Posts Tagged ‘german square’
Sicut ambulans hic
Monday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Before you ask, the Latin title above means ‘I’m walking here.’ See, I just saved you a Google. I’ve included latin titles this week to make it seem like I’m better educated than I actually am, but it’s all just a ‘Fugazi.’ Often, I’ll intentionally create the impression that I’m dumber than I actually am by mispronouncing words. I’ll say ‘spahtoolah’ instead of ‘spatula,’ as an example. In reality, my intellect is best analogized as being an institutional beige/gray wall with a badly framed picture of a kitten on it which bears the motto ‘What, me worry?’
As you may recall, last Friday’s post ended with a humble narrator mid walk and heading down the roughly 12 stories of ‘City Steps’ that the kids call ‘German Square.’ Well, the kids of the 1920’s at least, but they likely referred to themselves as ‘Kinde’ back then.
My return to this installation was initiated by wanting to impact all of those muscle groups which I had strained and sprained on my first outing – the front of the thigh, sides of the knee, the ligaments between, and those calf muscles which reach down into the top of the foot from the shin, the entire lower back. This is a really good workout for those particularly hard to reach areas, and the views are sick.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
My inexorable march would lead to one of Pittsburgh’s Light Rail or ‘T’ stations, where I’d board a train and ride out to its terminal stop in South Hills Village – which is a shopping mall complex of some size. It’s not exactly pedestrian friendly where I was heading, and my journey was cloaked in fear and loathing. A Doctor’s appointment awaited me, which was set to address an ‘out of nowhere’ medical condition which has recently asserted itself.
The fear and loathing part involved the nature of the practice itself, which is Ophthalmology. Last time that I visited the Optician to update my glasses prescription, the Doc spotted something worrying and advised me to climb up the eye doctor food chain to a ‘retina guy.’ The retina guy confirmed the condition and after a thorough examination, ordered me to return on the very day these shots were captured, for further examination and possible treatment.
What’s the treatment, asked I?
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Hypodermic injection into the eye, said the doc. ‘Don’t worry,’ he continued, ‘we’ll anesthetize you.’ I needed to be anesthetized right there, after hearing about that nugget of nightmare fuel.
My friend Steve Bissette (the legendary cartoonist and illustrator) offers a lecture, periodically, which traces the roots of horror in graphic narrative, and presents an overview that begins with the invention of the printing press and passes though the lurid ‘EC comics’ era of the 1950’s, and into the modern era. He categorizes several motifs that have always gotten a rise out of people during this talk.
One is the ‘hand mutilation motif,’ and there’s also the ‘eye mutilation motif.’ Both thema offer a visceral and instinctual reaction from the viewer – it’s deep down monkey stuff.
Thoughts of the ‘Zombie 2’ Lucio Fulchi film (content/trigger warning on that link) thereby assumed a front and center position in a humble narrator’s mind, during the month long interim between my first visit and the one scheduled for later in the day.
Paroxysms of anxiety erupted within, but all I could do was to keep on walking. My fate was binary – it would be ‘either’ or it would ‘or.’ Given that I had zero agency to affect things one way or the other… I couldn’t worry about things outside my control.
More apprehension, and raw existential terror, tomorrow.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
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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.
Doom walking
Friday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Good news is that I don’t seem to be going blind, or at least not yet. Bad news is that I have to go back to the Ophthalmologist again in August to confirm that. During this walk, the binary of whither or won’t was ruling my thoughts.
There’s all sorts of things going on behind the scenes here at Newtown Pentacle that I don’t really like to discuss with the outside world, I’d mention. I’d much rather tell you what kind of a jackass I am, or describe the psychic torments I inflict upon myself instead of discussing the many existential issues which have popped up in my late 50’s. Maybe even just chatter on about what sort of media I’m consuming.
To wit: Having finished a listen of Mike Duncan’s ‘History of Rome’ podcast’s 179th episode, I considered jumping right into Lars Brownworth’s ‘12 Byzantine Rulers’ podcast, but decided to stay in Western Europe, for Mr. Brownworth’s ‘Norman Centuries’ instead. I’ll likely rewind back to Constantinople afterwards.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This section of Pittsburgh is called the South Side Slopes, and it’s defined by how steep the grade of the land is. An accommodation installed on those steep hills are sets of municipal or ‘City Steps.’
It has been a couple of months since I scuttled through here, and surmounted the ‘German Square Steps,’ and that was my goal for the afternoon before heading over to the light rail station and catching a ‘Blue’ Line T, which would drop me off within a couple of blocks of my doctor’s appointment.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I’m so old now that Joe Biden is only 24 years older than me. Holey moley.
More next week from the steps pictured above, and a special treat will be coming towards the end of the week which I’m pretty excited to share.
My Doctor’s appointment worked out well, and the diagnosis wasn’t terribly grim after all as my potentially horrific situation seems to be resolving itself. Doesn’t mean I’m not a jackass and that everybody doesn’t hate me, though. Really, I’m just the worst.
Back next week.
“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.
Slopes to flats
Tuesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
As mentioned yesterday, a humble narrator was recently observed walking down a set of municipal steps here in Pittsburgh which are called – apparently – ‘German Square.’
I found a shot of them from 1933, on display at historicpittsburgh.org. Zillow indicates that this area is a named neighborhood which goes by German Square, and that several quite lovely homes are available here which could be all yours for about 200k. I guess that’s more or less confirmation of the naming convention.
It’s really quirky around here, nice houses but with somewhat forested and steeply graded properties surrounding them. Lovely view too, as you can see both the jail, and Duquesne University, from up here.
This was a pretty cool path to walk, I’d mention, although it ended up being fairly ‘physical,’ if you know what I mean.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One was stretching the ligaments, toning the tendons, and macerating many muscles I didn’t even know I had. I mean, how often do you actually walk down 1,000 feet (about ten stories, that) of steps? It was great exercise, will do it again, but boy oh boy did I feel it the next day. Wow.
At the top of the shot is the Monongahela River, and that yellow bridge in the distance is the South Tenth Street bridge. On both sides of the stairs, heavy brush was observed growing amongst fairly developed deciduous trees. I’m sure that at night, this area is crawling with critters.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
On both sides of the stairs, there were wood framed homes, and I was careful to not violate anyone’s privacy while waving the camera about. In a few spots, the plank of concrete which served as a step sat loose in its metal framing and that was a fairly disconcerting experience. Law of averages, I guess.
After a few hundred feet worth of occasionally shifting stairs, a landing was coming up in front of me – in the form of an actual street – where I’d have to walk about a hundred feet eastwards in order to reacquire the steps.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Fritz Street, I’m told, is where this spot is. Or, at least that’s what it’s called to the east of the German Square Steps, to the left (or west) it’s called Windom Street. Honestly, this city is invasion proof. An entire Battalion of enemy soldiers would just get lost into these hills and never be seen again.
The brick colored buildings at the right are the aforementioned city jail, the Liberty Bridge crosses the Monongahela River, and that’s Downtown Pittsburgh rising up to claim its place against the sky.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Just before reaching the ground, the German Square steps feed onto a small bridge which overflies railroad tracks. These tracks are Norfolk Southern’s domain. I’ve been working my way along these tracks for a bit.
Several posts have been offered from the P.J. McArdle roadway in recent weeks, which is just down the tracks west of here. This right of way seems a lot busier than the nearby CSX one, and in recent weeks I’ve been attempting to locate shooting POV locations along it. As you’ll see tomorrow – this is fairly good spot for such endeavors.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I’ll end this post with the moment of explosive panic which occurred when I realized I had walked myself directly into a cage. Ahhh! Not again,
The good news about this cage, however, was that the chain link fencing which encapsulates the pedestrian path is the ‘old school’ kind with large inch and half diamonds woven into it. It’s sensible to vouchsafe the tracks and trains against somebody tossing something down on a moving train, but most of the more modern fencing you encounter in such places uses a design that incorporates tiny little diamond apertures of maybe a half to three quarters of an inch.
The latter are very difficult to get a photo through. There’s a reason that people cut ‘Bernie Holes’ into such fencing. Pfah!
Back tomorrow with more – at your Newtown Pentacle.
“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 