A Day in the Life of Philadelphia

Well, the first picture was actually taken two days before the rest. And it's not in Philadelphia. Forgive me.

Most of the snow was brown and slushy and dirty and nasty. But the snow enchanted the trees, and there's no way I could take a picture to do them justice, because there were no safe places to stop near the trees, but imagine someone throwing a sheet of lace over a forest, and making it glow from within, and there you have it. I was lucky I was able to stay on the road, even without the dangerous picture-snapping-while-driving, because I couldn't stop staring at the trees.

Now, back to that day in the life.

I always try to revisit a few of my favorite places when I go to Philadelphia, and this was one of them. I spent a LOT of time in parks when I lived there, and I was lucky, because there were (hang on, I'm counting) FIVE of them on my walk to work, which was only four blocks away from my apartment (in Philadelphia, that's just under half a mile), and another just on the other side of office building. This, the rose garden, was one of my favorites, mainly because it is in the middle of a block, and so most of the public, especially tourists, don't realize it's there, or at least that it's open to the public, making it the perfect place to sneak a reading break. And when the roses are in bloom, which they sadly weren't this weekend, it smells incredible. The magnolia garden behind this one is also a lovely park, and even more secluded, but the benches are far less comfortable.

I always liked this building, on Market Street. It's at the end of my old alley.

I used to walk past Independence Hall every day on the way to work, and I was always fascinated by the thought that I was walking the same path that Ben Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, among others, once did. And this is another park where I spent a lot of time, right across the street from my old office.

Funny enough, I've only been inside once, and it was when I lived there the first time; I was about six years old. I had a camera with me that time, too, a Kodak 110 camera, but I held it backwards the entire time, and when we got the film developed the pictures were all of my ear. I still kept them for years. My packrat tendencies started early. But if I still have them, I don't know where they could be. The pictures, that is. I am still a packrat.

This building, former home of KYW, one of the world's oldest television stations, and once home to The Mike Douglas Show, will soon be history. My dad worked here for many years. Now, KYW has left the building, and Dad tells me it will be torn down soon. I can't believe how bowled over I am. It just doesn't seem possible that it could happen. (Of course, it doesn't seem possible that Veteran's Stadium is gone, either). I spent quite a bit of time running around up on the station's third floor, as a kid in the early 80s, and I have vivid memories of the ice cream sandwich machine in the basement. I am sure the ice cream sandwich machine is no longer there, and probably hasn't been for years, but I am still sad.

At least I got to say good-bye, in a way, and didn't just show up to find a big hole in the ground.