photographs of abandoned places #40

 North Presbyterian 1886-87 Cleveland

  National Register of Historic Places 1974,  last service October 2012 

Operating the building proved to costly to the diminished congregation. They went a few blocks east, on the same street, and have services in the new Lutheran Ministries building. They left behind this 1936 Wicks pipe organ, built in Highland Illinois, and the bell they brought over from their mother church (First Presbyterian).

These two fotos show the Akron Plan of church interiors. Certain Protestant denominations in the last decades of the 19th century used a design that appeared in Akron. The worship space would not be angular, but round or semi-round; and from it would radiate other smaller rooms, which may be open to view the service, or closed for instruction, or other purposes. This congregation began as a Sunday school in 1859 of First Presbyterian (Old Stone), and such architecture was built to correspond to that purpose. To my eyes, it is akin to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre with private booths in the balcony. The film, "Judas and the Black Messiah", used the church as one of its Cleveland filming sites.

more of the Akron Plan room units

ladder in shaft to roof

rose window above main entrance

Some of the windows have plastic sheeting overlaid. Some glass is missing in some windows.

Some of the windows have buckled.

 Behind the glass there are opportunistic (weed) trees in autumn color.

Some congregations installed colorful leaded windows, but only in geometric component pieces.

No one is behind the window. Outside above the main entrance arch is a stone ornament.

Tlaxochimaco & Xócotl (h)uetzi

 

These two fotos are part of the large presentation in front of the former iconostasis, in the former St. Mary Romanian Orthodox church, now part of Cleveland Public Theatre. The left side (which these two pictures show part) represent what would reflect the Mexica (Aztecs) before the arrival of the Spanish. The right side reflects on the present time. I spoke to the artist. She told me, the Western Christian misidentified as gods, what would be elements. Their old calendar had 18 months of 20 days, and five other days. The two late summer months would be the time to celebrate, and acknowledge the dead. After Mexico was christianised, these celebrations melded with the Western Christian (Catholic) All Saints, and All Souls on the first two days of November.

smoke and incense

part of Altar#5 by Rebekah Trevino and others are for the unnamed dead migrants that are found dead in their trek.

lower portion Altar#4 Los Portales by Kristy Ellen Kmit has a Zen influence

see previous posts: 2021,  2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2013.

Slava Ukraini

 

Students of Gilmour Academy painted rocks for the Ukrainian cause.

Zelenskij is an admirable leader.

Karma peruses the stones.

There was some sort of video photography going on.

The trident is a symbol of Ukraine.

Volodymyr the Great, ruler of Kievan Rus' (980–1015)

Slava Ukraini.

Spooky

Beginning on Tuesday night, and then through the darkness it was it was rainy and windy. Driving by this house, a woman was about to get in her car. She saw me with a camera through the car window, and insisted to pick everything up. This horse skeleton had fallen in the bushes.

Aunt Patti was on the floor, the waiter's head was off, and the glass had fallen. She was in a rush, and did pack a lot of stuff in a smallish front yard.

Fester's head (far left) needed to be lifted up, and the casket to be opened.

At Lakewood Spooky Pooch, saw Cruella de Vil with a man, she was not with Dr. Oz. Surprised.

Scooby is Brigsby, Shaggy and Velma are Dan and Marley i read.

"Just like a ghost, you've been a-hauntin' my dreams
So I'll propose... on Halloween
Love is kinda crazy with a spooky little girl like you
Spooky"

Great dragon guarding her treasure in Bay Village.

[foto jz; much better than mine, which was too dark]

Hallowe'en 2022 continued, w/ dogs

Some witches of Parma, notice to the right of the red witch. vvvarrroooom

Only Christmas has more concentrated lawn decorations than Hallowe'en. The weather is generally better in October than December.  Hallowe'en imagination has a greater variety, and directions to go. Some are worth seeing, and i have photographed them before. A couple of days before at two different locations in Old Brooklyn, i was stopped by a passing driver, and congratulated for my display. I told them, they are not mine, i only stopped to snap pictures. Of the different directions to go, one is child friendly, and another is for small children. What i have no liking for are the serial killers from the movies. Hallowe'en is not meant for gory horror, especially not of psychopaths.

for the holiday, orange and black flamingos in Parma

fair warning in Seven Hills

People were killed in 1692-3 in the city, and now they generate money for it.

Lakewood had their annual Spooky Pooch Parade. Masquerade for dogs and their people. Friendly crowd, good event for children, although it is adults who predominate, and for some reason--heavy police presence.

Women in Black 

The only good foto of people during the parade to-day. Better pictures are taken beforehand, until the mass of people are too dense. Eleven times i was about to snap a foto, and some chick steps in front of the subject.

Cerebus

Puppuccinos were given out.

meeting of the day

Gomez Addams, almost a perennial, sometimes more than one

2022 Miscellany #14

Old Brooklyn, Cleveland 

A lot of fotos in this post. Some are of annual events, some are of public places that are available to everyone, some are random sightings while travelling to other locations. I think, all are interesting in that, they stand out from the drabness that is overwhelming. 

 

This journal is named, "a voice from the rustbelt". The rustbelt is the northeast, and the middle west. The rustbelt is urbanised, and has been diminished in influence as the west coast, southwest, and other parts of the sunbelt have gained prominence. Yet, there are many things still in the rustbelt. Not everything here in this journal revolves around, near, or inside of the rustbelt—there is the whole world outside, and there is no vacuum, we intersect, one thing effects other things. The locus here is greater Cleveland. At one time Cleveland was the 5th, or 6th most populous city in the United States. Cleveland is in the near middle West [or the Old Northwest] (the far middle West states which do not border the Mississippi are outside the rustbelt). Chicago is the capital city, and Cleveland was the chief city in the eastern province. Cleveland shares much cultural milieu with the western cities of the northeast, Buffalo and Pittsburgh. Many great fortunes were centered here, and some of that was spent on edifices, and objects, and institutions that are still extant. Of course, most of the populace never enjoyed these things when they were created; but some are available to the public. Members of the rabble created institutions also, and were, and are the residents and denizens. The name is patterned after "a voice in the wilderness", not that there is much of a comparison to John the Baptiser. It is a voice that says something (he believes is important) which is ignored, or deemed unimportant, or not listened to by others.

Krazy Cops, Columbus Parade, Murray Hill Road, Little Italy, Cleveland

one of several faux gargoyles on Garfield Monument, Lake View Cemetery

Items used for ceremony to open the dragons' eyes at Dragon Boat Races Lorain Ohio.

St. Michael the Archangel (Orthodox), Broadview Heights Ohio, The Three Holy Youths (Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego), from the 3rd chapter of Daniel.  [click]

In America, it is more common for an Orthodox church to have a scene from the Old Testament.

entrance to tunnel under Lake Road at Huntington Metropark, artwork by Bernadette Glorioso & students from Incarnate Word Academy

ladybug on golden rod in Seven Hills

I was near Langston Hughes Branch Cleveland Public Library to return a book that i read [click].  Painted on the wall was a poem he wrote at 17, "The Negro Speaks of Rivers". The historical marker outside has it as his best known poem. I had thought "Harlem", or "Let America Be America Again".

 

For people without much money, almost everywhere it is not easy to get by, and there are few resources to enjoy. To go out with the family may cost more than an hundred dollars, or even to go to a show with someone. But in the area around Cuyahoga County there are excellent libraries, and metroparks. And here is the odd point, all those are tax supported, taxes that are voted upon. When levies are on the ballot for the parks, and the libraries—they invariably win. 

 

One political party, the Repukes, always complain about taxes. The local media always cheerleads for levies for schools, fire, and police. These are all paid for services. If good services are wanted, they have to be paid for. Local governments' most expensive outlay is often the police department. The Repukes always cry, and scare people about crime (they mean street crime, and not white collar crimes, or sedition), and they say they support police forces. The rich have more income than anyone—no shit. The taxes they hate the most are income taxes.

 

When taxes come back to state, and local governments, when Repukes are in charge they spend that money, and not always what it was meant for, and they sometime lower local taxes (income taxes, which by definition, the largess benefits the rich). In reality, the country is under taxed; and the Repukes are greedy hypocrites, who game the system.

Mayfield Wildcat mascot, Columbus Day Parade

Piccola Italia, that's what my father called it.

clever sign: Vote and tell them, "Ruth sent me"

We know this sign refers to the Dobbs decision overthrowing Roe vs. Wade concerning abortion. There are many things to vote for, against, and on. This year, maybe in other years to come too, the chief vote is whether democracy will be allowed. If democracy is permitted to survive this time, the issue may come again; if democracy loses this time, we cannot guess if it comes back.

man and friend, Lorain Ohio

trees in autumn color Wade Park Avenue, Cleveland