Through the looking glass

I see that the theme for the Daily City blogs for the new month is glass. So here’s a “reflection” captured while walking in the n’hood.

More local history...

In keeping with the theme of historic buildings, this is the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist. The outer walls of St. John’s are of sandstone from the Tablerock quarry on the eastern edge of Boise.


The cornerstone was laid in 1906 when they began construction; the church was built as a cruciform. The completed cathedral was dedicated in 1921. Below is a drawing of St. John's found online.

Every July, the mass of Saint Ignatius is held during the Basque festival. As part of the ritual, the statue of St. Ignatius is carried down the street in a procession to St. John’s. The mass is performed in Basque and features the Bihozetik Basque choir and the Oinkari Basque Dancers.

A little local history

This building was dedicated in 1883 as “The City Hall” fire station, as Boise City Hall was located on the second floor. Then, in 1889 the building was renamed “Central Fire Station.”



Here’s an old-time photo of the fire station from City of Boise website.


And today, it’s a designated historic building that houses shops and restaurants.

Gone fishin'

Rose, from Canterbury Daily Photo, asked about fishing (in the previous post). So here’s a popular fishing place -- the Boise River, complete with a fisherman hoping for a good mess of trout to have for Sunday dinner.


Where are your favorite "fishing holes"?

Stream of time

It’s been a hectic week at work, so now it’s time to relax by a soothing stream…



Time is but the stream I go fishing in. I drink at it, but while I drink I see the sandy bottom and detect how shallow it is. Its thin current slides away, but eternity remains.
~ Henry David Thoreau

The ultimate car

A sign recalling the early years of Boise. Wonder what it was like to ride around the countryside in one of those?

Beautifully laundered

Not “The Dry Cleaner from Des Moines”, but a long-time old-Boise business.

====================================================

Sign seen in a dry cleaner's emporium: Drop your pants here.

In a dry cleaner's window: Anyone leaving their garments here for more than 30 days will be disposed of.

In the afternoon

After a little snow and rain this morning, the sun made its way through the clouds late in the afternoon.

Top of the morning…

Under this rooster is Jim’s Coffee Shop, a bona fide Boise institution. For some colorful info about Jim’s, check out this.

** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** ** *** ** ** * * * **

Over second and third cups flow matters of high finance, high state, common gossip and low comedy. [Coffee] is a social binder, a warmer of tongues, a soberer of minds, a stimulant of wit, a foiler of sleep if you want it so. From roadside mugs to the classic demitasse, it is the perfect democrat.
~Author Unknown

He was my cream, and I was his coffee -
And when you poured us together, it was something.
~Josephine Baker

Exquisite art

Can you guess what this is?

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ?

Ice can be exquisite art (if one doesn’t have to walk or drive on it), like the ice on this pool.

A quiet place to reflect…

Most curious...

This was an unusual sight. Especially the computer monitor…

It was there for two days – and now it’s gone, all of it.

[And no, the housing situation is not this extreme in Boise]

What could the story be??

Just browsing

A couple more ducks in the afternoon sun.

Water art

Swimming in painterly ripples.


If there is magic on the planet, it is contained in the water.
- Loren Eisley

Gleam of light

The power of light.

A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind from within.
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Globes

We saw this, last year, outside our favorite coffee shop. And we saw others around the neighborhood, all similar.


Now it's a multicolored world...

The café

On a cloudy day, half past lunch time.

I’ll leave the rest to your imaginings…

Another "path"

Continuing with the CDP theme from yesterday, here is a “path” through the Hyde Park area (of which I’ve written before). It’s a small historic district with shops and restaurants. On the right is Goody’s ice cream parlor.


Across the street is the Hyde Park Bar and Grill, and just beyond that, in the light blue building is the post office/used bookstore.

After a couple of weeks of fog and smog, it was wonderful to see the sun again!

Passage

Taking a cue from the City Daily Photo bloggers theme for February 1st (Paths or Passages), I’ll share one of my favorite literary passages from Evidence of Things Unseen by Marianne Wiggins. An intense powerful novel – and this passage grabs me every time.

A few more animals...

Giraffes are native to southern Africa in arid and savanna zones – warm weather places. This guy was inside because the weather was too cold and wet. But when summer comes he’ll feel right at home. Here, he pauses before getting back to his “salad”.



Coiled, relaxed -- but watching me from its heated glass cubby. This python is used in demonstrations for the public, so is used to being handled by humans. They live in the wild in parts of Africa, south Asia, The Philippines, Australia. Although snakes make me really nervous, I have stroked the skin of a python during a zoo demonstration a couple of times (the old “face the fear” kind of thing). Their skin is quite beautiful, especially when they move and their skin ripples in the light.



This Cottontop Tamarin is native to Colombian rainforests. Because of increasing devastation of their habitat, they are listed as critically endangered. Quite small and dart about quickly; hard to catch on camera. Their little faces seem so human. This one looks like some of us feel on a Monday; a little freaked out and having a bad hair day :>)