Posted in Penguins, Photos, WTF on June 17, 2009| 2 Comments »
Do not ask me how I came to have these photos. It is strictly confidential, just between you and me and the whole internet. But is this COOL or what:
And then it gets rowdy:
No cherished sterling silver trophies were harmed during the making of this post.
Posted in Photos, tagged Camelot on May 7, 2009| Leave a Comment »
How could it be in springtime? Knowing how in spring I’m bewitched by you so?
Oh no, not in springtime, summer, winter, or fall!
No, never could I leave you at all.
Posted in Photos on April 6, 2009| Leave a Comment »
Tonight the sun sets three minutes later in Austin than in Pittsburgh. But who wouldn’t give up three minutes of daylight to have this sunset:
Posted in Photos, Point of Interest on March 12, 2009| Leave a Comment »
I know there are hundreds of thousands of pictures of exactly this. We’ve seen them before, on postcards, tourist brochures, books, everywhere. But you can never look at it too much, can you?
Second most beautiful place? Don’t be silly.
Posted in Moving, Photos on March 10, 2009| Leave a Comment »
Just in case you’ve been yearning for visual proof that I hung out on the deck at the Grandview the first week in March:
Also, I apologize for not being around so much since I’ve been back in Oz-tin. Truth be told, I’m a little melancholy and a lot distracted. Ya see, turns out Mr. TR’s job will be starting significantly earlier than mine, like months. So we’re packing up the house so he can move away. Not a pleasant prospect – my favorite person in my favorite place, while I’m still stuck in traffic on I-35.
Bah.
Posted in Photos, Pittsburgh Media, Post-Gazette on February 16, 2009| 2 Comments »
The whole point of CPOM is to evoke a sense of place. That’s why pictures and stories of Pittsburgh are so vital for expatriates, because of their ability to transport us back to familiar places and emotions. And that’s why Post-Gazette photographer Steve Mellon’s Pittsburgh Revolution Series is among the very best at doing that. Today it’s the icy Allegheny:
Take a little time to peruse previous revolutions – he’s done Light-up Night, the Super Bowl victory parade, my beloved Forbes Field wall, Wholey’s, and Heinz Field. Plus some weirder places, like the medical examiners autopsy room, Rick Sebak’s office, and the unfinished new Children’s Hospital in Lawrenceville. There’s almost a year’s worth of archived panoramas. I think they’re all just for me, but you can enjoy them too.
Posted in Photos, Steelers on February 15, 2009| Leave a Comment »
Posted in Photos, Point of Interest, tagged The Mellon Institute on February 5, 2009| 4 Comments »
A few years ago I had occasion to spend some time at The Mellon Institute, that imposing neo-classical trapezoid that inhabits the corner of Fifth and Bellefield. It used to be a separate institution before it merged with the Carnegie Institute of Technology to form CMU.
Its outside is an imposing colonnade of monolithic columns, the backdrop of a fictitious museum in the TV show “Smith” starring Ray Liotta (a little nibble of CPOM that lasted 3 episodes in 2006), and also probably of the wedding photos of someone you know.
But few people outside of CMU science-y types see the inside of this building, which is amazing and beautiful. I took a series of photos there – here are some (these were all taken by me, not the Mr. – no applause please).
Posted in Photos, Pirates, Steelers, tagged 1960 World Series, Bill Mazeroski, Pittsburgh Pirates, PNC Park, Roberto Clemente on January 14, 2009| 1 Comment »
So, I know what the city is like during the playoffs. I love what the city is like during the playoffs. The Steelers are so great, and the Pirates are so pitiful, it’s easy to forget, or at least want to forget, what baseball has meant to the city of Pittsburgh over the years.
But we’re a baseball city.
We’re a baseball city because of our history. The history of the city is rich with baseball. We had not one but two great Negro League teams, boasting such Hall of Fame legends as Josh Gibson and Cool Papa Bell. The Pirates played in the first modern World Series (though we lost to the Boston Americans), and have won the fall classic five times, including the mythic 1960 upset of the Yankees.
We’re a baseball city because of the people. Honus Wagner. The Waner Brothers. Branch Rickey. Baseball’s first “closer” Elroy Face. Bill Mazeroski. Danny Murtaugh. Willie Stargell. Dock Ellis. Bobby Bonilla (and that other guy whose name starts with B… whatshisface).
And number 21.
And your favorite Pirate.
We’re a baseball city because we have the best ballpark in America. It may not right now be the place to watch the best baseball, but it’s the best place to watch baseball, and I’ve been to a lot of ballparks. And in this time of economic hardship, not everyone can afford to see a Steeler game. But anyone can decide on their way home from work that they want to catch a Bucs game, park for five bucks downtown and walk across the Roberto Clemente Bridge, buy a ticket for nine dollars (and the PNC Park “cheap seats” are great freakin’ seats), and get a whole evening’s worth of entertainment. And if you take me, they’ll win!
More than anything, we’re a baseball town because of how we feel about baseball. If we didn’t care, we wouldn’t have named the Sixth Street Bridge after Roberto. If we didn’t care, the outfield wall of Forbes Field wouldn’t be preserved, and we wouldn’t go down to sit by it on October 13 and listen to Maz’s walk-off home run. If we didn’t care, it wouldn’t hurt so much that our team is such a shadow of its former glory.
Love the Steelers. I do.
Cheer for the Steelers. I do.
But don’t forget.
We’re a baseball town.
Posted in Photos, tagged Cathedral of Learning, Ft. Duquesne Bridge, Oakland, Primanti on January 10, 2009| 3 Comments »
Here in the Pitts 