Tag: Adventure

The Windy City - Chicago Rocks

The Windy City – Chicago Rocks

Posted on by Tressie
The view from my hotel room

The last weekend in October, I left my family for a short trip to Chicago.  The “official” purpose of the trip was the Zenfolio Zoom Tour, where I would learn about all kinds of ways to make my website better.  Hopefully in the next few months I will be implementing what I learned.

“Unofficially”, I wanted to take pictures in Chicago and visit with my dear friend Vicki.

I signed up for a workshop with John Batdorff, to walk the streets of Chicago and to see it from the perspective of a resident.  I was not disappointed – no only did John show me lots of cool places to shoot, I learned a lot about shooting subjects that do not have eyes.  This is a struggle for me you know.

With John, I practiced seeing in black and white – spotting patterns within a scene or subject, and thinking about black and white conversions while I shoot.  I am by no means a landscape or architectural photographer, but I love how learning an unfamiliar type of photography can bring so many ideas and inspiration to the type of photography that I DO shoot.  And it was FUN.  Between shooting locations John and I chit chatted about our families, our photography, and very interesting things like the difference between a Booty Call and a Butt Dial.  But that’s a story for a different day.

Don’t forget to look up!!

A bonus Chicago tip from John:  The Ghirardelli store gives out a free chocolate to each person that walks in.  Dessert on John! (don’t worry, I won’t tell everyone you’re a cheap date)

Lunch with Vicki, shopping on the Miracle Mile, and some street performances rounded out the trip.  (Vicki I won’t tell the story about how you mailed post cards to my girls 4 years after they were written…love you xo)

I think I need to do this more often…



Even the pigeons were cold
Yay for beautiful friendships…
Flat Stanley Adventures Continue

Flat Stanley Adventures Continue

Posted on by Tressie

Remember Flat Stanley?  You can read about his last adventure here, when Alex sent him to Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio.  Most recently, our family was requested to host him right here in Chelsea, Michigan, so the Flat Stanley adventures continue!

A big thank you to sweet Dayton for sending Flat Stanley here – we had a great time with him, and hope he enjoyed his visit.

Flat Stanley returned to Dayton with the following letter:

Dear Dayton,
Thank you for sending me to Chelsea, Michigan!!  I arrived on Wednesday, May 1, and it was 84 degrees and sunny.  Surprising, since just a week or so before that it had been snowing.  I sure am glad I had nicer weather for my visit.

I spent my time in Chelsea with the Davis family – Tressie and Rob, and their kids Riley (10), Alex (7) and Robby (5).  Dominic is away at college so I didn’t get to see him (though I had a great visit with him earlier this year when Alex sent me to visit him at Wittenberg University in Ohio).
The Davis family kept me busy.  The first thing we did was choose an outfit for me so I would fit in here in Chelsea.  Do you like my University of Michigan t-shirt?  There are a lot of UofM fans in Chelsea.  There are fans of other Michigan schools too, but… those people don’t really count. (haha)
Chelsea is a really great city, with so much to do.  A vibrant downtown boasts great food, art and entertainment.  This is even more apparent during the warm months when Chelsea hosts Sounds and Sights every Thursday evening – sculpture walks, food, local brew, outdoor movies, and literally music on almost every street corner with diverse line up of musical artists performing at staged areas.  It isn’t quite summer yet though, so spring sports and site seeing is what we did.
On Saturday Riley had a softball tournament that was an hour and a half away (first tournament for a long summer of softball!).  I decided to stay with Alex and Robby and go to their hockey and soccer games since those were in Chelsea. 
The first stop was Robby’s hockey game at the ArcticColiseum.  Brrrr…it’s cold in there!  But it sure was fun watching the super cute mini hockey players. 
After the ice rink we had a little extra time before Alex and Robby’s soccer games, so we stopped at Pierce park, where the Chelsea ROCK is.  The ROCK is a giant boulder that people in Chelsea paint to send messages of all kinds – from congrats, to happy birthday, or other fun things.  The day we visited it matched my shirt – how cool is that?
I have sent you pictures of some of the cool sites in Chelsea.  The clock tower is a favorite of many residents, isn’t it beautiful?  It used to be a water tower for the Glazier Stove Company in the early 1900s. 
Directly across the railroad tracks is the Chelsea Depot – a gorgeous historic train station built in 1880.  Service at the station closed in 1981, but through the efforts of the Chelsea Depot Association, restoration efforts began in 1986.  In 1987 Chelsea Depot was listed on the National Register of Historic places. 
Just to the west of the clock tower is something very yummy.  Did you know that Chelsea is the home of Jiffy Mix?  Their cornbread muffin mix is my favorite.
There are lots of places that I wanted to visit, but didn’t get a chance to on this trip – like the Purple Rose Theater, The Chelsea Teddy Bear Factory and Timber Town.  
 
Maybe next time I visit you can come with me? 
Love,
Flat Stanley
xo
 
ps – want to see a cool video made about Chelsea by Jeff Daniels?  You can check it out HERE

I love St. Louis!

I love St. Louis!

Posted on by Tressie

This post was originally published on January 17, 2010 on my Tressie Davis Photography blog.  Since I am no longer blogging there, I thought I would re-share some of my favorite posts here.  I have edited a few things (like the layout of the photos), but the story is the same.
Enjoy!

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

In January of 2010 I was required to travel for business (my day job), and while most times I would protest, I have to admit that this was a pretty awesome trip. We flew in to St Louis (my boss and I), and since I had never been there before we took the opportunity to wander around and enjoy every spare minute until we had to make the two hour trip to our hotel in Marion, IL. First stop was Union Station – recommended by a co-worker that knew I had visited Michigan Central Station in Detroit, I wanted to see what St. Louis had done with their precious bit of history – I was so enthralled, I asked to have my reservation for my last night switched to the Marriott that is there now. More on that later…

We arrived at the famous Arch just before sundown, the perfect time for pictures! I barely noticed the wind and 15 below wind chill…I suppose I will never live down the fact that I was lying in the snow to get some of the pics…


Fast forward through the business part of my trip, and on my last night I drove back to Union Station. Some of you are familiar with my exciting exploration of the abandoned Michigan Central Station last spring – if you have not seen it already, be sure to check out the MCS blog post HERE.

 

St. Louis Union Station and Michigan Central Station have a similar history, Union Station in operation from 1894 – 1978 and MCS in operation from 1913 (after the previous MCS burned) – 1988; both stations closing with the decline of rail travel. Both stations fell into ruin, but this is where the similarities end. While Michigan Central Station remains empty and dilapidated, victim to thieves and vandals, St. Louis Union station was re-opened in 1985 after a 150 million dollar renovation. And there lies my excitement…

 

The outside of St. Louis Union Station looks like a castle, with a 280 foot clock tower. (in comparison to the 18 storey/230 foot Michigan Central Station). Walking in, I saw all that Michigan Central Station should be. Having experienced both buildings, the contrast was striking – in St. Louis a precious bit of history restored and saved, in Detroit our history forgotten and left in ruin. I wandered and explored St. Louis Union Station, trying to capture similar images of the restored station that I had previously taken of MCS. The great room is a grand expanse of beautifully detailed arches and stained glass windows, the tile and romanesque decor exactly what I would imagine it was in 1894. Arched doorways and columned balconies, intricate carving on the walls and columns, period statues – everywhere I looked there was more to see. In the shopping center portion of the building, Trompe-l’œil adorned the walls in sharp contrast to the graffitti seen at MCS. The photos I am posting here do not do the beauty of this building justice. Be sure to check out the pics at the bottom of this blog post – there are some comparisons to photos taken in MCS.

 

I was fortunate to be able to stay overnight in this exceptionally striking and historic building, and greatly enjoyed the hospitality of all of the folks that work there – everyone excited to talk about the beautiful structure and the history behind it, as well as the current struggles to keep this saved bit of history open and operating. I am hoping that with the upturn in the economy, St. Louis Union station will continue to operate, grow and prosper.


And…just a tiny bit more sight seeing before I headed for the airport. To the other side of the river to photograph the city, then back to the Arch for a trip to the top. Whew – all that AND business completed.

I LOVE ST. LOUIS!

 

A comparison of the two stations:

The exterior – St. Louis Union Station on top, MCS below
Graffitti vs Trompe-l’œil and Interior Halls

Great Room

Can you tell I like Train Stations?  What bits of history do you love?

Do You Know Flat Stanley?

Do You Know Flat Stanley?

Posted on by Tressie

Do you know Flat Stanley?  

According to Wikipedia: Flat Stanley is a 1964 children’s book written by Jeff Brown (January 1, 1926 – December 3, 2003) and originally illustrated byTomi Ungerer. It is the first in a series of books featuring Stanley Lambchop.

 In 1995 Dale Hubert, a third grade teacher in Canada, started the Flat Stanley Project.  The idea involved school children creating a Flat Stanley and keeping a journal with stories and pictures of Flat Stanley’s adventures.  They would then exchange their Flat Stanley and journals with students in another class that had signed up for the project.

Since the original idea was formed, the project has undergone many evolutions, including sending a blank Flat Stanley to a location to be decorated in the customary or traditional costume of the area.

What the project meant to my daughters second grade class is that they each colored a Flat Stanley and mailed him off to the friend or family member of their choice and requested photos and a story in return.  My daughter Alex chose to send her Flat Stanley to her brother Dom in college (after briefly considering sending him to a friend of ours currently living in China)

This is what Alex received back with her Flat Stanley:

November 2012
Flat Stanley visits Wittenberg University
Dear Alex,
I have always wanted to know what college life was like, so I was very excited when you sent me to Wittenberg University to visit your big brother Dominic.
The first thing I noticed as I left the mailroom with Dominic was that there are lots of very big, very old buildings, and giant pretty trees.  The signs say that Wittenberg University was founded in 1845, so that explains its beautiful historic look.
As I looked around, I spied the tallest building on campus, and wondered what it was.  Imagine my surprise when I discovered that it was the dorm where Dominic’s room is!  It’s called Tower Hall, and Dominic’s room is in the “penthouse” – the top floor of the building. 
Dominic took me up to his room, and I loved looking out of the window.  I’m sure I could see all of Springfield, Ohio from there – and maybe beyond!!  The photo I sent does not do the view justice.
Attending class with Dominic was a lot like going to school back in Chelsea.  Only a lot more people in class, and Dominic doesn’t get recess.  
When we returned from class, I got to meet Dominic’s roommate Colton, and I played video games with him for a while.   It turns out that dorms are very social places.  Dominic and Colton kept their door open, and people walking by would stop in and visit, or just say hi as they walked by.  At one point Dominic put me on the bulletin board on the door, so I could watch the students and wave to them as they passed by.
Did I say that the dorm was full of football players?  Well it is.  Dominic and Colton play football too, and they took me down to the football field to see where they play.  I was surprised to see how much it looked like the Chelsea High School Football field and stands – well, except for all of the red.  There was even a hill on the sides of the field where kids can roll down with their friends!
I was having so much fun with Dominic and his friends, that I totally lost track of time, I’m so sorry that it took me so long to return to Chelsea.  I had so much fun, and I can’t wait to go back.  Or maybe next time you will send me to China? J
Love,
Flat Stanley
 
Flat Stanely with Dom’s roommate Colton, and The Tower where Dom and Colton live
Flat Stanley looking out the window at Springfield, and hanging out on the door
Flat Stanley visits Wittenberg University!!