Retro Valentine ...

"Wise men say
Only fools rush in
But I can't help
falling in love with you."
           ~ "Can't Help Falling In Love"
                       ~ from Elvis Presley's 1961 movie "Blue Hawaii"

You can almost hear a nearby jukebox playing
the great Elvis Presley's "Can't Help Falling In Love"
as you and your sweetie share a shake with two straws
in this Retro Valentine. 

On The Delaware ...

"Wrinkles should merely indicate
where smiles have been."
                               ~ Mark Twain
                                                ~ 1835-1910

When I saw this man fishing on 
the Delaware River in Phillipsburg, New Jersey
on an early September evening, I wondered from his
expression what thoughts and memories were
crossing his mind. The man was fishing near
the historic Northampton Street Bridge,
commonly called The Free Bridge, which spans the 
Delaware River between Phillipsburg, New Jersey
and Easton, Pennsylvania. The Free Bridge was completed in 1896 
and survived the damage from massive flooding from
Hurricane Diane in 1955. It undersent a thorough
restoration in 1990. 

A Country Red ...

  

 

"In summer, the song sings itself."
                                      ~ William Carlos Williams
                                                    1883-1963

Geiger's Covered Bridge paints a pop of red 
to the country landscape in North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania
 on a picturesque summer day.

The bridge is an historic wooden covered bridge. It is a
112-foot long Burr Truss bridge, constructed in 1860.
It has vertical plank siding and an entry portal of
stepped square planks. It crosses the Jordan Creek
and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1980. It can be accessed from The Covered Bridge Trail
of the Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania.

 

A Simple Peace ...

"I found the poems in the field
and only wrote them down."
                             ~ John Clare
                                          ~ 1793-1864

The words of the English poet John Clare came to life
to me when I photographed this scene just before sunset. It
was a waning summer evening just off the Ironton Rail Trail, 
Whitehall, Pennsylvania, with the chirp of crickets and the 
soft coo of a mourning dove the only sounds filling the air ...
a simple peace and a beautiful reminder to me of why
I love nature photography. 

A Fair Night ...

This little tyke in a stroller has the best seat in the house
to navigate the crowded midway one evening this week at 
the 162nd Great Allentown Fair, Allentown, Pennsylvania.

How Green Is My Valley ...

"How green was my valley then ...
and the valley of them that have gone."

                                        ~ "How Green Was My Valley"
                                                       ~ Richard Llewellyn
                                                                                1939

The Lehigh Valley is wrapped in the lush  green
of summer in this view from one of the beautiful
summits at Trexler Nature Preserve,
Schnecksville, Pennsylvania. 





     

Flare For Life ...

"...A million tommorrows
shall all pass away
Ere I forget all the joy
that is mine today."
                       ~ "Today"
                                ~ Randy Sparks
                                    New Christy Minstrels
                                                             1964

A man paddles through a magical like
sunflare during a summer golden hour
at Leaser Lake, New Tripoli, Pennsylvania.
The lake's namesake is Frederick Leaser,
who in September 1777 with his farm team
hauled The Liberty Bell from Philadelphia 
to Allentown where it was concealed
in Zion Reformed Church. His homestead is located
one mile to the north of the lake.

Chasing Sunset ...

"Life is no brief candle...
it is a sort of splendid torch ...
make it burn as brightly as possible ..."
                               ~ George Bernard Shaw
                                             1856-1950

 A man on his personal watercraft
chases a summer sunset on the golden
waters of the Delaware River near the
historic Northampton Street Bridge 
(commonly called The Free Bridge)
that spans Phillipsburg, New Jersey
and Easton, Pennsylvania.

Sunday In The Country ...

"Do not let Sunday be taken from you. 
If your soul has no Sunday, it becomes
an orphan."
                        ~ Albert Schweitzer
                                                    1875-1965

I saw this rural scene on an early summer Sunday
afternoon from the Ironton Rail Trail, which loops more than
nine miles through Whitehall Township, the Borough of Coplay and
North Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania.
The corridor was originally home to the
Ironton Railroad 1860-1984.
 

What's It All About Alfie ...

"What's it all about Alfie...
when you walk let your heart lead the way
and you'll find love any day ...
                          "Alfie"
                      ~Burt Bacharach & Hal David
                           ~1966

The image of this man fishing alone at
Wehr's Dam, Orefield, Pennsylvania on a June evening made me wonder if he could be thinking about his life as in "What's it all about Alfie ..." 

City Chat ...

It's almost summer in the city on Memorial Day weekend
on Nineteenth Street in the quaint West End Theatre District,
Allentown, Pennsylvania.

Traces Of Time ...

"Let your life lightly dance on the edges of 
Time like dew on the tip of a leaf."
           ~ Rabindranath Tagore

Spending time this March in the charming, Victorian town of
Belvidere, New Jersey, located on the banks of
the Pequest and Delaware Rivers. 

Hues On The Rue ...

 

"Painting is something that takes place among the colors ..."

                                            ~ Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926)

A painterly view of Nineteenth Street in the West End Theatre District,Allentown, Pennsylvania yesterday. This block reminds me of a slice of Paris in Allentown. 

Log Cabin In The Snow

 

"When snow falls, nature listens."

~ Antoinette Van Kleeff

The springhouse in Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania is 

surrounded by winter's quiet beauty on a recent afternoon.

The log cabin was part of the summer estate of General Harry C. Trexler (1854-1933),

an Allentown industrialist who built a business empire in Allentown. 

The park is his namesake.  

Softly, As I Leave You ...

"Softly, I will leave you softly
For my heart would break
if you should wake
and see me go..."
                                ~ "Softly, As I Leave You"

The image of a man walking yesterday in the freshly fallen snow at
Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania brought to mind
the lyrics to the beautiful 1960s song made popular by singers
such as Bobby Darin.

"Softly, As I Leave You" is a popular Italian song composed by
Giorgio Calabrese and Tony Da Vita translated into
English by Al Shaper. 

Winter At Robin Hood Dell

"On earth, there is no heaven, but there are pieces of it."
                                                                                      ~ Jules Renard

Robin Hood Dell, one of my favorite spots in Lehigh Parkway, Allentown, Pennsylvania,
after a fresh snowfall last week.

Painter's Box ...

"In nature, light creates the color.
In the picture, color creates the light." 
                                  ~ Hans Hofmann
                                            ~ 1880-1966
A window in the historic Bogert's  Covered Bridge, Lehigh Parkway, Allentown, Pennsylvania frames a view of the Little Lehigh Creek flowing beneath the bridge today.

Come December ...

"Winter, a lingering season, is a time to gather golden moments, embark upon a 
sentimental journey, and enjoy every idle hour." ~ John Boswell

Nestled in the snow, the springhouse at Trexler Memorial Park, Allentown, Pennsylvania, 
is warmed by the afternoon December sun today. This log cabin was part of the summer
estate of General Harry C. Trexler (1854-1933) an American industrialist who built a 
business empire in Allentown. The park is his namesake. 

Little Shed In The Snow

"Winter came down to our home one night
Quietly pirouetting in on silvery-toed slippers of snow,
And we, we were children once again." 
                                                      ~ Bill Morgan Jr.

This wooden shed looked so picturesque to me near the
Monocacy Creek, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania on a winter's afternoon.

Out of The Past ...

"No man is rich enough to buy back his past."
                                                                    ~ Oscar Wilde

An autumn view this weekend from inside Wehr's Covered Bridge, Orefield, Pennsylvania. The bridge was built in 1841 and restored in 1965.