Travels in the 2nd half

There is something about setting a series of tasks for yourself, especially if there is a time limit to complete them. It sets in your mind. After an initial burst of energy it becomes zen, a focus that blocks out other things. In this case I gave myself 33 tasks and 72 hours. Some were longer than others. Some were more interesting. I set out to photographs every lock on the Erie Canal. This year is the bicentennial of the beginning of construction on the original Erie Canal. Finished in 1825, the Erie Canal opened the west to the direct transport of goods. Prior to that everything had to be taken by cart over land. The canal spurred the settlement of western New York and Pennsylvania by taking a trip of up to 45 days and shortening it to about 9. It provided a faster and cheaper way for farmers to send grain to the cities along the coast and for industries in those cities to send manufactured goods to new settlers. It also allowed industry to develop along the rivers ...

Every year the New York Botanical Garden puts together a special show that is on exhibit from spring to fall. Two years ago they offered a show dedicated to Frieda Kahlo, her botanical paintings and her garden at the Casa Azul. Last year the show was a tribute to Impressionist painters and their gardens. This year the NYBG has worked with Dale Chihuly , the amazing glass artist, to create a fantastic exhibit. Dale Chihuly (from www.chihuly.com) Dale Chihuly (born 1941) has been working in glass since the 1960’s, when he dropped out of college and moved to Florence to study art. He returned to the United States and earned degrees in sculpture and Fine arts from University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Rhode Island School of Design. He received a Fulbright Fellowship and went to the island of Murano in Venice to study glass blowing. While he has not been able to hold a glass blowing rod since an accident in 1979, he designs his glass statues and coordinates the peop...