Skyway or Myway

I cheated a little bit. These pictures were all taken with my camera. Sometimes i just need a little more "omph" when taking pics. Anywho...

When i first started working downtown, i never thought twice about walking through the skyways. It wasn't until my sister-in-law had her wedding down here, some time-ago, that i thought twice. I remember the day after the wedding we were shuffling people around, trying to get tuxes returned, and getting everyone into a car to meet up for breakfast at the Egg and I (i think that's how it was spelled etc.). As Jason and I were walking, I remember one person saying, I've never been in a skyway before. I felt bad because we were in a hurry but i wanted to give a tour of the skyways. The tour didn't happen.



It was from that day on that i started really looking around me. I think i spend most of my time walking to work with my head turned to the side while i'm walking straight ahead. I think of the skyway level as the sampler platter of Mpls. downtown buildings. It's a good way to see different characteristics of each building without looking like an intruder.



One of my favorite things about the skyways is looking down into a world that would normally be seen only by a bird. Most of the time i get away with peering into people's lives while cruising through the skyways. If were to stand still and look, it may be kind of weird.

Stay tuned for more pics. The Macy's flower show is on right now and it's my goal to get up there and take some pics. If you haven't been to the 8th floor auditorium, i suggest you go. It's not only an interesting show, but an interesting journey to get up there. :)



p.s. i know. i know. i know. duluth and st. paul have skyways. i've been through those too. you should plan a skyway trip. HAHA. just do it during the work week. during the weekend the skyways are dead and most shops are closed.

Urban Home

I have been taking my sweet time in posting (in case you haven't noticed). I'm excited for Spring and warm weather. All of those pictures taken in the winter were making me cold! :) Sadly, it still is cold in the mornings when i catch the bus. So annoying because i want to wear a lighter jacket because it's warmer when i get off work. I either freeze in the morning, or sweat to death on the ride home.

I have shown you a lot of things that i see on my way to and from work but i haven't shown you my urban home. The first picture you saw above shows my bus ride in. This photo was taken a month ago, so it's not quite as cold as it looks in that picture. I just love how the city steams. When it's cold out, i can see everything breathe. Cars, buildings, people, sewers... Some people call it pollution. I guess.

Once i hop off the bus/train, i walk a few blocks to my urban home. In the below picture, it was my lucky day. No one else was on the elevator, so i had an express trip to the 24th floor. The elevator i am in is one bank of three. I live on the 24th floor, which happens to be the last stop for this bank.

Notice there is a 13th floor button. Apparently some people out there still believe buildings downtown do not have a 13th floor button. Something about bad luck. The only caveat i have to this, it's probably not the actual 13th floor. I say this because there isn't a 15th floor button. Did you catch that in the picture above? We have a couple of sub basements as well, but those don't count as floors i guess.



Here i am at work. This is the window at the end of my aisle. The Graves 601 is right in front. Block E is just before it, Target Center roof is just behind it and Target Field is just after that. You can see the curve of the Field's roof. It is still early enough where it is dark out (although now with the time change, it's light in the mornings). Our lovely cubes are seen in the reflection behind me.



I love it when it is sunny out like this. Winter seems to provide those crisp, clear days. I'm not sure how else to describe it. Maybe you can tell by this picture. This is still in the morning. Probably around 10 am.

I will be losing this view this week as our floors are changing for remodeling. The Pres. wasn't impressed with our building's 70's cubes. It doesn't really impress vendors or execs. that visit. Works for me. I'm curious to know how much grossness is growing in the cube walls. We were hoping we would be able to see the season opener before the move, but that is not going to happen. When we move back to our floor, i'll be sitting on another side of the building... facing another building. Yippee...



Here is one last picture to the left of the above picture. The thing about the iPhone, it makes things look far away. All of these views outside the window are closer than appears. I say this because there have been mornings, where i can see into the hotel rooms. There are mornings where people leave their shades open, talk on the phone, while in their underwear. Let that be a lesson to you if you travel for work. Keep the blinds closed until you have more than undies on. You've been warned.

Waterworks

You can't really see the building in these two pictures, but it's about the closest i can get without being in a car. If i were in a car, i would be too close and only get small sections of the building. This is the Minneapolis Waterworks. On the other side of that building is the Mississippi river.

This building fascinates me and is mysterious. I haven't been able to find any articles on the building. Not sure if it's a secret? Here is some interesting general info. about mpls. water works. For any of us who grew up in mpls., we understood "city water". Not that it's bad, but i think people are scared of it because it comes from the Mississippi. Well, we should be happy we are on the upper part of the river and probably should be more worried about the pipes the water is flowing through... :) More pics. to come as it warms up and the scenery starts to brighten up a bit more.

Waiting...

This is me, standing in the "bus" shelter, waiting for the train. You can see, across the tracks, what the shelter looks like. The shelters are pretty nifty. They have two ceiling heaters that work fairly well when standing in certain spots. The shelters look like they are enclosed, and they are for the most part but they are still kept open enough to allow ventilation. Well, not just allow ventilation, but a pretty strong draft, it's windy in this area! I also kind of think that the shelters aren't fully enclosed to prevent people etc. from sleeping overnight in these things.

There are benches in this thing, but they are metal. Not too comfortable to sit on those in the middle of winter. I feared that i would sit down and seal myself to the bench somehow. That would be an interesting sight.

I made the mistake of standing outside when a train was going by on the opposite tracks. The commuter train runs really slow compared to the cargo trains. I don't know if you've ever stood next to a train going full speed but it's scary! I was standing on the platform, i hear the train blow it's horn and then before i know it, this train is screaming by. Literally screaming by, kicking up sprays of snow and showering all of us on the opposite side. Those cargo trains have so much momentum behind them i know can easily understand how much damage they can cause.

On a side note, i'm slowing the posts down a bit. It's not that i'm running out of topics, i just think we've all seen enough pictures of winter. :) I'll also be switching gears with the subject matter. Just a tiny bit :).

Authorized Personnel Only

This is underneath the Twins Stadium. I took this from the very last seat on the train. By very last, i don't mean the only seat available, i mean it is literally the last seat, looking out the back of the train.

Normally i due my duty of walking up towards the front of the train and filling those cars first, but today i felt a little lazy. I got into the car closest to the lobby. As i got on, i decided to stay on the first floor and headed towards the back of the section. I have found that those seats are the least popular.

The last section of seats that were empty, was just a section of two. They faced a wall but there was a window in the wall, and a window to the side of the seat. As long as there is a window, i didn't really car. As i went to sit down, i noticed that the wall with the window in front of me actually had two more seats on the other side. There was a doorway but no door. I looked for a sign that said restricted or something and there was nothing. So i grabbed my stuff, scooted around the wall and sat at the back end of the train. It was like looking out the back window of a car. The window was a bit high but i could still see out of it. Unfortunately i had to lean really close and almost stand up to take pictures, so i didn't take that many.



This is when we first leave downtown. The bridge leads to 94W.



That funny shape you see just above the bridge, to your left, is the Twins Stadium. For as much crap about being crammed into a space, it was done really well and does not intrude on the environment around it.

The title of this post is Authorized Personnel Only. I thought i was really smart for getting the the seat that i had. The cop came by and checked every person's fare, including mine. The conductor(?) went up and down the aisles counting people, including me. No one said a word to me. I figured it was okay to sit there. There was a door to the right of me that said Authorized Personnel Only. That made sense because it looked like that was a private section, for storage or something.

The next time i rode the train home, i thought i would try sitting in the last car again. Maybe in that very last section if it was open. I got on the train, headed back, and there was a door right where i had walked through to get to the last set of seats. Authorized Personnel Only. I sat in the section right behind it (the one i was going to sit in the first time around). Apparently that door i saw earliers, has a funny hinge that allows it to either close part of a section or the entire section off depending which way it is swung. The conductor came by with a lady and said she could sit in the executive section. He unlocked the door and let her sit back there. So either i took a person's spot, or they forgot to shut the door. I'll chalk it up to, they forgot to shut the door.

Car Ride

It's not you. The picture is blurry. Kind of hard to take a decent picture in a car that is moving, particularly when it's my car and me taking the picture. As you can see, the road is pretty empty in the morning.

You may have read this in a previous post, but if you haven't, here it is again. My commute in the morning feels like i'm travelling through different worlds. I start off, in my car, in snoozeville suburb. I then travel to the outskirts of snoozeville, and i hit the open country roads. Farmland everywhere mixed with a huge park reserve. I drop my sidekick off at daycare, and travel to either the commuter train, or to the park and ride for the bus. If it's the train, i hummm through the land of industry and land at the feet of my urban home. If it's the bus, i buzz through the concrete jungle of freeways and land at the feet of my urban home. Exciting huh?

The first picture (above) is the open country roads part. Wish i could get better shots but i have to drive. Oh, and look for animals that stray across the asphalt lane.



Here is a lonely tree in the middle of farmland. It's kind of interesting because before this, there is a new housing development. Then there is this stretch of nothing, this tree, then a tree farm, then a housing development. All of this in a quarter of a mile, on the same side of the road. It's basically an evolution of land development.



Yes. More farmland. Even more fascinating, the jet stream in the sky. In just a matter of minutes, my sidekick and i will arrive at destination 1; daycare. Kind of a snoozey post, but i felt obligated to show some bits from the middle part of my journey. Don't worry, you won't see any pictures of snoozeville. You've seen one suburb, you've seen them all ;0). Good weekend all.

From Work

I would like to pause here for a moment and just say; my husband totally cracks me up. Not only does he crack me up, he pushes my tiny brain into something that halfway functions. Not only does he crack me up, pushes my tiny brain; he puts up with my Taurean self. That in of itself deserves a medal of valor. Thanks darling. :)

ON WITH THE SHOW!!
(don't lie, you had the same ringmaster's voice in your head as i did when reading that sentence.)



This is awesome. Sort of. In the last post you saw pictures To Work. Now you are seeing pictures on my way From Work. I take the same route back and forth (not everyone follows the same paths to and from places, so yes, i meant to call out that i take the same route to and from). This is the stairwell in the bus garage/parking ramp. This place is under construction to handle the changes for the Twins stadium. It is an asthma nightmare to walk this route. Lucky i don't have asthma. As you can see, there is white all over the floor. That is construction dust. I have to walk down 3 flights of stairs with this stuff floating around. So, i look a little dusty when i get to work. Well, not really but i feel like it sometimes.

Walking down the flight's of stairs is interesting. It's a very compact staircase. It's barely wide enough for two people. The landings are very tight as well, which makes the turns to go down each set of stairs very tight. This makes me dizzy sometimes. What is amazing to me is that there is a blind man who navigates these stairs with such confidence.

I can always tell if i'm running on time when i start to see the same person at the same time i'm leaving. There is a man who is blind who i always happen to follow. Sometimes he is with someone, sometimes he is alone. I watch him go down the slippery, dusty, cement stairs and i'm just...amazed! He holds his cane in one hand, grabs the railing with the other, shuffle walks to the first step, and down he goes. Without a PAUSE! I hold my breath every time because i think he is going to completely miss that first step. Have you ever navigated those types of stairs with your eyes closed? In dress shoes on dusty cement floors? It's amazing i don't wipe out. Just to illustrate how dusty this place is, see the next picture.



This is a bench that was temporarily moved to accommodate the construction. Obviously, i guess. The escalators are being completely re-done. Hence the reason why i take the stairs. Elevators are still working, but they are slow. I also need the crosstraining of going up stairs. Crazy? No. Maybe it's the dust that i inhale that makes it worth it (snark snark).



Oh great! Another picture of the bench. Apparently i'm fascinated with it. At least the dust is being cleaned up in some spots. Or maybe enough people walked this path that dust can't settle here.



This is the long hall that i walk down. The buses are parked outside just to the right of me. To the left is the circular ramps leading up to parking spaces. It's a nice walk, except for when someone has a rolling backpack/bag. Sounds of little wheels on brick floor. Yeah. Almost enough for me to mention to said person with the bag to pick the dang thing up.



Ta dah! After the long hallway, and scrambling through the rest of the bus garage and crossing the street, i end up back on the very sidewalk from the previous post. Heading to the train. Ahhh, my workday is gone from my head at this point. Good day everyone.

To Work

I'm sure you are all dying to know what it's like to walk two and a half blocks to work. I am not special. As you can see, i have a lot of company during my walk. When the train arrives at the foot of the stadium, all of us passengers cram up two escalators and two sets of stairs. We spill out into the transit lobby of the stadium and pour out the doors. Half the crowd walks across the Light Rail's tracks to catch the Light Rail, the other half takes the route i'm showing you above.

In the winter time, we didn't have this wide open space to walk on. There were barriers up due to construction. The only space we had was between the line of sidewalk lights and the Light Rail. Now, there is this open free space! To my right are the gates to get into the Twins stadium. You can peer right through into the concourse then through to the seats laying beyond. I didn't take pictures of that. Who would have been interested in seeing that? JUST kidding. I didn't want to look like an idiot. Maybe another day when i don't care what people think, i'll take a ton of pics from the skyway all the way to the entrance of the transit lobby. ;)



I'm still on the sidewalk by the stadium. When i came back to work after maternity leave, i parked in a lot that is two blocks to the left of where i'm standing (the next picture is me turning to the left). It was an open lot underneath the freeway bridges. It was cheap. I would walk by the closed nightclubs/bars (peer inside), take a left at the end of the row of buildings, and walked down the steep slope under the bridge to my car. I walked by the construction site of the Twins stadium everyday. Part of me thought i should have taken pictures every week of the progress... but i didn't. The nice thing about that long walk after work, with each step the day got left behind.




Hey look! The Light Rail... :) I only got the few shots that i did because i haven't become very skilled at not looking like a tourist taking pictures during the morning commute. Besides, it was Monday, i'm sure people would have been thrilled that someone was stopping in front of them to take pictures of everyday norm.

I still have to laugh at myself during my walks to and from whatever i'm taking home, the bus or train etc. Someone wrote a comment in the paper about how the trains downtown don't make sense because it doesn't drop you off nearly as close to your destination as the buses do. Obviously that person doesn't take public transportation. When i take the bus in the morning, i have the option of getting off at two different stops. Either one is still 3 blocks away from work. Hmmm... i guess i see how that person's logic works.

I personally like the walks. It's the two times during the day i'm guaranteed to be hauling my butt fast! It never fails, i leave my desk at the last possible moment, impatiently wait in the elevator as it chugs down 24 floors (stops every 2 floors) to the lobby, dash through the skyways, down the stairs, down two blocks, just to barely make the bus. I should give myself some credit. Most days i make it too early, even though i think i'm late. Then i end up waiting 10 minutes for the bus. When that happens, it's usually the days it's raining, snowing, freezing etc.

The train i'm more paranoid about. If i miss that, i'm stuck for another half hour. Doesn't work if i'm picking Olivia up on those days. So that route is, leave my desk on time, impatiently wait in the elevator as it chugs down 24 floors (stops every 2 floors) to the lobby, dash through the skyways, down the stairs, through the block long bus garage, down another block, down MORE stairs, just to get a good seat on the train. whew... darn elevator.

Mental Hospital

In the morning, on my way to the train's parking lot, i have noticed this building. I vowed that when i actually had a few minutes, i would drive down and take a peek. As you can see in the above picture, i had time to take a peek. I drove down the road, and continued on where most people turned down the other road. A sign stated, Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center (more or less). I thought, "oh a drug rehab place". I continued on down the road and i got the distinct impression that i shouldn't be on the road unless i had business to. Must have been the no thru traffic sign... Anyways, i briefly stopped and took this picture and made a u-turn and left.

My mom had mentioned that my great aunt worked at a state hospital in Anoka. She was the director of nursing, which back in her time (1940's) it was unusual for a single woman to support herself. The government paid for her schooling, and in turn she had to serve 2? years as director of nursing at the Anoka State Hospital. What i thought was a drug rehab place is actually a mental hospital (which "mental" probably isn't PC to say).

I mentioned to my mom that i had driven down this road and taken a picture of one of the buildings. She said, "oh yes, that's the hospital that your great aunt worked at". My mom said her and my grandmother would go and visit my great aunt at work. My mom said she really didn't know at the time that it was a mental hospital. She only has a few snippets of memories. Apparently the patients got a kick out of seeing my mom, who at that time was a young child. My mom remembers what she wore one day to the hospital but that's about it. I'll have to ask her more at another time.

My mom and i continued to discuss this though and at my ripe old age of 32, i have realized what my great aunt must have witnessed as a director of nursing in a state run mental hospital. Below is an early picture of what the hospital looks like. I imagine it still looks the same, trees, river, roads, and buildings.

Aerial view of Anoka State Hospital, Anoka. Photographer: Leo A. (Dinty) Moore Photograph Collection 1937

I was going to meet my mom in the next few days, after our conversation about the hospital, to go through a buffet of my grandmother's. I made a note to ask them both a bit more about the hospital when we met. Unfortunately, we had to focus on the cleaning and i didn't' get a chance to ask much more. What i did find though, made me think even more about the line of work my great aunt faced.

Part of cleaning the buffet out meant we had to clear space in the storage closet. Not only did we need the space in the closet, we needed to clear two bins of paperwork that my grandmother has kept from the 1990's. It's all paperwork from my great grandparents' funerals, great aunt's funeral, and my grandfather's funeral. My grandmother was excellent at keeping records, unfortunately it's all funeral paperwork.

Besides paperwork and Christmas decorations, there lies 4 great mysteries to me. Two of which were slightly revealed to me. In one funeral pouch we found all of the birth/marriage/death certificates of the family. In another funeral pouch we found my great aunts personal affects. I only saw my mom pull out a pair of glasses and a box with a handwritten note stating, "Daily Devotions".

Now i thought daily devotions was a religious thing, apparently it's not. My mom said my great aunt wrote those when she was about my age. This got me to thinking about how my great aunt must have endured a terrible job. My mom said my great aunt NEVER spoke about work. Not at all. When i see stories about what mental hospitals were like back in the day... that was my great aunt. She must have had to make some terrible decisions, at that time thinking they were the right decisions.

I decided to do a little more research about the hospital just to see if i could confirm what i thought she must have witnessed. To learn more about the hospital you can go here. To learn about the scarier part of the hospital, you can go here. The little blurb is all the more detail i could find. I'm not sure what years those things happened in the second link, but it still could not have been pleasant for my great aunt.

Edison!

At long last, i had a few clear days, and no trains parked on the tracks to get these shots. This first pic. is one of my favorites. I know, i know, i say, "this is one of my favorites" a little too often. I can't help it. Perhaps i should say, this is a fascinating shot for me. This very street here has been travelled many times by me and friends throughout high school and beyond. I have a friend whose parents live a few blocks away from here so, kind of cool for me to see this perspective and to know i know someone not too far away from these tracks. On with the show.



I was a little sad when i took this picture. On this day, there were trains parked on the tracks. Of course, when the lighting is perfect, there are bound to be trains in the way of a shot i want to take. Surprisingly, I had one moment to get a shot, and i took it. There was a flatbed car that allowed me a peak at what was on the other side.
This is a very distant view of my high school! I have been waiting, and waiting, and waiting to get a shot of the ol' place. There were many soccer/football/track/what-have-you going on while trains would chug through the outskirts of our field. So, big deal. We see trains go by all the time. However, aren't we all just a little curious to see our "everday" from a different perspective? How true in all aspects of our life huh? Holy moly, that was a little philosophy too early in the morning...
Onwards with the show. I was able to snag a few more shots on a lucky day when NO cars were on the tracks and the lighting was good.



Here it is folks! Edison High School. The flat building to the left is our athletic building. It is actually across the street from the school. From this view, they look to be on the same grounds. What's cool about these two buildings is that there are tunnels that lead from the school to the athletic building. One for boys, one for girls. :) You could technically go down either one but they lead to the locker rooms, so... choose wisely i guess.
The unfortunate thing about the tunnels, there was construction done on the school during the summer and it rained very hard, flooding the school's basement. The tunnels filled with water and flooded the main gym's floor in the athletic building. It also flooded both gyms located in Edison's basement. The floors warped so high that you could stand on top of the floor and touch the basketball hoops. (this was seen from images in the strib.)
Scroll on to see the rest.

(bye edison)

Lumber Exchange II

On my way to the bus, i snapped these last few pictures that i have of the Lumber Exchange. In the previous post i mentioned a chandelier that could be seen from the second floor lobby. Behind me where elevators. The picture above is one of the elevators on that second floor. It's not the greatest picture as i really wanted to hone in on the medallion above the door. This is where i wish i had zoom.
What's interesting about the medallion is that on the first floor, there is one exactly like it above the door. The only difference is that the medallion on the first floor is completely green. I'm wondering if the coloring on the medallion on the second floor has any significance? I was thinking that maybe it was to indicate which floor it is? Who knows. I suppose i could actually search for info. online, but it's more fun to speculate at this point.



This last image is taken from one of three directory boards (the "F"s). The triangle is repeated three times, one on top of each directory column. I'm not so sure this is original... Did they have directories like this in the 1800's or 1900's? I'll have to check to see when this building was built.

Okay, i just searched for info. Read on if you would like a history lesson. Stop now if you don't.

The Lumber Exchange Building was the first skyscrapper built in Mpls. MN., and dates to 1885. It was designed in the Richardsonian Romanesque style by Franklin B. Long and Frederick Kees and was billed as one of the first fireproof buildings in the country. It is the oldest high-rise building standing in Minneapolis, and is the oldest building outside of New York City with 12 or more floors.
The building was built in multiple stages. Originally a tall, thin structure, an additional wing was added in 1890. Later, two stories were added at the top of the building. James Lileks, Minneapolis writer and architectural critic, says,
“ It's one of the few survivors from the early skyscraper era – and perhaps the ugliest. Of all the buildings on Hennepin, it's the least significant; across the street, the Masonic Temple – a near contemporary – is far more intriguing. The Lumber Exchange survived, though; perhaps it was just too big to knock down. It survived a fire, disrepair, neglect … it just won't go away."[5] ”
The Lumber Exchange Building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lumber_Exchange_Building

You know what's interesting? Not a single article on the interior of the building. If someone is looking for a research project, there's one waiting for you in the Lumber Exchange Building. As you and i know, if there isn't an article of sorts on the web, then there are no articles in existence period! (snark, snark, snark :))

The Lumber Exchange

As promised, i have pictures of the Lumber Exchange building. This first picture, however, is not of the Lumber Exchange. This picture is of the Plymouth Building. When i'm heading home, i walk through this skyway and i always find this part of the skyway rather funny. Not funny as in, haha, but funny in that it's kind of weird.

Where i'm standing is what i feel to be a makeshift skyway level. When i walk on this part, it sounds hollow, like i'm walking on a big sheet of plywood. I have a feeling that this wasn't a skyway level, but probably an open lobby from floor to the very glass ceiling in this picture.

I have noticed, particularly with the Lumber Exchange, that the "old" buildings seem to have modifications made to them. I don't know how else to describe it other than, it's a bad plastic surgery job. What i see in the Lumber Exchange are, what once used to be marble stairs is now a false-floored ramp connecting the second level to the third level, which ultimately leads to the skyway level. The industrial carpeting covering the floor contrasts with the marble floors and marble molding. When going through the brass framed doors, there is more carpeting and more stairs. I can't help but wonder if it's covered marble. What once used to be an open area is now all chopped up with sheetrocked walls. The only sign that there is any part of the Lumber Exchange is a marble "enclave" in the wall. It's sad. Anywho... on to more pictures and the reason(s) why i'm fascinated with the Lumber Exchange.



This picture is on my way home, and this is first "real" part of the building that i see. It's my favorite and i was a little sad that there was this huge sheet of plywood blocking the picture i wanted to take. I'm actually looking through a door. On the other side of the plywood is a beautiful arched window that has a really cool brass pendant lamp. It's actually quite a pretty scene and i'll have to try and get another picture without the plywood.

What i ultimately call this picture though, is a behind the scenes look. Rarely do we get the opportunity to see inside what we see outside. I plan on going into that thought in a future blog and i'll have more pictures to illustrate what i mean, but this is my first hint at it.

This is from the second floor elevator lobby. It's really not a lobby, but an open hallway. I'll have to take pictures of the elevators as they at least kept the integrity of those. Behind me are the elevators and in front of me is an open view of the lobby, and this crazy chandelier! It's really not that noticeable when walking through the maze to get outside, but if you stop and look up, there it is!

You can also see down at the bottom right, where there appears to be a large opening, is actually a huge window. It is the window of a jeweler's shop. It's really crazy in that shop and i often wonder how he manages to keep his spot in the building...

I'm now down in the lobby and this is what the chandelier looks like looking up at it. I believe this to be made out of brass, as everything that is metal in that building is brass. The ceiling is marble. What i find curious is the little brass domes in the ceiling. I think those are actually heating vents...

This is the very lobby that, when looking up, you see the chandelier from the earlier pictures. I actually took this picture on my way to work, in the early morning light. Unfortunately you can see the modern touch of rugs. I understand, it's winter, the shoes are wet, and that's not a good combination on the marble floors.

What i love about this view is that the brass revolving door is situated in the middle of the arch, and the light shining through the arch as a whole. I'm not sure if the glass was always frosted but this would be one modern touch i don't mind.

Besides the physical surroundings of this building, i hold a deeper curiosity for this place. My grandmother stated that my great great grandfather worked in this building. He had a desk in the basement. I can't recall what she said he did. I don't have access to basement... at least i don't think i do. There are stairs that lead down but i don't know where they go and they aren't blocked off. Maybe one day when i'm brave. In the meantime, i wonder if they do tours of the place? Although it's so chopped up... who knows if there is anything left other than the lobby? Either way, you'll see more posts about this building later on i'm sure.

My Sidekick

Before i get into more pictures, i'd like to pause for a moment and mention my sidekick. She is brave enough (she doesn't have a choice) to get up at 6:15 am and ride with me for the first part of my journey.


The day for her begins when i turn on the "low light" in her room and i rummage through her drawers for an outfit (don't forget the socks!). This lets her know that i'm in the room and she has to start thinking about waking up, or at least show some signs of life so mom doesn't panic. At this point, my daughter is the two year old teenager. She moves only when i touch and that's to get away from me. I roll her onto her back, and she has to stretch her entire body. I throw her blanket on her face (lightly) and scoop her up and plop her on the changing table. And thus, her day begins.


I must say, the more she starts talking the more interesting my drives get. When i go around curves, she says, "wooohhhhhhooohhh". Must be because i'm a fun driver. She also says, "mommymommywhat'sdatwhat'sdatwhat'sdatmommy?" and it's precisely like that, all one word. Most mornings she's pretty quite. Now that she can see out the window, she has a tendency to be like me and just stares out the window. Although when i'm driving i don't just stare out the window. That would be road hypnosis and that would be bad. Stay tuned for pics. or my walking portion of the commute. Bet you didn't see that coming huh? Yes, not only do i drive a car, take public transportation, i then walk to my urban home.