I decided to take a walk with my camera. I’d been thinking of going to Schenley Park or Squirrel Hill- pretty areas. But in Baltimore I was usually drawn to the underdeveloped areas… and in any case, I haven’t really described the area I live in yet. So I made it a walk around my neighborhood, albeit a brief one (was nearing lunchtime).

Carrick to me is a place of could’ve beens. It’s just ten minutes from the South Side, home to some of the hottest bars; it’s an easy commute from the city, but distant enough across the bridge to feel like suburb. Somehow Carrick just didn’t make it; just never developed. Lawns are rarely mowed, and plants- both native and invasive- grow freely, turning Carrick into a butterfly garden. Little beaten paths try to be streets with names like “Jack Way” before they peter out to gravel and grass. Houses have old front porches whose pillars drop white paint peels. Residents keep an eye on the line between themselves and Mt. Oliver, where life gets a little rougher.

That’s what Carrick symbolizes to me. But what image symbolizes Carrick?

Finally it came to me. As a memory, though the scene was probably only a half mile away; it’s one I passed every day when I took the bus.

Boarded up individual-owned businesses.

In any case, most of my photos ended up being plant life. Had some fun experimenting with close focus and angles. I’ll just pick out a couple photos to give some idea of my neighborhood.

Jack Way- what you see is pretty much the entire thing.

Not much business at the Free Indeed Deliverance Ministries

Queen Anne's Lace is huge in Pittsburgh. With Fall just arriving, there's a lot of green, but also a lot of dying plants.

Plants pretty much rule in Carrick.

I have a thing for locks. $1,000 reward, by the way, for any information on anyone defacing this property belonging to Duquesne Light Company.

Playing with angles.

Shabbat was interesting…. I stayed in Squirrel Hill and I interacted with members of more than one ideological group, plus I started reading Story of B (which has its entirely own approach to considering religion), so I had plenty to fuel the inner mental discussions. There were a lot of people- constantly- but it was good to be in a family atmosphere and I’ll have a hard time not taking overadvantage of the open invitation that I have. One of the daughters is going to end up borrowing most of the contents of my bookcases, I suspect, so I’ll be giving a little bit back :-p