School's In!

Love it or hate it, Worcester is a college town. It cracks me up when I see apartment listings that mention they're located in a "college neighborhood". Seriously, is there any neighborhood in this city that couldn't be considered a college neighborhood?

For the record, I happen to love that Worcester is a college town. I didn't move here to go to school, but I did spend my first year here living that experience vicariously through my Clark friends and roommates, and that's a big part of what made me fall in love with this city in the first place. Plus, it just feels so empty when the students are away. You notice it when you go out to eat, out to the bars, or just driving around. Academia is in the pulse of the city, and that pulse just seems weak when school is out.

These are shots I took today on Florence St., between Maywood and Downing. Most of you will recognize it as the main drag connecting Clark University's on-campus and off-campus residences.

(Click to enlarge)

Three weeks ago, this street would've been mostly empty. For the next eight months, it'll be very hard to park a car anywhere along this stretch...

(Click to enlarge)

I have so many memories of good times on this street. I can attach a story to almost every apartment, porch, yard, and section of sidewalk along this stretch. As just one example, I once got several beverages into a winter's night and took pictures from the top of the parking garage (on the right in photo #2) during a nor'easter. By the time I got too cold to stay up there, the snow drifts were so high that I couldn't walk down the outdoor stairwells, I had to slide down them on my ass...

I'm sure many of you have fond memories here too, you may have even been a part of mine...Share them!

Welcome back Clarkies, and students at all of Worcester's institutes of higher learning!

29 Minute Taxes- And A Blimp

Well, it certainly was an interesting commute home today!

In the very short time I've been doing this, I've already started to notice things that I might not have otherwise. For example, this sign, which I have driven past hundreds of times without actually reading...

(Click to enlarge)

Is it just me, or does the concept of having your taxes done in 29 minutes or less seem a little...off? It's not a pizza, after all. If it takes 31 minutes or 42 minutes or an hour and a half, it's really going to be fine as long as it's done properly. Take your time, tax guy. Seriously.

Anyway...

I thought I might be done shooting for the day, but it turns out I was not, because right now the MetLife blimp is blimping its merry way around Main South.

I first saw it when I was on Stafford St., by the CVS...

(Click to enlarge)

My iPhone doesn't do a great job with long distances, so when I saw it pop out again I pulled over at the Hess in Webster Square...

(Click to enlarge)

Then I tried a digital zoom shot, but unfortunately the iPhone isn't great at that either...

(Click to enlarge)

Finally, I caught a close look at it on Main St. near the Tedeschi...

(Click to enlarge)

Success!

I'm guessing that this was somehow related to the Worcester Tornadoes "Bark in the Park" promotion at Fitton Field tonight, since that's the area it seems to be hovering over. A quick look at the Tornadoes website confirms this...

Calvin Coolidge Billboard- Webster Square

One of only two billboards I've found in the city that is not owned by Clear Channel. It has displayed this Calvin Coolidge quote for months, about a month ago the right-most board fell down. It reads: "No person was ever honored for what he received. Honor has been the reward for what he gave."



This is in Webster Square, heading north on Main St., just before Arena Plaza.

Welcome to "Seen in Worcester"

Inspired by Nicole Apostola's "Wormtown Fleet" idea, I've decided to start this blog. I'm going to try to post a daily (or near daily) picture from somewhere in the city or metro area. Most will be simple iPhone shots, but as the original inspiration for this idea, Jeff Barnard, so eloquently put it, "Pictures don't have to be anything more than a window to the world for our area, as far as I'm concerned. They don't have to be flashy, artistically fantastic, or even the kind of pictures that photographers would want to keep. All they have to do is show a piece of your world to the virtual world."

There are so many great little "pieces of the world" in Worcester. Many of them will be common to anyone who knows the area, but we all have a unique perspective on this city and its inhabitants. It's my aim to give you a look at mine.