first visit to the whitney

Confession! We'd never been to the Whitney before 2017. Somehow, we'd just never gone in...probably because it's not pay what you wish and packing into museums on free nights has kind of lost its charm. But when we got a membership to it for Christmas from Matt's parents (thank you!!) we finally took the opportunity. Since we visited less than a month before the Biennal, a lot of the museum was closed off in preparation. In a way, that was a good thing though - we couldn't get overwhelmed by floor after floor of amazing artwork. What we did see was great, though, and I'm already looking forward to going back!













This was in the portraits exhibit, and I thought it was particularly relevant to today, even though it was painted in the early 80s. Of course, I didn't write down the artist, but I guess one of the perks of membership is that I can go back and look again!









...I love this photograph! It's perfect.







After our visit, we wandered around the west village before finding our way home (and it was kind of literally finding a way, because the trains were all running on different tracks and not stopping at a bunch of stations...it was a mess!).







When I was taking this photo, a guy walking by stopped for a second and said, "It's a great day for puddle shots!!" and I realized that it was a great day for puddle shots! Which isn't something I'd ever really thought about before.

the day after the snow

The day after our snowstorm walk, we decided to venture out again for a walk - this time, it was nice and sunny! And even kind of warm. We walked up through Prospect Park to the botanic garden. Our walk was a lot longer than we intended because we found out that the southern entrance to the garden was closed when we got there and had to walk all the way around to the northern side...only to realize it was also closed, and continue to the eastern entrance (which would have been faster to reach from the southern one, if we'd realized!). We definitely got our steps in!

















The botanic garden was mostly closed off because of the snow and ice on the paths - which is why the entrances had been closed - but luckily, it was clear to the greenhouses, so we took a short walk around. We've only been there a few times when there's been snow on the ground, because it just doesn't stick around in New York. It's really pretty to see everything covered in snow, so I'm glad we went!

















I'm still getting used to and amazed by my new camera! Haven't made any more progress on the manual, but I did learn out how to set it to focus manually and how to set it on high or low key modes...so I'm getting there. Before I started my camera research, I thought all digital cameras would feel cheap compared to my old metal beast...but this one actually only weighs a tiny bit less than that one and feels super sturdy. I might still have an analog bias, but I definitely appreciate and enjoy digital too!

a walk in the snow

Last Saturday, we got our first real snow of the year! It probably ended up being 4-5 inches when it was all done and it was super cold and windy all day. Naturally, we thought we should take a walk in it!

















We walked up through Prospect Park to the library (I had another book to pick up!) and then took the train home, because by that point we were freezing and covered in snow. The whole time we were out, I regretted not bringing my umbrella! Next time, I'll remember. Even if it was fairly extreme weather, it was nice to take a walk! There were lots of people out - we saw a bunch of people cross-country skiing and dogs rolling around in the snow. Still...I won't be sad for later this week, when the high is near 60. I don't think I'm a winter person - the whole time we were out on the west coast, I never once missed freezing temperatures or walking through knee-deep snow or having to wear a million layers to go outside!

rainy day at the botanic garden

I thought I'd share more photos from my rainy trip to the botanic garden - the first day using my new camera! I'm still learning how to use it, and all of these photos are with my old, non-auto-focus lens. Even though it was rainy, it was nice to visit the garden. There was hardly anyone there. Tip: the Brooklyn Botanic Garden is free on weekdays in the winter! And even if it's rainy (or worse) there are a lot of indoor areas to explore too.