Author Archives: geek

MTA’s Flatbush-Empire Substation

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I took another tour with New York Transit Museum today. This one of the Flatbush-Empire Substation, formally known as Old Prospect Park Substation. It was constructed in the early 1900s to originally provide power for Brooklyn trolleys and then was used to provide power to the subways. Sadly, the substation sits right above where the Malbone Street disaster occurred, where approximately 100 people lost their lives in 1918 when an untrained conductor was operating a subway train during a labor dispute. The substation played a role in the disaster when the circuit breakers tripped at the station from the train accident, and the substation operator restored power to the rail thereby electrocuting any victims on the tracks because the system operators thought the breakers had tripped due to a prank by strikers.

The substation originally converted AC power from the grid to DC using rotary convertors. Now they use modern thingamajigs that are not nearly so cool looking. The downstairs of the substation has all the old unused parts, not to mention all the hazardous chemicals that had to be removed. There are capacitors where PCBs had clearly been removed, and other places painted with a white sealant after asbestos had been removed. Upstairs is where the boring gray boxes filled with modern electronics that actually do the work now are. The substation does not have a working rotary convertor by the way. The only one left owned by MTA is at Substation #13 (see that post for photos and video).

Rotary convertor

Rotary convertor

Switch for rotary convertor

Cables coming up from grid underground

Electric busbar panel board

Electric bus

On top bus panel board

Ammeter

Ammeter

Electric switches

Third rail

Modern breakers

Batteries in case of loss of power to grid

Fun House

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Every summer, the National Building Museum has its summer block party, as they call it, with some sort of fun structure inside their grand atrium. Past block parties have included The Maze, The Beach, Hive, and Icebergs. This year is Fun House, which was created by Snarkitecture, as a compilation of other creations of theirs. The Beach was one of their creations. Fun House is a house of sorts with a series of room and “yard” structures, each of which feature a different type setting and interactive pieces. I really don’t know how to describe it other than that. I have thus given the areas and rooms various descriptive names to try to describe the structure. So let me take you though Fun House.

In the front yard, are a series of cushion type benches that spell out “FUN HOUSE”.

Front yard

Fun House itself looks like a house of sorts with a partial ceiling and partial wall. It is made out of lumber, I think, and the front is made out of, or covered in, a polymer-foam type material (similar to styrofoam).

View of front of Fun House

Front and side of Fun House

The front entrance is more of a tunnel dug out of the foam structure.

Front entrance

From the front entrance, you can walk straight into the front hall, which has white sneaker-looking like pieces hanging from the ceiling.

Hallway ceiling

From the front entrance, you can also turn into a cave-looking like area dug out of the foam building material.

Dig room [with random child for scale]

The dig room leads to another room that connects to the entrance hall. This room is characterized by strips of fabric of various lengths hanging from the ceiling.

Fabric strip room to dig room

Fabric strip room

Ceiling of fabric strip room

The fabric strip room then leads to living room, which features rather impractical furniture.

Living room

Living room

The living room then leads to an open room with examples of Snarkitecture’s work. This room then leads to the bathroom. The bathroom features a closet door that opens to a shower of sorts which has an air blower blowing tiny pieces of tissue into a sealed area.

Shower

The bathroom also features a tub of plastic balls, which is called the Beach Chair, as it features balls from The Beach. It also has clothes and towels that match the tile wall.

Bathtub

The bathroom then leads to a room featuring the largest marble chase structure I have ever seen.

Marble run

The back porch is a bunch of square cushions, which children happily find new arrangements for, and a roof of giant air filled tubes.

Back porch

Back porch

Behind the house is a tunnel of sorts that plays with perspective by having the floor slope up and roof slope down.

Backyard

Backyard

Behind the tunnel like structure is the pool and small kids’ pool, which are small versions of The Beach.

Pool

Pool

The upper levels provides a better views of all the structures.

Looking down on pool

Looking down on pool and back of Fun House

Looking down on side of Fun House

Looking down on side of Fun House

The Art of Burning Man

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The Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Renwick Gallery is currently showing only one exhibit, which is No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man. The exhibit is amazing. The art is fun and beautiful and huge and completely unique and so many other positive modifiers that would fill a page. The pieces are like nothing I have ever seen before. They are also set in the space in a perfect manner because so many of the pieces are about light, and they are placed to allow that interaction with light.

One of my favorites was Shrumen Lumen, which changes colors and also changes the shapes of the mushroom like figures. It is one of those things you have to see in person. The shadows of HYBYCOZO are relaxing and mesmerizing. I could have taken photos from different angles all day.

“Truth is Beauty” by Marco Cochrane

“Truth is Beauty” by Marco Cochrane

“Temple” by David Best

“Shrumen Lumen” by FoldHaus Art Collective

“Shrumen Lumen” by FoldHaus Art Collective

“Shrumen Lumen” by FoldHaus Art Collective

“Shrumen Lumen” by FoldHaus Art Collective

“HYBYCOZO” by Yelena Filipchuk and Serge Beaulieu

“HYBYCOZO” by Yelena Filipchuk and Serge Beaulieu

“HYBYCOZO” by Yelena Filipchuk and Serge Beaulieu

Maine State Capitol

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I’m continuing my quest to see all the state capitol buildings. I am in Maine, so I detoured through Augusta to add Maine to the list. Maine’s state house is one of the least opulent I have seen. The tour guide even mentioned that it was not gilded, as that is not Maine’s way, and they were also not given the budget for it. Thus, there is lovely architecture and some marble tile floors, but no gold leaf, marble columns, or bronze this or that everywhere. There is a complete lack of painted murals. The building has clearly been renovated, but in a respectful manner to the original architecture. My favorite feature of the building is the second floor balcony which looks out to a large park and has rocking chairs on it.

Exterior view of front of capitol

Stairwell from center of building

Fireplace

Capitol dome

House chamber

House chamber

Senate chamber

Senate chamber ceiling

View from front balcony

Rocking chairs on balcony

Elevator

Penobscot Narrows Bridge

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While traveling though Maine, we drove over the Penobscot Narrows Bridge, which is a lovely cable-stayed bridge. Cable-stayed bridges are my favorite kind of bridges. I love their simple elegance and functionality. The Penobscot Narrows Bridge is unique in that it has an observatory on top of one of the pylons. Who would have thought to put an observatory on top of a pylon? Next to the bridge, you can also walk onto a small portion of the old Waldo-Hancock Bridge. The Waldo-Hancock Bridge was suspension bridge built in 1931. It ultimately had to be taken down due to heavy corrosion of the main cables. The Waldo-Hancock Bridge was replaced with the Penobscot Narrows Bridge in 2006.

A thunderstorm passed by right before we entered the pylon, so in the below photos taken from the observatory, there are some of out of focus areas. I waited until the storm passed before taking the photos, but the windows still had raindrops on the glass, so the photos are not completely clear.

Penobscot Narrows Bridge

Small deck of the former Waldo-Hancock Bridge

Looking south from the base of the Penobscot Narrows Bridge pylon

Looking north from the base of the Penobscot Narrows Bridge pylon to an old pier of the Waldo-Hancock Bridge

Looking east from the Penobscot Narrows Bridge pylon observatory

Looking north from the Penobscot Narrows Bridge pylon observatory

Looking south from the Penobscot Narrows Bridge pylon observatory

Looking west from the Penobscot Narrows Bridge pylon observatory

Acadia National Park

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While visiting Maine, we took a whirlwind trip though Acadia National Park. The park is spectacular. There are wonderful views from Cadillac Mountain and along the coast. While we were there, a fog rolled in and provided mysterious and obscured views. Based on the views, I have come to the realization that Maine’s coast is just a series of rock outcroppings.

View from Cadillac Mountain

View from Cadillac Mountain, to the left is the sand bar of Bar Harbor.

View from Cadillac Mountain

View from Cadillac Mountain

Pink granite cliffs

Pink granite cliffs with river rock beach

Fog settling over boats in harbor

Beach Rose

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Scattered across Maine’s Blue Hill Peninsula and Deer Island is a pretty plant known as beach rose. A bit of internet searching leads me to understand that unfortunately this pretty plant is invasive. It is still pretty though, and I enjoyed photographing it.

Beach rose

Beach rose with beetle

Beach rosebud

Beach rose hips, immature

Beach rose hips, ripe

Blue Hill Peninsula of Maine

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I’m visiting a relative who lives in Maine’s Blue Hill Peninsula, and today she gave us a tour of the area including Deer Island. The area is a combination of forests, grasslands, and seashore, which one visits via very windy and hilly roads. On these roads and in the few towns of the area are beautiful old houses. Many of the houses have beautiful gardens that seem to show how much the residents relish the summer and relief of the long, cold winters. The residents of the area also use lobster buoys for various non-lobster uses including decorating.

Deer Isle Bridge

Stonington Harbor

New lobster buoys for sale (probably for non-lobster purposes)

Old lobster buoys for sale

Stonington

Stonington

World’s Smallest Bookstore

Lobster traps ready for use

Naskeag Point

Tomato Hornworm

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Where there are tomato plants, there will be tomato hornworms. This one was found on my relatives tomato plant. This is one of those life forms that you don’t want on a plant, but it is really neat to look at and photograph.

Tomato Hornworm

Tomato Hornworm

Tomato Hornworm

Fungus

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I love to photograph fungus. I don’t know why, but I do. I don’t really like to eat fungus, but I like looking at it. More accurately I suppose, I like looking at the fruiting bodies of fungus. I’m in an area of New York that is filled with forest, and they have recently gotten a lot of rain. Fungus are growing and reproducing in earnest. I’m visiting relatives, and in one small area on their property, I spotted what I guess are at least six different types of fungus. So I went crazy with my camera.