A few of them came out pretty well.

One of my favorites was of the tavern down the street.

Fat Pete's on Torresdale

All the photos I did tonight are here:

May I come in now?

Aiko waiting to come back inside after being coaxed out to relieve herself before the second wave of blizzard conditions roll in later.

From the official warning – note that we can see Interstate 95 from the front porch.

Total snow accumulations are expected to range from 12 to 22 inches into early tonight… with the highest amounts straddling the Interstate 95 corridor.

Near-blizzard or blizzard conditions are rare for our area… so it is likely that people will not realize the peril that exists in venturing out in such storms. Life-threatening conditions are possible… and driving will be hazardous at best during this winter storm today and early tonight. It is highly recommended that travel be curtailed due to the dangerous conditions… and only drive if it is truly an emergency situation.

A Blizzard Warning means severe winter weather conditions are expected or occurring. Falling and blowing snow with strong winds and poor visibilities are likely. This will lead to whiteout conditions… making travel extremely dangerous. Do not travel. If you must travel… have a winter survival kit with you. If you get stranded… stay with your vehicle.

February 2010 Storm - So Far

My first try at snow with the new Canon. It seems to be more interested in focusing on flakes than on the scene as a whole.

I love neon and if you are ever in Center City Philly and want to see what is probably the largest and densest assortment of neon, be sure to check out the Filbert St. side of Reading Terminal Market.

This is the view towards Center City from the top of the parking garage between 29th and 30th on Arch St.

I didn’t have a tripod but the railing around the roof worked pretty well.

First Yellow

By the time the yard is mowed for the first time the backyard will be full of yellow dandelions while the front yard will be scattered with grape hyacinth that are slowly spreading from the neighbors yard.  I don’t have any photos of that yet, but in the backyard there is some purple stuff surrounding the base of the rose bush thats just now starting to leaf out around the base.

First Purple

The Philadelphia Zoo and the people of Philadelphia suffered a loss today.  Petal, the oldest African elephant in an American zoo – died suddenly this morning – at the age of 52.  The cause of death is yet to be determined, and she is survived by the two other African Elephants sharing her pen – Kallie (age 25) and Bette (age 25).   Petal, Kalie, and Bette were all born in the wild.

Generations of Philadelphia Zoo visitors have had the pleasure of Petal’s company in the zoo.  Petal had not shown any signs of disease or ill health.  Zoo staff reviewing the 24 hour a day camera trained on the Petal’s stall saw that her right rear leg gave out in the early morning hours.  Zoo employees knew something was wrong when they arrived to work and saw Petal laying down on her side because she normally sleeps standing up.

Medical help was immediately sought and Zoo vets and other staff members spent two hours attempting to comfort Petal and help her back onto her feet before she finally died at about 9:15am.

Because of the close bonds Bette and Kallie had with Petal they will be monitored closely.  Well-known for their intelligence, close family ties and social complexity, elephants remember for years other individuals and places.

Elephants are long-lived animals. The few long-term studies done to date suggest that elephants in the wild can expect to live to their mid 40s. (Life expectancy is how long a “typical” individual would be expected to live; half the individuals will not live as long, half will live longer). Some elephants live well beyond this age, to 65 or perhaps occasionally older. At age 52, Petal was already well beyond typical life expectancy and was in great shape for her age.

As I walked out on the porch I noticed a Philadelphia city police car at the corner next to the house.  On closer inspection, I recognized person talking to the officers as our normal pizza delivery guy.  I figured he knew one of the officers and was just chatting so I sat down to wait.  No sooner had I gotten comfortable when I heard a rather exasperated voice coming from the cruiser:  "So, you got out of the car and walked up on the porch?"   I didn’t hear the pizza guy’s reply, but the officer repeated his question:  "You left the car running and got out and someone got in it and just drove off?"  That time I heard the pizza dude reply in the affirmative. 

So a word of advice, if you come to visit us, please do not walk away from your car with your keys in the ignition and the engine running and doors unlocked.