Coca-Cola Corner

Here’s a photo from a corner in Slatington, Pennsylvania, USA. I’m not sure what the name of this place is, either Kurt’s Korner or Homeslate Sports Bar. Kurt’s has the sign above, but Homeslate shows up on the Coca-Cola painting on the wall.

Doesn’t matter. I’ve driven past this place about three hundred thousand times in my life. Okay, not that many but I grew up a couple of towns away and this place was frequently on my route to somewhere else, especially when fuel was cheap. Ah, those were the days, sometimes.

As might be gleaned from the name of the town, Slatington was once surrounded by slate quarries. It was a prosperous business for a while, especially before the advent of asphalt shingles. All those roofs of a  growing America needed something to keep the rain off of our ancestors. Of course, nothing lasts forever. The slate pits filled with water after they were abandoned.

I’ve been known to crisscross the northeast United States in search of such places. Sometimes I find people who were alive during the glory days of these old-time industries. They love to chat about the past. Often times they explain unique solutions to everyday living that were actually commonplace in an age before computers and modern appliances.

As mentioned before, I’m going to start photographing these people and writing down as much of what I learn from them as is practical. At the moment, I can’t remember where, but various historians are taking oral histories from people in order to build a record of the past that is from many more first-hand sources. It seems like I’m duplicating their efforts. Nonetheless, why not? In the first place, those who have gone before me deserve a record of their accomplishments. Second, who knows what comes of such writing? I remember my early days in Aruba. Plenty of people told me stories about the island and their lives. Then, some years later, I was writing An Island Away. If not for the people I met there, the story would never have come about.

Just like the Coca-Cola tagline, my thinking is that life… “It’s the real thing.”

Published in: on July 3, 2008 at 2:26 pm  Leave a Comment  
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Creating Atmosphere, Part 2

And now we go inside two different cathedrals, each with its own particular atmosphere. The first one is the Cathedral in Seville, Spain. Construction began in 1402. Here Columbus is entombed. From this city sailed the conquistadors to a world unkown to Europeans, and this is a look at the interior of their massive center of worship.

Icons and statues stare down from every ledge. The space is darkened by shadows cast by the massive columns, one of which is under repair as seen on the right side of this photo. The weight of this building presses down relentlessly. The windows are relatively small as is typical of the gothic style, offering little light and no escape.

A much newer cathedral can be found in Madrid. This is the Almudena Cathedral, begun in 1883 and completed in 1993. It has an entirely different atmosphere.

Thanks to more modern building techniques, the windows are much larger, illuminating the entire space more evenly. The eye is drawn upward along columns that seem lighter thanks to the brighter color. Here’s another look.

The windows of the celestory at the top of the frame shine gloriously with the same warm sunlight that brings visitors from darker climes to Spain.

Both of these locations exude their own sense of space, presenting the visitor with two unique experiences. So it is in a good story. What are your favorite spaces? What places leave a dramatic impression on you? Let me know.

Published in: on July 3, 2008 at 10:15 am  Comments (4)  
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Creating Atmosphere, Part 1

In the course of writing a book, one of the challenges is to create the atmosphere in which the story unfolds. The setting could be the frozen tundra or the tropics but simply stating where a character is doesn’t do the job. There are elements that have to be added to give a sense of the place, a mood, a feeling in the readers mind. The greatest writers do this without the reader realizing it.

I’ve always enjoyed visiting old churches be they big or small. Of course a cathedral is the epitome of the form and I’ve visited them in England, France, Spain, and the United States. Talk about atmosphere, these places are loaded with it. For example, while in Seville, Spain, I spotted this delivery of candles.

They weren’t going to the massive cathedral there, but rather to a much smaller church in another neighborhood. However, the size of these candles is impressive. Their light is more than the average taper. They will certainly cast shadows among the old stones, worn wooden pews, and gazing icons inside. The faint scent of burning wax, mixed with incense and old dust, will lurk in the sanctuary. Interiors like that are enough to make the goose-bumps pop. See Creating Atmosphere, Part 2 for a look at this first hand.

And that’s part of the fun of writing a story. The writer has the pleasure of creating the world. Of course, he also has to take responsibility for it and that can be a daunting challenge.

Published in: on July 3, 2008 at 9:07 am  Leave a Comment  
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Grand Central

Yes, below is a photograph of Grand Central Terminal in New York City. This is the one Cornelius Vanderbuilt plunked down for all to admire. It is a handsome structure, one used by literally millions of people every week.

Grand Central straddles Park Avenue. A taxi traveling north or south must go around the building. Just a few blocks north is the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. To the south is more of Manhattan. The trains coming and going from Grand Central connect the city not only to the suburbs, but to the world. Let’s go inside.

This is the main hall which now features a couple of good restaurants from which you can have a nice meal and watch all the people. Naturally on the next level down is a massive news stand, a bookstore, as well as several other shops. On the lowest level, where passengers actually board trains, there is a food court with seating, sanitary facilities, and a few other things like shoe-shines stands and such.

Back up at street level you will find this market on the east side of the building.

It is hard to walk through here without getting hungry. There is a butcher, a fish monger, several bakeries, Murray’s Cheese shop, fruit stands, flower seller, a few prepared food vendors, and a deli counter. And it smells great in there, a true culinary delight, with the most difficult part being the decision on what to have for dinner.

Grand Central is one of the crown jewels of New York City. If you plan to visit, put a stop here on your itinerary. Not only is it a magnificent building, it is also a way to experience the vibrancy of the city. The people here are on the move. They have places to be and things to do. Their energy is contagious. And if for no other reason, it’s a great place to have a snack or an ICE COLD Coca-Cola. Enjoy it and all that New York has to offer.

Published in: on July 3, 2008 at 12:04 am  Comments (1)  
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