Kansas Palm Trees

A colorful sting of electrical Palm trees, can be seen at night along the Kellogg West entrance ramp, from West street. I wonder what the story is behind them - did the city install these trees, or did a company put them in? Well, on the rainy night that this picture was taken, I sure enjoyed seeing them. They came as a complete surprise.

Office Max

Remember the time when "the customer is always right"?

I think those days are gone.

But when my camera broke, Office Max replaced it with a similar model.

They would of replaced it with the same, but the model I had was no longer available.

It did help, that I had purchased the extended warranty.

Do you have any customer service stories to tell?

Big Dog Motorcycle

If you'd like to read about, or see more Big Dog Motorcycles - click here: bigdogmotorcycles

Orange Mustang

There were quite a few classic, and antique cars in the parade.

Irish dancers

This dancing group was fun to watch, and their dresses were neatly decorated.

Wearing of the green

This young lady was passing out candy to parade watchers.

She has her green on.

Happy St. Patrick's day to all!

Walking a Dog

We could all tell this brightly colored clown was walking a dog. But, he made it a point to tell the crowd it was his weanie dog. As you can see it's a hot dog in a bun. It wiggled on the end of the fairly stiff leash as if it had some life to it and was enjoying the parade.

St Patrick's Day Parade

There is a person attached to this bundle of balloons, and he or she was giving candy to the kids.

Bridge sails!

These sails decorate two bridges near downtown Wichita. One is the Douglas bridge and the other (this one) is the Lewis St bridge (near the boathouse). It's fitting that even though there's no coastal property in Kansas - there are sails, a sailboat, and a boathouse along the river.

See the moon?

Bridge lighting

Taken on the Lewis Street Bridge.

I liked the way the light and shadows looked so I took a picture.

Tomorrow, I'll show one of the sails that decorate this bridge.

Inside

Inside of America 3

America 3

This photo is best viewed enlarged. It's a picture of the America3 sailing vessel, winner of the 1992 America's Cup race. It stays permanently displayed on the grounds of the Wichita Boathouse (seen to the left). This is the combined photo of - the above (mast), below (shark?), and in between (boat). All connected into one great and speedy sailing yacht. Can't you just imagine what that shark looked like swimming along below this boat? It must of been quite intimidating to the other fishes in the sea.

In between

Let's go up these stairs and see what's in between the last two photos.

Below

I'm going to label this as city art. People often drive by this, but they don't see it, or even know it's there. It's located below the...... (to be continued)

Above (to be continued)

Anybody know what this is?

The Hyatt

This is another view of the same building (hotel) in the last few photos. It looked tall and skinny previously, but now it looks tall and wide. Once or twice a year - Wichita has firework shows in this area of the city, and as I watch from cold outdoor locations, I think about the nice, warm, and high views the hotel guests must have.

With a tree again

I must admit, I'm stuck at this location taking in the beauty of the sunlit views, and the river reflections.

Without the tree

Here's the previous photo without the tree.

The glowing sunset, behind me, made for some great photos.

River scene

As the sun was setting, it cast a great light for river reflections.

Sign of things to come...

I was delighted to see this sign - I bet the new Children's Garden will be really nice. Hope it will have a tree swing, and some nice kid friendly water fountains - and butterflies and tulips... and statues and more! I can't wait to see it. Botanica is such a nice place. If you ever come to Wichita, be sure to go there. It's just about time (or maybe it IS time) for the annual tulip show.

Picnic?

The table top and benches are as clean as snow!

This was taken a few days ago.

I love the old stone picnic table.

Divisions of light

As scene from below the highway.

I liked the light, shadows, and the calm still traffic below.

March 1 Theme Day - Graffitti or street mural

This out of service bus is parked in a church's parking lot. It's decorated with attention grabbing graffitti that reads - Big Faith.

I must say, after driving all around on a beautiful day - finding graffitti in Wichita is not an easy task. Our local newspaper ran an article about graffitti recently, if you'd like to read it click here: graffitti

To see other March 1st theme day photos around the world, click on the links below:

Adelaide, Australia by Gordon, Albuquerque (NM), USA by Helen, Aliso Viejo (CA), USA by Rodney, American Fork (UT), USA by Annie, Anderson (SC), USA by Lessie, Arradon, France by Alice, Ashton under Lyne, UK by Pennine, Athens, Greece by Debbie, Auckland, New Zealand by Lachezar, Austin (TX), USA by LB, Bandung, Indonesia by Guntur Purwanto, Baziège, France by PaB, Belgrade, Serbia by BgdPic, Bellefonte (PA), USA by Barb-n-PA, Bicheno, Australia by Greg, Boston (MA), USA by Fenix, Boston (MA), USA by Cluelessinboston, Boston (MA), USA by Sarah, Whit, & Leyre, Brighton, UK by Harvey, Bucaramanga, Colombia by Fernando, Budapest, Hungary by Zannnie and Zsolt, Budapest, Hungary by Isadora, Buenos Aires, Argentina by Karine, Canterbury, UK by Rose, Cape Town, South Africa by Kerry-Anne, Chandler (AZ), USA by Melindaduff, Chateaubriant, France by Bergson, Cheltenham, UK by Marley, Chicago (IL), USA by b.c., Chicago (IL), USA by U R us, Christchurch, New Zealand by Michelle, Clearwater (FL), USA by Smaridge01, Clearwater Beach (FL), USA by Smaridge01, Cleveland (OH), USA by iBlowfish, Cologne, Germany by April11, Coral Gables (FL), USA by Jnstropic, Detroit (MI), USA by Taittems, Dunedin (FL), USA by Smaridge01, Durban, South Africa by CrazyCow, Evry, France by Olivier, Forks (WA), USA by Corinne, Glasgow, Scotland by Jackie, Greenville (SC), USA by Denton, Grenoble, France by Bleeding Orange, Guelph, Canada by Pat, Helsinki, Finland by Kaa, Hobart, Australia by Greg, Hyde, UK by Gerald, Inverness (IL), USA by Neva, Jackson (MS), USA by Halcyon, Jefferson City (MO), USA by Chinamom2005, Joplin (MO), USA by Victoria, Juneau (AK), USA by Gwyn, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia by Edwin, Kyoto, Japan by Tadamine, Larchmont (NY), USA by Marie-Noyale, Le Guilvinec, France by ds2944, Lisbon, Portugal by Sailor Girl, Lisbon, Portugal by Jsaltao, Lodz, Poland by ritalounge, London, UK by Ham, London, UK by Mo, Mainz, Germany by JB, Maple Ridge, Canada by Susan, Mazatlan, Mexico by Kate, Melbourne, Australia by John, Melbourne, Australia by Mblamo, Memphis (TN), USA by SouthernHeart, Menton, France by Jilly, Mexico, Mexico by Poly, Mexico City, Mexico by Carraol, Minneapolis (MN), USA by Mitch, Minneapolis (MN), USA by Greg, Monte Carlo, Monaco by Jilly, Montréal, Canada by Douber, Moscow, Russia by Irina, Mumbai, India by MumbaiIteanu, Mumbai, India by Kunalbhatia, Naples (FL), USA by Isabella, Nashville (TN), USA by Chris, Nelson, New Zealand by Meg and Ben, New Orleans (LA), USA by steve buser, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK by Cassie & Chris, Niamey, Niger by Dinabee, Norwich, UK by Goddess888, Nottingham, UK by Gail's Man, Ocean Township (NJ), USA by Josy, Paris, France by Eric, Pasadena (CA), USA by Can8ianben, Pasadena (CA), USA by Petrea, Petaling Jaya, Malaysia by Murphy_jay, Pilisvörösvár, Hungary by Elise, Port Angeles (WA), USA by Jelvistar, Port Elizabeth, South Africa by Sam, Port Vila, Vanuatu by Mblamo, Prague, Czech Republic by Honza03, Quincy (MA), USA by Cluelessinboston, Radonvilliers, France by Deslilas, Riga, Latvia by Prokur, Rome, Italy by Giovanni, Rotterdam, Netherlands by Ineke, Saarbrücken, Germany by LadyDemeter, Saint Louis (MO), USA by Strangetastes, Saint Paul (MN), USA by Kate, Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation by Lark, San Antonio (TX), USA by Kramer, San Diego (CA), USA by Felicia, San Diego (CA), USA by Zentmrs, Santa Fe (NM), USA by Randem, Seattle (WA), USA by Kim, Seattle (WA), USA by Chuck, Seguin (TX), USA by Thien, Selma (AL), USA by RamblingRound, Sesimbra, Portugal by Aldeia, Setúbal, Portugal by Maria Elisa, Sharon (CT), USA by Jenny, Silver Spring (MD), USA by John, Singapore, Singapore by Keropok, Sofia, Bulgaria by Antonia, St Francis, South Africa by Sam, Stavanger, Norway by Tanty, Stayton (OR), USA by Celine, Stockholm, Sweden by Stromsjo, Subang Jaya, Malaysia by JC, Sydney, Australia by Sally, Székesfehérvár, Hungary by Teomo, Terre Haute (IN), USA by Zann, Terrell (TX), USA by Bstexas, Terrell (TX), USA by Jim K, The Hague, Netherlands by Lezard, Tokyo, Japan by Tadamine, Torun, Poland by Torun Observer, Toulouse, France by Julia, Tuzla, Bosnia and Herzegovina by Jazzy, Twin Cities (MN), USA by Slinger, Vienna, Austria by G_mirage2, Wailea (HI), USA by Kuanyin, Wassenaar, Netherlands by Rich, Wellington, New Zealand by Jeremyb, West Paris (ME), USA by crittoria, West Sacramento (CA), USA by Barbara, Weston (FL), USA by WestonDailyPhoto, Wrocław, Poland by Loompi, Yardley (PA), USA by Mrlynn

Happy Plate

We tried to make a happy face on this plate, but found that ketchup art isn't as easy as finger painting.

Old sign

This old sign also hangs on the wall of the restaurant.

While it looks like new, it's the $7 a week that tells of it's age.

I'm thinking the hotel was probably near St Francis Hospital, and rented to a lot of nurse.

Can you spell that?...

This railroad crossing sign reminds me of childhood. It reminds me of the times when Grandma would stop at a railroad crossing with a sign like this, and would present the following question...

"Railroad crossing, watch out for the cars, can you spell that without any R's?"

Being young children and not processing the question exactly as it was asked, we would strain our brains trying to spell what she had said without any Rs. And, then finally after we'd been stumped a while, and the train had passed, she would spell that for us - "T H A T". After all the question was can you spell THAT without any R's?

And, then we'd all wave to the man in the caboose and he'd wave back.

Oh to be young again, to the times when such simple things brought pleasure and excitement.

Now, as a stuffy old adult, I just want the train to hurry up and pass, so I can go on my way. Unless, of course, grandkids are with me, to whom I can ask Grandma's brain straining question.

By the way, the sign in this photo no longer warns of train crossings,

it now decorates the wall of a local restaurant.

Trying to keep warm....

... I wonder why they didn't fly south for the winter, or maybe they did, and came back too soon. They looked so cute with their puffed up feathers.

There he is!

Reaching through the opening between the gates, I was able to extend my arm, and aim the camera towards the troll. I was delighted to get a better look at him, from this angle, and surprised to see he's skinny! This concludes our stroll with the troll, hope you enjoyed it.

Getting closer...

So, here we are at the Troll's back door, peeking through the barrier. At this angle, the Troll is out of sight, but if I stand towards the right, and hold the camera up between the opening of the fencing aimed towards the left, I spot him! (I'll show you that photo tomorrow)

Back door?

Now we have circled back around on the lower path, and have come to the Troll's back door. You can see the railing above is where Little Miss Lavendar Coat first spotted him. Tomorrow, we'll take a closer look. (Thanks for the name Photowannabe!)

Continuing on...

We left the Troll, and continued on with intentions to circle back and see if we could find him from the lower level of the drainage area. (to be continued)

..... and looking up at her

Here's what the little girl in the lavendar coat saw as she looked down through the drainage grate. She looked for quite a while, as she asked a few Troll questions (like: "will he get me" and "how did he get there") and then we went on to further investigate the area.

... Look down

The child has found the troll!

More photos of this troll excursion to come, but only one a day.

I hope you all enjoy this vicarious river walk with the little girl in the lavender coat.

It was a cold, wet, rainy day, but we had fun anyway.

Going to see the troll

In this photo, at the base of the birdhouse pole, you can see a black drainage grate. Below the grate is Wichita's very own river troll. I've featured the troll in some past photos, but the little girl in the photo wanted to "go see it again". So, off we went on a troll hunt. I'm proud of Wichita for putting some fun public art for kids to find along the river. If you ever go walking along the area of the Keeper of the Plains Plaza, and you have children that like adventure (and troll stories) - be sure to see if you can find him. The birdhouse and black grate in this photo is what to look for, when you get there........ (to be continued).

Red Lobster

This is a photo of a popular seafood restaurant in Wichita.

It was taken on a wet rainy evening, which made for some nice red reflections in the parking lot.

Mixed Nuts

Almonds, Hazelnuts, Pecans, and Walnuts

Nutcracker

Note to self: Must get out and take more pictures!

The Wichita Lineman

Telephone - Electric - Cable Television

I find it amazing how voice, image, and electricity can be transported through wiring.

This photo reminds me of an old Glenn Campbell song.

I am a lineman for the county and I drive the main road

Searchin' in the sun for another overload

I hear you singin' in the wire,

I can hear you through the whine

And the Wichita Lineman is still on the line

I know I need a small vacation but it don't look like rain

And if it snows that stretch down south won't ever stand the strain

And I need you more than want you, and I want you for all time

And the Wichita Lineman is still on the line

I am a lineman for the county and I drive the main road

Searchin' in the sun for another overload

And I need you more than want you, and I want you for all time

And the Wichita Lineman is still on the line

Light and shadows

I like the layers and lattice of shadows in this photo.

I just know, one of these months the theme will be benches,

and my best bench shots will have already been posted.

Ice Cold Shower

Here's a close up of the little (and "lots of") ice balls shown in yesterday's photo. It was confusing, trying to decide if they were considered sleet or hail. My Kansas friend, Moonshadow, tells me it was sleet. I don't know how most Wichitan's felt about this winter treat, but I really enjoyed seeing it. It wasn't hard to drive on, and could be seen covering the streets, sidewalks, driveways - in all directions. Elarging the photo shows how cute they were. I think what impressed me was their size, perfectly rounded form, and the density - it would of made a nice "Ice Cold Shower" for a giant.

Goodness gracious....

....great balls of ICE!

Yesterday morning, Wichitan's enjoyed a show put on by Mother Nature, as she had dotted the landscape with lots (and I mean LOTS) of little ice balls. They were very small, and nicely rounded hail stones. There was lots of them, and it was quite a sight to see. I had heard it hitting the window, roof and street during the night. As I opened my door to go to work, this is what I saw - and as my car rolled over it - I could hear the ice crunching under the tires.

Wichita sometimes gets large hail storms, that do damage to the trees, windows, roofs, cars, and more. Hail can sometimes be as large as golf, tennis, baseball, and softballs. But, this little storm was harmless and a spectacular sight. This photo shows the density of coverage, but it doesn't show a good focused shot of the little balls. I'll post a macro of them - tomorrow.

Dog on Douglas Street

It's too cold to get out and take photos, so I'm pulling from some past ones. This one was taken on Douglas Street. I think it's kind of funny, because I asked the kids to step out of the picture. And, so they hid behind the mesh wall. See their feet?

Hospital Lobby

A couple of chairs in a hospital lobby.

Restaurant skeleton

This is a photo taken last summer of a restaurant under construction at the Sedgwick County Zoo, in Wichita. It will be interesting to see how it's coming along. For all I know it may be finished, but according to the sign it's scheduled for opening this Spring. There was a "name the zoo" contest being held, on the radio the other day. I've not heard if a winning name has been selected, yet.

Can you think of a good name for it?

Artistic Bench

Another night time photo, this time of a bench with fancy art work. This is a double bench, it has a seat on both sides. There were several of these benches, located outdoors near Wichita's public library. I imagine them to be a nice reading spot during spring and fall.

Manhole cover

I liked the way the color of this shot turned out, it was taken at night, with a flash.

As a matter of fact, I like it well enough to use as a header for a while.

It makes a nice "Title" header.

Parking lot

Kansas weather - is like a box of chocolates. Never know what you're gonna get. It could be snowing one day, and sun shining the next. To me, it's so much nicer than consistently cold winter days. Nice breaks of sunshine melting the snow, in between the cold blasts of winter.

Winter scene

Cold white snow, concrete, and signs of life.

I was trying to capture how pretty the snow was on the tree branches.

Maybe enlarging, will give a better view.

Frog near Fountain

Some of you may remember the Douglas Streetscape Statues that were on quite a few of my earlier postings. This is a small statue of that series. It's just a little frog. It's the kind of statue that adds a bit of suprise to see, since it's so small and unexpected. It's the kind that makes a person say "Oh look! There's a little frog!" This photo reminds me of an old fairy tale I use to enjoy, about a Frog Pond.... one of those kiss a frog, and it turns into a prince stories.

Baby Wichitan

It's a whole new world, just waiting to be discovered by this little explorer.