Powdered Holes

After the work day is over, the people who actually keep 

the city functioning begin their shifts.

Under the glare of LED lights, utility workers

enter the netherworld of Indy's buildings

to maintain the heating, electrical and

telecommunications systems that the accountants,

attorneys, and administrative workers need

to perform their jobs.

I saw these men working near the intersection 

of Pennsylvania and Ohio Streets, where

they dug through several inches of asphalt and

concrete to lift the heavy steel covers,

giving them access to the steam ducts below.

It appears that, in addition to the near-daylight 

quality of the lighting, the men are using 

saws that somehow don't allow the concrete 

dust to blow all over. Instead, it's made

a tidy pile around the perimeter of the hole. 

Looking for Lines

This building at the southeast corner of Pennsylvania 

and Ohio Streets, is actually pretty boring 

to look at. The architects broke up the flat, gray expanse 

of windows and granite with a pattern that, 

for all intents, could be a tartan -- or a window pane plaid.

I've taken plenty of pictures of it in the past, mostly to show 

the melty reflections in its windows made by 

the sunrise or sunset. This time, I tried to show some

of the lines and angles that make up  its exterior.

Looking for lines is what I do, I guess, whether

it's taking pictures or trying to find the words

to put with them. In fact, I was in the coffee shop

opposite this building when words occurred to me,

words for which I need a picture. I haven't found it yet.

There's no accounting for the pleasure

just looking at you brings me.

Your broad shoulders and strong hands

speak of the power to protect and

of a thousand tender caresses.

You watch the younger women with

taut, firm bodies and curves,

inviting you to explore their secrets.

I am older, with secrets of my own to give,

shrouded in a body worn by the years,

and pale skin showing the map

to my heart. 

This heart, whose beat is strong and low,

quietly stoking a constant fire

that feeds a secret of its own --

that I love you.

Steamy @ 10 Degrees F

Looking south on Pennsylvania Street 

the other night, I noticed a cloud of steam 

rising just above the parked cars. 

Picking up the color of the street lights,

the steam cast an eerie yellow glow over 

the neighborhood as it pushed upward 

from the pipes below the street.

Grid with Yellow Curve

I was just walking along the street with a latte in one hand, 

my tote over my shoulder, and my camera 

in my pocket, entertaining fantasies of one sort

or another when I saw it -

a grid of bricks with the grid patterns

of a building reflected in a rain puddle -

the medium and its use in one picture with

a nice yellow curve to accent it.

I practically genuflected to get the curve

at a usable angle. Whew.

Iron Lace

I was taking pictures of the brick exterior walls of some buildings 

in downtown Indy. I turned around and looked up to see

what looked like lace trim, adding grace and beauty to the otherwise

dull facade of Circle Centre Mall.

When mall construction was planned nearly twenty

years ago, the Indiana Landmarks Foundation

required that the facades of many old buildings be incorporated 

into the new construction. Over the years the ILF had acquired a number

of the facades, which they saved and stored for future use.

The facade of the old Vajen Exchange block, constructed in 1872, 

was saved from the original structure had stood at 120 North Pennsylvania.

It is one of four structures that add interest, warmth, and variation

to the east exterior of the Mall.

Gray Plaid Grids

At the intersection of Pennsylvania and Ohio Streets.
The building on the left is M&I Bank, that on the Right is the Chase Tower. 

Earlier this week, I was waiting for the bus at the intersection of Ohio and Pennsylvania Streets. It was late afternoon and the shadows were beginning to add depth and angles to the grid-like patterns on the taller buildings. The grids and their variations are the predominant theme among the newer buildings  in the downtown area. Devoid of curves and flourishes, the buildings that make up Indy's skyline resemble folded gray paper and Tranformers grown amok. The older buildings that are left provide the warmth, character and the lace.

Scaffolding a half block north of the intersection
on North Pennsylvania Street.

The scaffolding, located at a building just north of the intersection on North Pennsylvania Street, has been erected so that workmen can repair and repaint the stucco, creates a pattern of its own. The sun reflecting off the angled bracing reminds me of an Argyle sweater.

I looked down and saw the pattern in the covering to a freight elevator shaft. There, within a few feet was a texture of diagonals to echo that of the scaffolding. Not so much Argyle as big fluffy yarns.