600 children in grades 6-8. Ground will be dug soon for a new $50 million school to replace this one. You can see a design of the new building here.

The new location will be a couple blocks away where St. Ann's School waits for demolition.The new school is projected to open in the fall, 2013.

Twins

These 1971 Brutalist-style Harbor Towers offer Boston residents a phenomenal view of the harborfront and skyline as well views of neighboring coastal areas like Quincy.

The Ropes

Knowing the ropes is useful if you live in a coastal community like Quincy (26 miles of coastline). Happy Monochrome Monday!

Blue Box

This tilted blue call box caught my eye on a recent rainy day outside City Hall. I wonder what it is used for . . .

End Of Season

No lines and no waiting for a swing on this hammock located on Thompson's Island. It beckons for someone to set upon it with a good book before the leaves change color, there is a chill in the air and the hammock is stored away for winter.

Next Saturday at noon there will be a free walking tour to Thompson Island at low tide from Squaw Rock in Squantum. Enjoy!

Patches of Blue

This changing sky with patches of blue was captured last week atop Deer Island Water Treatment Plant in Boston Harbor. I will share more pictures from the 2nd largest water treatment plant in the USA in weeks to come. Quincy's waste water gets treated here.

Happy Skywatch Friday! You can see more skies from around the world here.

Thursday is "This Old House Day"

I like the curved roof lines of this 1940 house at the corner of Alton Road and Crest Street on Penn's Hill. The little windows near the roof peaks are a nice detail.

Garden Visit

Flowers are still in bloom on the grounds at Peacefield, aka the Adams Mansion. Visitors by the busloads are stopping by to tour the Adams National Historic site. Rangers will be on duty for tours until November 10th.

Waterfront Campus

The University of Massachusetts Boston campus is just a stones throw from Squantum Park at low tide. There are more than 15,000 students enrolled in graduate and undergraduate programs here; we are lucky to have a public university so close by.

Long Island Head Lighthouse

The Long Island Head Lighthouse is a challenge to capture a good photo of. You have to capture it by boat because it is is inaccessible to the public by land. The present lighthouse, owned by the National Park Service, was built in 1901 and converted to solar in 1985. The first lighthouse went into service here on October 9, 1819.

In 1976, during our country's bicentennial celebration, I had the good fortune of photographing the Tall Ships from the top of this lighthouse. The island was opened to Quincy residents and thousands made the trek across Long Island bridge to view the sailing wonders.

Happy Monochrome Monday!

Handiwork

This is one of two massive 20 foot “sculptures” in the shape of large hands signifying the legacy of Hands-on learning on Thompson Island. The hands were cleverly constructed by island youth ambassadors and are formed from frames built of medium-sized tree branches and creatively woven with the invasive species found on the island: Oriental Bittersweet and Phragmites. The hands can be seen from many points around Boston Harbor.

Life Saver

This ketch on Thompson Island is named after Joshua James who was a sea captain from Hull, and later in life a Lifesaving Station Keeper. He was a famous and celebrated commander of civilian life-saving crews in the 19th century, credited with saving over 600 lives in Boston Harbor and the surrounding seacoast.

Golden Grasses

The local salt marshes are taking on their golden glow of fall. This view is from Thompson's Island -- a stone's throw from the Squantum peninsula (at low tide).

Thursday is "This Old House Day"

This Queen Anne style house at 47 Revere Rd. has kept lots of its architectural ornamentation. It is located on Quincy's newest cross connector roadway that opened to traffic this past weekend. The house was built as a single residence in 1910 but was converted to a double residence in 1928 by architect and contractor William R. Lofgren. If only we could bury all those unsightly wires!

En Plein Air

Dianne Panarelli Miller, a master painter, is making the most of a recent sunny day. I captured her putting the final brush strokes on her painting of the Wollaston Yacht Club. She took me over to her car and showed me the companion painting of the Squantum Yacht Club. They are going to be hung in one of her two gallery shows this month.

Back To The Future

I recently spotted this"Patriot" intently reading a pamphlet at the Wollaston train station. Do you think he might be reading about unfair taxes?

Light & Shadow

This is the lighthouse keeper's light on Little Brewster Island. I will be sharing more pictures from my visit to the site of America's first lighthouse in upcoming posts. It's Monoochrome Monday; have a great week everyone.

The Hustler

Vegetation has taken hold on Spectacle Island in Boston Harbor. This island commands the highest elevation in the harbor. The height was achieved by bringing 3.7 million cubic yards of fill over from the "Big Dig" tunnel project. The island now is very green in every sense of the word. You can just make out Long Island Bridge in the background and beyond the fog is Wollaston Beach.

Mystery Object

Today is "Theme Day" around the world in the City Daily Photo Blogging Community. My mystery object is a closeup of a common item found in homes, offices, schools and many other places. Don't get too attached to it . . . give up? Take a look at how others have interpreted today's theme.Click here to view thumbnails for all participants