Archive for March 21st, 2024
I spy, with my little eye…
Thursday

– photo by Mitch Waxman
Walking over the Fort Pitt Bridge spanning the Monongahela River, here in Pittsburgh, and on one of my many constitutional walks – a humble narrator was feeling a bit ‘meh.’ The part of me that somehow misses NYC was issued a ‘shut the hell up’ order by my internal judge and jury after returning back to the nest at the beginning of February, but I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t miss my friends and a certain waterway.
Truth be told, what I really miss was the easy familiarity of the place which I enjoyed through long habitation. One never had to wander too far before something cool was in front of the camera. Sunnyside Yards, Newtown Creek’s industrial zone… heck, when I was bored or feeling a bit sore I’d just go ride the 7 train and crack out a few shots of the trains coming and going at one of its stations.
Most photogenic subway line in NYC, I always said.

– photo by Mitch Waxman
Pittsburgh is great, mind you, but I’ve had a frustrating couple of months due to the winter weather coupled with an onset of various physical maladies – like arthritis – that limit what I can do during the extreme cold and wet season. Now that’s it’s warming up again… well… it looks like I’m going to have to order another pair of hiking boots as I seem to have shaved about a half inch of the sole away from the pair I’ve been using, just in the last few weeks. My shoe brand is Merrell, if you’re wondering. Used to be sneakers, but I’d wear out a pair of Nikes in about three weeks and soon find myself scuttling along on bald treads. I get about 6-7 months out of a pair of Merrell’s.
The shot above looks back at where I’d been. Foreground is occupied by the Fort Pitt Bridge, which is also depicted in the first shot. Way in the background left area is the Fort Duquesne Bridge which was discussed earlier this week. About a half to 3/4 of a mile behind that is the T light rail station where I started this particular walk. About 400 miles beyond the horizon is the Empire State Building.

– photo by Mitch Waxman
The span above is the West End Bridge, which I frequently cross both on foot and in the car. The presence of a CSX train set on that curvilinear track is something I’ve been hoping to see for a while now. Even better news is that the train was being held in place, which I was able to discern by reading the lights on those signal posts. A rapid bit of scuttling ensued to an opportune spot, as there’s a shot which I’ve been desirous of collecting in that particular location.
More on all that tomorrow.
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“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.




