I’m Excited

jonathan-quickI forget exactly how the conversation got started, but it was Sunday on the patio with Stef. By the time we were finished I’d asked if she’d like to see the Kings play at Staples Center.

Boom. Zing. Done!

Tickets purchased on StubHub. Parking purchased from StubHub too. We’ve got seats and parking spaces next to each other for the Kings and Coyotes.

Unfortunately, no cameras with removable lens. Clicky stays home.

We’ll be in Section 113 in our own two person Kings/Jonathon Quick/Hamden/Rainbow Cleaners rooting section.

I’m excited!

The Rural Side Of Town

We had to leave so the house could be shown today. Helaine and I are getting very good at this! Another day at Ikea wasn’t needed, so Helaine and Doppler took a ride with me to shoot some photos.

There is no place like Connecticut. Incredibly beautiful. We will miss that a lot.

It’s tough not to notice the speed at which we transition from bare trees to fully leaved. That’s obvious in today’s shots. Three weeks ago there were few leaves open. Today, many tree lined roads are covered with a green canopy.

These photos were taken on River Road and Tuttle Avenue in Hamden, just at the edge of Sleeping Giant State Park. That part of town is really rural.

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What’s On Top Of York Hill?

Meanwhile, as I drove to the top of their beautiful hill I found what I thought was a wind sculpture. That’s only part of the story.

I took a little time to go to Quinnipiac University’s new York Hill Campus for some ‘broad sky’ time lapse tonight. I’m processing my shots, but I think it was a bust. Bad choices on my part.

Meanwhile, as I drove to the top of their beautiful hill I found what I thought was a wind sculpture. That’s only part of the story.

From Quinnipiac University: The 250-acre York Hill Campus will feature two major initiatives that use renewable energy sources to produce electricity and make the campus more sustainable. A wind garden composed of 42 vertical-axis wind turbines will generate about 84,000 kilowatt hours per year. These wind turbines, each approximately 40 feet high, will be built into a garden area complete with stone benches that will provide an area for student gathering and reflection.

Return To The Mountain

What started as a 30+ minute trip had minutes shaved off. By the fall Helaine and I were getting to the castle at the summit in around 24 minutes.

“Let’s walk.” Those were my first words to Helaine as I came downstairs this afternoon. In our house the generic “walk” has meaning beyond its dictionary definition. We walk the main trail to the top of Sleeping Giant Mountain. It’s a moderately stressful 1.6 miles with few flat stretches as you climb around 600 feet.

Two years ago we walked Sleeping Giant nearly every day. Last year we slacked off.

The year we walked made a huge physical difference to me. In the beginning I had to stop halfway, By the end of the season I was doing a few brief sprints near the top.

What started as a 30+ minute trip had minutes shaved off. By the fall Helaine and I were getting to the castle at the summit in around 24 minutes.

The good part was the mountain could be used as a variable target. By picking up the pace the mountain became more difficult.

Toward the end of the season Helaine took a bad fall on a rock hidden beneath falling leaves. A DEP policeman brought her down on a motorized utility vehicle. Since then she’s been more cautious which surely makes the walk more difficult.

The weather was beautiful today. The sky was blue. The mountain trail uncrowded.

Close to half the walkers were accompanied by dogs. It’s that kind of place.

When we first walked the mountain we’d always pass two women who were on it every day. On today’s trip it was one of the women by herself. We didn’t ask.

Hopefully we’ll get back into the swing and do this three or four times a week as we did a few years back.