Archive for January 2nd, 2026
Cold and lonely, always afraid
Friday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Continuing with a forced march around Pittsburgh, in today’s post.
Simple plan. I’d follow the headwaters of the Ohio River to the West End Bridge, cross over to the southern shore, then track back up the shoreline towards that brewery I hang around, nearby the train tracks on the South Side of Pittsburgh. Drink wasn’t on the menu for this particular day, but I was very interested in capturing a few shots of freight trains.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Hey Now! Norfolk Southern was getting up to something on their elevated trestle tracks. The static train in the foreground was CSX’s, and they seemed to be held up by signals. These train shots are all telephoto ranged ones, with the zoom lens dialed all the way out to its maximum objective.
One kept on keeping on.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
My cursed footsteps pollute the waterfront trails with intransigence, but nevertheless did your humble narrator navigate his carcass to the West End Bridge. This part of the walk exposed me to stairs, which the rotting worms in my skull box have devoted a phobia about, an afterimage of the ‘orthopedic incident’ which defined my life for most of last year.
I’m all ‘effed up.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It’s not the going up that affects me, it’s the descent. In particular, it seems, the steel steps that are painted with Pittsburgh’s ‘brand color’ of PPG brand ‘Aztec Gold’ seem to really excite the old amygdala, especially so when descending them. ‘Mustn’t grumble.’
After urinating on a nearby bush, your humble narrator moved upward and onwards, and ascended the scary steps.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This walk has become one of my ‘stations of the cross’ routes. That’s what I call easy to reach areas that are ‘pregnant,’ in terms of photo possibility, but which also offer long stretches of mostly flat terrain that I can lean into. The ‘easy to reach’ part is kind of important.
Back in Queens, I’d head south – out of Astoria – for a Dutch Kills walk which served a similar function and ‘reachability.’ Down Steinway to Northern, where it becomes 39th. 39th to Skillman and Sunnyside Yards, Skillman to Hunters Point Avenue, and then I’d hang a left towards Dutch Kills. After visiting a few spots along the water, I’d then scuttle back out to 43rd street and turn north for the walk back home to Astoria.
That walk was often referred to as my ‘patrol area.’
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Hey now! That’s a ‘heading away from Pittsburgh’ CSX freight train appearing on the second track, alongside that train from the Norfolk Southern shot which was being held by signals. Lucky!
Back next week with more.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“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.
The Newtown Pentacle 