Category: Cleveland

A Sunset to Calm!

Green Flash Sunset
My attempt at capturing the Green Flash Sunset.

What a day! At various points throughout the day I wondered if the end would ever come! The end of the day came and all I wanted to do was relax and focus on anything mindless – no thinking allowed!

After receiving a text about the Green Flash sunset I contemplated dashing over to the lake to try and get a shot, but that would not be mindless! As the time grew nearer and nearer I couldn’t just sit by and miss what I hoped would be a great shot. With about 16 minutes to spare I hopped in my car and rode down to the E. 72nd Street Pier and captured the shot above along with a few more.

Not sure if I really saw a Green Flash, but I can say it was a sunset to calm the nerves and spirit after a very challenging day!

Enjoy!

Dreamy Sheep Grazing in CLE

Sheep graze along the Shoreway in Cleveland compliments of the St. Clair Superior Community Development Corporation.

One of the things I love about Cleveland is you just never know what you will see on any given day.

For weeks I have been trying to spot the sheep I heard were grazing along the shoreway to no avail, and then last week a friend mentioned seeing them as well as a sign explaining their presence.

Passing by this area daily I continually forgot to look until this evening as I made my way home I detoured slightly to try and get a peek. On the first drive by I didn’t see them, but after turning around to go home I looked a little further into the field and eureka!

The photo pictured above has been treated with Kim Klassen’s “dream-field” process from her Beyond Layers course.  The end result is a dreamy, hazy look at sheep grazing in Cleveland!

Enjoy! As always your comments are welcome.

Home ~ where the heart is!

One of my biggest challenges with this site has been a concern about the importance of what I have to say and whether or not my world resonates with others, and unfortunately my feelings of doubt have succeeded more often than my commitment to my craft.

I have closed the door on that phase today and I think I have a sense of focus and what I want to communicate with this little corner of the cyber world – all things Cleveland! Not your usual news or puff pieces the parts of this metropolis that strike me as interesting, challenging, wonderful and oh so Cleveland!

To start off I’m going to share a recent skyline shot and my take on a tardy Beyond Layers assignment Fun With Type.


I hope you enjoy and come back frequently! If you feel so moved, please leave a comment!

Having a little fun with text!
What a beautiful day in the LAND!

Martha Southgate returns to CLE to read "A Taste of Salt"

Martha Southgate during book signing at Visible Voice Books in Cleveland, OH

***Note – this post was started last October and I never got around to uploading. If you’re looking for a good quick read this winter, be sure to pick up A Taste, and any of Southgate’s other works. She is an engaging and enjoyable author.

Cleveland native Martha Southgate, author of A Taste of Salt  returned home to give a reading at Visible Voice Books in the City’s Tremont neighborhood. It was a wet and chilly Thursday evening in October, but the quaint warm surroundings offered a perfect setting for a friendly open discussion.

A small but engaged group gathered to hear Southgate read from her latest novel and discuss her journey as an author.

The conversation covered everything from “A Taste of Salt” to her life as an author. Southgate was open and engaging as she talked about her path which included a stint as a writer with Essence magazine. When speaking of the jobs she has held Southgate was offering insight into the real life of a writer. It is not all glamour and sitting at home working on that next great work!

Eager readers await the start of Martha Southgate reading.

Her latest work “A Taste of Salt” is largely set in Cleveland which lead to questions about the levels of autobiographical information contained in the story. Southgate was adamant that this was not her story and is indeed a work of fiction. As with most works of fiction some elements of the book were loosely  based on  individuals Southgate has met, and settings are based on places she has been.

A New Look at Cleveland, Ohio ~ My Town!

Okay I am a native of this wonderful city but lately I have been looking at her with a totally different eye and seeing things I’ve never really looked at before, and in some cases never seen before. During a recent walk at lunchtime I pulled out my phone and took a picture of this statue.

Fountain of Eternal Life

No big deal you may say, but what I realized after snapping the photo was I had no clue what this statue was called. Today I know the name of the statue and according to Wikipedia this is the story behind this interesting structure:

The Fountain of Eternal Life, also known as the War Memorial Fountain and Peace Arising from the Flames of War, is a statue and fountain in Cleveland, Ohio designed by Cleveland Institute of Art graduate[1] Marshall Fredericks and dedicated on May 30, 1964. The sculpture, which serves as the city’s major memorial to its citizens that served in World War II, is situated on Memorial Plaza, which is part of the Cleveland Mall.
The fountain was initiated and promoted by the Cleveland Press, which raised $250,000 in donations from private citizens and various organizations for the project. The centerpiece is a 35-foot (10.7 m) bronze figure representing man escaping from the flames of war and reaching skyward for eternal peace. The bronze sphere from which the figure rises represents the earth. Four granite carvings, representing the geographic civilizations of the world, are placed around the sphere. On the surface of the polished granite rim surrounding the fountain are bronze plates bearing the names of 4,177[2] Greater Clevelanders who perished in WWII and in the Korean War. Following a complete restoration during the construction of an underlying parking garage in connection with the neighboring Key Tower, the memorial was rededicated on Veterans Day in 1991.[3]

 Another great find while walking downtown was this beautiful branch of KeyBank. It is located in the Key Tower, but I suppose since I don’t bank there I had never had a reason to go inside. This particular day I was with a friend who needed to make a deposit. I was floored when I saw just where the tellers were located. Take a peek. Isn’t that awesome? Sites like these further solidify my belief that we should not always look for new to be the next best thing.