Friday, June 30, 2023

A New House

 

New houses rarely catch my eye and my camera lens.  But, I stopped my car and got out when I drove past this one.  I like the traditional architecture, the solar panels nicely integrated into one roof surface, and the varying heights, colors, materials and textures of the siding.  Well done!

Thursday, June 29, 2023

Party Time

 

A full porch at Lounsbury House.

Wednesday, June 28, 2023

Janie

 

Janie Weber has been the owner of Stepping Stone Farm in northern Ridgefield for more than 40 years.  She has won numerous awards as a rider, instructor, trainer and breeder.  Janie is the only six-time winner of the National Professional Horseman’s Association Trainer of the Year award.

Janie's daughters operate an equestrian center down the road from Stepping Stone Farm.

Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Bubbles



Bubbles and her mother Calista grazed in the field at Stepping Stone Farm. Bubbles is the product of sperm frozen for 20 years!

  The veterinarian told the farm's owner that it wouldn't work, but the owner said "That stallion was very strong and always produced great offspring." She was right.

Monday, June 26, 2023

Releasing Fireflies

A new mural -- "Reawakening Wonder" -- on the side of a sixteen story Hartford building is being completed.  The Millennium is an apartment building at the busy intersection of, and an offramp for, U.S. Routes 84 and 91.

Michael Rice's (@MichaelRiceArt) mural shows a contemplative boy releasing fireflies from a mason jar.  When I was there, the artist was on a suspended platform, finishing up the work.  I read yesterday that the scaffolding is now down and a public "opening" will take place on Thursday.

I thought the busy location warranted a passing truck to emphasize the context.

But, I could have shown the mural alone.  What would you have done?

Linked to Monday Mural.    

Sunday, June 25, 2023

Doe, a Deer, a Female Deer


 She stood very, very still, maybe hoping that I wouldn't notice her.

Saturday, June 24, 2023

Friday, June 23, 2023

More Musicians

 


At Wednesday's Make Music Day, Maggie Seligman and a friend performed in D. Colabella Fine Art Gallery on Main Street.  Her music includes American and Celtic traditional songs, composed folk, Americana and roots music, and jazz standards.


The Peterman Project might have drawn the toughest location for their set.  No room on the narrow sidewalk for fans.  A busy Main Street spot near street lights, where big trucks squeal as they accelerate.  Too bad.  They performed soft rock classics while I was listening.


AKA Nora (also shown yesterday) changed from her Disney princess dress to sing in front of Town Hall.



I looked forward to listening to Mark Cupkovic on the solo cello at RPAC Gallery.  Regrettably, his selections weren't the kind of classical pieces I expected, so I sneaked out fairly soon.


The lawn of Ridgefield Library held a small crowd.

Thursday, June 22, 2023

Some Musicians

 Ridgefield's "Make Music Day" was fun.  I walked around to many outdoor venues in or near the downtown.  Performers were usually local people and many were quite good.  They had to compete with traffic noise, shoppers, talkers, and, in one case, with a long medley from church bells.


Paulina Romano is a student at a music college in Boston.  She plays an electric rock guitar.  Paulina drew an early performance time and an out-of-the-way location.  She deserved a bigger crowd.



AKA Nora is a hairdresser at a prominent Ridgefield studio.  For her set on the front lawn of the library, Nora dressed like a princess and performed Disney songs.  She has a good voice and stage presence.

Kate Nail sang and played the keyboard in front of the Town Hall.  She performed a lot in the 1990s in San Francisco with a cover band and now describes herself as "restarting her musical career here in Ridgefield."  (Sounds like there is a story here . . . )

Jennifer Dineen didn't perform, but she was the catalyst who organized Ridgefield's fifth annual Make Music Day for the local arts council.  After a 30 year corporate career with Procter & Gamble, Jennifer is now a realtor working in Connecticut and New York.



Jaime Babbitt has had a long career singing and playing the guitar.  She has toured with several well known artists, sung background vocals with Barbara Streisand and others, sung Off-Broadway, etc.  Jaime performed in front of Lounsbury House, Ridgefield's community center.

Wednesday, June 21, 2023

Make Music Day

 Along with about 1,000 other cities and towns, Ridgefield is celebrating Make Music Day today.

The orange ribbons and banners along Main Street promote the event.  I plan to visit at least two of the scheduled performances.  I will probably also just wander around to see what else is going on. 

Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Elizabeth Park

Back in West Hartford for a few hours yesterday.  Last weekend was Rose Weekend.  

The roses are at peak.







Lovely roses.


An artist painted.

Over the winter the old greenhouses were completely renovated.  They look great!  

Monday, June 19, 2023

A Favorite

 This house near the southern end of Ridgefield's Main Street is one of my favorites.  

It was repainted this spring and looks its best.

For a small fee, a local service organization places flags in front of houses.  They are all over town.

Sunday, June 18, 2023

A Quiet Day in Ridgefield

 Not much was happening on my first day back in Connecticut.

A damselfly wandered around in the preserve behind my house.

A robin checked out the view from a power line.



There were some blooms in the neighbor's yard.

Not much was blooming in my pollinator garden.  Too early for many bees and butterflies.

And the kousa dogwood I planted last year had some scattered blooms, not bad for a first year.

Saturday, June 17, 2023

Olive Oil

We visited la Samiaja, a small organic olive oil farm outside Antequera. 


The farmhouse is from around 1900 and has been in the current owner's family for generations.



She explained how her family raises the olives organically.


She walked us through both the old and more modern ways of gathering and separating the olives.


We were given a tasting opportunity.  The olive oils were delicious, but I don't have sophisticated taste buds so I failed to analyze the differences.


But, I was good at eating,  The olive oils enhanced the fresh foods.