Christmas Lights, in the spur of the moment

I do not think I have ever posted Phone Images (gasp), 

but last night, after a great birthday dinner,

friends took us to an amazing house in Clearwater lit up for the holidays. All I had was my iPhone, so here goes: 

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12_23 christmas lights IMG_0547
12_23 christmas lights IMG_0547

12_23 christmas lights IMG_0547
In honor of my good friend, Joe

 

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Very small snowman in a lamp


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12_23 christmas lights IMG_0547

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Two good friends!


 December 2, 2023

Thanks, Fred and Denise!


Random Colorado images

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Equine Optometrist (statue at the entrance to Denver International)

 

What?

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It looks like a prayer meeting, its actually a "mosh pit" late in the evening at a wedding reception

 

Oh, deer

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Next-door neighbor having a crabapple snack

 

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Next door neighbor looking at us looking at him

 

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Colorado scenic with a deer crossing the road

Wild Gobblers, also neighbors
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Two Larkspur scenics

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Big Rock



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Four trees scenic


Assorted flowers
(still learning my macro lens)

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See these at
www.ImagesByBill.us

Larkspur, Colorado
October, 2023

 


Winery Wanderings- Virginia

Wine Friends Reunion
Charlottesville, VA

Memorial Day weekend, 2023

First, a sunset in route
(first sunset picture of the year)

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Florence, SC

 

Horton Vineyards

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Barboursville Vineyards and Ruins
(also where we had an outstanding Dinner)

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Main Building: tasting room and restaurant

 

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Ruins of a mansion designed by Thomas Jefferson for Governor James Barbour.


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Tasting by Ann with Kim perusing the menu

 

 

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A lot of glasses for the group!

 

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Gnomes after a tasting

 

 

 

 

 

 


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Blenheim Vineyards
(owned by musician Dave Matthews since 1999)

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Pippin Hill Farm and Vineyards

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A bride party, all with wine-themed tee shirts 

Wisdom Oak Winery

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A tasting in the wine cellar at a boutique family-owned winery

Septenary Winery at Seven Oaks Farm
(once owned by Dave Matthews Band's manager)

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The tasting room, which was the manager's office, looks out over his former pool


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There were once seven oaks on the south lawn of the manor house, each named for a President from Virginia. Hurricane Hazel destroyed all but one of them in 1954. The lone survivor is named for Thomas Jefferson.


Chiswell Farm and Winery

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05_23 charlottesville DSC00838_Localtone
05_23 charlottesville DSC00838_Localtone
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05_23 charlottesville DSC00838_Localtone

Hazy Mountain Winery

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A relatively new winery: so-so wines but gorgeous mountain views. Note to self: revisit in a few years when the vines have matured.

 

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Gnome pictures, with people getting in the way


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05_23 charlottesville DSC00858_Localtone

An unscheduled last stop:
Trump Winery
(Eric, not Donald)

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05_23 charlottesville DSC00890_Localtone

And, to finish, a few B&W scenics

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05_23 charlottesville DSC00859_Localtone
05_23 charlottesville DSC00859_Localtone
05_23 charlottesville DSC00859_Localtone

The Wine Friends Reunion group:
Ann ("KellyAnn"), Chris, Kim, Scott C, Susan, Scott P, and Ruth 
It doesn't get any better!

Visit the gallery: https://www.imagesbybill.us/Places/Charlottesville-Wineries/

May 26-29, 2023

 


Out of Business: after-effects of a Hurricane

First, a couple of sunsets from Cape Coral, FL, one of the areas hard-hit by Hurricane Ian last year.

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04_23 cape coral DSC00606 -1

Hurricane Ian hit Florida in September 2022 as a Category 5 storm. It was the deadliest hurricane to hit Florida since 1935 and the 3rd costliest weather event on record.  

Cape Coral is a smallish city on the west coast of Florida and was in the direct path of the storm. Even now, in April 2023, storm damage is very evident throughout the city as rebuilding continues. 

A home's storm Damage at sunset

https://www.imagesbybill.us/Out-of-Business/Sunset-Storm-Damage-Hurricane-Ian/

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04_23 cape coral DSC00631 -1
04_23 cape coral DSC00631 -1

Images By Bill

April 14-15, 2023


Crossin' the pond

The final image was posted in my Crossin' The Pond series last night!

Fifty-one images of a trip from Rome to Miami in December.
https://www.imagesbybill.us/Places/Crossin-the-pond

In addition, there are posts from Rome and Tivoli before the crossing.
https://www.imagesbybill.us/Places/Hadrians-Villa-Tivoli-Italy/
https://www.imagesbybill.us/Places/Tivoli-2022/
https://www.imagesbybill.us/Places/Rome-2022/

If you are looking to decorate a wall, there are some great choices.

More good news: the IT guys are finally done configuring www.imagesbybill.us and the site flows as it should!

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Hadrian's Villa

The ruins of the villa of Roman Emperor Publius Ellis Hadrian in Tivoli, Italy. Built 118-134 AD.

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Olive trees on the path up to the ruins

 

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Part of the border wall, the Wall of Poecile


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Poecile


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The Centro Camerelle

 

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The Small Thermae (the smallest of three baths)

 

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Figure at the entrance to the Canopus

 

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Two images looking at the entrance of the Canopus


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The alligator at the Canopus

 

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The Serapeum of the Canopus

 

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Looking back from the Serapeum

 

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Wilson (and Ruth) admiring the view

 

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Caryatids

 

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Headless

 

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Same alligator, different angle


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12_22 tivoli h DSC00089_Detail

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The Praetorium

 

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Another bathhouse


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On the way out

 

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Ruin hidden in the woods

 

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The Temple of Venus

 

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Looking out over the land below

Click here for full size images that really show the splendor of the villa

We were only here for three - four hours and missed a lot of the Villa... on the list for a return visit!

December 6, 2022





Villa d'Este, Tivoli, Italy

Villa d'Estes

A 16th- century villa in Tivoli, near Rome, famous for its terraced hillside Italian Renaissance garden and its profusion of fountains. Construction began in 1560 for Cardinal Ippolito II d'Este. Wikipedia has a nice article on the Villa's convoluted history.  

Inside the villa

Frescoes, statues and paintings

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12_22 tivoli vde DSC00131 -1_Radiant-2-1
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Hercules fighting a lion

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View from the patio leading to the Gardens


The Gardens and Fountains

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Little fountains leading down to the gardens

 

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Another small fountain in a grotto


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The Fountain of the Organ (‘’Fontana dell’Organo’’)

is one of the most famous features of the garden; it was described and imitated throughout Europe. Work on the masonry structure began in 1566. The fountain itself was made by the French fountain engineer Luc Leclerc and his nephew Claude Venard. After the death of Leclerc, Venard invented the ingenious mechanism of the water organ, which was installed in 1571.

The fountain was the first of its kind, and astonished everyone who heard it; when Pope Gregory XIII visited the villa in 1572, accompanied by his court of cardinals and princes, he insisted on inspecting the interior of the fountain, to learn if someone wasn't concealed inside making the music.

A massive masonry arch behind the fountain, the ‘’castellum aquae’’ or water castle, conceals the water reservoir and the hydraulic machinery of the fountain. The original design featured a grotto in the niche of the arch, with a view of the twenty-two pipes of the organ. A statue of ‘’Mother Nature’’ or the ‘’Ephesian Diana’’ was placed in front of the arch in 1569; it now has its own fountain in the lower garden.

The water creating the music arrived first at the top of the ‘’Castellum aquae’. It went first through a series of whirlpools, which mixed air with the water; then it dropped down a pipe into the ‘’camera aeolia’’, or wind chamber, where the air and water were separated; the water turned a wheel, rotating a cylinder which opened the valves of the twenty-two pipes, so the air could pass through the pipes and make the music. (thank you, Wikipedia)

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The ‘’castellum aquae’’ and hydraulics have been replaced with an actual pipe organ


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Looking down from the Fountain of the Organ


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Fountain of the d'Este Eagles

 

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Looking away from the gardens


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Three masks of The Hundred Fountains. When built they were white marble but time has worn them. 12_22 tivoli vde DSC00193 -1
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The boat with an obelisk mast, symbolizing the Tiburtina island in the Tiber, below the statue of Rome Triumphant


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Looking out from the exit

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Someone famous? An untitled sculpture

The full-sized images are a much better look. Click here!

Amazing villa. We only had time for a couple of hours there. I didn't capture a lot of this amazing place. 


December 6, 2022






All around Rome - 2022

A day traveling around Rome.

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Stone Door

 

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Wear caused by water makes it look like he is losing lunch


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Famous Fountain Di Trevi

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Postcard view

 

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What you actually see

 

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What you actually see !


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Office building entrance and self-portrait

 

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Spanish Steps, famous scalinata (monumental staircase)


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Sign at a park


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A few Roman scenics

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Obelisk
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Street scene


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Lots of obelisks in Rome

 

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Pantheon- a temple dedicated to all the gods

 

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Fire hose outlet with accompaniments

 

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A little fuzzy; shot through car window

 The Colosseum

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Postcard view

 

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What you actually see


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Ruins in black and white

Click here to go to all my Rome images

December 5, 2022


New guests in 2023

Welcome to 2023!

Our quiet pond, usually occupied by a small quackery of ducks and a few other birds, has seen an influx of visitors over the last several days. The visitors include seagulls, pelicans and an alarming number of turkey buzzards (over thirty yesterday). Thus far this morning only the ducks and a couple of pelicans are out and about.

Hanging out in and around the pond... 01_23 birds DSC00509_Localtone
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These guys, observing in a corner away from the maddening crowd, are part of our usual menagerie.
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01_23 birds DSC00509_Localtone

Turkey buzzards... why are they visiting?
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Like at the beach, when it gets too crowded, some leave...
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01_23 birds DSC00541 -1

Meanwhile, the turkey buzzards circled in the air currents above the pond, looking very ominous.
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01_23 birds DSC00541 -1
01/09/23
 


A Drive around Rome: Part 1- The Vatican

The first stop on our drive around Rome was the Vatican. 

Almost an overwhelming number of people, but our driver took us to a less-used entrance to St. Peter's Square. We were told the line into St. Peter's Basilica was so long that almost half the people in line might not make it in before everything closed that night.

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Ruth about to be engulfed by the only group that were not tourists

 

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If you look very carefully at the right background you can see the line to get in.


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Wilson guarding a fountain. Does he look like a Vatican Guard?

 

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Another view with people


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St. Peter's Basilica, a traditional view

 

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Another view of the fountain, no Wilson but better lighting.

 

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A side street beside the Vatican

 

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A very nice upscale tourist shop and art gallery


 12/05/22