The View is Anticipating Spring!

I took these photo’s over a month ago. It was around 12 degrees this February 4 when I brought a camera with me on my walk. The brilliant blue sky and sun I’ve missed so much this winter helped me see things differently that day.

Maybe it was the influence of Charles Stroh’s Hidden Kalamazoo column that’s been running in the Sunday Gazette for … I think a year. The Hidden (View of) Kalamazoo has been a wonderful study of our city and its amazing architecture. It wasn’t until the last column appeared March 1, that I remembered the photo of the Ladies Library Gargoyle that HE took. (Though when I saw the gargoyle with all that ice hanging out of it's mouth, I laughed out loud and HAD to take a photo!)

Gargoyle Spitting Ice 2.4.09 — Grandpa Carpenter's Birthday too!

Whether it was some hidden memory of the article, or the life I’ve lead here noticing these small details subconsciously for years, who knows. Chances are, it was just the opportunity to walk downtown — not only to work, but in general for a few years now, as it’s not far from the hill.



It’s been getting warmer, the temp reached about 60 degrees today. The days are longer (especially with daylight savings time — that’s a whole blog. I hate it!) and I must say, I am feeling much more energetic. Longer days do wonders for ones disposition.

I’ve been walking downtown the last few days as well, and I feel like I’m looking at the City for the first time. (Ah spring! It IS coming.) I am paying attention to the physical Kalamazoo — the guts, the small details of a large thing block after block. It’s fun discovering and re-discovering the history — and the modifications.



Hope you enjoy the "Hidden" View of Kalamazoo and the few shots I've shared with you from my walk February 4. I’ve promised myself to take my camera with me on my next trip. There are amazing details and grand architecture all along the way! The KIA is going to be one of my first stops!

Metal Children Look Toward Spring. Bronson Park 2.4.09

Next I’ll dig up the photo's I took about 10 years ago for a class. It should be an interesting comparison – not so much for the cities history, but for the history of my own perception and a chance to reflect on what was interesting to me then. The shots are mostly black and white, but a couple of them I edited in Photoshop, so they have an interesting digital twist. Stay tuned!

The Jetson's Meet Art Deco. An example of the change.

Home again. There really is a great view from and of Kalamazoo from where I sit on the hill. This "scene" can be really intense certain times of the year. Spring and Fall mostly, because the leaves on the trees are gone. It's a scene I can see from the new patio I built in 2006, my kitchen (both windows), my dinning room, my bedroom and the nursery off of my bedroom. This is "Kalamazoo on Fire" from my bedroom window. The photo doesn't do it justice, but it gives you an idea!