Firenze Nella Neve

Florence with the snow

Originally uploaded by DropsOfRuby.

It doesen’t snow every year in the city of Florence, Italy, so the photographer thought this shot was a special treat. There’s a certain peaceful quality to this old world skyline.

I was in Florence once while on family vacation. I was in high school at the time and my dad decided to take us on a road trip through Europe. Most of my memories of Florence was getting dragged around by my aunts while they went on a shopping rampage through the city’s market districts. Perhaps I will return some day to absorb more of this old world charm.

Hong Kong Skyline

From Hong Kong, with Love!

Originally uploaded by !efatima.

I am really a fan of shots from the Hong Kong skyline. The lights are so fabulous because unlike most American skylines, there’s accents of color as well!

Veteran’s Memorial Bridge

Veteran’s Memorial Bridge

Originally uploaded by Aprevit.

Here’s a glimpse of a bridge from Cleveland, Ohio. The colorful lights are commemorating a special occaision for the city, adding a festive look to the glowing lights of this river span.

Balcony In Sunset

Balcony In Sunset

Originally uploaded by JZ Pixel.

Ok, this one is a bit of a “fake” as it was taken indoors at the Horshoe Casino in Shreveport, LA. I still like the angle and the look of this shot. It has a very classic, European look to it. The shot reminds me of the days I spent touring Italy.

Rainy Day in Shanghai

rainy day in shanghai

Originally uploaded by kkumo36.

I really like this pic of a street corner in Shanghai. The lights and the way that the clouds envelop the building tops is very atmospheric. It looks a bit futuristic and gives me the feel of certain favorite movie and novel genres such as Ridley Scott’s Bladerunner and William Gibson’s “Neuromancer”. Both of these works play with the imagery of “urban decay”, where the world of the future inhabits the decrepit and decaying buildings and structures of the past. Some aspects such as vehicles, gadgets and accessories may have a futuristic look and feel but other aspects, such as street vendors, clothing styles and architecture floats and envelops this future world as an amalgam of generations before. The overall effect is a stylized world that looks vaguely familiar yet in the distant, faraway future.

Vienna, 07:22 pm

Vienna, 07:22 pm

Originally uploaded by Cilest.

Where am I at this hour in the morning? Usually fast asleep… but I like to wake up early in the morning to catch the early-bird commute. It gives me a sense of energy and excitement to be up at an early hour. I feel like I have a head start on my day and that I have gained a few extra hours to accomplish what I have planned.

It also gives me a sense of “toughness” to tell myself that I’m up and awake at a time when most people are asleep and resting. I’ve set my alarm clock for an earlier hour this week as an advanced New Year’s resolution. Let’s see if I can live up to the resolution!

Wash Day

Waschsalon

Originally uploaded by …like a chimp with coconuts.

You can always spot me in the office on wash day because I’m usually wearing something wrinkly or the colors of my outfit don’t *quite* match each other. lol.

I don’t miss my apartment days when I had to carry my laundry to the laundry room. It was a pain to lug and carry everything and waiting meant pure boredom for at least an hour and a half!

I like the design of these industrial-strength appliances… for its use of steel surfaces with varying textures.

Deal Pier

Deal Pier

Originally uploaded by *Huw*.

This shot was taken at a pier in Deal, Kent. I really like the mix of natural and artificial lighting together. The colors that are captured look unreal and they stand out a bit more than one might expect from a night shot.

This reminds me of a summer I spent in San Diego. I was attending summer school at the time and only had a couple classes to worry about. The rest of the time I could wander around and goof off outside of parental supervision. One of my favorite places was the beach. Being that it was San Diego AND in the summertime, the water was *always* warm… even in the evenings after sunset! I have a lot of happy memories walking the beach and swimming in the surf.

NYC Princess

NYC princess dreams of her escape

Originally uploaded by Carolynn Eva.

I like the composition of this shot taken at a storefront of Saks Fifth Avenue in New York City. The reflection of the buildings makes a cool contrast to the face of the mannequin, who is leaning forward as if poised to start running away and into the streets.

NYC Subway, July 1983

july 1983 1 IRT

Originally uploaded by Runs With Scissors.

Let’s take it old-school for a moment!

You can tell this photo is a bit dated from the fashion of the subway riders… what were you doing in the summer of 1983? What were you wearing? How was your life?

In 1983, I wasn’t even in junior high yet. I had just finished my first year at a new school. My parents had transferred me to a private Catholic school in our town.

In the summertime, there wasn’t much to do. Aside from playing with the neighbor kids, I would stay at home tinkering with my computer, an Apple IIe. Back then, software was very expensive and instead I would resort to reading magazines with source code listings. Patiently, I would type the source code in BASIC to make the games my sister and I would eventually entertain ourselves with. I remember I really learned BASIC because most of the source code listings were buggy or just plain wrong and I would have to troubleshoot my programs to fix them up.

Back then, computers were for total geeks and extreme hobbyists. Little did I know, more than two decades later, the technology of personal computers would take over the world…

My fashion? Well, my best outfit was a pair of grey corduroy pants and a pink ralph lauren polo. Yep. Pastel was the “in” color back then. I doubt if pastels will come back into fashion, but then again, I had no idea that personal computers would become so common and so widespread… who knows?