PENSIEVE

Splashes of black

When I began looking for spots of black in our home suited to Anna's photo challenge, I had no idea how many objects I'd find.  If you didn't know better, you'd think my house was something straight out of Gotham City!

Topping off The panels that accompany this topper were featured in Project Green; the curtains hang both in our kitchen and in the sitting room opposite it.

Blacktop

One of the most daring, dramatic and, thankfully, satisfying home improvements undertaken the past year was painting not one, but two, of our ceilings BLACK (our entrance foyer and downstairs bathroom).  Please forgive the dizzifying angle here; it was the best way to give you a peek at the ceilings in context of the room (plus, the walls feature more black themselves!).

My precious I'm addicted, not proud.  Until I sip my morning ritual,
you may not want to run into me.



Night-time sleep aid, may be habit forming Originally bought to use at the beach when late-night revelers threatened my dreams, we liked it so much it's come as constant of a companion as Aussie; whose mid-night barking, incidentally, is drowned out, too.


Big Time

No matter where you sit in our kitchen, you'll always have plenty of time :).

Light shadows

I walked past our dining room one morning and thought the lights were on; I guess they were in a manner of speaking--the sun was peeking in, casting shadows of everything in its path.  This is one of a pair of lamps in the room, black with pineapple gold accents.

 

While I've been partying at BlogHop '08, I've missed a few days of writing and finding subjects for my favorite photographic projects.  I'll be back to normal this week (no snark allowed) and I'm please to announce Pensieve's Poetic License will return.  In the meantime, please visit Anna Carson for more Project Black participants or to post your own.

Rain delays and blacks out, in the heart of 'Nooga

What better way to assure a steady rain than to wash your car  forget your umbrella make plans to go to the lake with friends?  In the South, scattered showers are typical; all-day lingering rain is not.

Sunday, bags brimming with all manner of picnic and lake necessity, our plan was to head out immediately after church.  We were thrilled it was raining early--in our half-full glass minds, if it was raining BEFORE church, it wouldn't be raining after.  Never mind what the radar and forecast indicated.

As the morning unfolded and rain set in for the day, so did reality:  unless we were interested in boarding the boat already soaked, it was probably a good idea to postpone our outing.  Instead, we came home, picnicked in our kitchen and watched a bunch of turkeys play in our yard. 

As the afternoon drizzled into evening, we decided to have dinner at Sticky Fingers in downtown Chattanooga.  Our hope was by the end of dinner, it would've cleared enough to stroll the district--if you've never been, downtown Chatty is a GREAT walkin' around destination. 

A mess of onion rings, ribs and chicken wings later, the skies cleared.  Because "Project Black" is on my photographic mind, it's not surprising so much of what I saw was indeed black.  I'll keep the explanations simple; the photos speak well:

My youngest son's newest tee, the cutest Sticky Fingers billboard I've ever seen!

This visual appeal of this poster is undeniable.  Verbally--"Imaginative, appealing, ambient jazz"??   Aren't you the least bit curious to hear Shikoh and Phillips?

As we walked out, I looked up...no doubt Anna inspired me to "see" this.

At the peak of the Bluff View Arts District, a mighty watchtower stands guard.  Except he's not very good at his job--he doesn't know how to tell time.

Bluff View is home to dozens of sculptures, many of which suit Project Black-- My Black Belt

This accordion-pleat beauty, "Red and Black Spiral" by George Sugarman is one of my favorites (click the picture for an alternate view).

After coffee, sweets and a bathroom break at Rembrandts, we headed back to our car.  The last "black" to catch my eye was this punched sign for "Easy Bistro and Bar"; not so much for the aesthetic value of the sign (though I like it), but because the restaurant changed names since the last time we saw it.

It wasn't the day we planned, but when all was said and done, I think we accomplished the same thing--fun was had by all :).

~ Please visit Anna Carson for more views of Project Black (and, as always, she'd love for you to post your own!).

Black and Light

Two for the price of one--Carmi's "Light-themed" Thematic Photographic and Anna's Project Black.

All of these images were taken from my son's birthday party at a local skating rink--and I never before noticed they shared the common themes of "light and black" until I was thinking what I could offer for these two fun photo projects.

If you have the least inkling towards improving your photograhy, be sure to check out both Carmi's and Anna's blogs; one is an amateur, the other a professional, and I've learned much from observing their work.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on the series--suggestions for improving shots like these (I can take constructive criticism ;) ), your favorite image, any memories they might stir.

Shades of black at mi casa

Day Two of Project Black brings you to my home--at least right up to our front door.  I never noticed before how many black accents we have around; funny what you don't see until you actually look for it. 

Swingtime

Isn't this spot inviting?  If pollen and spiders didn't think they were invited guests, we might just use it a whole lot more.  Shame...I can just imagine sipping lemonade and waving to passersby; the only problem?  We live at the end of a cul-de-sac up a steep, long driveway.  In other words, there ARE no passersby!

 

Rockin', not rollin' Can you see the sun hitting the front leg of the left chair?  Our porch faces East and sunshine pours in these windows every morning.  The chairs weren't quite black when I started to photograph them--more like a dusty yellow.  Pollen:  the Scourge of the South.


For the birds...or not

Located on the Georgia side of Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga still claims Rock City as a jewel of her own.  You might've seen this painted on a barn's rooftop at some point in your life--according to their website, "Garnet Carter began his famous barn roof advertising campaign to lure vacationers from the highways.  By the 1950's Clark Byers had painted "See Rock City" on 900 barn roofs from Michigan to Texas."  That's a lot of roofs!  I wonder if the owners were compensated for for their "ad space".

Interested in learning more about Project Black?  Please visit Anna Carson for details and links to other participants.

Delicate Beauty, Killer Beast

The other day I noticed an odd piece of black "trash" in our driveway; when I walked over to pick it up, I realized it was a beautiful--but very dead--black swallowtail butterfly.  Carefully, I picked her up, a) to take a closer look (butterflies, in an instant, render me a jubilant child), and b) to save it for my youngest to see when he got home. 

The only thing missing were her antennae.  The iridescent blue on her back wing reminded me of Cover Girl icy blue eyeshadow, circa 1979, weird stream-of-consciousness thinking, even for me.

Interestingly, I don't care for paintings or drawings of butterflies; I can't stand them in home décor, but the real thing?  I'm mesmerized.  In spite of my initial delight, I was moved to sadness that she couldn't fly away just as I was about to catch her.

El Morro is home to these big guns.  Their rustic appearance is in keeping with this centuries-old fort in Old San Juan.  A "must-see" when visiting Puerto Rico, El Morro is a tourist's, historian's and photographer's dream.

Wondering what in THE world these two things have in common?

It's time for another Anna Carson Photography "Project"--the common denominator is "black".  Visit Anna for more details, then post away!