Yesterday in Westfield

I was in Westfield yesterday visiting my sister. I see that work is still underway on the Westfield town common, but it's still unclear what they're up to.



Nearby this Union soldier from the 1800's keeps silent vigil over the changing surroundings.



Inside the Westfield Athenaeum is this wall mural showing the exact same Union statue in olden times.



That mural looks to me as if it were done by the same artist that did the Emily Dickinson mural in Amherst. There was also an art display at the Athenaeum by someone named Truman Egleston.



Not bad, but I think Egleston's work is more decorative than artistic. In any case they are expensive decorations, with paintings starting at $10,000 apiece.

I'm not sure what to make of this good sportsman billboard in Westfield.



Helped injured opponent win? Hey, I can see helping your injured opponent, but to the point where they win the game? I'm all for good sportsmanship, but there's no point in being a damn fool about it.

Here I am at my sister's house, posing by her Janis Joplin wall covering.



Later some more relatives came by and we all went out to eat at Bickford's.



Like a lot of Irish families I have a ton of relatives, including ones I don't even know in Westfield. My father used to say that his father told him that we had relatives in Westfield that our branch of the family had become estranged from long ago. My father didn't know the reason for the split, which I guess is a classic case of Irish Alzheimer's - you forget everything but the grudges. Most likely one of the Westfield Devine's did something unforgivable to my grandfather, like refused to lend him money or buy him a drink.

Meanwhile, I stopped by Northampton City Hall the other day to buy a bus pass and noticed these signs promoting voting registration.



Many mid-term elections are a bore, but this year our nation's future hangs in the balance. Don't miss the chance to elect two new congressmen - Tom Wesley and Bill Gunn.



A sign on a bus in downtown Hamp.



T-shirts in the window of the Northampton gaystore.



A reclining Buddha greets weary travelers to this Hamp door.



Getting way out there in Easthampton yesterday.



Springfield's bridge over the mighty Connecticut by Mark T. Alamed.