Architecture re-visited

I almost rode yesterday. It was cold, so cold that we turned the furnace on. And it was windy, 21mph steady winds with gusts to 30. But the sun was out and . . .

I had gotten my tights out of the drawer, I located my jacket. I filled the water bottles and sat on the steps looking out the window. And finally didn't go. Good sense prevails, I think. That would have been a miserable ride.

Warmer today, lighter winds, but in the end still a day which draws the distinction of being the first appearance of my jacket at this end of the season. But a nice enough day to be on the bike and it ended up being a just fine ride.

I headed out towards the south and immediately passed the corn field. There was not a single goose to be seen anywhere among the remnants. The large concentration of geese seen in the earlier blurry photo made short work of the wasted corn. It was a bit eerie though, after there having been so many geese there the last time to now find the field bereft of fowl. (Blogger's note: "bereft" inserted to please one of the known readers, you know who you are.)

I ended up in Desnoyer Park and here's the architectural wonder that I failed to choose for photographing the last time I was over there.The book says this is a Spanish-Moorish fantasy built for an artist who probably never lived in it. Painter Nicholas Brewer, known for his portraits, worked all around the US but maintained his home base in Saint Paul. In 1925 he commissioned this exotic looking house on a hilly lot with views of the Mississippi. Its most distinctive feature is pictured here, a pergola-like log frame that extends across one corner of the roof.

From the exact spot where I straddled my bicycle and took the above photo I turned my body from left twist to right twist and got another shot of the house that I like.The architecture critic is entitled to his educated opinion but I like this one better.